Moonspear Sal din hug og lat den ri og renna.

The sun made halfhearted attempts to peek out from behind the clouds as the four Redhawks walked single file toward Moonspear. @Phox maintained an easygoing pace that suited @Sable’s and @Towhee Jr’s shorter legs and Towhee’s slightly tender ribs. That wasn’t the only part of her that hurt today, though she glanced at a break in the clouds and tried to look on the bright side.

When the foursome arrived at the foot of the mount, Phox halted and looked at her over the kids’ heads. Towhee nodded, so he sent up a call for Meerkat. While they waited, she shifted her weight and carefully took a seat. She wasn’t in a talkative mood, so she just sat quietly, watching the pups and thinking.

During their most recent conversation, Meerkat had mentioned Sialuk’s trip, her resulting promotion and her plans to move her own pups to a rendezvous site. Towhee wondered if those things had happened yet. She pictured the kids all frolicking together in some mountain clearing and really hoped that might be on the agenda today.

Phox will be an NPC in this thread since Autumn’s AFK! And I’m pinging @Njord so I don’t have to thread with myself. :)

Njord had rested from his trip and spent time with the girls. They were growing like wild weeds and he knew each day together was precious. In the back of his mind, however, was the knowledge that Meerkat’s mother, father, and siblings were camping nearby.

Meerkat had vaguely filled Njord in on Towhee’s mate’s disappearance and their journey from Epoch. The same question was on their minds – where would they settle next? When Phox’s call beckoned Meerkat, it seemed like they would get their answer.

The red-tailed main joined his wife to meet the troop on Moonspear’s border. “Greetin’s,” he said with a roll of his tongue and a broad smile.

By this point, Meerkat was used to hearing summons from her family. But it would never get old! She smiled at the sound of her father’s voice, already making her way down the mountain before the echoes of it faded. She would’ve taken the girls but they were placed at the rendezvous site now and didn’t need constant supervision. This transition always made Meerkat feel a little nervous, though she reminded herself that they wouldn’t be there by themselves.

Her path converged with her mate’s on the descent, so they approached in tandem. Meerkat’s eyes glowed when she spotted the foursome standing at the borders, though her expression quickly shifted as she noticed a few things. Firstly, Jack wasn’t there. Secondly, Towhee looked strangely pensive. Meerkat’s eyes clung to her mother’s face for a moment before flicking to Phox’s.

You’ve decided to stay here, she guessed on a slight gasp, their expressions immediately confirming it and prompting Meerkat to gush, Well, welcome home! You guys are really going to like it here. It’ll be so nice to have so much family close by again. Will Jack be joining us too?

Towhee’s face in particular answered this question, so Meerkat drew in a breath, shot her a sympathetic look and decided to change the subject. She turned her face toward Njord, motioning at him with a smile.

This is Njord, she introduced, all smiles. You would’ve met him sooner but he and Ray just got back from a trip. Njord, this is my dad, Phox, and my mom, Towhee. The kids are Sable and Towhee Jr. I’m sure you can guess which is which, Meerkat quipped, wiggling her toes at her baby siblings.

Towhee didn’t realize she was staring at her feet until Phox’s elbow nudged her rib. Luckily, it wasn’t hard enough to hurt, though she definitely looked up sharply. She would’ve chided him but he gestured at the nearby slope, where Meerkat and an unfamiliar man who must be Njord were approaching their little quartet.

Any worries about whether there was space for them was instantly brushed aside by her daughter’s warm welcome. Towhee let out a long, slow breath. She focused on Meerkat’s lips, eyes tightening at the question about Jack. She shook her head.

Meeting her son-in-law was a decent distraction. Towhee’s spine stiffened a little as she regarded Njord, missing the rest of the introductions. She could see the easy affection between the pair and the way her daughter looked whenever she glanced at him. Her muscles relaxed and the Redhawk matriarch managed a small smile.

-“It’s good to finally meet you, Njord,”- Towhee said. -“Thank you for having us… and not making us go down the laundry list of our skills and assets,”- she quipped in the next breath, exchanging a joking glance with her brother.

