Sunlight poured into the window of the room like gold. It warmed the dark mother inside and out. Her three children were crawling over one another. Their eyes and ears had finally opened and they were now able to see and hear all that surrounded them in their little world. At least it was little now. Savina knew how fast time flew and before long they would have their legs about them and be able to explore further and further. First in the mansion and around it. Then the whole of the territory and beyond. She tried not to think about that though. Did her best to stay in the moment and enjoy everything in the here and now.



Amata had gotten herself on top of Gotham and was toothlessly gnawing on her brother's ear. Cambria sat a little ways away, watching her siblings wide-eyed and curious. Already she was seeing that Amata was the most outgoing of her children. Cambria was the shyest, most content to always be close to either her mother or father. Gotham was quiet, but would never pass his light sister up in a wrestling match. If that's what one could call it that was. Moving around was still difficult for the small pups, so it was really a lot of wriggling and falling and crawling. The Marino woman watched with happy eyes. To her, her children were even more beautiful than the sunlight.

300+

Alexey had meant to visit her Italian friend for a little while now. Between caring for the Lillium’s children and spending time with her mate, it had been nearly impossible for her to leave the pack lands. Ever since Kol had nearly gotten killed by that puppy-eating psychopath; Drey often made sure that no one left Dahlia de Mai alone, especially not Lexey. But today was a beautiful day, she did not feel like sitting around and doing nothing. Conor was bored out of his mind too, though he generally wasn’t one to complain. He didn’t need to. The Koios girl could see it in his eyes.

They were nearly inseparable; their bond went beyond her duties as a caregiver. She genuinely cared for Conor, and feelings of unconditional love were shared between the two of them. Alexey wasn’t his mother, of course. But she considered the child to be part of her family nonetheless. Drey often complained about the time she spent with the sub-leader’s children, foolish jealousy coming from a grown man. Still, the Caregiver found it unbelievably cute.

Glancing down at her protégé, Lexey allowed a smile to spread on her lips. He was a tough little guy. At first, she’d thought the distance between Dahlia de Mai and Crimson Dreams would’ve been too much for his little legs. But not anymore. He was doing a splendid job at keeping up. They were nearing the borders now. The Vitis only hoped that Savina would be there, or else their little trip would’ve been in vain. They could always go see Haven if she wasn’t available.

“Now Conor, you be polite and say hello when we get there,” she warned, combing his unruly hair by licking the top of his head. Alexey halted at the borders and lifted her maw to the sky, letting out a howl meant for the Lieutenant General or her nephew. And soon enough, their call was answered by the black fae herself. “Come, come!” she said, giving her little prince a gentle push with the tip of her nose.

The mansion was easy to find; Savina’s howl had been detailed enough. Before long, the Dahlians were inside the manor and in front of the room where the new mother had taken up residence. “Savina?” she said softly, before poking her head through the doorway.

(300)

The little child was following in the light brown woman’s heels, intent on keeping as close to the femaleas he could. He had felt up for it at first, taking the possibility to be all alone with Alexey, but when they had passed the pack borders of Dahlia behind, stress tugging his fur the longer they went. Mommy had done this as well, and never come back to get him. He did not genuinely believe the kind caregiver would leave him behind, but there was definitely some worry there. The child held a strict, serious face as he followed close to the woman. The undersides of his paws were slightly sore because of the long walk, but he refused to complain and ask when they were going to head home again. Alexey had told him earlier that it would be fun, and so he planned to believe in her.

They had walked in silence for quite a while when she told him to be polite and say hello. His tail wagged uncertainly while she pointlessly tried to settle the tuff of extra fur on the top of his head. They were still alone, but this place smelled strange and reeked of unknown wolves that he did not know. Conor did not particularly like meeting new people, especially if there were several at once. His ears flattened as his caretaker raised her voice into the air and received an answer not long after. The boy’s tail danced between his legs. He did not know the voice that had answered Alexey, and was unsure how he felt about it all. She nosed him forwards, and he reluctantly started walking again, deeper into the new territory.

