Redhawk Caldera Bearer of bad news

@Fox and possibly @Magpie if she's still around Fox. Set immediately after this.

Today was eventful, and not in a good way. Peregrine was going out of the Caldera for a bit to get some time alone. The task of delivering that message to the other Alpha was left to Somnia. The task of locating Fox wasn't hard. All she had to do was follow Peregrine's scent from the way he had came. Then, she had to follow Fox's scent. There was another scent along the trail. Although Somnia had never met Magpie, her scent was familiar. She must have left around the time she joined.

Somnia followed the trail at a brisk pace, not knowing how far behind the two she was and when she would catch up.

I think the other thread is far enough along I can finally reply to this!

With Magpie and Finley on their way, Fox's heart clenched in her chest. Both of them had been "lost" at one point or another, and she certainly hoped they could keep each other out of trouble for a few days. Fox stood, staring north, the direction in which her two sisters (because Finley basically was a sister at this point) had vanished on their journey. Blinking, she looked down at the haunch Magpie had brought her, and began to heave it closer to the mountain itself. Once she found a decent spot, Fox dug through the ground, creating a nice, large hole where she deposited the gift, and covered it back up. Squatting, she marked it with her scent. Only then was she satisfied with her cache.

There were still things that needed to be done. Peregrine needed to be found and talked to, and then Fox would begin prowling the borders for both Tempest and Mikael. If she found them, she would tell them they were no longer welcome. This was Magpie's home, and she had every intention of keeping the others at bay so her sister could have a proper home. She owed her that much.

Fox's ears fanned back when she heard footsteps, and she half-expected it to be Peregrine. He would either be pissed, as Magpie had thought he was, or he would apologize and they would go about their day. Instead, it was Somnia. "Som," she greeted. "What's up?" No need to drag her into the drama if she didn't need to be. Fox had done enough of that in the past to learn that it was usually not a good idea.

Somewhere along the way to find Fox, Magpie's scent had split off in a different direction with Finley's scent joining into the tangle. Now that Somnia thought about it, she remembered hearing a howl summoning Finley. That was the downside of howling to communicate; anyone within range could hear it.

Fox came into view way too quickly. It was much easier to volunteer to give negative messages than to actually deliver. "Hey..." She started, trying to figure out how to proceed. The downcast tone of her voice, as well as her body language gave away that something was off before Somnia said it. Her ears were flattened, and her tail hung limp.

She could hear her heart beating loudly before, and while, she was speaking. "I have a message for you from Peregrine. He said 'he's not happy about how you handled the situation and he needs some time and space.' He's taking a few days away from the Caldera, presumably to let his anger die down. He mentioned not knowing how he would react if he saw Magpie, so it might be for the best if he lets himself cool down before he does anything irrational." She spoke quickly, a side effect of her nervousness.

Somnia sunk down into a sitting position as she waited for Fox to respond. She was still tense and nervous though. Just because she easily volunteered herself into this situation didn't mean that she thought it was going to go smoothly.

Fox listened, and the further along Somnia went, the more Fox's expression hardened. “Fan-fucking-tastic,” she said, turning away from Somnia and gritting her teeth. Lest he do anything irrational? Like leave his fucking post when she was pregnant of all things? It was just like him to run away when the going got tough. Hadn't he done the same thing... well, a while ago? Right after they'd argued about something or another? Wasn't that when she'd gotten this ugly scar across her face? Why hadn't he come to her instead of dumping this all on Somnia? And Fox had been worried that she would burden their Gamma with drama. Peregrine had done it all for them.

“Magpie left,” she blurted, “she’s gone to The Sunspire to see a friend. I sent Finley with her as an escort. So it looks like you’re going to be needed as a stand-in leader in the event that Peregrine doesn’t get his ass back here soon.” Fox huffed, shaking her head. Then, she realized Somnia might be useful in another way. “Have you seen Mikael or Tempest?” she asked. “Lately, I mean.”

Somnia listened to the update on the situation. One of the things Fox said caught her off guard. A stand-in leader? Her?! Peregrine was gone, so that left Fox as the only Alpha for a few days. With Finley gone too, that left only Fox and Elwood. Even if Fox was pregnant, things didn't seem too out of whack in the leadership tier. For problems within the pack, Fox and Elwood could surely handle anything that occurred verbally. Even if things did get physical, didn't Elwood have at least some fighting skills as a Warden? Plus, the rest of the pack could contribute to keeping the caches stocked and borders patrolled with Finley and Peregrine missing for a bit. Would it really be necessary to make her a stand-in leader if things got direr?

Her thought train transferred to the subject of Mikael and Tempest. When was the last time she'd seen them? Somnia stood silently for a moment, collecting her thoughts. "I haven't seen Mikael in a looong time. As for Tempest, I last saw her when some of us got together to bury Amon. That's still a while back, but it's not as long as the time I haven't seen Mikael. You think they're still with us?"

For some reason I thought I had replied to this. Derp.

Fox's tail lashed with aggravation. It was a pity she wouldn't get the chance to chase them out herself. Still, it was better that they were gone than taking up precious room in the caldera's ranks. If she had to kick everybody else out, she would. Magpie would have a place, one way or another. Peregrine be damned! “I don’t know,” Fox replied, “but if they come back, they’ll have to answer for their absence.”

Fox paused, giving Somnia a pensive look. “If you see them, tell them to wait for either myself or Peregrine.” If they came back before Perry did, they'd have to answer to Fox, and she could tell them to get lost. “Is there anything else?”

It made sense. One doesn't just disappear and start abnegating pack duties just because they feel like it. If they came back, they better have a reasonable excuse for being gone. But, whether excuses were reasonable enough weren't up for Somnia to decide; Fox or Peregrine would be the one who got to judge the reasons. "Will do." She stated with a bob of her head.

At the question of whether there was anything else, Somnia was about to say no and turn around. Before she could do either, something came to mind. "Have you seen Ashton around lately?" She asked. While it was a possibility that the hippie had left them, Somnia didn't want to believe it yet.

Fox paused, trying to remember the last time she'd seen their healer. Memory as it was, she couldn't recall. "Not lately, I don't think. He's probably off collecting things for medicine or something." It wasn't entirely uncommon for him to go off and visit other places, especially when he was running low on supplies, so Fox didn't give it much thought. He had been a steadfast member since around the time of the pack's inception, and she couldn't imagine him just up and leaving.

Her tail twitched, and Fox waited in case Somnia had any other business to discuss.

Wasn't being gone for a week or two a bit too long to just be off collecting medicine? Even with her doubts, Somnia gave the verbal reply of "Probably." Maybe he just took a long trip to find some rare herb. As badly as she did want to believe it, it was still hard to. Wouldn't he had at the very least told someone he was going on a long trip?

Fox seemed to have no more to say. "See you later then." She said, taking her leave.

Fox was less than pleased, though her angst was nothing for Somnia to blame herself about (and no place for Fox to direct her fury). The ever-faithful Gamma excused herself, and Fox watched with fire in her eyes as the girl left. Ashton wasn't given a second thought, though only because Fox believed he could be relied upon. A week or two would prove her wrong in that regard, and several other wolves would leave the caldera as well between now and then. Whether or not the leadership was at fault was a question left to the wind.

Huffing, Fox began to make her way to the border. Just because she and Peregrine were on bad terms didn't mean that security needed to go down a notch.