indent The scent was closer then it had been in weeks, and Gabriel, still covered in fresh wounds and aching, made his way towards it on two legs. His speed and gait did not change despite the recent battles (there had been three of them, two with leaders of the familiar packs) but he knew that whatever else his father was he would not come here for war. Ahren was predictable in this way; were he to come with blood on his mind, he would come in guns blaring, that wide grin on his face. All around the air was electric, and the scent of rain was not far. It had stormed on and off for the past two days, and would do so again soon.
indent Fog covered the area, blurring the distance between the forest and the plain, casting haze over the half-full moon. The smell of smoke alerted him to the presence before he even saw him. Ahren was not much changed—except, Gabriel saw, he was now blind in one eye. His left eye. Of course, both parents should be so blinded by pride. Having found the irony in this, he smiled thinly, though the smile was gone by the time he neared the man. “What do you want?”
indent “You’ve gone to war,” Ahren stated plainly, a phantom in the wilderness. He was a blonde monster, and this he knew. He had found the two he had intended to find and made it plain they were his enemies now and forever more. The forest told him about the rest.
indent Gabriel snorted, frowning. “It’s not your concern.”
indent “It is,” his father said, stray wind toying with his grown-out hair. “I will not lose you as I lost the others.”
indent Lighting torn apart the sky above them, and set Gabriel’s eyes ablaze. He was snarling as he advanced, hackles rising. “How dare you,” he spat, teeth bared. “You abandoned us—“
indent “I did what I had to do,” Ahren replied sharply, red eyes gleaming in the dark. “You need to do the same.”
indent The hybrid opened his mouth to speak, realized what was being said, and fell silent. Ahren’s hands moved, went to the pouch on his hip, and drew two cigarettes. He waited without a word as his son assumed the two-legged form, and then handed one to him. Around Gabriel’s neck the metal dangled, and above them, thunder rumbled. “Listen,” Ahren said, lighting his cigarette and speaking between his teeth. “They’ve begun gathering against you. Your friends among the wolves are few.”
indent “Fatin’s gone,” Gabriel said, taking the match from his father. “She left last night.”
indent Nodding, Ahren exhaled smoke into the wind. “Don’t make the mistake your mother did. Inferni is strong, but you cannot survive on strength alone.”
indent The hybrid, who resembled his father now more then perhaps any other time, narrowed his eyes. “So what are you proposing, exactly?”
indent “I’ll help you,” the blonde replied. “You’ve gathered what information you can about the packs, but they know Inferni’s scent. Let me be your eyes and your ears. I’ll teach you what I learned from guerillas and the madmen of the world.”
indent For a long time, Gabriel was silent. Then he looked into his father’s eyes, and knew it was no lie. “You would do this for nothing?”
indent “As far as I see it,” the near-four year old answered. “I owe you. I owe her.”
indent Gabriel frowned, and looked down at his feet. “She should have told me,” he grumbled.
indent All around them, the wind was picking up. The lightning was now steady, setting the sky alight for brief seconds. Thunder rumbled, growing ever closer. “Kaena was always unpredictable,” Ahren said. “You shouldn’t have expected anything less.”
indent The hybrid looked back up to the wolf. “If they find out they’ll kill you.”
indent“Let them come,” Ahren said, grinning. He looked half-mad. “I’ve survived their fathers, their old wars, their ideals. I’ve lived through Europe’s ragged countryside and the ocean’s wrath. I’ve seen half the world over and have brought them the flames of ruin.” Gabriel started, and Ahren did not overlook this. Very quietly, and careful of his tone, he continued. “You started that fire, didn’t you?”
indentHe said nothing. It was enough for Ahren, who smiled thinly. “It’s in your blood.” Brushing a chunk of hair from his face, the blonde shrugged. “I’ll come here when I can. Don’t strike out unless they come to you.”
indentGabriel snorted, and flicked the cigarette from his fingers. “Is that all?”
indent“Jasper wants to see your children,” Ahren said, shifting his weight. “You gave him a scare, you know.”
indentThe hybrid grinned faintly, and rubbed the back of his neck. “Faolin’s been keeping them out of sight. We had some problems with people on our land.”
indent“Understandable. I’ll let you choose when. I’d like to see them too.”
indent“I’ll see what I can do.”
indentAhren returned the smile, and finished off his cigarette. “All right. I’ll see you soon, I’m sure.”
indentWithout another word, the blonde was off, vanishing into the fog like an ancient beast of lore. Gabriel stood on the border for a long time, listening to the advancing storm, and only made his way towards home when the rain began to fall.