Heron Lake Plateau they rush to tell, they rush to say

@Raven @Quixote and any others who want to join! PP with permission of pyro (present) & rannoch (not present). set a wee-bit in the future for timeline purposes.

when rannoch had first asked coelho if she was interested in doing something for the betterment of the coven, her little heart had skipped a beat and she had insisted after her delight of being entrusted his messenger. she carried the task he had bestowed upon her with great honor; it might have been a simple task, but coelho was a simple wolf (coywolf?) and thrilled in the prospect of proving herself to her people, and feeling actualized within sunspire.

and so, she left with @Pyro -- it was a good thing she had him for company, because she was a terrible navigator and he was great company. twice now, they had gotten lost.. or maybe just a little misguided -- redhawk caldera was not where rannoch had instructed, and it took a few days to get their bearings and scout other packs in the area. meaning, their trip that had at first been a jaunt, was now a proper journey -- no, adventure! coelho was positively enchanted by this, and pyro had the good humor to put up with her bottomless stupidity jubilance as the days wore on.

and then, just like that, they came upon marked territory. coelho had hung back, worried and looking to her new friend for assurance. the perimeters seemed well supported, and the markings freshly laid; certainly they were at someone's doorstep.. the only question was, whose?

coelho carefully placed the pretty feather (that she had been carrying like an idiot the last two days) on the ground, and placed a paw tenderly over it. it was a broad feather, long and unidentfiable and possibly belonging to some great raptor; it carried a blackish blue sheen and coelho was damn proud of finding it, and hoped to give it to whoever she saw first, provided they didn't bite her or insult her ancestry. she threw back her head in a howl, her little body shaking half with excitement, half with anxiety, as she waited for the wolves of these unknown lands to come and find them.

The puppies seemed to be thriving, much to the new mother's enormous relief. The first weeks after birth were the riskiest for newborns, but so far they all seemed to be doing well enough. Little Kite was the one she was most concerned about. The girl was still so frail and weak, and seemed to have quite a bit of difficulty remaining upright and moving about. She would never forgive Screech for this, nor for the two puppies who had come into the world as cold and still as bottomless lakes in winter. A sense of bitterness filled her as she walked, enjoying the sun on her back and the ability to move without pain and discomfort now that her pregnancy was over.

She had asked @Eljay to keep watch over the sleeping puppies for a bit so that she could go out and stretch her legs and get something to eat. She wasn't far from the borders when she heard the call -- a voice she didn't recognize. She hesitated for a moment, unsure if she should answer it or if she should wait for Quixote. She had a lot to lose now, and if anything happened to her now, it could spell death for the children who depended on her. But she was also an alpha, and couldn't spend her days quivering in fear behind the wall of her fortress. So she made her way toward the voice, and when she found it, she was dismayed to find not one, but two strangers awaiting her. Warily, she stopped some distance away and narrowed her eyes suspiciously and called to them, "You rang...?"

Although the howl hadn't been directed at Elwood, he hastened to greet the caller at the borders. He remembered the days of being an Alpha with a newborn litter -- the world continued to turn, while all the new parents really wanted to do was spend time with their babies. But there were always other demands. His thought, as he trotted to the edge of the plateau's territory, was that, though he was retired, he could lend a hand in order to take something off of Raven and Quixote's full plate.

He was pleasantly surprised, however, to see his goddaughter cautiously approaching two unfamiliar wolves. The former leader came to stand next to Raven, bumping her shoulder gently and amicably with his own before fixing his yellow gaze expectantly on the strangers.

So far it hadn't been just one, but twice that Pyro was tasked with diplomatic missions. Well, they were actually more of a messenger kind but you have got to start somewhere, right? It was only better that this time he had company to make the journey, and despite feeling that she was sometimes a bit too slow for his liking, Coelho was simply the best company he could ask for.

After days of walking in what felt like a loop and being unable to locate the pack that Coelho was so sure was supposed to be there, the three musketeers (including Coelho's fancy feather, of course) finally picked up a promising scent and they followed it down to what was surely claimed territory. He smiled at his friend seeing her hesitance, and signaled with his muzzle as though telling her to hurry up. He was there for support, this was Coelho's moment.

When she stepped forward, throwing her head back to ring the bell, Pyro sat back close to her seeing how anxious she was and told her some silly (and probably lame) joke for the jitters. They were met by the residents eventually. The first, a female wrapped in darkness, and the second an older male with striking eyes of gold that reminded him of Vassago somewhat. Pyro bumped Coelho's side with his shoulder hoping to give her some courage, but made no sound expecting his friend to take the lead.

twice now, that damn feather blew away -- each time coelho scampered after it, and hastily stuffed it firmly under her paw so it would cease its errant travels. it was a good thing pyro was there to tell jokes, because coelho was about to lose her nerve all together. especially when a dark-furred female came on the scene, exuding the comfortable regality of a wolf accustomed to leadership. her ears fell and her tail tucked her stomach, but she felt pyro's reassuring nudge and tried to chase away her rampant nerves.

