Heron Lake Plateau mac and cheese calzone

Some backstory/explanation!

For the past two weeks, Phox had been under @Raven's care, slowly recovering and healing from his most obvious wound: the left side of his face. He had told the others what had happened, and not an hour went by that he didn't want to pursue Camilla and her attacker. But in his current shape, he knew he couldn't. Not only that, he was pretty sure it would be quite frowned upon. He had used up his one "get out of jail free" card when he had come back only a few months ago. Camilla was on her own, and there was nothing he could do about it without jeopardizing everything he had worked so hard for.

Feeling more up to it today, Phox told Raven he would come back intermittently to get checked on, but he wouldn't be needing her constant attention any longer. Things had been rocky in the beginning, and a fever had even taken him for a few days, but he had pulled through in the end under his sister/mother's attentive care. After much fussing, she did allow him to depart, and Phox sought out @Towhee, hoping to track her down and... what, he wasn't sure. Just use her as a (deaf) sounding board, probably. He hadn't wanted to wax on to Raven, lest Quixote came milling about.

Over time, Niamh began to emerge from her den and set about hunting, after having made a deal about spreading dismembered coyote parts about the borders along the thicket. She hoped that it would ward them off for the winter and that they would interpret that as a sign that there was a bona fide coyote killer in the pack. She'd noticed that a tail had gone missing- an odd scrap of bristly hair and bone to lose, but something may have made off with it for some strange reason or other. She chose not to dwell on it. But when she passed along the borders, she didn't catch the scent of any live coyotes so she was appeased. 

She had heard via Towhee what had happened to Phox and she didn't quite know what to make of it. The whole Phox/Camilla relationship was beyond her, though she had been the one to allow Camilla to join the pack, so naturally she'd noticed some sort of dependency between the two of them- though more on Camilla's end. Apparently she'd been seized by the wolf that had been pursuing her, and Phox hadn't been able to ptotect her...And no others had apparently been close enough to help out, either. She herself had likely been holed up in her den like a sick rabbit, so poor Phox had been on his own trying to save her. She felt sad and angry about the whole thing, but only a small bit; she still felt delirious and numb most of the time. 

Still, she'd heard he'd been keeping with Raven, to heal up, and as much as she was continuing to avoid Quixote- did he even know about Bruges? He'd left her well enough alone, and she was grateful for that...But also a tad spiteful. If he'd cared, he would have checked in on her. She still couldn't bring herself to respect him, and the idea of leaving still remained in her mind like a seed waiting to be watered. Being careful to scent her way to Raven's den to see if both Raven and Quixote would be there, she crept along, pausing in her steps when she caught Phox's scent growing stronger. He must've left. She felt thankful that she wouldn't have to go and face either Raven or Quixote- for the time being. It was inevitable. 

She tracked her way toward him using her sense of smell, and winced inwardly when she caught sight of him in the distance. So Towhee hadn't been exaggerating; someone had pretty much chewed Phox's face to ribbons. Still, he was alive, and he would continue to heal over time. He had a determined look on his....Face, even though it was a bit harder to read his expression with his wounds. She neared, but hesitated, not sure if he wanted to be bothered. She simply waved her tail as a means of showing him she was there, but would bugger off if he didn't also make his way toward her.

Life had taken on a strange rhythm lately: between patrols, Towhee rotated between visiting Phox and Niamh at their separate resting places, waiting for them to heal from their respective wounds. Winter arrived without fanfare somewhere in there and the Beta missed her brother's warmth at their thicket, though she didn't complain. In fact, she grew rather quiet as the cold settled about the plateau: introspective, you might say. There was a lot to contemplate, between her thoughts on Quixote's leadership and wondering about the rumored sister pack. She had spoken to Wildfire recently and learned that it was happening sooner than later, sometime in the next few weeks.

