The stop she made to see Sirius and learn about Armada had been a productive one, more productive than she had anticipated perhaps, but before they moved any further north toward their destination she wanted to make sure to stop by Ashen to visit Venom for a bit. After visiting Fenmyre, The Hallows, and then Armada she felt like she had made their trip back to their home from Auster very productive indeed. She still had a bit of a soft spot for the Empress and her children and was one of the few that she was especially eager to share the news of their officially formed pack with. She would probably always hold a bit of regret over the fact that she couldn't bring the Empress the victory over one of her enemies that she had wanted, but in the end the northern pack was no more either way and that failure had already been forgiven.

She approached the border of the pack she was most familiar with in these lands and settled onto her haunches at the border of the pale forest to call for Venom with a gentle howl. There was no urgency in her tone—this was more of a social visit than anything else. Perhaps they would talk business while she was here, but that wasn't her sole purpose to be here. She gave herself a small shake while she waited, smoothing out her violet, mottled fur before curling her tail neatly around her hip. Perhaps if she was lucky she might even get to see how much her lovely children had grown since she had seen them last. They were only a bit older than her own if she remembered correctly so they were likely yearlings by now. It was strange to think that so much time had passed since she first encountered Ikigai out by the river.

"Manea Mendacium"

Ashen was changing rapidly and Venom felt like she was fighting to keep up. Most of those transitions were completely out of her control. Hattori had slipped from her toe tips and her family was rent asunder with its patriarch abandonment. Losing her pillar of strength was a challenge she hadn’t been prepared to endure. But there was no other choice beyond adapt. Conform or die.

She tried to keep her mind in line with that of a gardener, she convinced herself she had been pruned. The weak, ungainly parts of her had been pruned back, and when the weeds were pulled from around her the roots she had sent down were incredibly disrupted. But every action had been a necessity in making her grow. It hurt, more than anything she had ever felt before, but she held out hope that in the end she would regain her strength tenfold.

She returned to patrols after a brief sabbatical, heeding Plague’s suggestion she take time to herself. She tried to dwell on the new memories, the strange places she had seen and the interesting wolves she had met. The more she worked at forgetting the pain Hattori caused her the better she was doing at finding herself. Only in the shattering would rebuilding occur, and she was slowly being rebuilt.

The sound of a call at her border distracted her from her patrol, but she wouldn’t allow Manea to be left waiting at her border. A Klein like smirk played on her features as her white gloved paws carried her to the newly installed alpha’s presence. She hadn’t toppled Winterfell, but she carried a royal title now. "To what do I owe the pleasure, Manea?” She greeted softly as she made herself comfortable near the powerful woman.

"Venom"

She wasn't kept waiting long for Venom to appear and soon enough the lovely monochromatic woman walked over to her from within the pale forest, greeting her with a smirk that had become familiar from the Ashen Empress. Manea dipped her head in greeting, offering a grin of her own. "Venom. Always lovely to see you." She didn't see her husband or children around or coming to join them so she supposed it would just be the two of them this time—which she certainly didn't mind, but she wasn't sure if they would be making an appearance since she was at the border this time around.

"We were in the area and wanted to stop by before we continue on to our permanent home. We've been spending some time in Auster getting to know Fenmyre and The Hallows so now we're moving back up through Boreas to get to Alias Island," she explained as a reason for her presence here today. "I've decided to create my own pack and chosen the name Elysium for it." Venom knew better than most what her journey to get to this point had been and she was maybe the most excited to inform the Empress of the news. Over the course of their various meetings she had begun to think of the woman as a friend or at the very least a close acquaintance.

Perhaps sometime next season you and your family could come up to the island to visit once we're settled," she suggested with a smile. "We'd love to host all of you if you ever feel like making the trip... It would give our children a chance to meet as well." She had been pregnant when they first met, but she hadn't had a chance to introduce Venom to Avacyn or Saracyn just yet. It was wild to think that the twins were nearly yearlings now and that all of this had happened in the span of the first year of their lives.

"Manea Mendacium"

Manea returned her greeting with a small tilt of her head. They were alone for now, but Venom doubted Alastor wasn’t here because he’d left the brilliant woman in front of her. It didn’t matter for now, it was really the two of them that needed to talk, and Manea was swift to get to the meat of it. She’d been spending time with both Fenmyre and the Hallows, because she had raised her own pack. While Manea hadn’t been able to claim Winterfell she did persevere to form from ashes her own pack.

"Oh?” Venom asked pleasantly surprised. "Congratulations are in order.” She grinned along with the accomplished woman. Her mother had been in a very similar situation when she had raised her own pack. Venom’s ascent was much different, and she wondered if she could have ever done the same. The newly crowned queen invited Venom… and her family, to their pack next season.

"I think that would be a beneficial visit. There is.. One less in my family though.” Venom spoke hesitantly, remembering vividly her slip with Artorias. She took a deep breath and went on. "My husband left me.”

"Venom"

Manea smiled and dipped her head gratefully to Venom's congratulations. "Thank you," she replied simply. She knew that there was far more to leading a pack than just laying claim to a piece of land and giving their group a name. There was governing, leadership, diplomacy, and protection to consider and she was a novice when it came to all of those things. It was something that Venom had been doing for quite some time and something she had done from an early age from what Manea had gathered. It was one of the many reasons why Manea had come to respect and admire the Ashen Empress. Right now all she could really hope for was to have as long and as fruitful of a rein as Venom and that the two of them could continue to work together into the future.

Manea's smile faded with concern when Venom followed up her agreement that a visit would be beneficial with the news that there was one less family member. At first she feared that something might have happened to one of her children or perhaps to her husband. The thought that her partner would voluntarily leave never crossed her mind since that was strictly forbidden and punishable by death in her family and culture. When the words about the orange-splattered man left Venom's lips it took Manea a moment to realize she was serious. She blinked and gaped in disbelief for a moment before finally her disbelief started to dissolve into anger.

