Sun Mote Copse Along the skyline

Life went on as usual for Niamh, now that the pack had returned home and Alyx too had been delivered to their Copse. The bulk of her energy was focused on maintaining the borders and caring for Rasalas, keeping a careful eye on the child lest he should see fit to wander off. While her trust had been shaken with Alyx disappearing, she didn't feel as though any of her three might wander off now that they knew how perilous the world could be, and how horrible it was to be separated from one another. The only one she feared might be claimed by the lure of the wild was the fair, odd-eyed boy she'd brought in and so long as he continued to heal in their midst, she saw to it that he felt welcome and comfortable. 

In her heart, she knew that the child had a home elsewhere. She knew that he matched the child Bronco had described in all but name, and that that was likely enough to find his true home...But the selfish harpy would not give up the child so easily. Not when she'd found him, and she was tending to him. She was content to have him stay, as he was a calm, agreeable child- perhaps she had a chance to raise a child correct now that she was in possession of one that had not been raised, from birth, by her.

She wanted to speak with @Fennec first, though fate evidently had other plans. While searching for the yearling, Towhee instead found Niamh, not far from the rendezvous site. The Sovereign hesitated, peering at her friend from a distance, not really sure what to think. She may as well not speculate, she knew. Eljay had given his version of events but Towhee really wanted to hear from the two women herself. There was also the subject of Rasalas she still needed to cover with the Regent.

-"Hey,"- she called out as she made her approach, her face inscrutable. -"We need to talk."- She let those four ominous words hang in the space between them until it closed. -"I want to hear your side of the story about what happened with Fen,"- Towhee said, making no mention of her conversation with Eljay or the one she hadn't yet had with her daughter. There was a bit of a pinched look to her face now, as ever disliking being put in the middle of any kind of argument between her loved ones.

When she heard Towhee's voice, she took a moment to stretch her muscles out, yawning visibly as she leaned back on her haunches, pulling her front legs out straight in front of her and feeling a pleasant pull along her spine. She shook her shoulders out and regarded Towhee with a calm, thoughtful expression- cooking up a question for her packmate though it seemed she had one for her, first. Niamh's brow lifted in surprise when Towhee bluntly asked her, somewhat point blank, about her take on what had happened with Fennec. This could mean she'd either spoken to Fennec or to Eljay. Either way, Niamh wasn't terribly concerned. The conviction of the self-riteous only grew when questioned. 

-"With Fen? Oh, You mean with Rasalas,"- She said, with a nod, expressing her willingness to discuss the girl's foul mood and dissenting attitude. Eljay hadn't been there to see it, and she suspected that if Towhee had spoke with Fennec, she would've witnessed first-hand how emotional the yearling was. She had no need to worry.  -"I'm afraid Fennec is going through her 'teenage girl angst phase,' or she seems to be, anyway."- She commented, though not without a slight smile. She'd been there- she and Towhee had gone through that yearling phase together. -"Complete with shoving her leaders around."- Niamh chuckled lightly. -"But the whole story is this: Eljay asked Fennec to treat Rasalas' wounds while he went to find herbs. But given the fact I've more experience treating wounds, and how shy and pained the boy was, I asked Fennec to help me get him warmed up while I tended his wounds. She commanded me to move and gave me a shove; and I wasn't having that attitude near a child who was already shell-shocked enough as it was."- She said, -"So I sent her off. I don't know what the boy's been through, but...Fennec's sour attitude and display of insubordinance just made him all the more unsettled. Did something happen while she was out exploring with Penn and Fig?"- She asked, then.

Niamh didn't seem particularly ruffled by Towhee's direct approach. The two of them had always been able to discuss anything without sugarcoating it. In fact, Niamh offered up her side of the story readily, not bothering to sanitize her take on Fennec's behavior. The Sovereign's fur prickled at how dismissive she seemed of the entire thing, though she could admit to herself that Fennec was sometimes mercurial and quick to grow defensive, especially against perceived slights to her abilities as a blind wolf. Towhee herself always tried to be conscientious of it, especially with her own lost sense, but she knew the rest of the world wasn't always going to be very considerate of that.

There were a thousand things she could say in response to Niamh's take. Certainly, dozens of questions swarmed her mind. Why had Eljay asked for Fen's help? Since when was Niamh a medic as well? Had Fennec meant to shove Niamh or could that be an accident due to her blindness? Was even thinking that doing a disservice to her daughter? Why was Niamh so protective of Rasalas, against Fen, of all people? "I don't know what the boy's been through..." Well, there was at least one answer among the myriad questions she wanted to ask.

