Redhawk Caldera Kangaroo court

All of the key players in her life knew about her (possible) plans, save for one: @Nightjar. Wildfire had made a few attempts to track down her brother, though if she was being honest with herself, they were a little halfhearted. She dreaded his reaction, as she sensed it wouldn't be as easygoing as most others'. Wildfire couldn't stand the thought of upsetting or angering her brother. But if she was going to be an adult (in less than a month!), she needed to stiffen her upper lip and own her (possible) choices.

Ignoring the cold October drizzle, Wildfire stepped onto an open clearing along the caldera's ridge and tipped her head toward the misting sky. She squeezed her amber eyes shut and opened her smudged muzzle, howling her brother's name. If he was home, he would hear her. Her heart pounded in her chest as he song tapered away. She forced herself to sit, though she fidgeted. Much as she loved her brother—because she loved him so much—Wildfire was not looking forward to this conversation.

Nightjar's spirits were high as he followed a chipmunk through the trees around the rendezvous site. Perhaps because of his uncanny instincts and good senses, he was able to see or smell it rather reliably. His ears left something to be desired, but occasionally the munk would dart through the branches on his good side and his ear would lift responsively. The other one hung to the side as it oft did, useless save for body language. The chipmunk would find escape easiest on his left side, but of course, it didn't know that. It only knew that a wolf was following it, though it was quite safe in the trees.

The adolescent panted lightly as he sprang to the right, sensing the chipmunk heading in that direction, but his steps faltered when a howl hit the sky. He still couldn't really tell what they meant in specifics; he heard only noise, and a strong pull to attend that noise. His snout lifted skyward and he joined his sister's chorus before heading off in that direction. If the call hadn't been for him, he'd find out sooner or later, as he often did.

He found Wildfire sitting prim and proper near the edge of the caldera's claim. His eyes went to her tail, which twitched cat-like along the ground, but any perceived restlessness was probably the result of his sister's wanderlust. He'd long come to accept that aspect of her personality. So he drew near, none the wiser that he was the source of her nerves, and chuffed a brotherly greeting with a high wag of his tail.

When he howled back, she jumped, then laughed at herself. She realized her muscles were almost painfully tense and she tried to relax. Her brother's opinion meant so much to her and it was time to face the music. Much as she tried, Wildfire could not coax her muscles to obey her will. She gave up just as Nightjar strode up to her, her entire body momentarily going rigid but then softening slightly when she saw his happy body language.

"Hey NJ, I need to talk to you," Wildfire began, her heart suddenly skipping a beat. It really was now or never. Why did she feel a sudden and almost overwhelming sense of foreboding? Why did her chest hurt? Trying to ignore these things, the youth got straight to the point. "When Aunt Flea went missing, my friends Charon and Floki helped me look for her. I told them I owed them and they asked me to join their new pack. It's called Moonspear and it's not far from here. I haven't made a decision yet but I think I may end up going there. I remember mom and dad telling me how upset their pack mates at the plateau were when they left abruptly, so I wanted to make sure I gave everyone the heads up."

Realizing she was babbling, Wildfire clapped her mouth shut and dug her upper teeth into her bottom lip. She was having a hard time dragging her eyes to Nightjar's face but she forced herself. Simultaneously, she braced herself for the displeasure she sensed coming, all the while hoping her brother would surprise her with a positive reaction.

Feel free to have him cut her off mid-ramble. ;)

He seated himself opposite his sister and curled his tail around his haunch when she announced that they needed to have a talk. Nightjar wasn't much of a talker, but maybe because of that, he was an okay listener, or so he thought. In sooth, he was actually not a good listener at all, and tended to hear what he wanted rather than what was actually being said. In fact, that would become painfully obvious in less than twenty seconds, because when Wildfire said, they want me to join their pack, what Nightjar heard was, I'm not part of this pack anymore, and everything after that went in one ear and out the other.

For as soon as she announced that, the little figurative scissors in his head went, snip, and she was no longer his pack mate, but a rival who needed removing.

