Moonspear I am here

@Keres and all others welcome; this can easily turn into a search party for Mira

Another rabbit had fallen prey to the brown huntress. She carried it gingerly up the slopes that she had grown accustomed to, fully unaware that her friends, @Meerkat and @Bronco were thinking about leaving their mountain home. Rabbits were a small meal for her. She had tried earlier to surprise a young mountain goat, but to no avail as it sped down cliffsides that she simply did not have the grace and aptitude for.

Toad carried the rabbit to the rendezvous. The pack had recently become tense due to the sudden absence of Mira, as well as other interpack dramas that the storyteller knew little of. The puppies from the spring were fast growing into adolescents. They were too old to be fussed over and groomed as she had hoped to do in their youth. Thus, she was feeling on this day rather useless and strange.

She knew that the Moonspears thought of her as a loyal packmate. She would never abandon those she had pledged herself to. There was something missing, though, and she was having trouble placing it. She didn't like not knowing what it was. Toad exhaled in a deep, harsh sigh. She began digging so as to bury her catch, though she knew not who might be interested in it.

Between the meeting about Firefly Glen and her family's visit, Meerkat felt like she hadn't slept a wink the past few days, her excitement keeping her awake. The lack of sleep caught up to her now, compelling her to climb up to the den in the grove for a nap. It was one of the last times she would make the trek as a member of Moonspear, she knew. Their minds were made up at this point. Meerkat moved slowly, savoring it.

On her way, she saw Toad burying a rabbit. Meerkat perked up despite her weariness and trotted over to her friend. She felt a pang, realizing they wouldn't technically be pack mates much longer. But they would be next door neighbors, which was nearly as good. Though the whole thing was definitely thrilling, not much would change except for the immediate scenery.

"G'morning," she greeted, hoping Toad would come to the same conclusions about all of it. "Have you heard the news?" Meerkat wondered, getting straight to the point.

When not canvassing the territories beyond, Hydra returned home to determine if her daughter may have returned. No such luck, yet. But Hydra was not deterred by this. With each passing hour, the mother grew angrier—at the world, at her daughter, at herself—though there was nothing to betray this. She was still attentive to the children that remained, though @Alya and @Lyra both kept their eyes upon the rest while Hydra searched. She was not alone in her quest, and to see others looking too quelled the stormcould of emotions within her. 

Laying claim to the Glen, now, felt an important thing to do. That was where her daughter had last been seen; had they have held the territory more concretely, this might never have happened. Let it not be said that Hydra did not live and learn. She lived, learned, and acted. Having spoken with those that Osiris had determined to bring with him, she wondered who else might be willing to join his fold to help make this happen sooner rather than later. 

Coming across the scent of Toad, Hydra recalled the woman being a friend to Meerkat... and realized, too, she did not know how the womans blind date had gone. To her knowledge there was no new romances upon the mountain, but Hydra was eager to correct her assumption should she be wrong. And perhaps Toad might be willing to expand Moonspear's claim and join her friends, making a bit of history while she was at it. 

Meerkat came into her line of sight then, and Hydra's tail waved to see her niece. Likely not, Hydra hummed in answer, trotting to meet them both, which I apologize for, myself. A pack meeting is to be had, amongst us all... Mira's absence has taken most of my attention, and I admit I had hoped to find her by now, she begrudgingly admitted. Hydra hated to think that Mira was still gone, still out there—hated to think that she had failed to do the one thing written in her biological code, the one thing that to her very marrow she was driven to do. 

Protect her family. 

Hydra did not know who she would kill for this—only that someone would certainly need to die because of it. 

No need to linger on such dark thoughts, even though they stirred within her at all times. There was better news, resolutions, steps to be taken. Life went on, and their search would ever continue. Looking to Meerkat, she hummed, well, I suppose the cliffhanger would be too much to bear for when the meeting would be held and now. Go on, do not keep Toad waiting, with a gleam in her eye and a wave of her tail.

As Toad dug the hole, Meerkat greeted her. She quickly stopped what she was doing and smiled rather weakly, replying with, Morning. Her tail waved a hello, though there didn't seem to be much wind in her sails. Toad's expression changed to one of confusion when Meerkat asked if she had heard. Mira's absence was well-known and Toad assumed that had she been found, another howl would have been sounded.

It was Hydra that answered. Toad's lips parted briefly as though to speak, but she instead listened, concerned. She frowned at the mention of Mira. She knew that there were search parties hunting for her. She had helped to find a trail, but nothing had come of it, and now she was feeling very stupid burying a damned rabbit.

