Away from home, that's where he was, he was so close to Fiori territory he could taste it. Part of it hurt him, the other, was okay now. It had been some time, and the man had found his place at least somewhat in Yfir. After all, it wasn't like he had anywhere else to go anymore. The male aimlessly picked at the dirt with a paw. For some time, he had something to think about. He truly was his father's son wasn't he? It made his nostrils flare just thinking about it, he raised his head and watched as the wind traveled through his fur. The one eyed man flicking his tail. His dark ears swiveled to the left as he watched a small doe watch him before jumping off. It seemed a herd of deer had made this island their home. "I'm alone now, but I suppose that's alright." he let a soft sigh escape his lips as he stepped forward to the shores. His green eye would watch the fish in the waters and he would see where the land connected on the other side of the massive body of water. Ignoring the Fiori lands however, he would concentrate on this island. He was here to clear his head after all. ?I speak?

Athena stood on the edge of the water that made up one far edge of Fiori's territory. Most of it was river, but along this coast it was just open water. She saw an island in the distance easily and a little bit of curiosity gnawed at her. She and her little - well, not so little any more - family had been living here for quite a while now, but she had hardly explored the lands around her home at all. Sure, maybe it was a little bit extreme to think that she should have even explored the islands nearby, but the thought still stood. She was just about to turn back to go to the den she shared with Amalia and their youngest adopted pup when the wind caught her fur and with it brought a painfully familiar scent. Her ears perked and she stopped, looking back over her shoulder toward the direction the wind had come from. Vereux? Surely he wouldn't risk being so close to Firori with how sore Amalia had been about seeing him last time. Was she imagining things? She had to be sure... She turned back toward the water and started swimming across to the island. She shook out her thick coat once she climbed onto the opposite shore to free it of as much of the water as she could before she looked around at the island around her. After a few moments of carefully sniffing the air she caught Vereux's scent again, this time much stronger. So he was here after all. She wasn't sure how to feel about this knowledge now that she had it, but either way she followed the scent until she spotted his slate blue form. She stopped a fair distance away to steady her emotions before she padded closer, stopping again a few feet away. She was still behind him so she wasn't sure if he had noticed her presence yet or not. "Hello, Vereux," she said softly. "Talk" "You" Think

Half his body was simply ignoring it completely really, the only way for him to function maybe even normally was to act like none of it had ever happened. Vereux realized now how much it sucked for his mental health to have been so dependent on others and not himself. Now he was having a mid life crisis when he should have been well on his way. His body urged to see his old family again, they probably had completely forgotten about him. As for his sister in law, well she, no he shook his head. Stop thinking, he was here to figure himself out if anything at all. His paws curled around the dirt, so tempted to raise his head to the sky and scream, but he couldn't and he wouldn't. Though, as a scent so painstakingly familiar filled his nose, he would freeze in his tracks. Single emerald eye staring straight out in front of him, eyes locked on a small doe who was grazing. His fears would slightly be confirmed when she spoke, Vereux felt his heart drop as the doe bolted away in another direction. He would turn his head to the right so he could see her, trying to remain calm which he supposed she was probably doing the same. Perhaps he should have chosen a different place to relax himself, but this was good as well. Maybe this would help him figure out who he was supposed to be. Whether she enjoyed it or not he was still her brother, and a part of him wanted to make up for what he lost as a mate and be a better family member. "Nice day isn't it sister?" he would respond softly. He wouldn't step on old wounds, he just..... wanted things to be normal. He looked at the tree tops swaying in the wind. "I came here to clear my head, and maybe catch a doe if I could, but when I got here I realized how stupid the idea was. I can't drag a doe back onto shore for my pack, or eat it totally on my own." Vereux chuckled, he hadn't thought his trip through. ?I speak?

speech,

"I suppose it is," she responded as she settled onto her haunches and tucked her tail neatly around her. She couldn't help but feel guarded as she looked at her brother. Not in the sense that she thought he would hurt her physically. She had never had that fear around him. However, the same couldn't be said for her emotions. She watched him carefully while he explained his presence here with what seemed to be a bit of forced cheerfulness. "There does seem to be a bit of half-bakedness to your plan there, brother," she agreed with a soft chuckle.

