Sleepy Fox Hollow all these walls are caving in

okay, so they stayed the night at courtfall and made way for diaspora the next morning. right? and after this, they'll go back to ug which will take like a day.

this is present me trying to talk to future me please ignore. also, @Maegi

the hospitality of courtfall would not be soon forgotten. bhediya and @Pihu rose early enough to catch the sunrise, chatting with @Andraste before taking their leave. the next point of interest was diaspora, the mountain pack still unknown to the scout. it shouldn't take too long, she assured her sister. it was just over the neighboring peak, if the given directions were correct. 

the trip took all of the morning. at noon, the pair took a short break in the canyon just over the clearing. i think that's it, she'd said. bhediya and pihu walked down to the border of the hollow where a howl was sounded. there was no urgency in her tone, but the request for an audience was clear.

She'd gotten out of the habit of responding to border calls, but today was different. The voice was familiar, joyfully so. She felt a spark of something akin to pleasure as she rose, hobbling toward the howl with a sense of haste. She smiled as she saw the scout there, accompanied by another. 

Bhe, Maegi said warmly. Jaes isse. What brings you here? And your friend? She gave the other woman a brief nod before turning her double-hued gaze upon Bhediya again, questioning.

Too late did she realize they probably weren't expecting to find her here; it merited an explanation that could wait, for now.

the familiar voice beckoned bhediya's attention. mae! she exclaimed, her tail beating steadily behind her, what are you doing here? this wasn't blackfeather, that much she could tell. unless they'd taken diaspora's claim the day of bhe's last visit, maegi's group likely wouldn't have had enough time to establish a border comparable to this.

she thought that it might be best to move on. this is my sister, pihu, bhediya said. she turned and nodded toward the woman standing beside her. we were coming to scout, but now that i know a friend is here... what fun was business when there were other options available? she figured that after asking the essential questions, they would move on to more engaging conversation.

Mae. It was a new, softer nickname. She kind of liked the sound of it, and let her smile grow upon hearing it. It certainly took the sting out of what she had to say next, at least for the time being. 

My pack is no more, Maegi explained quietly. Most scattered, but a few followed me here. I was not fit to lead wolves through a hard winter and our numbers were low.

Her nostrils flared as she picked up myriad scents on Bhe's pelt, and much the same (albeit fainter) cloaking Pihu. Where did you come from to get here? she asked, curious. On the other side of the mountains, the dark woman had said on their last meeting. Could be just a jaunt, or a veritable journey.

it was as bhediya had expected. from her tone, maegi didn't want to talk about it, so the conversation would move on. courtfall, a pack in the vale, she replied. it's really not far. you might like to take a trip sometime.

this is diaspora, right? that's what she'd been told, anyway. bhediya wondered if she might have veered off of the path and ended up at the wrong doorstep. who leads here?

Her ears perked considerably; Courtfall was the pack Tundra had mentioned. I know someone among their ranks, she murmured, slightly wistfully. But. . .

Are you two from Courtfall as well? Maegi asked, confused. For she seemed to recall Bhe telling her about a pack over the mountains, although perhaps it had not been her own pack referenced. But try as she might, Maegi could not find any trace of her former co-leader within their respective scent profiles. 

Surely, they'd be acquainted with Tundra. . .?

Yes, this is Diaspora, she confirmed. @Mahler and @Takiyok lead here, and she sent a brief call up to them, in case they were keen to meet the scouts.

bhediya waited for maegi's call to end before responding. no, we're coming from uaine gorsedd. it's over in the valley on the other side, opposite of the flatlands. courtfall was a decent pack led by a decent woman, but bhe thought that she much preferred the company of the druids.

she bit at the inside of her cheek while they waited for possible company. i wanted to talk more about jaes, too. it was blurted quickly but at a whisper, meant only for maegi and @Pihu to hear. i think that i've been helped by your god. i must owe something, but i don't know what.

Uaine Gorsedd, she repeated the unfamiliar name, glad to have it. She would have to pay a visit eventually—and if it was in the valley on that side of the mountains, a stop to see Kove on the way was possible, as well. The thought heartened her, and her pleasure only increased upon hearing "Jaes" fall from Bhe's mouth.

Your god, too, Maegi said fervently, her voice just as hushed as the other's. If Jaes has listened to your prayers, surely Jaes is your god as well as mine. She smiled, cocking her head slightly. What have you received help with? Perhaps that may give some insight into what you owe. . .although I think it's less about owing and more about honor. Faith.

She had never felt as though she owed Jaes anything. . .but then, Jaes was an old friend to her at this point in life. Reciprocity came without thought, without worry.

The pair of wavy-furred sisters had spent a pleasant night at Courtfall. Although she would never doubt bhediya's judgement, still pihu feels grateful and slightly taken aback by the leader Andraste's hospitality. They leave in the morning and reach their destination shortly after midday, where pihu waits by her siblings side for the bespoken woman "maegi" to answer the howl which bhe has given. In no time such a woman appears, and a discourse ensues between the other two females.

At her core pihu is a proud and confidant woman, yet she remains silent for a long time, ears twitching slightly to soak up each and every word. All of this -everything that has transpired this last week or two is so new and so baffling. Bhediya has built a beautiful life for herself and she takes her tasks seriously. Pihu is quiet, eyes full of wonder as she seeks to learn from her much admired shadowy sister. Finally she feels she must speak or otherwise be deemed troubled of the mind or something.

Currently the conversation centers around jae, a god Bhediya has mentioned many times since pihu has returned but one whom the peach toned woman has yet to fully understand. She has not lived by faith yet, but the idea of it brings her joy, and excitement both.

Maegi. It is good to meet you. I'm Pihu, she says with a bow of her head. Tentatively she glances toward bhe; the conversation is yet in its midst, but she wants to make sure both she and maegi know of her interest. 

I'm afraid theres not much for me to add... But I want to listen. I want to know this faith, too. and she smiles with her lips and her eyes alike.

you should, bhediya said to pihu, this is the god that brought us together. a smile was shared with the both of them. the god that'd brought them all together, reuniting them within the borders of the emberwood.

she looked to maegi then, having had a moment to think. my daughter, ishara, and my sister have both found me. it'd been years since i'd last seen either of them... it would likely be many more before she saw the rest, if even given a chance to see them at all.

bhediya had hope, though. there was someone watching them, someone who she knew would reunite them all.

Maegi didn't know the tongue in which Bhe spoke to Pihu, but she was in full agreement with the sentiments offered. You can know this faith, she said fervently, and then glanced at Bhe with a smile. Jaes blessed you with the return of your family. What you owe. . . Keep them safe. Keep them close. Treasure them beyond all else. That is how you honor this gift from Jaes.

But Pihu was new to all of this, having not been privy to the conversations between Bhe and Maegi. The Melonii turned to the sister, now, bicolored gaze serene as she stared at the woman. Jaes is formless, sexless, nameless—'Jaes' means only "god" in my family's language. Jaes is concerned with the cycle of life and death, with looking after those most precious, most vulnerable.

Sobek. Anansi. Please, be with them now. Care for my poor lost children, my lord, my god.

If you call out to Jaes, Jaes will respond in turn, Maegi murmured. It may take time—but trust me when I say that Jaes, when taken fully into one's heart, is quite responsive.

i'm gonna fade this out.

bhediya looked at pihu and saw the interest grow in her expression. she smiled, then turning back to maegi. thank you, she said, we will be back in spring. the winter would make long-distance travel difficult, especially if the famine persisted. the scout nodded her goodbye and motioned for pihu to follow as she started back toward the emberwood.