The moment they caught a whiff of her mother’s scent she went bounding forward, racing ahead to leave her uncle and grandmother to catch up. It had been a long time since she had been with her mother, but it was a scent that she would never, ever forget. The blue-eyed young woman ran as fast as her legs would carry her till she reached the falls and found what seemed to be the end of the trail. At the very least it seemed to be where Philomena’s scent was the strongest.

”Mom?” she called out, raising her voice to shout above the sound of the waterfall nearby. She looked around eagerly, practically spinning in circles as she watched for her mother to appear. ”Mom, are you here?!” She was so incredibly happy to be with her mother again, but she was also just happy to not have to be searching everywhere any more. It had gotten to the point where she was starting to get discouraged and had started thinking they’d never find her, but now here they were!

She turned around again and stopped dead in her tracks when Philomena finally emerged from the trees. A huge smile spread across her face and her tail started wagging frantically behind her. ”Mom!” she squealed with a giddy giggle, darting over to her while happy tears began to well up in her eyes. She hopped up onto her hind legs and hooked her forepaws around the back of her mother’s neck as she embraced her tightly. ”I thought we’d never find you again! We’ve been looking for you everywhere!” she exclaimed, nuzzling into the long fur that made up her mane.

Even though she was two years old now, she still felt like a pup again with her mother. The size difference between them certainly didn’t help the situation, but Naus didn’t care. She was too overjoyed to be with her mother again to care how she was behaving. ”Uncle Ulric and grandma are here too!” she added as she pulled back from her mother’s neck, giving her a wide grin. ”They helped me find you! They should be here any second now, I kinda ran off after I figured out where you were.”

The tournament pairings had come as a surprise…

The last thing Philomena had expected was to be paired against Cel. But in some ways she was glad she had been. They got to see each other’s strength and resolve... though not at the tourney itself. That fight Philly had forfeited, uncertain about fighting the main who had acted as a father for her daughter, whom had been there as a friend for her... but she was glad they had come to spar each other later.

Bit by bit Philomena was starting to feel like her old self, getting used to life here. It was comfortable, sure, but she knew her heart yearned for more. No Face was there to remind her of Ganta, of the woods she had fled during the fire when the eruption occurred. The woman had both lost… and she had gained too. A new part of her family, not that it meant she would give up on the three that she felt were still out there. Somewhere, somewhere her babies were still out there…

Then, as if the Gods were responding to Philomena’s wishes, she heard a shout. At first she didn’t believe it, dismissing it as a figment of her imagination. She remained close to the den where Memento was dozing and shifted a bit. Surely she was just missing her?

Her little Nau…

But then there was another call and her heart fluttered. It… it couldn’t be, could it?

Philly rose on shaking paws as a rush of nervous excitement flooded throughout her body. She broke into a run, slowing only once she emerged from between two of the trees at the falls. Her heart leapt to her throat seeing Nausicca, her baby, now a young woman, standing just a few wolf lengths away.  

“Nau!” Her cry mingled with her daughter’s as she helped close the distance between them. She wrapped her neck around her daughter as they embraced, relief washing over her.

“My little Nausicca… how you’ve grown…” She said softly, not fully registering the “we” part of her daughter’s statement until she mentioned Ulric and her grandmother. Her heart skipped a beat and Philomena’s eyes widened, as did her smile, as she drew back just a little.

“What!? They are!?” Light was returning to her. Her brother and mom were here too… happy tears filled Philomena’s eyes and she closed them for a moment. “Thank the Gods… I’ve missed you all so much…” When she opened them again Philomena began to lick between Nausicca’s ears.

It didn’t matter that her daughter was grown now… she was still, and forever would be, Philomena’s baby. Her little sunshine.

“I… I’m so glad you’re safe. I was worried sick for all of you.” She drew back again, smile faltering.

“Evan and Dylas weren’t with you guys?” Guilt again flared.

One child had returned… but what of her sons?

Nausicaa was so thrilled to be with her mother again. Having her return her embrace and see how happy her mother was from seeing her made the whole trip back here worth it. The gentle licks between her ears made her grin as she hopped back down onto her own paws. She nuzzled into Philomena’s neck while her tail continued to go crazy, a clear sign of just how happy she was to be home. Her little adventure had gone on far longer than she had intended and she was just grateful that she had somehow crossed paths with Uncle Ulric. Otherwise she wasn’t sure if she would ever make it back home.

Her ears perked when her mother asked about Evan and Dylas, making her turn her gaze up to meet her mother’s again. She shook her head in response, curiosity and a little concern showing on her face. ”No, it’s just the three of us. I got lost while I was exploring and I couldn’t figure out how to get back. But Uncle Ulric found me and helped me find you. I haven’t seen Evan or Dylas.” Her ears flicked as she wondered about her brothers, hoping they weren’t as lost as she had been. It was so easy to get turned around if you didn’t know where you were going.

