It was the knolls, but the knolls as anyone who had once been part of Imperium would have recognized it. The scents, the border markers, the bison, every rock and tree and den was exactly as it had been at Imperium's height. The only thing missing was the wolves themselves. Some of them faded in and out, the ones who had passed into the afterlife or the dreamers sometimes finding their way there by accident. But one wolf remained constant, frolicking through the lands and the memories that represented the first time she'd ever been happy, had ever belonged somewhere to feel like it was home. Black and white with mismatched gold and purple eyes, with the tell-tale sheen to her fur that she'd passed on to her descendants... and the trademark smirk that she'd borne in life. She popped into being this time outside the den where she'd raised her pups, a den that had long since fallen in in the real world. She could do that now, just flicker from place to place and time to time with a thought. Sometimes it was a time after Imperium when she and Valen and her kids had been the only inhabitants in what had been Imperium's territory. Sometimes it was when it was just her and Chaos, though those times were bittersweet and lonely. Today she was nostalgic for Imperium at its height, not long after she'd had her older litter. She could practically smell their sweet milky puppy smell, could see the little pawprints of pups who were not there and wouldn't be unless they dreamed themselves there - and then they'd likely be pups, because that's what would be most closely tied to those times for them. Cascade, who lived in this world now, had greater control and chose this age, when she was in her own prime, for herself. Even when she jumped to the times when she was old in her memories, she'd never thought of herself that way. Even when her body aged and faded, in her mind she'd still been the swift, confident, strong young woman she'd been when her pups were young and she was learning to love. Of course, that's what had gotten her killed, but damn it had been a good way to go. Thinking of it now, she grinned. She did feel bad about Valen and Chaos having to deal with her being dead but at least they could feel good knowing she'd lived a hell of a life, and she hadn't wasted away from sickness and caused years of stress and sadness before she'd gone. It had been quick and clean and now she was happy here. Lonely, but happy. She didn't want to see Valen or any of her kids here for years and years, yet. Let them live good long lives in the real world before she got to spend time with them again, she'd rather be lonely now than know they'd died young. Meandering a bit from the den, she splashed one paw in a mud puddle that looked just as if it had only moments before been occupied by puppies doing that exact same thing. It made her smile to remember. She had her memories, and she'd wait for any more than that. "Talk" "You" Think

In the blink of an eye Valentine was transported seemingly back in time via sleep. He stood young and proud in the heart of his kingdom and when at last he had drank his fill of the surrounding view, he moved and found himself graced with the fluid movements of his youth. Reveling in this feeling, he took off at an easy, ground-eating lope across the knolls. He'd have held that pace for some time had not a familiar dark form arrested his movements as swiftly as if he'd struck a rock wall. Cascade? Confusion contorted his youthful features. After marveling at the springiness of his joints he hadn't given his youthfulness a second thought, but the sight of a dear, dead friend and the improbability of that was too great to gloss over. Perhaps he'd died and that was why he found himself in his favorite place with his best friend. For whatever reason, this thought didn't alarm him. He didn't think to ask himself questions about who was missing or why he was here, no, Valentine, for once, was content to simply be. "For us," he said as he casually bounced over to Cascade as if they hadn't been separated by death. "I pictured an afterlife that was a little ah...warmer, you know?" He was glad he'd been wrong about the flames. They would have made it harder for him to enjoy not being old again. "Talk" "You" Think

The sound of paws bounding through the vegetation was startling, and her head swung to see the tall, young Valentine bounce up to her. Her teeth showed in a wide, pleased grin. "Valen!" She curved coquettishly towards him, rubbing against his forelegs and down his side in the same cat-like manner she'd always done. Damn, she'd missed simple physical contact, and she reveled in the feeling. She also very carefully didn't consider whether or not he'd died - sad if he had, but she'd get to be with him. Happy if he was simply dreaming, but she'd lose him again when he awoke. She didn't want to think about it, she just wanted to enjoy his company. "Psh," she said in response to his comment on the afterlife. "I figure the afterlife is what you think you deserve and has nothing to do with what other people think you deserve. I," she added loftily, "have never done a single bad thing in my life." Her teeth flashed again in her trademark, wicked grin. "Now whether other people think I did... well, that's their problem, isn't it? How's life? Did you ever find yourself a sweet young thing to run away with and take care of you?" She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. Sure, he might have been getting old even when she was alive, but that didn't mean she hadn't seen him as the same strong, virile man he'd always been. He deserved to have gotten some action with a pretty little playtoy before he laid his old bones down to die.

