Miach was finally of age, he felt like it was time to find his father. The man who left him and his siblings with their mother. Of course, he wasn't in anyway mad that they were left with his mother. She was a good mother when she wasn't leaving of course. Yes, he was still angry that no one seemed to be there for his oh, so glorious return. However, being on his own gave him some time to consider his options. Look for his father or stay here, with a pack that made him antsy. He was just reminded of his weakness returning there anyway, so why did he come back? Oh yeah, for his brother who wasn't there either. Miach was honestly fed up, he was off to track his brother down. No more waiting for things to happen, he was going to take action. Titan set off, careful to tread lightly as he left the pack's territory, he didn't want them to know he was leaving in the night again. Bright vermillion eyes narrowed as he finally made it out. What was the plan here? Was he just going to wander around until they ran smack into each other? No, that was too unlikely to happen. Miach had to think logically, where could Kane be holed up at? The only place he could think of was Glowshroom Cavern, at least it was an interesting spot to take up a little shelter. Miach had never actually made it there before, but he'd heard stories of the odd appearance of the cavern. It was definitely something he wanted to cross off of his bucket list, which he would do shortly. Brute's luck must have been on the up and up that night, as he approached the faint scent of his brother lingered outside the cavern. Finally, he'd be reunited with his brother, the one he felt responsible for. Still, he'd never thought to consider Kane's feelings on the meeting. Would he be angry that Miach had been gone for so long? Would Kane even want to come with him to see their father, to become a part of his life? Maybe Kane had gotten attached to a life here with their mother, but then again, Kane would follow Miach anywhere right? He would soon find out. Miach should have expected something odd as he saw the glow coming from the cavern itself, but of course, he was distracted by the thought of he and his brother's meeting up again. Too excited to brace himself for whatever this place may hold in store for him. Titan came barrelling in expecting to see Kane right away but he stopped dead in his tracks. The sight alone of the place was enough to have him mesmerized. There were so many of them, glowing mushrooms! He thought it was a tall tale, as he'd never seen anything else like it in the wild. Just something people tell their children to help them sleep at night, a fantasy story. Boy was he surprised, but still, there were more important matters at hand. The man snapped back to reality and called out to him, the sound of his own bark echoing off the walls. Would he recognize him by that alone, or maybe pick up his scent? Walk "Talk" Think

Condensation clung to the walls of the cave, moisture in the air making the whole thing smell like mold and musk. It wafted from the depths of the cave, which told intruders that this cave ran deep.. deep enough to penetrate through the dry sands of the West and reach the old waters beneath.

Kane enjoyed the humidity of the air found within the cave, and the mushrooms grew extravagantly along the walls.. feeding on every bit of water that hung on them. The moss was no match for the strength of the roots of the mushrooms, though the glow of the 'shrooms certainly had a beautiful effect as their light danced along the slimy surface of the moss beneath them. The mushrooms invaded every inch of space that they could and preyed upon the moss. This was a war that had been going on for hundreds of years, and yet quietly... Kane slept in complete serenity beneath it all.

His large form was curled together as tightly as it could, though his forelimbs stuck out in line with his spine. His chest was too barreled to pull them inward like a fox could, but his thick neck twisted and curled inward toward his back legs and his tail wrapped around attempting to meet it. He was too thick for them to touch completely, but he was comfortable and warm like this. He was in a dreamless sleep, which was a blessing for him. He had never been a heavy sleeper, and light sleeping habits often twisted the sounds that he'd hear and turn them into bizarre dreams that would leave him confused when he woke. Not tonight, though. He'd traveled for so long and so far with Elias that he was exhausted, ready to sleep for days if he could manage to go that long without being disturbed.

Of course, he couldn't. The sharp bark echoed off the walls and perked his attentive ears immediately, his singular red eye widening as he snapped his head up off the ground and looked toward the cave entrance. He didn't recognize the bark, not really.. but the lurking shadow remained where he was, unmoving except for his creeping nose as it lifted into the air and tried its best to catch any evidence as to who was calling out. The faint scent of himself was all that he could uncover, though... maybe.. it was a little different? Or maybe, that was the mold. He couldn't tell, but... for now.. he simply rested and waited to see if whoever it came in deeper. In the meantime, he got up to prepare himself for a fight if one came. He was no stranger to the ill-wills of unknown wolves, so... he prepared his defenses and waited for whoever it was to come around the corner of the tunnel and face him.

