Moonspear I'm careless when I wear my rebel clothes.

It felt odd, approaching Moonspear from this direction, although there was no mistaking the peak that towered above them. Towhee said nothing as the party of three drew nearer the borders, though she made an emphatic gesture for her comrades to halt well outside the boundary lines. She found her heartbeat accelerated in her chest at the thought of reuniting with @Hydra. Surely her old ally would be glad to see her. She wouldn't know of Towhee's doubts. But for that very reason, the Beta felt slightly discombobulated about the whole thing.

She—they—might as well bite the bullet. -Go ahead and call,- she signed to @Tegan, since he was the would-be ambassador of the group. Towhee shot @Niamh a tight-lipped smile, then let out a breath and prepared herself for Hydra's, @Gannet's and possibly others' arrival.

assuming to get it on his threadlog so I remember <3

When Tegan called, Gannet was close by, though he at first didn't recognize the voice. Still, because he was so near, he shifted routes so that he could intercept, figuring he could be there to backup whoever was actually intended for the summons.

His approach was casual until he caught sight of Towhee. Then he stopped, his eyes widening with surprise and his tail giving a few wags of pleasure. What were they doing here?!

"Hey," he said, smiling. He recognized Tegan then somewhat, though he had grown quite a bit since last time Gannet saw him (I think they were in the pack the same time? Maybe?). Niamh he didn't know, but if she was with Towhee, she must be a Redhawk.

Hydra came swiftly when a call sounded, and noted the scent of Gannet; her tail waved as she thought of him, and she found her pace quickening. When she came to the border she was (pleasantly) surprised to see the face of Towhee, and her stride did not slow as she came upon them. Hydra had thought they had left the Valley entirely due to Blackfeather, but it was clear they must still be around. She supposed if those wolves had returned it might be a wise move to have done so, though she was perplexed by it. They had won the battle; did they not think they could do so on their own turf? 

The tactician in her pondered at these possibilities but readily placed such thoughts aside in favor of approaching her old friend. It had been some time, and Hydra had missed the time they had spent together. Towhee had left without a word, but Hydra supposed she might have done the same. Their priorities were their pack, though their friendship had somehow persisted even despite that. 

Did it still? Did Towhee begrudge her for Gannet remaining? Did she begrudge her for her hatred of her brother, an undying and ugly thing? 

She supposed she would find out. Hydra gracefully picked her way down, and her blue eyes fell upon the many faces. She did not see Orca, who had come the last time... two new faces were beside her. They—with the exception of Towhee—did not look like warriors. Hydra sensed @Lyra near and @Alya near, supportive in the backdrop, though Hydra did not fret. Though her plume presented itself squarely over her hindquarters, her demeanor was not cold and unfeeling; there was a spark of interest present in her eyes, and her tail swayed as she drew nearer. Her eyes switched from Niamh, to Tegan, and then remained upon Towhee, and she stopped only when she was before them. As ever, she was receptive to their presence. She had no reason, or desire, not to be.

Towhee, she greeted, smiling. It had been a while, but the warmth in her tone said words not verbalized: it is good to see you.

Just a cameo! Feel free to skip <3

Lyra, like the others, made for the borders as soon as a howl sounded from just outside their domain. Though she knew Moonspear was fiercely guarded by her siblings and parents both, she was on especially high alert now that the pups were growing bolder by the day. Every time she spotted one near the borders, her mind flitted back to Galaxy, and the overwhelming urge to protect those close to her increased tenfold. So she set off towards the source of the foreign howl at a near gallop, picking up on Hydra and Gannet's trails as she did so.

She arrived just after them, blue eyes focused on the three outsiders that stood at the doorstep of their home, Alya drawing up beside her not a second later. Two she did not recognise — a long-legged girl drenched in shades of honey, and a baby-faced boy who seemed a tad younger than the others. The third, however, was the one whose coat mimicked that of a bird, the one who Hydra had spoke of often. Lyra let her gaze linger on each wolf before finally resting on Towhee, head tilting lightly as she regarded the female. Any friend of Hydra was a friend of hers, yet she was still wary. What was their purpose coming here?

