Novella had gotten quite comfortable with the Eastern areas of Alacritis, particularly the parts surrounding Ludicael anyway. Once a frequent visiting spot and now a home, that was still a slightly odd thought yet not one that the young girl was starting to regret at all. That being said, it wasn't going to mean she'd be completely glued to Lover's Mangrove either, she could still get out every now and then and have a wander around, and that was exactly what she had decided to do today. The war may have ended for now, though it had instilled far more caution into her than Novella had probably ever had in her short life. Never had she felt she had to fear something happening to her, she'd been fortunate enough to avoid such experiences until recently. Truth be told they'd shaken her a little more than she may have liked to admit, though she had been practicing with Song in order to gain some of that confidence back, yet she still didn't feel ready for a fight if she found herself in any danger. Perhaps that was why she hadn't strayed too far from her home, finding herself at the Serpent Plains. At the edge of the lake she paused for a moment. Her mismatched eyes had kept watch as she travelled, looking out for anyone and they had another glance around her now before lowering her head to the water for a drink. It seemed that she was relatively alone, aside from the rabbits that had bolted as they crossed paths. Hunting currently wasn't on her to-do list though, in fact Novella wasn't really sure what her plan was from here.

Once she'd made the decision to stay, it was much easier for Satu to enjoy this adventure. Sure, it was a bit cold, and a little uncomfortable sometimes being on her own. But answering to no one but herself, being able to go where ever her wandering feet took her, following whatever whimsical notion struck her... it was paradise. There was still that little bit of guilt for not returning home... ok, a lot of guilt, actually... but wasn't it, in the long run, healthier for her mother to not be so dependent on her children? Besides, Satu had really, really missed her sister and her cousins. Life just hadn't been the same without them, and even though she'd only seen Cirala in the short time she'd been here, just knowing that the rest were somewhere near was comforting. The excitement of adventure with all the comforting familiarity of family. She wondered how Anthem was, so far from his home pack. Surely he wasn't all alone - family stuck together, right? But maybe it would be a good idea to seek him out and check up on him, just in case. And Howl was somewhere around here. She really, really wanted to see how he'd been since he left, but she wasn't entirely sure about her welcome so she hadn't been looking for him. And then there was... Satu, who had been making her way through the place she'd learned was called Serpent's Plain - a place she'd never been before, which was exciting - stopped suddenly in astonishment as she caught sight of a familiar form. Was that... "Novella?" she asked aloud incredulously. What were the odds of that? Just as she was thinking about her family... it seemed to happen more often than not lately! She'd always been fond of Novella. Well, not always... certainly not when Novella was an exuberant pup and Satu had been expected to watch over her... but certainly as she'd grown up Satu had enjoyed her company, empathizing with her adventurous personality and envying her carefree attitude. Of all of her family she'd have most wanted to see right now, Novella would be very high on the list. Her tail wagged in happy greeting. "I wasn't expecting to find you here!" "Speech"