she was about to nervously announce why she was here when another wolf, older and carrying with him the sagacious gaze of a kindly demeanor flanked the dark female. coelho timidly offered him a submissive smile, trying not to squeeze her eyes shut as she scrambled for what to say. rannoch -- rannoch had wanted her here, they weren't going to kill them, right?

with the feather forgotten, coelho fumbled for a few seconds. "hi, um -- hi." she was already off to a terrible start, she could feel it. "i'm coelho, this is pyro!" she motioned to the umber cast male besides her and the feather was immediately whipped off by the wind. fuck! she watched sadly as it tumbled across the ground towards elwood, but she was not about to go get it so she just watched it with the kind of disappointment you know seared someone's soul. "t-that was for you, um......... sorry." her ears fell again, and she knew how stupid and inept she appeared in this moment. "but we're here from sunspire! rannoch sent us. we're supposed to meet the leaders, would that be you guys? we have news we're supposed to deliver to the leaders."

Sorry for the hold-up! Was on vacation. :)

Raven became aware of Elwood's approach a few moments after she had arrived herself, and she felt exponentially more comfortable with the elder Blackthorn at her side. He was more experienced than she in dealing with situations such as this, and she'd always looked up to her uncle and taken comfort in his presence. She leaned into his shoulder bump with a subtle grin directed at him, indicating her delight with a waving of her tail.

She turned her attention to the strangers, who introduced themselves as Coelho and Pyro, and the former quickly explained why they were there. It didn't take her long at all to recall Rannoch, the friendly wolf from Moonspear whose neck wound she had treated many months past. Only he wasn't with Moonspear now. Sunspire, was it? Another mountain, she presumed, and clearly he was the leader there now if he was sending messengers on errands. Coelho asked if they were the leaders, and Raven nodded to the affirmative. "Yes.
My mate, @Quixote, and I lead this pack. This is Elwood, our advisor. I know Rannoch." The latter was spoken with warmth and familiarity as a smile flickered at the edges of her lips. She had liked the affable young wolf, and was glad he had apparently healed from his wounds.

The girl introduced herself and her companion, clearly nervous as her words tumbled over one another. Elwood's gaze was drawn to her paw as she gestured towards her partner -- Pyro -- and then he watched as the feather that had been trapped under her foot skipped across the breeze and away from her. It happened to float in his direction, and when it was close enough to him, he pinned it down with his own forepaw, an amused smile tugging at his lips as he looked back up at Coelho. She explained that it was a gift for them and he nodded his thanks, carefully keeping the feather from getting loose again with his own weight.

His ears perked at the mention of Sunspire; he remembered Wraen, who he had met not long before his family moved from Redhawk Caldera. And then, if it was possible, his ears stood even taller when he heard the name Rannoch. Rannoch -- that was Liffey's mate! Raven expressed her own familiarity with the greyscale wolf, and Elwood couldn't help but speak up. "Rannoch's mate is my daughter, Liffey," he said, glad to now know of Liffey's current whereabouts.

Pyro held back a chuckle as he watched Coelho tripping on her own words. If she looked at him he would nod and smile in support, but her clumsiness was only as funny as it was adorable. He was introduced by Coelho's words before she explained the motive of their visit. It was rather odd that both Rannoch and Seabreeze had asked of the scouts to inform other packs of their newborns. Personally Pyro would have preferred to keep the information to himself in order to keep the pups safe, but he didn't know the full extent of the relationship between Rannoch and the Redhawk wolves as he hadn't that of Seabreeze and the Sanctuary wolves. Still he was diligent and had asked no questions when he was tasked to deliver the messages, and so here he was, standing in front of the Redhawk wolves.

Redhawk. He couldn't quite place it, but the name sounded familiar. However he didn't have enough time to dwell in that thought for the dark female spoke in reply to Coelho's introduction. Just as he'd expected the female was indeed the leader fo the Redhawk wolves, and the male beside her, an elder held in high regard, would later reveal to be the father of Rannoch's mate. Pyro nodded politely, understanding now why the message was important to the Redhawks and feeling more comfortable knowing that their packs had familial ties. Coelho was good to get to the deed and if she missed anything Pyro was there to support her.

bumbling ineptly and fully aware of it, coelho fell to a strained and apprehensive silence. her anxiety was unwarranted, however -- for the deep-black pelaged woman, and her wizened comrade both seemed to received them kindly once their visitation's reasons were revealed.

she drew a big breath and felt her tail skip behind her. "oh!" she reacted positively, finding it comforting to know they knew of rannoch and liffey. "rannoch is our alpha! or, he is the alpha of sunspire, which is that way --" she motioned to the looming hills as if that gesture alone would clearly lay out the path to sunspire's borders. it wouldn't, but she was too hare-brained to really connect that. "we're here because he wanted us to tell you guys that he and liffey had puppies -- four healthy whelps." she paused and looked at elwood with a stupid beam. "that means you're a grandfather -- congratulations."

