Swiftcurrent Creek BWP · in a past life

Referencing the nearby tremors!

The rising sun is typically a relief for the young raven, for he's finally worn himself out enough that he can catch more than an hour or two of rest at a time. He still feels off around his family, keeping busy alongside Zephyr when he can, or exploring the Creek until his paws got too sore to travel. He wants to copy @Kavik, in his patrols and almost wishes he witnessed his father's ever dutiful trips more often and up close.

Alas, that will have to wait another time.

He trots to his usual spot nearby the rendezvous site, curling underneath a tree. The grass flattened, and the roots dug out a bit, a perfect indent that Helios fits to a T. He is on edge, however. His fur ruffles, and the raven boy has thought it to be stress from family related things... until a growling noise from below startles him back to his feet. The ground shakes seconds later, almost feeling as if it might swallow him whole. Panicked, Helios calls for his family.

His brother's presence is often the only thing that soothes him — so when Helios isn't around, it is sometimes a bit of a crisis for Zephyr. He typically tries to busy himself with other things, too full of pride to seek his sibling even when it feels as if the crawling anxiety will eat him alive. But today, his skin feels on fire and his chest feels tight in a way he has seldom experienced before, and even watching the sparkling rush of the creek does little to calm him.
So he sets off in search of Helios, finally deciding to cave only moments before the earth begins to rumble beneath his paws. He thinks little of it at first, assuming it is the same as the phantom noises he's heard since birth. Then he hears Helios's panicked call, and forgets the rumbling entirely. His stomach flips at the sound, and he breaks into a run. Immediately he assumes the worst: his brother is in danger, hurt — some stranger is surely tearing him apart at the borders now, killing him —
He almost forgets to stop again when he sees Helios, disoriented by the pounding in his ears and distracted by his search for the threat. But he's become better about these things with time, and he does remember to stop, albeit belatedly. Helios! It slips out breathlessly a half-beat before their collision — a softer collision than the last, but he nonetheless tumbles onto his brother in a clumsy tangle of limbs. There is no vicious stranger, no threat, though it takes several moments for this to register fully. When it does, he rolls off of his brother with a huff, glaring at him now. What's wrong with you?

She had just been coming home from a recent adventure, one that nearly had her dead again but that wasn't entirely her fault. A spooked deer had come crashing out of the bushes almost trampling her, spooking her in turn and sending her running for the borders of her home. When she had just arrived and the adrenaline of the rush of fear had burned out, a growling sound came from beneath her paws and she spun around wildly a shriek of fright leaving her maw. Her ears flattened and the panic convinced her that she was alone and whatever monster was after her would get her for sure if she didn't hurry back toward her family. With a shiver of horror she began to run, sniffing frantically and catching the scent of Zephyr on the ground. She still had yet to try and speak to her sister since their return and the fear she had of that caused her to freeze up, at war with whether or not she would rather run to her sister or risk whatever was happening killing her. 


The trembling of the ground decided for her and she set off struggling to track down Zephyr until Helios's panicked howl set her off in a different direction. She ran, heart racing as she was desperate to seek comfort with her only brother even though she wasn't sure where they stood anymore until she spotted Zephyr and Helios huddled against one another already facing it together. After a moment of feeling a sharp pang of jealousy her tail curled between her legs and she slunk forward ears back as her entire body trembled, choosing to ignore the still messed up emotions involving everything that had happened in the past few months. "Is that a monster? Is it something alive?" She asked outloud, voice shaking pitifully.

The rumbling paused him in the middle of his inspection of the borders. Then sounds he heard in the distance could suddenly be felt beneath his feet,  but it was gone just as quickly as it had come. Worry made the already very large knot of anxiety in his chest swell and pulsate. What could it be? Were the mountains preparing to crumble and fall down on them? 

Suddenly, he worried that the children might be frightened, and he feared they would run from the creek. Turning from the border, he sprinted towards the heart of the territory to where their den was located, hoping to find them there. He caught the scent of Lainie, and then Helios and Zephyr as he neared the rendezvous site, though, and he turned and headed quickly towards them.

When he arrived, Kavik came immediately to stand protectively near them. Are you all okay? he asked, scanning each child for any obvious injuries.

I'm going to post, I hope that's okay! I also think I'm gonna make her skippable and powerplayable for the rest of this.

As soon as she spotted her father she bolted away from her siblings and greeted him with a relieved lick to the chin "Just scared. What is it Papa?" she asked eyes still big and round with fear but feeling safer now that he was around. She looked to Zephyr and Helios, feeling bad that she had left them there but at the same time bitterly feeling that they should be used to relying on one another so it wasn't her job to be as close to them as she was her father.

He met Lainie's affection with a gentle nuzzle, looking to Helios and Zephyr after; he needed to assure himself that no one was injured. They all appeared to be okay, though, and he turned back to Lainie to answer her question. I don't know, sweetie, he answered truthfully. I have never heard anything like it. He hugged her close, glancing to the other two to invite them over if they needed comfort. But you guys don't have to worry about it; I'll make sure we're all safe. It was a big promise, one that deep down he wasn't completely sure he could keep, but he offered it anyway; he wanted them to all feel safe. 

He didn't want to linger there for very long, so he ushered the three children towards the den. He needed to discuss things with Rosalie and Alessia.