Under a lilac tree

for @Crux Tagging the following for visibility! @Izumi, @Old Man Druth, @Aerasha no need to reply but open just in case <3

---

Their travels along the mountains were coming to a swift end. The weather was warming up and soon it would be time to say farewell to the older gentleman who had been traveling with them ever since the colder North of the Tundra's grasp where he had dug himself up and out of the snow.

As they descended the mountains, a brilliant red forest caught the Empress' eye. With childlike wonder, she ran ahead of the group to investigate these strange trees that seemed to be painted in autumn colors despite spring rolling just around the corner. It was fascinating.

Pressing up against one of the trunks of one of the trees, she stretched out her body, standing on the very tips of her toes while digging into the trunk for stability with her front paws, tail snaking as it desperately tried to keep her balance.

She wanted to take a closer look, but even with this, she was just too short to see the leaves any better than she could from the ground. Even with wide curious eyes looking up at them, she could not tell why they were the way they were... If only she could grab one.

the staff team luvs u

@Reiko

---

 Someone else was in these woods today. Besides Mordecai, who he'd met just after waking here, he'd hardly come across anyone. It didn't seem like these woods, which he'd dubbed Bleakwood, were home to many. Somehow... they felt right to him. Warm. Nights didn't hold too much of a chill and mornings had a heavy fog that he found he could walk in endlessly.

 He spotted a tiny white wolf at the edge of his woods. He watched her for a short while, amused by her childlike fascination with the red leaves. He, too, had enjoyed playing in them. The red leaves were just the right amount of crunchy when they fell. Just enough to enjoy playing in, not too much to be too brittle for a good crunch. The stranger rose up to look at one of the trees and he smiled, coming out of the woods to approach her. He made sure to keep his steps light and casual, tail gently swaying. I'm no threat to you. She was tiny. A child?

 He came up behind her, giving a soft woof to alert her to his presence. He would pause, allowing her to acknowledge him, then would step forward and rise up on his hind legs, snatching a low-hanging branch and pulling it down for her to look at. “Welcome to Bleakwood,” he said, offering a smile. “What's your name?”

 There were others not far from her, he could smell - so he would keep an eye out for them and give a respectful nod if they were to approach. He was ever so cautious to make sure they did not perceive him as a threat to fight off, even if he was so much larger than the little white wolf before him.

the staff team luvs u

Today was the day the group began descending the mountains in search for lower ground. To where -- the crane did not know of -- but it was a start in the search for finding the Izuka twins. The more people they'd meet, the more likely for their search party to grow, and with their continued journey Izu might be mere steps closer to finding her missing Kaisteloki packmates once again. Izu had stepped a few feet away from their small group in order to pick out the sticker burrs that had gotten caught in her dark paws, but a flash of alabaster dashing past her was quick to catch her attention. Her head lifted, ears perked and lavender gaze widened in confusion. "Rei--!" Where in the world was Reiko running off to?

The only way she'd be able to find out was to follow suit -- and that she did. The crane's long legs carried her in the same direction the dove had gone until nothing but a scenery of dappled scarlet surrounded her world. A forest -- surrounded by what seemed to be an endless scenery of maple leaves. It was a sight that made Izu slow down a pace or two to take a look around. How nostalgic....the crane remembered the times she and her siblings would go to visit their mother's birth clan only to be surrounded by a similar sight. While their own hearthside in wisteria grove was an endless painting of lilac and periwinkle, her cousins steaded in a place surrounded by vibrant palmate maples as far as the eye could see. It was a time and place that she might never be able to relive, and the thought filled her chest with a swirl of melancholy....

