At least this visit would be pleasant. Spending time with Sparrow was always… fun, for better or worse. She’d already promised herself that she wouldn’t drink with her cousin (this time), lest she lose track of her schedule. There was so much still to get done, and while she was relieved to see a friendly and familiar face, she also longed to return home and get their transition underway. Undoubtedly, there would be growing pains. Theory was curious how Sparrow might react to the change, but she hoped she could expect support. Her cousin was a wild card, to say the least.

The trip here was easy enough, sequentially following two other packs and lying just along the coastline. Theory padded to the edge of the beach, admiring the rippling black sands. It cut a pretty picture against the new spring greenery that edged the coastline. With a grin, Theory called out for her favorite pirate.

Theory had always been there for Sparrow since they met. That said, the woman did not usually initiate the socialization or things, but had always consistently answered and attended. So when she was the one summoning Sparrow, she could only imagine someone was dead, which would have made sense given the Ooze recently, or Theory thought that Alpha Sparrow warranted some visit, maybe alliance talk, or something similarly mind numblingly dull. Sparrow was still, however, excited to see her cousin, and so she padded her ways towards the barely defined borders of the pack. Her eyes met her cousin’s and Sparrow tossed on a smile, "Who are you looking for, Alpha Sparrow or Cousin Sparrow?"

Theory laughed lightly. Sparrow always knew just how to cut to the chase, a talent that she'd never developed herself. Formality had been a cloak that she'd dressed herself in when she was young and unsure; it was difficult to take it off. "A little bit of both, does that sound alright?" She looked around the beach, pantomiming a dramatic gasp. "These lands you've chosen are quite lovely. Any reason you wanted to settle here in particular?" The pirates had been a bawdy wandering crew - Theo wondered how they were settling in as homebodies or if most of them still roamed. "But, I have come with... news. My father has passed, as well as a few other members of the pack. It's been difficult." Theo averted her gaze for a moment, staring out over the waters as they lapped against the glittering shore. "All of this death and destruction has inspired me to take the pack in a different direction. I'll be opening a school, a neutral grounds where wolves from all walks of life can come to stay and learn. We'll be moving lands slightly, leaving Serpent Plains behind to take residence at Crystallum Cliffs. I hope to excavate a warren of caves for dens and classrooms, as well as using the other lands around us to teach. I was looking for your support, and to see if you had any pirates interested in polishing their skills." Theory moved quickly away from the topic of death, hoping that they wouldn't dwell on it long. "Are you faring well? After the darkness?"

Theory said a little bit of both, and seemed unsure as she asked if it was okay. Sparrow feigned a long sigh and an eye roll so intense her head went with it.

"I GUESS... If we GOTTA..."

Sparrow smirked, dropping her sarcasm. She nodded towards the black beach side, "Walk and talk," she suggested, turning to lead the way. Her cousin asked her about the lands and Sparrow shrugged, "It's warm, open, and has a pirate ship. We might move if we get bored, though." She liked these lands and all, but she wasn't married to the idea of any of them yet.

Theory spoke what was on her mind. There had been a lot of death, Sparrow assumed, but that didn't make it any easier on those affected. "Yeah, we lost one too," she said sympathetically. There were times when she hadn't been sure she was going to make it either.

Sparrow had no connection to Rhyme, nor wanted to, but she could empathize with Theory on his passing. She thought she ought to catch up and see how her own family was doing and check to see who, if anyone, had keeled over yet.

Theory told Sparrow of her new idea for a pack and Sparrow smiled heartily. "Sound like you got it all figured out," she said, meaning it genuinely. "The pirates would love to train. When you get all set up, we oughta hold a raid on your new lands to test them out. If we lose, I can teach some classes for you for a season, and if you lose, you gotta train my pirates for a season." It was an agreement they probably both would have agreed to anyway, but adding it to the bet of a raid just sounded so much more fun. "No maims, of course. We wouldn't main our allies- if you want to call us that."

At the last bit, Theory asked Sparrow how she fared after the darkness. The large woman shrugged, "I try not to think about it," she said somewhat dryly. The Ooze wasn't like a breakup you could just party away. People lost a lot during it, and Sparrow preferred to move on from it as fast as possible. "The nightmares haven't let me yet, though," she admitted. "Trying not to turn to the bottle for it, but hey, maybe they'll die down by the time the fur on my back grows back." Sparrow leaned a little to show Theory her peach fuzzed shoulders and back from where the growths had damaged her skin, scars marring between the newly growing fur.

"Besides your father, how did you get through?"

All of her reasons for picking the lands were perfectly Sparrow. Theory nodded along as she walked alongside her cousin, admiring the coastline as she went. The offer of a raid - for training purposes and for a trade in skills - was very tempting. "I do awfully like that idea. I'll have to run it by a few others, but let's plan on it for later this year. Moving territories will be a bit of an undertaking..." she groaned, thinking about the project she'd taken on. Moving to the Cliffs would be ideal once the excavation was complete, but until then... well, it would be rough. "And yes," Theory laughed, "I'd like to consider us allies, at the very least." She bumped shoulders with Sparrow companionably. When she stretched to show her the scars, Theory shivered. "That must have hurt." In that way she'd gotten out unscathed, but the mental scars were deep.

"I still have nightmares too," she murmured, looking away and inland for a moment. Somewhere out there, Thalia was walking around completely unworried and untouched by the ooze. "I, uh, sort of ran off my..." They had never put a label to what they were. It had felt so much greater than any one simple word - partner, girlfriend, lover. Theory had thought they were so much more, and at the end of it all, they were nothing. "I ran Thalia off. I got sick, she - " How did she describe it at all? "I got sick and she couldn't hack it. Couldn't or didn't want to help. Ran back to her family and her religion," she managed at last, with a surprising amount of venom. It was the most she'd said about it to anyone.

Theory said shed like the idea of a raid- just later. Sparrow was always itching to go, but there were plenty of fish in the sea metaphorically. Sparrow shrugged, "I got plenty of raids to get my guys into shape before then anyways." She offered Theory a nudge, "Wouldn't want to disappoint you on our first combat experience."

Theory acknowledged her scarring and mentioned it must have hurt. Sparrow shrugged, "It doesn't anymore, so no biggie." That was pretty much how she dealt with anything, though. The nightmares, however, still hurt, so she wanted to push those back until they became something that no longer hurt either.

Theory then talked about how she had some sort of breakup. Sparrow let her lackadaisical filter thaw for a moment and pressed her shoulder against Theory's, "Technically my girl did too. She apparently thought some guy she liked was dead, became mine and whoever else's thing, then guy ressurects and she runs back to him and the ever protective hand of her -I guess- father in law Sirius." Sparrow gave a grim look. "Not really Sirius's fault, but he did shortly after attack my uncle and other girl-not-really-my-girl with the son who my actual girl ran back to." Sparrow gave a heavy sigh. That was in the past too now. She had a pack and she couldn't imagine living trapped in the borders, probably weighted down by pups would gain Hanako any happiness. "Girls, am I right?"