She wrapped up her latest circuit and climbed back onto the plateau proper, hunching against a wintry wind that whipped at her back. She crossed the territory's breadth, moving hastily, but came up short when she spotted not one but two familiar figures. Towhee smiled wanly as she hurried toward her People, trying to avoid looking too closely at Phox's face. Honestly, it made her really angry that he'd gotten mutilated for his feeble wannabe wife. Towhee hadn't brought it up, though the fury burned deep inside her.

She made no indication of this hidden sentiment as she drew up closer and signed, -The three stooges reunite at long last.-

His mother and father had both been missing an eye, hadn't they? His was still intact by some miracle, but it did feel like a right of passage. He was no longer a feeble boy, but a hardened man. He had fought another, and that was something. He had not won, but he had not perished.

Niamh crossed his path first, and that funny feeling came back. From what he understood, Colt was not coming back. That meant— well, nevermind what that meant. He shook the thought from his head. When he looked up, Towhee was there, and he caught "stooges reunite at long last."

-Seems to be what we are,- he signed.

Niamh wasn't sure how to cross the topic of Camilla's abduction with Phox- as she wasn't exactly sure how much she meant to him. Obviously, more than she'd expected, given the fact he'd risked his life to try and save her. She wasn't sure why, but that thought made her feel angry- whether it was jealousy, or the fact that someone had dared to hurt one of her packmates, she couldn't tell, but Niamh was the vengeful sort anyway, and hated to think that any of her packmates could ever be touched by an outsider. She admired him for trying to save Camilla, regardless of what she meant to him, and though it stressed her out to see him injured, she was glad he was home and healing. He was, after all, her Person's brother- and having lost one of her own, she would never want Towhee to go through that same pain. 

Towhee then showed up shortly after Niamh caught sight of Phox, and she immediately felt drawn into their company. Few others would have had that same impact on her, as she'd been quite content to mope on her own, bar the moments when she had a visitor. Towhee's comment and Phox's reaction made her nod, and she might've smiled had she been in better spirits. She wasn't sure what a stooge was, but she assumed it was a good thing, and meant to be funny.

She rubbed her muzzle against Towhee's shoulder in greeting, but was hesitant to do the same to Phox- both because clearly, he was still partially claimed by Camilla (or however that relationship worked...All she knew was what Towhee had told her) and because she didn't want to poke at any sore muscles. She did regard him fondly, though, and turned her ears back in deference as she gently touched her nose to one of his ears, a featherlike and gentle motion. -Three bucaneers,- She signed in addition- unaware that her reference was wrong, but it sounded like something that Bruges had used to describe her cousins. -You feeling OK?- She then signed to Phox, ears lifting, hoping that he might have a positive answer. Her question was ambiguous- as she knew he was likely both grieving the loss of his Camilla and the pain from the fight.

What the heck was a "buck an ear"? Towhee's head tilted, though before she could question Niamh, the blonde she-wolf spoke to her brother. Towhee licked her lips, glancing briefly at Phox's face before looking slightly off to the side. This way, she could pick up on his signing without having to look too directly at his mutilated face. It occurred to her that her brother would almost certainly noticed her avoidance and probably think she found him ugly or something. That wasn't the case, of course, though there was nothing to be done for it.

-Buck-a-whats?- he asked, but the answer didn't really matter. Probably just a made-up word meant to lighten the mood. Then again, what exactly was a stooge? Maybe it was best left unknown, as he couldn't imagine Towhee saying anything too nice to him. Speaking of Towhee... she seemed to be avoiding eye contact with him all together. He blinked, but he tried not to overthink it. It didn't occur to him that somebody might not want to look at his still-healing wound.

-Okay is probably the right word,- he said. -I don't know if there's anything to be done about Camilla. I feel fucking awful for letting them get away. When I found her, I told her I'd protect her, and now...- Well, they knew what had happened. He'd failed. He couldn't go after them, or he'd risk losing Towhee again. As much as he wasn't sure how to admit it, he did miss having her around. Sure she was odd, but he felt like she had just started to break out of the very thick shell that surrounded her on all sides.

