The world had shifted and pulsed and turned into something else. The male did not know if change had arrived too late, but there was a weight in his chest that had lifted, yet there was also more sorrow clinging to his caring heart. A member had been lost because of him. While Conor mourned the loss of Semyon, he also thought of the late male with fondness and gratefulness. Haku Soul’s grip on Dahlia de Mai was no more and perhaps it was possible to find peace once again. One of the first things he had to do after this pack meeting was to travel to the lands of Inferni and announce that Haku was now a packless villain free for all to deal with as they pleased. There was no fragment of love or respect for the crazed ex-Rosen in the golden man’s heart. Now, his face was turned forwards to the present and the closest future. Never had Dahlia been this fragile, the young bud crumbling under the weight of remaining winter. While the flower would have strength to fight through to the surface and burst into bloom, he did not know what would become of his beloved Dahlia de Mai.
Lilac eyes gazed on the present members that had been called to the place where both Roseas and Rosens had spoken to their members in the pack. There was no longer any Rosen in the pack. Haku had ruined many things while ruling these lands, and he had betrayed and disgraced most of what Dahlia de Mai stood for. He had shed crimson on Dahlia’s petite petals and turned the pack’s rank meaning sour and false. Yes, thanks to madman Haku, many things had been ruined, but there was also a time for new beginnings. This pack was the oldest wolf pack currently standing and they had once been great before things had turned sour. Conor was not exactly afraid, but he could not guess what their reaction would be. Some had seemed to follow Haku blindly. This was no longer a place for savage beasts. The gold and cinnamon hued yearling stood tall despite feeling very little. He was still so young, but he had climbed high. Perhaps he would fall, but they could not stand leaderless.
There was no insecure clearing of throat nor any other form of dillydallying before the golden man opened his mouth to speak. Whether his words offered good or bad news was up to each and every one of them. ”The war is over. Some of you may already know this, but earlier today Haku Soul resigned as the Rosen of Dahlia and left the lands for good and with him the conflict with Inferni.” His hands wanted to fiddle with the empty air, but he kept them well controlled, and underlined the words he spoke by adding light gesticulation along with them. ”There will be no more bloodshed, and those who cannot let go of the conflict will no longer be welcome within lands.” He could not yet truly know if they would accept him as a creature of authority, but that was not what he sought for either. He wanted Dahlia to be safe and beautiful again. That was all. He wanted peace and tranquillity in his life. There had been so little of it.
”This is not the only change I will announce today. While we’re still the same pack, many of the values of the pack and its name have been betrayed. We will return to a rank hierarchy similar to the one that was commonly used in the old wolf packs before fire ate their lands. I will not go into details right now, but I will come around and talk with each and every one of you and sort out the transition from old ranks to new. “ It would be easier for the majority to understand the new ranks as well. He had not known about the common use of ranks before he had gotten into the most peculiar conversation with Rurik Russo, a man he dared to consider a friend even after their awkward first meeting. The pack was too split as it was now – perhaps the new ranks would help forth cooperation with other members. There were specific jobs in the ranks now; a purpose instead of a pretty rank name that few could understand.
He fell silent then and looked at the present group, all that was left of damaged Dahlia de Mai. Would they scatter and disappear? He did not wish for it to be too late, but he knew nothing of the future. He was a father and provider now, and he would protect and care for his own for as long as necessary. Right now this included Dahlia de Mai, for Conor knew no other home than this.