Home. Once Novella would have thought that word only applicable to Ahlon, she'd never known anything but her birth pack and despite that longing to explore the world, she had always felt she would still be going back to her parents at the end of the day, or perhaps season for those longer trips. Even upon following Symphony, Anthem and Howl the young girl had thought they'd all end up back with Novel and Dutiron at some point. Still excited about the decision, she couldn't help but feel a little sad that now the family was so divided, not even just around Alacritis, her parents, Lyric and Story, her aunt and cousins were all so far away now. That being said, she was still determined to enjoy her time here in Ludicael however long that would last. After watching the Sol fight, she was confident that Jupiter was strong enough to keep the pack and lead them, though it was herself she was doubting. She had left home, would she perhaps leave her new one too at some point? It may have seemed hard to believe, but then so had officially leaving Ahlon at one point. Currently the young girl was on her way to seek out the company of her brother. As far as she was aware, both Song and Symphony were currently busy and that surely meant Anthem had been left to his own devices. Partially this was to check up on him then, make sure he was ok though it certainly wasn't counted as a chore. Spending time with her brother was certainly enjoyable and as of late it had been a while since she had managed it, not wanting to wander around the lands too much without having spoken to Jupiter first. Catching a fresh scent of the male, she followed it, tail wagging happily.

It had been startling for Anthem to be told that, in fact, this would be his home now. Of course, he wanted to be with nobody but his siblings -- but he also missed his parents, but not enough to make him distressed here. Slowly he would become accustomed, with assurance from his family, to Ludicael. Mostly he kept to himself, wary of wolves he was unfamiliar with and unwilling to put himself out there so readily. But of course, he didn't think of it like that -- he simply was content to be alone, or with his siblings. There weren't many other options in his book. Today he had gained enough courage to wander a bit. Slowly, awkwardly, the man would lope forward, one carefully placed step at a time. It was nice weather... nice and cool, and he liked frolicking in the pretty orange and yellow and red leaves, feeling them crunch under his paws. But a familiar scent reached his nose, and with ease he whipped around, yellow eyes searching for his sister. Then, there she was! With a bark he quickly rushed forward, tongue sliding out to lick her pretty face as he embraced her happily.

Novella had noticed Anthem's tendencies to keep to himself rather than mix too much with other members of the pack. Truth be told though even those back at Ahlon had certainly never been as close to her brother as their family had been. For such a sweet being, it was rather surprising how wary he could be, though perhaps it was partially the change that had left him feeling particularly uneasy. Not only was he in a new place but the family were still so divided. She hadn't seen Myth since the challenge and it had been far longer since she'd spotted Legend or Howl. It wasn't too long before she spotted the familiar form of her brother heading towards her. Her tail sped up slightly in it's movements and her face broke into a happy smile. "Anthem!" She greeted cheerfully as his pace suddenly increased to arrive in front of her. "There you are, how are you?" She added, returning his affectionate greeting with a few licks of her own.

He had always been closer to Symphony and Howl, but Novella was still his sister, and he was happy to see her. Part of him knew that he was rather dependent on his family, and yet he had no idea how utterly useless he was without them. For Anthem, this was simply life. And though he would be incapable of defending Novella if anyone tried to harm her, he knew she was his baby sister, and he would gladly lather her face in affectionate licks. It was a simple kind of gesture, filled with familial love and happiness. "Hi!" he replied happily, tail beginning to wag so quickly behind his frame. "I good," he would reply with a sheepish smile. "You?" It was a pretty day, just cool enough to feel refreshing on his coat, without being unbearably cold.

It was understandable that Anthem was closer to the elder litter rather than the younger. Symphony and Howl had grown up alongside the male, had spent their entire lives then adjusting and learning to care for him. Novella and her litter of course had learnt the same things too, though with a couple of years between them it was only very recently really that they had reached the age they could help in looking after Anthem. Perhaps a burden in some minds, though Novella knew no differently, he may have been a little slow but he was still her brother. As always his words came in broken speech, the childlike manner in which he spoke may have been strange, even a little hard to understand for some though Novella had little difficulty, especially not with such a simple statement now presented. "I'm good too Anthem." She responded. "Do you feel like going for a little walk?" He didn't need to socialise if he didn't want to, they could stick to quieter areas though she felt it'd do him some good to venture a little further. Hopefully it'd help him get a little more used to the lands of Ludicael too, and eventually the pack itself.

