Midnight paws carried him up the hill, and he panted with the exertion. He'd been climbing the incline for almost 30 minutes when he finally reached the top, paws settling in gossamer strands of grass. Small flowers littered the area, and the scent in the air was pointedly floral. Dove looked up and sighed at the view he'd found. The sea unwound before him, the sun's rays gleaming on its cerulean surface, and the screeches from the birds flying overhead wove in and out of the cacophony the waves created. Dove sat, tail on the ground behind him as he closed his eyes, and sighed deeply as the wind ruffled his pelt. Leftover tension from the hike fell from his muscles, and the wind was cool as it came in from the coast. The thought briefly occurred to him that, perhaps, he should move his den here instead, but he banished it with the flick of an ear. There was no protection from the elements here, and although the weather was currently pleasant, there was no way of knowing if it would stay that way. He was still quiet, enjoying the smell of sea salt and the sounds of waves breaking on the rocks below, when the sound of paws in the grass to his left caused an ear to swivel towards it as he opened his eyes. A wolf was there, and Dove canted his head to the side. "Hello," he said mildly, unhappy at getting caught unawares. Dove stood, though the brown and white wolf stayed a few feet away, and face the new man as the other wolf seemed to consider something. "Greetings," he finally responded to Dove, taking a step forward. Dove eyed the other warily but nodded at him. "What brings you to this area?" the wolf asked, still moving forward. Dove kept his face blank, though he did shift his paws nervously, taking a step back as the stranger advanced. Dove glanced, briefly, at the ocean, which was now to his right since he'd turned to face the copper-toned wolf. He parted his lips to respond as he turned back to the man -- and had to quickly move out of the way. Paws laden with claws similar to Sirius' and Mortis' swiped through the air, where Dove had just been. He looked at the wolf, eyes narrowed as he backed up a few steps. "I said," the stranger enunciated, "What brings you to my territory?" Dove's ears swiveled, pinning to his dome as he glared at the man, fear imbuing the air. "There was no scent marker," he spat, immediately angry at the other's actions. "Forgive the intrusion; I was unaware." The man smiled, clicking his tongue, brown eyes landing on Dove. "Unfortunately, little wolf," he said, taking a step towards Dove, "that's not how the world works." Dove's face fell immediately into a grimace, and even aware that this was a fight he would likely lose, still chose to charge forward. He'd seen in the man's eyes that he wouldn't walk away although he wouldn't let Dove walk away either. Not without a fight. Dove barreled towards him with wild abandon, fear in his veins and escape in his thoughts. The wolf sidestepped him, almost casually, and Dove skidded, his paws splayed in front of him when he felt pain on his neck. Teeth sank into his scruff, near his back, and Dove grimaced heavily, snapping his jaw shut to keep in the sounds of pain as the man shook him. Reluctance slid through him as surely as a hefty dose of panic did, and he warred with himself. A fight he could not win, and unfortunately, there was only one wolf he knew well enough to call on. Dove felt blood dripping down his shoulders as lifted his head as best he could to howl for Sirius. "Speech"

It was Marshal who informed how how far Dove had moved. Sirius wondered if he had to make a choice, if his man was trying to leave. Would Sirius finally take the plunge and reel him in? Or let him go. Perhaps it would be better to do the former, perhap he had already hurt Dove enough, and the only thing he could do was let him go and wonder if maybe the man came back one day…

At least, those were his thoughts as he found himself by Sunset Falls, sniffing at the heavy-falling water, and trying to convince himself he was out here for any reason bar the obvious. Sometimes it hurt to be a possessive bastard with a conscience.

The howl for him came from a place of anger and fear, and Sirius’s paws were hitting the ground before it even registered. He tore across the falls, and up the cliff. He took it at a jumping run, calves burning as he cut what had been a long walk for Dove into a much shorter one for himself. But, shorter wasn’t short, and the ten minutes or so it took him were long.

At the top of the cliff, a vulture dive-bombed the clawed beast with a vicious schreetch, talons sprayed to rake across the wolfs head, before beating wings hard to get out of range of his snapping teeth. It was a nasty, dirty battle to keep the wolf distracted and off Dove, as the wolf bleed from the back of his neck.

When Sirius reached the top, he was winded from the heavy climb, and gave himself three deep breaths in, and out, in, and out, before he charged.