Coelho gestured toward the hills in the distance, and Raven nodded. She knew where Sunspire was, and she was thrilled to hear that Rannoch was alpha of the pack that dwelled there. The news of his new pups was received with a beaming grin and an enthusiastic wagging of her tail, but she knew that the news would be of even more significance to Elwood. Her uncle, a grandfather now! She looked at him with admiration and, admittedly, a touch of amusement in her face. There was an "old fart" joke in there somewhere but she refrained from making it in front of their visitors....for now.

"That's wonderful news!" she replied to Coelho's words. She wondered if Rannoch knew of his two youngest brothers here at the plateau. If not, though, that wasn't her news to share, so she remained silent on the subject.

Elwood glanced in the direction that Coelho indicated, putting the pieces together in his mind. Rannoch and Liffey must have moved from their previous home to this new location, Sunspire -- and Wraen, Peregrine's niece, was a member of their pack. He was relieved to know where his daughter was currently calling home; although she was an adult, there was still an overprotective part of him that would always think of her as a young puppy, frozen in time with Lagan and Lucy.

Coelho's next bit of news caused his jaw to drop immediately in surprise. Puppies? He was a grandfather to four healthy newborns? His shock was quickly replaced by excitement, and it was all reflected in his face. "Four puppies -- girls? Boys?" he asked eagerly, even as Raven commented on the news. His mind was spinning, and he wanted to rush off to share the information with Finley, but first, he wanted to hear more about his grandchildren.

coelho's feet tapped in excitement; she loved giving good news, and Raven and Elwood were the best audience, because they were very excited to hear everything she said. coelho's previous nervousness was entirely lost, in light of how thrilled both Raven and Elwood seemed.

she beamed and shouldered Pyro, nodding enthusiastically. "yeah!" she chirped, her tail wagging furiously. "three girls, one boy. their names are--" she paused, her face scrunched in effort as she recalled the names rannoch had told her. her recital was slow at first, but then it picked up speed as she picked up confidence - she could do this! "remi, deshyr and wisp are the girls - breccan is the boy. all happy, healthy, and nursing. i bet rannoch and liffey would love you to visit sometime!" she paused again, a thought occuring to her tiny brain: "oh! i could show you the way!"

I hope we can finish this thread! @Coelho @Elwood @Raven

Congratulations! said Pyro enthusiastically when Coelho announced Elwood's new status as grandfather. She was doing great the little coywolf, and Pyro didn't even need to intervene to get the message across. He simply smiled and waved his tail, happy to be the support that his friend needed to accomplish her mission, and even when she offered to show the way back to Sunspire Pyro backed her up with an agreeing nod and an even wider smile. I would gladly escort you there and back myself too extra? Nah, he would do whatever in his power to make Rannoch proud.

Raven smiled at the visitors' eagerness to escort them to see the new pups, appreciating the gesture but content to remain here at home. She knew that she certainly wouldn't appreciate having a parade of strangers brought to see her puppies -- the most fragile and precious members of the pack -- so she had no intentions of inflicting such an intrusion on Liffey. It was a mom thing, though, and she expected that Elwood would feel differently. The excitement was clear in his face and she hoped that he would go and visit soon. The idea that Uncle El was a grandfather now was a little jarring to her. Sometimes the passage of time could be unexpectedly sudden.

"I will have to come and visit another time," Raven commented, an almost apologetic tone accompanying her grin. "But will you please convey my warmest greetings to Rannoch and Liffey? And let them know that as far as I'm concerned, they are family and that extends to their pack as well. If they need anything, we've got their backs." The longer that Raven led the Redhawks, the more isolationist she became in her dealings with others outside of her borders, be they individuals or packs. However, Sunspire was different -- it was a Blackthorn pack.

Wrapping up with permission! Thanks for the thread, guys! :D

Remi, Deshyr, Wisp, and Breccan. The names were immediately imprinted in Elwood's mind, and already he found himself trying to picture what each child looked like. Were they grey, like their parents and grandparents? Or had they inherited different colors and patterns? Most importantly, did they have the Blackthorn stripe? While he of course didn't have this trait, as he wasn't a Blackthorn by blood, Elwood liked seeing the physical manifestation of their bloodline.

The messengers were eager to escort Elwood and Raven to Sunspire right then and there, and Elwood was reluctant to decline. However, there were things that he would need to do before taking such a trip -- like tell Finley the news. "I really appreciate the offer," he replied earnestly, "but I want to share the news with my mate -- the pups' grandmother. I hope that she and I can plan a trip in the near future, though. Maybe you can give us directions...?" he inquired.

Once Pyro and Coelho had described the paths that lead to Sunspire, they were back on their way with Raven's and Elwood's warm wishes to share. And the new grandfather was quick to track Finley down and tell her that she was a grandmother.