What's this all about then? She asked, a small curve coming to her lips on one side as she caught the spark in Hydra's eye. Looking at Meerkat, she waited with bated breath, hoping with all her might that it be good news for a change.

A voice behind her answered her question before Toad could. Meerkat turned to see Hydra sidling up to join them, mentioning Mira's disappearance. The youngster's ears twitched uncertainly at the reminder, though she wasn't sure what she could do to help. Maybe she could ask Hydra herself how she could be of use in the search, though her aunt quickly shifted her focus back to the topic at hand, prompting Meerkat to inform Toad. The she-wolf in question added an encouraging, "What's this all about, then?"

"Osiris is going to lead a sister pack in Firefly Glen," the ambassador-in-training reported, eyes bright, "and I've been invited to take part! Bronco too." Her tail waved as she glanced at Hydra, who already knew all of this, of course, including the siblings' decision to take Osiris up on his offer, per Towhee et al's visit the day before. Her gaze quickly bounced back to Toad, wondering what she thought of the news.

Meerkat filled in the blanks, and Hydra's gaze turned toward Toad. If you would like to aid in the endeavor of founding, by joining them... or simply marking as I have... you are welcome to. Osiris had his own list to start, though the truth of it, as I will mention in the meeting to be had, is that all are welcome to assist in this. Firefly Glen is but an extension of Moonspear, she drawled, it has always been so, though now... we are simply making it official, since my daughters disappearance there. It would not happen again. Nothing like that would happen again there. 

And if Hydra had the numbers to claim the Altar, and the other territories alongside the Spear... she would. But that would come, in time. She need only be patient, and she had that in spades when it came to her dreams of conquest. Already she worked to accomplish but one piece of that, and though her thoughts strayed to her father they were drawn back to her daughter. If they had caught wind of her, they would have told her as much she knew.

Immediately, Toad's eyes dazzled with joy. She opened her mouth in a goofy smile as Meerkat shared the news. Though it technically meant that her friends would be leaving her, they wouldn't really be leaving. A sister pack meant that the Ostregas were spreading. They were becoming quite the empire, and that meant they would need good people to both hold the fort at Moonspear and make a new one in the Glen. That's great!!

An image of Kukutux came to her fondly. The evening she had met the moonbeam of a woman had been why she had come to Moonspear in the first place. She remembered wading into the pool with the new mother, the firefly-lit air warm and beautiful.

As a side benefit, the Glen was also closer to the historic Redhawk Caldera. It was the place that she planned to bring an offering to her sister to as to ask for her wisdom. The entire area was one that made Toad feel closer to her family in a strange way.

The brown huntress paused, her smile fading somewhat. She had only recently established herself as a proper member of the Moonspears. She felt somewhat guilty that her gut reaction was to leave for the new and shiny thing.
As though Hydra had read her mind, the leader welcomed her to help in the formation. Toad adjusted herself, standing proudly before her friend and leader. Her smile had faded as the seriousness of Mira's absence was noted again. We'll make a stronger pack by claiming the glen, and we'll find Mira, she affirmed.

As she spoke next, Toad looked from Meerkat to Hydra, addressing the both of them. Firefly Glen is why I came to Moonspear to begin with and it is a place that is close to my heart. I'd love to take part in helping Osiris establish at the very least, and... joining him and you and Bronco, that would be amazing, she explained. She couldn't help but wiggle a little, tip of her tail wagging in excitement.
What news!

No sooner had she shared the news than Hydra extended the invitation to Toad as well. Meerkat's eyes widened as she looked to the brown she-wolf, awaiting a response. She seemed to consider it a moment and the youth wondered if she would need some time to think it over before deciding. She and Bronco had taken nearly a day to come up with a decision, after all. But Toad was older and wiser, and she seemed assured of her decision as she announced her interest in joining the endeavor too.

"Oh," Meerkat breathed, "awesome!" Even if Toad had decided against coming along, there was no reason to think their relationship would change in any meaningful way. All the same, it was fun to include one's friends in adventures like this, so she was glad to have Toad along too. Meerkat imagined Bronco would also be happy to have her, even if the two of them weren't romantically intended, and already looked forward to telling him the news.

"Can I go tell Bronco?" she wondered, hoping her brother was at the den so she could let him know and then nap, hard.

We will, she agreed to both points. Mira would be found; Moonspear would become all the stronger, and the Wilderness safer. She was glad to hear of Toad's willingness to assist in the Spears latest endeavor, and her own tail swayed with the womans. Looking to Meerkat, Hydra smiled, you may. She would need to relay it to Osiris, too. 

