Meme should have been sad, right? Sad about returning here to the falls. On the surface at least there didn’t seem to be much of that, however. A dull ache in her heart, maybe, but that was to be expected. This was where her life had begun. This was where she was taught she had a greater destiny than just living her life. Huh, funny how that ended up being the furthest thing from the truth, wasn’t it? Now she had no aspirations to be this great leader like her father supposedly would have been. Was he really so great if he hadn’t been around? And what of her mother? Her grandfather? Memento Mori shook her head. Things changed, and more often than not they changed for a reason.

She could see the falls from where she stood, see the pool, and even here, looking upon the falls, their roar reached her. The canopy above her swayed in the wind as Memento Mori perked her ears forward. The boys were close by, poking about, but she had made it clear she wanted a moment to look upon the falls alone. The femme had never noticed how beautiful they were… it was something that you overlooked, or even took for granted, when you were around it all the time. Meme closed her eyes and drew in a breath before lifting her head to the sky, letting out a howl.

A howl of acceptance and goodbye to her mother, her family, and the life that never was.

Come down, come down sweet reverence

Jynn wandered the paths that led up and down the mountainside that house the Lazuli Falls. It was a gorgeous place, one of her favorites in Auster. She worked her way down from the top to do some fishing. Being a loner often meant she had to subsist on smaller prey. Perhaps when she had a band of her own she'd be able to hunt larger game and not need to spend so much energy on chance. Although, all that said, there was something about a nice, tasty fish on a warm day.

She slowed as a mournful cry rang out through the mountain, rippling up the falls. Her large ears flicked forward. Oh no, had something happened? Worried her little sanctuary had been punctuated by violence she bounded down the rest of the path and to the edge of the pool. Looking forward she saw a woman but no sign of bloodshed. "Miss, are you ok? I heard your howl."

Memento Mori finished her song and drew in a deep breath, her pale silver-blue gaze softening. “Goodbye… mother…” She didn’t know where Philomena had ended up, or what had become of the woman, but she was certain that Philly no longer walked the same world she did. She had heard of Somnumn, a place where spirits could reach out to their loved ones, but thus far Philomena hadn’t. That was okay though, Meme decided. She didn’t hate her mother, but she was okay with not seeing her until her time on the earth had passed. She wanted to live her own life and, somehow, she felt her mother wanted the same for her as well.

A stranger came bounding down a path by the falls, calling to her. Meme blinked, not expecting anyone to have heard her, but she supposed that was alright. She offered them a sad smile. “Relatively speaking, yes. I was saying goodbye.” Her gaze traveled to the falls, her ears perking forward. “I apologize if I disturbed you. My mother raised me here… and since I do not know where she is currently, or if she’s even alive, I was just… saying goodbye. Goodbye to her, and the life that was expected of me that will never be. It felt like a fitting place to do so.”

She knew the words were gloomy but it was the truth. “But now a new life can begin.” Her tone had a bit of hope to it. “My name is Memento Mori Lore, by the way. Who did I intrude upon?” Her smile became a bit sheepish. Though she had made an apology she still felt a bit bad for disturbing what appeared to be another loner… and possibly scaring the daylights out of her.

Come down, come down sweet reverence

Jynn listened politely as the woman explained that she was saying goodbye to her mother, who had gone missing. Jynn nodded somberly. That was a loss she could understand though hers was not quite so gray. The woman introduced herself as Memento Mori and Jynn smiled gently. "Nice to meet you, I'm Jynn. I'm a wanderer by nature but this is such a beautiful area I just keep coming back. Don't worry, you weren't bothering me. I was just debating whether to try my paw at some fishing." She gestured to the large, blue pool at the base of the waterfall. There were a number of fish swimming in the pool but she had a hit-or-miss track record with managing to catch anything out of the pool. "Do you plan to start living here or just moving through?"