After a brief internal struggle, Towhee decided to pick one focus, asking, -"What do you mean, 'did something happen'?"- She resented the question and its implications and her expression reflected it as it grew a little sourer. She clicked her teeth together against any other questions that wanted to slip free, pressing her tongue against the backs of them as she made herself digest what she'd been told and await Niamh's elaboration.

For once, Niamh hadn't actually intended to imply something with her question, and she was caught off guard when Towhee seemed to stiffen at the question, as though she felt Niamh was trying to lay blame on her. Coming from any other wolf, Niamh might've received the abruptness as a thorn in her side, but oming from Towhee, it caused her to feel off balance, and shaken. She shrugged and shook her head, and sought to ease her Sovereign's suspicions as quickly as possible. -"I don't know."- She pronounced slowly, hoping it might also serve as an apology for having caused Towhee to bristle. -"I just mean to say that I wasn't expecting her to be so..."- She said, and shrugged, imitating with a flick of her muzzle the shove that Fennec had given her.

-"We've never had any issues before. Seemed out of place for her to be so teenage-rage-y; I just wanted to know if there was something that might've happened that I should be a bit more...Aware of...Though it seems, maybe, she's just being teenager-y?"- She asked, raising her eyebrows. If Towhee didn't know anything, then it could easily be passed off as hormones. She was concerned about Fennec- and concerned that her impudence might happen again, if she couldn't pinpoint what had been bothering the girl. 

-"Also baffles me as to why Eljay made the call he did. I h'ain't a medic, but I've tended to more'n my own share of wounds before. But for some reason he chose not to ask me, but to ask an inexperienced, untrained yearling to tend to a scared child's facial wound, without tellin' them what to do, an' then disappearing to find herbs? That concerns me,"- She said.

She remained silent as Niamh explained what she meant by the question. Twice, she used the word "teenager-y" to describe Fennec. Towhee understood what Niamh meant, though Fen wasn't really a teenager. She was a full-grown woman, capable despite her blindness. That also meant she was fully responsible for her actions, of course, which included minding her superiors.

But Eljay had specifically asked for Fen's help, whatever the reason, which meant she'd been doing just that prior to the Regent's interference. Niamh actually brought up his call, questioning it. Towhee squinted at the Regent's description of her daughter. She didn't deign to understand Eljay's decisions at the time, though that was the thing: whatever else Towhee might think of her mopey older brother, she respected the hell out of his medical judgment.

-"Why? Eljay's a master. I trust his judgment,"- Towhee said as much. -"You should too. Maybe he was trying to teach her? In any case, I'm sure everyone had the best of intentions."- She paused. -"I plan on speaking to Fen too, I just wanted to hear your side of the story. You know, she's a capable adult, Niamh. She's responsible for conducting herself like one, including minding those who outrank her, but you shouldn't dismiss her as some ignorant teenager."-

Niamh wasn't expecting Towhee to defend Eljay's decision. If anything, she'd figured that Towhee might empathize with her sentiments more if she brought Eljay's decisions into question, and she felt slighted that her friend seemed to side with what she considered to be the wrong medical decision. Towhee also seemed to think that Eljay had been trying to teach Fennec, a point she would be quick to dispute. -"He wasn't teaching her, though, he just left. I'd've thought teaching would involve mentoring, guiding, correcting. An' unless Fennec has medical training I don't know about, I didn't feel comfortable having her do something she dun know how to do, without said master's supervision, on a child- when I could do myself what I know how to do. Who would you have chosen to tend your child's wounds? Someone untrained, or someone who knows what they're doing?"- She stopped herself there. 

She'd made a valid point- but Rasalas wasn't her child. She exhaled sharply, and turned her gaze away. She flicked her ears back and gritted her teeth together. She'd exposed a little bit of herself there, and remained tense for a moment before she gave her muzzle a twitch, and continued to stare obstinately off into the distance. 

-"I might've been overprotective of the kid after searching for Alyx."- She confessed. It was about as much ground as she was willing to give. -"And I don't take it kindly when young adults step out of bounds, sass me, shove me around and expect to be permitted to do so without repercussion. Much less so in front of children."- She said. Children were permitted that liberty- but by the time they reached a year in age, Niamh stopped simply letting youth get what they wanted by crying, yelling, pleading or even displays of dominance. They could sort out their heirarchy amongst themselves with those techniques, but they wouldn't fly when used as tools against a leader. That sort of foolishness needed to be bridled and turned into something productive.

