They took their time, enjoying the waning summer scenery and cooler weather as they trekked west through the mountains and then angled north in the direction of the plateau. By the time Bones and Ira found themselves in its shadow, her heart was thumping with anxious excitement. The yearling looked forward to catching up with her father and seeing her old Alpha. She hoped Atticus and Ira would get along. The yearling also wondered if she might get to see some of her young cousins.
"Remember," she said to Ira as she prepared to call for her loved ones, "they might try to convince me to stay here. Help me stay strong to the creek, blaggard." Bones smiled, her eyes dancing merrily. Truth be told, she wondered if she really belonged in the creek now, now that everything had changed. Yet she felt an attachment to it and she wanted to honor her vow to Bazi. "It's me home," she whispered, talking to herself.
"Ready to meet me old man?" she teased in the next breath before throwing back her head and howling for Atticus, Peregrine, Fox or anyone else that was available for a visit with the recently returned marauder.
The trip with Bones was nice. They took their time, walking leisurely, absent of a pressure to rush and be there at a certain time. It was nice to take the time to take in the scenery though the landscape held nothing for the pallid Princeling. In reality, he enjoyed simply being with Bones, glad that had wanted him to go along. Ira didn't like leaving her side but gave her space because he did not want to appear clingy — which he wasn't. He trusted that the wolves of Swiftcurrent Creek wouldn't harm her though the only one he knew besides Bones was Bazi and even then Ira couldn't say with any sort of conviction that he liked her. The pallid Princeling received the feeling that such was mutual. Ira minded his tongue in the wintery Queen's presence for Bones' sake alone. It was hard, surprisingly, but he did it, offering up a charm full of falsities and deceptions to ensure that he had a place alongside the Tortuga girl. Pretending to be something he wasn't was annoying but Bones was worth it. And...maybe someday he convince her to join him...if and when he decided to try to make a go of it. The whole leading thing. It was what Jinx had groomed him for, after all. Even Lecter had aided in his teachings.
Silver eyes moved to his dark companion when she spoke, asking him to help her hold strong to her loyalty to the Creek.
"Hello!" He called as he approached, voice friendly as he saw no reason not to be. The two were respectfully remaining on the border and did not appear to be thinking about encroaching. "Are you seeking someone?"
The firecrotch fireball strode toward the call leisurely, but when she caught a whiff of the distinct smell of Bones her demeanor changed in a flash. One moment, she was strolling along with a bored expression, the next she was bolting toward her former pack-mate with tail wagging frantically back and forth and her eyes and ears alert and attentive. Without a word, Fox crashed her way past Dante, ignored Ira completely (whom Fox did not remember), and began giving her pack-sister all the friendly licks Bones would allow.
While Fox had never considered Bones a child, she had been as close to a little sister as Fox had ever known.
The yearling opened her mouth to answer him when a flurry of red fur appeared and flung itself at her. Although Fox did not touch her trigger zone, the sheer suddenness and intensity of her approach provoked an instinctual response from Bones. With a sharp yelp, she flinched and snapped her teeth at her assailant.
Of course, she recognized her former captain and realized her mistake no more than two seconds later. Bones's ears disappeared against her skull as she buckled her legs, dropped to the ground and rolled onto her back. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" she said, hoping neither Fox nor her gray comrade was already preparing to dispatch her. "I didn't mean it. I'm sorry!"
Momentarily too afraid to elaborate on why she'd reacted that way, Bones held her breath and tried to make herself even smaller by shrinking into a ball. What a cruel twist of fate that she might die here today at worst and lose the respect of her Aunt Fox and the rest of her family at best. And all because of what Cutlass had (allowed to be) done to her. The youthful marauder felt shame choking her and squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself to disappear.
Ira was tense at the approach of an unknown man, though the grey male's greeting held a friendliness that Ira, instinctively, didn't trust. In Ira's world no one was friendly without wanting something from him, though that belief seemed a little ridiculous to the pallid Princeling. Eyes of frigid silver watched him as he inquired as to if they were seeking someone in the Plateau or not. What else would we be standing here for? desired to slip from betwixt Ira's lips full of the contempt he felt at such a redundant and useless question but he bit it back for the sake of not wanting to start off meeting Bones' family — despite that he suspected the a man wasn't apart of said family — on the wrong paw. While she might have found his insolence and patronizing way charming Ira was beginning to realize that if he did not implore charisma every now and then his goals might truly be impossible. In thus, Ira favored silence deciding to let Bones answer that question, else he end up causing them trouble, and Bones had, had enough trouble in her life.
Bones didn't have a chance to get words out, however, for Fox herself came bursting onto the scene, and flung herself right at Bones, ignoring Ira and the man that had greeted them at the borders. Time, in a bizarre warp as adrenaline shot through his veins, seemed to slow down allowing Ira to notice every single movement that passed. Bones yelp was like a sharp knife through his heart and Ira's instincts took over, attempting to force himself between the two of them wanting nothing more than to shield Bones with his body.
