The north was great and all, but Orion had decided to leave it behind for the time being. Sure, the early snows and frost were invigorating, but could you really blame him for wanting to soak up the last days of marginally mild weather before true winter set in? And after meeting a kind old shewolf in a weird, spooky forest the south was already proving way more interesting than the north. The autumn colors were currently in full swing, and the day was still young. The sky was blue, the wind was brisk, and he had the rest of the day to dick around and do whatever he wanted, really. He waded through the sea of ferns which surrounded him, and amused himself by occasionally ducking his head down to survey the hidden world beneath the fronds. He mostly found spiders. But anyways, seeing as he'd even managed to snag a meal that morning first thing, the day was his to waste as he pleased. The fronds were beginning to brown, and the trees on the gully's edge were a brilliant mix of orange and yellow. He turned towards the highest ground he could find and made his way there, weaving amongst the ferns until he was able to turn and look out over the rippling sea of fronds. The serene beauty was great and all, but he could only spend so much time hypnotized by the rippling waves before his attention span began to wander. Well. Odds seemed good that there was something around him to devote a bit more brain power to. Just had to find it first. "Talk" "Listen" Think

Autumn had been warm so far but this morning brought a chill with it courtesy of the brisk wind. Apart from that everything was still except for the occasional call of the rutting whitetail deer. Her ears flicked forward as she tracked the sound. Alone, Aerndis knew she didn't have a chance of taking a healthy, full-grown deer but she hoped that maybe she could pick off one injured in battle over a mate.

She slipped through the gulley, ears twitching as she tried to pick up sounds of prey but everything had fallen silent again. That strange silence that held nothing but the wind. She frowned, frustrated. It had a been a few days since she'd last eaten. Sighing she kept on moving down the gulley. It was a pretty little area full of a rich wealth of plant life but as she wasn't a healer she couldn't quite appreciate the variety of life around her. Especially not when her mind was focused on food.  

She turned a slight bend in the gulley only to spy a bright blue behind flecked with gold and white and black. Her heart skipped a beat and she blinked. Was she seeing things? When the figure didn't fade from her vision she leapt forward and let out a joyful cry. "Orrriioooonnnn!"  She leapt into the air seeking to land right on his back with the goal of smooshing him into the ground and covering his head with kisses and licks.

The lazy day was beginning to draw Orion into a lull. He wasn't sure how long he lay there, zoning out, gaze lost in the gently waving fronds. In fact, he was so securely drawn into his thoughts that he had no idea he'd been spotted, or was currently being approached. He lay there completely unwitting of the ambush about to unfold. His name, bursting from an unmistakably familiar voice, behind him and approaching rather quickly caught him entirely unawares. Less than a heartbeat later, a weight collided with him from behind. He let out a yelp of surprise, and between springing forward in surprise and the resulting shove, he soon found himself weightless. Orion skidded down the short slope, briefly swallowed by the sea of ferns. He skidded to a stop shortly after, and once he reoriented himself with whichever direction was up, he popped back up from amongst the tall ferns. He blinked rapidly. Had he become concussed on the way down? Somehow it seemed more likely than the idea that his sister just happened to barrel into him out of the blue. But her scent drifted towards him then and he would have recognized it anywhere. He knew it was her. "Aerndis?!" He spluttered, jaw working a moment before he could really speak. "Wha- Where did you?-" Orion surged forward and attempted a tackle of his own, overcome with incredulity and joy. How could she really be here? Maybe he was dreaming, but even so he would prefer it to being awake. What was the harm in enjoy it while it lasted? A thought struck him suddenly and he froze, features perking upright. "Is Jup with you?" Had they both stuck together? Orion certainly hoped so, because to find them both at once would be a miracle. He'd never much cared for religion or spirits or gods, and he'd heard some odd tales over the years, but this certainly seemed like some sort of a miracle. "Talk" "Listen" Think

”Is Jup with you?” The Jup in question while not with Aerndis per se, was indeed around and probably quite a bit closer than Aerndis or Orion would have guessed. He'd been wandering around the Gulley while Amadeus ate his fill of spiders. The little tamarin wasn't looking forward to the winter ahead and was going out of his way to eat and preserve all the things he wouldn't be able to get in the "off" season. Jupiter was convinced it was only a matter of time before Amadeus tried to smoke spiders in their little pit smoker. Amadeus was going to have to hunt on his own, because Jupiter couldn't pass up a chance to pounce on his sister. Perhaps he was getting a little too old for shenanigans, but...ah, who was he kidding. He wasn't ever going to be too old for shenanigans. He slunk through the ferns and did his best to blend in, but honestly his expectations on sneaking up on her successfully were low considering just how not nondescript his coat was. Turns out, he needn't have worried. By the time he reached his sister she was otherwise engaged. Jupiter had to do a double take. His breath caught in his throat as he took in the familiar form of his brother. How long had it been since they'd seen each other? Long enough  for them all to grow up. They'd been pups in Dauntless. It seemed like forever ago. Thinking he hadn't been seen, Jupiter slunk closer, then boomed as he burst up through the ferns, "Right here, brother." "Jupiter"   "Amadeus" ”You”

