Neverwinter Forest Let's just freeze the frame

Frost caressed the branches of trees and dry, yellow blades of grass as Shrike moved through the still dim light of morning, knowing the chill and frost would melt away once the sun came up, but that would still be at least an hour away. The horizon was only beginning to gain a bit of blue colour, fading from the inky black of night as dawn slowly approached. His coat had begun to thicken, likely due to the fact that he'd been travelling for quite some time in search of Lucy. Rather than continuing on his radial pattern around the Caldera, Shrike had decided to continue travelling Northeast and scour that region thoroughly before he would continue moving South.

He shuddered when a cool breeze blew, though, and slowed his pace when he caught the scent of wolves. He'd come upon another pack, and felt relieved. He did not want to take much more time searching before he went back to the pack with an update of some sort. He froze in his tracks, though, when he caught a familiar scent. @Allure. There was no denying it- the female who had once been a part of their pack, and who had caught his attention half a heartbeat after he'd first set eyes on her, was now living in this pack. His heart raced; why had she left the Caldera, anyway? And would she remember him at all? He knew better than to call out for her in particular, especially if she came to his call but had no memory of him. He wanted to see her again, so drawn was he to the strikingly beautiful female, but if he didn't see her today, perhaps- once he finally found Lucy and maybe even Qilaq- he could return to see her again. But now was not the time for him to pine over a beautiful face.

He remained a respectful distance clear of the borders and called out for any pack wolf who happened to be in the area. He felt ashamed, with thoughts of Allure filling up his mind and clouding his mission of finding Lucy, but he swallowed hard and told himself he was simply there on a mission, not an affair of the heart.

The days had come and gone through the summer – the boys were growing swiftly, and while she tried to maintain a close connection with not only them, but Pasha and Lucy as well, the bi-toned girl felt herself drifting further from her family. Whittier’s death was a raw wound still upon her heart – her chubbier brother had always been a protector to her of sorts, primarily from Swift’s acts of dominance – at times even from Pasha.

Now he was gone.

It was with these thoughts that she tried to keep busy – long ago she had promised a visit to Floki upon the mountain, but now such a point seemed moot – instead of traveling and scouting, the girl rounded the borders by times, leaving her scent and protecting the inhabitants within the forest. Other times, she was the quiet babysitter, keeping watch upon the growing youths.

Today, it seemed, would be more eventful than most when she heard a cry call for the wolves of Neverwinter Forest. She tipped her muzzle slightly, waiting to see if her father’s call would ring out in answer – when it did not, the black and white she-wolf quickened her pace, hopeful to intercept the visitor before they became too antsy from waiting.

She had not expected to see a familiar face – and while he was not a wolf she was truly familiar with, she felt a gentle smile of surprise pull at her lips as she emerged from the trees, her form inquisitive in nature. “Shrike,” she greeted, hoping that was indeed his name. The gentle drift of wind would inform her he was still with the Caldera – Fox and Peregrine must have accepted him fully, or he had not felt shunned the way she had. “Hi.”

Keep your mind on your mission.

It was easier said than done, of course, for a wolf like Shrike with a one-track mind. He felt guilty, yes, knowing that presently he hoped to see Allure perhaps more than he hoped to see Lucy...But that had to be wrong. No, he wanted to see Lucy more- he just felt it was more likely to find Allure here, given that her scent clearly marked the border, and he could catch no trace of Lucy's scent. Whether that was because he was now simply focused on Allure's scent or because there was no trace of Lucy's scent to be found, he couldn't tell. He tried to keep his mind on the mission he'd set for himself, but when Allure's scent grew stronger, he became hopelessly distracted. He preened his coat, lifting his head with a jerky movement every now and again to make sure she was still out of sight before he was content with how he looked, and waited for her to arrive.

Had she heard his voice and decided to greet him because she remembered him? Surely she was on her way, he could smell her. He prayed that no other wolf from the pack would come, as he wanted time with her alone, rather than being moderated by another pack wolf. Not that he had anything to say to her, really, but he simply didn't want to have another wolf interrupt. He'd finally found the beautiful woman again, and now had a reason to stray from his pack to visit her...As long as it wasn't too awkward.

The sleek woman appeared, and Shrike couldn't suppress the surprised, shy, but slightly giddy smile when he saw her. His lips quivered as he tried his best to keep himself from showing his true delight- as the two of them had honestly never had much more than a simple conversation while in the company of others as well. He rose to his feet, like a gentleman greeting a lady, tail waving gently at his hocks and head lowered to show respect. Her little smile had not gone unnoticed, and he could have been knocked over by a leaf when she spoke his name. She remembered him! "Allure," He greeted warmly, moving forward tentatively to touch his nose to her cheek in greeting. They had been packmates, once, so he figured it wouldn't have been stepping over the line...Though he was an inexperienced and poor judge on matters of the heart. "Good to see you again." He said. "You look well," He commented, in his own way of hopinh that things had been good for her in whatever pack she was in now.

