Redhawk Caldera One of my favorite people

@Maia 

Right after talking with Chickadee and learning the news Dwin went to seek out her mom. With so few people around the caldera felt oddly empty and with the daylight dwindling and mist rising up from the lake and snaking through the trees, the atmosphere gained an almost ghostly quality. It was quiet too - all the songbirds, of which there had been plenty and galore in the spring, had left - save for a crow and a sparrow here and there. The territory that had been so full of life had grown dark and gloomy. As if it knew that the family, who had called this place home for so many years, was leaving and therefore was mourning in resentful silence. 

Dwin was not a fearful wolf, but even she was not immune to this sense, therefore she was glad that she first caught scent, then sight of her mother in the distance. She quickened her step to reach her. For a moment she felt as a little kid, who had wandered just a little too far in the woods, got scared of the shadows and only the warm light of Maia's presence could save her from being dragged away by the sinister forces lurking around. "Hey," she called out to her, right before she went ahead to greet her in a very affectionate way. "I am glad I managed to catch you before your big adventure!" she said, looking her mom up and down, feeling happy that at least one person in her life had not changed much at all. 

Maia had not seen this coming but, on reflection, she should have. She had not been able to hold Brecheliant together, and as it fell apart, she knew that both she and Eljay had no choice. Like her husband, Maia had intended to live and eventually die here, surrounded (she hoped) by family. But with Chickadee’s departure, and Kivaluk’s, only Amalia would be left. She wouldn’t ask her friend to be the only one left looking after them. And she wouldn’t force Ceridwen to stay. They had no choice but to go instead.

Maia had spent the morning at Wraen’s grave. She tried not to worry, but her heart sank thinking of any of her children returning and finding the Caldera empty.

This was supposed to be home. How would they know where to go next? What if they never found them!? What if they thought they’d been abandoned!? What if…

Fortunately, Ceridwen was there to interrupt her spiral. Her relief wasn’t complete; there were still other kids to worry about. But she smiled and quickly closed the distance, wrapping her daughter in a hug.

I’m glad too! I wondered if I’d have to find a messenger! She held her tight, then pulled back with a small laugh. Seems crazy, right? An adventure for us, after all these years. She knew that Chickadee was excited for it and so Maia held onto that, despite having grown nearly as attached as Eljay. There was a time when she would have jumped at the chances. Now it felt like a goodbye of its own.

Finding a messenger to inform Dwin. That sounded so reasonable and easy, but what was the likelihood of him or her ever finding her out in the wilds to tell the news? Dwin briefly wondered, how would her return home have felt, had she arrived just a day or two later. When their scents would still linger, but none of them would be here? She would be left wondering about the hundreds upon hundreds of possibilities, likelihoods and her life would be spent searching for them, but maybe never finding out. It was a horrifying prospect and she was glad that she had just narrowly missed it. 

"Is dad ready for it?" she asked, knowing that neither the younger pair, nor Maia as a seasoned traveller, would have issues with changing the scenery. Eljay - on the other hand... Not all people were like Dwin's old hag friend, who kept on changing lovers, husbands, packs and nomadic lifestyle with ease and as she pleased. The young Blackthorn could easily see herself as being one like her, minus the male/female partners. But Eljay was built from a different material than his mercurial relatives.