The heavy set brute hit the intruder hard, shoulder careening into him so hard he heard bones snap beneath the onslaught, and she shoved the wolf close to the cliff. The surprise attack worked well for him, but the out of breath Titan didn’t have the strength to shove him any further. They fought right on the pinnacle of the cliff's edge, where any misstep could be their death.

When he finally shoved the intruder over the edge, the man would grab him by his chest with his teeth, and Sirius had to brace himself to keep from plunging with him. Fur and flesh gave, as a meaty portion of Sirius fell with the man, and the Warlord collapsed against the edge, his blood leaking down the rocky lip.

"Speech"

His call was answered swiftly, even as Dove's eyes watered from the pain he kept silent. A growl of distress bubble up from his chest, and he felt it as the wolf sank low, preparing to increase the force behind his bite and a shriek split the air and Marshal dove at breakneck speeds, talons extended as he struck the wolf and came away with only fur. The bird soared up and up, getting away as the wolf finally released Dove from his unforgiving hold and the darker wolf sagged with relief. He pushed to unsteady midnight paws, his head up to keep unneeded tension at bay as he turned on the wolf, teeth bared in anger. Fear swirled through him, bringing his ears down to his dome and his tail up to his belly. The two emotions were at war within, survival calling for dominance as trauma stifled it in a vicious, heady mix. The anger won, as it bloomed to rage, the same as it had when Sirius had taken that first swipe at him. Dove took a step towards the man, unsure what he would do, as he knew little to nothing of battle. That didn't stop him from taking another step, his paw landing heavily in the grass as he parted his lips, prepared to do or say anything--and the man was gone. The sounds of a fight let Dove know what his nose had easily recognized. Sirius fought his attacker, and the battle, though ferocious in its intensity, was over moments later as the brown and white wolf was flung over the edge of the cliff, his screams fading before abruptly coming to a halt. Dove panted, his chest heavy, his scruff bleeding, as Sirius collapsed on the edge. Though he'd been the one to call for help, his mind scrambled to keep up with the sudden turn of events before he finally clambered forward, ungraceful in his rush. "Sirius, you--" Didn't know what to say as he snapped his mouth shut, the scent of the other's wolf's blood like a claw to the stomach. "Bast," he said suddenly, a whisper before he raised his voice. "Bast, are you here?" He head whipped around to search for the feline as he gently, so gently, prodded Sirius. "Speech"

Bast did appear over the cliff just then, panting, despite how a leopard was better built for rock-climbing then a wolf was. Sirius kept her fit, but it had still been a heck of a ride, to watch her wolf race the cliff at a neck-breaking speed. She looked to Dove first, and then to Sirius, and realised that her wolf was injured. She darted forward, nudged at Seer’s head. The Warlord didn’t respond, but an ear to his chest told her he was breathing. They needed to bind the wound, and then get him to help. She had assisted Io a few times, but she was a far cry from a healer. She looked to Marshal, expecting him to go for help, only to find him standing on the cliff, wing hanging at an odd angle, and knew he wouldn’t be flying to the Armada any time soon.

She pulled off two of the warlords bracers, wondering if he would forgive her, as she laid them out flat against his chest, and bound them with the leather he had used to wrap them around his paws.

She looked to Dove then, ears flat to her skull, before pointing down the cliff. It wasn’t going to be a fun trip, but they were far from home, and help wasn’t going to come to them. They needed to get the Warlord there.

Bast was there in moments, wrapping Sirius in leather after she removed the bracers on his arms. Dove watched with silent intensity, guilt lancing sharply in his chest as Bast looked at him and used a paw to point down the hill. Dove blanched but moved towards Sirius regardless of his feelings. There was much blood; staying here meant sure death for the other wolf -- and Dove couldn't allow that, no matter how much remaining anger he had for Sirius. He knelt and gestured at Bast to help him get Sirius up and on his back. The man was just about taller than Dove, but the star-spangled wolf was heavier. Taking on Sirius' weight would be awkward but certainly not impossible. Bast acquiesced, and somehow, they got Sirius on Dove's back, and Dove was moving. Progression down the hill was slow as he tried not to jostle Sirius too much, breath heavy in his throat after ten minutes, and his muscles burning with the exertion. He panted and ignored the blood seeping into his fur from the wolf on his back. He had a general inkling as to where Sirius's pack was stationed, and that's the direction in which he headed. It took him another ten minutes of edging along, being sure to keep his footing, until they touched flat ground, and Dove sighed, beginning to take wider, more hurried strides. It was strange, Dove decided, somewhere in the back of his mind where he was still calm. The fury that had consumed him the day of their spar seemed to have no place here, no bearing as he hastily marched passed the mangrove forest and towards Sirius' pack. One land over, he'd said that same day. The terrain changed, and it seemed to do so slowly. Dove wasn't sure how long he'd been carrying Sirius anymore, but blood -- his own and Sirius' -- weighted his fur down and dripped down his foreleg, causing Dove to leave sticky, bloody footprints as he walked. A familiar scent wafted into his nose, and Dove looked up to see the familiar scene of the mangrove forest in which he'd made his home. It had felt like hours, and although that was certainly the case, Dove hadn't thought it would take so long to reach the territory that Sirius called home. He looked to Bast, the stress clear in his face and eyes. "Where to now?" he said, the urgency clear in his voice. "Speech"

