Set Immediately after The Thread

Rain started to fall as he walked like a man about to face death back to his packlands. Not snowfall or the fat droplets of summer rain; they were half frozen needles that soaked his coat and washed the frozen blood to his body. He thought distantly that he would catch hypothermia but wondered casually if dying would be such a bad thing. He knew exactly where he was turning in his cubs, and knew that Shaye would never side with him after hearing accounts from Acere, and Leera. He had already seen what Acere’s parenting had done for his brother and sister, and the opinion of himself and his father that they held. Acere was a god to them, and with a prickle of agony in his heart he knew his own children would be too. It was not the two weeks apart that scared him most, it was the threat of possibly never seeing them again as long as Abaven held itself as the high authority of Boreas, and as long as they commanded the numbers that they had, and toed the line with other powerful packs, fighting against them with whatever force would be suicide. He was trapped. They passed the black bear as he walked the grim procession through his lands, the last of the heat waving from the mutilated corpse wading in a sea of blood. Would they be impressed then? Would it put an end to this before it even began? No. He knew better than to think that. He skulked past the white trees his head low as he approached Leera’s den. He would fill it in when she left with his children, a sign that she was no longer welcome and would have no home as long as he was highlord. He gave a soft bark for his children, one last goodbye before they were taken from him under the pretense of two weeks that he knew would never end. Speaking Thinking You

Shaye went on ahead of Leera, to ensure that everything was well. She requested her newest member hang back with her head diplomat, who had also accompanied her on this little adventure. Shayes gut was churning, and wishes she wasn’t in this predicament. Who was she to decide who was the best parent of children? But, she also couldn’t take Leera without some hope of her children seeing her. At least until they were fully weaned, and had a moment of stability for whatever came next. She stopped at the border, and raised her head. Letting out a soft howl, and settling herself in. She would give Tyranis a chance to see his children, and was willing to wait a little, within reason, of course. She figured that with Ody, Leera, Shaye herself, and the older son that Tyranis was sending, they would have enough to carry the wolves through the snow and to her pack without much trouble. ""

Theta’s ears perked as she heard two different calls for her and her siblings. She recognized one as her father but the other was foreign to her. She didn’t know what this could mean but she did know that it meant her father was back. What had seemed like ages to her of him being gone had come to an end. She ran to him with the sense of enjoyment that only a pup missing her parents could have.

Slowing down as she noticed the other wolves surrounding them, she carefully eyed all of the ones she didn’t know. She could sense that something much bigger than her was happening right now. She came to a standing position between her fathers’ legs. Looking up at him with questioning eyes she posed a rather important question. “Dad? What’s going on here?”

Theta adored both of her parents, albeit her father more than her mother. The separation had earned her the right to be all up in their business. Where had they been that was so important as to leave their children with only a slave wolf as supervision?

The two calls worried Tythe. He uncurled from his brothers and sisters with a small whimper, unsure of the tension in the air as Theta was the first to emerge and answer. He missed his parents and didn't understand what was going on, so at the octave of his father's voice he rose slowly from the den and wandered out into the open air, head low as he scanned the horizon. "Dad...? W-where's Mama?" Tythe took a few more steps towards the High Lord, glancing between him and his sister as he waited for an answer. Like Theta, the young boy could sense tension in the air, and he had the inkling that the other unfamiliar call had something to do with it. Swallowing, Tythe lowered his ears to his head and decided to fall quiet.

Only Theta and Tythe greeted them immediately, he was sure the other three would come in time. He felt himself choke on words as he looked into their two worried faces, his heart crumbling as he lowered himself to meet them on their level. Blood trickled from the claw marks on his hip and shoulder but he refused to let any pain, either emotional or physical show. “Kids…” He started softly, his voice raw with emotion. “This is Shaye, she’s a friend of mine from another pack.” He explained, trying to keep his voice calm and never wavering. “You’re going to go live with her for a few days…” He said, feeling the words slip from his mouth and then suddenly become a reality. He closed his eyes tightly for a moment, then opened them once he was sure he could speak again. “Your brother Astraios is going with you, no matter what, you’re to listen to him. Understand?” He looked at them seriously, hoping that his hardened eyes would make the separation more bearable for all of them. “But before you go, there is something I want to give to each of you…” He trailed off swallowing a lump in his throat as the thoughts that had buzzed in the lazy hours of the night were spoken into reality. “I’m going to give each of you a special name, so that you will always know that you are my children. He looked at his daughter first, Theta, you are The Voiceless Roar, Tythe, you are The Golden Gift. Your brother Tyto is The Wing In The Darkness, Tornadic is The Howling Wind, and Tsunami is the Endless Wave. I give you these names so that you can give you courage, and strength…” His voice broke suddenly, his jaw clenching as he fought back tears. So much could go wrong, and most likely would in two weeks with the very real threat of never seeing his children again looming over him, even in their final moments together. “Never let anyone make you believe that I don’t love you with all my heart.” He said softly, his shoulders beginning to shake and with that he closed his eyes, and waited for Shaye to take them away. Speaking Thinking You

Her father began to speak, explaining the presence of the stranger wolves. They would have to go somewhere else for a bit. She could see the look in her fathers’ eyes, he was refusing to show any emotion but Theta could tell that something was off.

He began to list off special names for her and her siblings. The voiceless roar, she wasn’t entirely sure that it was the most accurate to her personality, but she loved the name anyways. “The voiceless roar.” She would whisper to herself.

Tyranis would say that he didn’t want them to stop believing that he loved them, she had never doubted that for a second. She loved him too and she didn’t see that changing. Even though she didn’t fully understand why they were being separated she would do it. She would allow it for her fathers’ sake and his alone. The strange wolves like Shaye didn’t deserve her concern, they were likely the reason this was happening and she didn’t like it one bit.

Glancing at Tythe and the rest of her siblings and back to her father she met his gaze and understood that this was what she needed to do.

He heard and watched everything from his hiding place in the shadows and safety of the trees. He hugged his body close to the tree he stood next to, ears pinned to his head as he watched with narrowed eyes. What was going on that they had to leave? Who were those two strangers? Where was Mom? Why wasn't Dad coming with them? He had questions rolling around in his head, but he dared not voice them. The adults probably wouldn't spill the truth to them. Why weren't the other pups going to? Why did it just have to be him and his littermates?

As his father started to list off names for them, his ears reached forward to listen. He would be The Wing in the Darkness...he frowned for a moment, not because of the name but because he didn't understand. After a few moments longer, he stepped out from the shadows and quietly walked towards his father, deep magenta eyes glaring at the strangers as he strode over with his head held high as he tried to copy his fathers usual alpha dominance. He stopped beside his father's foreleg, glaring defiance at the pair that were here to take them away. "Do we have to go." It wasn't a question, but a statement. His voice practically monotone and emotionless when he spoke.

He had followed Ty back from the battlefield, though kept his distance as he watched the strangers warily. Even though he had been born in Abaven, the wolves that came to take away Ty's kids were strangers to him. When they arrived at the borders and Ty called for them, Cloud watched quietly as they slowly arrived. He could see the heartbreak in his brothers eyes despite his trying to hide it from the pups. But Cloud knew his brother too well. He could practically feel his brothers pain...and he didn't like this one bit.

Who was Abaven to interfere and break apart their family? Sure it might have started with their uncle for being in that pack, but the alphas were shouldering it and forcing this decision on his brother for what? Were they trying to avoid something? Or start something? Maybe they were trying to prove how much stronger they were over the smaller pack...whatever the case, Cloud felt like he could only watch helplessly as the kids questioned what was going on. And as his brothers heart broke.