Finally, Izumi arrived in time to see the snowy dame attempting to....climb a tree? A strange sight, though it did manage to make the faintest of smiles appear on the crane's face just by how silly the scene looked from afar. A small step was taken to approach and make her presence known, but not before a large figure made itself known to Reiko first. It sent her into a small state of anxiousness, and the sound of loud heartbeats began pumping into her ears. Not being close enough to really hear what was coming out of the peppered sire's mouth, the young crane would slowly yet quietly approach the group with a soft chuff to announce her presence...

the staff team luvs u

Frankly she didn't even hear Izumi call out to her as she ran ahead, not because she didn't want to. Absolutely not, the Empress was not blatantly rude just for the sake of it. No, she was simply too excited and curious and the wind rushing through her ears simply deafened her to any voices calling out from behind. She was still young after all, even for a mother.

She was about to try and jump up to grab one of the branches herself, but before she could push off with her legs a chuff caught her off-guard. Immediately she swung around, ears flat against her crown and tail hugging her belly tight. He seemed kind enough - but even then, he was massive and intimidating in physique. Ira was the biggest of them all she had seen thus far, and this one, well, he towered even over her.

He approached, and she shrunk. Glancing behind him to see if any of her companions were approaching, no one yet... She glanced up at him, and like a flower, she unfolded and blossomed again as he brought a branch down for her to look at. He called this place Bleakwood. Glancing up at him with large azure eyes in a silent thank you before focussing on the leaves now within her sight. Her eyes nearly crossed as he focussed on them, their beautiful ruby coloration with no signs of withering as autumn would.

She casted a glance back over at him, “Reiko Izuka.” Happy to introduce herself, she smiled before reaching out to pluck a leaf from the branch he held. It fought just as any healthy leaf would but eventually snapped under the pressure and the empress held her prize loosely in her jaws, turning just on time to see Izumi approaching. “Izshumi!” Her voice muffled by her refusing to let go of the leaf. “Come shee! Dey're real!” With a sway in her tail she invited the crane to join her in looking at the beautiful leaves and meeting the man who seemed familiar with them.

the staff team luvs u

Aerasha was following Reiko, finding there was nothing better to do. As it was still at least winter, she wasn't as reluctant to leave the tundra as she was before. If it was any other season, most likely the ex-princess would've bid the other au revoir, and staying within the arctic zone. She cannot stand the heat at all, and often finds herself in dizzy-spells staying in the areas too long. The summer was the most dreadful for her! 

Though she often wandered around. Usually somewhere Reiko was around, but Aerasha tended to find herself exploring the area idly, and tracing after her steps- oh was that her in the distance?

Though there was company!~

the staff team luvs u

@Izumi

---

 She was so childlike, it was incredibly endearing. He chuckled as she gingerly took a leaf from his offered branch - though he noticed two other wolves coming in after the tiny one. He supposed they must be family of some sort, whether it was chosen or made. Nevertheless, he would nod to them respectfully and turn back to Reiko Izuka, who had just introduced herself. “It's an honor to meet you, miss Reiko. I'm Crux.” Here, have some charm. He turned back to the branch and took a small segment of it, pulling and twisting gently until it snapped under his teeth. Then, carefully he lifted his paw off of the branch he'd been holding, allowing it to spring back up to its place, high above Reiko's head.

 He dropped to his four legs and turned to face the newcomers and the one called Izshumi. He smiled pleasantly, placing the torn branch down before them and taking a step back so they could inspect more than just the one leaf she'd claimed. “It's quite something - the land outside this forest speaks of a coming Spring and yet it feels like an endless fall here.” He gazed up at the branches thoughtfully, then looked back at the newcomers.

 He watched them curiously. While Reiko was a tiny, feminine thing like a little fairy, her compatriots were much larger. The cream and brown wolf in the distance seemed more normal-sized, from how far up the tree trunks they stood. The other wolf was taller, with delicate black legs that faded into a white form and a face that matched. He couldn't help but appreciate the way she moved - something about it felt familiar in a way that made him long for home. “Hello, there,” he offered to Reiko's friends.

the staff team luvs u

Her steps were soft -- gentle as she walked, like prey trying it's best not to be seen or heard by a predator. Obviously the crane was not in that type of situation right now, but the anxiety bubbling up in her chest definitely didn't exert any confidence. It appeared as though they've intruded on somebody else's home while passing by, and the neurotic part of Izumi was telling her she needed to grab Reiko and leave immediately. Still -- for some reason, the atmosphere did not give off the feeling of a wolf trying to defend his home from a pair of intruders. The pale dove held a leaf in her mouth, one that the peppered sire granted her willingly, and she even invited the princess to take a step closer so that she could see as well; was there no danger to be found after all? Although for the present, the young fae preferred to stay (and awkwardly shuffle) where she was.

