It had taken her a bit to gather herself enough after telling Malico that he was coming with her in her hunt for mentorships. Not that she ever considered his refusal to be an option- he had eagerly complied just as she had anticipated. But Mariah had spent quite a while sitting on the information for a couple of different reasons- mainly to give her ample opportunity to arrive at the conclusion that this was the correct move for her own best interest. But also, out of respect for her sister. Tensions had been running high- and the more she matured, the more clearly she began to see things. While she wasn’t entirely certain of what had been happening between her older siblings, she could identify that things weren’t being taken as lightly as they had been before. Mariah wasn’t an empathetic individual by any means, but even she understood there was a time to pressure and a time to observe. However, her impatience could only account for so much.

Mariah had waited as long as she could, and when she finally caught sight of Avacyn lingering near the edge of the lake, she could wait no more. Casually closing the distance between herself and the matriarch, Mariah waited a little longer to speak than she normally would have to ensure a more conversational tone could be easily heard without trying to project herself. “Malico agreed to accompany me.” She began, taking a moment to look out over the water for herself. “Is there anything else I- or we should accomplish before preparing to leave?” Her tone sounded surprisingly gentle, even to herself. Though she wasn’t certain if that was a good thing or not. Perhaps it would have been better to pretend like there was nothing wrong in the first place. She supposed that she would soon find out.  

"Mariah Mendacium"

Some days were easier than others and today had been a difficult one. It was always the days where she struggled to find something to occupy her time that were the hardest since there was nothing to distract her from her own thoughts and today had been quiet around the pack so it was easy to slip into that state of mind. She found herself sitting at the edge of the lake near the small dock that jutted out into the water, letting the cold breeze that blew over the surface of the lake ruffle her fur. It had snowed that morning so a dusting of snow covered the ground. Her gaze was tipped up toward the gray, cloudy sky, watching as a half dozen ravens swooped back and forth above her. It certainly wasn't uncommon for her own ravens and her mother's to hone their arial skills together, but their little training sessions had been even more common and frequent since she had requested for Domina to begin getting one of her chicks ready for her sister.

As if the thought of her youngest sister could summon her, a bit of movement out of the corner of her eye pulled her attention and she glanced down to see Mariah approaching her side. She smiled gently, greeting her warmly with a simple, "Mariah." Even though all of the grief and heartache she had experienced as of late, she never forgot about the request her sister had made and the preparations that would undoubtedly need to be made for it. She wished she had been able to spend more time with Mariah leading up to her departure to make sure everything was in order, but life did have other plans. She nodded as Mariah shared that Malico had agreed to go with her. She certainly hadn't expected her younger brother to refuse the request, but it was good to know that Mariah would have a companion for her trip. When she asked if there was any other preparations that needed to be done before she left Avacyn glanced back up at the ravens that were still swooping past one another in the sky above them. "Well, I do think there's someone who's ready to meet you."

She gave a short whistle to get the birds' attention and then called up to them, "Fina!" After a moment one of the ink-black birds separated out from the rest of the flock and began to drift down to them in circling spirals on the breeze. Eventually the young avian landed on the ground in front of them, making a few hops as she drew closer and shuffled her wings back into place at her sides. She was noticeably a bit smaller than the other ravens, but only because of her age. "This is Fina. She's been training with my ravens to be ready for your trip. She was the fastest and brightest of Domina's last clutch so I hope she serves you well." The raven bobbed her head in greeting to Mariah, speaking in their unique, avian croak, "I'm glad to finally meet you."

"Avacyn Mendacium"

Whether or not her sister was actually in a good mood, she made it seem that way. Avacyn’s greeting was a cheerful one, one that Mariah acknowledged with a half-sided smirk. And when she asked her sister for direction as to the next steps, she suddenly became aware of why the Matriarch was staring out over the lake. Not for the water. For the ravens. Following her sister’s line of sight to the sky, she saw them there. Intertwining with one another, dipping in and out of the cloud cover. Flight patterns that made sense to them, but seemed incredibly freeing to her.

