"You come to me with Scars on your wrist. You tell me this will be the last night Feeling like this." "I just came to say good bye Didn't want you to see me cry" "I'm fine" The days kept passing, and each day he could feel his strength fading. The once hardened warrior was practically a shell of his former self, barely holding on for the sake of being there for his family. He had much to think about in the waning hours of the night and he knew dawn would be approaching soon. Most of his time since the eruption had been spent sleeping, and he felt bad he hadn't been able to spend much time with his grandkids. He felt ashamed of that, his lack of presence with them...while he tried, he couldn't keep his strength up anymore... "But I know it's a lie" In the darkest hour of the night, Zell found himself walking across the valley towards Torin's den. He knew Kairi's was close to there to, his wayward daughter recently choosing to den close to her brother for comfort. She had been denning near him, but he urged her to be closer to her brother because he didn't want her to see him as much in his deteriorating state. The half-blind warrior moved at a slow pace, his heart pounding with the effort of walking. He himself had chosen to keep his den near the borders, but now he wondered if that had been a bad idea considering the effort it took trying to reach them now. "This is the last night You'll spend alone Look me in the eyes So I know you know I'm everywhere You want me to be" He now wished he hadn't asked her to move. He wished he had asked both of his remaining kids to stay nearby...but of course, his pride had made that choice. He didn't want them to see him like this, but he felt the closer he got to the inevitable, he yearned for their presence. And because of his pride, he was now forcing himself to use the last of his strength to make it to them. Not wanting to feel so alone anymore. He'd been alone long enough... "The last night You'll spend alone I'll wrap you in my arms And I won't let go I'm everything You need me to be" He wished he had been there more. He wished he had shown them more of the proper love they deserved. He had been so angry that Faite abandoned him, and his kids, and the pack, that he had pushed his anger onto his kids. All the arguments and resentment and pushing them away because he had felt hurt was so wrong, but he couldn't make himself stop for a long time. And when he finally had...when he finally let himself open up to Kairi and Torin, perhaps it had been too late. But even though some said late was better than never, he still regretted not trying sooner. "Your parents say Everything is your fault But they don't know you like I know you They don't know you at all" Did he blame his kids for anything? He wasn't sure. The harder he thought about that, the more he felt unsure...did they think he did? It was likely...when Torin took the pack over, he knew he probably didn't show as much pride in that like he should have. He kept the fact that he was proud of him to himself, and Torin didn't know until well after when he finally told him. Despite everything, he didn't blame Torin or Kairi for anything. He was proud of how far his son had come...for being the leader that he turned out to be. He was proud of Kairi for all that she had achieved...for being the wolfess that she was. He was proud of both of them. But he couldn't help but wonder if Faite hadn't been proud of any of them...was that why she left? He wanted to tell them one last time how proud he was of them for overcoming everything that had been thrown their way... I"'m so sick of when they say..." "It's just a phase you'll be ok You're fine" He tried for so long to let go of the anger that Faite had left him. And while he succeeded at last, it had been too little too late. Still, he was glad he had finally let it go, even if it had been years later. He didn't like to claim he was empathetic much, but after Jewel died and his kids needing him to be there, he had decided to let it all go. The old man was aware of things after that, more aware than he ever had been before. But at what cost? His time? His life? He had spent so long holding onto that anger...he didn't know much else beyond that until events unfolded and his kids still sought him out for his comfort and guidance. "But I know it's a lie" His legs began to shake, his movement growing slower the more he walked. But he was determined to get there. Eventually, however, his movement slowed to a snail's pace, his shaking legs barely keeping up a limping hobble as he pressed on. The shadows of the night grew longer, the crickets hiding in the grasses the only songs he could hear along with the occasional bird call and his own labored breathing. But he was determined to press on. "This is the last night you'll spend alone..." He remembered when his children were pups...when they needed him and their mother for everything. He remembered them as they were growing up, full of life and curiosity, and not a worry in the world. He remembered them...happy, and jovial, and unburdened by anything. He remembered himself before he let the anger grab hold. When he was happy and full of life after meeting Faite. When his children were born. He remembered everything. "Torin...Kairi...I'm...sorry..." He breathed as their dens came into view at last. "Look me in the eyes so I know you know..." His strength started to fade. He couldn't tell anymore if his vision was growing dark because he had expended the last of his strength, or if it was the shadows of the night dancing around him. He was breathing heavily. The old warrior feeling like each breath was getting slower. Shallower. He could see the outlines of their den and...his kids? He could see silhouettes...but it wasn't just two of them...there were five. All outlined by the stars, waiting for him. Standing in a semi-circle near the dens. He blinked a few times as he struggled to reach them, trying to comprehend what he thought he was seeing. "I'm everywhere...You want me to be" Then slowly, but surely...he realized. His family was waiting for him. The family he had lost on the way to Boreas. The family he couldn't save. The closer he got, the clearer they became. None of them looked ill or injured...they looked...whole. His mother and father stepped towards him, both smiling as they looked at him with love and pride. While he felt like he hadn't accomplished much since their passing, he had still come a long way...and they were here to take him home. He fell into their embrace the moment he reached them. He felt like all the weight had suddenly lifted off of his shoulders. All the pain seemed to melt away the moment he touched them...he wanted to tell them about his kids...but no words would leave his lips. Would Torin and Kairi forgive him for not being able to make it the last few steps? For not being able to call out to them? For not being able to make it to them in his last moments? He didn't know...but he couldn't fight anymore. The warm embrace of his family seeped into his bones, and he knew this was it. His eyes slipped closed and his body slumped to the ground as if he had fallen asleep in front of their dens. He wasn't in pain anymore...and he hoped they knew he had used the last of his strength trying to be there for them... "The last night...Away…" -exit via death- "Talk"