Dark ears swiveled behind Izumi to hear the sound of pacing behind her, assuming it was the rest of their group, and she would move to the side a bit to make room for their entrance. When he'd approached and spoke up to greet them all, Izu found herself unconsciously avoiding eye contact -- instead preferring to focus on the ground while respectfully bowing her head to the male. "My name is Izumi Fujiwara, and I travel with the group led by Reiko." the greyscale woman spoke, turning her purple gaze to the snowy female, and back to the one that accompanied her. "We were.....just passing by before stumbling upon this place. Is this where you call home?" 'And what do you call it?' was what the siamese wished to ask too, as she wanted nothing more than to further explore the very place that brought nostalgia of a distant memory. For now, however, it was best to keep things formal...

the staff team luvs u

And charming he was. She beamed a smile his way with the leaf lightly clasped between her teeth, careful to not puncture the tender red flesh of it as if it was too precious to harm even after plucking it from the tree. “Pleashur ish all mine, Crux.” She managed to say before the branch flew back up to where it once rested, far beyond her reach and yet, this time, she had a part of it here with her.

As Aerasha approached, the young woman was already occupied with the lives, the man and Izumi distracting her far too much to notice the warm-colored woman approach in her usual carefree, jolly way not too far behind Izumi. The pale woman, however, already had her back turned on the path. Looking up at Crux as he explained their woods vaguely, despite it all, it still didn't make all that much sense... The spring flowers were beginning to blossom and yet here, somehow, it was perpetually Autumn. Did Crux even know why, or how, such a thing was possible?

Stepping closer to the crane, just enough to lean her pale shoulder on the pointed woman's upper leg in a silent, pleased greeting for her to have joined them. It was now that Reiko placed the leaf down onto the ground, and glanced at it briefly before placing a gentle paw onto it to keep it from flying away should a quick breeze run through. Turning her attention back to Crux, “Does anyone know how or why?” As inquisitive as she was, the pale lady just had to speak her mind - and Izumi spoke the rest, asking if this was the man's home. It surely would be a beautiful home to claim, even if it may not be quite in her taste; you know, lacking snow and what not too soon in the shifting season.

“My apologies if we are intruding.” She paused sheepishly, thinking of how brazen it was for them to be here out of the blue like they were. Reiko and her little group of wandering vagabonds. “I sort of, ran ahead.” From below dark lashes blinking a couple of times, she looked up at Crux apologetically with wide, watery cerulean eyes. She was the one who brought them all here after all.

the staff team luvs u

@Izumi

---

 The tiny white wolf seemed more than pleased with his gracious gift and pleasantries, offering her own. He smiled back, turning his attention to the others as she did. The approaching grey and white wolf was so cautious in her approach that he could not help but speak softly to them, attempting to make his formidable form less so. From having two (three?) mothers, he was well aware of the dangers and cautions they took around other wolves, especially males. Noting that she avoided eye contact, he gave her quiet respect. Reiko asked about the "how" of the forest and he gave a helpless shrug, turning his eyes to the great limbs of red that had so far offered him shelter and a quiet place to reside.

 Reiko apologies with eyes that reminded him of a lost puppy, and he shook his head with a smile. “No intrusion at all!” He addressed them all now, at least those within conversation distance. “I woke here fairly recently and have been working to make it - Bleakwood - my home along with a new friend who had a similar waking situation.” How queer was it that they woke so nearby, completely new to this world. He had had quite a fun time covering the brown lad in leaves before he had awoken and acted as if the leaves weren't even there. He'd been a shifting pile of red, something Crux figured that little Reiko here would have enjoyed seeing. “Did you by chance also wake with little memory of how you arrived?” It was such a strange situation he couldn't help but ask them.

the staff team luvs u

BHGVGFVHJNLKJO SORRY FOR THE LATE REPLY GUYS!!!

