Rhyme shook the snow from his fur and the chill from his bones. He’d kept vigil over Darilnor’s grave the whole night, though he’d fallen asleep in the early hours of the morning. Now that he’d slept on the events of the previous day he was ready to face Tana. His white paws carried him to the maple tree and he stopped at the entrance of the den. He heaved a heavy sigh before slipping inside.

The dimly lit den revealed his three children and their mother. Noir was by far the largest of them, his dark frame and blue stripes marked him as he tumbled over his smaller sisters. Verse was the smallest, the runt of the litter. He guessed she wouldn’t be much bigger than Tana herself. Theory would likely grow to the same size as Poem and Motif. They were all growing strong and he knew they wouldn’t be kept within the confines of the den for much longer.

His blue and lavender gaze found its way to Tana’s features and he withheld another sigh. "Tana, we need to talk." He wondered if she knew how close she had come to dooming their two daughters when she had foolishly attempted to leave in the snow storm. He felt a protective wave wash over him, he had to make the puppies his priority.

""

The former slave was sleeping deeply for the moment. Small bodies were tucked in with her and she was positioned in a way her head could rest on her paws but her hips were twisted so that the children could eat if they needed too. Her sleep was fitful. Nightmares hadnt plagued her as often since joining Abaven and settling in, but still it was hard to forget everything. She was a slave in her dreams. Apostle was a demon, as was the voices of ruina. She could hear but not always see.

It was Rhyme who woke her. Her scruff bristled and her head snapped up. Her ears were flattened. Her breath was coming in pants. Her dreams bleed into reality for the moment. It took a few moments and her scruff settled and her ears perked. Her nose caught the scent of Rhyme. It was a relief to not be another. She slowed her breaths after a moment. A turn of her head and a sniff told her all three pups were still there.

Her attention was on him then. "Sorry, bad dreams...." her ears turned back as she apologized. She then turned her head towards where his scent was strongest. What he said finally caught up with her. "What's on your mind?"

"speech"

He hadn’t realized she was sleeping when he appeared at the entrance of the den, but as she startled and raised her scruff he wondered if she’d been suffering a nightmare. Rhyme stifled the urge to offer his physical comfort and support as she slowly settled back down. She sighed inwardly, knowing this was going to be difficult but being reminded where she’d come from was hard. She apologized as she sunk back down into her plush furs with all three children beside her. She had been having a nightmare. She seemed eager enough to talk though, and he didn’t hesitate further.


Rhyme sighed softly as he tried to ready his speech. "I talked to Shaye, or she talked to me.." He started, toting the truth no matter how hard it was. "Tana, before you left did you know that Shaye’s milk was low?" He asked, not wanting to outright accuse her of attempting to kill their children. If she had managed to escape Theory and Verse would have died, and Shaye would have put Motif and Poem in danger trying to save them.

""