Juniper
" Well, Howlers wouldn't have to worry about that," Juniper chuckled warmly, " In our village we don't have much use for fancy titles or money. We may not have the most efficient way of doing things, but as far as I can remember, Howlers have always been equal." Perhaps it was his simple Howler upbringing, but Juniper didn't see any point to Quell titles or caste systems. In his opinion, they were unfair and frivolous. Titles didn't grant a person any special privileges; both serfs and kings were real people who lived and died. Juniper much prefered the Howler village's simpler form of government where every Howler was equal. Every Howler did their part to benefit the pack as a whole. Of course, there were issues within the village life but nothing major. Juniper grinned crookedly as Celeste said that she'd enjoy living in the village. " Yeah, I think you might like living in the village, bunny" He agreed cheerfully, " It'd probably be a big change from what your used to though" He added thoughtfully. Village life was far from easy; there weren't many "modern" comforts like the Quell city, like electrictricity, running water and a lot of technology. Howlers also had many chores like growing vegetables in their garden, hunting and hand washing clothes they had to attend to. Though, most villagers were content to live like this, many had chosen to live more comfortable lives in the city. Juniper hadn't been in Solodin very long, but he had already seen how vastly different the Quell city and the Howler villages were. He didn't know how Celeste would enjoy living in the Howler village, but he had a feeling that she'd enjoy it after she got used to it, just like he was adjusting to living in Solodin. Parts of Quell life still baffled him, but he was slowly learning more about it and adapting. He was sure he'd love the city just as much as Celeste did after a while.
Juniper's purple eyes sparkled happily as he smiled back at Celeste; the soft look in his eyes was a devoted fondness that he only had for her. No one else could give him the same warm, fuzzy feeling in his chest as she did. Every time she smiled at him like that, it melted his heart and made him feel as if he would never be sad again. "You're welcome, Bunny" He smiled, gently giving her hand a gentle squeeze. He kept his arm gently around Celeste, offering her support. Juniper was always very empathetic and caring to most people, but he was especially attentive to her. Making Celeste happy gave him a warm, contented feeling in his chest that he could never get from anything else. As long as he was with her, Juniper knew that he'd always be happy.
Quietly, Juniper listened as Hawthorne spoke. After the war, he was a little nervous of the captain, but seeing him like this was a tiny bit unsettling. Basil? Wasn't that the green haired Quell from the hospital? I didn't know she was his sister. He wondered, remembering how nice she and Kyran had been to him. He glanced over at Celeste, wondering if he could help somehow. Being a Howler, he could track nearly anyone, but Juniper wasn't sure if he wanted to if it meant he would be inadvertently involved with whatever argument Hawthorne, Basil and Arion had been apart of. But, Celeste seemed to be willing to help find Basil- he'd gladly help if she wanted him to. Juniper squeezed Celeste hand and leaned closer so only she would hear his whisper, " I think I can find her, bunny. Just like I found you and Arion earlier."
Hawthorne
Hawthorne gave a small nod, though he looked even more crestfallen as Celeste said that she didn't know where Basil might be. Already his paranoia had made him believe that his sister was in danger outside of Solodin. Basil could have been attacked by Howlers, like Celeste had, or kidnapped by humans or goodness only knew what other trouble she could have accidently stumbled into. Running his hand through his hair, Hawthorne tried to curb his panicky thoughts. She'll be okay just as soon as I find her The captain clenched his jaw in determination. " Alright... thank you Celeste for your help" He said, giving a well-rehearsed feigned smile. " I'm glad I didn't disturb you both". Though his was trying to have a cheerful attitude, crippling guilt and sorrow had shaken the captain to his very core. Hawthorne had a sinking feeling that it was his fault that Basil had ran away as well as the reason both she and Arion had been so angry. It was his duty to fix this; the first thing he had to do was drag Basil back home convince his sister to come back to Solodin. Then, he could apologize to both her and Arion. Hawthorne couldn't take back the bitter things he had said when the trio had argued, but he hoped that he could make it up to them in some way.