Towhee paid careful attention to Niamh's rebuttal, though that pinched look returned to her face. Cleaning a wound didn't require a lot of knowledge, just a gentle tongue. Towhee absolutely believed Fennec was capable of this task, perhaps even more so than a sighted wolf, as the Sovereign assumed she possessed a heightened sense of touch. She wondered if Niamh didn't think Fen capable of it due to said blindness, which of course riled her. But the Regent never specifically inferred this, so if that's what was at play, maybe it wasn't even conscious on her part.

It sounded like they'd both overreacted to the situation, with Niamh throwing the first punch, so to speak, by blocking Fennec from doing what Eljay had asked of her. Towhee drew in a breath, trapped it in her chest, and sighed. Of course, Fen shouldn't have disrespected Niamh in turn. Towhee liked to think she could see both points of view and she really wanted to avoid choosing sides. She just wanted to understand what had happened and whether it was a one-time incident or something that could really strain the Firebirds' family dynamics.

-"I think that Eljay knew what he was doing when he asked Fen to help and it was just a... misapprehension from there. You guys get along otherwise, right?"- Hopefully reconciliations could be made, though Towhee wondered if any apologies would be forthcoming from either party. She knew them both too well. -"Can you tell me what exactly is going on with Rasalas? How did he get injured? Where is he from? Has he told you anything...?"-

She wanted to insist further than Eljay had made the wrong call- but she knew doing so would probably irritate Towhee, as this would all relate back to her daughter. And Niamh knew that Towhee loved her children; while there were others in existance that Niamh believed Towhee would shun should Niamh imply it happen, she knew that she'd stand little chance in forcing a wedge between Towhee and her children. Not that she wanted to, anyway; she simply wanted to be told that she'd been right. 

-"You mean me an' Eljay or me an' Fennec? 'Cause I never taken issue with either of them...That's why I was askin' if maybe something might've been bothering Fennec, or if something'd happened to make her grumpy while I was away. She's never been like that to me before,"- She clarified. Fennec's behavior had come across as the same sort of impudence that she'd seen in Nellie and Bronco- and had thus been passed off as being little more than the unrefined boldness of someone new to adulthood. 

On the topic of the boy, Niamh shook her head. The questions Bronco had asked about the missing child were tucked safely within a locked chest within her mind. -"Doesn't say much. He's...I think a bit squirrelly about talkin' about what happened to him. I think he'll come around, he just needs to feel comfortable, first."- She explained. She wasn't about to try and force him into answering questions when she felt that doing so might make him refuse to talk- or worse, run away.

Niamh confirmed that there had been no prior issues between herself and Fennec (or Eljay), which just fed into her belief that it was all a matter of misapprehension. The Regent seemed to believe Fen had reacted grumpily without cause, though Towhee disagreed on that point; in her opinion, Niamh had started it, albeit not with bad intentions. She knew the medic felt the same way. She abruptly wondered if he'd managed to find her and talk to her already. She didn't ask, nor did she say anything more on the subject. It could almost certainly be chalked up to a bad day, a fluke, and she would still try to reserve judgment until she'd spoken with her daughter. Even then, it was likely the two (or three) of them would have to resolve it among themselves.

Towhee focused her attention on the matter of Rasalas. -"I'm totally on-board with making sure he's comfortable and safe, that he's on the mend. But eventually we need to talk to him, get some answers, so we can reunite him with his family... if that's what he wants, of course. I think he's old enough to make that decision for himself. I just want him to have the option, you know? And unless they're a bunch of shitheels or something, I think his family should be notified one way or another."- She paused. -"I can't help but think of Alyx. No kid, no family, should have to go through that."-

She didn't like the idea of giving Rasalas up; for some reason, she had a feeling that whatever he'd been through, he didn't want to go through again. He seemed to take some solace amongst the Firebirds which was enough to convince Niamh that he ought to stay. It irked Niamh to hear her friend mention Alyx, as though to use her as a means to discourage Niamh from stubbornly keeping the child, and her gaze narrowed in response. She didn't like what Towhee was implying, nor did she appreciate the fact that she Sovereign was digging at a wound that was still quite sore. She wanted to snap at Towhee and tell her off for rubbing that fact in- but she bit her tongue. Her lips twitched as she clenched hard enough to draw blood, which she swallowed a moment later. Her expression, she felt, should be warning enough not to rub any more salt in that wound. She steeled herself against her gut reactions, and simply whispered the words -"I know."-

But did she really? Not likely. Considering the fact that she hadn't yet bothered to ask Rasalas if he knew the name Asmoses, or if he'd come from Neverwinter Forest, she obviously hadn't withdrawn herself and her selfish tendencies from the situation enough to consider the boy's parents, and how they might've been worrying for him. 