For now, life was good. Much of his childhood had been pleasant, albeit full of confusion as to why he didn't think quite like his siblings. He was nearly mute for some time, and even when he began to speak, his words were disjointed and strange. Anthem's vocabulary hadn't improved much in the last few years, but he never realized how painfully slow his speech was compared to others. He'd never been told that being different was anything bad ... or that anything was wrong with him. They'd also simply said he was different, he was special -- and they loved him even more because of it. A walk sounded like a good idea, and his tail wagged happily behind him. "'Kay!" he explained, beginning to hop forward playfully, expecting her to lead the way. He was infinitely more comfortable with his siblings, unafraid to speak his opinion when he even had one, and eager to do whatever they liked. Anthem was not a man that was hard to please, not at all. "You like here?" He asked suddenly, curious if she liked her new home. It was all different to him, and he found himself sometimes longing for the familiar home, where his parents continued to live.

Novella was glad that he agreed, though she couldn't really have imagined he would have given any other answer, Anthem was so easy going after all. Happily he began to bound forwards, though not going far ahead, pausing to let her lead the way. He probably hadn't explored the area too much for himself she figured, unlike her own wanders around the lands even prior to becoming an official member. "You like here?" Came a sudden question as she reached his side once again. "It's different isn't it." She admitted, knowing full well that Anthem probably missed their old home and pack, even she did after all. The entire situation was quite a drastic change though, something that was going to take some getting used to. "I do like it though. I think it's nice here." She responded cheerily. "Do you like it here?" She wasn't fully sure what her brother's answer would be, he obviously would have a far longer adjustment period before he could settle in after all.

There was little need to hide the joy that overcame his expression as he loped forward with his younger sister, glad to be spending some time with her. In reality, it looked as though he was very much the younger one; his posture was carefree and the smile that laid neatly on his face was goofy and lopsided. And yet that didn't stop Anthem from feeling protective of her in his own way, even if she was the one that did most of the real protecting for him. His tail would continue to wag, a fluff of white fur swaying contentedly behind his medium-sized frame. He truly was a handsome man, not at all unlike his siblings who were quite beautiful -- but his personality was anything but serious, making him seem childlike and adorable, once his antics were understood and accepted. "New people," he noted simply, showing that he, too, thought it was different. The few he had met so far were very nice, but nothing like his family. Maybe once he spent more time with them, it would be just as good? "But nice, yes." His head would bob up and down slowly as they walked "Like Song's babies!" His exclamation came forth suddenly; his speech was often so disjointed, never moving gracefully from one topic to the next like most wolves did. "More family!" He hadn't seen them much but knew they were family, and so he loved them and wanted to see them more.

As a pup Novella had certainly loved Anthem's childlike manner, although older than them he had seemed to understand them more and rather than tell them not to do things like the other adults did, instead he would join in. Of course now she had come to realise that it wasn't simply because she had a brilliant big brother, there was more to it than that. That adoration certainly hadn't faded though, and Anthem was capable of far more than he or many others may have realised realised. Somewhere within Novella's mind there were worries about what she was going to do, but right now all of those serious topics had been pushed aside, and now a far more peaceful and cheerier wolf, much more like the normal Novella, was walking proudly beside her brother. Although he must have been feeling a little lonely as of late, it seemed it wasn't affecting Anthem too much, which of course Novella was glad to see. To be honest even she found that the new people would take a bit of getting used to. She had got on rather well with Ananke when they had met for that short time, though wasn't entirely sure where her thoughts lay upon Deteste. The scarred man had seemed determined to get Symphony in trouble after all, and in front the majority of the pack. Perhaps her sister may have made some sort of mistake, though there was no need to publicise it quite so much, truth be told she was a little worried about what would happen next though. Song's children certainly had been a good ground for peace in the family, even Howl who still hadn't shown his face again hadn't been able to show any hostility towards them. Novella had certainly found herself taking quite the liking to them too and Anthem clearly adored them. They needed to spend more time with their uncle Anthem in that case, for his benefit and their own, he may not have been the most responsible one to look after them, but that didn't mean for a second that he wasn't good with children. "Song's babies are great." She agreed happily. "Perhaps we can go find them later?"