His features were noticeably striking – the same ebony mask framed his eyes and she recalled the day she had met him – pleased to know that she had indeed remembered his name correctly. It had been such a fleeting moment – one she had partaken with only because she had been unwilling to shun the wolf who had gathered the Caldera pack for the activity.

To see him on her doorstep was not expected – and had he not held himself in such a genuinely friendly manner, the bi-toned girl would have been nervous, given her last interlude with Peregrine. “Thank you,” she murmured, pulling up closer before she finally stopped movement – her bright eyes studied him quietly, her muzzle canting slightly to the side. “You as well – but what brings you to Neverwinter Forest?” She had not seen a Caldera wolf since leaving them, and had assumed they kept mostly to themselves – just as the wolves of the forest did.

Neverwinter Forest.

With the name of the pack, Shrike snapped back into reality mode, and out of daydream mode. His ears turned back, slightly disappointed she wasn't just going to try small talk or get caught up, but he had to tell himself that he was there for a reason, and a very important one at that. Her beauty was distracting, of course, so Shrike's cheeks flushed warm when he thought of the best way to break the news. He was worried about Lucy, yes, but he couldn't help but feel glad that he'd set eyes on his lady-crush again.

"A pup from our pack was abducted." He said. "Elwood and Finley's daughter, Lucy. By a black male with red eyes; she's about three months old, black fur, blue eyes," He said. "Have you seen her? Or the male?" He asked, and before she could say anything, he remembered his other mission. "And a pup from Blackfeather Woods. Went there first and heard they're missing a pup too. Four month old female named Qilaq." He said, ears finally turning forward again.

I'm not sure of timelines since things are a lil' confusing. I believe this thread would be set after @Trick is notified of Lucy's existence at NWF and Scimitar sends him back (for what it's worth, when Scimitar offered to show him Lucy, it's probably likely they couldn't find her at the time? Mary can adjust this assumption if she wants! But if @Cypress tattles to Lucy that someone was there for her, she probably already ran, unknowing yet to the NWF adults. So this thread would also be set before Elwood or Finley comes to collect Lucy, but just after Scimitar realizes @Rannoch and @Lucy are missing?

Let me know, anyone, if that isn't a safe assumption! There's so much going on. :o

She did not notice the subtle change in him as his ears withered back – nor would she have understood it, as growing older, she had been unused to extra attention that did not stem from her family. Instead, her own dark ears perked forward, her eyes widening at the connection – she had known her father had sent a messenger back to Redhawk Caldera for Lucy – and had Shrike not followed up with the caveat that she belonged to Elwood and Finley, Allure would have queried if he had been the father to come pick her up, as Scimitar had requested.

Elwood’s daughter. She had met the man – had liked him, even. He must have been worried sick for her.

“Lucy, yes!” She began her words, her tail waving in the air behind her. “Some deranged wolf brought her here injured and dropped her at our borders – my father sent a Caldera wolf who was also looking for her back to collect her father. She’s been terrified but –“ She was cut off then with thundering pawfalls, and with her ears splaying back to her skull, the bi-toned girl whipped her muzzle around, startled, as her father emerged from the trees behind her. “Dad..?”

Scimitar had scoured Neverwinter Forest through the night, trying to find his silver son. The boy was usually prompt with his arrival -- and given Lucy was also missing, he did not believe it to be a coincidence. @Eshe was beside herself with worry -- and as the son had risen, their scents had become even more faded.. and they had not answered the adults calls. Instructing his mate to look after Cypress, the Frostfur began a powerful stride to the borders, oblivious to their visitor and his previous call.

He came upon his daughter -- her striking pelt a contrast to the surrounding woods, and he blinked in surprise at the stranger that was at their borders. The scent of Redhawk Caldera filtered to him, but he could not begin to placate the male he only now assumed to be this Elwood -- instead, his gaze drifted between both, his jawline set rigid and his muzzle lifting. "Rannoch and Lucy are missing. They're not in the forest." He paused -- his mind reeling at what could have happened. He had seen no sign of struggle -- and yet he could not imagine his boy had simply run away from home.