Getting Sirius onto Dove’s back was a rather strong lesson in patience, and likely shaved a few years off the lives of everyone involved. They managed it in the end, but the wound only seemed to bleed harder with the jostling. Dove was going to be a red wolf if Sirius’s body didn’t start to clot the wound.

Dove carried the wolf, and Bast could only watch, and hover anxiously nearby. She was too short to assist in the carrying, and the scent of blood was thick in the air. They made it down the mountain, a harrowing journey she never wanted to repeat.

They moved from the cliffs, to Sunset Falls, and skirted around the hot springs, making their way into the Mangroves. They had traversed for so long in a stressed, anxious silence, that his voice surprised her. Bast looked up at Dove, prepared to give directions, when Sirius stirred on the other wolfs back he began to thrash in the alarm of waking, and toppled off Dove with a hearty crash. Bast pulled her ears back, looked to Sirius, and Dove, put a foot heavily on the ground, as through to say stay and then shot off towards the Armada and break-neck speed. She would fetch Io, and bring the healer to them.

Sirius was barely lucid, eyes wild with pain, blood still dropping down his coat. He looked pale as death, and there was no focus in his blue gaze, just an injured frightened wolf ready to fight off whatever threatened him, and likely barely able to thrash a paw.

Iolaire had actually been much closer to the trio than she was to the Armada territory. The tiny woman was out collecting last minute herbs that were too difficult to grow in the soil of her home turf. The leopard actually ran past her before she realized that it was Io. The look of panic on the feline's face instantly made Iolaire roll her green-gold eyes. What now? Putting the pawful of herbs into her pack, the healer motioned for Bast to lead the way. The pair of ladies ran quickly and without word to the base of the mountain. Coming upon the scene, Iolaire hissed as she saw the injured body of her brother, yet again. She didn't know the brute that was with him, and so she flashed him a warning glare. For all of her small size, Iolaire was a terror. "What happened?" Dropping her pack to the ground, she immediately began assessing the damage. The look on Sirius' face and the blood coating the wolf that had been carrying him told her much of what she needed to know. He'd lost a lot of blood. That needed to be dealt with, and quickly. "Hold his leg up." She instructed either the black wolf or Bast, whichever stepped up. Once the leg was secure, the tiny healer inspected the wounds and the blood still trickling forth. Thankfully, the flow had slowed; her brother's natural coagulants kicking into control the bleeding. The wound needed to be closed, however. Digging into her pack, she pulled out a skin of fresh, clean water. Gently, but thoroughly, she rinsed the exposed flesh, ridding it of any debris that might have been caught within. Then, with her dexterous digits, the woman threaded a strand of dried sinew into a bone needle and got to work. It would take time, but she would piece her sibling back together, only raising her head once to speak to Bast. "Fetch Ila. Have Roan help her into the cart. He won't be able to walk on his own." "Speech"

Dove grunted as Sirius thrashed and fell, his scruff still sore though the bleeding had slowed. Dove was anxious to quell the other wolf, but stayed away, knowing from experience that the blind panic he could see in the other man's eyes was seldom rational. So he settled for murmuring soft, empty words of comfort -- that spiked into panic when Bast firmly stomped a foot on the ground and dashed away. He turned, ready to go after her, and stopped himself because there was, in fact, an injured wolf on the ground behind him that was most likely unable to protect himself. He was laid out in the grass, and the sun above cast a harsh glare on the blood that had gathered. He felt it in his fur, drying as the awaited Bast's return. He turned back to Sirius, breath harsh in his throat, as the minutes ticked by. It felt like hours before Bast was back, another wolf in tow, although she was smaller in stature. "A rogue," the midnight man said, hoarsely. "A rogue attacked me, and Sirius stopped him." Fool that he is, Dove thought but left that unsaid. She set to work immediately, and though Dove noted the glare she'd given him, he moved to obey the order she'd delivered. He watched her work both anxiously and curiously. The presence of curiosity, stemming from his interest in healing, sickened him in this moment, and he said nothing more as raw and unforgiving guilt ate at him, ricocheting through his bones with a hollow, though imaginary, sound. "Speech"