Bucaneers? She got odd looks from both Towhee and Phox, and she simply shrugged. She couldn't really explain what it was that Bruges had meant  by saying that- but it'd never seemed like a bad thing. Then again, Bruges did have a tendency to look down his nose at everyone...And the thought made her frown. He did that to everyone but her. She was his little sister, and Bruges- though he'd picked on her from time to time, he'd never treated her like she was inferior to him, unlike how he treated everyone but his littermate, Fey. And now he was gone. She tried to push the memory from her mind and clenched her jaw. 

Phox spoke, but as she'd expected, didn't really reference his pain levels much, and chose instead to talk about Camilla. Niamh felt more or less the same way about Camilla as Towhee did, as she'd heard more about Camilla from Towhee than she'd been able to witness for herself. Still, she felt bad knowing that Camilla meant enough to Phox for him to stand up for her like that...And now she was gone, obviously with someone who was dangerous enough to take Phox down. 

-You did everything you could.- She said. He had to know it wasn't his fault. -You can't always protect everyone you love.- She signed dismally, seeking Phox's gaze long enough so he knew what she meant- and who she was referencing. -If he was that desperate to get her, she's definitely still alive, and we can find her yet.-

She was glad Niamh stepped up to comfort Phox, because there wasn't much Towhee had to say on the matter. She'd never wished harm on Camilla but she didn't think hers was a huge loss for the Redhawks or even her brother. Sure, he'd miss her for a little while but then she'd be old news. Obviously, that was a crass way of looking at it, so the Beta decided not to say anything about it at all.

At least, until a thought hit her. Towhee thought it was probably just as insensitive as its predecessors, though this one she decided to voice. -Camilla and Colt are gone and there's not much we can do about it. But you know what you can do? Hook up with each other. Make me some little People. Just sayin'.- She shrugged and glanced away, feigning total casualness.

Phox hadn't really known what the dynamic had been like between Niamh and Colt, but he'd never gotten a good impression of him. When Niamh referred to a loved one, it didn't even occur to him that she might be talking about her ex-lover. He nodded solemnly, and then Towhee signed, but Phox couldn't even bring himself to begrudgingly smile at her "joke." Maybe Towhee didn't like Camilla, but she also had the completely wrong idea about them. Phox had sworn to protect her, nothing more, nothing less. If there was anything more to their relationship, it was unknown to him.

Taking a page from her own book, he knocked her in the shoulder with his front paw to get her attention. -Towhee, could you not be such an asshole for one goddamn minute?- It was the first time he'd spoken a single bad word to her, but he couldn't help himself. Just because she didn't have any friends outside the two of them didn't mean she had to pretend nobody else mattered to her people.

When Niamh had spoken, she hadn't been referring to Colt, as Towhee had assumed- she'd meant her brother, Bruges. She was slightly surprised that Towhee assumed she'd meant Colt, as she hadn't failed to protect him- she'd cast him out, and that wound was still sore. She frowned softly and lowered her gaze. Towhee was right, but that didn't make it hurt any less. She felt offended that Towhee would simply wave off her feelings about Colt so quickly- even though she assumed it was because, in part, that Towhee possibly hadn't felt that same way about anyone yet- at least not to Niamh's knowledge. So in not knowing that feeling, she couldn't have known how much it hurt to have them torn away. That wasn't to say Towhee hadn't experienced loss- Niamh had been there when Towhee had found Orca's body and had seen the pain it had caused her- but her reaction to the losses suffered by both Niamh and Phox was something Niamh felt was inappropriate. 

Phox pointed that out, sharply, but Niamh kept her gaze fixed on the ground, though her vision began to blur as she was reminded of the fact that she wouldn't be having children that year. She'd had her heart set on having puppies with Colt- and had even picked out names and envisioned their little faces. The fact that Towhee thought she should mate with Phox more or less went clear over her head, but would likely settle into her thoughts later when she reflected back on the whole situation. She sucked in a quick breath- something like a hiccough, and then held it, clenching her jaws together and pointedly avoiding eye contact with both of them. She couldn't cry now...Not now...not now...But the tears didn't listen to her plea.

