With straightforward enough directions fresh in his mind, Dread set out. A few days behind the rest of his party, caused by a detour up to the Armada-- no worries. Frankly, probably for the best that he'd returned home, and done without taking a bath on his way south. Lingering scents of the redwoods and chilly north clung to his fur instead of the salt air and tropics of his more recent haunts. It's good cover.

It seemed spring was making an appearance in Auster. Feeling the afternoon warmth as it washes over his back, his shoulders. A jog as he moves down the Shore-- Dread has been here before. The last time, under different circumstances. The water had been acting strangely then, like there was something coming. Ominous. Foreboding.

Today? Normal. The thing leaving Dread unsettled was likely his own head, but that's not anything new. Finding a spot in the shade to pass the warmest part of the afternoon, Dread settles, unwraps a snack from his bag, and allows himself to rest.

Andromeda had originally trekked down toward the Hallow’s with the intent of telling her father everything that had happened after he and Isa had left the Armada. But, as the miles passed, the lavender woman began to understand that the whole, stupid matter was something that Basilisk would have to figure out on his own. By the time the berry grove came into sight, she had already decided to skirt the familiar territory in favor of making a short trip around Auster to clear her head. Replaying the events over and over has done her no good because every time to tries to figure out where everything went so horribly wrong, all that she can find is… nothing. Horned head hangs low as she treads the sands of the golden shoreline, wishing that she could take everything that had happened back or, somehow, fix it. A dark form underneath a shady spot pulls her head up and she squints against the sun to spy the familiar form of brother. Pace quickens as she trots over to where he is relaxing and soft voice questions, “Dread?” Maybe it is fate or some fucked up form of luck that has put them both together, on this beach, at this time but, no matter why, Andy will not squander the chance that has been given to her. Quietly she slips up close to her brother and seeks to bury her face in the fur near his shoulder as she pulls in his scent. There, she finds the familiar pine of the trees back home and touches of cold lingering on his fur and she quietly asks, “Are you coming home?” It is a natural question for her to ask since Andy has secretly been harboring the hope that, one day, Dread would rejoin the ranks of the Armada and the pair might grow close again. As long as he allows her to, the lavender woman will keep her face gently pressed into his shoulder, needing the contact to remind her that this is real and not some dream. "Andromeda Fatalis"

Andromeda's scent reaching him on the breeze, Dread shifts for a moment. Tips his head to the side, stills his chewing. No, he's not imagining things. His sister appears, and it occurs to him just how close they are to the Hallows. It seemed Sirius's escort would have arrived, then. Expression gentle, he noses some of his snack in Andy's direction. Not an offer, more of an insistence. Chips of skipjack tuna, dried to a crisp by the heat of the fire and heavily salted. Honestly? That shit gets pretty addictive. It's a pleasant cronch really.

Muzzle across his sister's shoulder, it's gentle. Dread gives a deep, drawn sigh as she asks a question he could only know was coming. Curled together the same as children, his littermates were the ones it hurt to disappoint. "It's not my home anymore Andy, I'm sorry." The words come with a ragged breath. Dread lets the words hang in the air between them, painted with grief.

How much grief can you pack into the shape of a man? And here Dread was, thinking he was doing better.

On this golden beach, under the Auster sun, basking in the shade of trees, Andy finds a treasure she had not known she was missing. Dread noses some dried tuna her way as she approaches, steps light on the shifting sands as she goes. Head finds his shoulder, gentle touch filled with a longing not voiced in months. ‘How are you doing? Where have you been? Why haven’t you come home?’ Unvoiced; unheard; unanswered. Swirling questions longing to uttered, firmly locked away, and instead, a simpler one put forth. Dread touches her shoulder, gentle, caring, a touch she has longed to feel since the moment he had left the Armada, and her, behind. Bodies curl together, remembering their youthful days spent entwined in each other’s embrace as brother and sister, siblings bonded, never to be broken. Yet time had slipped between them, pulling them separate ways until that bond now stretches over the miles that keeps them apart. A sigh passes his dark lips and her heart skips a beat, knowing the answer before the words even pass his lips. Andy separates from his shoulder, body longing to lay against him so that she can drape herself over his back like they did in childhood years past. But they are older now, wiser, yet stupid to the ways of great wide world. So, she steps back, settles into the golden sand beside him and takes the offered snack, popping the piece of dried fish into her mouth without a word. Flavor bursts to life, drowning out the world with an ecstasy only the most delicious of foods can offer. Jaw works as she chews the dried skipjack, body swaying slightly as sounds of pleasure and thanks are voiced behind closed lips. It disincarnates on her tongue and she swallows the food while looking to Dread, features a mixture of happiness, sorrow, and hidden things not yet brought to the light. With her mouth now free the woman lifts her soft tones to finally say, “I understand. I just…” voice trails off, a half shrug offered as a wistful smile rolls across her lips. Hope will never die in her. Pale blue eyes leave his gaze, trailing down to her slender paws that lay splayed on the sand before her; lavender tones a stark contrast to the bright golden granules. A reunion, months in the making and hours spent rehearsing what she would say… but Andy realizes she has lost her voice. There is so much she wants to say, so much she has to tell him but words seem beyond her grasp in the face of her missing brother. Finally, she lifts her gaze, settling on his own vibrant blues as she softly asks, “Did you come to celebrate dad’s retirement? I know he has missed you and well…” Eyes dip away as she mumbles, “I’ve missed you too.” A bridge offered, an opening given, but would Dread read further in and see the hurt and pain his absence has left her with? Only time will tell. "Andromeda Fatalis"