Dark ears perked as the bloodied man spoke. A rogue had attacked, eh? And of course Sirius had to but in and save the day. "That sounds like Sirius..." As she worked, she glared down at her giant, idiot brother. "Big dummy..." she spoke quietly. He worried the hell out of her. Constantly. Always taking risks without thinking things through. She remembered her mother talking about Azure not thinking things through and scoffed aloud. She was surrounded by a bunch of idiot boys. If anything they would keep her in practice with all of their injuries. As Bast raced off to fetch Ila and the cart, Iolaire finished the first of her sutures. A second layer would need to be added, but her paws needed a break. Rolling her shoulders and stretching her neck, the small woman sat back. Flicking her gaze to the speckled male, she spoke. "I'm Iolaire, Sirius' sister." She noted the wounds on his scruff and furrowed her brow. "Men just can't stay whole, can they?" Taking some salve from her pack, she moved forward. Without asking permission and expecting the man to comply, the minuscule dame stood on her hind paws, one forepaw braced gently on the brutes shoulder. She applied the cooling, pain relieving salve to the tears in his scruff, doing her best to be gentle. "Keep these clean. Do your best to not jostle the wounds. Low activity." Lowering herself to the ground one more, she cast a concerned look at the man. "Do you have somewhere to stay that's safe? I have extra rooms in my cottage." Having given her paws a break, Iolaire threaded her needle once more and set back to work on Sirius' wounds. "He does this sort of thing all the time. Acts before he thinks. Throws himself into the line of danger to save others. Noble, but annoying." Despite the situation, she cracked a smirk. Sirius was indeed a big dummy, but she loved him. So as many times as he hurt himself, she would always patch him up. "Speech"

The Warlord could hear the sound of speech around him, the almost-familiar tones of Dove, whom he had claimed, much to the wolf's consternation. He heard Io, and his thrashing slowed, his breath coming from his lips in soft pants, but he wasn’t lucid enough to fully understand what was happening around him. He just knew that if Io was there, he was safe. She knew so many of his secrets, and guarded them close to her heart. He felt the soft pains of her claws in his chest, and knew she saw to him. He was safe, and Io would keep him alive. His eyes flicked shut, and he sagged fully against the earth. Letting them move him as they pleased. He didn’t sleep long, despite the blood loss and pain. He felt io’s claws in him. Still? Again? He wasn’t certain. He didn’t open his eyes, he just lay there and let her work. The soft tugging at his flesh almost a comfort, despite the pain with each puncture. His clever sister was sowing him back together again. Her words drifted through to him, telling Dove how he leaped to the aid of others. Foolish. When had he become this wolf? Why did he risk his life for those he barely knew. He should be keeping himself whole to run the Armada, and yet… and yet. He did not regret answering Dove’s call. He would do it again, if he must. He cracked an eye just in time to see her smirk, and he looked up at Io, seeing her again. She had become so much a part of the family, that sometimes his emotions for her ran quiet. It flooded back in then, why he had adopted her as his sister. “I love you, Io” he whispered, wrapping a bloody paw about her shoulder as she worked. "Speech"

