Arda assumed her brother would be back any time now, it certainly didn’t take that long to travel between the lands their parents inhabited and these ones but then maybe something had delayed him? The girl did her best to push the worst case scenarios from her mind, it would do no good to dwell on the negative. She had started spending a great deal of time in the valley waiting for Laoch’s return. She had even finally settled down enough to pick out her own den, long since abandoned by a pack that had once inhabited these lands. The early spring sun was high in the sky just warming enough that she would lay on her stomach half out of her den, head tipped back to let it’s weak rays wash over her face; eyes closed and a contented smile upon her face. "Talk" "You" Think

It was a heavy burden to carry such... hard news to deliver. Meeting Phim along the way had given him something else to think about for a moment, but once he had set out on his path to find Arda again the weight of it had settled on him again. It was just so hard to think that someone that had been so crucial in their lives for so long as now gone. He sighed and watched the ground as he padded toward where he had last seen his sibling. After a little investigation he saw she wasn't here, but he did catch her scent and was able to follow it a short walk away to where he found Arda lounging half out of a den. He smiled a little when he saw the contented look on Arda's face and he wondered to himself how long it had been since his sibling had been so content. He hated to be the one to break this peace she was obviously feeling, but he knew that if he kept the news from her it would only come back to bite him... perhaps literally instead of figuratively. He padded up to her, his expression clearly not as happy as it should of been and his tail barely wagging behind him. "There you are, Arda," he greeted as he got closer, slowing to a stop just a foot or two away from her. "I'm glad I found you... sorry it took me so long to get back." He settled on his haunches, his shoulders slumping a bit. How was he supposed to deliver this news? "Talk" "You" Think

The girl was glad for the moment of peace, her family was no doubt around and she half expected to be ambushed by her younger cousins at any moment… the light sound of footfall announced a wolf approaching and she slowly opened her eyes, instead of Tornach or Báine though she was pleasantly surprised to see her brother. Which lasted only a moment as Arda registered his expression, a frown creasing her brow even before he spoke. He greeted her stopping only a short distance away. "This is where Surreal and the kids are set up." She spoke robotically, dumping information so he knew why she was here in particular. He spoke again and she watched him drop to his haunches, the frown deepening as she noted his posture. "It’s alright Laoch, I figured it had to have been important." She offered him a reassuring smile and eyed him again, the serious expression returning as she spoke again. "What’s wrong?" Already Arda’s thoughts were jumping to the worst possible conclusions. The girl pulled herself from her den and moved to sit before her brother, reaching forwards to nose at his shoulder. "Talk" "You" Think

Laoch was a little surprised to hear about Surreal and her clan being here, but it was a pleasant surprise and it gave him something happy to think about for a moment. A very brief moment, but it was there none of the less. When Arda asked what was wrong he sighed and his shoulders drooped. He knew he had to tell her, it was just so hard to do, especially considering everything they had talked about right before he had left the last time. He sighed and forced himself to meet her gaze. "Arda... father has passed away. He was gone before I got back home the last time." His ears flattened against his skull and his gaze drifted down to his paws. He knew there was no way he could have prevented his death. There was no way to stop him from aging or catching illnesses. Still, Laoch couldn't help but feel guilty since their father passed away when he was gone. "Mother said he passed in his sleep and that she had done everything she could to help him feel better in his last couple of hours so it wasn't like he suffered... if that helps anything." He sighed and lifted his head again. Now that he had delivered the news he had hoped maybe the weight on his shoulders would lessen, but if anything it felt heavier. The grief was more than he had ever expected. They all knew their father was older than their mother by a couple of years and with all the miles he had traveled in his life it was no wonder that he deteriorated at the rate he had. All in all his death wasn't unexpected... but Laoch was still shocked and hurt by his passing all the same. "Talk" "You" Think