"Killian, why?" The voices filled his head as he slept, curled beneath the top of a tall tree encased in the thick ice he lay upon. "You're a disgrace." "His parents must be ashamed." "Never come back." He barred his teeth slightly, a quiet growl emitting from his throat in reaction to the memories. His tail flicked in irritation, but he remained asleep, lost in his nightmare. So many judgmental eyes, all narrowly focused on him. Resentment glowed in every one of their faces. No matter what his reasons were, he knew they would never accept him again, they would never forgive him.



But his sister... The growl flowing from within him became a soft whimper suddenly. She looked the angriest of them all. He had hoped she would be pleased to see her tormentor blinded and tormented, but she instead shot him through the heart with her piercing glare and turned on her haunches, walking away from him before anyone else did... And the chief came at him, spewing words of hate. He had no time to react before having to turn tail himself...



Killian's eyes snapped suddenly open, the shock of the incident still racking his body with nervous and angry shakes. What he had done was give his sister a gift, but he had been sorely punished for it. The ache of her rejecting him still burned a hole in his heart, but it was also what fueled his fire to continue on. He would never forgive her, even if she begged him. Blood wasn't enough of a connection to forgive such a betrayal. He had loved her more than anything in the world and she had forsaken him to return to a life of torment.



Angry thoughts were disturbed by a sudden noise. Killian rose quickly to his feet, his muscles tense, ears swiveling this way and that. Perhaps he had only heard a bird, or perhaps it was something more. All he knew that that it wasn't his imagination, he had heard something.

Damn roots, they didn't want to come undone from under the snow. This place was full of irritating things, the large brute of a wolf could have been pissed already but there wasn't much one could do about Vahva. The young wolf had no bad past, well unless you counted the fact that her parents had been high when she was conceived and that her mother died by being crushed by a tree when Vahva was right there beside her. Other than that, and being alone Vahva wasn't all that damaged. Yet, she was still as ambitious as she could be. The girl had a plan like her cousin had. Developing her own pack, she could do whatever she wished and create a world that would be level for her. She definitely wasn't one with enough experience yet, but she would learn and she would gather as many allies as she could so when the time came her pack wouldn't fall apart as soon as it started. Vahva wasn't evil nor mean and the pack would need some sort of goal, maybe it could be a home for those who had no where else to go? As long as they listened to her rules Vahva didn't mind having wolves with evil tendencies but then again she wasn't sure.

After some time Vahva had found herself trampling along on broken twigs. Her red eyes moved up to the scent of another wolf. When he came into sight, he was only a bit bigger than her and with nice dark colors as well. The looks on his face though looked as if he had woken up from a bad dream. Oh boy, the last thing she wanted to deal with was a wolf who needed to be tucked into bed. Her red eyes blinked for a moment as she sighed. "Sorry if I disturbed your sleep I was lost in my own thoughts." Vahva wasn't lying after all. Nor was she one to judge a stranger, plus some of her mother and her cousin had rubbed off on her on the tolerance level. Yet Vahva was still a bit touchy on the subjects of weather or not she could take care of herself, when she was more than capable of it. She kept a fair distance away from him to show him she wasn't here to fight.

"speech"

The search, only a moment long, seemed to take forever in his groggy state. He frantically shifted his ears until he heard the sound again. The snap of a twig. His head swiveled in the direction of the noise just in time to see the wolf approach him. Her colors were primarily black, where his tended more of the brown side, but the shades of her pelt weren't what drew his attention. It was her eyes. They were a lighter shade than his, far more gentle, but still eerily similar. Other than his mother and sister, he had never known another wolf with red eyes. But he didn't want to think about them anymore, at least not today.



Her words were honest and thoughtful, that much was clear. His body relaxed slightly and he shook his head. Oh no, you didn't wake me. Just surprised. The exhaustion of his nightmare was clear on his face, which probably gave her the impression that he had awoken at her noise, while in fact it was the anger and hurt his dream had evoked in him that woke him up.



While he detected no threat from this female, Killian maintained a certain level of caution. He stood on all four legs, not letting the damaged paw reveal itself just yet. He tilted his head slightly to the side, letting his voice fill the air once again. What brings you out to this barren land, miss?

