Broken Antler Fen Where are tHE TURTLES?! WHERE ARE THEY?!

So. It was different, at least.

The fen wasn't the most gorgeous place to ever exist, but then, nothing was. Lilitu had accepted that the vibrant colors and flora of her youth were gone—would they ever return? She hadn't asked anyone, afraid of the answer. But compared to the other places they had traveled through, it was okay here.

At least it was better than the plateau, the mountains' ominous shadow looming over them. Here, everything was flat; when it wasn't foggy, she could see a ways beyond her nose.

There were other wolves here—Wraen, her parents, Arielle. But besides her sister, there was no one her own age. The valley, for all its oddness, had at least given her friends and peers. She needed more. More than just Arielle, who was sweet-natured but ultimately not able to keep up with Lilitu (at least in her eyes).

She rolled over in some tall grass with a huff, breath stirring each individual blade. Here she was hidden, at least visually. She wondered if any other creatures called this foliage home.

They all seemed to be hiding.

@Maia? :)

Ibis and her family were here!

Maia had (or would?) delivered the news of Terance to Ibis in private, but she hadn't yet caught the rest of them.  Her grand-nieces (who she'd call her neices because there was no WAY she was that old) were highest on her list to meet.  Hanging out with Eljay had been nice, but now that she was back and surrounded by family, time to mingle!

She found Lilitu's recent trail, but failed to find the girl.  The growth here was long and it was possible she was hiding our off playing!  Maia chewed her lip thoughtfully.  Are there any trolls in these woods?  Because you have to tell me, if there are.  We had an agreement.  Maia called out playfully, wondering if she'd be close enough (and young enough?) to bite.  Some younger wolves kept that flair for the fantastical while others tried to avoid it for fear of seeming childish.  She really, really hoped her nieces were the former.

A dainty silver head popped up from the grass.

Wha— Lauren?! she asked, rising clumsily to her feet. She gave the young woman a gimlet stare, brows knitted together. What's a Lauren? And what agreement?

Her nostrils flared. The other wolf smelled like Wraen, and kind of looked like her, too. But more. . .vibrant. A pelt of many colors and patterns, and playful gray eyes. She was beautiful—the only wolf more beautiful was Ibis, in her humble opinion.

Lilitu was mesmerized.

Still, she would not let her questions go unanswered. Primly, she picked her way from the foliage and brought herself closer to the stranger, lifting her chin in continued query.

Aha, a bite!  Maia bit back a grin as one of her niece's heads poked up from the grass and looked at her skeptically.  She blinked, as if surprised to find anyone where (she kind of was!), and paused thoughtfully.  Weeeell, it's sort of a secret deal.  But if you really think you want to know, then I think I can tell you.  Maia smiled.  You look like exactly the kind of wolf I can definitely trust.  Yeah?

Her tail waved, but she put some importance on the game.  Games were important, after all!  And just because a secret was silly didn't mean the meaning wasn't there.  If they shared the story of a secret, then it was still something for the two of them, and it meant they had that in common.

Lilitu's eyes widened with excitement. I can keep a secret! she exclaimed, wagging her tail. (She really couldn't, but. . .whatever.) Pleeeeease? She felt incredibly important, honored that the young woman would let her in on something so clandestine. 

Hell, she didn't even know the other wolf's name, and already she was begging for classified intelligence. 

Please? What's a Lauren? she asked again. Curiosity was overwhelming her; she'd let down any notion of feigned aloofness, face instead alight and pleading. If there was anything that could entice Lilitu into acting like a complete loon, it was information. She craved it.

She sat primly, putting on her best studious expression and her best behavior. Maybe if she acted good enough, she would be deemed worthy.

Maia seemed to consider, then nodded, inwardly delighting in Lilitu's obvious interest.  She loved kids so much; they had zero of the insecurities of adults and all of the wonder in the world.  When was the last time she'd talked to anyone with this much keen joy?  Okay!  Trolls are creatures that live hidden in the forest.  And we have an agreement that they won't bother us so long as we sing to them every new moon.  Maia answered.  They have to let me know when they are around too, so we don't bother them either!  Because trolls are real big but real hard to see, and it's easy to bump into them by accident.