The sound of paws behind her made her turn her head to look back over her shoulder, her gaze landing on her uncle and grandmother as they trotted over to join them. She gave them both a huge grin, momentarily distracted from the worry over her siblings by the fact that the four of them were all together again. Her tail picked up its wagging again and she turned around to face her uncle. ”We did it! We found her!” she exclaimed to them both, her excitement and joy radiating from her. It faltered a bit though as she added, ”Evan and Dylas aren’t here though... Uncle Ulric, could you find them too?”

When Nausicaa darted away from them he nearly shouted at her to stop and to not get separated from them, but then his sister’s scent hit him. After all their searching he was honestly shocked that they had actually found her. He almost didn’t believe it, but as he continued on along side Roza he soon enough found Philomena and Nausicaa standing together near the falls. Relief washed over him and the tension he had been holding in his shoulders fell away with a sigh. It had been a long time since this much of their family was all in one place. He had always loved his family, but it still surprised him how happy seeing them all together made him.

He gave his sister a happy grin, but before he could say anything his niece interjected and asked if he could find her brothers. He gave her a surprised look, giving Philomena a quick, questioning glance before replying, ”I’ll certainly help look for them... But lets focus on getting some rest first. We’ve been traveling for a long time. I know your grandmother at least would like to settle in before we go exploring again.” Ulric looked back up at his sister, with a curious look, but he didn’t ask any questions just yet. He wanted to know what had happened in his absence, but he didn’t want to take away from the reunion with her daughter. There would be plenty of time for him to ask all the questions he wanted soon enough.

”It’s good to see you, Philly,” he told her with a smile, excited and happy to see her in his own subdued way.

Her heart jumped into her throat with worry when her grand daughter ran off without them, but just as Ulric had she soon caught wind of her daughter’s scent and she completely understood. Despite how tired her paws were, she quickly picked up the pace to meet up with her daughter again. It felt like ages since she had seen her little Philomena - even though she knew full well that Philly wasn’t so little any more. Neither of her children had stayed little for very long.

As soon as she saw Philly, emotion welled up in her chest as she came over to greet her. She gave a worried glance to Ulric and Nausicaa as they spoke about Evan and Dylas, but she tried not to linger on it too long. She had done so much worrying over the years that it had become second nature. It almost felt like she had worried more than she had been happy at this point in her life and for now she just wanted to be happy that she was with both of her children again. She slipped past Nausicaa for a moment so that she could embrace Philly herself, swallowing past the lump in her throat as she hooked her neck around her daughter’s and nuzzled into her scruff.

”My Philomena! I’ve missed you so much...” she said as she stepped back again, her tail wagging gently behind her. She gave a quick glance toward Nausicaa and Ulric again before adding, ”I want to spend some time with you and catch up, but I’ll let you talk with Nausicaa and Ulric first. I’ll go relax for a bit in the mean time.” Roza gave her daughter another happy smile and a lick on the cheek before she slipped away to go rest by the pool at the base of the waterfall.

Philomena felt a pang in her chest at Nausicaa’s confession. She knew why Evangelos had gone, and Dylas… perhaps he’d gone looking for his brother. She tried to give a sad smile though, to put on a brave face. “I wouldn’t worry. You guys found me, and they can too. Evan has his bird after all, and you know how No Face is my eyes in the sky… she’ll help them find the way home when it’s time.” Or so she prayed. She took a breath, lifting her gaze to see her brother and, Gods, her mother once again.

That was enough to lift her spirits right back up. Her expression held a touch of sadness, but she couldn’t help but smile seeing them. “Your uncle and grandmother need rest, Nau. You too. It’s been far too long. No Face will help us gather more info in the meantime. He’s been helping me scout for a bit now… We’ll just send him a bit father, okay?”  She let out a soft sigh. If she had just gotten help for Venti, instead of letting her get so sick… Evangelos would have never taken off to look for medicine. It was her fault her litter had fallen apart.

The female nosed her mother, returning her affections in kind as she took a shuddering breath. “...and I’ve missed you.” Her words were quiet, a low whine. “I’ve been so, so worried for you. I hope you know I’m going to pester you for days once you guys get settled.” She smiled and drew back. “But be on the lookout, okay? You may get some… fluffy company.” She turned her attention back to Nausicaa and Ulric once Roza had moved away.

“Venti has gone to Somnium…” Philly explained softly. “...I believe Evan had gone to help find her medicine but has yet to come back home. I was with Dylas a bit longer, he had joined a pack called Olympia, but…” She shook her head. “I suspect he ran off with Evan to explore. You know how those two were, Nau. They’ll be fine. All of you are so strong and brave. They’ll make it home in their own time. If you guys came home… they will too.” Philomena let out a breath.

