All grown up

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry Vanta, that loss will never leave you” he said quietly, speaking from experience. He hated that they lost her as well. That Vanta and her litter had barely gotten to know the wolf that had shaped all of their lives. He held her a little tighter to him. She was so big now, she had grown into her full size. His equal in height, despite her tightly curled posture. He rested his head gently on her back, breathing out a soft sigh over her fur. “There's nothing to forgive, Vanta. You're okay, you're alive, that's all that matters.” He kissed her forehead, and drew back a little, taking her in. 


She drew so many similarities to her mother, but the differences were stark too. Her crystal eyes and fur… and what was this? He taped gently beneath her chin. “These are new. You must tell me of your adventures, Vanta. You never picked a den before you left, but we can borrow Morts for a little while and get you some food and perhaps you'll tell me of your adventures?” He asked her softly. A stab of pain at the realisation she didn't know he had taken a mate. It would be sudden to her, unexpected. A pain he wished to spare her from.