When she glanced back, it was because her brother had socked her in the arm. Before she could remark on this, she saw Niamh apparently fighting tears. Towhee's mouth opened in surprise. She hadn't intended to hurt anyone's feelings, though that had definitely gone over much worse than she'd anticipated.

She'd already been worn out from patrol and broody from recent events, now she felt like an asshole too. Surely these two knew her well enough to know the comment was trying to make light of a terrible situation outside of their control, though Towhee could admit she really should've kept it to herself.

Not really sure what to say, Towhee just stood there in stony silence for a beat for saying, "I didn't—" She shrugged, biting her lip and looking at Niamh. Had she really made her cry? "Fuck, sorry. You can kick my ass if it'll make you feel better." Pretend I'm Colt, she thought but wisely didn't say.

Towhee apologized, which Phox was thankful for, but Niamh seemed to be really cut up by what Towhee had said. Phox sighed, shaking his head and taking a tentative scoot closer to Niamh, in case she wanted the comfort. He was worried it might come across as being too forward, and he certainly didn't want that, especially after Towhee's off-color comment. There was no point in scolding Towhee further, as she seemed to realize her mistake, although it made him see now how out of tune she seemed to be in more somber situations.

He wanted to tell her to get lost, but it wasn't his place to do so. That was Niamh's call through-and-through.

Niamh continued to hold her breath for a moment, and she could feel both Phox and Towhee looking at her...But she couldn't make eye contact with them just yet. She looked up, hoping that the tears that had formed would just seep back where they'd come from rather than rolling down her cheek, but she did end up having to rub her right cheek against her shoulder to wipe away the moisture that wouldn't simply disappear. Towhee apologized, and it made Niamh feel bad. Her remark should have been funny- but Niamh simply couldn't handle it right at that moment. 

-Nah. I'm sorry. I'm just stupid and sensitive right now.- She said. When she looked back to them, Phox had moved closer, and she feigned a weak smile. -Really. I'll be fine.- She said. -And if I'm not, then you can kick my ass.- She said. Her bravado was brittle at best, but at least she'd made an effort.

-Don't apologize,- Towhee signed back slowly but emphatically. She had been there for many others tears besides these, doing her best to be a supportive friend, and she'd never faulted Niamh for them, nor judged her. She hated that she was the reason for this particular round, though at least her Person didn't seem ready to hold it against her.

Judging by the look on his face and the way he was holding himself, Towhee wasn't sure about Phox. She gave him an inscrutable look, then turned her attention back to Niamh and offered her shoulder a bump with her snout, followed by a lick to the cheek. -I didn't mean anything by it. But I really am sorry.-

She sort of wanted to leave them to it—they'd be much better at empathizing and comforting one another, clearly—but in light of her joke, Towhee was afraid how they'd react. Instead, she proposed, -Let's go chill in the thicket. I'll have X bring us some food.- She didn't often use the hawk this way, though sometimes it was nice to have a free delivery service at her disposal. -All three buck-an-ears, I mean,- she clarified, including Phox despite the closed off way he was looking at her.

Phox watched the apology volley go back and forth between the two of them a little while longer, then Towhee suggested X get them some food. Phox was a hunter by trade, though, and he scoffed at the idea. He felt the tension begin to fade away as quickly as it had settled on them, and his expression toward Towhee softened. How could he stay mad at her for longer than a minute or two?

-There's a cache nearby. We could all grab some food from there and then head to the thicket.- That was a much better plan than trying to get a bird to do their dirty work for them.

Niamh gritted her teeth and did her best to pull herself together. Towhee had apologized, and Niamh could tell that she meant it- so she was forgiven with a wan smile and a mild nod of her head. She would never get Bruges back- and would likely never get Colt back either- but at least she had Phox and Towhee. Though she wasn't particularly hungry, she nodded along with what Towhee had said- and was actually willing to go the skip-the-dishes route with X, until Phox suggested they simply raid a cache and eat what they found there. She shrugged. -Either or.- She said, not particularly hungry, but she was starved for companionship so the three musketeers went off in search of food and a nap.