some things stay the same

Maverick was angry. He was downright furious with Chimera for letting Ashen fall apart so easily. Generations of work and history, just gone... washed away like refuse in the aftermath of a storm. All the work Venom and her family had put into establishing their empire had no matter in the end when it came to the carelessness of her brother, and just as easily as Venom had handed the pack over, Chimera had let it be decimated. Ruling and power had never mattered to Maverick, but Ashen had been important to Venom, had been the home to their children, and now it was all gone because of him. If sickness didn't claim the degenerate wolf, then Maverick vowed he would do it himself if for no reason other than giving the failure of a Klein the just desserts he deserved.

In the aftermath, Mav had put on his bravest face and tried to hold things together for Venom. She had recovered from her depression only to go right back into it when she found out what Chimera had done, only this time he didn't know how to help her. There was no throne for her to return to, their ancestral home had been taken up by strangers yet again, and their family was split and scattered across the world. Mav knew Rebel had gone down south to the Hallows, which brought him some comfort knowing she'd be safe with their friends, but Rogue, Renegade, and Rampage had all gone off the grid. He had no way of knowing if his sons were all right or not, where they were, or if they were even still alive. He just had to hope that they'd found their own way like Rebel had.

Returning to the cave he had made into a makeshift den for him and Venom, Maverick prowled through the dark of the night, a pair of hares caught in his jaws. His entire life's mission had become keeping his mate alive. He brought her food and tried to get her to eat, tried to get her to do anything besides lay in bed, and when that failed he was content to just lie there with her. They had never gotten to have the proper royal wedding they had dreamed of, and now it seemed like they never would, which broke his heart on her behalf more than anything. He'd have to find some way to still give her the dream wedding she'd always wanted...

Stepping into the quiet of the den, Mav's claws clicked on the stone floor, announcing his presence. He strode through the tunnels to their bed, seeing Venom still lying there where he'd left her. His heart sank and he sighed. Coming over to the bed, Maverick dropped the hares down beside her—dinner in bed—and then moved close to nuzzle her neck, careful to avoid her quills hidden in her scruff. "I brought you something to eat," he spoke softly to her, deep voice rumbling in the quiet and the dark. Hopefully she'd feel up to eating tonight. "How are you feeling, love?"

"Venom & Maverick"