She wanted to ask her daughter if she’d picked the rendezvous site like she’d planned and whether they could head there, though Towhee dithered. Her orange gaze moved speculatively back to Njord, noting his scars. She did her best not to stare, though she was admittedly very curious about the man her “baby” had chosen to be her life partner.

-“Meerk, did you pick a rendezvous site? Would you and your dad mind taking the kids there?”- Towhee proposed, then said to Njord, -“I was hoping we could maybe walk together and get to know one another a bit? We can catch up with them later, if that works?”-

Njord took in the quartet, quietly surprised by Towhee’s dark complexion and chiseled features. In many ways, Meerkat’s mother was the complete opposite of her flaxen daughter. Suddenly, it dawned on Njord who Orca’s genes harkened back to… and the man wondered if his bold daughter would take an interest in the warrior arts.

“Of course, ‘tis a pleasure,” he assured Towhee. “It’ll be bonnie tae ken ye and your clan better.” His gaze passed over Sable and Towhee Jr. “An’ our lassies will be lucky tae ken your wee ones.” Family should stick together. The thought made his heart ache.

When Towhee suggested some one on one time, Njord turned to Meerkat and nodded his head. “We can travel ‘round tha long way through tha foothill an’ meet up with ‘em after,” he suggested.

Pleasantries were exchanged, Towhee taking a marked interest in Njord particularly. This didn’t surprise Meerkat, who looked at the side of her husband’s face, gauging his reaction to her mother’s request. He offered warm welcomes and intended to oblige the Redhawk matriarch.

Sounds like a plan! Come on, dad and kiddos, Meerkat said, clapping her forepaws together and beaming at the three of them as she prepared to lead them away. Catch you later, she said in a lower voice, planting a kiss on her mate’s jaw before beginning the ascent.

No one had any qualms with her proposal, at least as far as Towhee could tell. Truth be told, she had a little bit of a tough time reading Njord’s lips. But Meerkat quickly rounded up Phox and the little ones to begin the climb. Towhee watched as she kissed Njord, offering a little wave to their backs and then turning to face her son-in-law.

I’m sure Meerkat’s told you I’m deaf, she said, but I didn’t know you had an accent. At least, she assumed it was that and not a speech impediment; she could not possibly tell the difference. Do you mind looking right at me—don’t worry about making eye contact, it actually helps—and speaking slowly? Even if I can’t catch every word, I can usually get the gist…

A smile flickered across her mouth, though it flattened into more of a neutral expression as Towhee waited for Njord to react. It was always possible she’d committed a faux pas by pointing out his speech patterns, though that sort of thing couldn’t always be helped. This was just more reason for Meerkat to teach her whole family to speak Ptero. Towhee would be more than happy to assist in this endeavor.

“Ah,” Njord faltered when Towhee made a request to aid their communication. Like her, the man felt he had also committed a faux-pas and felt sheepish for it. “Ah’m sorry,” he said slowly (probably too slow). “Aye… yes,” he corrected in an attempt to mimic Meerkat’s mainland accent which he hoped Towhee could better parse.

“She did tell me,” but to actually interact with a deaf wolf in the flesh had its own learning curve. He did his best to face Towhee directly.

“She also told me your movements…. you make signs to speak?” He motioned with a paw as any awkwardness faded from his expression and changed into curiosity.

Njord didn’t seem to know the proper term for the sign language, which prompted a sharp intake of breath from Towhee. She wouldn’t hold it against him but it just wouldn’t do, especially because both her children seemed unable to hear or verbalize totally normally.