---

The crane stood up straight and with the same air of poise and regality as she was always taught to wear in the company of strangers. This was external, however, because Izu was actually still a little nervous around the new company despite hiding it pretty well. Violet hues followed the white dove as she moved closer, and a bit of the stress she felt beforehand seemed to turn to comfort when the pale woman who smelled of calming flora stood beside her. In response to the touch, Izu leaned a bit of her weight against Reiko before continuing.

"So you travel with others as well? It sounds like you plan to settle here as a group soon..." the she-wolf asked in response, curiosity peaking in the soft tones of her voice and wandering eyes peering around at the falling red leaves. He mentioned a friend of his, were there others here besides them? Then came the question that made Izu perk her ears -- one that she'd heard many-a-times too much for it to be a coincidence at this point.

"You as well?" Was the question she practically blurted out with raised brows, taking a step closer towards Crux and probably looking at him for the first time since trying to avoid the eye contact....

the staff team luvs u

^^

Quickly enough her anxieties of them intruding had been hushed with his reassurance. Standing next to Izumi, the two women were so similar in their outward poise and elegance despite their difference in height, but one was clearly more nervous than the other. Reiko was honestly only in awe thinking just how much Hotaru and Haruki would love this strange place just as she did.

The mention of friends being here with Crux was interesting. She couldn't help but wonder perhaps they were planning on remaining here as their home, a pack - and even if they did, would Crux allow her to bring her children once they were found to explore the woods as visitors? He certainly seemed friendly enough to allow a possible thing in the future with a little conversation from the mother and maybe, possible, future leader of this realm.

Izumi was the first to express her surprise in the similar stories of how all of them found themselves here. Reiko however, for the first time in this meeting, more placid in comparison. She had heard it all before after all, over and over and none of it surprised her anymore. She couldn't speak for Izumi's experience, and so, she spoke for herself. “I did. Before spring I woke up in the North, buried in snow as if I had not walked in ages, dead to the world up until then.” She remembered how stiff her body and legs felt after rising from the snow.

As if she was a corpse finding her soul again.

“I woke up alone, even though last I remember I had my children with me.”

^^
the staff team luvs u

@Izumi

---

 The two white females seemed to be settling down now a bit, at least outwardly. They seemed to both understand now that Crux wasn't of the mind to attack them - any of them - and they could breathe.

 “Just one friend so far, Mordecai, but we're exploring the place and might gather more once we find a safe camp,” He offered a smile. At this point, he had no plans for making a pack in full, but he knew that just he and Mordecai were at risk if a larger, more dangerous group decided to move through.

 When asked about his waking, he laughed and nodded. “I woke in the forest and found Mordecai asleep in the leaves just a few minutes later.” He didn't quite mention that he had been the one to cover him in those leaves, but nevertheless... “What about you?”

 And then, Reiko spoke on her own experience. Crux listened intently, brow creasing in concern. Her waking sounded horrific, especially the final fact. “That sounds awful, I'm sorry.” He considered it, unsure whether or not to press into it. “Do you think your children woke here too, somewhere?” He hadn't met anyone from his past life either, but the idea of a mother losing her children this way... it was heartbreaking. Even he, thinking back to his own mother and the loss of his own family hurt, and time had passed. Their separation had not been through this strange place but instead through their own actions in some cases and through war in others.

the staff team luvs u

Skipping Izumi upon Cheeto's request! Sorry for the delay on this one. This thread is also super old we can end it soon if you'd like!

---

^^

“That sounds nice.” The thought of them gathering a few to create a safe place for everyone to enjoy. She hoped for that too, but perhaps up North... after her children were found safe and sound of course. Reiko couldn't think of being anywhere long term that didn't have snow year round, although this reddish forest would be nice if she was in the market for a home right now.