The transformation was very sudden. One minute the male was sitting there calmly, eyes cast around Wildfire's cheek, posture respectful and open. The next minute his shoulders came forward as he closed off, his eyes snapped to hers, his ears went forward and his muzzle wrinkled. She was his sister—always would be his sister—but to Nightjar, a wild wolf with only wild senses, dutiful love and very little in the way of emotional love, a sister who left was no better than a stranger out there. And so there was no anger, because Nightjar didn't fault her for leaving—all young wolves, even himself, had felt the call of nature and the desire to disperse—but there was no acceptance, no gentle goodbye, either. She could choose to leave and he would remove her right now as he felt was fit, but she could never return on his watch.

He found his paws quickly enough and stepped forward, intent on crowding Wildfire until she did leave the pack, and then she would join his list of wolves to chase away if she got too close. His heart would beat painfully every time, but that was how shit went in his world. He would miss her, but he wouldn't treat her differently than any other outsider. He wouldn't hurt her while herding her out, but if she returned, that would be a different story, no matter how much it hurt him in the process. His loyalty was to the caldera and the wolves who called it home, and no one else, not even his beloved sister.

She held her breath as she waited for the inevitable growls or the unexpected reassurance. Neither of those things happened. The only thing he did was bare his teeth, which Wildfire knew better than to take personally. She blinked slowly, waiting for the ax to fall but daring to hope. When he stood, she let out a quiet breath, assuming he was just going to grumpily make his exit. That was fine, of course. He could take his time to digest the news.

But Nightjar didn't go anywhere. In fact, he moved toward her. Wildfire slowly leaned backward, then was forced to her feet when he crowded her. Although she was less instinctively driven than him, it slowly dawned on her what he was doing. She looked around frantically, as if hoping their mother or father might call him off, but of course there was no one there.

"NJ, wait," she begged. She mentally scrambled for what else to say to make her brother understand she wasn't ready yet, she hadn't made a formal decision, she hadn't said her goodbyes... but Wildfire just sputtered. Nightjar wouldn't understand any of that. He was just doing his job, even if it meant turning on her in a way.

Deep down, Wildfire knew she couldn't blame him. While everyone else tolerated her wavering loyalties, she knew he saw things as much more black and white. Perhaps the others would let her sit here and waffle, day after day, but Nightjar was forcing her to make a decision. Maybe this was even the push she needed, even though this was not the ideal departure she had envisioned.

And she couldn't let go of that vision too readily. "I haven't said a proper goodbye to anyone," she said in a pleading voice, aware that it was likely going to have no effect on Nightjar. "I'm not even sure I want to go. I don't want to miss out on mom and dad's new babies or our adult ranks next month. Please, NJ..." But even as she made her case, she began to walk, subconsciously letting her brother usher her out.

Like much of Wildfire's initial statement, what she said now went in one ear and out the other. Dumb though he was, Nightjar wasn't particularly susceptible to pleading or bribery, which made him an excellent warden. Unfortunately for Wildfire, it made him a pretty shoddy relative. He did falter when she said she hadn't had time to say her goodbyes, but his brow furrowed and his resolve hardened. She could easily summon those she wanted to say goodbye to, outside the caldera, like anyone else. Of her indecision, he had no thoughts, because the pervading thought would've been, why did you need to talk then. She'd called him here, and now he was making her choice for her, whether she liked it or not.

Expressing even the faintest hint of disloyalty was enough reason for Nightjar.

So he continued to advance, spurred on by her retreat, with that same intimidating expression that promised a greater threat if she refused. Wildfire was no longer a Redhawk Caldera wolf and Nightjar would be damned if he didn't send her on her way. This was what Peregrine and Fox would've wanted, anyway. He didn't believe his parents would want Wildfire sticking around with disloyal thoughts in her head, especially with a new brood in the making. Of course, Nightjar had no idea what his parents wanted, but if he was them, it was this.

He punctuated his next step with a growl, a low and ominous sound that might as well have said, beat it.