-“Yes, it’s called Ptero,”- she said and signed at once, keeping her movements a little slower than usual in the hope that he could pick up on them. -“I’m really good at lipreading too but there’s a list of things—like accents—that can trip me up. And my two youngest don’t appear to speak at all, so it would mean everything to us if you and Meerkat taught your family to speak it, at the very least. I’m happy to help teach anyone who’s willing to learn.”-

She fell quiet, giving her son-in-law a moment to speak in turn, and intended to pay close attention. But an intrusive thought butted its way into her brain, causing her eyes to go out of focus. Towhee would never forget Meerkat’s melancholy when Njord had disappeared for a while the previous summer. Her daughter had known where he was going, she remembered; he hadn’t just vanished without a word or trace. But something had waylaid him quite a while and he hadn’t sent word. He had just reappeared one day, if memory served, with some sort of explanation that Meerkat had obviously accepted.

Towhee’s jaw tightened, ticked. She wanted to ask some questions, yet she knew it wouldn’t be appropriate to dredge up that sort of thing right now, maybe ever. She swallowed and refocused her eyes, trying not to miss another word.

The tenderhearted redtail perceived tension in Towhee’s demeanor. It made her request feel more like an ultimatum and Njord felt that any sign of ambivalence wouldn’t go over well. But why? It played into Njord’s fear of familial discord and made his guard go up a little, which came out as a weight shift from one paw to the other. She reminded him of Rosalyn.

But Njord thought of his wife’s encouragement. They’ll like you, she had said. He had to trust in her words. Besides, not everything was about him. Any edginess he sensed could be about something completely unrelated. After all, Towhee just had her whole life uprooted.

He licked his nose, a calming signal in wolves, and passed Towhee and sincere smile. “Ptero,” he corrected, although the motion for the word went right over his head which was too preoccupied with all the big thoughts.

“Aye, I will learn it,” he committed. “T’would be what I would want for my children as well if I were you.” His head naturally drifted away and then Njord remember to keep his face targeted on Towhee so she could read him. It was clear it would take a few interactions for it to all become second nature. “If I were you,” he repeated, unsure if she had caught the last bit.

“Meerkat ‘as even learned some words from my mother tongue,” he added. “Yer daughter is quite the polygot!” he laughed. It was also a good reminder of his wife’s sacrifices throughout their relationship. Now, it was time to step up and reciprocate.

-“When I was in Epoch, I taught weekly classes. Do you think that sort of thing might work well here too?”- Towhee asked on the subject of Ptero, glad that Njord seemed more than willing to oblige her request.

He said something that she didn’t comprehend at all and, despite everything, Towhee couldn’t resist the opportunity to loudly and gruffly demand, -“What did you just call my daughter?”-

But the sparkle in her eye gave her away a moment before her huff of laughter did. She ducked her head, enjoying her momentary amusement before looking up again.

-“Seriously, though, I don’t know that word. What does it mean?”- she wondered.

Njord tilted his head in thought. An official and organized class was a foreign idea to him. Epoch must have been an interesting place.

“Tae be honest, I cannae say,” he admitted in a tone that alluded to whimsical pondering. “Couldnae hurt tae try,” he followed up quickly with a stout nod, accidentally slipping back into his old accent.

“Tha more time we can spend with you, tha better,” he concluded. “Meerkat can teach me an’ tha girls but… if we dinnae – don’t – use Ptero often it’ll float away like a feather on tha sea.”

In the next moment, Towhee joshed and Njord was happy to see a more lighthearted side of the serious woman. He laughed with her. “’Tis a word tae describe someone who speaks multiple languages,” he answered.

The context was a bit of a giveaway, though Njord confirmed the meaning of the word. Towhee dipped her head in understanding, abruptly realizing the two of them were still standing motionless at the base of the mountain.

-“I guess this means I’m a pollywog too,”- she commented, turning and motioning to indicate they should finally begin that walk they’d planned. It’s not easy, signing and moving, so this is when lipreading is the most handy. As long as you look at me, we should be fine.

She drew in a breath as they began what amounted to a steady climb, eyes roving over the nearby mountainside. Towhee couldn’t help but remember her arrival in Epoch—well, after she’d healed from her reopened wounds—and how it had seemed like such a paradise to her after the dry canyon. There was a lot of greenery here too, but also a lot of rock.

