Hushed Willows oh, it's definitely the end times

@Mordecai <3

The early evening sky lit up briefly and Banner waited, her ears picking up only the sound of a harsh downpour, before a crack of thunder followed shortly.  She sighed.  On one hand, she appreciated the storm that came in so suddenly just an hour ago.  The rainfall wasn't exactly refreshing, but it worked to break the heat they'd been experiencing over the last couple of days.  Previous summer weather taught her that storms sometimes followed awful heat and so she'd been anticipating it.

That didn't mean she necessarily loved storms, though.  She wasn't afraid of them, but they did make her feel uncomfortable.  Especially when she was caught out with no actual shelter.  The willow trees didn't count.  Wasn't there some kind of warning not to stand under trees during thunder and lighting, anyway?  Banner grumbled a bit and sank back on her haunches, thankful that the willow tree she'd chosen had leaves thick enough to block most of the rain.  Her green gaze shifted toward the direction of the Crook - no, it was too far.  A storm wasn't endless, right?  It was best to stay in place and wait this damn thing out.

She sucked in a breath when the sky lit up again.  Ah, lightning.  The short female tensed up a bit and waited for the thunder's loud, booming response.

good lord it's been literal years since we had a thread together, i realized. @__@

this is verbose on my part as well, i am tired and apparently decided i wanted to work out some things

Another day down and still, he had not picked up a trace of Pippin. He had scoured the lands along the ridges and mountainous terrain beyond the Keep, only for the weather to be the most uncooperative wretch for miles. It seemed the only time it hadn't decided to dump buckets had been when he was willing to retire for the day, far too worn and weary to do much other than drag himself back to the territory and return to Harlyn. Even she had not had her successes; it pained him and at times, served to mount a frustrating string of thoughts.

And at such a time as this as he returned to wind through territory he cared little to pay attention to, he had his regrets of ever leaving the Hollow. Perhaps if they had not left, if they had simply waited out whatever time had been left on the yearly regional disaster counter—in reality, did these things happen annually? He didn't stop to consider—they would have made it out unscathed. Or alternatively, they'd all be dead. It was a vicious cycle that left him mentally weary, lending numbness that he adopted well. He had withdraw from the pack himself, not that he had established knowing them beyond names and faces. The newest of recruits to the Keep had been ignored; he didn't care to know them.

And Tavi, well, he hadn't seen hide nor hair of her. Probably for the best, given the circumstances. A flash of lightning distracted him, jolting him out of his thoughts much in the way it had probably jolted a family of squirrels from whatever tree it struck in the valleys below. He had gone past where he had meant to turn now, hopelessly turned around but not entirely lost. Disoriented was the better word here and it too, sparked a note of dismay that escaped him in a heavy sigh. His steps came to a stop and the deliberation of taking the long way back to his mate and children or just doubling back to cut that time in half began.

RIGHT.  I'm finally starting to feel comfortable rping again - only took a month or two ._.

The following clap of thunder took a fair bit longer than Banner had expected.  Her eyes narrowed at the sky, though she couldn't really make anything out from below the willow tree's thick boughs.  The storm must have been moving quickly.  Good.  At least she wouldn't be stuck here huddling under a tree like a damn fool all day. 

Her bright green gaze slowly fell back to Earth and she could make out a figure through the leaves of the weeping willow.  Mordecai?  Her head tilted as she stood an moved forward.  She parted the branches of the willow tree with her nose and stuck her face out just enough to be able to see the other wolf clearly.  Tall, a mixture of russet fur - yep, that was Mordecai.  What in the world was he doing standing out there in the rain?  Without thinking any further, Banner let out a bark loud enough for the male to hear and be able to discern her location despite the storm raging around them.

She waited with her head sticking out between the branches for a minute before deciding that she probably looked like an idiot and retreated back below the relative safety of the willow's embrace.

it comes and goes for me at times tbh, i spent something like two years not even writing before houkie talked me back into this lmao

Before he came to that final decision, a bark drew away his attention and to the boughs of a nearby willow. It took too long for his gaze to settle on the receding figure to discover who it was, but the movement was enough to draw him in. It wasn't until he was closer that he noticed the smattering of dark fur against the light tree base and more importantly, it was not someone he recognized. Still, if it had been their intent to offer him a bit of shelter, he would take it for now. He was beyond drenched.