To be honest, Novella was probably well aware of the fact that she would probably meet someone sooner or later. The lands were indeed rather large and the Serpent Plains weren't exactly the most peaceful of places for creatures of any kind. Whether predator or prey, you could find food here it was almost a gathering space for animals of all shapes and sizes. Such a great hunting ground was bound to be graced by wolves hunting at some point, that after all made more sense than a wolf from Ludicael simply wandering around. What she hadn't expected however was for an approaching wolf to recognise her. Whilst she knew full well that her siblings were in the area, and not all of them residing with Ludicael she had no idea at the moment that her cousins had also found their way to Alacritis. "Novella?" At the sound of her name, Novella sharply looked over her shoulder, curious as to who was there, someone that obviously knew her. Mismatched eyes settled upon the form of Satu and her expression broke into a happy smile, tail wagging behind her as she turned to face her cousin. Satu was most certainly the favourite of her cousins. Iorwerth, for the brief period that she had met the male was a stranger to them all really and a rather isolated individual she felt. Even her aunt Arelahn hadn't had any success at bringing him back into the family. Whilst a shame they couldn't reunite the same way she had with Song, Novella certainly wasn't going to waste any time bothering with him if he couldn't even have time for his mother and sisters. Cirala was different, she'd been around though Novella had simply always felt that she wasn't quite as fun as Satu. At a young age she'd been oblivious to the fact that her cousin didn't want to waste all of her time looking after irritating little pups, but even then she had liked spending time with her. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that Satu had that talent for words that her father did. With the pack to deal with though, story time with Dutiron was something that didn't happen quite as often as Novella would have liked. Satu had always been a wonderful substitute for story telling though. "Satu! What are you doing here?" Novella greeted cheerfully, stepping forwards to nuzzle her in greeting. Not that it mattered too much, she was most certainly pleased to see her cousin again. Wouldn't it be nice for her to come back and see Symphony and Song again, and meet Song's puppies, surely her nieces and nephew would enjoy Satu's wonderful stories as much as she had done? Of course she was getting rather ahead of herself, Myth, Howl and Legend had all wandered from Ludicael, if her siblings hadn't joined, there was certainly no definite that Satu would want to. Still, for now the young girl could still hope, the idea of the entire family being back together was most certainly something she would secretly long for.

Satu returned Novella's nuzzle happily. It wasn't that her old pack wasn't affectionate, but it just hadn't felt quite the same without her sister and cousins there, and she found herself missing the contact with them as though she'd been completely alone since they left rather than with the rest of the pack. "It is a long and uhm," she sighed, shaking her head with a wry smile, "little bit embarrassing story. Maybe I'll tell you later when the sting has faded a little and I can really do it justice." She wasn't sure she was ready to tell that story to just anyone quite yet, still feeling guilty about having abandoned her pack and her mother, but Novella would be the exception. She was enough like Satu that she would probably find enjoyment in the crazy circumstances and adventures that led to Satu finally finding Cirala here, and she wouldn't judge Satu at all. "How about you, Novella? How have you been? Had any adventures of your own?" All the while she had a silly, happy grin on her face. It was so very good to be seeing her family again, even if it was slowly and in piecemeal. She was starting to feel much happier and more comfortable with her decision to stay - seeing all the wolves who meant so much to her was worth the guilt.

Novella had been fortunate enough to avoid being the one left behind. She had taken off fairly rapidly after Symphony, Anthem and Howl had left and whilst she may have travelled alone for the most part, the exploring had all been rather exciting and she had known that at least some of her family members were not far away. She had always anticipated the four of them turning around and heading home together though, and it had taken her a while to adjust to the fact that they wouldn't be returning to Ahlon any time soon. Satu didn't quite seem ready to share her story just yet, though the moment she did her thoughts would probably be confirmed. Circumstances were indeed a little different for the white female, one sibling still remained at home with her parents and of course Novel and Dutiron had each other whilst Arelahn was alone. Still, it wasn't abandonment in her eyes and it was highly unlikely that she would judge Satu for that or the more embarrassing parts of the story. Novella certainly had adventures she could share with her cousin though. Finding Song was of course the very top of that list, though she had witnessed a real fight, helped Symphony take care of the Sol afterwards and whilst she hadn't actually seen it, there had been a war in Alacritis. The latter details were of course far more scary than the exciting news of meeting the sister she had never got the chance to know. "I found Song!" She announced happily. "You know Song, right? My sister, the one that left Ahlon before I was born." She was aware of the fact her cousins were a little younger then the eldest of her siblings, though not quite sure where Song's departure had actually fit into the timeline of everyone else's lives. "She's part of a pack called Ludicael, I joined it and Symphony and Anthem are there too. Song is the Borealis though, that's the Beta. And Satu, I'm an Aunt, Song has pups!"

