Redhawk Caldera You could be my summer thing.

I'm hoping for @Sifaka but it's open! :)

Towhee finally bumped into Meerkat, which was a relief. The yearling smelled like flowers and appeared to be in high spirits as she joined her mother on a routine patrol. They chatted as they walked, Meerkat mentioning that she might try to do some more traveling now that the weather was pleasanter. Although part of Towhee wanted to protest—didn't Meerkat want to spend time with the pups, including her brand new nephew?—she reminded herself that her daughter was an adult who could do as she pleased.

When they finished the circuit, Towhee expected Meerkat to accompany her back to the rendezvous site. Instead, the yearling said she was going to go explore and not to worry if she was gone for a few days. The Sovereign's lips pursed but she nodded, pressing her snout to her daughter's temple, orange eyes following as Meerkat turned and loped beyond the caldera's borders.

Facing forward, the Sovereign began to climb up toward the ridge line. When she reached it, a crosswind hit her in the face. It was actually quite pleasant, so she paused and tilted her head into it, sifting through the scents it carried. Her eyes drifted shut for a moment, then reopened as she looked out over the lake, the sparkling surface ruffled by this warm summer wind.

Would it be okay to assume Sifaka knows Towhee is deaf by now? 

Sifaka kept to himself mostly, doing what he said to Meerkat when they first met months ago but it was getting far too tedious for his liking. A change was desired, a change that would benefit the pack and not only himself. However, he hadn't a clue where to begin or who to speak with other than the injured woman he met second. Soon, within the week, he thought to try and seek out @Ruenna and heed her opinion on what was needed in the pack most. Sifakas pace quickened by a smidge, heavy eyes yearned for a long nap but as he closed in on his den, the lion noticed a sharp streak of orange against the naturally dull browns and greys. She was quick to identify, Towhee sat atop the rise at the calderas entrance and Sifaka was quick to join her. 
He hauled his large stature up the rise, giving a small nod of acknowledgement, and parked himself a foot or two apart from her. He took in the view before looking at her, "What brings you here?" He asked. Sifaka didn't get to see Meerkat leaving, he certainly would have liked to wish her luck on the journey and send her off with a fresh kill if it was possible.   

That's absolutely fine!

Someone approached on her right. Towhee turned sharply, though it was only Sifaka. Her hackles raised and fell in the space of a heartbeat, her orange eyes fixing on his mouth as he asked a question. A little smile played about her own mouth before she replied, as Towhee sifted through all the dumb ways she could answer that.

She settled on saying, "I came here to show my son everything the light touches and tell him it's our kingdom, only I seem to have forgotten him." Her tail twitched and she laughed before acknowledging, "Meerkat gave me your message. Is it okay if I call you Uncle Sif?" She'd been calling him that behind his back since they'd spoken last but he didn't have to know that.

Sifakas gaze steadied onto shimmers from the water, the sunlight seemingly bouncing off the small waves. His expression, stoic, but after hearing Towhee forgetting about her own son, his eyes widened. Still, he kept his gaze on the waters, his brows furrowing in disbelief and suspicion, as he was doubting the authentication of her story. Sifaka was about as vanilla as a vanilla pod, jokes more often than not wafted right over his greying head and then came back to hit him in the back once the joke teller began laughing. Most of the time the lion wouldn't laugh in return but this time he let out a subtle rumble of a laugh, a microscopic smile tugging at the edges of his lips.
Towhees next words nurtured the small smile into half a smile, although the smile was all he would show in gratitude, Sifaka was quite happy to be given a shorthand name. His reply would be given in the form of a agreeing hum but then he remembered Towhee was deaf, so he turned his head to face her. "It is." He agreed with a few small bounces of his head. "How is she by the way? Meerkat. Last I had seen of her, she was a scraggily little thing." Another, similar, question popped into his head about Towhees pups still rummaging around but he waited to hear about Meerkat before asking.

He accepted the name with good grace, then inquired about Meerkat. Towhee's head flicked upward as she considered his question before replying, "Good, so far as I can tell. She just left on another field trip. Her ankle's given her some trouble but it seems to be on the mend now." Her tail flicked a few times. "She did have a particularly rough go of it a while back but, yeah, she's doing alright now."

It meant a lot that he'd ask, though the Sovereign dribbled the ball before passing it back to his side of the court. "Tell me more about your trip to the Frosthawks. How'd it go?"

Unsure how much I'm really allowed to assume here, gonna try to keep it vague

 

Another trip? Sifaka couldn't say he wouldn't have made the same decision but he wished Meerkat had stayed a bit longer to better recover, all the same, he quietly gave her a token of his luck. As Towhee verbally gave Sifaka the talking stick, his ears perked from her interest in his visit to the Frosthawks. He gave it serious thought before speaking, "It went well. I met your sibling, Raven. She told me stories of Fox, and a bit of history of our bloodline in these lands. Our familial tethers reach far and wide, I am proud." He admitted, staying silent for a beat before steering the conversation in another direction altogether. "Meerkat told me of this Niamh woman," He started. "She abruptly left while pregnant. Why?"         