When they reached the manor, Conor slipped in-between Alexey’s legs. Everywhere was strange and a bit scary, and therefore it was safest underneath the Dahlian female. When the woman stopped outside the room and called out a name he was not familiar with, the child dared himself to poke a nose into the room and sniff out four different individuals before he stepped back out of sight again, placing himself against the wall. ”People in there, Lexey,” the boy whispered. Something was wrong, because she had only called Savina, and not all the people inside there could be named Savina.

300+



Amata continued to slobber all over Gotham's ear, but Savina noticed a little glint in her boy's eye. As quick as a puppy his size could move her slipped out from underneath his sister and rolled himself on top of her, stubby tail wagging. He gave a triumphant little bark while Amata growled under his paws. The mother couldn't help but let out a chuckle at her babies' antics. They were always so entertaining and she loved watching them play. While she didn't want time to fly by too quickly, she couldn't wait until they were big enough that she could play with them. Take them outside and play a nice game of hide-n-seek like she had with Apollo and Sirius all those moons ago.



Soon a call rang through the air. It wasn't one of her packmates, but she easily recognized the voice as the tan colored Koios girl. Her smile grew as she called out for her friend to enter the lands and to come find her inside the mansion. The sable fey was excited that Alexey had come to visit. The last time she had seen her it had not been the best of times. She hoped that things were going better. The Lt. General also made a note to ask how the search for Dhalia's puppies were going. She hoped that they had found the two boys.



As their mother had howled, the three children had waddled back over to her. She gave each one a lick on the top of their heads. "We're going to have a visitor my loves!" Each one of their eyes lit up and their tails thumped against the wooden floor. Soon Savina heard the foot steps and her own tail joined her children's in wagging. Not only did Alexey's head poke through the door, but for a second so did a little face. Jeweled orbs glittered at the sight of another pup. "Alexey! Please come in!" Amata, Cambria, and Gotham turned to look at their guests.

Honey-hued orbs scanned the room ahead. There was Savina and… three little fur balls; replicas of their mother and father, most obviously. Lexey didn’t even have to ask whose children they were. They were the Lieutenant General’s, no doubt about it. Wow. Had it been that long since they’d last seen each other? Her friend hadn’t seemed pregnant at all during their last encounter. The Koios girl blinked a few times, as if to make sure her mind wasn't playing tricks on her. “Oh my,” she whistled, examining every single one of them. Two girls and one boy. Just like the Koios siblings.

Alexey was about to speak when Conor withdrew and stepped back out of the room, only to state the obvious. She understood the pup’s confusion. In all honesty, she hadn’t expected anyone but Savina to be in there either. “I know, Coco. It’s okay,” she said, giving the child a little nudge before joining the newly founded family. The boy would more than likely follow when he was ready, she knew that much. It was unlike him to stay on his own for too long. Her attention went to her Italian friend, to whom she granted a warm smile.
“I guess we have a lot to tell each other. Congratulations m’love!” she exclaimed, her beige-tipped tail swishing back and forth to mirror her enthusiasm.

---

A voice from inside the room called for the lovely caregiver, and so the little puppy grimaced slightly, afraid she would leave him out here where everything was strange and not home. The woman outside the room with him commented on what she saw, and the little boy felt curiosity rise unexpectedly. He wanted to see too. The woman soothed him with words and a nudge before she entered the room. Refusing to allow her to walk out of sight, the Soul offspring revealed his face in the door opening. His silvery orbs caught the scene, a black woman and.. three small puppies. They were smaller than him, and they looked very happy with their wagging tail. Conor felt a needle shoot through his heart when he gazed upon their faces. He could barely remember anything from that age. There were nothing left but blurred images and the knowledge that he had lost something, the feeling of being safe and happy, unaware of the world’s cruelty.

He slowly let the rest of his body emerge, and tiptoed into the room. Most of all he wanted to cling against the wall, but Alexey had always been his safe zone. He hurried over to the latte coated female and dived in under her. He held his breath as he stared wide eyed at all the new faces. It was sad to witness what this puppy had become. Slightly anti social and something underlying that could easily turn into a serious depression when enough time passed.