She remained silent, stepping back in sync with her fellow sister and letting the lead head of the Cerberus and the silver Redhawk talk to the trio.

oh frick. it was time. tegan was, first of all, fuckin rekt. this mountain was not easy to climb and despite the athletic shape he was in (thanks to all that running around god knows where doing god knows what) tegan was pretty winded at the top. urhga;ljsdf. towhee signed to him to call, and he took a few deep breathes, trying to sort them out so when they arrived he wasn't still panting and breathing like a gross ass bitch, and then howled. for hydra, specifically, cause thats who towhee knew, but also for gannet and @Whip-- cause he was pretty convinced whip might be here and gannet was totally part of this round up.

gannet approached first, so tegan shot the dude a big ole smile, not looking to see what towhee made of the guys approach. "hey, gannet, howzit--" he began, but was cut short in the distance when a dark shape swept over the summer cliffs. oh holy fuck. tegan's ears angled forward, and if he was a human he would have immediately started sweating. like right away. she approached gracefully, shoulders squared and posture mufuckin regal. tegan was taken aback. raven was pretty good at looking like she belonged in the leadership position-- all tall and majestic and shit-- but this took it to a whole other level.

fuck this bitch was hot. 

tegan's tail was stil swaying gently, but low at his hocks. his head lowered a bit to give a little extra respect for her. right? yeah that was probably correct. when towhee had returned her greeting, tegan spoke up-- cause like, he wasn't gonna step all over towhee's feet (not this time, anyway, hah) while she was meeting her friend, but this was his mission. "hi, my name's tegan, redhawks delta," he began-- did he need to note he was the ambassador? no that was probably pretty clear dumbass-- "it's really nice to meet you, ma'am. we're here to extend a paw in hopes of alliance. we bring news of titmouse-- screech." he really hoped that that would suffice. and by he, i mean me, cause i have nooo idea how to be diplomatic. which, to be fair, probably fits tegan so i'm rolling with it.

Mountains weren't something Niamh had had much experience being around, or climbing- she preferred flatlands to anything else, so the thought of living on a mountain's slope intimidated her slightly. The wolves who lived here surely had to be more sure-footed than most, and likely a bit more resilient to weather changes, as they'd be exposed to strong winds, especially in the winter. The prey would be different, and with the landscape so much more rugged, she could only imagine the wolves that lived there were likely sturdy, strong creatures...Something she admired. 

The first wolf to arrive nd greet them was a pale fellow, who looked to be a year or so older than them. He had a pleasant look about him, a sort of mildness about his lips that proclaimed no devil, so when he approached, tail wagging, she felt her own tail begin to wave from side to side pleasantly as well. She liked the look of him, and instantly had a good feeling about how this might go. 

The next arrival was someone whose presence had a similar effect on Niamh as it did to Tegan- though to a much lesser degree. She immediately felt envious of the female's presence, simply the way she carried herself was like that of a panther- graceful, but powerful as well. She looked like a badass- so Niamh watched indirectly, making note of the way she moved, in hopes she could learn to emulate that movement herself. Ther tone was warm, so Niamh looked to Towhee with a reassurred smile on her lips. Yes, this should go alright. 

The third to arrive was noticably more wary of them, and seemed to defer to the dark-coated female, who Niamh could only assume was Hydra. The male had to be Gannet- and her assumption was confirmed when Tegan greeted him. Tegan began to speak, and Niamh, as per usual during this sort of thing, simply remained silent. She was there mainly to mediate if absolutely necessary, and if not, then to act as a bodyguard, even though she didn't necessarily look the part. She would allow Towhee and Tegan to do the talking- as they were the ones with the ties to this pack.

It was her older brother who arrived first, clearly pleased to see them. Towhee quickly quelled her surprise at this, orange eyes fixing on him as he moved closer, his manner openly amiable. "Hey," she rejoined, curious about the warmth of his reception. Her head tilted ever so slightly, though Hydra's prompt arrival on Gannet's heels served as a distraction.

She sucked in a breath as her friend approached, her greeting just as warm. "Hydra," Towhee replied on an exhale, her still tail finally wiggling to life. She stepped nearer to the other, statelier Beta, her posture lowered as she butted her head against her old ally's shoulder before retreating a few feet so they could look at one another and, more importantly, carry a conversation.

But first, Towhee glanced to Tegan, who introduced himself and mentioned their reason for being here. Only when he was done did Towhee face their comrades again and add, "And this is Niamh, our pack's Gamma." She paused, briefly musing to herself about how Niamh was, in some ways, Hydra's replacement in Towhee's life. But of course that wasn't something she would ever mention out loud.

The tip of her tail gave a particularly catlike flick as she addressed something the would-be ambassador had said. "I killed Screech myself, for all of his crimes, but chiefly because he attacked our older sister and Alpha, who was pregnant at the time." Her lips pursed as if talking about him put a sour taste in her mouth (it did), orange eyes panning now from Hydra to Gannet and even drifting to include Lyra, awaiting their reactions to this grisly news.

Surely they'd be curious about Raven's station, how Screech had gotten close enough to her to attack (and why Towhee had used the term "our"), not to mention the Redhawks' abrupt relocation. Towhee knew they would get to those details eventually. She shifted her weight, attention drifting between the three wolves but eventually coming to rest primarily on Hydra.

Gannet was just opening his mouth to respond to both Tegan and Towhee when Hydra arrived, and Lyra soon behind. He gave both a small smile, and shifted closer to Hydra, but turned his attention back when they began to explain.