Anthem Destruction was certainly different -- so different. He was a creature who seemed to have no real place in the world; he didn't fit in except with his family. And even if he was tolerated by some, even like, he would never be quite like anyone else. Luckily he was utterly oblivious of this, and instead was often infected with a childlike sense of joy when he ought to have felt anything but that. But spending time with his younger sister was no time for anything but happiness. " I like that," he exclaimed with obvious enthusiasm. He had seen some of her babies but didn't remember their names, but they were family and that was all that mattered. "But now we play?" A goofy grin enveloped his face, tail beginning to wag quite wildly behind him. He would halt in their walk, leaning his upper body down with his rump in the air, inviting her to play.

If any such thoughts ever found their way into her brother's mind Novella, in fact likely the entire family would have been rather horrified. It was technically the truth, there was no denying he was a little different and whilst others may have had opinions upon that, it was rather impossible for his family to care any more about him. A biased opinion but to them he was needed in the world, and there could never be enough joy and Novella at least had certainly found that he often brought a lot of it to them. Novella smiled at his response, not that she had really expected any other answer given his enthusiasm for the pups. They had all taken quite the liking to them though, even Howl she had noted had softened in the presence of the pups, the entire family had certainly taken quite the liking to them. They had the Anthem effect it seemed, Novella was certain each of them had found a way to bring a smile to her face. Her smile widened now at Anthem's request to play. Without even waiting for an answer he had dipped his body into a little bow, clearly eager for some kind of game. Such an invitation was certainly hard to ignore and she had no plans on disappointing her brother. Her own answer was given in action as she altered her course of direction and bounded towards her brother.

Anthem was a simple man -- all he ever required was food and water and shelter, and the company of his family. He was very much like a child in that way, easy to please, though his constant need for support and help could be a burden, even if it was one taken on willingly. Having play time with his sister was a welcome addition to his life, and he was grateful when those moments arose. His life had been void of much fun since they had left Ahlon. Symphony always seemed to be searching for herbs and Howl was, well, Howl. Somewhat serious and brooding, he was not always the kind that wanted to play with Anthem. But Novella seemed to be more willing to do so, and so he initiated the game gladly. He would take advantage of the moment of fun with her while he could. His goofy smile grew even wider as she started coming toward him, and he let out a harmless bark. "Chase?" he would inquire, but before waiting for a reply he would head in the opposite direction, tail waving freely behind him. He was not a graceful man, nor was he very fast, but he didn't understand that his siblings would often let him win in their games to make him feel a bit of pride. And so with as much speed as he could muster he would run from her, tongue lolling from his mouth as he began to pant, expecting her to follow close behind.

Upon meeting her nieces and nephew, Novella had certainly been rather intrigued to meet pups having never met anyone younger than herself before that. It had never really occurred to her beforehand that Anthem, although older than her was essentially an overgrown pup. She had always understood that her brother needed help, though never had she really thought to compare it to the same care that a pup required. Perhaps it was a rather big deal that he still needed such attention and it seemed always would, but she would be there for him. If any of her siblings needed her help she would stand by their side, it really had little to do with his differences. Like most wolves, the Destruction siblings had their own personalities. Novella was typically the carefree one, though a harsh reality had brought her down to earth a little more. That being said there was still no way the girl would deny her brother the chance to play. She may have known life wasn't entirely free of danger now, but it wasn't going to suddenly turn her all solemn and serious. She was most certainly happy to play with her brother. "Chase?" He questioned, and with that began to run. No answer was really needed as Novella simply took off after her brother. Indeed she played fairly, she certainly had more grace and speed than Anthem though she wouldn't use it to her advantage for his sake. It was more fun to let the game go on for a little longer anyway.

