He’d been booted out to explore, so he’d decided to turn it into a scouting trip, and maybe he would find something interesting. Maybe he’d find Geoffrey. As he balanced on the roots of a mangrove, his heart throbbed with longing to see his younger brother’s face again, at least to know Geo was safe. Even so, he paused long enough to admire the surroundings. He knew his grandmother had ruled a pack in some mangroves in the east. But any traces of the pack called Fiori were long gone, not even a stale pack scent. He reached a point where the water sat below the land and paused, gazing around with curiosity. Maybe there was something out here he could take home with him—he’d brought a saddlebag. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Ulric had come to the mangroves on his own. He wasn’t sure why he always felt so drawn to return to this place time and time again despite knowing that his family had long since been gone from here. Now that he had found his mother and niece he was just on the hunt for his sister. So far as they passed though Boreas there had been no sign of her, but he wasn’t ready to move down into Auster on his hunt just yet - not till he checked the mangroves and the areas around them. His mother hadn’t wanted to visit them and he certainly wasn’t going to pressure her to come. This area held too many memories for them both, but he was more determined to complete his hunt than he was reluctant to relive them.

He slowly made his way though the shallow waters, climbing over the random tree roots and moving from one small patch of dry land to another. So far there was no trace of his sister’s scent and he was quickly beginning to decide that this visit had been for nothing. It wasn’t until he spotted a brown, speckled wolf in the distance that he stopped. He cast the man a curious glance with his silver gaze and shifted his path to walk toward him. ”Excuse me,” he called as he got closer. He could tell now that the young man was most likely a couple of years younger than himself, but the pack scent that he carried seemed vaguely familiar. He stopped a few feet away to leave a comfortable distance between them. ”Sorry to bother you, but I’m looking for my sister. She’s about as tall as me, mostly brown and white, and has long mane of hair. Have you seen her?” He felt like Philly’s description was pretty distinct so if he had seen her it would be pretty obvious.

Paw-steps turned Cai’s head and deep sapphires took in the tall, brown and tan mottled male as he approached with a polite enquiry. He smiled, unbothered by the man’s approach and giving the question and description serious thought. If it had been just the brown and white alone, he could have been looking for any other large female wolf, but the mane was telling…. He’d been to the festival and the description clicked with a fuzzy, briefly glimpsed wolf. “I… might have? Last Autumn my Spirit held a festival in the West… I think I saw someone that might have fit that description, but there were a lot of wolves there.” His tail swayed in a hopeful wag as he cocked his head at the man, adding, “I’m Cairo Adravendi, by the way.” This man smelled…. Right. Like family. Like Aurielle and Nolan had smelled between each other. Only this link felt like something between him and the man. Was this an Adravendi? Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

He hummed thoughtfully when the male mentioned that he might have seen Philly at a festival last fall. It was some kind of lead, but it was from nearly a year ago so he wasn’t sure how accurate it was. At the very least it told him that there was a stronger possibility of her still being somewhere in these lands. Now he just needed to head further west and then perhaps further down into Auster. At least his curiosity over her possibly being near their old stomping grounds had been satisfied and he could move on with his search.

Ulric had been fully prepared to thank the younger wolf for his help and move on his way, but when he heard the male’s name it made him pause. He looked to Cairo with a fresh wave of curiosity. It had been so long since he had come across any of his family besides his immediate family that he had nearly forgotten how wide spread the Adravendi name actually was. Now that he took a moment to pay more attention to the opposite wolf’s scent there were notes similar to his own that were undeniable - but they were even more similar to his mother’s.

”I’m Ulric Adravendi,” he replied with a small smile. It felt a bit odd to use the Adravendi name since he had introduced himself as Ulric Lore for much of his younger years, but he had already made the choice before they returned that he would much rather follow in his mother’s footsteps than his father’s. He had loved his father dearly, but the state that it had left his mother in had changed him. ”It’s a pleasure to meet you, Cairo.”

The smile turned to a grin as Ulric introduced himself. So, Cai’s nose had been right, and his tail waved happily at the pleasantries. “And you. So, I have more cousins out there?” It was rather thrilling to hear that he and his siblings were not that last of their blood. Maybe Artur would get the stick out of his ass if he learned that there were more Adravendis out there who could remind the world of the grandeur of the family’s name. “My mother’s name was Gwenevere Adravendi. She was one of Epiphron’s daughters. We – my brother and sisters and I – live in Valhalla, in the west.” He tossed his muzzle over his shoulder in that general direction, easy-natured grin still on his face as he turned back to Ulric. It hurt, not saying Brothers. He wished he knew where Geoffrey was. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

He knew he had to get back to his mother and niece soon, but he couldn’t help but spare the time to chat with his cousin. After all, it wasn’t every day that he met someone new form his family. Life had pulled him in all the directions besides the one he really wanted to be, which was with his family. ”Indeed you do,” he replied with a chuckle, his deep voice rumbling in his chest. The large male wasn’t one for loud shows of emotion, but the pleased grin on his lips spoke volumes.

When he heard he had even more cousins living in the west his smile grew a bit and his tail wagged gently behind him. “My mother is Roza,” he replied as he went on to explain how they were connected. ”My grandfather was Leo and he was one of Epiphron’s sons as well. So I guess we’re pretty closely related after all!” He chuckled again and settled down onto his haunches on one of the dry patches between the winding streams of water.

”My mother is near by too and one of my nieces. That’s why I’m looking for my sister, I want to reunite her and my niece.”

This feeling was incredible. To know there were so many out there that he’d never met made him feel almost as though he was floating. The only thing that could have made it more amazing was if he’d found Geoff. As Ulric described his lineage, Cai committed the names to memory. They were nearby? “I’m more than happy to help, and I’ll have to ask my alphess, but I’m more than certain she’d be happy to offer you and Roza and your niece a home in Valhalla to fall back on between searches. Aurielle’s an Adravendi, herself, from Erani’s line.” He knew his Spirit. She held a deep love for the family that had claimed hers in Erani’s time. She wouldn’t turn them away if they wished to stay, even as guests for a time—a base to come back to and rest between searches, until they found Ulric’s sister. It occurred to Cairo, “What is your sister’s name?” Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

It was nice to know that there was someone they could turn to around here. At the very least he was sure that Roza was getting tired of all the travel they had been doing so it might be nice to have somewhere for her to rest if they didn’t find Philly soon. He kept thinking they would just turn a corner one day and suddenly find her there, but thus far that hadn’t been the case. It was hard to keep up his spirits with each day that passed, but he was determined for Nausicaa’s sake. ”I certainly appreciate the offer, that’s very kind. I have one more place to look, but if she isn’t there then I’m not sure where else we’ll go to look for her.”

When Cairo asked for his sister’s name he replied, ”Oh! Of course. Her name is Philomena.” That would certainly be helpful information for identifying her if nothing else. He pulled himself to his paws, giving his new found cousin a warm smile. ”I’m really happy we ran into each other. Whether we find Philly or not, I’ll be sure to come to Valhalla sometime to see you again and meet the rest of your siblings. I’m sure my mother would love that. For now... I better be getting back to them. I’m going to head to Auster to see if there is any traces of Philomena there.” He dipped his head and gave his cousin one last grin. ”I’ll see you again soon, cousin!” he called before trotting off with a renewed spring in his step.