Coming up on the border of Abaven physically hurt, knowing that their search had ended fruitlessly. Void was giving up, after so long searching and finding nothing Void had simply lost the last of his hope. He wasn’t sure that he could say it outloud, but their family was likely dead, and long dead at this point. They were chasing lost dreams, and for too long now. The facts were hard to accept and swallow but Void did so begrudgingly. He le dhis brother and sister back to Abaven, broken hearted.

Void did feel some hope for the future, however overshadowed the feelings were from grief. They were saying goodbye to an important part of their lives, their family. They were all they had left. Void would do whatever he could to make sure both Spirit and Gloom embraced their potential. They had weaknesses, but there were strengths too. Void wanted to see both of them realize their talents and find joy in their lives. Like he had found… with Plague. The outside influence of the other male had been what opened Void up to emotion to begin with. He’d been close to unfeeling before he’d come into his life. Now he knew some emotions all too well. Like guilt and sorrow.

He’d been quiet the last few days, after revealing his thoughts and plans. They needed to regroup, touch base with Theory, and… Ready for the wedding. Void told Plague yes when he asked him to marry. The young Destruction tried to focus his thoughts on his husband-to-be as they walked and approached the border. He sighed softly and looked to his siblings before letting out a cal for Theory.

The feelings that hung over the group were hardly happy ones. It was a bittersweet taste for Gloom, home, the only home she'd ever known, and yet she was returning without her mother or sister with her, the possibility they were well and truly dead was a nagging fear at the back of her mind. More than that though the return to Abaven brought back the familiar tang of fear, her body language shifting from her new usual back to who she used to be, her limbs folding to hold her closer to the ground, tail tucked and ears pulling back as they neared the pack's borders. There was also of course her brother's relationship with Plague... though he had promised Spirit he wouldn't take Void from them Gloom could see the two were close and unlikely to simply sit on their laurels and not seek to spend more time together. She could only hope that Plague might honor his promise and join them in Abaven... but the fear that her brother was only a moment away from leaving her and her only remaining sibling also swirled in the back of her mind. Gloom slid up beside Void, slightly behind him as if hiding behind his forelegs, a soft whine slipping from her lips as she brushed up against him, trying desperately to find comfort in his contact. Speech Think Action

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Although it had been some time since they'd departed on their search, Theo recognized Void's voice at the border. She had hoped to hear happier songs at the border when they returned. Big, trumpeting calls - Hello! We're home! We're safe! We found them! - but things were never really that easy, were they? Theory's vibrant childhood optimism had since been forged into a steely pragmatism. Nevertheless, a dim light flickered warmly in her heart, bending towards the good of things wherever it could. There was no light here. Not that she could see. No matter - she would welcome them home all the same. Selfishly she hoped that they were now here to stay. It was always difficult to let go of a family member, especially when they had lost so much. She picked up the pace, uncertain what she would see when Void greeted her at the border. Were they travelling together still or had he returned home alone? Her heart beat erratically in her chest as she closed the distance between her den and the border where they'd called.

The earth had slowly come alive again, although patches of ice and filthy snow remained. When she had spent months wishing for it all to melt, she'd forgotten what mud was like. Theo picked her way past the wetter patches until she had them within her sight: Void and Gloom waited for her on the border. "Welcome back," she called, her tail and ears at half mast. She wasn't sure what news they'd bring and her body language reflected the uncertainty. "Do you find anything?" Theory asked carefully.