He was happy to spend some time with his sister. He was unaware that he could be needy and that his clinginess could be overwhelming at times, and so he was simply happy when his family seemed eager to play and snuggle with him when he wanted it. Anthem Destruction would continue forward, only occasionally turning to glance at his younger sister, who followed close behind. He began to pant as he increased his pace -- the feeling of his heart beating rapidly and his chest tightening was unpleasant, and so he would slow to a halt, tongue lolling freely from his parted jaws. "You win!" he announced happily, leaning to run his tongue over her cheek. "Food?" He would request softly. Anthem was not a dominant male, even with his siblings, but it was a fact that he could not hunt well -- something about how uncoordinated he was, and how upset he got when adrenaline would course through his veins. Hunting was not something he was comfortable with or was mentally capable of doing. He never questioned why his siblings would get the food for him; it was simply how it was, and he was okay with that.

The game was fun whilst it lasted, Anthem glancing over his shoulder every now and then with his balance fortunately remaining intact with each look. Suddenly though it was brought to an abrupt end as the silver marked wolf came to a halt. Novella eased smoothly into a stop, stepping up beside her brother, concerned for a brief moment, though it passed upon seeing Anthem's trademark smile returned quickly to his expression and she could see he was clearly fine, he'd just had enough of the game she supposed. Whilst there hadn't really been any obvious meaning to the game beyond a run, it seemed that Anthem felt he had lost. He took it well though, declaring his defeat honourably with sportmanship that was certainly to be admired. Novella gave him a little lick in return. "You did well." She informed him. "I think you might be getting faster." Perhaps not true, though he had stopped on his own terms and not for a lack of grace, praise was deserved for one reason then. To be honest she felt sympathy for her brother rather than annoyance when he had to request for care. It was indeed a little sad that he wasn't even able to hunt for himself. Not sure who had dropped by last, she was a little annoyed that they hadn't thought to leave him something just in case he got hungry considering he probably wouldn't just go and search for any of them. The emotion was hidden however and she simply gave a nod of her head. "Of course." She responded. Thinking back to the rock pools that Song had showed her upon a visit, Novella decided that perhaps it would be good to go there. Anthem could have a go at fishing without tiring himself any further. "Follow me." She informed him, nuzzling him lightly before setting off in the direction of the beach.

Anthem was not the best play partner, as he tended to be quite flighty in his interests. The man never really liked to exert himself too much; something about the feeling of adrenaline coursing through his veins made him feel uncomfortable, and the feeling of his heart pounding rapidly in his chest was unsettling. And so he had stopped quickly and announced his defeat, but Novella told him he was getting faster. He smiled proudly and licked her cheek gently again. Novella seemed happy to oblige to his request for food, and his smile would grow, his tail beginning to wag fiercely behind him. He grew quickly discontent at negativity, and when his siblings were outwardly happy, he seemed to flourish. She instructed him to follow, and he would do so gladly, padding along beside her as they headed toward the beach.

ooc: I know Anthem's duty is down as fisher but wasn't sure how good he was at it, or whether he knew he could fish yet so thought this would be an opportunity for him to try in an easier place.

Whilst Song had explained to Novella about the usefulness of the pools of water the tide left behind, the young girl still had no idea what the tide actually was. She probably would have been a little more cautious about the idea if she did, though there was no doubt in her mind that it was a wonderful plan, the only risk would be those crabs that she herself had very nearly ran the risk of getting pinched by. It was very fortunate then as they reached the beach that the tide was currently out leaving the pools with the trapped fish that made for an easy meal. Happily she made her way to the first pool, peering inside to spot a fish swimming around. It wasn't the largest, in fact it was rather small though was still good enough for her to explain to Anthem about the little pools. "OK Anthem, these are tide pools. The fish get trapped in them and it's easier to catch them here." Novella explained as she looked up from the pool and to her brother. Lowering her head to the water, she watched the fish carefully for a moment and when the opportunity arose, her head shot down to the water and jaws wrapped around the fish. Stepping back from the pool, she dropped it away from the water and looked back to her brother. "See, caught one already. You can have a go if you like too."

