The season of gathering food for the animals and herbs for himself was over, and the season for slowly doling out the hoarded foodstuffs to his stock had begun, but Tornach was finding himself restless and... troubled. His trip to Celestial, discovering that he was an uncle, discovering how much had changed and how much he still didn't know about his family... it had shaken him. But even more so had the last trip of the autumn season before the snows had brought an end to any more harvesting. A trip a little further to the east and north than his home - where he'd scented Zuriel on the borders of a new pack. Combined with learning how much had changed elsewhere in his family, the fact that he was so close and she hadn't come to find him was... really troubling him. He'd been in the Range for years now and yet none of his family had bothered visiting him for nearly all that time. The last time he'd seen Zuriel was... well, it was right after Celestial had been challenged for, when he'd just found out about their mother. And now she was only a few lands away, and still he hadn't seen her. None of his family had shown up when he'd tried to get the packs to come to his failed trade fair either. In fact, the last time any of his siblings had made the effort to seek him out was when Regulus had happened to need his healing knowledge. It hadn't exactly been a social occasion.

Was he destined to have no contact with his family unless he made the first move? Even though it seemed like they were constantly moving and changing and having their families and having big news to share while he had lived in the same place, doing the same things, year after year with nothing new to prompt him to seek them out and tell them?

He had been brooding about it since he'd returned from his gathering expedition, and he'd grown moodier and moodier until Aiden had finally snapped at him to go do something about it. She was pretty even-tempered for a falcon, so for her to snap at him he must have been pretty annoyingly mopey. She was right, of course, so with her to watch the animals and feed them regularly - quite a feat for a small, lightweight animal like a bird, but one she'd done before at need and since she was volunteering... - he set out north and east to the borders where he'd scented Zuriel. It was cold, and snow had begun gathering thickly everywhere between the range and the mountains so he couldn't take too long away from his stock, but he did need to do something about the distance that had sprung up between him and his family.

Standing at the border of the inhospitable lands this pack had claimed, he had sudden misgivings. Zuriel couldn't possibly thrive someplace this desolate in the middle of winter, could she? Hunting in the mountains would be difficult at the best of times, let alone in the dead of winter. Concerned and uncertain, he lifted his muzzle in a long, low call. Wanting to see his sister again had been what prompted his trip, but now he felt a strong need to reassure himself that she was ok. This pack wasn't family - would they be as inclined to safeguard her wellbeing as family would? He wasn't so certain, and his natural distrust of packs only magnified that uncertainty.

He was following his uncle around today, simply watching as Acere went about his duties for the day. After a couple hours of following The Judge, however, Ignis had gotten permission to explore on his own within the territory. He was more than happy to do so, what trouble could he possibly get into anyway? There were eyes everywhere! So with that in mind, he took off and began to explore the volcanic mountain on his own. He was careful, however, since he had been told time and time again how dangerous it was during the snowy season. He was ordered to stay away from ledges and the like, though it was often tempting to approach them to peer down the slopes. Still, he wasn't that bold yet. Maybe someday, but not now. The fire mountain was perhaps a little less dangerous than the maw. He wasn't allowed around the other territory without supervision, but he didn't intend on going there now anyway. Heading down the slope, he heard a low call that stopped him in his tracks. Who was that? He didn't recognize the voice at all, was it a pack member? He didn't know everyone yet, so it was quite possible, wasn't it? Oh! Maybe his dad would be there! His tail set to wagging as he carefully bounded down the hillside, paws occasionally tripping over themselves in his haste. By the time the howler had come into sight, his fur was ruffled from falling most of the way down and he had some scrapes, but none of it bothered him. It had taken him a great deal of time to get there, but when he finally got to approaching the caller, his father nor anyone else had yet to show up. Hmm, maybe this was a pack member? He hadn't quite yet learned about borders and who was a member and loners and all that, so he didn't really think much of it. "Hiya! Who're you?" Crimson gaze was inquisitive, the boy showing no fear or caution. "Speak"

Hunting in the mountains was hard, but that didn't mean that these wolves didn't do it. During the Winter, the only readily available prey was in these mountains and so long as Elias kept himself below them and didn't mind bleeding pawpads at the end of the night, he guaranteed a meal for at least his teething children and Zuriel.

When it came to hunting, Elias rarely came back home empty-mawed and accepting a failure. He was an experienced hunter and trapper, and tonight he had made his rounds to the cold upper peaks of the Maw where his hair-trigger traps lay, strong enough to hold a goat. Had the thought of growing and breeding his own food ever occurred to him, he might not feel so proud of his own intelligence but as it was, he was radiating pride as he carefully descended the mountainside with one young goat in his jowls. Tonight was an easy night, though if it hadn't been.. he would have been very persistent.

It was hard to smell much over the scent of the goat, but he could swear he caught the scent of one of his sons and his brother. He shifted the goat in his maw, teeth snapping to its leg to let it dangle from the side of his skull as he tried to free more airflow so that he could read the air. Yes, it was Acere and Ignis. His curiosity had been piqued by far, wondering what his brother was teaching the youth and how progressive their day had been. It was becoming clear to him that he wasn't quite exactly the readily available teacher his father was, but at least he had the help from his brother, Zuriel, and even Drakan's presence with the pups had been noticed. Living in a dangerous land with seasons that could not go ignored made it difficult for him to achieve all of his ambitions, but tonight he had the simple ambition of finding his son and hearing all about what he learned today.

The stranger's howl that broke the silence of the mountain air made his heart skip a beat when he heard it. He could tell Ignis' trail cut off from Acere's some time ago and that he was alone. His children were getting bigger now, big enough to run from any immediate danger and howl if they needed help... but they hadn't had many encounters with outsiders yet. Elias was immediately panicking as his talons gripped every little curve and piece of raised, rocky terrain that they could as he practically flew down the mountain on muscle memory.