Score! Direct hit! Aerndis cheered joyfully as she collided with her brother and the pair started to skid down the ravine. There was a brief flicker of fear but it never rose beyond the sheer joy of seeing someone dear to her that she feared she'd never see again. He sputtered and she laughed as tears started to well up in her eyes. "It's so good to see you again! Where have you bee-" Orion surged forward and tackled her but she didn't mind in the least. Her tail was wagging so hard she thought she might propel herself right into the atmosphere. Is Jup with you? Before Aerndis could answer Jupiter burst onto the scene and she laughed. Finally! They were all together again. Panting she wriggled out from under Orion and shook herself out before turning to look at her brothers with a big grin on her face. She wanted to say something but she didn't even know what to say so she just let the words fall out. "Spirits, I've missed you guys. Just…oh wow, the three of us together again? The world better watch out!" "Talk" "You" Think

Jupiter's loud voice booming suddenly nearly toppled Orion over all on its own. "Right here, brother!" He whirled towards it and was both shocked and delighted to see him. Whatever he'd done to be blessed with luck like this, well... He couldn't say. In truth, he assumed this just about used up all his luck for the next year or two, but that would be fine as long as he didn't loose track of them again. "It's so good to see you both!" Aerndis wiggled away from him and he stood. Even upright Orion couldn't contain his excitement, and so shifted his weight from paw to paw. "Spirits, I have so many stories to tell you guys! What have you been doing since... Well, I mean, are you living around here now?" He cast a quick glance around the gully, as if it would give him some sort of clue. He turned back to grin back and forth between the two of them. He wondered if perhaps they were part of a pack, but neither carried the scent of other wolves on their pelt. Even if they were rouge traveling, Orion still vowed to stick close by from now on. He had given up on his quest, which meant he had nothing better to do than get to know his siblings again. Orion waffled, uncertain whether or not to bring her up right at that moment. He wasn't excited about the prospect, but somehow his mouth opened up before he could give it much further thought. In a quieter voice he asked, "Also uh.. Have either of you heard from Mom? I tried to track her down but.." He shrugged. He had been so young then, and even these days Orion felt he still had a lot to learn before he was ready to track prey down over any real distance. Orion sighed and scrunched up his nose. Regretting having brought her up. "Whatever, I'm happy to be back. I was so worried I wouldn't be able to find you guys again either. Wherever Artemis is, she's going to have to find us I guess." He smiled crookedly and his tail swished among the ferns. He wouldn't let thoughts of their mother sour his mood, it was impossible having just stumbled into something so wonderfully unexpected. He stood and shook out his fur, Lifting a paw, he swatted at Jupiter and teased, "Practically all grown up aren't we? Aern is right, I think this calls for a bit of a ruckus." He didn't have anything concrete in mind, but finding some trouble with his siblings was the only thing in the world he could be bothered with at the moment. Being back with them made him feel put back together again, and Orion wasn't about to let that feeling go. All they needed now was something to kick it off. "Talk" "Listen" Think

Orion asked if they were living in the area and Jupiter nodded. "I can't speak for Aern but yeah, I am. We've got a whole mess of family here in the south." After a beat, he clarified, "Dad's side. Aern's met our grandfather, but I think, and correct me if I'm wrong, that's all she's met? Anyway, we've got uncles and cousins, a grandfather and his girlfriend? Mate? A little old blind lady. Oh, and dad's here too." As for their mother, Jupiter wasn't about to let talk of her dampen his mood. If he ever found out she'd disappeared because she was dead, he'd grieve, but if she just high-tailed it without so much as a good-bye? Good riddance. He didn't want to have anything to do with her if that was the case. "Nah, haven't seen hide or hair of her," he said mildly, and left it at that. He grinned as a ruckus was mentioned. "Oh yeah? What kind of a ruckus?" "Jupiter"   "Amadeus" ”You”

Aerndis nodded eagerly as Orion mentioned the stories he wanted to tell them. She had a bunch too and it seemed like there was just too much. Where was she supposed to start? Thankfully Jupiter jumped in and got the conversation going. "Yea, I'm living down in the south now too though I can't help but wander a bit. Before that I spent most of my time wandering up north, learning to hunt from strangers when I could, but now that we've reconnected with the family this is where I'm looking to stay." She hoped Orion would join them. She couldn't really imagine him not joining with his family. She nodded at Jupiter. "Yea, I've only met our grandad so far. I hope meet everyone else and I really want to see dad again. I know I didn't make the best first impression." She laughed. It seemed like so long ago since she'd been that young. Her mood sobered at the mention of their mother and she sighed softly, shaking her head. "No. No sign, nothing." She was starting to fear the worst. It was the worst think, not knowing what happened. She felt she could sleep a lot better if she'd just had some closure but you don't always get what you want. Aerndis forced herself to grin, trying to pull herself back into the present and be grateful for what she did have. She had a long lost brother back again and it was cause for celebration. "Well, I'm thinking we should introduce Orion to his grandad in a unique fashion. I say we play a prank on the old man. Any ideas?" Brothers were always the best at pranks. "We could fill his den with frogs, or hmmm… I wonder if the three of us would be strong enough to move that big metal skeleton he's always sitting on." "Talk" "You" Think