“You’re old enough to know the truth, Nau. I won’t lie to you. But even if you are older you are always my little girl, and I’ll love you like you're a baby until you are your grandmother’s age. Beyond that, should I live long enough.” She gave her daughter’s forehead a lick.

“You should also know… you’re a big sister. You have a little sibling…” Her gaze flicked to Ulric then. “...she reminds me a lot of our dad, Ulric… a blend of him and mom.” She took a breath. “Do you guys… want to meet her?”

Nausicaa's ears flicked and a frown crossed her lips when her uncle and mother both told her that their search for her brothers could wait till they had rested. She wanted to insist that they start right this second, but she could tell that it wasn't going to get her anywhere. She settled for pouting while her grandmother and mother reunited, but the mention of Roza getting some fluffy company had her curious. She gave a questioning glance to her mother and soon enough she started to hear all kinds of information. It all came in waves, making her feel all kinds of emotions. The news of Venti passing away hit her the hardest, making her ears fall back against her head and her expression fall with sorrow. She glanced down at her paws for a moment, but nodded in understanding all the same. Her mother was probably right - that sounded just like something Evan would do. The dummy... She just hoped he was okay. Dylas too.

She didn't look up again until she felt her mother's lick on her forehead again, her eyes returning to hers while she pulled a small smile onto her lips. Part of her wanted to insist that she was an adult now and she didn't want to be babied, but deep down she really did. She loved her mother's attention and affections, especially after being without it for so long. The news that she had a little sitter was what pulled her out of her grief though, the surprising revelation making her eyes go wide and sending her hopping to her paws immediately. "A little sister?! Really?" she was quick to exclaim, her tail going into another flurry of wags. "Yeah! I wanna meet her! Where is she?" Naus was already looking around the area near them, expecting her to appear next to them like magic. It was emotionally confusing for her to be mourning the loss of one sibling while celebrating the addition of another, but maybe it was fitting that way.

His eyes glanced to follow Roza as she went to rest with a soft sigh. He knew she would still have several years ahead of her at least as long as nothing dramatic happened in the meantime, but this journey back to Boreas and then onto Auster really reminded him of just how much time had passed and how much their mother had aged. He was grateful that he no longer had to lead her though what felt like half of the world even though she had willingly opted to do that herself. He could tell that something about finding Nausicaa had triggered something in his mother... he just wasn't sure what it was yet.

He looked back to Philly when she began to speak, brief flash of pain crossing his face at the news of a loss in their family. Even if he hadn't spent a lot of time with the child, it was still a part of his family and his blood and that was enough to make the stoic man's heart ache with loss. He hummed thoughtfully when Philomena explained that she thought that the boys had gone in search of medicine before they disappeared. He wondered if they were truly lost or if there was something to do with them not being able to find what they were looking for that kept them from returning. He didn't suspect that they would find the answer to that until they resurfaced, but it was enough for him to be curious either way.

Ulric gave his sister a surprised glance when she told him that her youngest child reminded her of Ganta. Mixed emotions churned in his chest, but he was still happy to hear that there was another niece for him to meet. It didn't matter his opinions or feelings regarding their father - this child had nothing to do with any of that. It was simply a result of genetics showing their true colors. He nodded in agreement when she offered to introduce them, rising to his paws with a deep chuckle at Nusicaa's excitement. Of course he wanted to meet their newest family member. He loved all of his family unconditionally and was just as excited as his niece was even if he didn't outwardly show it.

Philomena felt a bit of happiness flood her at seeing Nau’s reaction. She had feared that maybe her daughter would feel Philomena had tried to replace them… which wasn't the case. More than anything she wanted her family together and whole. In her heart she knew losing Venti would be tough on them too… but that was why she wanted them to meet Meme. To make the moment bittersweet instead of just feeling the sting of loss.

"She was with her father this morning but they should both still be close." She glanced at Ulric. "Though… that part is a bit complicated…" She was hinting at an explanation to be needed later. Then Philly tossed her head back and howled for Meme and Cel. Hopefully they would come.

Memento was back at the den humming as she sorted through the flowers gathered earlier that day. Her mom was starting to have some more good days than just bad ones and she wanted to do whatever she could to help make things just a little easier. Besides… she had grown to really like having flowers in the den. It brightened it up.

Hearing her mother's call caused Meme to pause. The call requested her and her dad… and she even sounded happy? The girl emerged from the den and broke into a run… though she wasn't prepared for what she was going to see.

The wolves, made up of brown shades, reminded her of her mom. The male even had pale eyes like she did! Not realizing yet that they were family Memento approached with tail wagging and a smile on her face. "Hello~" She greeted them. She glanced at her mom, glad to see her interacting with others, and padded up beside the older female.

"My name is Memento Mori. Who are you guys? How do you know mom?"