He slipped beneath the long tendrils of the willow wordlessly, only giving his coat a good shake out once he had oriented himself better and preferably not to add to the dampness his counterpart shared. The tree didn't really protect them from the rain, but at least the worst of it was someway blocked by the tall standing trunk. And if anything, the storm would eventually pass as well. They all had so far, though the onslaught of them recently had left him wondering if his imaginary black cloud hadn't turned into a literal one.

He didn't say anything to her when he parted through the willow branches to join her in the almost-shelter.  Banner did notice with appreciation that he'd chosen to shake his coat at a distance where she wouldn't be hit by flying droplets.  Well, from his fur, anyway.  The damned willow tree wasn't exactly an impenetrable fortress.  Raindrops were still able to reach her and she frowned, though the gesture was brief.

Mordecai didn't pay her much mind.  Banner watched him through curious green eyes as she sat back on her haunches again.  They'd never had a conversation, never even been properly introduced.  As with most things, she knew of him through Stark.  Her brother always pointed out other wovles when she'd asked about them and the majority of this was done from a distance.  The short female spent her first few weeks in the Keep observing her packmates from afar.  Only now did she have the confidence to actually speak to anyone.

"Sucks to be caught far from the Crook in weather like this," she offered in her low voice, her gaze moving from her damp companion to sweep the area around them - perhaps she'd find another packmate wandering in the rain.

He turned again, this time to face back out at the path he had been on like his darker counterpart. Her words reached him with a turn of an ear and he found to some degree that he agreed. The weather was awful, but then again he had not been overly fond of the arrangements of the Crook either. Mordecai preferred the open air to rest beneath, at least if the weather permitted.

"Could always be worse," he said. "At least neither of us are out in the open valley with no trees." Out there, they probably would have made better lightning rods than wolves. Generally they had the sense to tuck away when the weather turned sour, and had things been a touch different Mordecai would have done it. But the necessity to find Pippin outweighed any concern he had for the elements. Even now, pausing for a little relief from the warm rain, he felt eerily guilty—was his son tucked away somewhere safe?

His solitary gaze wandered, this time to her. There was a note of familiarity about her and he was certain they had crossed paths before. But he hadn't bothered to learn her name, let alone strike a conversation. "You've been here a while? With the pack, I mean. Hopefully not under this tree the entire time." But maybe she had for all he knew.

omg it's my hundo post ._.

"Mhm", she agreed in the way that some do when having weather-related conversations.  If nothing else, it was always an easy subject to fall back on.  There wasn't usually much to these conversations unless fire happened to be raining from the sky, but Banner assumed that she wouldn't be sitting around engaging in idle chit-chat if the end of days were truly upon them.

Surprisingly, his question didn't make her feel awkward.  She wasn't upset that Mordecai didn't instantly know her - they'd never spoken before.  Hell, she had a hard enough time with names and had only remembered his because she'd specifically asked Stark about him.  With tensions high among the leadership in the past couple of weeks, the chocolate female opted to spend most of her time roaming territories outside the Keep.  It kept her busy and away from potentially uncomfortable social situations.  Both were very good things.

Her front paws moved as her weight shifted to one side.  "I think it's been a couple of months now," she began, her brows furrowing as she struggled to remember exactly how long she'd been a Marauder.  "Not under this tree, though."  A low chuckle escaped her maw.  "I'm Banner."

oh no now you're stuck with her... lmao jk. congrats! i feel like i've been stuck in the 1200s for ages.

At least she shared his good humor. The length of time she had been there was longer than his own, though in the present he couldn't help but struggle to recall how long it was that he had been there. So much had happened in such a short span of time. It was hard to know if summer was coming or going at that point, though if he had to guess, it was still doing both. The heat waxed and waned on them, much like the rain. It was of no wonder to him that he could not recall how long he had resided within the borders of the Keep; the reality would have bothered him had he known.

"Mordecai," he returned at the offer of her name. Banner was an easy name to remember, for now. There were plenty of names that were more than a mouthful and just as easily forgotten once they had taken off for some distant sunset. And where the dialogue should have picked up and continued on, he found himself faltering for words. Instead his head had turned back out towards the wet scenery with another low grumble from the skies. His distractions were not concealed by any stretch of the imagination.

that's a whole lot of posts, dude! (:

Just as his name was simply given, so was it recieved.  Banner nodded politely, internally proud of herself that she'd properly identified someone based on face and name.  That was a first.  The name exchange didn't do much for converation, but she wasn't bothered by that.  It didn't take a social butterfly to tell that something was on his mind.  Probably more than one something.  That she could relate to.