"To..rin...Kai...ri......sorry......." She woke with a start. A dream she had forced her awake again. She'd been sleeping somewhat soundly throughout the night, though her sleep was often disturbed by fits of dreams that often woke her up with feelings of foreboding and...sadness.  Night after night it kept happening, sometimes causing her to wake up and remain tired throughout the day and even cutting into her usual good moods. She missed Holland still, even though he hadn't been around that long, she had grown to like him quite a lot before he seemingly vanished off the face of the earth. She dreamed of her mother when they were pups sleeping in their parent's den...when things were good. Uncomplicated. When everything seemed right with the world before...well...before her mother left. Tonight was no different, but she had managed to sleep long enough until another dream woke her up at the crack of dawn. She lied there for a long while as she tried her hardest to get back to sleep, but she couldn't. Staring at the den wall, she couldn't help but feel like something was...off. But she couldn't figure out what. Maybe she'd be able to get back to sleep with the presence and comfort of her father... Sighing, she quietly got up and shook the dust off her fur before stepping out of the den. But the moment she blinked the sleep away from her eyes and stepped out into the cold air, she froze. There, between her den and Torin's...she couldn't comprehend what she was seeing for a moment. It felt as if someone had punched her in the gut and she couldn't breathe. She didn't blink. Didn't move. It was as if time had stopped and the world around her ground to a halt. "D-dad...?" She managed to breathe the words. Nothing more than a whisper. Almost silent to her own ears. It wasn't a dream this time. As if she were moving in slow motion, she stumbled forward until she reached his side. She reached out to touch him, hoping that he was just resting or maybe even just waiting for them to wake up. Or for the sun to rise...but when her nose touched him...his warmth was nearly gone. She took a step back, looking him over for signs of life but all she could see was that he looked like he was sleeping. "No...no no no no..." She shook her head, the tears beginning to form as she quickly pressed against him, desperately hoping that her warmth would wake him up. After a few minutes, she could feel his body growing colder...his expression never changing. Her father...never moving. She tried to choke back the tears then as she desperately sought out help. "T-T-Tor-in...T-Torin! Torin! Tor...!" She cried out for her brother between choked breaths as she tried to keep her father warm. She curled up against him and buried her face into his fur, unwilling to believe he was...gone. Walk, "Talk" Think

speech

Torin much like the rest of his family it seemed, wasn't exactly sleeping well lately. The stress of losing his mate and child was compounding on the lack of anything seeming to happen in his own pack. His sleep lately had been restless and he'd only just managed to slip back into a light doze when he heard his sister calling for him.

Kairi had moved her den close to his own lately, and he'd taken a bit of a small comfort from that. He blinked, groaning and rolling onto his side for a moment, unsure if he'd been dreaming or not. But then he heard Kairi again, the tone of panic in her voice shaking his tiredness instantly. Torin jumped to his paws, shook himself out quickly and bolted from the den.

It took moment for his brain to catch up to what it was Torin was seeing. He blinked. Torin was frozen for a moment, his jaw working as if he was trying to say something but he was simply unable to say anything. Then the pain hit him, like a charging bull. Torin had known his father wasn't long for the world... of course, he knew, but he was nothing if not good at denial. But as he stared, wide-eyed, at his sister cradling the unmoving form of his father he knew, all the protections he'd made in his mind shattered. He didn't need to check, he knew from his sister and from the way his father looks unnaturally stiff... he knew what had happened.

Awkwardly Torin finally managed to wrench his limbs into moving, he moved to stand behind his sister, collapsing onto his haunches and bending to cradle her. He stared a head at his father's corpse blankly, no tears, no sobbing, just numbness seeping into his limbs. He's lost so many, his sister, his niece, his father... and of course his other siblings and mother whom he didn't even get to know the fate of. He'd grown so used to the grief he wasn't even sure he could feel it anymore.

Original Coding by Shelby

He made his own den close to where his childhood den was. Close to his dad and close to the family. When he was in the pack at least. The boy did a lot of wandering but on that night the young Valentine was within Lirim’s borders. To his horror as he heard his aunt call out to his father in the night. The boy woke with a start, and uncertain took a long moment to make his way out of the den and to where his family was beginning to gather. When icy blue eyes fell on his dad and then the still form of his grandfather the boy froze. Lachlan couldn’t take a step forward, his jaw fell and his heart sunk. He didn’t know what to do. Was his grandfather really gone?
"D..d..dad?"