Dawnlark Plains i hope the roof flies off and i get blown out into space

lots of tags for visibility, this is completely aw! i will most likely be posting with river once someone has joined :)

Somehow, he'd managed to convince @Zamael to cover for him with @Delight— it'll just be a day trip, he'd assured his brother, meaning every word of it. Whatever had possessed him to agree after Alarian's last disappearing act, he was grateful for it, and had made no secret of how much he appreciated the favor. He definitely owed him; he was pretty sure if Delight found out it would be the end of them, the end of him, or both.
Morningside was his destination, but not for @Aditya or @Dawn this time. Actually, he was hoping to catch @Sebastian; recent events had made him realize a few things. First, he didn't know as much as he should about herbs. Second, they definitely needed someone else with more medicinal knowledge; Zamael was the best they had aside from himself. Third, he was a horrible teacher and could hardly be expected to adequately pass on knowledge. But these things could be remedied with guidance— so, off he went.
Of all the things he'd expected to find along the way, a pup had not been one of them. He ran into the boy near the river— a friendly kid, all silver and grey except for his eyes. "River— or Winterbourne— but everyone calls me River 'cause it's shorter, even though Winterbourne is way cooler," he'd introduced himself, and Alarian was immediately charmed. He'd always loved children.
The kid smelled of Morningside, and somehow Alarian had talked him into walking back with him; it had taken some coaxing and name-dropping, but he was relieved when it ultimately worked. God forbid he show up and say "Hey I found one of your kids wandering but I just kind of let him do his thing."
As they approached the borders, he glanced to the silver boy and couldn't help but ask: So where are your parents at, anyway?
"My dad's dead and my mom is sad," The kid told him bluntly, watching the borders with eyes far too hawkish for one so young.
Alarian tried not to wince. I'm sorry. So you uhh— do that a lot? Wander off? All he received was a nod, so he decided to shut up and call for someone— reluctantly, leadership, but he also called for Sebastian.