Restlessness, as well as unease at the place they had chosen to call home, had brought Emery to his mother's den that morning. It had been some time since reuniting with her, much to his relief, but he was tired of the cold, and the danger that this place offered. Besides that, he wanted to spend more time with his mother. He was finally a year old, at his adult size now, though he hardly felt like an adult. He hadn't learned anything as far as fighting went, though over time, through trial and error, he had learned how to hunt small game. He would pad up to the den, catching Knight's scent lingering around it. That was natural to the male. Knight had been caring for his mother since they were young. For a moment the brute would stand outside of his mother's den with his ears lowered a bit, almost feeling bad about asking her to spend time with him. He didn't know why... but he knew he missed the earlier days of his puppyhood when he could be with her. His earliest memory was of himself giving his mother a flower -- their first outing from the den. A soft whine would escape him before he could help it, and softly Emery would call to the femme within the den. "Hey mom? Are you sleeping?" If she was he'd find something else to occupy his time until he could spend some with her. "Speech"

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She had been sleeping. It had taken some time for her to finally grow accustomed to their new living arrangements, but it seemed that at last she was able to relax and slip into peaceful slumber with less worry about her family. The cove had been somewhat isolated but at the same time considerably easier to reach than here on the Snowfalls. This was wintry, cold, and discouraging toward trespassers, which made it even more ideal as a temporary home for her, Knight, and the children. And having most of them gathered together, when once her den had actually been left empty save herself, helped ease her thoughts considerably.

She stirred slowly, drowsily, and flickered a dark brown eye open. "Emery?" The sleepy mother wolf scrunched her expression up with a full stretch upon her side, doing what she could from within her den to wake herself up. As her vision cleared she took a second to fix her sleepy gaze on her son and admire the strong wolf he had grown into. He might not have been a large, overly impressive thing as his father had been, but for all his untapped strength he appeared just as timid and gentle as he had as a pup. In her eyes, he showed great promise with his patience and ability to listen in whatever he chose to pursue in life.

A smile pulled softly upon her muzzle as she shifted enough to right herself where she lay, sitting up to better converse with her son. "What is it, sweetheart?" Even with him looking very much like a full grown wolf, his body almost filled out completely, she could not resist the urge to address him as she had when he had been merely a pup, and she hoped he would allow it to continue as she made up for lost time.

Well she had been anyway. The sleepy voice of his mother would come from the den. He wouldn't hesitate a moment later after that though. Emery would move into the den, a happy gaze in his teal eyes as he looked upon his mother. It didn't matter that he was a year old now, or that he would only be getting older. No matter how old the tri-colored male got he would always be close to Mercianne... a pup and their mother forever. He would gently press against her, just wanting to be close. He longed for their younger days... but things would get better again. This was just a temporary home for them all... and once they found somewhere better to settle down things would definitely be looking up. Emery would set his gaze back on his mother, a soft, almost begging whine, like he would give when he was younger and wanted her attention, leaving his maw. "I just... I want to spend some time with you." When Kestrel had gone missing much of his mother's time had been spent looking for her, or she was down and Knight was trying to comfort her or get her to eat... then there was that period of time of which he had gone missing. He was still a bit thin since that incident, lucky he hadn't starved himself when he had wandered off. But back where he belonged, slowly picking up on his hunting skills, with some help from Galahad, the male had started to gain weight again. At least now he looked healthy. The male would gently press against Merci just a bit more. Yeah... he was still her little baby in the end. "Speech"

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As if a child still, her boy entered her den and pressed close. She welcomed it completely, dark brown eyes closing with a gentle laugh as she nuzzled into the fur of his neck, wishing a little that he could have still been small enough for him to snuggle into the space between her outstretched forepaws and her chin. How had time gotten away from her so badly? It seemed impossible that her little boy, in fact all of her children, were already a year old. So much time had passed in what felt like a blink of an eye, and she felt as if she had been left behind, still expecting things to be as they had been instead of how they were. It was silly to wish for time to turn back, and so she tried to content herself with the present, grateful that at least one of her children had not entirely grown away from her.

His quiet whine and simple, pleading phrase brought tears to her eyes, and she held them tightly shut to keep them from leaking through. Time. That was all he wanted from her. Just a little of her attention to keep those deep bonds together and to assure him that she still cared. After being so distant, absent and afar on her searches, when he had been younger, how could she even think of telling him no? When she felt strong enough not to fear losing her composure and crying, Mercianne drew her head back enough to place a gentle lick across Emery's forehead, nuzzling him there as she answered. "Why don't we go see if we can't find some herbs? I haven't collected any in a very long while." No, she had been much too caught up in finding her family. She smiled warmly at him, adding quietly, "And maybe something to eat too."