While you were on your trip with Ray, Meerkat told me about how you guys came to be here. It gives me hope that I can also rebuild a bit here, Towhee mused, not looking directly at Njord but uphill still. Maybe this is a mountain of healing. I mean, the damn thing got hit by space fire or something and it’s still here, standing strong. Even the pack came back, in a way. I was there for the first rodeo and it actually seems like it might even be more powerful than back in the day… no offense, Hydra! she said, raising her voice to shout the last three words.

Her voice trailed off into a chuckle and she looked sideways at Njord, wondering if he thought she might be a little bit crazy. But, no… Towhee was just old. And worldly. And maybe a little off her rocker, sometimes.

“Polygot,” Njord amended. “I cannae be havin’ ye call yerself a wee frog on my account,” he added with a breathy chuckle.

With a nod of agreement, Njord trekked abreast with Towhee up Moonspear’s foothills. Something about walking made the conversation flow easier and the man felt himself becoming more relaxed around his mother-in-law.

It was a surprise to find out Towhee had once been a part of Moonspear’s original pack. The Redhawk clan appeared to have close ties to this region. Plus, Meerkat had to have gotten her passion for exploration from someone.

Njord sighed out the nose, melancholy at the thought of what transpired at Sapphique. “Aye, Meerkat told me what happened here… an’ in tha Glen too.” How could he ever forget the story of how a bear decimated Firefly Glen?

Space fire. The phrase made him make a sound that was almost a laugh.

“Ah’m surprise she wanted tae come tae Moonspear at all. A piece of land can hold so many sad memories. Like, tha coast…. I dinnae ken Meerkat will ever want tae go back.” He paused, thoughtful. “But what was important was that her good friend Sialuk was ‘ere. One can heal when ye are around by those who ye love an’ trust.” So, it was simple addition. “Ah know for certain ye can find that here too,” he assured the Redhawk matriarch with a wee grin.

“Tell me what Moonspear was like back in tha day? Who’s Hydra?”

Towhee knew that Sialuk’s support was why they had come here and that Meerkat and Njord, in turn, had helped her raise a flourishing village. She was glad her daughter had found such a valuable friendship. It was always wonderful, having family—natal and nuclear—nearby but there was something intrinsically important about friends.

That made her think of Hydra again, as well as all the others Towhee had loved and lost over the years. She had really outlived so many, a thought which made her stomach feel heavy. Fortunately, she didn’t get to dwell on it long before she caught Njord’s next round of questions.

Oh, I never lived here before, she corrected, I was just close with Hydra, who ruled here back in the day. She was a force of nature and indisputable queen of the mountain. She was in her prime when the tragedy struck. I don’t really believe in ghosts, though if anyone would come back and haunt this place, it would be her, Towhee finished on a dry chuckle.

They reached a plateau and she signaled for Njord to stop. Towhee wasn’t particularly out of breath, though she was in no rush either. Besides, she wanted to stop and turn around, admire the views for a moment. They really were splendid. Perhaps she’d been missing the heights she’d known throughout her early life, as much as she’d enjoyed the landscapes of the canyon and vale more recently.

Her eyes sought and found the Sunspires in the distance, lingering on the place where she knew Northstar Vale was tucked as Njord’s words replayed in her mind’s eye: “One can heal when ye are around those who ye love an’ trust…” Towhee would certainly find a lot of that here, though she still felt guilty about dragging what was left of her family away from Epoch. She knew they would make the best of it, though she also knew it was inherently selfish.

I know it’s hard to gauge this sort of thing sometimes, with how unpredictable life can be, but do you think this is your ‘forever home’? Or do you think you and Meerkat might one day want a village of your own? Towhee wondered conversationally.

Njord loved history, stories, and songs. Hydra’s tale captured his attention and made him wonder if the aurora he and Meerkat had watched was the old mountain’s queen of time past. It was a pity to hear that her life had been cut short by disaster. Perhaps there were those who were too good for this mortal realm and so the netherworld beckoned them to return early.

