Theory stared after Drifa as she slipped away into the night. Dawn was creeping up on them but she knew it'd be a while before she could sleep again. The alpha, no longer so young, sighed and turned to Corvus. She'd waited for privacy to have this conversation but there could be no putting it off any longer. In order to decide how they'd have to tackle this delicate issue, they'd have to get personal. "You've got to tell me what happened between you and Ignis. Why is he so angry with you?" She couldn't imagine Corvus getting angry with anyone unless they were directly threatening the pack or someone he cared about. Twig. What if Ignis came for Twig? Danger loomed in the North, as palpable as any icy chill that hailed down from the mountains. They would simply have to face it.

Corvus shifted his weight from one paw to the other as he watched Drifa's retreat. It was no surprise that peace never lasted forever without a few upsets, he just hoped this news wasn't nearly as big a threat as he feared it might prove to be. He prepared himself for Theory's questioning - her pointed gaze when he'd explained he'd gotten attacked by Ignis had been obvious - but even the short silence that fell between them wasn't quite enough. "I.. we..." Corvus started, finding it hard to grasp the words he wanted to say. Talking to Theory was easy, but this wasn't something he'd expected to have to share with her. "I went to see him, and he told me he loved me. Like... loved loved," he stressed the word, fidgeting slightly as he did so. "I told him... I thought I might feel the same way, or had, but that I had a girlfriend now. Who I also love." For a split second when he'd confessed that to Ignis some strange, selfish part of him - however minuscule it might be - had wondered if there was a way he could possibly have both. But Ignis's reaction had quickly proven to him that such a thing was impossible, and after the way his friend had reacted it made it difficult to imagine even remaining friends with him. "And he... I don't know. Got super pissed off. Tried to attack me. I held my ground - I didn't want to hurt him - and he fell backwards off the cliff we'd been standing on. I made sure he was fine but I just... left after. I didn't think sticking around or trying to talk reason into him would've done any good," he finished, somewhat hurriedly. Truthfully he hadn't thought things would escalate the way they had; surely there had been other factors at play in Ignis's downward spiral, even if that event had been the catalyst. He couldn't believe this had all been his fault.

Oh. It was a much thornier thicket than she'd expected. Theory's gaze softened as Corvus' explanation went on. There wouldn't be an easy way out of this. "You're not to blame," she said quickly - almost too quickly, a quick salve without any strength to try and stop his hurting. "It sounds like something is very, very wrong. Like he might be touched by something - some kind of madness," Theo said, her voice troubled. She'd heard of troubling manias running in families but had never encountered it directly. Part of her wished she knew more, then they could prepare somehow. But madness was by nature unpredictable. There was no telling what would come next. "I wish we could do more. Probably best not to provoke him. I - I'm at a loss. What do we do without jeopardizing our relative safety? Sending scouts would likely provoke him. I refuse to put you in harm's way if he attacked you once. I don't do this lightly, but Corvus, as your alpha I am asking that you stay away from him. I also ask as your friend," she paused and dipped her head briefly, touching his shoulder with her nose. "But first as your leader." She rarely, if ever, enforced any kind of supreme authority over her pack members' direct relationships, but Abaven couldn't risk it. And she couldn't risk Corvus. "Please. For me, for Abaven, for Twig. And help me through this - where do we go from here?"

He didn't know why he'd been overthinking things so much, but it was hard not to. Would he be judged for his admission? That he thought he might have - because he certainly didn't anymore - loved Ignis, too? Theory didn't seem to linger on that statement at all, quickly assuring him that he wasn't at fault. It didn't help the sudden guilt that suddenly nagged at him. If he'd had even a hint that Ignis would've reacted so drastically he would've done... well, he wasn't quite sure, but it didn't matter either. He let out a heavy sigh, though nodded along with her words. "Yeah... I don't know, but he definitely didn't seem like himself."

Thinking for as moment, he was reminded of something. He remembered that giant commotion that had happened in The Battlefield once. He'd ran into Ignis there and he'd seemed pretty excited at the fight that was unfolding, finally admitting that one of the wolves was family. He'd never seen that side of Ignis before and he hadn't thought much about it at the time, but maybe that had been a sign of what could come? Corvus really wasn't sure. "I think the best thing to do is just.. wait it out. Maybe if this is some kind of sickness, a sickness of the mind, it will pass?" Corvus didn't know the first thing about such things, but he could only hope. His tired sigh said he wasn't so sure that'd be the case. Her demand was not something he had the energy to argue either, even if he felt inclined to. "I want nothing to do with him, truly. I wouldn't risk myself, or Abaven, by provoking him." Or Twig. He could never forgive himself if anything happened to her.

But where did they go from here? "We wait," he said carefully. "Maybe we need to hold a quick meeting to alert everyone as to what's going on. At least the news Drifa brought us, and make sure they're all on their toes. Increased patrols. Maybe it's worth seeing if our neighbors have heard anything?" Corvus had been quietly worried at Thalia being introduced to the pack, ever-wary of the Abraxas and any influence they might try to have over Abaven after their tumultuous history. He hadn't expected that Winterfell would be the one they ought to be worrying about, though then again maybe the raid they'd initiated against them - despite the way it had gone down - should have been a warning sign in itself.