Dove almost nodded at the smaller wolf's assessment of Sirius' actions, but stopped himself just before he did. He was unsure how the woman might take his agreement that what Sirius had done, though likely saving Dove's life in the process, had indeed been foolish. Bast was gone again before he could conjure a reply, but Dove said nothing as he watched her leave on the Iolaire's orders. He merely looked at the woman when she introduced herself and didn't have it in him to release the flinch he would have had he been at full energy. As it was, he merely stiffened beneath the woman's sudden, uninvited touch and twitched at the lukewarm substance she smeared on his wounds. "I am Dove," he said finally, eventually. He nodded at her question "But your cottage is far, yes?" Dove was assuming that her home was, at the very least, in or near the territory she clearly called home. He gestured with a tip of his snout in the direction that would lead deeper into the mangrove forest. "It's not much, but I have a den with a pelt, a gift from Sirius' and Mortis' hunt. Would you prefer to have him there?" It would keep the injured man from being further exposed -- both to the elements and to any others who might happen by. He didn't know if the rogue had had companions with him, and if he did, Dove realized that this was a very bad spot to be indeed. A hollow chuckle floated up from Dove's lips, and he was thankful that the woman seemed to be mostly ignoring his state of mind rather than hyper-focusing it. Besides her brief invasion of space, it seemed to help a lot more than paying attention to him at all would have. He could hardly be truly annoyed with Sirius, though. The situation was the result of the other wolf answering Dove's desperate call. Had he been strong enough, knowledgeable enough, to handle the wolf on his own, perhaps this would not have come to pass. The guilt would be crippling later, when all of his wits were about him again. For now, though, it merely left a bitter taste in his mouth. He heard Sirius' words -- yet, as they hadn't been for his ears, Dove studiously ignored it, choosing instead to pay attention to woman's careful work. "Speech"

The black brutes wounds having been seen to, she went back to Sirius. Much to her surprise, the bloodied man wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close, confessing his love. Iolaire grunted dramatically. "Oof, I love you too, you big oaf." While he was conscious, she checked his eyes to see if he'd somehow gotten a concussion during his battle. Both pupils seemed even and fine. "Stop hurting yourself, okay?" Of course he wouldn't listen, but she had to say it anyway. It seemed like she was always fixing him up again. One of those days he'd acquire an injury she couldn't fix. Then the world would burn. Dove spoke, offering his own home since it was closer. The small woman shot him a smile, but shook her head. "Thank you, but no. I need to get this big lug home." Finishing up the last of her stitching, Iolaire dabbed at the seam of the wounds with a bit more water on a clean piece of skin. "All of my supplies are there. I've used most of them just now." She was out of clean furs, clean water and sinew. "Help will be here soon and we'll get him back in mostly one piece." Now that she had done all that she was able to, Iolaire slid her pack beneath the head of her brother as a makeshift pillow. Still sitting beside Sirius, her hip against his outstretched legs, she looked to Dove who stood there looking a bit like a lost puppy. "So how did you meet my darling brother? Just now, saving the day?" The man was seriously too intense. Iolaire tilted her head slightly, green-gold eyes gleaming with a bit of mirth. "He's going to be fine, you know. You can breathe your sigh of relief and grab some calm." Iolaire's general disposition was far from serious. She was incredibly laid back, even in situations like this. "Speech"

Still delirious, the Warlord let himself collapse back down again, safe in his sister's petite arms. It was almost comical to consider the giant warlord before the tiny healer. Helpless, but trusting, in her care. He could hear the soft murmuring of their voices, but it seemed further away then it should be.

At least his bleeding had finally been stemmed by Io’s sowing, he was coated red now, as was Dove, as was part of Io after his hug to her. They all smelled and looked like Sirius’s insides. Well, that was one lasting way to put his scent claim on them. He suppose.

He let out a delirious giggle at the thought, and promptly fell unconscious again.

Bast returned, with the Caribou and cart behind her as she ran forward, assessing the situation, and ensuring her Warlord was okay. She then stopped before Io and quickly told her that Marshal was still up the cliff with a broken wing, lying low and waiting for someone to go back for him. They had been forced to leave him to get the more seriously injured Warlord back to the Armada.

In an effort to give them even a modicum of privacy, Dove ignored Iolaire's response to Sirius as he examined the sutures the former wolf had lain. They were neat and tight, and though there was still a small amount of blood trickling between them, it seemed it had been stemmed for the most part. Her words brought forth a nod from the dark wolf, and Dove glanced up to see if he could spot the help she'd said was on its way, but he saw nothing for the moment.

He supposed if he were any other wolf, he might have been able to laugh at her question; instead Dove frowned and shook his head. "He thought it would be fun to play pranks," he said, "And made me to believe the mangrove forest was his territory and I, a trespasser. When I didn't back down from his threats, he sighed as though I'd ruined his game and took me on a hunt." What a strange way to make friends, Dove thought, eyeing the man as he gently set down the arm he was still holding. He eyed Sirius as a giggle of all things left him before he fell unconscious.

Dove decided, then and there, for the all the trouble Sirius had made for him, that he would beat the Warlord to death with that giggle.

