Sparrow's mind and heart were heavy. Her thoughts had been churning and she couldn't stop them. She walked stiffly to her aunt's den. Her fur was unkempt, a little muddy, and a little more than a little muddy on her legs. She didn't have time to think much about her appearance. Something more pressing was at hand. It all added up. Sparrow swallowed, thinking about her level-headed aunt. She would know what to do, and Sparrow looked to her for guidance. For a long time she struggled with trust in the pack, and now she had figured out what it was. Something was off, and she thought she knew what it was. Ah- but she was getting ahead of herself. She needed to explain herself fully to her aunt. She had to come clean. If her thoughts were correct, it would be a terrible day for Abaven. Sparrow neared her aunt's den. Her scent there was fresh. She was in the den or at least near, "Aunt Harmony?" One beat. Two beat. Sparrow took a breath, "Ho tanti pensieri inquietanti stasera. Devo parlare con voi molto seriamente e per un po." "SPEAK!" "Italian"

Art by Evelyn

Harmony perked at the sound of her niece's voice. She stirred in her small, makeshift den (oh how she missed the one she'd spent so much time enlarging the past summer) just as Sparrow unleashed a flood of Italian. Poking her head out, Harmony made a gentle 'slow down' motion with her paw. "I'm sorry, Sparrow, I don't speak Italian," she said with an apologetic smile. Things had been unsettled for everyone since Finch's return, but Harmony was experienced enough to catch sleep when she could despite the uneasy situation, knowing that she could very well be up through the night with a patient, so unlike many of the younger members of the pack she was comparatively well rested and neat in appearance. She moved from the den to seat herself beside the darker, smaller Destruction girl and sought to soothingly groom about the girl's ears. "Is something wrong, darling?" She hoped her nieces and nephews - well, all the youths in the pack, really - knew that they could come talk with her whenever they needed, but she knew it was unlikely. She hadn't been there for most of their childhoods, just the aunt that had appeared out of the wilderness when they were yearlings. She despaired sometimes of rekindling the relationships she'd once had, and it could be surprisingly lonely among all her kin after having missed so much. Perhaps it wasn't so hard to imagine how the pack's young wolves could feel the same, though she wished so much that they could understand how much they were cared for.

Her aunt would appear and Sparrow would breath at her motion to slow down. Harmony couldn't speak Italian, "Oh. Sorry... habits." she mumbled, not feeling particularly bad about the mistake, but more wary of being overheard. Okay, now she knew she was being paranoid. Licking her lips, Sparrow sat and let her aunt groom her. It was nice to have someone be affectionate towards her and for a second, Sparrow let it sink in as she collected her thoughts.

The moment passed and Sparrow sighed, "I was wondering what to do if... if someone in the pack is acting strange... suspicious. Should I tell Dad? I don't want to bother him if I'm wrong but-" Sparrow shook her head, "Maybe it's nothing but it's all I can think about lately and..." Sparrow took in a long breath and sighed out the words, "I'm not sure what to do about it..."

Sparrow's words, and her obvious upset, made Harmony's pelt prickle, and she paused in her grooming. Someone in the pack acting suspiciously? Though she espoused pack trust and bonding more than probably anyone else in Abaven, Harmony was far from naive. It was certainly more than possible that someone you trust turn against you. Still, though Sparrow was clearly thinking such, it was in Harmony's nature to turn to a more forgiving route. Perhaps the wolf Sparrow had seen acting strangely simply had a problem that they were hiding from their pack mates. Not everyone trusted their pack to help them in times of need. She gave Sparrow's ears a final lick. "It isn't wrong for you to come to someone if you have worries about a packmate," she assured the girl. "As healers it is our duty to observe our packmates, so that we can stop a problem before it starts - it isn't just the physical wounds we treat, after all. Why don't you tell me what's bothering you, and we can decide together if it's something you should tell your father, hmm?"

Sparrow listened to her aunt carefully. They were healers. They healed both mentally and physically. That's right. It was alright. She could tell her level-headed aunt and together they could decide what to do. Sparrow nodded, licking her lips nervously, "It's a lot, but please hear me out..."

Sparrow looked away, though she wasn't really seeing the land before her. She was scanning her memories, "What if there's a wolf in out pack who is trying to gain the trust of our lead members, no matter what it takes? What if they mean harm? Aunt Harmony...

I can't quit thinking that Finch isn't stupid. Finch is one of the most cautious wolves among us. I don't know whether it was poisoning or not, but... I just can't think Finch went missing because she made some type of dumb mistake, you know? When Dad said she was missing, we were all heartbroken. We all looked for her." Sparrow thought about the fight training after. Had Lillianna shown up for that? Sparrow would have to ask later, "There was one wolf who made a bigger deal than even her own family. When we found her, this wolf was right on the front lines as if she was guiding them, but the nice bird friend apparently found Finch. When I got there, even Starling was holding his own. Everyone was helping... then there was this one wolf collapsed on her, wailing, unable to even hold her own." They had all been in shock. they found their family member in such a dire state. There was suspect of poisoning. Who suggested poisoning, "If there was a suspect of poisoning, why would one wolf rub all over the wolf in question. Was it to hide a scent? When I got back to the pack and called, who called to make sure everyone came? Who wanted to make sure everyone was there to see the heroes? Who got angry and left when I tired to objectively say what happened?"