Banner cleared her throat, which sounded hoarse and awkward against the steady backdrop of rainfall.  "Were you in the middle of something when the rain started?" she asked, her low voice a bit louder to compensate for the background noise.  It was difficult for her to tell what the right thing to ask was in this situation - so many wolves in these parts were talkers.  A pointed question here or there kept conversation going for what felt like (several painful) hours.  But she appreciated that Mordecai was different in this regard.  Maybe with age came the wisdom to be more selective with one's words.

if only i had more free time, haha, i would dread to think how high i could drive it in a short amount of time...

And selective he was, thinking over the answer to her question. He didn't know whether or not she knew. Her question implied it, but he had learned a long time ago what implications were good for and when. Banner's query wasn't the thing that troubled him. It was the notion that he did not know who he could trust outside of his kin. Ayishik and Shikoba had left them both and outside of his family, he barely knew the occupants within the Crook. Even they had changed in their minute ways.

"I was," he sighed. "I was looking for my boy, Pippin. He went missing a few days ago." His words felt hollow, but they were genuine; the halting statement only turned up because he could not find a steady voice. There were only a few ranges with him when it came to emotion and this one, this prickling dissatisfaction that had rubbed him raw he could not outright name. It wasn't anger and he surely thought it was not fear. It wasn't the anxiety that had pressed into him to return to Harlyn and their children some weeks ago. Maybe it was all of those things, neatly packaged and tied with a crude bow.

Mordecai shook his head then, clearing his throat. Maybe he was just tired.

"This damn weather won't cooperate, it seems like every other time I set out to find some trace of him, it rains. Washes that notion right out of your head. As if things couldn't be any worse," and again he caught himself, feeling the sharp edge of bitterness caving in, the rise of his tone honing that point.

Boy?  Pippin.  Banner's eyes fell to the damp ground, the gears in her mind working.  Other pups existed in Marauder's Keep, sure, but she'd only known of Tambourine.  That kid was a handful by himself.  Octavia had been hiding away with him lately, though, and she hadn't seen either of them around.  She'd shut out just about everyone, even Stark.  Her heart constricted as she hurt for him.  Lifting her gaze, she realized that her heart hurt for Mordecai, too, though they had no relationship to speak of.  Pippin had been missing for days.  Days.  Was he old enough to survive on his own for an extended period of time?

Clenching her teeth, Banner bowed her head low despite her male companion looking elsewhere.  His words were so bitter.  She couldn't blame him.  Parenthood was so far from her mind, but losing family.. that was a loss she'd felt, something she could hold on to.  The thought of losing her brother, her very dearest friend, and being unable to find him despite hours upon hours of searching - the dark female wasn't sure she could come back from angish of that kind.  "I'm sorry," she offered, the words feeling inadequate to properly express the dept of emotion she felt for him.

"When.. when was the last time you saw him?"  Her voice felt strangled as she asked.

Silence lapsed between them for only a moment, but when it was broken he found that her words sounded genuine. But they were not enough to immediately sway him into speaking more. Instead he fought with the urge to continue off on some bitter note, having every reason to fire off at the mouth about all that had come about in just a few short days to put such awful things into motion. But perhaps a wiser piece of his mind thought he needed to put it delicately, and that was the attempt he was soon to make.

"A few days ago," he said, though it was more of a reiteration than anything. "There was an... incident of sorts. He took off running in the middle of it, I didn't have a chance to go after him." He had never thought that the boy would have simply kept running, not after the blows he had taken on his own. But adrenaline was a funny thing, and so was willpower. They had all endured enough to either fuel or ruin them and so it seemed not a stretch at all that the two could invert in an instant's notice.

"I've scouted through bits and pieces of the north, and up through the mountains. I've had no luck and Harlyn's in no shape to search for him herself. I haven't even turned up a sign of him here, though I doubt he'd want to stay around here. None of my children are happy here, really." He hardly blamed them, his tone suggested as much. All of this had pushed the cougar well off of his radar and had the beast pursued them this far, it would have surely wreaked havoc by now.