Screech. Why did that name keep coming back up? Gannet had hoped he'd perhaps run and disappeared, but that wasn't the case apparently. At Towhee's news, his cheerful expression flattened along with his ears. He'd never been much for hiding what he was thinking, and this was a blow for a number of reasons.

When he'd met with Screech in the woods, he'd again not thought the boy the type to kill. He'd been angry, yeah, but he'd always been all talk and bluster. Was Gannet that bad a judge of things? What didn't he see that everyone else clearly did?

He didn't doubt that Towhee was telling the truth, and if she was, they'd probably made the right call. Gannet remembered Raven with nothing but fondness from his time back home. But it still hurt to hear that the brother he'd stuck up for and stood by apparently had proven his words wrong. He wouldn't change anything about what he'd done. But it was something to think about. He remained silent, letting Hydra talk while he absorbed the news.

She warmly greeted Towhee in kind, her tail swaying all the more as they made contact. It had been too long; though she suspected that would be explained in time.

Hydra's eyes soon shifted to the male among them, ears pricked as he introduced himself. He seemed well-spoken, and his proposal was a pleasant surprise. More of a surprise was the unpleasant name he spoke of, and the shock of hearing the name uttered gave her little time to react in any capacity. It was fortunate that Towhee wasted no time; the name of her sisters killer mentioned upon their borders might provoke even the saintliest of wolves among them that believed as fiercely as she did his transgression, and she was no saint.

Her eyes shifted to Towhee then, having assessed that Tegan did not seem to hold any fear within him. Calmed by this, she maintained her own composure, and her ears swiveled backward for her sisters to note this. One would not think to propose an alliance with them if they carried with them any word that Screech was alive and well and cared for—

I killed Screech, for all his crimes...

The relief was palpable. The weight she had been burdened by since that terrible day was shed, and she seemed to grow all the taller for it. She was acutely aware of the wording Towhee had utilized: all his crimes. She acknowledged his role as Gannet had not, Gannet, who was alongside her, who also knew now the truth she had always presented to him. The Beta felt several things at once; firstly, a hot flash of rage: I should have killed him. Second to that was the cool acceptance of it all. It was not her burden to bear. Those who had held her reins could blame themselves for the injuries Raven had received. It hardly made her feel any better, truth be told. Which meant that if ever there was a next time, she would take matters into her own hands.

As it was, the mongrel had met his end. He had attacked a pregnant woman, his leader, his sister—could anyone doubt he would bring harm to a strangers child?

There were many things she wanted to know, but the first to come free from her tongue was: How does Raven fare? Her cubs...? Did they make it beyond the attack? Had she miscarried? Truth be told, she cared little for the logistics. Hydra assumed he trespassed, but had he not, would it make any difference? If that had not been the case and Towhee had accepted him into the fold after what Hydra had told her, she would surely be more than aware of her misjudgment. Hydra would not add salt into those self-made wounds—now, her words would not come into question. The other questions would come, but first and foremost she would know this.

Gannet was quiet, and she supposed for good reason. To be wrong about this could not be easy. But finally, finally, Hydra felt some peace. All that she had done, all that she had thought, was right and warranted. She had never felt guilty, and never would, but to know it, to hear it, was liberating—though truthfully, it was only because he was no longer around to plague them. Were he alive, she would not, could not rest until he was dead.

towhee took over, briefly, filling in some major details. way to ruin the dramatics-- kill all that suspense, towhee. but whatever, it was probably better that the air wasn't so thick when they were on the borders of another pack. he waited until towhee had finished, and hydra had asked another question in that beautiful elegant voice of hers that tegan piped back up. "raven's fine-- she had four pups, and all are healthy and well," he told the beta, his tail waving a bit at the thought of those obnoxious little beasts. he needed to make a more official visit to them. hmpf.

Well, things seemed to be going well so far. The enigmatic and statuesque Hydra was definitely someone you'd rather impress than piss off, and with one more glance to the other dark, blue-eyed wolf, Niamh noticed that though she held back and deferred to the other, they had to be sisters- if not twins. Everything about them, down to a tiny notch in their ear, was the same. Niamh envied the two women- how neat would it have been to have a twin? 

Towhee explained the situation, which didn't garner too much of a response, which Niamh supposed was a good thing. Hydra seemed to accept the fact, but then Niamh's eyes flicked to the pale male- Gannet. Screech would have been his younger brother. He didn't look pleased- but rather than looking vengeful, or anything along those lines- he looked surprised, and possibly a bit upset. She could empathize- she too had been drawn in to believe that she'd meant something to Screech, only to find out that all he cared about was himself. Part of her still felt responsible for everything that had happened to Screech- but she shoved that feeling away, and found it relatively easy to do so given the fact she was still angry with him. 