"I have never done a single bad thing in my life." Valentine snorted and the laughed hardily at this. He knew she was joking, but that didn't lessen how funny he thought the statement to be. Valentine tried to throw a paw over Cascade's shoulder and pull her into a side hug. Even though he knew she didn't like mushy displays of affection, he'd missed her terribly and couldn't resist. After the sting of Rhythm's absence had faded Valentine had thought that he and Cascade would spend their last years gamboling about Boreas causing trouble and taking names, and to an extent they had. But it had all ended too soon. His mirth faded as he was reminded of the world of the living and his place in it. Valentine pursed his lips and was quiet. He wished he could laugh with her, to flippantly say yes and tell her about the cute little thing that kept him warm on cold nights, but that wasn't how he was spending his retirement. Not that he was complaining. He had - they had, really - reached a point in their lives where they'd all just assumed that those who were gone would stay gone. They'd done what they could to move on and written new futures for themselves. "I haven't. And I suppose there's still time to," he was just going to assume he wasn't dead until proven otherwise, "But Rhythm probably wouldn't like that very much." He shot Cascade a sly look, eager to see 1) if she put two and two together and 2) her reaction to the knowledge that Rhythm was back. "Talk" "You" Think

Valentine threw his paw over her - not difficult, considering the difference in their heights - and drew her into a hug - also not difficult, since as he did so she threw herself against him partly to revel in the sensation and partly in a playful and likely ultimately doomed attempt to topple the much larger Valentine. When his words sunk in, she faltered a step before she recovered herself. A surprising flicker of anger seared through her - Rhythm? She'd dared come back after the trouble she'd caused Valentine and his family? Her disappearance had been what caused Valentine to abandon his pack to find her and his children. It had been what had dropped Imperium in Cascade's incredibly unsuitable paws, and she had faltered and failed Valentine, and the pack had dissolved. Cas had never really forgiven herself for that, and she'd never forgiven Rhythm for causing the whole fiasco either. So to know that she was back, that she would be once again holding Valentine back from what he was and could be, well... But for whatever inexplicable reason, Valentine loved Rhythm. He'd never really allowed any insult to her, and except for a brief time when Rhythm had taken a slave's side over his it had seemed she could do no wrong in his eyes. It had taken Cascade a long time to earn back his trust and friendship after she'd misstepped by kidnapping Rhythm from Abaven behind his back. The last thing she wanted was to open her admittedly filter-less mouth and waste what brief time she had with him angry at her, so Cascade bit down hard on her memories, choked back whatever comments she might have made, and just flashed him a grin. "That never stopped you before, did it?" she said teasingly, sliding up to nip playfully at his ear. "Hell just claim the pretty little thing is your nurse and play the feeble old man. Might even gain sympathy points from Rhythm, and what Rhythm doesn't know won't hurt her." She kept her tone light and joking for Valentine's benefit. Dude was probably getting enough drama in his life already if Rhythm was around again, without his dreams adding to it. She lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "I hear there's this really fun boat where all the cool kids bring their dates to get frisky." She winked. "Talk" "You" Think

He really should have expected Cascade to go and ruin his moment by trying to topple him, but he hadn't. Because of this she very nearly succeeded in unbalancing him by pushing against his grounded foreleg. A tight grip on her shoulder kept him from wobbling and a playful, chastising nip directed towards her ear would hopefully keep her from trying again. If she did, though, he would be ready to take her down with him for old time's sake. Her replies, while amusing, didn't have the desired impact. Instead, they reminded him of where he and Rhythm were now and it saddened him. He felt old and grey, and in the weird dreamscape, he became old and grey; looking just like he did in the world of the living. He chuckled and even to his own ears the sound was weird and mirthless. Mentally he shook himself. His time in this dreamscape was too precious to waste on sadness. Valentine decided to change tactics and tell her about something that might cheer her up. "I'll keep that in mind for later, but presently, I'm afraid I'm too busy seeking revenge." He let the last statement hang in the air for a moment in the hopes he'd draw her in. "You see," he said candidly, "Rhythm and Rhyme were taken captive by slavers. They took Rhythm's sight, made her birth their bastards," These statements should have been spat with rage, but he was determined to keep his tone light and draw Cascade in. "And, well, you know how I feel about disrespect. They stole from me. They owe me." Valentine sniffed and then tried to jostle Cascade with the arm that was over her shoulder. "And you, you little jerk, had to up and die on me right as things got interesting." While he had more to say, Valentine got a little choked up and had to pause to swallow the grief that had briefly ruined his lackadaisical tone. "Now who's gonna neuter those fuckers with me, huh?" "Talk" "You" Think