Even through the damp air that reeked of musk, he could tell his brother was there. Call it his spidey senses, but Miach just had such a strong feeling. Titan's long limbs carried him deeper into the cave, careful to avoid the glowing mushrooms that covered the cavern walls. They were pretty, yes, but no doubt they had to be poisonous. Miach wasn't interested in taking any risks at the moment. He just wanted to find his brother and get to finding his dad. The humidity was not agreeing with the young man, it only made him feel like he was in a sauna. Tongue lolled from his mouth as he ventured further into the cavern. Finally, against the light from the mushrooms, he could make out a figure. This had to be him, Kane. He'd been away for so long his brother seemed so much different. Littered with scars and missing an eye it seemed. Had leaving ended up making things worse for his sibling? Miach was not sure how to feel, as there was a mix of emotions currently hitting him at once. Mainly guilt for being gone for so long, and with no explanation. Guilt for not being there to protect his own flesh and blood. However, Miach was also proud, as his brother might have some terrible scars but he lived to tell the story still. His own brother could take care of himself, so did he really need him? No, brute disregarded that thought as soon as it came to his head. Of course, his brother needed him, they were still family. It was Miach's duty to look after him. He examined his brother closer, realizing he was ready for a fight of some sort. Man approached cautiously, gaze trained on his brothers lone ruby eye. "It's fine, Kane, you know I'm not here to hurt you." Did he even really have to explain himself to Kane. He was still unsure about Kane's reaction to his absence. He'd always hoped that this didn't affect their relationship too much. They both had much time to grow, so the man hoped with this time Kane found it in himself to forgive him. He didn't even know where to begin with an apology. He had no good reason for leaving, honestly. He'd only realized that Kane might've taken his leaving as a betrayal recently. "Look, I know my leaving was unexpected. I don't have a good reason as to why I did it. I'm here now to make my amends and see if you'd accompany in searching for our father. Surely you aren't angry with me after so long..." Miach looked to his brother with pleading eyes. He really wasn't looking to fight with him, but Miach had come to expect anything over his time exploring. When it came to family he knew they could be very emotional. They could either get in a screaming match or, by the looks of Kane's scars, a fight. Kane grounded himself ever so slightly, preparing his body for an attack should his brother come running at him looking to take out his frustrations. He tried to be nonchalant, as he wasn't trying to alarm Kane and have him think that he wanted a fight. That was the last thing on the man's mind. Walk "Talk" Think

As Miach came around the corner, all of the browns and blacks in his coat seemed to blend with the shadows and become undiscernable, but those vivid white facial markings struck a memory. He knew who this was, and his nostrils flared to confirm his suspicions though even with knowing who it was, his muscles did not relax.

The eerie feeling of running into his long-lost brother after so long of searching for him made his skin crawl along his spine and made his thick hackles stand at full attention above his shoulder blades. It'd been so long since he'd seen Miach, and when they were kids... Kane had always thought Miach would outgrow him, but maybe the wilderness didn't fare as well on Miach in their youth. He stopped assessing his brother and looked right into his ruby gaze, noticing both of his eyes still completely unmarred. They had matching eyes when they were young, and now Kane only had one.

There was a beast deep within Kane that he'd been previously unaware of. He had always been so disassociative with his emotions that he never let feelings of loneliness or fear really bother him out in the wild, away from Lirim. After every attack, he had done what he needed to survive. Every lonely night was met with a sound mind and careful planning for the next day, he was a man of logic. Yet, seeing his mother and his sister had unlocked some sort of attachments within him that he thought he'd outgrown- and now seeing his brother... unlocked some feelings of anger and fury he didn't even know he was capable of. His red tongue writhed behind his teeth, licking the backs of their curves as his jaw muscles clenched and he fought himself not to act on impulse. He was not an impulsive being, he was stable. He was stable.

He lifted his chin in a dominant display toward his brother and focused on his words, his apology. His impish ears became risen to meet them as his single eye never once faltered away from Miach's own gaze. When Miach mentioned their father, the young man couldn't suppress a scoff. The sound was louder than he expected in the close quarters of the cave, but he made a conscious decision to let that be his last slip up. So Miach was more concerned with the whereabouts of their father, the one that never gave a damn about them than he was with Kane? Had Kane wasted over half of his life so far searching for someone who could care less?

He remembered the feeling he'd gotten when he'd roamed the canyon in search of Miach when he'd caught the scent of so many other wolves in Miach's company. His observation of carnage and blood in the area told him that those wolves were dangerous, and he'd left the canyon without finding any lone trail of Miach... though he had no idea he'd never find another trail from him again after that. Maybe he wouldn't have left prematurely if he had known he'd never find another sign of him again until now. His muzzles started to relax finally as he calmed himself, remembering that it wasn't Miach's choice to have Kane follow him. Kane did it on his own free will, and everything he'd endured was something Kane chose to endure the moment he left Lirim.

His posture remained unforgiving, however. Tall, dominant and stoic with his head craned upward to establish such a look. He decided to negate all talk of emotions, to ignore Miach's mention of anger and instead form a plan on what they would do now. "If you are looking for our father, I've already found him. He's here, with our mother."