Though hidden beneath her dark brown fur, Banner felt her face drain of color.  An incident.  Mordecai didn't elaborate on the situation, but she knew.  She'd heard about this before but from a different prespective.  Stark's words were simliar - "something that happened" - and used a frustratingly vague description.  She quietly drew in a breath and thought back to that conversation.  Her brother said that Octavia thought one of Harlyn's kids had attacked Tambourine.  That must have been Pippin.  Since then the Alpha females were distant and oddly elusive.

She shook her head as if to clear it.  Banner's ears cupped forward when Mordecai described his search.  Caring for his family didn't leave much extra time to search for Pippin.  Why hadn't she noticed?  Why hadn't anyone said anything?  Guilt pricked at her skin like a thousand tiny needles.  It was similar to the feeling she got when the anger took hold, but this was.. colder.  Instead of beating faster, her heart felt almost sluggish in her chest and she gasped in a breath.  "I can.. I'll help you search for him," she offered suddenly.  Her gaze was on him again, bright green eyes looking determined.  "Stark told me about the incident - or what Octavia told him, anyway.  He.. He said.. something isn't right with her.."  

Obviously something wasn't right!  Everything was wrong in Marauder's Keep and Banner felt that each passing day with no resolutions was just another nail in the coffin.

a wild occasion when mordecai is rambly, oh no. he's said more here than he has in months probably.

If anything, Banner's words affirmed a sinking suspicion in Mordecai's thoughts over the last few days—something was not right with Tavi. He had not entirely been able to pinpoint it for himself and was inclined to chalk it up to his mixed feelings regarding his mate's co-alpha. And if Stark also felt that way, given that he had a much better relationship with her... well, that was just gravy. A knot of tension worked its way into his gut at that thought, and stayed.

"What happened is that a wolverine attacked Harlyn, sent her down cliffside higher up than here. I'm not sure what Tambourine was doing, probably following her, but he was there when Tavi found him," Mordecai explained, roping together the bits and pieces Harlyn had relayed to him after the fact. "Harlyn said he was trying to help her and Tavi—Octavia—well, to me and when I got there she was after Harlyn." His mouth felt dry; he hadn't relayed what he had seen to anyone. The nagging sensation of being choosy with his words remained.

"I don't know Octavia very well at all. We've talked a handful of times, maybe once at length. But the wolf that day was not the same as the one that just called a meeting with us all earlier. There's something off about her now, something's changed." His deviation came thoughtlessly and his one-eyed gaze found its way back to Banner only then. "Pippin must have been following one of us, or heard the commotion. He got involved because he saw me drive Octavia away from Harlyn," or so he believed, "and I didn't see him to stop him. He did go after Tam. Tavi went after him. It was a mess."

Mordecai shook his head dismissively, wondering how much she knew. What version of the story did she have? No doubt one that made them all out to be the big bad, but he considered how well that story would have spread. It apparently hadn't gone far, not that he expected the wavering numbers of the pack to rise up to come and drive them out. Not even Tavi had come around and that he found concerning too. "She hurt him. Pippin. That's part of why I want to find him. This famine's already played hell with him. A few weeks ago he didn't have the energy to enjoy much of anything and now... hell if I know what he's running on." Once again as though it could punctuate a sense of urgency within him, the thunder rolled distantly. More distant than it had been. And he felt more weary than he had minutes ago.

"If you want to help look for him though, I won't say no. I'd appreciate it."

let it all out bb mordecai

Without realizing it, Banner held her breath as Mordecai explained the infamous incident in much better detail than she'd heard before.  To her, it was still not enough to justify Octavia attacking Harlyn, though she doubted that anything outside some wild, conspiracy-laced tale could be considered justification.  And, though she hadn't spoken to Octavia herself, the story Stark relayed seemed to be just that.  Disjointed, not grounded in reality.. something was definitely off here.

Truthfully, Banner didn't know Octavia well, either.  They'd had but one real conversation and it included Stark.  All she'd been told upon joining Marauder's Keep was that discord existed among the ranks over her decisions.  And when Mordecai detailed that Octavia had hurt Pippin, oh, that caused her heart to clench.  She finally let out the breath she'd been holding in a loud woosh - her lungs were burning but she didn't care.  What the actual hell was going on here?  The fear Mordecai's son must have felt when he ran off.. the fear he likely still felt.. it was awful.  The chocolate female let out a low whine, cutting off the very end with a sorrowful sigh.