Well, it wasn't just her red eyes that were odd in her terms, it was the mane on her back. Vibrantly blue in color it reached all the way down to her shoulders. Marking her as Sani's daughter, because many instantly knew who she was if they had known the husky like wolf with a blue mane. Yet, his colors were nice as well, Vahva wasn't one for appearance but she did take foolish pride in her mane. He was obviously still cautious and she didn't blame him, but she relaxed herself, he didn't seem bad and maybe she could get to talk with him. He didn't smell of any of the packs, but even if they were to become part of enemy packs. Vahva had a plan, to create her own so this was her try and socializing with a wolf she knew almost nothing about. Clearly something had gone wrong with his emotions a moment ago but she would not say anything.

He was so polite, was he younger than she? After all she was only Two years old so this guy, if he was a yearling that surprised her a lot considering the conditions. Had something happened to his parents? To the pack he was in? No Vahva was curious but she refused to pry uselessly on a matter that would only start a fight. "I was hoping to find some food and get a place to think but, it's difficult to find in this place." She didn't smile, whenever she did smile it was entirely fake on her terms. There was no reason for her to be happy. There wouldn't be until she achieved her goal, and then would have to make a new one. "My name's Vahva, I'm heading towards Valhalla and you?" She asked tilted her head. There was no sign of disrespect in her voice, it was all equality. She was simply speaking to another wolf.

"speech"

As he spoke, his eyes moved to the blue mane that ran from her head down her back. It was a vibrant color, and he wondered that he hadn't noticed it before. Something about those eyes so similar to his had drawn his attention in a different direction. The blue mane made him all the more curious about her but did not dissipate his cautiousness at all. He remained wary of her, but was not off-putting. He was not averse to company.



A smirk crossed his maw as she mentioned a search for food. "I hate to break it to you, but you aren't likely to find any food here. This place is barren. A place to think shouldn't be too hard though." He had managed to find a place to both think and sleep, but his stomach rumbled softly at the thought of food. "My name is Killian, and I have heard mention of Valhalla few times. I for one am not sure where I'm heading just yet." Killian had yet to decide where he would end up, but he knew he would go somewhere. He had to. Without a pack to back him up, he would never be able to return home and show them what they had done wrong. Banishing him had been the biggest mistake they had ever made, and they would live to regret it.

The soft rumbling of his stomach could be heard by her ears, and she held in a small chuckle. Somehow she felt at ease around this male, he wasn't talking to her like the others had. Others had teased her praised her, but Killian was simply talking. Her tail wagged slightly at the thought that maybe if she offered him a high position in her yet to be pack they could become friends. It was stupid to think that a rank could create a friendship, but what else as she supposed to do. Was there a magic button she could possibly press for others to like her and to remember her face and name. He wasn't sure where he was going yet either, it was perfect wasn't it?

"Though I'm only staying in Valhalla for a prolonged amount of time. " The girl stated looking around, he was right about the no food part. She didn't know about Killian but she would be fine with one day without food, she still had enough energy to go to another place that had little creatures she would catch and consume for her survival. "I'm going to make my own pack, though it's kind of impossible to do it out of nowhere when nearly no one knows me but I'll get there eventually. Valhalla was my birth pack, I'm staying there until I can make a stable amount of followers." She looked at him for a moment taking in a deep breath. "I'm not entirely good at socializing but Killian would you like to help me? I know it'll be a bit before we can actually get a pack together, but I'd have to start somewhere. And you can do whatever you want until the time comes." She flicked her tail wondering if he'd accept it or not. He was young too, so that added for time for them to gain training at wherever they were going. Dammit Vahva are you an idiot? You're going to fast. "I'm sorry, I must be thinking about this too fast." She shook her head with the apology.

"speech"

Her words confused him slightly. Vahva would only be joining Valhalla temporarily. That wasn't something he had frequently heard of wolves planning ahead of time. Typically they only left packs they joined if they became dissatisfied, or were driven out. Never had he met a wolf who had the intention of joining a pack then leaving it. He tilted his head slightly to the side and narrowed his eyes, preparing to ask for more information when it was offered voluntarily.



"Your own pack?" His words came with genuine curiosity. The girl was ambitious, and her plan seemed well thought out. He listened to the rest of her words, and her offer to him, with clear interest. He smirked as he thought of the possibilities if he helped. He could have some position of power, he could lead a pack of his own to his revenge. That would, of course, depend on her vision.