"No one is being punished here," he told the girl, looking to Fox for confirmation. Her approach had been so openly friendly that he doubted she would see the girl harmed. Ira's tone wasn't so great, but he obviously cared for his companion, so Dante did not comment on it. Let Fox deal with that if she was offended. "No harm done."
It came as a surprise to him to learn that Atticus had a daughter. A past mateship perhaps? It wasn't his place to ask, so he nodded. He wasn't sure that Atticus would be up for the trip to the border, having not fully recovered yet from his injury and accompanying illness. At least he was awake though, thankfully. "Atticus has been indisposed of late, though he has improved considerably, do not worry. I will leave that tale to another to tell, though." He was an unknown at the moment so would let family catch up with family. "Perhaps we could take them to him?" He asked Fox, for these circumstances could be enough to merit an escorted trip within the bounds. If she refused though he would understand, for he wasn't sure what Peregrine would think of letting strangers within, even if they were family.
Once the white one had been dealt with, Fox fanned her ears back to listen to Dante. He was, after all, her second in command alongside Blue Willow, and Fox had somehow learned to listen to her co-leaders during the past few months. “Definitely not him,” Fox replied, shooting Ira a dark look. “Bones, are you staying?” she asked. It made no sense for her to live at the creek now. Fox was here, and so was Atticus.
If not for the news about her father, Bones might have fled right then. Instead, her glistering eyes fixed on the gray brute and she asked in a quivering voice, "Me father's been hurt? What happened?" Slowly, she rolled over and pushed herself into a sitting position, though her head hung low between her silvered shoulder blades.
"Please don't fight because of me," she added to both Ira and Fox. "She didn't know, Ira. And he was just trying to protect me, Fox," Bones tried to explain to them respectively. "Neither one of ye did anything wrong." She paused and sucked in a shaky breath, then shook her head at Fox's question. "I can't. I promised Cap'n Bazi. And Ira goes wherever I go." And Fox had just made it very clear what she thought of him.
Feeling humiliated and defeated — quite different than she had expected to feel on this trip — Bones let her head drape even lower. Tears fell from her pale eyes, dripping down her slender muzzle and onto the grass between her forepaws.
There was a serious conflict of interest in the aftermath of Ira stepping forward to defend Bones, despite the fact that he didn't, initially, think that Fox was going to harm her. Ira's eyes narrowed when Fox snarled at him to never talk to her that way again, but she had stopped being his Alpha a long time ago and he didn't have to do anything she told him. Not that he would have listened before, either. The only woman he had listened to was deceased now, though he was becoming better at listening to Bones, driven only by similar reasons: respect and the fact that he cared for them. I'll talk to you in any way that I please, burned on the tip of Ira's tongue but with a show of great restraint he bit it back, because he didn't want to ruin Bones' chance of seeing her father again, if the damage he had done already wasn't already hadn't cost her. Whatever respect Ira had harbored for Fox was gone with the single notion that if she remembered she didn't care. So, therefore, he wouldn't care about her either, and if it was not for Bones he'd have made everything ten times worse than they already were just for the malicious glee in it. He was miserable so why not share it? Why not be the insolent Princeling that everyone already knew him as? The insolent Princeling that was all he knew how to be.
Bones' pleading made him actually feel regret but not for stepping between them and angering Fox — no for that he felt no regret. Merely, he felt regret for causing Bones pain, for upsetting her.
If I had been anyone but Fox, Dante could have shut the situation down. But her rank required that he offer her no orders as to how she committed herself, so he kept quiet. He was very glad when the other fem asked that the situation diffuse, though. He hated unnecessary conflict and no one here meant harm, that much could be seen .
It appeared that it would fall to him to explain what had befallen Atticus, though Dante had hoped Peregrine could break the news. It would be better from him , he was sure . "Blue or Peregrine could explain further, but he took a fall. He is recovering and will be himself in no time, I am sure, but must take things easier at this time." It was vague , but Dante himself didn't have all the details.
He still wished there was some way for Bones to see her father. If Fox wished to, and Bones was ok with it, he would be more than happy to wait with Ira here. He refrained from offering just yet, though, wanting to see what came of the situation first .
She turned her attention back to Bones. "Atticus was out of it for a month or two. Basically, he couldn't do anything without anybody telling him to do it. He's well on his way to a full recovery, from what I've seen. I can't just... lead you onto the plateau, though." Peregrine would never allow it, Fox knew, and she was on the same page as him in that regard. "Why don't we see if either Dante or I can track down Atticus and bring him here to see you? Or we could arrange for him to meet you somewhere close in the next few days or weeks." As much as Fox wanted to bring Bones in and keep her safe here, she knew that the only way to do that would be if the girl wanted to stay here permanently.