 “I found myself in the Tundra, a little ways North of here. Once I find my family I am hoping to return there, it is beautiful. Almost like a winter wonderland all year round.” Not to mention Aerasha seemed to be fond of the snow too, they could all camp out there with anyone who wanted to follow. For now Reiko wasn't certain about Izumi's plans, even if the Empress did hope that she too would join them. With their shared background, it would be nice to have someone else to speak their native tongue with her and her children.

“I am certain they have. I can feel it.” With a sway of her tail and a smile, she remained upbeat for the most part despite some down days that left her uncertain. It was impossible to give up however, she would continue to wander until she found them. Even if it took a lifetime.

 “Would it be too much to ask if you could keep an eye out for them? They are pale, small, lean. My son has stormy blue eyes and my daughter like lilacs. Their names are Haruki and Hotaru.” The more that knew the better.

^^
the staff team luvs u

Sure!

---

 He smiled at her gentle compliment on the idea of a life with family and friends, but said no more, opting to listen as she spoke on building a life of her own in the tundra. It was a respectable idea, one he perhaps would have decided on if he hadn't found himself awake in a forest that felt so much like home.

 She spoke on, describing them to him and asking for his assistance if he ever came across them. He nodded, “I will keep an eye and an ear for them. If I do find them, should they remain here with me until you pass through again, or should we send word to the Tundra?” He didn't feel quite comfortable sending children alone into the icy abyss, but if she did not feel like she would return here any time soon, he supposed that making a trek into the ice would be necessary. If only he knew exactly where she planned on making home.

 Nevertheless, “If you ever need a place to stay in the meantime, you're welcome here.” He'd offer a smile to Reiko and then to the other few gathered with. His home was small, a scattered gathering of a few wolves, but it was safe for a night or two.

the staff team luvs u

^^

This wasn't her original plan when arriving in the crimson forest, but this is what was happening now. The more that knew the better the chances were, she had to keep telling herself. The more that word spread the more likely her children would know she was out there searching for them and not leaving them to figure themselves out after all this time. To know that not only did she not forget, but was out there working to find them.
 
“Thank you Crux.” Smiling, there was little anyone could do but just be a set of extra eyes and ears until the family was reunited. “Would it be too much to ask if you could harbour them until I return?” Not wanting to burden Crux with caring for her children, it seemed like the best option than to send them out searching for her... at least here she could come back through the packlands she passed and check to see the results as opposed to them all walking around in circles, never to meet.

At Crux's offer, Reiko tossed a glance to Izumi with a gentle sway of her tail. “If it isn't too much, we would love a place to rest for a little while before moving again.” They would take any safe haven to rest they could get. As much as Reiko wanted to keep moving, she had others to make sure weren't over exhausted by the travels.

^^
the staff team luvs u

 The fair lady continued to be the only one speaking, which was fine - he would look to the others every so often to make sure they did not appear uncomfortable or offended. If they wanted to speak, he would not wish to speak over them and irritate them in that manner. Nevertheless, it seemed fine, so he'd continue to listen to Reiko the most.

 She wished the children to remain until she returned, which promised that unless she found them all, she would likely return. “Of course!” His smile was genuine - he loved children and he knew Mordecai did as well, if his interactions with the Shift siblings were any indication. “There's always space here.” That was especially true now, with only a handful of wolves present in the Wood. Eventually, it would fill up more, but even then he was sure that there would always be space for a few lost children, be that temporarily or permanently.

 His previous statement also fit to answer her last question. “That would be nice - Mordecai and I found a safe island on a river deeper in the forest; you're welcome to come stay there for as long as you need.” In a way, he hoped that the little white lady and her friends would decide to stay, but he knew how unlikely that was. She wished to go to the North, she wished to make a home there and find her children and raise them there.

 Still, there was a tiny tickle of hope.

 Even if that hope never grew into anything substantial, a friendship between his group and hers would do just fine.

the staff team luvs u