Blacktail Deer Plateau It's wild like the river, it's warm like the sun

Although the arrivals of Crete and Atticus, the altercation with Jinx and his courtship with Hawkeye all served to divert him for a while, Peregrine could not be distracted forever from the missing piece in his life. As he walked around the edge of the plateau, he thought of one thing only: his sister, Osprey. If she hadn't shown up at the plateau by now, this meant she hadn't followed her brothers' trail. Was she still with the falcons or had she deserted, only to get lost? With a frown on his face, the Omicron contemplated all of these possibilities.

Finally, all the worry built up inside him and he found himself at a ledge, lifting his head toward the blue winter sky, pointing his nose at the noontime sun and howling. It was a deep, mournful noise as he wordlessly lamented the loss of his sister. In the course of his song, he confessed the fear that he would never see her again. During the final notes of his lament, he sought his brothers' ears especially, knowing they would empathize, even if they hadn't been quite as close to Osprey.

Feeling a little better, Peregrine turned and walked slowly into the wood, planning to hunt down Hawkeye eventually. He'd come to learn she valued time alone, so he didn't force his presence upon her, though he checked in with her a few times throughout the day and sometimes even dogged her steps, as if she were prey. He still very much wanted to claim her for his own and he learned much from spending time with her (whether or not she was aware of him), not to mention kept vigilant for advances from other suitors.