Anthem was beyond content to follow alongside her -- always happy to follow the guidance and control of his siblings. He was a meek man by nature, arguably without a mean bone in his entire body; he would do what they want for the most part and was very happy to do so. His joy was obvious, given the gentle wagging of his tail behind her, and the slight bounce that crept into his step. Before long they reached the beach. The water was lower than usual, and Anthem marveled at the feeling of the soaked sand against the pads of his paws. Once again his smile grew, fleeting but genuine as his lips curled upward in a wide grin. Soon they drew up near a small pool of water. Novella explained there were fish in them, and they could catch them easily. He had caught fish before, but wasn't very good at it -- though it certainly proved a fun distraction in the middle of the day. "Have to put my head in water?" he questioned, but she demonstrated the feat by watching carefully and then dunking her head into the pool to snag one with her jaws. He giggled with delight at what seemed like a huge accomplishment, applauding her vocally for catching a fish already. Anthem would wiggle his body down to lay his belly on the earth, tail constantly waving behind him. He would focus intensely on the water, his eyes scanning the pool before he found his target. It was one of the larger fish in the pool, and he watched for a long, long while with intent shining in his golden eyes. Suddenly he would lurch forward, head dipping into the water as he attempted to snatch the fish. By some great stroke of luck, he grabbed the thing by its tail and swung his head out of the water, feeling strange as it writhed back and forth. Surprised by the thing's motion, so strong for a thing so small, he abruptly dropped to Novella and yelped. (That works! <3 Truthfully I was considering changing it to 'denmother' but I don't know yet!)

The beach had once seemed so odd to Novella, Ahlon after all hadn't been close to the sea and she had spent the majority of her life not even knowing that such places even existed. Her travels had quickly corrected that issue, but it was only though living here that her education on the area was really starting, and clearly she still had a lot to learn, not aware of what the tide actually was just yet, all she knew was it somehow created these little pools that made fishing so much easier. "Have to put my head in water?" Anthem questioned, apparently already interested in the little pools and the fish within them. Busy concentrating the fish, she hadn't noticed how intently her brother was watching her until she had caught it. Then came Anthem's applause which only brought a smile to Novella's face. He was certainly easily amused by things, it was indeed rather sweet. Without much encouragement, Anthem moved closer to the pool and lowered himself to the ground as he watched the fish. She watched him carefully, just in case he needed any help, though he certainly seemed to have observed her well enough. Head plunged and the success of his catch brought a wide smile to Novella's face, proud of his achievement. "Well done-" She began to congratulate him, though her brother's sudden yelp and release of the fish cut off her words. Not entirely sure what had happened she simply lowered her head to nuzzle him in comfort. "What's wrong? You did so well." Her tone was a little softer now, though she still had to finish praising him, even if the catch hadn't ended as smoothly as it started.

Anthem was unused to such coordinated movement, so unaccustomed to such a complex feat, that catching the fish and feeling it thrash against his mouth had been somehow surprising to him and he had been briefly started. Often his reactions were dramatic, especially when he was faced with something new and unfamiliar. He was a man who didn't do well with change, even something as tiny as catching fish for the first time. But his expression would morph quickly as she leaned to nuzzle him, and he felt his tensed body relax. "Dunno," he said simply. She said he did good, so he believed her, but he didn't really want to do it again. His eyes drifted, watching the fish, whose movements had ceased entirely. He would return the nuzzles happily before leaning to snag the fish again and begin eating it, tearing the flesh from bone carefully. He tilted his head to smile at her, happy for food and his sister's company. "Yummy food."