Kitsune left Chimera to his organising, and made her way back to her den. An unsettled feeling left her stomach rolling, and there was an acid taste in the back of her mouth. Her mother was Empress. Her mother was young, and powerful. Kitsune had always thought she would rule for a long time, and when she was ready to step down the pack would go to Ike. This shift in balance had been sudden, and unexpected.

She hurried to her den, to Iho now that she had confirmation on everything going on. She found him in their shared den, and threw herself into his paws. Burying her head in his chest as she let out small, shuttered breaths.

"Speech"

The stillness of the usually cozy den felt oppressive, like waiting in a hospital waiting room for any sort of news on a loved one’s condition. Venom hadn’t been seen around Ashen for an age, and with rumors spreading in the wake of Chimera’s ascension to the throne, uncertainty and doubt abounded through the once majestic and noble pack. Kitsune had gone off to speak to her uncle, to get a lay of the land so to speak and verify for herself the future of Ashen. Iho had never met Chimera before, but he’d heard the stories and the rumors about him and his failed pack. To say he was concerned by this change in leadership would have been an understatement.

So Kumiho waited, lingering in limbo for Kitsune to return. And return she did after a time, entering their den swiftly and silently. Iho could tell immediately that something was wrong. Kit wasn’t her boisterous, confident self. She looked deflated, defeated, lost. Mournful blue eyes met hers as she threw herself into his chest, barely holding on to sobs. The brute exhaled and wrapped his arms around her back, holding his little fire fox close, large paws rubbing her back reassuringly. "It’s okay, Kit, it’s okay…" he spoke in hushed tones to his unofficial girlfriend, offering whatever comforts and solace he could. A pause, a moment of stillness, and then he asked, "I’m guessing it’s not good news, huh…?"

"Speech"

She wrapped herself up in Iho, breathing in the scent of him. She didn’t reply immediately, too busy stuffing her muzzle into the thick fur around his neck. All the hard wrought control and shields fell for Iho, and she held to him tightly. After a moment, she leaned back with a soft sigh.

“He’s changing everything Iho. He’s taking my home, and making it what he wants. He’s treating it like Venom is gone Not just laid up for a few weeks. The lands, the ranks, everything, Iho.” She said shakily. The Ashen Empire had existed long before she was born. It was strong and constant, how could everything vanish so quickly?


"Speech"

Iho gave Kitsune all the time she needed to sob through the initial crash of emotions as she crumpled into his embrace, simply holding the Ashen princess as she let out all those pent up worries and anxiety. Eventually Kit regained her composure enough to pull back from his fur to explain what she had learned in her meeting with the regent alpha. Apparently he was changing all of Ashen—the ranks, the pack's lands, the whole structure of the empire—all to his own desires. This revelation pulled a frown across Iho's muzzle. This didn't sound like some sort of temporary placement of leadership anymore. It sounded more like a usurpation of the throne from Venom. But Kumiho... he was a simple wolf, a sailor by passion and a fisher by trade. The intricacies of pack politics was still a foreign concept to him.

"I'm so sorry, Kit. I don't even know what to say..." Kumiho was truly at a loss for words. He had no idea how to help her in the face of this massive devastation to her family and her way of life. He couldn't exactly stand up to a wolf like Chimera without getting his ass thoroughly thrashed, and that wouldn't serve to do anyone any good. "We just have to hold on. We have to keep going and keep faith that your mother will come back as the rightful ruler to undo anything he does to fuck things up," he tried to reassure her, rubbing her back gently between her shoulder blades with one large paw. "What do you want to do now that you have your answers from him? Do you want to continue to stay in Ashen?" There was a pause as an idea came to him then. "Do you wanna take some time away from the pack? We can go sailing once summer comes around, spend the nicer months going all around Boreas and Auster." It was long past due that he took her sailing anyway, and he had made a promise to her.

"Speech"

She didn’t know how to put it all into words. Everything she had known, the future she was working towards. Her very identity felt as if it was being ripped from her. She’d never in her entire life imagined a future that didn’t start and end with her being in Ashen. Working her way higher in the ranks, and being her mum (and then sisters) right paw.

She let out a few hissed breaths as he mentioned taking a break from the pack. When he asked if she still wished to stay in the pack. Leave? How could she leave? She didn’t want to stay, but nor did she wish to leave. “I… I can’t leave, what if my mum needs me? What if I come back and I don’t recognise anything?” She asked softly. Horror creeping into her tone.

"Speech"

Iho's suggestion that they take some time away from the changing pack was met by a mini anxiety attack from Kitsune, a far stronger reaction than he had been expecting. Kit refused, claiming she couldn't leave her mother and fearing the changes she might return to. Unfortunately, it seemed like those changes were coming regardless of whether they stayed or not. Kumiho frowned, not sayin anything for a moment while he let Kitsune calm herself down. Last thing he wanted was to give her another panic attack. "Well, the way I see it, there's only really three options: we stay and accept whatever your uncle decides to do with Ashen, we leave and hope that we return to the pack as it was with your mother in charge, or you challenge Chimera for Ashen and then you can keep things the way they are." All around, it seemed like a lose-lose-lose situation to Iho. Chimera did not strike him as a wolf to go down easily, and while he did not doubt Kitsune's abilities as a fighter, he did not know how she'd feeling challenging her own kin to the throne. So they were stuck—stuck until Kitsune could make up her mind and choose a path.

"Speech"