The girl sat under the shade of the tall rock. Despite winter coating most of lands, the sun didn't hold back in it's scorching heat here. A small underwater creek bubbled to the surface where she rested. Golden coloured paws dipped into the cool water, easing the burns from the blistering dirt. 

It hadn't been long since Eros left the small island she'd spent all that time upon, but it was nice to see other places. So far in her travels, she'd kept her distance from the wolves. Avoiding packlands and gatherings, she found her way here. From the small hill she was on, the girl could see a vast wetlands. The distinct outline of birds were obvious, but amongst them were those of wolves. She was so close but still far from them. It had been almost two years since seeing others. Could she do it? Could she see her family again?

Ever since her run in with that orange man it had been hard for her to go home, much less look her family in the eye again. Not to mention that when she did go back to the den she found Conan's scent was stale as was the scents of her daughters, although Hera's scent was the strongest of the three. Had they left her? Did Conan have her girls? If he didn't where were they? Worry and guild swirled in her gut and all she could think was that she had brought this upon herself and that now the gods were punishing her. She knew eventually she would have to face her brother and sister-in-law, but right now was not the time. She had wandered off again, walking aimlessly while she attempted to process her thoughts. Of course she had managed to find the one place in the whole of Alacritis that had managed to remain warm even in the winter months. The run beat down on her russet form and when she spotted a tall rock in the distance, she moved toward it in hopes that she might rest in its shade until the night came and she could head home in the darkness and coolness of night. However, she found a lot more than shade once the reached the rock. A wolf's scent reached her as she got closer, one that rang so many bells from her fairly distant past. Her ears perked up with interest and disbelief as she hurried onward. Sure enough, when her gaze landed on the younger woman's golden form she was very nearly shocked into silence. "Eros?" was finally what she asked as she came to a halt behind the girl. "Is that you?" It felt like ages since she had seen her niece and here she was, appearing like a ghost. "Talk" "You" Think

The girl continued to watch the wolves from a distance, not daring to go any further. What if they were angry? Or didn't care. Sent her away? Thoughts rolled around inside her head like a raging storm, pulling a cloud over her head. The girl lost herself in the reasons plaguing her mind. Standing, she started kneading her paws into the dry ground away from the creek.

A voice pulled her from the cloud, instantly alerting her. Could it be? Aunt Phoebe! With her back still turned, Eros' tail began to wag. Slowly she turned, her eyes full of joy and a grin plastered on her face. Eros bounded forward, only to stop a few steps away. Suddenly hesistant she looked at her aunt. Would she want to embrace her? It had been so long. 'Composing' herself, Eros said in a slightly wavering voice "Hello, Aunt Phoebe. It's been a while.", sneaking in a nervous smile at the end.

The moment the girl turned to face her she knew she hadn't been mistaken. A grin split across her face at the girl's reaction, clearly recognizing her as well and happily jumping up to greet her aunt. However, a nervousness quickly seemed to overcome her niece and she stopped herself a few steps away. She knew exactly how nerve wracking it could be facing family after so long so she didn't hold it against the younger girl. "It certainly has been, but that's no way to greet your Aunt!" she answered cheerfully and crossed the few steps that remained between them so she could embrace Eros warmly. It didn't matter to her if it had been days or years, she was always happy to find her scattered family members. She pulled back again after a few moments to look her in the eye again, still smiling and pleased to have found her niece in the middle of the desert of all places. Maybe it was because she didn't know everything that had transpired in her life, but she felt like she could stand in front of Eros and not feel judged, which was rare for Phoebe these days. "Where have you been, dear? You've missed so much!" "Talk" "You" Think

Unexpectedly, the girl's aunt closed the distance between them quickly. All nervousness disappeared as she embraced with her aunt, almost as if weight had been lifted from her chest. Her face split back into the grin and she chuckled. Pushing her nose into her aunt's scruff she took in her scent. Oh, had she missed her family. 

When her aunt pulled away, Eros still held her shining smile on her face. Now her tail freely tagged behind her. 

"Where have you been, dear? You've missed so much!" her aunt said. Eros' eyes widened a bit. How much had she missed exactly. 

"Um, well, I was on a little island off the coast. I just needed to be alone for a while, with the gods of course." Her golden eyes flicked upwards at their mention. Shyly she added, "You're the first I've spoken to in a year or so."