Hydra asked about Raven and her pups, and Tegan responded, with N iamh nodding along. "Three girls and a boy," She clarified. She would have gone on to say something along the lines  of 'and they're some darn cute!' but figured now wasn't the time to fall out of professionalism. She was just glad that finally, this time, she'd actually had something to say- unlike the other little missions she'd gone on with Tegan.

Towhee's eyes glimmered even more warmly in Hydra's direction when her fellow Beta inquired after Raven. Tegan and Niamh quickly answered her question, even providing some details. Towhee was almost tempted to mention their names, just to round out the news, but she instead decided to steer the discussion back toward topics that might be of more political interest to the Moonspear wolves.

"Although it's old news now, I wanted to explain our relocation. We discovered the Blackfeathers had returned and, instead of wasting our time and resources on another fight, we decided our family was more important than a piece of rock. So we decided to put the Barrier Mountains between us and them," Towhee shared succinctly, gaze now shifting between Hydra and Gannet again. "It was, for lack of a better term, rather abrupt. Once we found somewhere suitable, we settled in and I decided to pass leadership onto Raven and her new mate, Quixote. We've done well under their rule. My godparents have since retired, so I am their second-in-command."

They might have questions, so Towhee stopped there to give them a chance to voice them. Surely one or the other would think to make a query about Screech's involvement in everything, though Towhee wouldn't bring it up herself unless asked directly. She exchanged a quick look with her pack mates, giving them encouraging smiles—the meeting was going well so far—and then promptly returned her attention to their hosts. She kinda of hoped they'd skip Screech altogether so Towhee could move onto asking how they fared here upon their lofty tower.

Gannet was too mired in his own thoughts to respond with much, though he was glad to hear that Raven was fine. Pups - his nieces and nephews? Again more family he would never know, and who would likely never consider him such.

Gannet didn't want to leave, per say, but he was having a hard time with it. So he set it aside for now, expression blanking to neutral almost instantly as he decided that he couldn't right now. Questions, explanations, none of it mattered. Screech was dead, apparently deserved to be so, and this time Gannet didn't have the space or heart to argue.

Hydra was visibly relieved upon hearing all had ended well for Raven. Her appreciation of the woman stemmed largely from the fact that she had always looked after Towhee when the duo met at Bramblepoint. Though she and Raven had not spoken much themselves, Hydra was thankful for her existence in that she had always ensured Towhee was well.

Towhee shifted the subject, and Hydra understood then why the move had occurred. She had suspected something to that effect had caused them to move, but had never confirmed for herself if Blackfeather remained. Their vendetta with those wolves was quelled since Rannoch's betrayal, but it was good information to know. To hear Towhee was no longer at the helm surprised Hydra, but Towhee seemed altogether pleased by it all, and so Hydra was, too.

I am glad that all is well, she expressed. She supposed it was wise to move; if Blackfeather could not admit defeat and stay hidden, they likely may have been up to something. Who could be sure? Better safe than sorry. You have not missed much. I have four new siblings, two brothers and two sisters. We have not seen Blackfeather anywhere around here, she informed—which meant that more likely than not, they were not yet hunting for the Caldera wolves. Her gaze shifted to each Caldera wolf then, thinking they might appreciate knowing this.

Hydra found herself wanting to know more about the death of Screech, though. If it was not her own fangs to have done the deed, she wanted to imagine it. Gannet's silence was not missed, but this was closure she needed. How did you end it? She asked then, ears cupping forward. She was certain Towhee had not felt joy in doing what she must, and for her and for Gannet Hydra felt a small sliver of remorse for just how right she had been for all of this time. Raven was lucky that her all of her children had survived him; Charon and Amekaze could not share that sentiment, and neither could Hydra.

Since this is getting a little stale, I'm going to wrap it for us!

Hydra imparted good news of her own, broken down into two relevant parts: she had new family members, and they had seen neither hide nor hair of any Blackfeather wolves. "That's good," Towhee was quick to rejoin, a smile curving her lips, "and congrats on the new siblings." She was glad for Moonspear, that they didn't have to fear the evil to the east while trying to rear their newest litter of pups.

She had been hoping to avoid the subject of Screech's involvement with the Redhawks, though Hydra brought up the name again. But it wasn't an unwelcome question. A dark look stole over the visiting Beta's face. "I tore out his throat and threw him over a cliff into the sea." There was a lot more to the story, though she knew that information would suffice.

After that, the group exchanged a few more tidbits of news and information. It felt good to rekindle her friendship with Hydra and Towhee was reluctant to leave. But they had come a long way and it would be an equally long way home, so she knew they couldn't linger. She offered her best wishes to Hydra and her pack, then glanced at the silent (and bereft looking) Gannet. Her lips pursed.

But Towhee said nothing aside from, "Until we meet again." She then faced her two comrades and motioned for them to proceed ahead of her; she would bring up the rear as they journeyed back past the mountainous barrier and roamed home.