When he arrived, his paws were bloody again and his chest was visibly heaving, the fur of the goat in his maw flowing through the billow of his strong lungs as his eyes narrowed on first the stranger and then his son. He did not stop moving until he stood directly over the red boy, dropping a goat in front of him to box him in underneath his tall presence.

"Ignis, it is not your duty to answer to strangers. They could be dangerous. You hide when you see them and wait for your family, is that understood?" His voice started off quiet and at a stern whisper, not wanting to embarrass his son in front of this stranger though he wanted these words prominent in his son's mind if he were to attempt to do this again. Elias took one step back and his neck craned down, skull tilted slightly as he looked to the child at his paws much like a crow inspects its favorite coin. 'Please listen,' he thought to himself. 'Please don't be reckless like Ace and I were.' It was as if the mere thought of his youthful rebellion brought the pain of the scar on his chest back to life.

He cracked his neck as if that would take away some of the uncomfortable burning the deep scar tissue was causing after his strenuous run and looked back up to the wolf in his presence, eyes narrowed. It didn't take him long to realize the resemblance between Zuriel and this wolf before him, and as he started to wonder.. his eyes started to round and lost their look of hostility.

"Say your piece."

Shifting anxiously on the border and wishing he had Aiden with him to be his eyes in the sky, Tornach waited for his sister, for the alpha, for anyone. Turned out, "anyone" was a little bundle of blood red fur that popped up with an innocently cheerful greeting. Tornach's brows rose in consternation when he beheld the young wolf. If he hadn't grown up with Regulus always there, it might have been more surprising past first glance, but while it was decidedly unusual for wolves to be quite that coloration it wasn't shocking to him. A closer look showed that the pup was a bit darker red than Regulus, closer to the color of blood, and had markings of a darker color, and unlike Regulus this boy's eyes were just as red as his coat.

"Hello," he returned the greeting kindly, lowering his head and bending his forelegs slightly to put his gaze on the level of the pup's. "My name is Tornach. What's yours?" Right now he was much taller than the red boy, but he looked like he was going to eventually be even larger than Tornach himself was, quite an impressive feat considering that there were very few wolves taller than Tor. The boy was covered in fresh scrapes and ruffled fur, and the healer in him immediately looked him over in concern, though Tornach restrained himself when he would have crossed the border to examine him for injury. He might not like packs, but he knew that crossing a border would be unforgivable rude and threatening for them and wouldn't risk setting paw over a border.

He had cause to be grateful for his own restraint when a tall, dark male hurtled himself onto the scene to straddle the pup and speak sternly to the young thing before turning a blood red glower on Tornach, who had reared back in startled reflex. He was no less startled by his own resemblance to this dark, scarred male. The other male was darker overall, but similar in tone and markings, height and build. The biggest difference between the two of them was that the stranger's eyes were a vivid, angry red while his own were a deep, dark blue. It was disconcerting, the more so with the scarred male glaring angrily at him, though the glare softened into a less threatening expression after a moment.

The male spoke, and Tornach's ears flicked back just the slightest bit. That was it? No name, no greeting, just a demand that implied the male wanted him to get it over with and leave?

For a moment Tornach simply returned his gaze with a quieter scrutiny of his own. After the initial surprise of the male's threatening entry into the scene, Tornach's natural calm reserve had asserted itself, and he drew himself back up to his full height to study the stranger.

"I'm looking for Zuriel Adravendi." He spoke with dignity, though his voice was quiet his eyes were intent on the other male. "My name is Tornach Adravendi. She is my sister."

The stranger greeted him and even went as far as to lower himself to Ignis' eye level. His tail wagged as the stranger who he soon learned was named Tornach, greeted him. "I'm Ignis! Nice to--" oops. Before he knew it, his father's large frame appeared out of nowhere and was now standing over him. His ears fell back slightly, crimson gaze mirroring Elias' own. His dad's words didn't fall on deaf ears, but he didn't particularly like that. "But daaaad! I just wanted ta say hi!"

It was rare when he saw new faces, and his curiosity always got the better of him. He just had to investigate! He sat back on his haunches with an indignant huff. He didn't wanna have to hide when there were interesting persons to be hassled at the border! He was pretty confident that he could take on any and all creatures who came to visit.

He watched the exchange between Tornach and his father, and since his father didn't say much, he wasn't interested in words until Tornach spoke. Ignis' ears perked up and his tail thumped against his father's legs. "Momma has a brother!? Cooool!" He yipped excitedly.

Ooc// crap post is crap, sorry T.T

As Ignis protested and spoke of his own wishes, Elias narrowed his gaze down at his child and he struggled to focus on the other male. Once the stranger identified himself, Elias softened his stare and looked up to him so that he could confirm he had heard him. This was Zuriel's brother, Elias had suspected him to be an Adravendi. He gave him a nod of his square muzzle and then pointed it toward the second highest peak of the Maw.

"You'll find her up there, more than likely. I will escort you up there in a moment. First, I need a moment alone with my son. You might want to stop and get some water before we travel up there, anyway." Just.. in case, he thought.

He stared at Tornach for a moment, though soon his attention shifted back to Ignis. His brother's sister had never let him discipline her children, she was too afraid of him.. and Elias couldn't say that he blamed her for being afraid of him. That is why he left their little family. He wouldn't be stopped from disciplining his own children, he remembered how both Atta and Dominus corrected their own behavior. It molded them, as harsh it may seem to outside eyes.

"Come with me, Ignis." His tone was demanding, the air about him still wildly frustrated. His features and body language were as calm as ever.. but the tension within him was likely more than noticeable.

-attempt exit Elias and Ignis? We'll have to do other threads to continue this. LOL-