"Allure, grab either @Pasha or @October and search for them towards the south. Check with Moonspear. I'm going west." He paused then, his eyes locking upon his eldest daughter. "Stay away from Blackfeather Woods." He hadn't heard the other wolf mention the pack, nor did he care that his words would begin to unravel the secret he had harbored from his family -- what Blackfeather Woods meant to him.

ooc: It's safe to assume Shrike would have been away while Trick returned, so he would've missed that memo completely and kept going on his mission. :)

IC: Allure's immediate reaction left Shrike whirling; she was happy. The words that came from her mouth made him want to dart toward her in happiness, or dip into a playbow, but instead he uttered a happy whine, ears trembling atop his head. She'd been found. Ditched, apparently, by the kidnapper, but he didn't care about that. She was in a pack, safe and sound, and some other wolf had already gone back to the Caldera...Could it be that Teagan had actually been fulfilling his promise? It didn't matter- Shrike wanted to see the little girl now and bring her back to the pack, but at that moment, their little bit of happy time was interrupted by the swift approach of an imposing looking figure with striking aqua eyes, and what Allure said next shocked him.

Dad?! So she'd come to this pack because her father was here. That made sense. But this was how he was going to meet her father? It was less than ideal- he wanted to know Allure much better before he met her parents...But that wasn't the main conflict at hand; the male interrupted their shortlived happiness to say that Lucy was missing, as well as a Rannoch. It was implied that Rannoch was another pup, as Allure's father didn't say that Rannoch took Lucy away. In all liklihood, they'd both left together, and thus Shrike immediately assumed Rannoch was a pup from the pack.

He mentioned Blackfeather Woods and Shrike's face burned. He'd say nothing of having been there within the past couple days, and looked to Allure with a stunned expression. Don't say anything. His look said. He didn't want to displease her father right off the bat, after all. "I can help." He said. "Shrike Redhawk, of the Caldera." He said quietly. As much as he wanted to run and get Elwood and Finley, he assumed that Teagan or whoever it was who'd already been to the Forest was likely already on their way to do so. "I'll go with Allure," He said, casting a quick glance to his counterpart to see if she would agree to that.

I'm the worst, I'm so sorry!

Her jaws opened to interrupt him – the large and silent form of her father stirring indignation of her own at the way he had stormed out to her in front of Shrike – but his words caused her mouth to clap shut with a sharp click, and a worried frown soon clouded her features as she leaned back slightly, her forearm brushing gingerly and accidentally against the warm fur of their visitor.

Her eyes glanced, startled by the news, and as Scimitar requested she stay away from Blackfeather Woods, she did not question it – and her own gaze offered silent consensus with Shrike’s own imploring eyes.

She was surprised he offered to go with her – but it would seem that the puppy the Forest had harbored in safety for weeks now was missing once more—and this time, possibly with her brother. With a nod of agreement, she stepped forward, brushing her slender muzzle to the underside of her father’s chin. “We’ll report back soon,” she offered, and turning back to Shrike, began to sweep past him, eager to begin the trip and find Rannoch.

So the Caldera had come for Lucy – in his own frantic rush, the cinnamon wolf was unable to piece together if the masked stranger was Lucy’s father – but the name Shrike did not seem familiar, and in the manner with which the wolf was determined to accompany his daughter, he did not think the two related. It seemed strange to him, that they had sent another – but he did not dwell on it.
 
Instead, tipping his muzzle down with quiet confirmation that she could accompany Shrike to Moonspear, the regal kissed his daughter upon her brow, before his own form began to stride in the opposite direction of the two – and towards the western coasts.

OOC: Is ok :) Want me to start a new thread outside the pack borders? We can set it ahead a bit, as though Shrike and Allure didn't have any success the first time ('cause they wouldn't have found her) but set a date and time to go looking again? Shrike'll make any excuse now to go on a date with Allure :P

IC:

Shrike waited, holding his breath to see if Scimitar would turn on him and send him away from his daughter, still holding on to some shred of hope that maybe he'd get an approving glance from him or something to let him know he was at least somewhat in the man's good books. Allure accepted his proposal flawlessly and began to move away after her father gave her a soft lick on the forehead. Shrike bowed his head gratefully to the male once again, and scuttled after his enchantress, giving one final look back toward Scimitar as he went off on his own. 

He hadn't sensed Allure's indignition, having been told what to do so promptly by her father, and instead took an immediate liking to the man. He certainly was respectable, even though he hadn't seemed terribly friendly. And he did seem to show warmth to his daughter, which had to mean that he also had a loving heart. "He seems nice," Shrike piped quietly, before he followed Allure off on their search for Lucy and Rannoch.

Fading?

Panic fluttered at her heart with the realization her brother was missing -- he and Lucy were so young, they surely should have been back by now? Shrike's words drew her from her thoughts -- a welcome distraction, and she offered a gentle grin and shrug at his comment regarding her father. She and Scimitar held a distant and perhaps difficult relationship ever since he had left with Eshe -- something she wouldn't have faulted the man for, had he not impregnated her mother first.

Instead, she focused upon their task of finding the lost youths -- a mission united now, as Rannoch had joined Lucy on the milk carton for missing kids. They would come up with nothing, and Allure would only continue to feel defeated as the days stretched on with no word.