As a youngster, the redtail refuted anything religious, spiritual, or superstitious… but he couldn’t help but become more invested in these things as he aged. Maybe it gave him comfort… or maybe, as he grew older, Njord realized there were a lot of things one would never know or understand about this world.

He stopped to take in the scenic view. Miles of sharp peaks adjacent to rolling hills were flush with springtime greenery. Several small lakes dotted the landscape.

Towhee’s question made the man reflect. “Aye, tis hard to be certain, hmm?” he mused. “When we fled Sapphique there was a short time I thought we’d claim a land named Hushed Willows. Tis a beautiful place… quiet an’ serene. But she was pregnant, then… an’ it wasnae the right time tae consider it.” The image of Meerkat among the green fronds tickled his mind.

“Ah must admit, ‘tis been difficult for me tae… assimilate here. Sometimes its felt more like a refuge than a home. A place we found shelter in a desperate time than one we picked. Ah’ve enjoyed helpin’ Sialuk build this place. Protect’n it.” There was a ‘but’ his body language telegraphed. “Ah suppose Meerkat an’ our children are my home. An’ they just happen tae be at Moonspear.”

A pang of guilt riddled his conscious to say these things. He coughed a breath, a ‘tch’ hiccup in the throat. “Och, perhaps ‘tis only just because Ah’m still healin’ my self. Meerkat an’ I ‘ave been so busy with our wee ones that it’s been difficult tae be social.” He smiled. “But at the end of the day, if my wife is happy here then that’s all I need.”

Did she know Hushed Willows? The name didn’t sound familiar, though of course it made her think of her willow, back in Epoch. Towhee swallowed the lump in her throat and blinked, redoubling her focus on her son-in-law’s face. She really only caught every third or fourth word, though it was enough to cobble together a reasonable understanding of what he shared.

When Hydra and I were allied, we were living in Sun Mote Copse on the other side of this mountain. That’s where Meerkat was born, actually. Have you ever been? Perhaps you two should go visit. Now that Phox and I are here, we’d be happy to babysit for you.

There was probably a fairly unsubtle hint in her words, though Towhee wouldn’t suggest it outright in their very first conversation. But ever since her very first visit with Meerkat here, she had sensed that it may not be the final stop on Meerkat’s journey. She knew her daughter was a traveler at heart, though Towhee wasn’t actually sure what Meerkat thought of leading her own village.

Anyhow, you just said the magic words, Towhee said, lifting her feet to resume their ascent. Anyone who prioritizes Meerkat’s happiness is a winner in my book, not that you needed my approval or anything. But it’s nice to have, isn’t it? she quipped, winking and huffing a dry laugh.

If she had been able to hear, she may have picked up on the sound of children’s laughter in the distance as they approached the rendezvous site. But of course all was silent for Towhee, who looked around herself with a long, slow exhale. She didn’t know if this was her last stop—probably not, honestly—and she wouldn’t be happy here right away. But the elder Redhawk hoped this could become a nice home for her, for a time.

Njord smiled appreciatively at Towhee’s offer –  the look of a tired, but contented father. He had to admit that the idea of a weekend getaway with his wife was enticing even if some lingering attachment issues still nettled his heart. After what he had endured with all of his children… Njord doubted he would ever shake the trauma completely. Seal and Orca’s upbringing was, so far, uneventful and their father wouldn’t let anything change that.

“Nay, Ah’ve never traveled so far South. In fact, Moonspear is the southernmost point my eyes have seen.” He grin, amused. “It would be nice tae see Meerkat’s origins. Ah visited tha Caldera once upon a time… before we began courting.” He held that sweet memory, and the taste of apple, close!

And at Towhee’s jeer Njord joined with a hearty laugh. “Indeed!”

The next thing he knew, Orca and Seal were calling out. Da! Da!

Njord turned his head. The time had flown so fast!

He looked back to Towhee. “Och, we’re already here! Make yourself at home. You’re with Moonspear now,” he assured her of his camaraderie. Then, with a wave of his red tail Njord loped away to greet the littles and meet Towhee’s children. But first - a peck on his wife’s cheek!