With a frown creasing her expression, Manea reached a paw forward to gently rest it over Venom's, giving the fellow alpha a resolute stare. "I vow to you that he has made an enemy of himself to me and my family," she told her friend quietly with a mix of venomous anger and sympathy. "And anyone who associates themselves with that traitor can be condemned with him as far as I'm concerned." She pulled her paw back with a slow sigh, giving a small shake of her head. She knew that the stakes would not be as dire for Venom as they would have been for her if Alastor ever tried to pull the same stunt, but it was still a grave loss and Manea's chest ached for Venom and her children. If she ever laid eyes on that sorry excuse of a brute again she'd make it clear how she felt about his abandonment.

"I know it is probably difficult to think about right now, but I do hope you take comfort in the fact that you have the freedom to move on to someone who will truly value you if you so choose," she added after a moment of thought. She loved Alastor more than life itself and would never trade him for the world or change a thing about him, but his recklessness did sometimes concern her. He was her one chance at her dream, at her family. If he were to ever fall to some untimely fate she would be ruined. "In my family's culture we only ever have children with one wolf," she explained. "That is the reason I was forced to banish my mother from our family... Because my father died when my mother only had three children and she made the decision to take another mate instead of living her life grateful for what she had." It was a heavy burden to bear and now that she had experienced the joy of love and companionship she could perhaps sympathize with her mother a bit more than she had been able to at the time, but she would still never tear her family apart to fulfill that desire.

"Manea Mendacium"

Venom instantly felt regret for being so bold and brazen with her news to Manea, but she was still hurting and the scar Hattori left ached. She knew she would have to practice hercouth, but as the violet woman listened Venom watched as her features fell. She had much more ire than Venom was expecting, but the understanding she showed warmed her despite the situation. The news hit Manea about as expected as when Hattori told her himself that he was leaving.

Manea recovered quickly, and Venom again felt bad about her own news to bring when the Mendacium brought her such great tidings. Her peer didn’t take long to speak, and her scorn was heavier even than Venom’s. Despite what he did to her Venom hadn’t sought any kind of retribution. Manea was much less forgiving than Venom and the Empress wondered if she should emulate her reaction. Her children scorned their father after his actions, what was wrong with her? Was she holding out hope that if she went easy on him that he would return to her? Venom knew she would never have him back in her life, his decision or her own, their lives were rent asunder and they would not be reunited.

Her white gloved paw was covered comfortingly by Manea's soft paw and gentle affection offering her support. A heavy sigh left her dark lips, trying not to let the emotions overwhelm her. She went on, trying to bring Venom’s attention to the positive. She was still young, there were other wolves who she could share her life with, but could she? Opening herself up again for that kind of pain seemed nearly impossible. It felt good to know that Manea was on her side. Their relationship was new and fledgling but it could very much become something strong and experienced as time went on.

Venom remained quiet, though Manea had much to react to her mind was reeling already. Manea stood with her, supported her, told her she could go on and do whatever she wished. Venom knew she was right but she still struggled to overcome her inner insecurities. It was hard not to embrace the personal insecurities and reject the thought that it was her fault Hattori left her. Manea went on to talk a little about her family’s traditions. Venom wondered then, was she content with what she had at this moment?

"Thank you for your kind words… as well as your opinion of Hattori.” She forced a soft chuckle, but the pain was still obvious in her sunset gaze. "It was so unexpected.” She confessed softly, but she had to believe this would all be for the better. It hurt now but surely when the smoke cleared she would be left in a better place than she had ever been. Hattori was a stepping stone to something bigger and greater. It had to be so. "It’s just hard, I had him beside me for so long being on my own is…” Much harder and she was wildly aware of how lonely it was at the top. She had her family, but her children were growing up and developing their own lives. Plague was busy with his own partners and puppies. She had no one who she was as close to as Hattori. "I’m sorry to burden you.” Venom shook herself mentally, "But I thought you should know, especially if our relationship develops as I hope it will.”

"Venom"

Manea offered Venom a slight smile at her thanks and joined her in the soft chuckle she gave at the opinion she had expressed of her former mate. It had been easy to reject Hattori from her good graces when Venom was the one she had formed a respect and relationship with, but if the situation was different and it had been Venom that had decided to abandon the relationship then her opinion of the Empress would have been tainted as well. In this situation Venom was the victim and Manea's heart ached for her and the position she was put in. That made it even easier to side with Venom and her children and support the monochromatic woman even more strongly than before. She gave a nod of sympathetic understanding when Venom expressed how the departure had been unexpected. She wondered to herself if there had been signs that perhaps the Empress had been blind to, but she didn't ask. It was always easier to see things in hindsight and she knew all too well how blinding love could be.

Manea gave another nod as the Ashen Empress began to speak of how difficult it was to suddenly have no one, even though her sentence trailed off without a real conclusion. Any kind of sudden change or challenge was going to be difficult, but this kind of blow was understandably world shattering. She was quick to shake her head when Venom apologized for burdening her, replying, "No, you're not being a burden. I'm glad you told me. I would rather know than not... Not just so I know how to consider Hattori moving forward, but so I can support you as well." She smiled a little more genuinely as she added, "I hope our relationship continues to develop as well... For our packs and families and for our friendship as well." Manea didn't keep many friends usually, but as she was getting to know more and more wolves around Boreas and Auster she was starting to see the beauty in having these friendships. Her trusted circle was still pretty small, but Venom had found a permanent place in that select group of wolves.

"Manea Mendacium"