-"In other news,"- She said, willing herself to forget the grudge that was beginning to form like a cancerous lump in her soul. -"Bronco told me there's trouble brewing in the Northeast. A couple packs who've been picking on lone wolves,"- She said, her features steely and cold. -"Moonspear is training in preparation for confrontation. This is the first I've heard of them, but the packs are called Ursus and the Saints,"- She said, finally returning her gaze- calmer now, that she was distracted by a different subject- to her Sovereign. -"Have you heard anything about them?"- She asked, curious to see if perhaps the pack had seen any trace of hostility in the wilderness since returning to the Copse. She couldn't help but wonder, of course, if there wasn't some connection to be made between these rogue wolves and whoever it was that had hurt Rasalas.

Towhee expected the mention of Alyx to evoke empathy, not a glare. Her own eyes narrowed slightly in automatic response, the fur along her neck bristling almost uncertainly. The Sovereign's ears twitched backward, wondering what it was about this boy that made Niamh so defensive toward Eljay, Fennec and now herself. She didn't hold it against Rasalas, though the effect he was having on her Regent concerned her.

Niamh suddenly changed the subject, speaking of news from Moonspear. Towhee listened, her mouth a thin line. She wondered if their alliance would be called upon formally and what the Firebirds would do. That made her think of Meerkat, of course, and she felt the breath catch in her throat. Surely Hydra would keep the youths in her care safe and far removed from any war efforts. All the same, Towhee couldn't help but quietly worry.

-"No,"- she replied simply, pausing thoughtfully as if considering asking some further question on the matter but instead blurting, -"Niamh, what's going on with you and this kid?"- Because, after all, the two of them had always been able to discuss anything without sugarcoating it. -"Talk to me."-

Niamh wasn't too worried, then, if Towhee hadn't been told anything about the Ursus wolves or the Saints. Perhaps they weren't going to be a problem from so far away- and maybe they had someone in the pack that would inform them against trifling with the Firebirds. At least neither of the names sounded anything like Blackfeather, so she had no reason to believe that this might be another uprising of those wolves. She wasn't content to dismiss the possibility that they'd be called upon to aid Moonspear, but she figured Towhee would be the one to make the call should that time arrive. Obviously, for the protection of their children, Niamh would be willing to step in if need be. 

But Towhee seemed convinced that they needed to talk more about the child. At first, she was caught off guard and surprised. Why did she want more from Niamh? -"The kid's only spoken like...One word to me, his name. Other'n that, his face is too sore for much other'n a nod of his head,"- She said. Was that what Towhee wanted to know? -"I'm tellin' ya- I really don't know anything else about this kid. He's a closed book. An' for once, I'm trying not to push one of the kids in my care too hard."- She said. -"Just on the off chance maybe he'll stick around, and maybe not grow up to resent me."- She said with a bitter shrug.

Oh, man, Towhee thought, there's a lot to unpack here. She didn't speak right away after Niamh finished, mulling everything she'd said as well as reading between the lines. A frown slowly took over her face, her eyes thoughtful.

-"Who grew up to resent you?"- the Sovereign queried, trying to figure out who Niamh meant. Both Bronco and Nellie had gone their own ways, though so had Meerkat. Plenty of kids dispersed, that was normal if not easy. But she couldn't help but think of their conversation back in midsummer. -"I know you were struggling before."- And then the rains had come, along with drama, and losing Alyx temporarily...

-"Is everything okay? Are you okay?"- Towhee pressed, orange gaze boring into her friend's face. She suddenly wondered what role Phox played in all of this, what he thought of Rasalas and the apparent row between their daughter and his mate.

Niamh blinked at Towhee's question. While she had never been terribly forthcoming about the fractured relationship she had with her kids, she thought by now that it might've been common knowledge, or at least assumed by her packmates. Nellie had run away- and had pointedly asked the Frosthawks not to send notice that she was safe amongst them- something Niamh still saw as a sleight. She and Bronco had brawled- and while she'd told none of their fight, she assumed Bronco might have...But apparently, he hadn't. Still, she'd projected her feelings onto her packmates, and had simply assumed they all felt how the small family had found themselves, in absence of their patriarch, on an incredibly troublesome faultine. 

So she shrugged. -"Funny question,"- She answered, inferring then that she'd meant both her yearlings. -"Nah. Maybe they don't flat-out resent me, but we're not close."- She said. After all, Nellie was still a yearling, but had spent most of her life away from her family, and Bronco...Well, she wasn't willing to belly up to the bar and confess the extent of their troubles to anyone. -"I'm pretty sure the only reason Bronco visits is because he wants to make sure Meerkat gets to and from Moonspear safe,"- She said, but there was a hint of fondness in her movements. Even if her son wasn't coming to visit her, at least he was taking care of the family members he did care about. It hurt to feel as though she was excluded from that group- even though he had sought her out to deliver news. It just wasn't enough to prove to Niamh that he cared for her at all. 