Her sister called to the flock as a whole via whistle, before singling out a specific bird. Fina. The raven she apparently addressed was eager to answer, pulling away from the others, and closing in on the dock where they stood. The one that must have been eager to make a new acquaintance. By the looks of it, her sister’s pick was young, though she was clearly capable. Avacyn began a formal introduction, giving her a brief background on the corvid. Her own fledgling corvid. “Fina.” Mariah echoed, eyeing the young raven with interest. “The pleasure is all mine.” She quickly answered, her grin brighting as she shot a glance to her sister for a moment before returning her attention to Fina. “I’m sure she will make us proud.” Mariah projected, more to the open air than anything, but it was a genuine sentiment.

The girl hesitated a moment before seeking out Ava’s obsidian gaze. “Just as I hope to do the same. Thank you for the opportunity, Ava.” She had never really been one to praise others, but this was the first big moment of many to come, and she wouldn’t forget who had acted as a catalyst for her future. Which brought her to her next question. “Do you have any recommendations as to where to begin?” Mariah certainly wasn’t opposed to making things up as she went along, however, if the Matriarch had input as to the order in which she should pursue things, she would certainly consider her recommendation.

"Mariah Mendacium"

Avacyn smiled warmly as she watched her youngest sister interact with her new companion for the first time. With everything that had been going on in her own personal life as of late, it felt good to focus on Mariah instead and at least do her part to make sure her sister was set up for success. Her own ravens had been loyal and valuable companions for her for most of her life so she hoped that Fina would be the same for Mariah. She nodded in agreement as Mariah shared her conviction that she would make them proud and as Avacyn's gaze came back to meet her sister's she nodded once again to the hope that she did the same. "No need to thank me," she assured her with a soft chuckle. "I'm just glad that we're in a place that we're able to do this for you." The pack was in a stable place where letting a few of their members go for their own benefit wouldn't negatively impact the pack and they had enough allies around Boreas and Auster that a trip like this made sense. It made her feel like she was doing at least one thing right.

As Mariah asked about any recommendations for where she should begin, Avacyn hummed softly with consideration. "I suppose it depends on the route you want to take. The Hallows is of course going to be the furthest away, but if you want to put the bulk of your travel at the beginning of the trip it might be a good idea to start there. Then you can stop at Ashen and Valta on your way back. Or you can go to Valta first since they're just next door and start working your way down through Boreas and into Auster that way." She knew Mariah would want to visit all of them one way or another so it was truly up to her what order she went to them in. "I did speak with Valta's alpha recently and let her know to be expecting you. I also sent my ravens to Ashen and The Hallows to let them know. I haven't call ahead to Ethne yet, but their alpha, Haydée, is a good friend so if you'd like to drop by there while you're in Auster I know she wouldn't mind."

"Avacyn Mendacium"

The age difference had been a little challenging, but as she matured, and achieved her own understanding of their world in and out of Elysium, Mariah felt a connection with her older sister forged by the support that was being offered to her. They were simply on different paths with very different journeys ahead of them. But of course, she was genuinely appreciative of the Matriarch's offered guidance and direction, and would do her best to maintain the forward momentum as she made strides toward her future. While Avacyn assured her there was no need for thanks, Mariah wasn't necessarily certain that she agreed- though she wouldn't argue none the less.

Her attention was captivated as she listened to the options that were presented to her. She quickly settled on what she believed to be the best course of action, though it wasn't entirely her decision either. What Mariah had not expecting was for Ethne's name to be thrown in the mix. In the grand scheme of things, she knew Ethne to be the most recent friendship for Elysium to make. Perhaps this would be an opportunity to take advantage of that. "Okay, depending on how we feel when we get down there, I may just reach out to Haydée on my own. Thanks for the info." The younger girl answered thoughtfully, but she was quick to return to the larger details of their closing discussion. "I'll get with Malico and decide. Though, I would say it makes the most sense to me to visit Valta first, and work our way down." But of course, of the two siblings, she wouldn't call herself the navigator. If Malico gave a compelling reason for a different route, than she would certainly heed his advice.

Looking back to her new companion, she offered a grin before a final glance to her sister. "Fina and I will certainly keep you informed as we travel ..." She assured, allowing her words to trail off a bit. Mariah had never been a touchy feely individual, but as she moved to depart from Avacyn, she offered an affectionate touch to her sister's shoulder, hesitating a moment before pulling away to offer her farewell. "Be safe, Ava." And with that, she crossed the threshold to whatever await her further down her path, in doing so, putting everything she had ever known temporarily behind her.

- Exit Mariah -
"Mariah Mendacium"