For a moment silence stretched out between them while she tried to figure out what to say next. She had so many things she wanted to ask, but she would hate for their first meeting in what felt like ages to go poorly. She knew he had been through so much in the last couple of seasons, but where did she even begin? "How have you been, Vereux? Did you find a new pack to call home?" She finally settled with starting on the most basic questions. She really wanted to feel out how this conversation would go... she just didn't know what to expect any more.

Of course, he couldn't deny the pain of losing everything he had built his life upon. It was what he got for trying to depend on someone though. When he himself needed responsibility he lacked in that aspect. His scarred neck would swivel towards her, seeing how reserved she was as a respectable man Vereux kept his distance. At this point, he wanted nothing more than to be her brother the brother that she deserved. He knew in the back of his heart deep down, he would sacrifice anything for her. Even if it meant betraying those vows set by Yfir. Yet he highly doubted Athena any longer needed him. So for now, he was set on being loyal, and perhaps getting stronger to support his pack. "I've been alright..... recently Ebony was handed over to Katja, Kassander could no longer lead. It's Yfir now and that's the pack I am a part of." Vereux would answer nodding his head. "How have you and Amalia been, Arian too. I hope the world is treating you well." he did hope that she was happy. Her happiness mattered, Arian's happiness mattered. The fragile girl was something else as he had last seen her. At least this time he wasn't dying all skin and bones. If Kassander hadn't took him in Vereux most certainly would have died. Part of his brain wondered what it would have been like if that had actually happened. Yet, heaven could not claim him yet. He was young, and supposed he had something else to do in these lands whatever it was he didn't know. ?I speak?

Athena listened while Vereux explained where he had been since she had last seen him. At the very least she was glad to see that he had improved quite a bit since then, at least physically. It was good to know that he wasn't alone in the wilderness and at least had a place to call home. Even if she wasn't quite sure how to feel about him at the moment he was still her brother and of course she cared about him in that way. If nothing else she wanted him to be settled somewhere. It was interesting to hear that Katja was back in power, but just in a passing sense. She hadn't stepped out of Fiori in so long that the outside world seemed very far away for some reason. He asked about her, Amalia, and Arian and she started off with the easiest of the three to answer. "Well Arian left to take over her own pack again. As far as I know she has been doing well." She paused and sighed softly. "I've been alright I suppose and I'm not sure what's going on with Amalia. She's thrown herself into her healing studies, which is great, but it just means I don't see much of her. She's just been very... distant. I feel like something is wrong, but she hasn't talked to me about it. Not yet at least." She shrugged a little and tried to smile. She knew none of that was really his business, but there was a time in their lives when he had been her closest friend. It felt natural to talk to him about these things. Eager to change the topic away from her and her wife, she smiled a little more genuinely and added, "The boys are doing well. Bacchus and Tiburtius are huge, several inches taller than us at the very least. I haven't seen much of Vitus recently, but he usually comes back around pretty frequently. I'm trying to kick Archelus's butt into gear, but he's a good boy all the same. Amalia and I adopted two girls as well, Ritselli and Absinthe. They're sweethearts." Some of the tension had fallen from her shoulders and she sat a little more calmly now though she was still far from open and welcoming. She tried to feel out what their relationship was now and she was positive there were complicated puzzles that were still much easier than this. Speech Thought Others