Okay so she had lost all courage like the coward she was. She was afraid of finding herself in the face of ghosts and still was processing everything she knew. There had been no way Kuzon would of lied to her, that much she knew as true, but perhaps these last few weeks had been a daydream. She was close when she heard the howl, summoning Theory and perhaps Rhyme, she was curious but was it her place to intrude? No most definitely not. But a part of her wanted to know... Her ears pressed and she seated herself to think it through. Good girls didn't eavesdrop or spy. But was she really a good girl? A whine came from her as she thought of it. Kuzon had many a time pinned her and threatened her with his fangs if she didn't behave like a good girl should, so the answer was no she had never been a good girl. Should she go though? A part of her wanted to but the part of her that was the more dominant part said no, it would end with nothing good for her. She looked down with her dull gaze at her muddied paws. She never sat still these days. She was always walking somewhere, she just wasn't comfortable. She felt that even her uncle sensed this, even though he had yet to confront her. it wasn't easy to just return after two years, have your entire existence shattered and then have someone expect things of you, but no clue what those expectations were. Her ears pressed even farther. She still hadn't told anyone where she had been or why she was alive. She wasn't even sure this reality was real. She pushed herself from her haunches after thinking for several moments on this. She wanted to see who the howl belonged to at least, if her cousin told her to leave she would. She kept her eyes on her paws as she moved towards the howl. Her ears stayed back and her tail low. Her head was also held down, submission even before she found the spot. It was how she walked. Her mind had the trio of her siblings dead, turned to dust in the fires and volcanic eruptions, even if she had been told different, she wasn't one to hope for things. Hoping lead to thoughts she didn't trust. As she rounded the bend and came to the place she lifted her haunted gaze to the sight before her, and she froze. Her eyes widened and her face showed her shock. There they were, but were they real? Was any of it real? Her form slunk to the ground as she fought to hold herself up, gravity feeling too much in the moment. How could they be here though? Kuzon had told her they all had perished.... He never lied to her, never. How could they stand there? They had to be a part of her imagination. She sucked in a breath and her sides heaved, tears started down her cheeks. This was the cruelest trick yet. Her mind couldn't get any crueler. Her eyes squeezed shut, trying to not see the figures she thought were hallucinations in front of her. Theory was between them but she didn't trust her eyes right now. She shoved her face into the mud beneath her as she trembled from the mental break she was sue she was having. Mindless wandering "Hopeless words"

The three siblings hadn't found their mother, and her absence weighed even heavier on his hear than it had before. Part of him wished they hadn't gone at all now that their search had come up empty-handed. Somehow knowing they'd spend months searching, to no avail, made him feel even worse - instead of just feeling sad, he felt like he was sad and that he'd failed his family somehow. And least they hadn't sat and talked about it, because saying the words out loud might make it feel even more real. It was hard to imagine a world in which his mother and sister didn't exist, and he'd always hold out some hope they might return, but they couldn't spend the rest of their lives searching.

He was struggling with his feelings toward Void's boyfriend too. It wasn't jealous, not really - Spirit had never experienced romantic feeling of any kind, and he wasn't sure he was capable - but he was still afraid Void would leave him and Gloom behind. With their strong brother beside them things felt a little less dark and gloomy, but without him he wasn't sure how they'd fare, not that they knew they were all three better together. At least he could vow to help bolster up Gloom, if nothing else. Though shy in his own way, Spirit found it easier to break out of his shell was he had a goal in mind, and keeping his sister happy and well was definitely among his goals.

He let out a quiet sigh as they neared the borders, leaning against Gloom for her comfort as well as his own. Theory was quick to greet them, which brightened his expression, if only somewhat. When she spoke up to ask if they'd found anything, Spirit felt his ears flatten and looked to Void to answer for them. The words were too hard for him to speak. But suddenly the approach of another disrupted his thoughts entirely. At first he thought maybe Plague had joined them... but no - it couldn't be! Spirit's tongue was heavy, caught in his mouth as he stared and felt white-hot tears prick at the surface of his eyes.

Void shifted slightly as Gloom pressed against him. He held her against him, placing a forelead in front of her chest and shielding her body from the world with his own. She was scared and fearful, much like she had been before they left. He’d seen a glimpse of what she could truly look like, but she started to revert as soon as he introduced Plague. That guilt hung heaviest on his heart after returning to Abaven without anything to show for their time away. Spirit rounded out the trio, leaning into Gloom as well, both brothers were there for their frail sister.

They weren’t left to wait for very long, Theory’s dark form appeared on the border with no haste. She could read the room plainly, and yet she still asked after the results of their quest. Void averted his gaze momentarily, still struck by the reality of it all now that he had to say it. The man had to admit his failure when he had only been barely acknowledging the fact. Eulogy and Poltergeist were likely long dead and their efforts were wasted from the start.

When he looked back to his cousin Void’s eyes widened as he caught movement over the alpha’s shoulder. For a moment he didn’t believe his eyes, but she couldn’t have been anyone else. Poltergeist lived. As soon as she saw them she fell to the mud, Theory was forgotten as he nuzzled Glom carefully and pulled away from her to join with his long lost sister. ”Poltergeist,” he spoke her name softly, they hadn’t seen each other since childhood. ”Poltergeist.” All of their time away and she had just returned to their doorstep. Tears welled in his eyes, but Void resisted grabbing her right then and there. Instead he put a relatively clean paw to her shoulder, uncertain she would accept his touch.