Lost Creek Hollow underneath the black locust tree

After months of travelling in land unclaimed, Andalusia itched to explore a place she wouldn't just probe to leave behind. The world offered its sights and wonders, and proved a constant draw. But for all the marvels in the world, there was something in a nomad's life that refused to settled with Andalusia. She yearned for a home beyond the open road, as much as she longed to run to the horizon, to the land where eyes couldn't reach. Though far from her siblings now, and farther still from the land of her youth, every day she spent in the Hollow made her certain this was where she would stay. If not for the draw of the landscape, then for those who would call this home with her.

Even without their claim announced, their numbers already teemed. They no longer remained a quartet of migrant travellers. They were a pack through and through, rooted to this place as firm as the towering trees that anchored the land. As Mordecai's howl cut through the breezy summer air, Andalusia revelled in the echo of the summons before she lifted her voice alongside Quill's, a short song, and one lifted more out of pleasure than confirmation she was on her way.

Andalusia let the dying echo lead her, with the scent of others who had raced to the meet before her. The rush of the falls filled the otherwise silent atmosphere of the wolves who had gathered, a boast of power and awe. But Andalusia found her gaze drawn to Mordecai and Harlyn, and she approached them both with the respect due any Alpha: with body lowered and ears drawn back. Yet in her nudge to both she offered affection beyond what her posture could say. A smile rested light upon her lips, and as she drew away, she let her ears stand upright, and her tail sway a loose and gentle rhythm at her hocks. She turned a glance to Quill and another she'd yet to meet, and offered them both a nod, and their playful interaction made her pause. With every scent and fresh recruit, she held the secret hope she would one day turn and see her siblings barrelling toward her through the dense trees. Their presence wouldn't change much, but that didn't stop her from wanting them with her now.

But she'd seen no reason to hope they would show up in the Wilds again, and she would not put stock in the potential of their arrival now. Andalusia flicked her gaze back to the helm before she turned to their surroundings and scanned the forest for any signs of the others.