Dove turned his attention back to Iolaire. "I'm certain he will be," he said, some feeling coming back into his voice. The blood was plentiful and sticky in his coat, and he wasn't sure if Sirius was still out of the proverbial woods with how much blood he'd lost, but for now at least, he seemed to be doing fine. "He seemed to have an uncanny way of getting underneath the skin and surviving, for all the trouble he makes."

"Speech"

Tracker.

Though he was weak an injured, Io gave her brother a light bap to his leg with one tiny paw when he began to giggle. This was not a serious situation. Besides, he expected her to chastise him and she rather liked doing so. He deserved it. Always rushing head first into trouble. Always making more work for her. Alas, it was who he was and she wouldn't have him any other way. She would forever pretend that he was a pain in her tail, however. Dove spoke of his meeting with Sirius and Iolaire scoffed aloud, obsidian lips pulling back from white teeth in a grin. "Anything to make a friend. Anything to bring yet another into the fold that is the Armada." She cast a sidelong glance at Dove with those sunlight and poison eyes. "He's a good man despite his awkward and sometimes insanely ignorant ways." She looked down upon her enormous sibling that was now unconscious once more. "He must have seen something in you that sparked his protective nature." Sirius was overly protective and he was loyal. Just as she was. Soon a bleating from the trees let Iolaire know that Ila was coming. The dwarf caribou huffed and puffed as she brought the cart into view. Four rolling wheels. Platform for the top. Sirius would rest upon it as they moved back home. The words of Bast stopped her and the woman frowned. Marshall was injured too. These freaking boys! "Do you want to go get Marshall while I take Sirius back?" She asked Dove, then she moved towards Sirius and patted his cheek with one paw. "Hey, big guy. We have to get you onto the cart now. Wake up enough to help so that you don't break your poor sister's spine please. Thanks." "Speech"

[/quote]

Dove didn't have anything to say to that bit of information about Sirius, so he said nothing instead, cataloging it away for later examination. The unconscious wolf seemed to have a knack for getting attached, at the very least, he decided, remembering Sirius admitting that he'd grown protective of Dove. Those thoughts, though, were darker than the current task at hand, darker than he wanted to deal with right then. He hadn't decided how he felt about Sirius' attempt at curbing the deep seated anxiety Dove had, but he'd at least come to terms with that being the other wolf's method of showing that he cared.

How chaotic, Dove decided.

Iolaire's words poured into his ears, and he nodded. He looked down at Sirius. "Do you need help getting him onto the cart?" he offered. Iolaire was small, and Dove thought, Sirius would likely flail. He hadn't seen her give him any pain medication, though maybe she'd put something in the wounds. Dove didn't like the odds of the smaller woman moving Sirius without both of them getting hurt, but perhaps between Bast, Iolaire, and the . . . very small horned creature, they could somehow make it work.

He looked in the direction he'd come from, hoping that Marshal had fared better than Sirius had. Dove scented the wind, noting no more unfamiliar smells, though he still felt wary of going up the hill alone.

"Speech"

Tracker.

Dove offered to help her get Sirius onto the cart and she nodded in acceptance. Nosing her injured sibling, she let him know just what they were doing to him. Jostling him would pull at the wound, but the pain would be short lived. Once they got him back to Armada lands, she'd fill him with all of the pain relievers under the sun. Well... enough to keep him comfortable. Not enough to kill him or make his mind extremely cloudy. With Bast on one side and herself on another, they worked to get Sirius upright. Io could feel the tackiness of the partially dried blood as her body slid against his. Her own pristine pelt would be covered in Sirius by the time they were done. Great. Casting a glance towards Dove, she watched as he did his part and soon they had the great lug onto the low cart. Still hitched, Ila grumbled slightly. Sirius would be too heavy for just her alone. Now that Sirius was settled with his head on her pack once more, Iolaire went to work on adjusting the harness. A clever little thing, she quickly altered the neck strap and breast band so that there were three sets. Together, Ila, Bast and Iolaire would drag Sirius home. She fitted the leopard into the harness and placed Ila in the middle since she was a natural puller. Looking back to Dove, she shot the man a serious look. "Bring Marshal back as quickly as you can. I'm putting my trust in you, Dove." She trusted him to bring the vulture back home. Iolaire didn't know this man one bit, but Sirius had gone out of his way to protect him, so she had to assume there was some good in him. Some sense of honor that would make him carry out this task. Without another word, the trio of ladies threw their weight into the harnesses and made their way back home. "Speech"