It felt a bit haunting to be back in Boreas. A sigh left him as he looked around the plateau. The kids were all tucked in for the night. Getting them to go to sleep had been a challenge, but they finally settled down. The sun wasn't quite all the way below the horizon just yet and he needed every moment of quiet in its rays he could get. He sat facing the setting sun, keeping one ear tipped backward to listen for any movement from the makeshift den he had found for them to use for the night. As he watched the sky darken with reds and purples he slowly let his eyes close as his throat tightened around a lump that was forming there. His ears flattened against his head for a moment while he tried to draw in a slow breath through his nose to calm himself down again. He hadn't had much of a chance to process it all. Before he had really gotten a chance to get over Sere's death, or really even the disappearance of their family, he had found Lillian. She had been his distraction. Then came the pups. He had never expected to be a father and now... here he was. Lillian was gone and now he was left trying to be a father. Lillian was a natural at being a mother. She had been so wonderful to them. He couldn't tell if he was doing the same. He sighed again and slowly opened his eyes. It was then that a strangely familiar scent caught his attention. He froze still for a moment, thinking that he might just be imagining it. Surely that wasn't too much of a stretch. Being back in these lands after all this time, losing Lillian, dealing with the kids. That was a lot of stress. Wouldn't that be more than enough reason to imagine a scent? Talk You Think

Slow down, won't you stay here a minute more. I know you want to walk through the door, but it's all too fast. The young girl was rail thin by now, her ribs clearly visible through her sagging skin and fur. Her face was gaunt, her once bright silver eyes were dull and misty. But she was here, she had finally made it. She almost didn't make it through the winter, but spring was here at last. Dragging her paws as her tail sagged between her fire marked legs, she didn't even bother to look where she was going. A touch of a smile spread across her lips at the sight of grass, true green grass that had already started to appear. Flopping down on her side, she curled up and greedily breathed in the scent of it all. Spring, she had made it. It had taken awhile for her to make her way out of the north, but now that she was free she didn't care to ever return there. Ever. When she found Phoenix she was going to beat the crap out of him. Ashe's smile faded as her ears pulled backwards, a soft growl rattling in her throat. She had a feeling that he had done this on purpose, that he had found his way down here and hadn't even bothered to come and find her again. Well then, damn him! She could make it on her own. Now that she was here, she would be able to find food again and get herself back to a healthy shape. She had been alone for so long now that the possibility of someone else helping her was out of the question. She had only had herself to hunt for, to make sure she got up each morning. Why would someone magically come now to rescue her? Sighing, she lifted her head from the ground and looked towards the sky as the sun began to set. Ashelynn frowned slightly, she had enjoyed the feeling of an actual warm sun on her gray fur. Sticking the tip of her tongue out at the fading sun, she rested her head on her outstretched legs. She had no idea that she had company, downwind and tucked just out of sight. Let's make it last a little while, I pointed to the sky and now you wanna fly "SPEAK"

It took him several moments, but he finally forced himself back to his paws. If he was imagining this scent then surely it would have left him by now. But instead it just grew stronger as the wind picked up for a moment and blew it more in his direction. He swallowed and tried to calm himself a bit before he padded forward to follow the scent, making a quick glance back over his shoulder to make sure the pups were still tucked away before he went on. He wouldn't go far of course, but he just couldn't let this chance slip away. Soon enough Ashelynn's gray form came into view and Solaris stopped in his tracks again. The last time he had seen his niece she had just been a tiny pup. Now here she was, practically a full grown adult. She had to be at least a year old now, but he couldn't think about that for long. The worry and the guilt that slammed into him at the sight of Ashelynn's thin, malnourished form knocked all the other thoughts from his head. "You're the only one left. Don't be a stranger to these puppies." That had been Sere's last words to him. And here he was, a complete stranger to this girl. And where was her brother? Why were they not looking out for eachother? Where was the woman that had promised to look after them? He forced himself forward so that he could come around to face her, making sure to give her a comfortable distance. He shouldn't have left. He should have stayed with them. "Ashelynn," he said softly, realizing as he said it that she probably would have no idea who he was. He cleared his throat while he tried to think of something to say. "Um... My name is Solaris. I'm... well, I'm your uncle. I know this is weird and maybe you won't believe me. I just... I can't believe I found you." He stopped himself from rambling and waited for some kind of reaction from her. He tried his best to keep his gaze on hers so he wouldn't look at her ribs and thin form. He was already trying to think of where he could find some food for her. He was going to have to hunt for something for the kids anyway so perhaps he could find something big enough to feed all of them. Talk You Think