The woman seemed sympathetic, introducing herself as Jynn. Another wanderer by nature, it seemed. Memento Mori gave a small nod as her pale gaze traveled to the large pool at the base of the waterfall. It made sense; the pool had a good number of them even when she was a youngin’. “It’s a pleasure. You’d get some rather nice fish in that pool. I’m not sure what all fish live there, but there was a good variety I noticed when I was a kid. It was a blast chasing guppies in the shallows.” She chuckled softly at this. Those were better days, weren’t they? “Likely just moving through, truth be told.” Meme shook her head. “Settling down has been something hard as of late. It’s only recently I’ve returned to Auster with my companions but I’m rather restless. The idea of settling down just yet doesn’t strike my fancy, even seeing this waterfall again.” Her gaze softened as she watched the water cascading down the falls. She had to wonder where she and the boys were going to end up… would it be in Auster? Boreas? Time would tell. “I’d like to figure out somewhere to settle eventually but it may be too soon to decide just yet.” The femme glanced back at Jynn. “What of you, Jynn? Are you planning to settle down anywhere? I know you say that you keep getting drawn to this area, and I’m a bit curious. I haven’t met very many other wanderers here lately, and I’d be interested to know what your thoughts are on the lifestyle.”  Her words remained calm as she addressed the other femme. Was it natural to enjoy this walk of life and yet, at the same time, crave a bit of structure? She didn’t know, so maybe she’d get some insight from one of her own kind. She already knew what the boys thought… and they were varied opinions as it was. "Talk, 'Think.'

Come down, come down sweet reverence

Jynn settled on her belly near the edge of the pool, carefully scooting herself forward as she peered into the water. Mem stated there were some nice fish in the pool and Jynn licked her lips at the thought. As a loner she had to content herself with smaller prey and hunt more frequently to make up for the smaller meals. She spied a nice size sunfish swimming to and fro in the shallows. Deciding to take a chance she carefully slipped a paw into the water, pads up, letting the water move the hairs on her leg as it would.

While she waited she turned part ofher focus back to the conversation. Her ears perked up as the woman mentioned not beign able to settle. Jynn shook her head as Mem asked if she was going to settle. "No, probably never permanently. I like this area for now, as a sort of base while I explore more of Auster but I'm a wanderer at heart. I don't think I could bear to be pack bound with a bunch of duties and responsibilities dogging my ever step. Alas, it doesn't seem like there's much in the way of more peaceful nomadic bands. It's getting to the point I'm tempted to try starting my own."

Memento Mori was observant, noticing how Jynn turned her attention briefly to the water as she worked to prepare for catching a fish. Jynn didn’t abandon the conversation though. Memento Mori gave a small nod at the woman’s words. "I can definitely sympathize with you there. It’s… hard to imagine being in a pack, though I’ve considered it recently. I’m still on the fence, however, it doesn’t feel quite right, you know? The duties and responsibilities, laws you might not agree with… but…” The woman furrowed her brow a little. Bands were definitely a more peaceful alternative, more freedom with them, but… “I found out I have family in the Hallows. It’s… complicated my feelings on the matter. I don’t know what I want to do anymore, or what the right choice is.” She sighed heavily. “When I was a kid my mother put this… pressure on me. I was the child of a great man, a would-be alpha, the granddaughter of the alpha of Dragoste. It was my destiny to revive it and bring back our honor or something.” Memento Mori shook her head. As if that was ever going to be a real thing… She could never live up to the things that her mother wanted. “As I got older… I decided it wasn’t for me. I didn’t want to live the life my mother set for me. But I’d be a liar if I said I wasn’t curious what it would be like to live with my cousins.” She fixed her gaze back on Jynn. “It’d be pretty cool if you started your own band though! I’d be pretty interested to see what sort of band you would make as well. I’ve never met someone who had the ambitions to do something like that. I mean, I know bands are laxer than a pack, but I’m sure there is still some responsibility to it, you know?” "Talk, 'Think.'