Firefly Glen my place, or yours?

Leta scouted ahead with the intent to turn back at another point... but wondered if she might be lucky enough to be met halfway. Leta had not told Osiris of her ideas, lest he not think the best of them... though truth be told she did not think he would think badly on them at all. At some point, along the way, the rain had stopped—it felt like this was the right thing to do, and like it was some sort of sign from her aunt encouraging her to begin this journey. The days of sadness and rainfall seemed to end simultaneously, though the earth was still slick and not easy to navigate. 

Also, there was the fact that the thought to do this had come after his visit. So she could not have told him if she wanted to; he had already gone. 

So, she would need to tell him the moment she saw him. She counted down until that moment without really knowing it, and along the way she found herself comparing the green leaves to the vibrancy of Osiris's own eyes. None of them seemed to match the sheen and shine, even when the sunlight hit the rain-soaked stuff just so. Leta had thought to tell her traveling companion all about her friend from afar along the way, but they also had gotten busy discovering good sticks to bring as an offering—

Oh! She had forgotten the best one... Leta paused in her stride, thinking that perhaps she ought to go back, when her eyes found a perfectly crooked one with a knot in the center. It looked like a grand thing to chew, and licking her chops she hoped something like that would suffice for now. Not as grand as the grandest she had found, but... well... it would do in a pinch. Darting to pick it up, Leta turned to look up at the mountain that loomed ahead.

Moonspear stood proudly in the foreground, welcoming the travelers homeward—Osiris and @Desdemona would return in a matter of hours. The co-guards drove onwards forward in silence, just as they had for the majority of their journey. After visiting Seelie Court, the rain had moved on, allowing for more favorable conditions while they journeyed. 

The sound of hastening footfalls caught Osiris' attention, causing the hairs along his spine to prickle. He veered from their intended path with a snarl—a forewarning to whoever had decided to trespass. The ground squished beneath his strong strides, hindering his speed. 

Leta's figure materialized in the distance, and Osiris quickly recognized his crush's friend's silhouette. "Leta?" he called, pushing hard onto the ground in an attempt to still his charge. Ungracefully, Osiris skidded the distance between them, sending mud and debris spraying every which way. He stopped in the nick of time, his nose nearly touching hers—an uncanny parallel of their last meeting. 

Osiris attempted to regain control of his breath, lingering as he searched her face. "What are you doing here?"

Leta heard the snarl some several hundred feet away, and her ears flattened across her skull briefly. But before long the familiar features of Osiris came into view. Tired from her journey, Leta did not connect the dots, and as she took a step toward him he was sliding in her direction... a direct parallel of their last encounter, which replayed in her mind as Osiris stopped half-an-inch before her face, their noses quite nearly touching. Her heart rose to her throat and she all but squeaked, Osiris! with delight, her hazel eyes twinkling. 

She would say, we have got to stop meeting like this... except for, well, she didn't really mind it. There was a secondary impulse that seemed to strike into her mind, but she gave her friend space (though not before nosing his cheek in polite hello). I was hoping to run into you and @Desdemona, she breathed. I'm not alone... my friend, @Charles, he accompanied me, he should be along any minute now... she informed, so he wouldn't fear when another came to her side. I, well, uhm, I want to join Moonspear, Osiris. I want to become brave, and I think... I think at home, I have been okay to let everyone else be brave for me. But I need to learn to be brave for all the ones that love me too, she explained, and I think you are just... you are the bravest, she added hastily, looking over his shoulder to see a firefly illuminate the backdrop. Her gaze turned back to him, do you think you could teach me? And Moonspear? How to be brave? and strong, to boot. She wanted the whole gambit.

Osiris bumped Leta's cheek in return, his mind beginning to reel as her explanation began. He was delighted to learn that she had sought him out (though the feeling was a little soured at the mention of Charles—who was he?), intended to join Moonspear and she thought he was the bravest. He was astonished by the influx of emotions that ensued as he comprehended it all—and more-so overcome by her opinion of him. He was so overcome that he had almost forgotten all about Charles. 