The emotional impact this conversation had on her wasn't something she'd expected.  She knew it paled in comparison to what Mordecai and his family were going through and as such, Banner did everything she could to reign herself in.  Her reaction would not be a solution.  "Instinct will save him," she said finally.  "We will find him.  And this mess.. we'll figure it out.  Somehow.  I didn't know any of this -  I don't think Stark knows, either.  This is.. this is serious."  Finally she attempted to speak and it came out an incoherent, rambling mess.  The lady Marauder wasn't good with words.  That was Stark's deal.

poor banner, i think she and mordecai are on the same spin cycle in different washing machines. *pats them*

He didn't know whether or not it would work out. It was a silly thing to think because of course it would work out. The real matter was whether or not it would work out the way that he wanted it to. There was no telling what any of them were apt to discover in the days to come. But he did not doubt that instinct would play a part in it; none of his children were lacking in that department. If they had been, chances were there would have been little he could have done to help them and they would have perished somewhere along the way a while back.

Time would ultimately tell and well, Mordecai was not the most patient sort in regards to that. Not over this, anyway. He held his silence as Banner stumbled and started over piecing it all together; once again, Stark's name came up and he felt a flash of something indescribable cross his senses. Another one of Tavi's subordinates he didn't know what to think of, though his initial impression of him had been good. But he guessed that Stark knew where Tavi was, even dared to think that perhaps that was where he was bound to spend his time as well.

"I wouldn't know what story Stark has. I don't care what story he has," though truthfully, that was only half-true. He was curious, but not enough to find out. The needs of his family had come first, they always had. Whatever unity had been put into place seemed squandered now. "I just want to find my son and then I'll figure the rest out."

in different countries!  b is all in land of two year olds and mordecai is in older, wiser land.  as washing machines. *nod*

"I don't care what story he has."

She stiffened at his words.  Well.  Banner bit down on her cheek to keep herself in check - not quite enough to taste blood, but the pain was all the distraction she needed.  The short female took a deep breath, thinking over Mordecai's words and stance on the matter at hand.  Of course he didn't care what Stark had to say, of course he only wanted to find his son.  He was a father, his priority was his own family.  Of course.  All of this made perfect sense.  Wonderfully logical, directly in line with how she'd feel about her own kids.

If she ever had any.

Banner let out the breath she'd been holding and didn't bother keeping quiet - it came out as a frustrated sigh right along with another clap of thunder.  Ears cupped forward, she noticed that it sounded much more distant than before.  Good.  The storm was rolling out and she'd go right along with it.  Clearing her throat, she stood up and moved straight forward, her bright green eyes staring at something she could only imaine existed beyond the thin foliage of the willow tree they'd used for shelter.  "I'll take my leave," she said flatly.  ".. and head South.'

She'd wanted to tell him that she'd go in all directions until Pippin was found, but the words wouldn't come.  Banner parted the willow branches with her nose again and paused for a minute, mostly to watch and listen for more of the storm, though she didn't bother to look over at the older wolf.  He had better things to do than entertain foolish company.

tbh he is old haha. i really didn't think i'd get back into rp when i joined wolf so i was all "eh, four seems like a good age yeah we'll go with this" and now there are times when i almost wish he was just a smidgen younger.

He heard her sigh, that solitary note of frustration, and his interest piqued. But it was a sort of uncomfortable curiosity, as he couldn't quite fathom what may have prompted it. Perhaps it was just the way it had come off, he thought. It was discarded when she rose to go, her voice flat but surprisingly informative. He was surprised that she was willing to aid him, though somewhere inside he knew he would have no real way of knowing whether or not she actually went out to look for Pippin. Still...

"Thank you," he found himself hastily tacking on. This time, his tone was a far cry away from the bitterness that had been so direct. He was grateful, but distinctly weary from it all. Perhaps he was nearly past the point of weariness. Exhaustion would have been a suitable term for how he felt, but he was stubborn enough to keep pushing on. He hadn't traveled the majority of his life just to throw in the towel because the weather was inclement and his son missing.

No, his plans hadn't changed even with Banner helping. He would go back to Harlyn to keep her informed, and then he would keep going.