If you are going to be a freind of the trolls, I'll need your name, so I can tell them!  Mine's Maia.  Finally she grinned, her tail wagging in an open and friendly fashion.  The first part might have needed some mock seriousness, but introductions always required a friendly face.  She knew this was her (great) niece by context, but not what her name was.  Or, honestly, much else about her!

Her nose wrinkled as she pondered this creature and its existence. She'd certainly never seen one before. . .but then, they were apparently hard to see. But Lilitu was running everywhere; surely she'd have bumped into one by accident eventually? Yet this was all new to her.

The exchange of names brought things into more of a state of reality. I'm Lilitu, she said. Hi, Maia. Do you know my mama or papa? Or Wraen? 

Well, of course she did. Maia knew about the trolls. Why wouldn't she be familiar with the wolves of the fen?

What do you sing to them? Lilitu inquired, naturally drawn back to the wonder of Maia's tale. Mama likes to sing with us. We make up songs a lot. Sometimes they're pretty silly. But always, always, beautiful, Ibis and her daughters, the three of their voices in harmony.

I do, she answered, tickled.  Wraen is my sister.  And your mama's dad was our brother, Terance.  Doubtless she'd never met him, nor would she now.  That was a bit of a sad thought, so she kept it to herself.  I only really sing silly ones, because I have a silly voice.  She answered instead, moving quickly on to the more fun of the conversations.  

I'll tell you one of mine if you tell me one of yours?  And then any trolls who happen to be around might hear too.  She was thrilled at the prospect of learning new songs, though that introduce a complication.  She was not musical, nor had she ever created a song before.  But it was kind of like a poem, yeah?

Another family member!! Lilitu's eyes shone as she listened closely. Again with the mention of Terance. Ibis's papa. What had he been like? She figured he was just as friendly and engaging as his sisters—and her mama—because why wouldn't he be? She was about to ask when Maia moved on (and maybe that was for the better).

I don't think you have a silly voice, the girl interjected, and then scrunched her nose up, thinking. Well, we sing a lot of songs. Lemme see. . . 

Apparently the trolls were listening, so this had to be her best performance yet. She cleared her throat with a little a-hem and closed her eyes, feeling somewhat bashful in the moment. Then, she launched into a tune that might have been recognized as Frere Jacques by any human readers, albeit highly modified:

"Little froggy, little froggy
Come and play, come and play
Where are you hiding?
Where are you hopping?
Come and stay, come and stay."

There were a lot of frogs this summer when it wouldn't stop raining, Lilitu explained to Maia, opening her eyes to give the woman a shy smile. D'you think the trolls will like that one?

Maia rn -

Ohhhh, bless her heart, this child was adorable.  Maia could not stand it.  She felt her heart swell up a bit at the compliment, given so nonchalantly, and then it continued fit to burst as she went into her song.  Which was quite possibly one of the best performances Maia'd seen to date.  (She was a biased audience, at the moment.)

Oh, I think so!!!  They love frogs.  Maybe it's because frogs are nearly as good at hiding as they are.  Maia thought to the ponds in the summer and nosing for the amphibians, only to have a few spring right out from under her muzzle.  I never thought of it, but maybe that's why there's so many here.  Because there's so much water for frogs.  She said, laughing at the realization.  Actually, that was something to look forward to.  Chasing frogs was good fun when it got hot!  Cooled you off in the water AND you might get a bonus snack out of it.

Oh boy... now to think of a song....

She beamed at Maia's praise, hoping against hope that the trolls would be satisfied with her frog-melody. I wonder how wet it'll be when all the snow goes away, Lilitu said absently, scuffing around a little at the white beneath her paws. Then, concentration once more. Okay, it's your turn!

The girl couldn't wait to see what Maia came up with. The woman, after all, did seem to know a lot about the trolls. Why wouldn't she know how to summon them with song?

She hummed her own tune quietly, and would trail off when the other wolf began to sing.

Her turn.  Maia felt a little note of anxiety, but she definitely wasn't about to not sing a song when Lilitu had been kind enough to share one with her!  Besides, this was all in fun!  So if it wasn't a good one, that was okay, because at least they could laugh about it.  The truth was, while stories had been a big part of their upbringing, songs were a little less present.  She didn't have a whole lot to go off of, but she could try to come up with something.  Okay!