She was reminded of a conversation they'd had during the heat of summer, when Niamh had admitted that she felt off. Had she recovered from that feeling? It was hard to say. After a month of rain, having to relocate the pack, and losing Alyx- well, it'd all been enough to make her feel her fur begin turning grey. And she hated that thought. She was willing to shrug it all off as simply being an overwhelming month. -"Eh, ya know, August was just hard. I been carryin' a bit of that around, I guess."- She said, and was quiet for a moment. -"Y'know...I don't like it when people ask me questions about how I'm doing but...I'm glad you do."-

Towhee wasn't sure what to say. She wasn't the type to offer platitudes, so she wasn't going to give Niamh empty reassurances. It didn't help that she hadn't really realized that her sister-in-law didn't feel close to her grown children. That would explain, in part, her misgivings about her younger three. She wondered what had put a wedge between Niamh, Bronco and Nellie and could only deduce that it likely had much to do with losing Colt. And there was nothing for it.

-"That's hard,"- Towhee said eventually, lips still twisted into the thoughtful frown that had taken over her face a moment ago. -"Everyone makes it out like parenthood's this wonderful thing... and it is... but it's also tough as hell,"- she mused in a quieter than usual timbre. She paused before adding, -"'Course I'm going to ask after you, you're my Person,"- in an offhanded sort of way. Towhee felt like it had been a while since they'd tossed around that term and there was no better time than now to revive it, if only to remind Niamh that she had a confidante.

That made her think of Phox again. He was the primary figure in Niamh's life, of course, and again she wondered about his take on all these matters. Rather than ask the golden Regent, Towhee decided she would just have to talk to him at some point, after she hunted down Fennec. Hopefully the two of them wouldn't have to referee, though they ought to be on standby just in case they could facilitate with reparations between the two blondes.

She felt relief slide the weight off her shoulderblades. Of course Towhee understood where she was coming from- she too had watched her child go off to live somewhere else before she'd even turned one year old- and while Meerkat had said goodbye, and while she did visit once a month...It still couldn't have made it easy for Towhee to lose sight of the girl every time she left. She'd miss out on a lot of firsts- but Niamh liked to think that at least she had Bronco there, to help her get through them. 

She growled softly, and tossed an arm about Towhee's shoulders, pulling her in close with a movement which was neither graceful nor gentle, but tight and sincere nonetheless. She pressed ner muzzle to Towhee's cheek and giggled for a second, as her cheeks were ticked by Towhee's whiskers. -Yeah, you're my Person too"- She said, having to lean against Towhee a bit in order to half-sign and speak with one limb still strewn across her shoulders. She figured Towhee would get the point, though, as she pulled away. 

She shook her pelt out. -"Yeah, I'mma need to find Fennec, an' apologize for bein' such an ass-hat."- She said. -"Eljay too. An' Phox, 'cause I weren't too nice to him when I found out Alyx was missing. Gah. Should we just hold a pack meeting where I go around and apologize to everyone? It'd make it quicker,"- She said with a dry, brittle laugh. Oh, how she reuined things sometimes. But at least, with the right guidance, she could easily get back on track.

She didn't quite see the embrace coming, so she grunted in surprise before relaxing into it with a dry huff of laughter. As Niamh manhandled her, Towhee made a note to check in more often. She had meant to do that, following their last talk, but life had come between them. Her mind wandered to Wraen and that single night when the three of them had stolen away together. It had been so good for them. They really needed to make more times for nights like that, even if it was just the two of them now.

When Niamh pulled away and quipped about apologizing to the whole pack in one fell swoop, Towhee merely gave her a crooked smile and a nudge. How and when the Regent decided to apologize was entirely personal, though the Sovereign approved of the sentiment. She nipped at the pale ruff of fur framing her friend's face and tried to think of something they could do together. Towhee still wanted to talk to Fen, though there was no particular rush.

-"Let's get out of here for a bit, maybe hunt or something. Those caches aren't gonna refill themselves,"- she invited, taking a few spry steps before looking back at Niamh.

Niamh groaned, flailing her head backward as she stood dramatically, and shook her pelt. -"UGH how do you know me so freaking well"- She commented, side-stepping forward to thump her shoulder against Towhee's. When all else was in shambles, it was always best to keep Niamh fed, or at least let her sink her teeth into something. Of all wolves, it was the Blackthorn-Redhawks who understood her the most- keeping her both tempered and fed.