Neighbors, increased patrols... yes. Now more than ever they needed to seek strength in their allies. Perhaps she could visit Aerie with Thalia, or at least send Alouette with news. If she'd learned anything in her time as alpha though, it was that bad news deserved a personalized approach. Maybe nothing would come of this. Like Corvus, she was inexperienced in dealing with dangerous and unpredictable wolves. Diseases of the mind were frightening. How could you trust a wolf who had succumbed completely to their inner demons? Haunted by their very own interiority? No safe place to retreat to, not even within their thoughts - that kind of thing would drive anyone mad. "I think you're right. I'd established an alliance with The Hallows, but they've since moved south to Auster," she muttered in frustration. Resin was an experienced warrior and she longed to pick her brain, but she wouldn't have that chance now. There was no way to safely make a journey that far and leave Abaven undefended. "I'll seek out those closest to us first. The Armada, maybe Fireside... Sirius would want to know. There is another pack nearby but I don't know much about them. It's worth visiting with a friendly warning, maybe try and get on their good side." They were right next door, after all. Less than a morning's journey to their borders.

"I don't want to make any longer journeys with Poem so close to her due date and the horrible weather, but - ugh. I wish there was more we could do." It truly seemed there was nothing else to do but sit on their paws and wait. "And thank you. For your reassurance. I know you cared for him," she said softly, lifting her gaze to meet his directly. There was an unspoken soft acceptance there. "We must gather together tightly and do as we have always done - fiercely love and protect one another."

Was he really so dense, that he'd missed the signs of something far more serious going on? It was hard to not feel guilty, not necessarily over what he'd said and how he'd reacted to Ignis's admission, but rather over how Corvus had taken in. He'd downplayed it, refusing to think it was anything more than something between the two of them. He'd dealt with struggles and inner turmoil, but true mental unrest like this he wasn't sure he'd ever faced before. He wasn't sure it was his place to notice the signs, but he still felt bad at the possibility there was something he'd missed.

"Hmm," Corvus hummed thoughtfully. Though he was concerned, he was visibly distracted, replaying his encounter with Ignis over in his head. And he couldn't stop thinking about Twig, knowing he'd have to tell her the truth in case something happened. "That sounds like a good idea." Nothing about this scenario was good, but maybe reaching out to their neighbors in regards to this might be a good starting point with the packs they hadn't established any sort of discourse with yet. "Hopefully just letting our closest neighbors know is enough."

Enough for what, he wasn't quite sure. To keep them on their toes in case something happened? Corvus didn't want to imagine that was truly a possibility, even if he wanted to be prepared for it. He nodded at her words - he had cared for him - but some things, in his mind, were unforgivable. Casting out an old wolf to fend for herself in the midst of winter was one of those things. Drifa had mentioned that he had a more violent vision for Winterfell in store too, another thing Corvus had no interest in associating with. The thought made him sick. "You're right. We'll get through this, together, as we always do." All he wanted now was to hold Twig close, and remember that what they had here was worth fighting for, endlessly, no matter what struggles came their way.

"Yes. Together," she asserted. There was plenty still to be done. They didn't need to gripe and sit on their paws and live in fear, staring towards the north and waiting for something to happen. It was time to prepare. Theory stood up slowly and stretched before beginning to pace around him, running through possibilities in her mind. "First we go to our closest, newest neighbor. A pack has taken up residence on the side of the volcano." Who knows why. Anyone who chose such a spot to live would certainly be an... interesting leader. Theory had some trepidation paying them a visit with bad news when she couldn't get a read on their general demeanor, but hopefully they would see it for the olive branch it was. "And we should run drills. So many new children - we need to know what to do with them in the case of a raid." Or worse. She didn't want to alarm Poem, but they needed a plan in place for the worst case scenario. They had to be prepared for anything. Theory kept walking in circles, completely inside of her own head.

It was hard to focus. The whole scenario, from Drifa arriving and the conversation he'd had with Theory afterward felt mildly surreal. It'd been a simple argument with Ignis - or that was what he'd tried telling himself. He'd overreacted, or that was what Corvus thought at the time. It seemed more likely it was a glimpse into some kind of madness that was overtaking him. Corvus hadn't been the cause of it but perhaps their conversation had helped speed things up? He really had no idea. All he wanted now was to slink away and hold Twig close and, if for a moment, forget about all of this. He knew tomorrow would be a different story. "Good idea." To all of it. He nodded somewhat numbly as he tried to find any other words, but none seemed to come. Tomorrow could be a day for further planning but he was done trying to make decisions right now. "Tomorrow we can start planning. I'd like to find Twig though. Talk to her," if not tomorrow than tomorrow, but either way he suddenly wanted nothing more than to be beside her.

-end?-