Perhaps the both of them could. Firefly Glen is a wonderful place. And an important one, to my family. It was one of my late fathers favored haunts... and he and my mother established it as another hunting grounds. When famine hit last Winter, I solidified that claim... and now seems as good a time as any to make it a more official thing. With Mira... I would rather no wolves but for our own be permitted to the place. More eyes and ears to seek threats beyond seems an important thing to be doing as of late, with everything else, she hummed, looking just over the agouti womans shoulder to where the Glen was. It felt right, to officially make it their own, for several reasons. In any event, Hydra anticipated good to come of this, and that Toad was willing to help caused the matriarchs opinion of her to rise. Let's find my son, she decided with a wave of her tail, darting forward, he will be happy to have you among them... and I must hear how you have been doing as of late, she remarked with a wave of her tail.

To have a leader express such positivity toward her aspirations was refreshing and good. Toad felt invigorated. She felt a grander purpose had called to her when Meerkat relayed the news. Things felt as though they were in motion and moving toward the better. Soon, they would have a superpack that would be more formidable than perhaps anything the Wilds had ever seen before. Toad wanted to be a part of something like that. She wanted to protect the Ostrega sons and daughters. She wanted to protect Kukutux's brood and the rest of the family that Toad had chosen to now be hers.

This pull toward strength was almost overwhelming. That Hydra encouraged her to be part of it fuelled her anticipation. Meerkat wanted to tell Bronco. Toad nodded with a grand smile, very pleased with the event.

To Hydra, the huntress listened closely. She imagined the famine. Herds must have cleared out. Pregnant mothers could have been threatened, or yearlings from the previous season. The pack must have struggled, but Hydra and her family had found solace in the Glen and its richness. She wished to close it off for the time being to only Moonspears and new recruits.

Knowing the territory, this gave Toad some anxiety, but she kept quiet for the time being. She knew why. Mira needed to be found.

Yes, Osiris should know, she said. They didn't know each other particularly well, but Toad was sure of herself. She was a strong and worthy huntress. She could help. She wanted to help. Me? Oh, Toad answered, racking her brain for any recent happenings in her own life. To be honest things had been frightfully dull after her weird little date with Bronco, but Toad realized that her leader might not have heard about that.

Well, she said, following alongside Hydra, I don't know if you heard, but my little blind date with Bronco was interesting. She smirked.

Hydra excused her. Meerkat bowed her head to her aunt, then turned and batted at Toad until she could smack their paws together in a wolfish version of a high five. With a quiet cackle and a, "See you later!" the pup then headed up the mountain toward the den tucked in the grove. She really couldn't decide which was more exciting, the news about Toad or the thought of a nice, long nap.

With Meerkat gone, Hydra turned her attention to Toad all but entirely, traces of it upon their surroundings, too. I did not hear, she drawled, though I cannot say I have not been curious. Still, I thought it best to speak with you about it, she hummed, eyes alight. Woman to woman, it felt all the better—though she imagined Bronco would only have dazzling reviews to provide her on Toad's account. 

Truth be told, she expected the same from Toad... albeit, perhaps a different perspective for their own respective ages. Older than the young ones here. But, well, love had no age limit, did it not? And so she could not help but wonder if the horse and the amphibian might light a candle together to create one strange, though beautiful, hybrid.

As Meerkat left, the pair continued on to find Osiris. Excitement fluttered in her heart. Toad felt very lucky to have such an opportunity to expand the empire of such a noble and strong family. She wondered, briefly, if she might ever find her own in the Wilds.

Hydra hadn't heard from Meerkat or Bronco how the little date fiasco went, and Toad always loved a good story, even if it was merely a simple retelling of events past. I don't blame you! Toad glimmered with joy, laughing in a short breath as she recalled the day. Meerkat called us out to the Pale the first day the sun was finally out, after the rains finally went away, she began, looking ahead of her as they walked, a dreamy expression on her face. We uh, we sort of pretended to be monsters and ran around for a while, and it was fun. And I fell kind of under and on him and we were just messes of mud. Those rains just decimated the ground and we were just a disaster. She giggled.

It really had been a fun time though, however awkward. Probably when he realized what a mess I was, that was maybe the moment he knew I wasn't exactly a match for him, she acknowledged, knowing well that Bronco didn't... think of her that way. In all fairness she had known from the beginning it wasn't going to be a thing. Of course, to seal the deal, we went hunting for some musk deer that weren't far from us, and he got roughed up really good. I'm not even sure how it happened, she explained, recalling the disaster of a hunt. Luckily, Bronco hadn't been seriously injured, but the hole in his side had looked pretty gross when it was fresh.