As Hawthorne's gaze rested on Celeste and Juniper's fond expression and intertwined fingers, he felt something snap in his chest. That could be Arion and Basil if it weren't for me. They would look that happy if I hadn't interfered. D*mn it, how could I have been so stupid? The captain gave a soft sigh and shook his head. " I'm afraid it is my fault... therefore it's my responsibility to remedy it." He mustered up a faint smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, " Thank you Celeste for wanting to help, but I couldn't ask you to do that." He doubted that it would be a good idea for Celeste to help him search for Basil after just being injured so recently. " I'll find her, don't worry" Hawthorne promised, mostly to himself. As Celeste mentioned Arion, he felt another painful tug at his chest, though it wasn't exactly from guilt. Celeste was right- this just might push Arion over the edge. After knowing Arion all of these years, he couldn't bare to tell him something like this. Very gently, Hawthorne put his hand on Celeste's arm. " Please don't tell him... not yet anyway. This would hurt him too badly" Though he had been angry at Arion, honestly the captain didn't want to hurt him," I can't order you to do it, but... just give me until this evening. I know I can find her..." It was easy to see that his intentions were completely sincere. Hawthorne honestly didn't want to lie to Arion; he wanted to protect him in an almost brotherly way. The captain may have had his faults and he was sometimes grouchy, but he did have a good heart. He truly cared about Arion, Celeste and his sister.
Lyra
" True, up in the mountains the rabbits are nothing but bones and fluff. I suppose it's far better to let the bigger prey find you than running around wasting energy on a scrawny ball of fluff. " Lyra gave a genuinely warm laugh- it almost surprised her that she was sincerely enjoying herself. She couldn't remember the last time she had ever felt this content and cheerful. Being out here with Endymion was like a breath of fresh air. Lyra hadn't known she needed to just relax and get away from all her responsibilities and worries about the pack. Somehow it reminded her of skipping training when she was younger to go exploring or just to run through the forest without a care in the world. A small smile played on her lips as her mind wandered to her carefree childhood and tween years. Things were a lot different now that they were adults; as Lyra glanced down at their intertwined fingers, she was reminded just how strange things were. A few months ago, she never would have dreamt of being this close to Endymion.
As Endymion leaned closer, instinctively Lyra did as well. Her expression flickered to a questioning look, though not with disbelief- unquestionably, she believed the warrior's story. " A stag with eight eyes?" She repeated thoughtfully. After pausing a moment, she said, " Well.. the only way to learn more about it is to capture it and study the thing. Maybe there are more... creatures like it up there?" Lyra suggested, " Maybe it's some sort of animal touched by Quell magic or something?" The alpha has no idea what to make of a eight-eyed stag, but it was certainly interesting. Without a doubt, she wanted to learn more about the strange creature. " Once my leg is healed, perhaps we can go up into the mountains and look for it?" She offered with a smile, " I think the pack can get along without me for a little while at least. "
" I suppose you're right about us being able to adapt" Lyra agreed with a small nod. After all, Howlers were masters of adapting to their environment- it was apart of their nature. Howlers seemed to enjoy living underground; after all, Solodin offered a more comfortable life than the small village. Secretly, the alpha feared that more Howlers would choose to live in Solodin instead of the primitive village. What would happen when everyone left? Would the once proud Howler village culture disappear? Lyra didn't want to even consider that, besides many Howlers enjoyed their lives here in the village. It was hard work, but Howlers had lived like this for centuries and there wasn't much if a chance that it would simply vanish into non-existence.
Lyra grinned crookedly at Endymion's mock surprise, " Of course I don't hate you. If I did, I would have gotten rid of you a long time ago" She teased playfully, though the fierce glint that lingered in her eyes revealed that she probably could have done it. Lyra was without a doubt, an unbreakable warrior, but underneath her stoic mask, there was something that was strangely softer to her personality. The alpha met Endymion's gaze, her eyes filled with the strange fondness and faintly, the familiar determined glint she was well-known for. It caught her slightly off guard to see the softness in his eyes, but she found it strangely attractive. A faint blush crossed her cheeks once again as she smiled at him softly. " Endymion, you're much too sweet- or a terrible flirt" Lyra said teasingly, giving a warm laugh. she knew Endymion was sincere, but she didn't know how to tell him that he meant just as much to her. Do I really mean that much to him? Very gently, she leaned her head against his shoulder partly to hide her blush. Lyra was fairly tall for a girl, but she didn't have to lean to far down. Endymion's familiar scent filled her nose, making her smile softly despite herself. Someone wake me up, this has got to be some sort of fever induced hallucination