"Yes!"  Osiris managed to say in a hitched thrill, almost breathless from the adrenaline. His tail began to rouse behind him, as his excitement began to mount. "Of course, yes!" He had no reason to suspect that she would be denied entry into Moonspear's ranks—especially with his endorsement. "I'll teach you everything I know—we'll start as soon as we make it home." Of course, there were other things that he would have much rather planned to do with her, but he had to be cordial. 

Osiris was then reminded of Desdemona, and he flicked an ear behind him to listen for her approach. "You really caught us at the perfect time," he marveled then, his expression warm. "I'm really glad you're here."

He had been distracted by a stick along the way, just as they'd reached the place Leta mentioned. Honestly, Charles was mostly distracting himself because he was a little nervous about going to a new pack. He'd never been this far from home. He wasn't really sure what he was doing, but Leta was his only friend and he didn't want to lose her or whatever.

Charles hadn't even said goodbye to his mother or the leaders of Easthollow; he'd just left. At first he thought it'd just be an adventure but then it dawned on him this was a new way of life.

As he caught up to Leta, Charles' large coyote-like ears perked forward as he looked at her male friend. This must be the one she'd been talking about.

Hi, said the coywolf in awkward greeting. He felt kinda weird when he looked at Osiris. He wasn't sure why yet or what it meant. Maybe competition for Leta's friendship?

Home, he said. 

Home had always been Easthollow, to her. Valette, Greyback, West Tyree, Nanook, and all the rest. Home had been the bisons and the circles where all of her loved ones were lain to rest. It was strange to think that this word could ever be defined differently than that when, for all of her life, that had been the meaning of it. Looking to Osiris, though, and hearing his excitement... seeing it... how could she not have known that home was a million things, places, and people? Home was not a place, it was a feeling. And the way he embraced the thought of her coming with him, without question or without preamble... it warmed her in a way similar to the manner in which home always had. Made her feel safe, as home always had... but there were a dozen other things attached to that, which her mind did not allow her to delve into. 

It was hard to focus and narrow it down when he looked at her. Not that he was looking at her in any particular way, but his attention alone distracted her. Leta smiled, about to answer when Charles arrived. He was likely the only thing to be able to break her attention, and that he did as she looked to him. Charles! This is Osiris, she introduced, tail waving, Osiris, this is Charles!

Oop, the Charon in Osiris is coming out.

 
Charles eventually caught up to them, and Osiris stifled his gut-reaction with a small snort. He wasn't entirely sure what haphazard genetics made up this big-eared freak—nor did he really care. All that Osiris knew was that Leta's friend was U.G.L.Y YOU AIN'T GOT NOT ALIBI, and in no way a reproductive threat. 

"Charles, sorry about that—got something in my nose," Osiris greeted smoothly with a smile, feeling a sudden boost in confidence; his expression warmed for Leta's sake, as he assumed the newcomer was a friend. "It's nice to meet you."

love it.

Leta looked cheerful to see him, and Charles smiled at her before turning to look at Osiris. There was something funny about his reaction, but Charles couldn't really place it, just like the weird feeling in his gut. Osiris looked kind of? handsome? which was a bit weird to think about. Or, he thought it was weird. He wasn't really sure, but it wasn't like he had any more adult-like person to ask it to. There was just something in his head that said it was weird.

Deciding to get over his weirdness (he was pretty used to being the socially awkward one out because of how his momma (didn't) raise him) Charles eventually -- after a silence that was just a bit too long and awkward as he just kinda.. stared at Osiris -- just said, Nice to meet you. He glanced at Moonspear in the background, and said: Do you live on that rock? He had heard that they were visiting Moonspear, which was a big mountain. Charles didn't know much about mountains, but they kinda looked like giant rocks to him. It was like living on top of one of Easthollow's stones in the stone circle, if it was a much bigger rock. Kinda funny.