That totally makes sense! I'm going to make a vague inference here; please let me know if you mind. :)

Although he didn't delve into too much detail, it sounded like a success. Before he could quite switch the subject on her, Towhee pressed for a little more news on her older sister and the rest of the Frosthawks, particularly her eldest son. Sifaka obliged her and it made Towhee feel good, knowing everyone down that way was doing pretty well.

Then he posed a question of his own. It caught her a little by surprise, though it was a perfectly valid query, she supposed. Towhee pursed her lips and tried to think back. It hurt, to reach back in time and go over those moments with Phox: the last time she'd ever seen him. The Sovereign drew in a deep, deep breath.

"I don't actually know," she said honestly, "although my brother mentioned something about how she was angry with me for not apologizing. The two of us—Niamh and me, I mean—hadn't spoken in a while because she and Reyes had a fight which resulted in his exile. I blamed both Niamh and Reyes for that shit storm and avoided her because... 'cause..." She trailed off with a sigh. She'd been trying to avoid a blow- and fallout of epic proportions and look where that had landed her.

She realized she really didn't want to talk about this any further than that. "Mm, that's all I can tell you, unfortunately. Phox went after her and hasn't been seen or heard from since." Towhee had slowly come to terms with that, though her feelings about the whole matter were very mixed to this very day.

Her mouth twisted into an expression that was both a grimace and a smile. "Welcome to the Redhawks family and all its legendary drama," she quipped dryly.

Piece by piece, Sifaka was slowly finding out more information but again, he was kept from the whole story. It was frustrating. To be kept out of the loop made the male feel slighted but at the same time he knew force would only ensure he was kept from the whole truth for longer. As the streaked woman finished with a dry quip, Sifaka returned with a short but genuine chuckle. "Family may be blood tied but deep down we are all unwilling strangers. Your children may grow to know a doting uncle but they may never know what my truest behavior holds." He rumbled, a somber tone held close to his chest. "Sometimes, good people do bad things. Drama surrounds us all but as a family all we can do is try to make amends where it can be made. Forgive but don't forget, history tends to repeat itself." Just like he did with Ruenna, he gave Towhee warnings of trust. Sifaka adored offering his advice, it was his favorite pastime, it made him feel important but deeper within the iceberg of feels he liked to help people. Sadly the context of the drama was lost to him so his advice was vague(ish). He hoped Towhee would understand, even if only slightly. Sifaka knew well life was a series of hassles, once one was put to rest another popped right up. Family more than likely the cause of those hassles but that was the cost of strength, everything had its cost. Drama appeared to be the cost of a family. Equivalent exchange at its finest. 

Truth be told, Towhee didn't quite follow Sifaka's next words. It sounded like he was telling fortunes or speaking in riddles or something. Her lips pursed at his closing statements, which made a little more sense than the immediately previous anecdotes. She had wondered more than once whether she could forgive Niamh, should she return. She didn't know the answer to that, though the rest was easy. Of course she'd welcome back Phox and the kids if and when they turned up the caldera, no questions asked. None of this was their fault.

Rather than bother speculating or pursue the subject further, Towhee took a seat, leaning as the wind gusted again. "Uncle Sif, can you tell me more about my mom? Fox? And that whole side of the family?" she wondered. She'd never known the woman, so she wasn't particularly invested, though she was not a chronicler and historian for nothing. She was curious about the maternal half of her family tree, the side which had been utterly eclipsed by the Redhawk legacy.

Going to be vague here again, you can wrap if you want 

"I can." He agreed. "She was a tough woman, fiery. Stubborn but unique." Sifaka continued to explain what firstly came to mind of Fox, all the good, bad and ugly was laid out with as much detail he could manage. As well as what he learned from Raven to supplement. Although the lion did not fully know Towhee, he was certain that, in some way, she would take after Fox.   

No worries, will do! :)

"She was a tough woman, fiery. Stubborn but unique," said Sifaka and Towhee's lips twitched as she thought, Sound like someone you know? She didn't speak, keeping her eyes trained on his lips in fascination as he regaled her with some stories about Fox. She'd heard some from Elwood and Finley, of course, back in the day. But hearing from someone else breathed new life into Fox's image in her mind, giving her even more dimension.

"Thanks, Uncle Sif," she said when he was through. "I'm gonna head back to the rendezvous site now. Maybe I'll pass along some of these stories to the kids." Would tales about their long dead grandmother interest Caracal and the twins? There was only one way to find out. "Or you can," she added invitingly before, with or without him, heading to the hill over the Hobbit Hole.