Miach sat there in silence as his brother looked him over, he seemed to be processing his thought, why not leave him some quiet to do that. His stance changed as he tried to appear more dominant here and Miach simply chuckled. His own chest puffed out and spine aligned so his tail could flag behind him. Miach still wore the big boy pants here, he just came out of his fights in better shape than his poor brother. At the mention of his father already being in the area, Miach couldn't help but look surprised. Why was he with their mother, why come showing up now out of the blue? "He's here with our mother, since when? What does he want from her?" Titan wasn't too concerned for his mother, mainly confused. A man that hadn't been in their lives at all since they were born shows up now as they all become adults?  It seemed a bit fishy, but it didn't change Miach's plans at all. If anything it made it easier now, to speak to his father. "Are you not interested in meeting him or staying with him for a while? I mean, you've been with our mother this whole time. Maybe its time to see something new for once." Miach still wasn't aware that anyone had gone looking for him. In fact, he thought his family was okay with his need to explore. He had no idea that he'd caused them to worry, why would he? Yes, he was gone for a long time, but he was young. Didn't all young people dream to go out and explore the world? It seemed like a perfectly normal situation to him, Miach felt he didn't do that much wrong by leaving. He only felt bad for not taking his brother with him or taking so very long to come home. "Don't you want to prove that we are worth his time Kane? Show him we grew to be much more than he might have expected?" Miach had it stuck in his head that their father left because he worried they wouldn't be strong enough for him. That he and his littermates weren't worth the effort, so couldn't Kane see that they only had to prove themselves and their father might just stick around. Miach looked to Kane with pleading eyes, "Won't you take me to them? I want to see our mother and father together..." He had never pictured the two of them together before now, but the idea made Miach feel so weird. Like they might actually have a real family now. Walk "Talk" Think

Kane stared at Miach in near disbelief, the darkness of the cave his only saving grace as he remedied the look immediately. He did his best to remain in an appearance of indifference as his brother accused him of not seeing the world. Did he assume he accumulated all these scars here on Lirim's territory? Where no threats ever seemed to be? He closed his eye, feeling a migraine coming on deep within his skull as he couldn't believe the obliviousness of his brother at this moment. Did he really not expect Kane to follow him? He.. did he really not know how close Kane felt to them in their youth? "You think.. I..." he whispered, he couldn't even finish that sentence without getting choked up. He forfeited it completely and tensed his jaws, forcing himself not to speak any more about it.

Perhaps, Miach never felt the same closeness for him... and knowing that made Kane's usually guarded heart more vulnerable than he could tolerate. He wanted to be angry at Miach for being so insensitive to everything Kane had tried to do for him for the past nearly two years.. but.. he didn't have the energy. If anything, this was a harsh lesson to him. The bond between him and his brother had been the closest that Kane had ever experienced in his life, with his mother's being second. If his brother barely even understood just how much Kane would have missed him.. well, that said a lot. Attachments were fucking dumb, and so was this whole dream of having a loving father that Miach was somehow chasing after. Who cared about a man that clearly didn't care about them, and why did he want to go with someone he didn't even know?! He was so frustrated with Miach's wishes.

Yet, it wasn't Kane's place to deter him from them. He would let Miach learn on his own, and he would swallow this pain before Miach ever had a chance to know just how much of an effect on him he was capable of having. He was quiet for a moment, gathering every ounce of mental strength that he could to keep from snapping. He let out a sigh and started to move past Miach, "Yeah, sure. Come on. We better hurry, who knows how long he'll even be around for."

Miach looked at his brother and honestly, he couldn't understand it. Had he upset Kane somehow? Miach looked to the ground with concern as he tried to assess the situation. Maybe his brother felt like he didn't miss him while he was away? So the titan's long limbs assisted in hurrying his pace to glide right alongside his sibling. "You know how much I missed you right? I mean, I have seen so much! I can take you with me and show you all of it! If you wanna go..." He wasn't sure if that was the right thing to say, but he nudged his brother with a shoulder before putting a little space between them. The brute was actually very excited for their little family reunion, however, the way Kane spoke about him it sounded like he wasn't the friendly type. Still, Miach never expected that of his father, if anything he expected him to be a little meaner than the family he'd already known. Shoulders rolled as he followed his brother, thinking of what to say when he saw his family again. He figured Kane would take it easier than the rest of them because they'd been so close. He thought his brother would understand his urge to leave, but he felt it would be different with his mother and sister. Women tended to be more emotional with this kind of thing, so who knows what kind of feelings he might stir up with showing up right after his father comes back. Oh well, Miach was just glad to finally have this back, an opportunity to make things better with his family. With his father there, he might even be able to convince them all to tag along! Walk "Talk" Think

Kane had begun moving through the cavern with surprising energy considering he'd just been woken up, but adrenaline and frustration did that to a man. He had every intention of being a quiet guide as he led his brother in search of their parents, but he noticed Miach catch up to his side and walk right beside him. As soon as Kane saw him there, he knew words were coming soon and that knowledge made him apprehensive. What would he say?

When Miach admitted to missing Kane, he slowed down a little without realizing it. He hadn't expected to hear that, and his ears quivered lightly as his strong demeanor started to crack. Maybe, Kane was assuming too much. He flashed a look over at his brother with his one eye, watching him as he spoke and trying to gauge for any ingenuity. He appeared to be being honest, but Kane didn't allow his eye to linger. He looked back ahead of them and lifted his chin with a bit more certainty, "That sounds good, Miach."

He honestly felt so overwhelmed at the moment that he didn't know what to think, so he decided to simply not do so. He tried to just remain focused on the task at hand and take things as they come, but knowing they were going to greet the man that'd attacked him and brought him here without telling him anything at all to help him understand the situation.. made his jaw clench.

-Exit, will post another thread soon for the whole fam!-