It seemed not only Ira but Bones herself wasn't welcome on the plateau, despite having visited in the past and even playing with Peregrine's young pups at the time. Was Fox punishing her for refusing to relocate here or perhaps for hanging with Ira? Bones didn't know but her insides ached suddenly. Her chest felt tight. This all felt wrong. But it wasn't her place to question Fox's decrees, even if they pained her.
Bones sniffed and swiped a paw across her eyes, where tears still fell, hot and thick. "Please t-tell me dad I came to see him and that I'll come back... or, if he's well enough, he can c-come find me in the creek. I think we'd better go." As these words slipped off her tongue, she looked at Fox with hurt floating in her eyes, then bowed her head to both leaders before turning and nudging Ira away from the plateau.
Ira did not respond to Fox's comeback, instead giving the fire kissed woman he had, at one point, respected, a sickeningly sweet smile. It was a false smile, of course, for there was no mirth to be felt about their current situation. It was amazing, Ira realized, how thoroughly his opinion of someone could be changed in a short matter of seconds. It didn't matter, he had no intentions of having further contact with her after this and he hoped that Bones didn't either, though of course he would never presume to tell his companion what to do. Fox was being the world's biggest bitch to Ira, as far as the youth cared at the moment, and Ira wondered why he hadn't been able to see this part of her before. Eventually, Ira tuned Fox out, turning and keeping his attention upon Bones, unable to guess if she would want to stay or not. It was when the Tortuga native let out a sniffle that he was drawn to the realization that she was crying and guilt twisted his stomach, though he was not fully to blame (and therefore would not shoulder all of it). Ira turned at Bones' nudge and turned before he paused long enough to shoot Fox a cold glare over his shoulder with a loud snort before he continued after Bones, whispering,
He felt a lot of sympathy for Bones, though, who had come here seeking family and friends. This had not gone well. Thus, his look was apologetic, but he did not question Fox's words. He personally did not understand why Bones could not alone enter escorted. Could the young one really do any harm? He would have happily stayed here with Ira to allow her the chance to see Atticus. He wondered how soon Atticus would be able to see her, hoping that he was well enough to make the trip sooner than later. As was quite obvious from her violent reaction to even a familiar face, she had been through an ordeal. She needed the support of loved ones, not harsh and impersonal words exchanged on a border.
"We will deliver your message," he responded simply, his tone warm. He would do his best to get her reunited with her father, for it would likely do him a lot of good as well to see her.
She wanted to say so much more. She should have said she was sorry, but that was not Fox's way. Saying as much would be admitting defeat, and Fox could not stand the thought of that. Hopefully, Bones would understand. Fox wasn't sure that she would, but there was little she could do about that when the younger lady turned and walked away from them. The fireball stood, a bit shell shocked, as she watched Bones and the little shit disappear into the landscape.
Once they had vanished out of view, Fox turned to Dante, whom she had all but forgotten had been standing there at all. “We should find Atticus,” she suggested. “That didn’t… go well, did it?” Fox added with an exasperated sigh. “I should just stay out of everybody else’s lives.”
Her question might have been rhetorical, but he responded anyway, for it was definitely the truth. "Not at all" he agreed, keeping mum as to why that might have been. Honestly the situation had been strange from the start, and somewhat volatile from the moment Fox and Ira had begun exchanging words.
He wasn't about to respond to her next statement, for he wasn't really privy to her recent strain of drama. Besides that, there wasn't really a tactful way to answer. True, her actions had hardly made the situation better, but she was within her rights as Alpha to turn away trespassers. It was not as Dante would have done, though. And as he often did, he would keep his observations in mind for future situations. Perhaps next time he could stop such a confrontation before it occurred.
Considering Dante did not elaborate, Fox assumed he had nothing more to say about the matter. With no guidance from him, she figured it couldn't have gone any other way. With a flick of her ear, she set about finding Atticus and letting him know that Bones was back. He could seek her out at his leisure, when he was ready, or Fox would find Bones again and let her know when and where she could meet her blood father.
Whether or not Dante wanted to come along for the ride was up to him entirely, though she certainly wouldn't mind his company.
Perhaps Dante should have said more on the matter, but voicing his thoughts was still a right that he was very much getting used to exercising. Up until now his counsel had been his own and nothing further needed. Now, though, things were different. He would adjust eventually, and already was speaking much more than even a few short months ago. Small steps.
Taking on Fox after such an encounter would be more like a bound outside of his comfort zone. Thus, he stayed mum. He did turn to follow her, though, wishing to be there when Atticus heard the news that his daughter had returned and wished to see him. He looked forward to breaking the good news.