The knowledge that both of his siblings were safe and healthy lifted a weight from the young male's shoulders. It wasn't until it dissipated that Orion realized how heavy his fear and anxiety had been. Not knowing if his mother was safe, not knowing if his siblings were safe. He regretted ever having left home in the first place, but this certainly wasn't the moment to dwell on it. Neither had any word of Artemis, but to his surprise and delight it turned out they did have family in the area after all. Lots of family apparently! His eyes widened as Jupiter went on. "Really? Well, I guess I came to the right place then, huh? I actually bumped into his mate already, I think, but we got separated in this creepy forest. Is her name Rhythm?" Their meeting in the spooky forest had been a strange coincidence, and after managing to get himself exactly as lost as he'd feared, Orion spent the following days wondering if it was all just a weird dream. Either way he'd ended up drifting more south than west, but it had worked out perfectly as far as he was concerned. He had no intention of letting either of them out of his sight for a while, so he had no doubt they would be able to lead him wherever he needed to go. He laughed at his sister's suggestion to prank his grandpa as an introduction. Well, he could think of about a hundred ways that could go poorly, but he loved the idea anyways. "Oh, definitely. Frogs are always good. But what's that about a metal skeleton?" Wherever he'd travelled before meeting Rhythm, he hadn't seen anything like that. It was hard to envision, but he eventually settled on something like a dragon. It made his (currently imaginary) grandpa look pretty badass if he did say so himself, and it also ratcheted up his excitement level a notch or two. "Well, what are we waiting for? We can think up something perfect on the way. You'll have to tell me more about what he's like too. It'd be rude to get me kicked out of the family as soon as I get you back, you know," he joked and stood, shaking bits of debris out of his coat, all remnants of their scuffle. Orion certainly hoped they wouldn't take it too far, but he was happy enough to be back with his siblings that he'd do just about anything they suggested at this point just because it meant he'd be able to do it with them. "Talk" "Listen" Think

Jupiter's ears pricked forward at the mention of Rhythm. It was a small world, it seemed. While he had yet to meet the woman he had heard all about her, both before her return and after so he was up to date on the going's on and the plot to kill off the slavers. "Yep," he confirmed, "That's her." Like his siblings he thought it a good idea to introduce Orion with a bang. Frogs were a decent idea, but moving the tractor? Jupiter laughed. "That thing is a beast and I bet it's friggin' heavy. BUT he's got a den under it. As far as I know there's only two ways in and out of it." He shrugged and grinned slyly before saying, "I think it'd be a shame if say, he got stuck down there with something gross like oh, I don't know. A skunk or something." "Oh," he said cheerfully, "We're gonna get you kicked out of the family alright. He's a bit of a grump. But don't worry, he tries to maul and disown me daily." "Let's go! Maybe we can all get disowned together." -exit?- "Jupiter"   "Amadeus" ”You”

Aerndis filed away the name Rhythm. She was definitely curious about the woman and figured she much be something like a grandmother to them even though she knew the woman wasn't so biologically. She nodded as Jupiter stated that the skeleton was a beast. "It's huge, some sort of leftovers of a giant animal. Kind of like a bug. You know how bugs have their skeletons on the outside? It's sort of like that." She meant to ask Valentine what it was but she kept forgetting to ask. She grinned at Jupiter's idea. "Oh that's a great idea. Hmmmm… I bet there are some skunks or snakes or something that are holing up for the winter. Maybe we can catch one while its still sleepy." She wasn't quite sure how they'd trap him in there but she was sure they'd figure something out. -exit- "Talk" "You" Think

The tractor sounded incredibly cool. Orion was glad to hear that regardless of what their plan ended up being it seemed like they would end up there because he definitely wanted to see it. Valentine had picked an awesome place to live apparently, and they were going to do something to it. Orion couldn't wait. His mind was churning for something good when Jupiter said, "It'd be a shame if say, he got stuck down there with something gross like oh, I don't know. A skunk or something."One side of Orion's mouth curled into a smirk and he looked back and forth between his siblings. "An absolute tragedy. Let's do it." Orion turned his face skyward to laugh uproariously at Jupiter's description of their grandfather and the prospect of getting disowned as a group. Wouldn't that be fitting. He couldn't help but laugh. Already he was picturing in his mind images of what he hoped the coming days held in store for them, and it was the happiest Orion could remember being in his entire life. Not even the apparent very real prospect of being disowned could ruin that. "Nahh, c'mon. He can't kick out the grandkids, just look at these faces!" He put on a set of perfect puppy dog eyes for a brief moment then broke into laughter again. Well, he could hope, right? Orion's heart swelled with excitement. He could still hardly believe it was happening, but there they were, off to wrangle rodents and annoy their elders, just like the good old days. Hell, they could get exiled from the continent and he wouldn't be able to bring himself to care so long as they were together. -Exit- "Talk" "Listen" Think