Emery didn?t think that his mother would deny his request, no, he was certain, with all of his heart, that she would accept. He could feel the emotion his mother held within, resting quietly against her as she gathered herself together. It was true... He just wanted to keep their bond. To keep their bond strong, together, now and forever. She might have been off a lot when he was little, searching for Kestrel, searching so hard for that sister whom seemed but a memory now. He didn?t blame her for that... Merely felt saddened that even with all of them searching they had not found her. When he got lost searching for her he did it just for one reason -- to see his mother truly smile once more. Nothing in this world compared to Mercianne?s smiles. He would give a twitch of his ears, a smile spreading on his maw as she placed the lick across his forehead. It didn?t matter if he was a year old, he was still her baby at heart, and would be forever. ?That sounds like fun! I?m not too familiar with herbs though... But I?ll do my best.? Herblore, while useful, wasn?t something Emery had particularly cared to dabble too much in. He wasn?t the best fighter yet either, but he knew with practice he?d become capable and strong. At the mention of hunting, however, he would jump back to his paws, tail wagging. ?Definitely! Galahad gave me some lessons, so I think we should be able to get something good!? He gave her a quick nudge and then darted out of the den. ?Come on mom! Which do you wanna do first?? It was amazing how just spending some time with his mother could brighten Emery?s day so much. "Speech"

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Her sweet boy. Even with minimal knowledge in herbs and their uses he was willing to give collecting them a shot simply to keep her company. It heartened her to know that even after all the time she had spent away from him that at least one of her children was still so eager to be with her. She was lucky in that way; it was not the same with her other children. Kestrel was still missing and she could only hope the girl had found a safe haven somewhere. Crow and Cloud, the twins, she hoped desperately had at least stayed together when they had wandered from the den. And Sage and Clover... Ludicael. There she would find them.

It seemed she had touched on a subject of must interest to her son with the mention of hunting. He surprised her with how swiftly he was on his feet, and she blinked her dark brown eyes with a surprised smile. This was good! She was happy that he had found a niche that suited him, even if it was not one that she followed herself. All the better; when they went to find their place in their future pack, it would make them an invaluable pair. The delighted mother chuckled at her son's enthusiasm and drew to her paws as he left the den, quietly following after as he prompted her to. "Well, perhaps hunting? I'd love to see what you've learned," she answered encouragingly as she straightened once outside of the den.

Eager paws would lead him forward, though he was careful not to let them carry him too far ahead. His mother was no elder but he didn?t want her to feel like she needed to rush for his sake. It was a little sad to think but... He was the only one of his litter that was still hanging around Mercianne and the remainder of the Snow Rouges. In his dreams, though he hadn?t spoken to his mother about it, he would often dream of them all together... Him, his brothers, his sister, and his mother. Even a father... Though he didn?t really have an image of him in his mind... So he never remembered what he looked like in the dreams. It... Was sad... Thinking how separated they all were now. His twin brothers had long since disappeared... They wandered off sometime not long after Kestrel disappeared, the frantic search for his sister starting. Though they hadn?t found her, though he couldn?t explain why, Emery knew, somehow, she was still out there and okay. Someday... She would find them again. Would they ever be a true family again? Perhaps not in the same way... But he was going to work hard and stay with his mother and Knight, following the path they chose. He didn?t mind following in their pawsteps. In his own way he still had his own path he was following... He was admittedly still just... Clinging to his childhood. It made him wonder about Sage and Clover. Both had joined a pack, finding something to do with themselves in a new sort of life. Emery wasn?t in a hurry to prove himself to anyone. He would do things at his own pace, and if some day he was recognized for it then great! If not, well, he wasn?t trying to impress anyone with some sort of talent. He was merely living life to his best ability, enjoying what skills he did possess and sharing in the company of those he cared about. That was what made today so special. Sure it was something so simple... And yet, to the yearling, just a short while of his mother?s time meant the world to him. His tail would wag excitedly as his mother spoke. Her words were encouraging, and the boy responded with that same eagerness. ?No problem!? He was confident, though not overly so. He was also thrilled that his mother supported his decision to take this path, rather a more warrior based or healer based one. While he wanted to learn to fight better, and know self defense in case he needed it, he didn?t want to drill himself in it and make that his main focus. On the other hand, while he knew the importance of herbs, well, they just didn?t catch his attention all that much. It was hard for him to memorize the different plants and their uses... But every wolf had a purpose and all skills were valuable. The young male would take a breath, letting a little chuckle. ?Sorry... I?m just really happy we?re doing this together.? He was trying to calm himself down some so he didn?t make a careless mistake, working on remembering the things that Galahad had taught him about hunting. ?Oh! We need to go off this way for a little while. That way we can avoid most of the drop offs.? The snowy area hid them rather well... And he didn?t want to risk having his mother fall into one since he wasn?t sure how much she explored the territory. So Emery would wander off more to the west, looking to his mother again as he smiled brightly. ?It is up to you what we hunt. There is a caribou herd that was up this way. They had a couple calves in their herd... We might be able to bring one down.? He hadn?t really seen Merci hunt for herself before so he wasn?t sure how skilled his mother was at it, or if she felt like that was an appropriate prey. He had brought one of the calves down already with Galahad, eating some with the other brute before helping him bring it back to his den with Oracle so the other fae could eat her fill. He was sure eventually he?d be able to bring down older game but... With animals of that size he wanted to make sure there were enough wolves to ensure a successful hunt. "Speech"