Something she'd said tilted Valentine's mood, and his form shifted slightly. The powerful body going lean and grizzled, the wolf in the prime of his youth aging in a moment to a tired old man. Cascade pressed herself against him in an instinctive bid to comfort him, though she was at a loss as to what could have drawn such a reaction from him. His humorless laugh made her pelt ripple, and if she could have made him happy again by tearing apart whatever had made him so saddened, she would have. Mismatched eyes blinked up at him, intent and inquisitive, and she wasn't left waiting on an answer to her unspoken question.

Eek.

Though he kept his voice light and playful as he explained that he was seeking revenge, and her ears did prick with interest - Valen never had been one to sit around moping when he could do something about his problems, or at least not in the time she'd known him, so she thoroughly approved of his determination to put paid to the ones who'd caused him hurt - she knew how he felt about Rhythm. Never really understood, had always been vaguely amused and confused by it, but she'd known how important Rhythm was to him. He was Cascade's best friend, and Rhythm was his love. She'd seen the way he'd looked at Rhythm, how protective he'd been of her. She'd seen how lost he'd been when she vanished. She'd been there to support him while he pieced himself back together and started to heal from Rhythm's loss.

So when he told her what had happened, despite his tone of voice Cascade knew how badly it was likely to be affecting him. Someone had taken his mate, the one woman he was in love with, the woman he was so protective of and abused and raped her for years without him even being aware of it. He'd tried to move on with his life and the whole while she'd been being tortured. Hell, if he didn't focus on the idea of getting revenge, if he stopped long enough to really think about it he'd probably get crushed under the weight of feeling guilty over it.

Cascade refused to add to that. Refused to let the mood shift so drastically when he clearly needed a respite from the emotions of the real world. So she gave a gasp of mock outrage and chewed on his neck fur instead. "Well that's just poor timing," she groused in agreement. "I haven't gotten in on a good revenge scheme in ages! I suppose you're getting the kids in on it too so I'll be the only one who doesn't get any fun. Typical. Everyone waits until I'm dead to go off on shenanigans!"

She growled lightly and tugged on the fur of his ruff, then let out a soft purring laugh as she reached up further to nibble and tug gently at his ear. "You know, I always thought age suited you. The whole wise old warrior thing was sexy as hell on you. Looking like this, being adorned with the blood of those fallen slavers can only make you more... appealing." She made a faint noise of approval deep in her chest

If Valentine allowed himself to really think about what he'd lost when Cascade died his grief during this reunion would have been harder to contain. None, not one other wolf on the planet - not just Boreas and Auster, but the whole fucking planet - understood Valentine as well as Cascade did. None shared what they shared and none meant to him what she did. Rhythm reminded him to be good, reminded him of the light, and kept him from straying too far from it during the Imperium years, but Cascade? Cascade let him be him. She accepted him flaws and all and never once asked him to change. "Everyone waits until I'm dead to go off on shenanigans!" At this he harrumphed. His expression was equally playful even though a small knot of grief still sat heavy in his throat. "Think of this as a chance to take shenanigans to a whole new level. Consider all of the haunting you can do now. I," he sniffed, "For one think you owe me a haunting of my choice-" His ears flushed as Cascade nibbled on one of them, and he rushed to finish his snarky statement. "But I think we can discuss the details later." He'd missed this. "Think so?" Absentmindedly he rubbed her shoulder with his paw as his gaze rolled heavenward. Valentine's expression was thoughtful as he mused, "Like those coyotes in Imperium, they won't know what hit them. It really is a shame you won't be there. Who's going to celebrate with me on the battlefield, hm?" There was truth to his teasing. None would appreciate the destruction as much as Cascade would have. "Talk" "You" Think