He was implacable, pushing her toward the borders and giving no heed to her pleas. Wildfire hadn't expected this. Caught off guard, she found herself shuffling away from him, allowing herself to be herded toward the caldera's outskirts. She briefly wondered what he would do if she resisted him. Would he really attack his own sister? When she glanced at his stony expression, it removed all doubt. Yes, he would remove her by force if necessary. Wildfire's lips parted in dismay, yet no sound came out as she continued to move unwittingly toward the territory's fringes.

As they came closer to the open grasslands around their home (correction: his home) and she saw the caldera rising up behind Nightjar, Wildfire felt a desperate impulse to push past him and flee up the mount. Surely their parents would not let him hurt her. But what if he caught her before she could get to them? Her brother would treat her like a trespasser. He would probably kill her. Her stomach seemed to drop into her feet.

"Nightjar, please..." she whispered. But there was no way to un-ring the bell, she knew. He would never let her pass. Right now, it was difficult not to take it personally and feel both hurt and upset, though she knew he was only acting on instinct. It was unexpected but impersonal. He really had made her decision for her. Perhaps this was the simplest way, if not the easiest.

"I'm going," she announced even as they reached the outskirts, her body language complementing her words as Wildfire crouched, black tail tucked. "But do me one last favor, as my brother," she said, enunciating the word in the hopes she could override Nightjar's feral side just for a moment. "Tell them I didn't abandon them. Tell them the truth." Tell them you gave me no choice, she thought but bit her tongue.

She stopped near where the caldera's foothills became Meadowlark Prairie, planting her feet. She knew she could (and likely would) howl to tell her family members the news. However, she still wanted to make sure Nightjar told them what had happened here. Wildfire didn't think they would hold it against him. And she had already let everyone know she might be leaving. But she was desperate for them to understand that she hadn't meant to cut and run like this.

He was surprised she so readily complied, but supposed he shouldn't have been. She'd already made her decision, hadn't she? To inform him of the possibility only entailed that it was more than that, an actual idea, or so he believed. While he wasn't too clever and drew the wrong conclusion entirely, he caught on to the suspicion and held onto it, using it as his justification. His get-out-of-jail-free card, at her expense.

But Wildfire wouldn't let all of it be at her expense. She turned and he lifted his lip and intensified his growl, but it wasn't enough to prevent her words from ringing clear in spite of her hushed voice. Her body lowered and his guard hairs shifted flatter, but his face remained cold as he regarded her. Her words made his heart squeeze painfully, and at last he unfurled his tongue and grate out, "I will."

One could argue all day about whether it was abandonment or not, but the truth was that Wildfire hadn't left without a word, and her family probably saw it coming. Maybe moreso than Nightjar himself, who had just single-handedly accelerated the process. Lying wasn't really his thing, anyway. When she moved away from the borders, he stayed planted on the border to ensure she did leave.

Her howl put a queer lump in his throat, but though he would miss Wildfire dearly and though he didn't like doing this, this was the only way he knew. He only ever did what was natural, and removing someone with wavering loyalty, no matter who they were, was the natural way of things.

Goodness, I love how you play him. You can either post once more for 10 or just archive this; up to you! :) <3

She didn't actually expect him to acknowledge her or make a reply. But Nightjar surprised her once again, saying simply, "I will." For some inexplicable reason, his voice caused her lower lip to tremble. Would she ever hear his voice again? Would it ever contain warmth for her? She imagined that they would get past this one day, though she knew Nightjar was a homebody who wouldn't have much patience for her lingering at the borders. She wasn't sure the two of them would ever share the same patch of ground easily again.

And he wasn't the only one she was losing today, of course. There were her parents, her sister, Elwood, Finley and Jr... Wildfire's eyes began to swim, yet she blinked back the tears. She looked at Nightjar, then past him, to her former homeland. Her heart rose into her throat. This was really it. She simultaneously wanted to throw up and cry. Once again, she was tempted to dart past him and make a run for it. Or maybe she could sneak back later.

But the finality of everything settled into the pit of her stomach like curdled milk. With a stitch in her chest, Wildfire turned her back on her brother and everyone else at the caldera, including the misshapen mountain itself. Still denying herself the cathartic relief that crying would bring, she began to walk, then jog, then run full tilt, heading toward the trees of Bramblepoint, where she would gather herself and howl her final farewell.