"Well, Vahva, the idea is certainly tempting... But I have to ask first, what are your intentions for this pack? What sort of ideals and laws, what sort of wolves would be welcome?" She clamored over her last words, obviously surprised at how much she had said. "Don't worry about it, you can't really think about anything this big too fast. I just have to know what I'd be getting into."

He was listening yes yes, that was perfect that was all she needed. As long as he was considering it then she had a chance didn't she. The large brute was actually getting somewhere. Her entire life she had been a nobody, certain the glares that she had received as a child were ones of hatred simply because her parents had done something wrong. Though both of them were long gone by now. Vahva wasn't sure how much her mother had suffered and how she refused to talk about the past, but she wanted to make a pack where nobody was left behind, outdone, and would stick by each other even if a mistake was made. It was a hard ideal, but unless it was a mistake that endangered the entire pack then it could be dealt with in a civil manner. Forgive but do not forget could also be something integrated into the thoughts she had.

Vahva's red eyes flickered, so he was ambitious as well. Then he would make a great leader wouldn't he. She knew that there were plenty of wolves out in the world who were deceiving, but she was putting her ropes out to create something she could control and be proud of like any other pack with their family. "All would be welcome, no matter the intentions. Outcasted who were never allowed for their side of the story, those in need. A pack that looks after each other and never leaves one behind. If one wolf makes a mistake it is all our mistake and we must strive to fix it. Unless there is aggression inside of the pack towards each other, then it is a home to all. No pup should be looked down upon by what their parents have done, and no wolf should be judged by the actions they have made in the past. Even if they all have a past they regret, we could try to make it better." Vahva spoke of her vision in the same voice as any. She knew it would be troublesome, but it was a basis line wasn't it. "At least, that's the basis. Other things can be thought of as we go. ll in all it won't be a strictly good nor bad pack." She summed up.

"speech"

The voice he heard from her was full of determination and confidence. She was little more than maybe a few months his senior, but she had developed a maturity similar to that which he had developed. Perhaps her past had been similar to his - one that was painful, one that became the driving force behind everything she did. Young wolves left without families were forced to grow up the way they both seemed to have done themselves. It pleased him to know that he was meeting a wolf with a similar mind to his own.



Killian nodded attentively at her words, impressed by how well she had thought this out. Vahva had a prepared plan for what she would do - it seemed all that was left was a group of followers, the training to be a leader and a place to put it. She seemed concerned about being able to attract people to the idea, and Killian felt that he could help with that. Persuasion had always been a sort of talent of his, though it was usually used for much smaller purposes. He sat back on his haunches, tail curled around his feet, and responded.



"What you have told me so far sounds like a fine plan. Of course there are a few details here and there that would certainly need a little more hashing out, but overall I am interested." He wasn't quite ready to reveal his full motives yet. He didn't know her well enough to tell her of his past just yet. "I will help you with whatever you need to make this happen."

Yes, she was happy, but such emotions could not be conveyed at the moment not to him until she got to know him better. He agreed to help, and that meant agreeing to be her friend as well because this pack would be her new family. She knew that Valhalla wouldn't be very happy, but Vahva would gladly offer up a alliance with them because after all she had been born there. She really wanted to show them she wasn't just a mistake that had happened. Now was her chance to do that ultimately with some help. She wasn't good at talking with others and Killian could handle that for her.

She stood up though and hopped a little closer to him. Twitching her tail as she dipped her head. "Thank you, I'm sure that you will be the best first wolf for the pack ever." She smiled a little. She stretched a little bit and relaxed herself. "Where are you from Killian, your young so I figured you'd be with family. Then again, that isn't always the case." Vahva remembered, when she was a pup, and then her mother dragged her out. No matter how much she had wanted to protect her mom, Night wouldn't let her. And soon after her companion marten died, so did Night and she had still not been able to do anything. She'd become stronger and make her mother proud, hell maybe even Natsu would help her with her plan. She knew her cousin was loyal to Valhalla, but she refused to let others treat her like she was trash. She was a wolf just like they were.

"speech"

The girl's question caught him off guard. Typically, you were asked about your personal life before being asked for help, not after. Since Vahva had skipped that portion in the beginning, Killian had wrongly believed he was in the clear. How foolish. Now he struggled internally to decide what, and how much, to tell her. He sighed, moving his gaze toward the sky before letting the words pour from his maw.