Satu couldn't stop her tail from wagging or the grin that kept breaking free. Novella's enthusiasm was really refreshing after so long, and talking with her, it felt like Satu was finally finding her equilibrium again. The news of her finding Song didn't really spark more than polite interest - Satu hadn't really been close to her older cousin, what with her being raised the way she was - but Novella's excitement was contagious. "That's great, Novella! An aunt, that's great! You'll have to tell me all about them!" Just as long as no one tried to get her to babysit them, that is. Though it might be nice to have such an enthusiastic audience again... It didn't really surprise her that Song was a higher-ranking wolf. She'd been groomed for leadership long enough that no matter how much she rebelled, it would probably always be part of her personality. It was only surprising that she wasn't alpha yet. "How is Song, then? And the rest of the family? Maybe I should come visit them some time." She grinned happily at Novella, delighted - and guilty - once again by the very fact that she could go visit where ever and whenever she wanted. Free as a bird, Satu was. Though it would be nice to have someone to go home to. "Speech"

Novella had of course forgotten to realise the fact that Satu wouldn't have been too close to Song either. Not only did the age difference meant she still would have been a pup when Song left, but there was also the problem that Song hadn't had much opportunity to simply relax with her family. It was still rather fresh in Novella's mind that even Song's own litter hadn't been close to her, given the fact that she still hadn't really seen Howl, she would perhaps have to seek out her brother at some point, hopefully time had calmed him. For her though, finding Song had been a wonderful moment, the chance to meet and get to know her sister had been incredibly exciting to her. So caught up in her joy of her news and dragging Satu in with the excitement, Novella still wouldn't realise for now. Her cousin responding cheerfully, happy to hear more about the family. Novella's eyes lit up at her suggestion of visiting and eagerly she gave a vigorous nod of her head in response. "Yes! You definitely should!" It seemed like a brilliant idea to her, she was certain that her sisters and brother would be pleased to see Satu again and it really would be nice for her to meet Song's children for herself. To be honest, Novella still had no idea that Satu hadn't been overly keen on babysitting, for someone who hadn't enjoyed it she had been rather good with the pups, at least from Novella's point of view anyway.

Satu beamed at Novella'a enthusiastic response. "I'd really like that, Novella, it would be really fun to see everyone again." She wasn't really clear on how many of her cousins were currently living in Ludicael, but since she wasn't sure where her other cousins were roaming, it was her best bet of finding more of them at once. It seemed like the family was expanding, too, and it was her duty to at least meet her cousin's pups, them being relatives and all. It would be a comfort to be around family for a while, anyway. "I've missed you guys," she admitted with a smile. "It just hasn't been the same without you and everyone around." She couldn't help but wonder if her brother had come this direction when he left. Though her hero-worship of a fantasy brother had been disappointed, he was still her brother and she should make the effort to get to know him. Shouldn't she? Well, Novella didn't need to know her conflicted feelings about Iorwerth, even if she knew if he was in the area, so Satu dismissed the thought. "Speech"

"I'd really like that, Novella, it would be really fun to see everyone again. I've missed you guys, it just hasn't been the same without you and everyone around." Novella had of course been incredibly fortunate. She had been amongst the first group to leave technically, though she'd travelled alone there was that constant knowledge that Symphony, Howl and Anthem weren't too far away from her, all she had to do was pick up the pace a little more and catch up to them. She hadn't really felt that same pang, not until she had realised she wasn't returning any time soon. It was then that the young girl had felt herself feeling a little homesick, knowing she wouldn't see her parents, remaining siblings, cousins or aunt for quite some time. Of course that thought was slowly proving to be rather wrong, first of course Legend had showed up, followed not that long afterwards by Myth. Story was apparently somewhere between here and home she supposed, and of course Satu was here and Cirala somewhere as well. That left only Lyric at home from their generation, the sensible one of the family she supposed who she guessed been the one to take Song's place in being the heir to Ahlon. Perhaps they would come visit? She could always hope, after all she certainly hadn't expected this many members of her family to be roaming around Alacritis! "I've missed you too. And I'm sure everyone else will be just as glad to see you again. Novella declared. How could they not be? They were family after all, mind you she probably shouldn't assume things, not after Howl and Symphony's initial reaction to seeing Song again. Her sister's circumstances had been completely different though, they really didn't have a reason to be anything but pleased to see Satu.