Vereux would take note of her body language very carefully. He had always been hypersensitive, so he would try to use that to his advantage. A small smile grew on his face of joy when he heard about Arian. That frail girl an alphess? It seemed almost like a lie, but being an adravendi it was no doubt that she was probably doing just fine. Though the smile changed to a bit of a frown when she spoke of her and Amalia with their problems. Of course he knew it was much of his business but he had to give a soft smile and a bit of his insight. "I'm certain the two of you will figure it out soon. Amalia is a intelligent girl, the two of you love each other so time will run in your favor." it may not have been welcome. But he wanted to try and reassure her, things would probably be okay between them. She went on to talk about their sons, though they weren't entirely his. He hadn't been there in their lives, Athena and Amalia were practically the only parents they had but now they were adults. It was like, they no longer belonged in their lives regardless. Though she and Amalia had adopted two little girls, the thought simply made him smile. "Oh Athena that's great I'm sure the two of them are adorable." his tail flicked. He would understand his feelings now, she was still trying to figure them out but here he was wrapping his brain around it. He had been consumed with the thought that he needed her, but he needed to not need her. "Athena.... I want to apologize. For everything, I've been a fool and only recently have I been looking over my life and what I've really done. I'd like to be in your life again, not right away, not until your comfortable. But, as your brother, the brother I was meant to be. I've been through a lot and I know my heart can't handle never seeing you again but if you don't want to see me I won't push you." Vereux would finally say to her, dipping his head. He wasn't asking for forgiveness, maybe it was just. A chance to start over. "We most definitely, aren't children anymore." ?I speak?

Athena smiled a little when Vereux assured her that they would figure it out. It was nice to hear someone besides herself say it, no matter who it was. At the end of the day he was still her brother and his reassurance and comment about how their adopted daughters were sure to be adorable... it was just really nice to hear. It helped her relax even more. Things had been rocky between the two of them for so long now that it was refreshing to just calm down and catch up. They would never be like they were once upon a time, but they could be better at least. Athena watched him carefully while he gave a heart-felt appology and explained what he wanted to be in her life. "You're definately right about that. We are certainly not children any more." She smiled a little and paused as she considered him for a moment and what he was asking for. She didn't want to cut him off completely. He was one of the very few of their family that she knew where was now and her only full sibling still around. She couldn't give that up, no matter how much it was sure to bother Amalia. "I would like for you to be around. Not right away, like you said, but I would like that. Maybe once I've smoothed things over with Amalia we can see each other more frequently, brother." She smiled a little wider and her tail waved slowly behind her. "It's hard being in Fiori sometimes, you know. Don't get me wrong, I love being here and I'm so greatful for the home that it gave me and Amalia and the boys. Amalia has plenty of family here with her siblings and mother and then of course just all of our children. Epiphron has even been more accepting of the boys as her grandchildren than I had ever expected. But... It's hard because none of my blood family is here besides my children and I still feel like there is still some kind of weird tension between me and Pip. And now all of this with Amalia..." She trailed off into silence and sighed with a little shake of her head. "Talk" "You" Think

Some sort of stress would fly out the window with her words, Vereux felt utter joy in these moments. The one Armada he had been close to was his sister, of course he and Irune for a moment however she..... had broken his heart at one point and it wasn't something he could entirely ignore. However when he thought about it, he supposed he had done the same to Athena - to both her and her wife Amalia. Vereux had married the two himself, it would have been foolish to think even if he had been there that it would have worked any other way. Though, his happiness strayed for a moment when Athena spoke about Epiphron in Fiori. He sighed a little calmly, he kind of knew how it felt. "Armada's have a difficult time fitting in with adravendi's. It was only by chance that I and Arian became friends. However if Pip is anything like her daughter she has a kind heart. Perhaps more over time the two of you will get along more. The important thing is to think positive to look for a silver lining even if you think there isn't one." Vereux would have to think for a moment. Was something wrong with Amalia. It alarmed him if only a little, it was none of his business regardless but he considered her a friend in the past. "It may not be fair coming from me but. You must tell Amalia she has a strength no other wolf possesses. She is one of a kind for certain, if I've ever seen two wolves that work to well together it is you and Amalia. I wish for the best for the two of you. Whatever it is you are going through." Vereux was alone, but somehow giving advice and trying to make others happy was where he found his joy. He didn't entirely fit in Yfir, but he was trying rather than running away. ?I speak?