Rhyme followed Theory shortly after the meeting had ended, even more he felt ashamed of his actions and his weakness. He hadn’t even been strong enough to apologize in front of the pack, but this seemed like a conversation he needed to have alone. Everyone already knew he had crumbled, hopefully Theory could forgive him and he could truly begin to rebuild himself.

Samara held no small part in where he was now. He believed he would have wasted away somewhere, lost in the fog as he searched for Shaye. Rhyme had no doubt he would have found her. The Klein woman was a beacon of light, his north star, the reason he was here. He owed her so much, and that repayment would start here.

”Theory,” he called out softly as he approached swiftly from behind her and aimed to wrap her into a hug. He couldn’t begin to describe how proud he was of her, it was a sharp contrast to how ashamed he was of himself. ”Theory, I’m so sorry.” He aimed to whisper into her neck as he held tightly to her. The realization that he was holding a young woman instead of a child hit him hard. He’d been too absent for too long, and she never deserved that.

She gave a small, surprised noise before collapsing into her father's embrace. "Rhyme!" Theo exclaimed, blinking her blue eyes rapidly. Awkwardly she twisted around to meet his gaze. "I mean, dad." His daughter smiled and nudged her head underneath his. After all this time it still fit snugly under his chin. They were more alike than she'd ever realized, sharing perhaps their greatest weakness: they felt things so deeply and so simply that it sometimes overpowered all of their senses. She hadn't told anyone that she'd been sneaking out to meet Thalia. A small, sick guilt was brewing in her heart, but the truth was simple: it felt good and so she'd keep doing it until something went wrong. "What are you apologizing for? You fought bravely against their warriors - especially that tusked male. He was unlike anything I'd ever seen," Theo murmured, nuzzling deeper into the familiar scent of his thick fur. Comfort could be found here no matter how old she got.

She didn’t hesitate to fall into his embrace as he initiated the affection, she called him by his name but as her eyes found his she corrected herself. Theory fit under his chin just as perfectly as the day she’d been born and he felt a sense of relief with her so close to him. The alpha didn’t understand what he meant when he apologized so deeply. He sighed heavily, maybe he had fought well but that was not where his mind was.

”Kai.” He answered easily, having met the man before, enough that they knew each other’s name. ”I’m sorry for everything before the raid.” He answered quietly, their close proximity not warranting loud voices. ”For being so.. absent. For leaving you with the world on your shoulders.” Rhyme confessed to her his guilt and his weakness.

Ah, she could finally put a name to the tusks. She smiled as she felt her father relax. The worst part was over now, right? Together they could step forward and continue to lead Abaven. Side by side. She wouldn't want it any other way - she couldn't even dream of it another way. Not now. He'd only just been recovered from the wasteland his mind had descended into after Shaye's death. Samara's efforts had helped immensely, but she knew Rhyme had put in his own personal work to make it back to her and the rest of his family. Her sisters, Eulogy, all of his nieces and nephews. He knew they needed them. She held her breath for a long moment after he explained, blinking her eyes slowly. They were glassy with tears but she didn't want to cry in front of him. "It's... okay," she said, unsure how else to respond. Yes, in he may have let her down, but how could she have asked more of him? "I mean, I'm not sure what to say. I'm just so, so glad you're back. And you're not going anywhere," she said fiercely, pulling her ears back and nudging into his chest more insistently.

”I needed your forgiveness.” He spoke softly as he held tightly to his daughter, the pride he had in her nearly overwhelming. She had blossomed into a wonderful woman so much so he could scarcely believe. Theory was an impressive wolf, but she’d been through so much to get here, and Rhyme felt like he’d hardly been there to help at all. He’d been weak and she had suffered for it, but the hard part was over. There were parts of themselves that they would never get back, part of Rhyme had died with Shaye, that was something he couldn’t deny. Theory’s childhood had been ripped from her and she would never have that innocence ever again. ”I promise.” He told her softly, there was nowhere else he would rather be. Someday he’d be reunited with Shaye, but he was determined for it to be far off. He was needed here, and Rhyme wouldn’t move on until the time was right. ”I’m not going anywhere.”

She closed her eyes and let her sorrow roll over her in waves. It crashed hard and receded, wilder than any of the storms she'd seen batter the shores of the bay this year. Weathering it almost took her breath away. Yes, they'd lost so much. They could drown in their shared grief or they could look forward to the future. Tears slipped from the corners of her eyes and slid down her cheeks until they gathered at the longest of her fur. It felt like reopening a wound and draining the infection inside - it just hurt. "I forgive you. Of course I forgive you." Although she was still weathering the pain, she knew she would continue to do so for a long, long time to come. At least things were quiet now. In the eye of the storm curled her, Rhyme, Poem, and Motif. Together they could weather anything that came their way. "We're all together again, you know. Motif was so brilliant in the raid, and Poem too. We have so much to look forward to... and how is Samara?" she asked. Was it inappropriate to ask? So many boundaries had been demolished over the past few months. She was struggling to reenter a father-daughter relationship now that she finally felt comfortable beneath the mantle of "leader."