Sparrow took a breath for a moment, unsure if she wanted to go on. She decided she needed to, "It's just... Finch only trusts a few people. Finch went off to explore. Finch remembers a face and a vague name, but then any other evidence is destroyed when the scent is mixed with Abaven's scent. There was one wolf who tried so hard to show everyone how upset they were. It's the same wolf who smeared their scent all over Finch. It's the same wolf who called the whole pack to see Finch brought back. This wolf also started taking an interest in healing, attending healing meetings. This wolf hangs around Starling and often smells like out-of-pack wolves, perhaps even the same scent would have been on Finch's coat..."

Sparrow shook her head slightly, her eyes making contact with her Aunt's form, "Let me back up though. That is what called my attention to this, but the more I thought... Let me explain... There's a packmate of ours who came in pretty normal. I mean- I didn't think anything about it, but I want to start at the very beginning:"

"Here it goes, the girl thought.

"This pack member came into the pack and even though they had been there for a short time, my dad gave them trust. Before the war with Hellstrom, he had this pack member go and scout the pack. He told Lark and Starling, but he didn't even tell me, Shrike, or Finch, but he told this pack member. He trusted them so readily... This person went and came back saying there were many. This is why Imperium was involved in the first place. I'm sure you know who I'm talking about by now..." How couldn't she? Harmony was there. Harmony was one of the ones keeping a level head and not yelling. She was the one who made Sparrow not feel evil for disagreeing.

"She- this wolf- immediately at the meeting before the war, started calling out every pack mate that didn't agree. She promoted her views and her intentions to fight. Even though she was newer to the pack, she called other members traitors. She encouraged us to fight then ask questions later. Many tempers flared, I admit, but it was hers first. She made a big show of how loyal she must be to Bass and the pack..." Sparrow though of how many times Lillianna called out the other members and called them traitorous or saying they didn't trust Bass, always trying to end and reiterate how much she trusted Bass and how loyal she was.

"When the wolves showed up, there were barely enough for even just the Abaven wolves. I heard that many of our fighters didn't get into a fight at all. Why was she so off? Did she not know how to track? My dad had trusted her and she got another pack involved. It might have been a mistake, but it might not have been. Maybe she wanted the war. Maybe she wanted it to seem big. Maybe, I don't know, she wanted to seem loyal in this big war and to prove that, even with Imperium's help she could fight beside them." Everyone knew Imperium's wolves were strong. Maybe she wanted to fight beside them to show how strong she was. Did she have a darker intention of putting Abaven in the debt of Imperium?

"Back then, she and Starling had argued. Before that, she and Zell had argued. I even tried to stand up for her then, but she insisted I was attacking her too. During the war, she insisted she had to be at both the healing camp and then go to the fight. Why did she need to be at both? She is surely not a healer. After that fight, I didn't see Starling. Did she 'go with the healers' to say something to Starling? He disappeared after that. For a while." How long had Starling been gone? A season? It felt like forever, "She was close to precious Vail too. Around the time she first got those scars. I heard Vail was with her. How would she not know a pup was following her? She got scars because of an Imperium wolf. Was she protecting Vail? Did she want to appear to be saving Vail? Why is it that after that, they never interacted and now Vail hasn't been around for so long... Just like Starling..."

Sparrow remembered her delicate cousin fondly, which reminded her of another exuberant soul that was missing, "It was after that separation that this wolf became close to Shaye and Starling. Was it just because getting close to the family through Vail didn't work? Now Shaye is also gone. Only Starling returns. Only the wolf who is high-ranked returns. I'm not entirely sure, Aunt Harmony...

I can smell her on Lark and Starling." Sparrow hated it, "She always makes sure she's first to the meetings. She puts down everyone around her to elevate her own opinion in front of my dad. I haven't seen her try to be friendly with Shrike, or me, or you, or anyone that isn't a high rank or the heir... I mean- I know I'm a nobody in the pack and I think she chooses to be so aggressive towards me because I'm not as useful as my other siblings. I think she might want to cause a fissure in our family to try to get closer to them, whether it's by turning them on me, or hurting one of our more fragile members like Vail or Finch..."

Sparrow shook herself of her memories, her eyes focusing back on her surroundings. It took her a moment, and she let silence fall as she took a breather. Her breaths came in soft, but her heart pounded loudly. Finally, Sparrow made to look at her aunt directly, "It's a serious accusation, Aunt Harmony, I know, but I'm taking it very seriously. This is why I wanted to come see you- before I make an official accusation..."

"Before I call Lillianna a traitor."