"Well, you could safely assume I'm not from these lands," he began simply, returning his garnet gaze to meet hers. "I was separated from my pack about half a year ago, and left without any family." He decided to say no more. Technically, he hadn't lied, but had only left out major details. She could read into his words however she desired, but for now he would say no more. "What about you, Vahva? You're not much older than I." He felt it was only fair to point out their similar circumstances. Killian didn't want anyone getting the idea that age made them so different from him.

She felt as if she had pried into something she shouldn't have. Vahva had her fair share of short comings even though they weren't much, but didn't mean it hurt less. So she looked off to the side for a moment, so he was like her sort of. She sure had her love cut out for her with her mother, but things all went to shit eventually and there wasn't anything you could do about it besides through your head out and rip things apart in anger. He returned the question though, and she didn't mind sharing, since it wasn't much of a story.

Vahva had a weird feeling that she was moving along too fast, but she didn't mind much. "My birth was a mistake, so for the most part lots of Valhallans would look at me funny. When I was a pup a volcano exploded, the one that moved the packs here. I spent the rest of the days with my mom until she died. So I've really been alone all along besides for the times my mother would protect me." She flicked her tail back and forth. See it wasn't much, but it had been enough to piss her off at least. She smiled a little bit, "Worlds full of asses so I try to make the most of it." she commented. Vahva never found time to have fun anymore, there was just no point.

"speech"

Killian could tell that his reaction to her question had made her slightly uncomfortable about asking it. He felt the slightest twinge of guilt, but it was nothing he couldn't easily overcome and ignore. She would tell her story, probably just as uncomfortably as he had, and the emotions would switch between them. It was an unfortunate consequence of sharing life stories with practical strangers.



Unlike him, though, she told her story with ease. He listened attentively, finding that they did indeed live under similar circumstances - both had lost their parents, felt shame from their packs. Though their experiences had happened differently, it didn't make either necessarily worse than the other. At least Vahva was able to make light of her situation. Killian returned her smile with one of his own.



"I agree, but I have to ask. If the Valhallans treated you so poorly, why are you going back to them?"

Her ears flicked at his question. That was true, why would she return to someone who would treat her badly? Vahva knew it hadn't been her fault though, the world was filled on judgement and she deeply wanted to show them that she was not as useless as they had seen her. "That question is hard to answer. Even though they treated me badly, I feel almost no ill will towards them. More than anything I feel sad or upset, so I want to go back and show them that I am not as useless as they thought I was. That I can be smarter than my mother, stronger than my father, and hopefully by the time I leave with my own pack. They won't be glancing at me like that anymore and will see that a child will not always turn out like their parents did." Vahva stated thinking about it. Yes, it was to prove them wrong about her. Her parents had accidentally mated due to being high, but that didn't mean Vahva would be some sort of drug addict, or an unhappy snappy child(even though she was unhappy and snappy for the most part). "I know it's weird, but I want to know the kind of wolves my mother chose to live with rather than her home."

Vahva looked up at Killian, the both of them were alone, and they have had two different views, but as far as she was concerned now he was her friend. The girl shook her mane and sat up in a more comfortable position. "And you, from the way I approached you, it was like a nightmare had happened. Did your family do something to you, that you couldn't forget or forgive?" She asked softly, but then stopped herself. "Sorry didn't mean to pry, whatever your reasons are I'm sure that they're good enough for you. I'm glad that you are the first wolf to accept my offer about the pack." Her tail thumped on the ground.

"speech"

Killian listened attentively to Vahva's words, taking in each and every one. "I understand," was all he had to say in response to her tale. While their plans were different, their motivations were similar. They both had been wronged and wanted to prove something. But Vahva had been wronged since birth, her pack treating her poorly based on her parents' choices. He could understand perfectly wanting to show them that she was different, and that judging her as they had was a mistake. Starting a pack of her own would be a perfect way to do that, and she could build an alliance in the meantime. He contemplated finding a pack of his own to build relationships in before they ran off to start theirs.



The question she asked pulled him back out of his thoughts. She had noticed more about his emotional state than he thought. He glanced at the ground, eyes narrowed in frustration. While it was tempting to keep everything to himself, it was only fair to share with her what she had shared with him - at least for the most part. "You'd be correct to assume that. I was exiled for protecting my sister from a wolf who constantly attacked her... He happened to be the heir." He paused, taking a moment to choose his next words. "I want the same thing you want - to prove to them that I am better than they believe."