She paused, trying to think, and ended up treating it a bit like a poem, but a little stricter on the rhythm.

I met a Lauren in a cave one day,
but he didn't want to talk,
Instead he yelled that I should 'go away!'
but, hey, I was on a walk!

So I walked right into that big old cave,
with that big, mean old Lauren,
and I told him if he was gonna be rude,
he better at least leave his hole!

He was so surprised that he turned bright red,
No one had ever dared to come in,
Then he started to laugh, saying "Who's rude now?"
Since then we've been good friends!

Maia broke off, giggling.  Her voice wasn't great and the song wasn't the smoothest thing, but she'd had a lot of fun with making a random short story up!  She couldn't help it.  I hope that doesn't offend them, but I think trolls like to be seen as scary, since they're so shy otherwise.  Maia added, laughing.

She pedaled her forepaws in delight at the conclusion of Maia's song, like a person giving a standing ovation. I love it! It's all about the trolls, too, so they'll probably like it. Lilitu wondered if anyone would ever make a song about her. If so, what would it be about? She pondered that for a fleeting few seconds, then turned her attention back to Maia.

Well, I guess if I never get to meet the trolls, at least they know I'm singing to them. We're singing to them, she amended, with a grin at Maia. Where'd you learn so much about them? 

Heck. . .where did Maia and Wraen learn so much about everything? They seemed to be a wealth of knowledge, and Lilitu had a hard time wrapping her brain around how. They were older, sure, and had probably seen many more places and creatures. But they had a sort of wisdom that others lacked (at least in her view).

That said, maybe they were just more willing to share what they knew. And Lilitu would gladly soak it all up.

Maia couldn't help but blush when she received the ovation.  It had been such a dumb song! It really didn't deserve all of that.  She laughed, nervously at first, but the automatic reaction actually did help calm some of her nerves.  It always felt good to laugh!

You can learn a lot just by talking to wolves from other places.  My mom picked up a lot of stories when she was younger, since she used to travel.  I try to do the same now.  Remembering Osprey hurt less than it used to, but she hadn't really realized until then how much her travel was influenced by her desire to be like her mom.  It felt good, thinking she might maybe be proud of that.

But the best thing I learned is, when no one knows a thing for sure, then anything you think is true probably is.  That's the secret to good storytelling.  The fact that the trolls were a story didn't make it any less true, and there was a secret part of Maia that would never fully die out that honestly believed there might be secret trolls out there, listening to them sing.

You and Wraen both have a lot of stories, she mused, perhaps cutting in a little. Which made sense, given that Wraen and Maia were sisters. Apparently, they got it from their mother. Who was her. . .grandmother? No, farther than that. What was farther than grandmother? She'd never even met one of those.

Her face had scrunched up, trying to figure out the family tree, and it belatedly occurred to her that half of Maia's words had gone in one ear and out the other. Yeah, Lilitu responded, feeling embarrassed but trying not to let it show. She gave the young woman a very studious nod.

Then she looked around, as if the trolls were to pop out at any moment. In reality, it was really Ibis she should be watching for. Her mother had kept an ironclad grip on Lilitu's whereabouts these days, and she was shocked that—

LILITU!

Ope. There it was. I should go see what Mama wants, she said, giving Maia a playful grimace. Thanks for teaching me the Lauren songs! And with that, she scampered away, back into the tall grass.

Maia smiled and was about to offer to launch into a story to provide an example, but Ibis it seemed was calling.  Anytime!  she called after, her tail waving briefly behind her as she watched the young girl bound happily away.  There was definitely a part of her that missed being that age, and she felt a small pang of loneliness when she remembered her own mother.  Osprey hadn't been around as much as Ibis in the same sense, but she'd been amazing all the same.  Her bad days definitely hadn't discounted all of the good.

Those are too sad of thoughts for a pretty day like this, she thought with a huff of a laugh, and with a shake of her head she set off towards the middle of the territory.  Maybe she could scare up a dragon to chat with.