Seasons had passed. Acere was getting older...much too old. He knew that. Since the altercation with his nephew and the whole ordeal with the pack, he had left the Northlands, and his daughter had remained by his side ever since. Something in both of them had broken for a while, but now that he had managed to build her back up and restore her confidence, he could feel his time slipping away. He had held on as long as he possibly could to make sure she would be alright...and he was confident that she was. He had taught her all he could. Done his best to pass on his knowledge, the confidence she needed, and everything else she'd need to thrive. He wished his other children had stuck around, but he had no control over where they would go in life. Perhaps it was better that way, he knew they would thrive, too. The half-blind king made his way to one of his favorite places in the land...the lake that always had thousands of fireflies dancing upon its surface. The sun was setting behind him, and as he made his way to the lakeshore, his companions walked beside him in silence and his daughter walked behind him. The old king dipped his head to drink, and shortly after he slowly slipped to the ground with a heavy sigh, his bones tired and his body deciding this is where he would likely pass. While he hadn't gotten frail, his body had gone through so much over the years that it was harder to keep going with each day that passed. But his spirit refused to give up until he was sure everything would be alright. Fin and Lumi had been with him long enough to know what was coming...and while neither of them were likely going to be ready (nobody ever really was), they understood... He glanced back at his daughter, watching the way she held herself and reading her face. She knew it was coming too...they all did. "Winter...come sit with me, please." "Speech"

Alot had changed in the past few seaons. She had changed, too. Her father had grown older...and while he looked okay, she knew he was nearing his time. She didn't know when it would happen, but she'd been trying to prepare herself for the moment it would. Whether it was a fight or some freak accident...or if even passed in his sleep...whatever the case, she'd been trying to prepare herself. Only...as she watched her father slowly walk ahead of her towards the lake, she wondered if she'd ever truly be prepared for it. He had told her once before that it was just the way things were. The great circle of life...things happened for a reason, even if they didn't know what those reasons were. Was Ignis' taking over part of some bigger work of fate? Probably. After all, her confidence had been beaten down in that cave with some strange firefly being...and as she watched the fireflies begin to dance across the water, for once...she didn't panic thinking it was him. But time healed all wounds, did it not? And despite all that happened, with her father's help, she had grown into the confident and surefooted woman she knew she wanted to be. She paused several feet behind her father, watching as he drank some water before letting himself rest on the earth. Her vulpine brother and sister sitting beside him. They had been with him before she was born, and ever since, she had considered them as her own true siblings. Blood relation or not, she didn't care. They were as much her siblings as her littermates. She sighed as her attention then turned back to her father, noting how tired he suddenly looked. The scars on his body were etched into her memory, just like everything else about him. He had once been a proud king, albeit not the best, but who was? Everyone made mistakes. Everyone did what they thought was best, but him? He always did what he thought was right and admitted his mistakes and faults. He was someone she always looked up to, and she had always wanted to be like him. What would she do without him...? It was something she always thought about, but... "Winter...come sit with me, please." She looked up and nodded, moving to sit beside him. Her body pressed against his in comfort. "Dad...what am I going to do without you...?" She whined, pressing her nose against his fur. "Speech"

It wasn't going to be easy for her. He knew that. And though he wished he had the rest of his children to surround him now, he knew that was partially his fault. He wasn't there for them like he thought he was. Perhaps he pushed them away more than he thought. Maybe it was just the Praetor curse...He tried so hard to keep history from constantly repeating itself, but it happened anyway. "You'll be fine, daughter of mine...time heals all wounds...you'll go on to have your own children...perhaps even strengthen our name and guide future generations away from the curses we started with..." He coughed as he lay his muzzle into her fur. He felt incredibly tired, the years past piled on his shoulders. He had some regrets, of course...but who didn't? He tried to live the best life he could and he had comfort at least in knowing that he tried to provide the best life he could to those around him. Ignis and Actaea especially...and even though Ignis turned on him, he didn't have it in his heart to hold a grudge against his nephew... He couldn't keep holding all his troubles on his shoulders forever. All the regrets and what-ifs and the could-have-beens. Sure, things could have turned out differently. But he always believed that fate had a strong role in life, and if it was his fate to die here as a former king and savior of his blood, then so be it. Whether he tried and failed didn't matter anymore. He had tried, and that was what mattered. He had helped many in his life. From saving his fox children along with Ignis and Actaea from certain death to eradicating the lands of the evil with his brother's name. Would he end up joining Elias in Hell? Or would he find his beloved true love whom he had named his daughter after in Valhalla? The latter brought a smile to his face as he buried his head in Winter's embrace. "I love you, Winter. You and everyone...I ever cared for..." He murmured as he slipped into slumber that he'd never wake up from. At last, he could be with his beloved mate he had lost all those years ago. His kin would flourish, and fate would lead them wherever they were destined to be. -Exit via death-