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The timid wolf was grateful that at least one of her children could have found himself so happy in the world. Could it have been the desire for happiness that had driven the others away? Had they found what they were looking for, and that was why they had not returned? It was difficult to consider - of all the places out there, she would have loved for them to have found happiness close to home - but still she considered herself lucky to have this one son who saw fit to remain at her side through everything that they had been through. And he truly did seem happy. She could not say his life had been an easy one, but she admired his optimistic spirit and his ability still to forgive her own shortcomings whether he realized them or not.

Her boy apologized for his rambunctious response, but all Mercianne could do was chuckle. "It's fine," she assured him, "I'm glad you enjoy it." It was a stroke of luck that he had been able to find his calling so young. She herself had been older when she had found her own in healing and had even trained amongst the youngsters of her old pack in order to get to her current point in her knowledge now. Although she would forever be a student to the craft - as she had once been informed by her very first teacher - it had taken her some time to get where she was. Emery was on his way to bigger and brighter things already.

He took the lead and she let him, more than willing to set aside what meager knowledge she possessed regarding hunting so that her son could shine and have his moment to teach her what he had learned. Their course was made clear of the drop offs and westward through the snowy terrain until Emery glanced her way again with another smile and question. Mmm, caribou. That did sound good, even if all they would catch would be a young one rather than a hefty elder one. There was a touch of trepidation to her at the thought of rushing up on a herd of such large creatures, her own hunting skills more finely tuned toward small game, but if her son thought they might stand a chance at success why stop him so long as they stayed safe? "Sounds like a fun challenge," Merci agreed. "How do you suggest we go about it?"

His paws would lead him on, keeping just ahead of Mercianne as he walked, ears perked forward as he both paid attention to the landscape before them and his mother. These moments were precious, and he waited for her answer with shining eyes. He wanted to show her all that he learned, to be a son that she could be proud of, though he didn?t know that she was already proud of him. If anything Emery just wanted to make sure he was always in his mother?s life, and she in his. They were family... And would always be family. His thoughts would turn to Knight again for a moment. For a long time now the male had seemed like a father figure in his life with the absence of his own. He accepted the male and, perhaps, part of him was even wishing that his mother and Knight would form a solid relationship together. They were already close... It was clear enough to see. The thought of having more siblings or something however was a strange one... But not exact unwelcome. Just being around more wolves would be a good thing, though not here. It was a dangerous enough place for just the few that lived there. He would twitch his ears happily as his mother spoke, eyes shining. ?Well, first things first we?ll need to come across the herd and analyze their positions. Our target would need to be more on the edge from the start, and one of will need to run towards the inside to cut it off from joining the rest of the herd when they run to prevent it from escaping. As long as we can edge it off a bit further from the others and run it down some, maybe give it an injury to slow it down if possible, we?ll be able to bring it down.? The strategy was the same one Galahad had taught him when the two had gone hunting together. After a while Emery began to slow down to a walk, coming to a small rise in the land. He would motion to his mother to follow, going to the top and coming to a stop. Not far in the distance was the herd of caribou, standing about and chewing on what food they could find. He would swish his tail back and forth as he looked out over them, looking for the target prey. After a moment he would give a quiet ?Aha!? and with satisfaction on his face look to Mercianne. ?We?re in luck. There are two young ones and their mother off on the right side towards the back there.? He would motion with his head. ?The wind is in our favor at the moment too. So all that is left is to set the final plan in motion. I?m going to take the inside to cut the calf off.. I?m going to need you to run along the other side and try to injury it, though don?t get too close to it?s back end... Stay off to the side as much as you can. They have a tendency to lash out with their back legs.? The last bit was of course a warning for her sake. He would feel terrible if she got injured while hunting with him. He would wait for a confirmation then, watching her happily. "Speech"