CROSS MY HEART AND HOPE TO FLY ... Cross growled as he snapped at the pine log that he'd been carrying around in his jaws. As with most of the things he did now a days, it was meant to be a test of the limits that he was finding he had few of. A wolf's neck muscles are strong, but why not work to make them stronger? Cross was in that key developmental stage where as long as he could ignore pain, he could push and push and keep pushing himself as far as he wanted. Already he'd run with a bull, swum to two different islands, brawled with an Ex Amenti yearling in the Battlefields, dragged Orica halfway across a desert, and taken out a deer's throat in a chance flying leap. That hunting incident had been the start of it all. He'd discovered he had ability and instincts that were enough to be scary. Eventually it had dawned on him - he had been in line to be Heir of Glaciem. That kingdom was gone, now; but that didn't make him any less of a power in the making. He found himself often coming back to the old homelands now. There was no reason why he shouldn't. The pack that bore the name it knew nothing about was over in Sparse Pines. Too close for the comfort of a whole pack, but as a rogue he was in no danger out there. He'd already learned something of the new Glaciem pack. It had a lousy King but the king had a decent son. Cross's thoughts were on his own family now, though. Today he'd invited Galileo to tag along. Now that Orica was off on her foraging mission or whatever nonsense she was calling it, Cross found himself alone alot. He hadn't realize how much he'd miss the little blue eyed healer.... But the truth was, he needed to discover who he was. And for that, he didn't mind a little male companionship. "Hey Gali!" he shouted, his voice booming around the mouthfull of tree bark. "Think fast!" The next second he was lashing his head back, sending the chunk of branch in the other male's direction. It had couple of smaller bits sticking out that it could be grabbed by, but if not handled correctly it was just crash into the snow - possibly taking a tooth with it. All part of the fun, right? Cross was standing in the tundra grass looking at at the lake that was big enough to be an inland sea. He'd never had the chance to really swim in it when he was here before. Or rather he did, but he was either too small, or, later on, too afraid. It was about time he fix that. ... I WILL LIVE TO SEE YOU DIE

God knows I got a good heart, but my blood is filled with demons. Galileo had always found himself drawn to this place, so when Cross had asked him to come with him, Galileo couldn't have dreamed of saying no. Though the cousins had never been the closest to each other, Cross and Orica had always been joined at the hip. But Orica, for all that she was, was a healer at heart, and she would probably never understand the monster that lurked inside Galileo. It was a vicious thing, lobbying for the death of those who angered him, but Galileo understood on a fundamental level that it was wrong and that he should never succumb to it. Once he let the anger triumph and destroyed his opponents, then he would have failed his family and everything they had taught him. Cross, at least, seemed like he would not have been utterly horrified by such a revelation. Which Galileo was afraid the rest of his family would be. It didn't make sense, but the fear was there, a final ghost of his terrified childhood. But Galileo had grown up a lot since then. And it seemed that Cross had as well. The two had gotten along fairly well during their trip, Galileo had to admit. When a shot of his name hit Galileo's ears the male stirred, lifting his head up to spot a projectile flying straight at his face. A snarl escaped Galileo's maw and he reacted, jaws opening and clamping tightly around a protrusion from the bark, though the male slid backwards a few inches as he absorbed the force of the thing. Snorting irritably, Galileo opened his maw and let it hit the ground with a solid thud, yanking his paws out of the way just in time. "Impressive," Galileo couldn't deny that it had taken a lot of strength to get that thing flying like that. A flicker of envy darted through his mind, but Galileo clamped down on it fiercely. He had no right to be jealous of something that Cross had clearly worked hard for; if he really wanted to be that strong, then he could work for it too. The jealous thoughts slunk away and Galileo twitched an ear as if bothered by a fly, padding towards Cross carefully, keeping an eye on the male to ensure that he wasn't about to launch any other tree trunks at Galileo. "Looks cold." Galileo commented on the state of the water idly, settling back serenely on his haunches as he too found his gaze focusing on the water. His words felt like a challenge, though the were not directed at anyone but himself. How far behind him was the fearful pup that Galileo had once been? Could he simply walk into the water? Hmm. It was a tempting test of his will. coding by lutara & kat I?m fighting myself, believe me.[ G A L I L E O ]