At the shocked look Alexey had when she surveyed the room and those inside it occurred to Savina that her friend hadn't even known that she had even been pregnant. But then, not even she had known that she was pregnant the last time she had seen the tan girl. In fact it only would have been about a week or even less into her gestation. She could feel her face grow warm with color that was hidden by her dark face as her tail swept against the floor. "Surprise. I forgot you didn't know. I had them a few weeks ago." Her head cocked to the side as the Dahlian said comforting words to the older pup. He apparently was very uncertain about this whole situation. "You found them then?" He clearly wasn't Alexey's, she would have showed signs the last time they had seen each other.



"Thank you Alexey. They're such a blessing, I can't imagine my life without them now." Even though it had only been a few weeks time, her children were her and Kansas' life now. She knew that neither of them would change anything about their new little family. Savina watched as the chocolate boy scurried in the room and hid underneath Alexey. The poor child. She wondered if this was an effect of his kidnapping. Amata seemed oblivious to his nervousness though and she confidently waddled over to look at him. Her cream tail wagged and she issued a little bark at the boy, inviting him to play. Gotham followed behind his sister, but his greeting was more reserved and less vocal. He sniffed at Alexey and smiled up at her and then turned his eyes to the older boy. As always, Cambria was most comfortable staying by her mother's side. For a moment the sable woman also lowered her head to look at the hiding child. "Hello there," her accented tones greeted softly.



"So what news do you have? It's been longer than I realized."

The Caregiver was growing accustomed to having Conor close by. Now that he’d taken his usual spot beneath her, Alexey took a step back and adopted a sitting position. He could still hide between her two front legs if he judged it necessary. “Yes we did,” she said, glancing down at the older puppy. A pained look crossed her face then, one that was meant for Savina’s eyes only. “It’s a long story. I’ll tell you about it a little later.” She always avoided the subject when Conor was around. Stirring up horrible memories wouldn't help him come out of his shell.

Alexey held back a laugh as both Amata and Gotham wobbled over. The way they walked reminded her of little ducklings. “They’re gorgeous,” she said sincerely, keeping her eyes on the confident little girl. The Dahlian femme didn’t know how Conor would react; it worried her a little. Their personalities were polar opposites and the Lillium's son was out of his element. But Alexey decided that she wouldn't intervene, not this time. Interacting with another pup would do him good. Her gaze turned to Savina’s son, who was now curiously sniffing her leg. She returned the gesture by gently poking him with the tip of her nose.

“Well, Emwe and Conor have returned to us. And… I now have a mate. ” she said, glancing up at the boy’s mother once more.

(300)

The space under Alexey was safe and it was only his. The boy stared big-eyed at the four individuals he did not know. The worst was the younger puppies. He had believed the older ones were the worst since they seemed full of energy and wanted to play much of the time, but his eyes settled on the children. He looked at them, and they looked straight at him. It was not allowed, he was hiding under Alexey! He was about to step backwards away from the incoming puppies, but he only managed to fall down on her bum, his limbs poking in every direction. The little girl barked happily at him, and for a moment he felt envy rise. Had he ever been like that? The other children’s attention seemed to be on him, and the Soul boy uncertainly glanced up at Alexey, but remembered that he could not obtain eye contact as long as he was under her. The black adult’s face turned to him and said hello, but the boy only stared back with a relatively blank expression.

He had no idea what to do. Conor slowly got up on his legs and took a careful step towards the female puppy that had barked at him, staring at her with a calm he did not really have. His eyes travelled to the child close to the black woman. If anyone, he would have guessed she had been the best company for him. The brown puppy swallowed and finally decided to leave his sanctuary. He gave the male puppy a poke with his paw, but the moment he did it he realized for the second time that these puppies were younger than him and perhaps very fragile so that they could die. The sudden fear went straight to his heart, and he spun around to hide from them behind Alexey’s furry tail.

Conor just makes me want to cuddle him and tell him it's going to be ok D: 300+



It was so good to hear that Dahlia's pups had been found and returned home, but she took note of the pain that flashed across Alexey's face. What did that mean? Savina wanted to ask, but knew better, not with the small boy in the room. Besides, no such matters needed to be discussed in front of her own children either. The sable fey nodded her head. "Well, that would make them cousins, then. Which one is he?" While she had never met Kansas' twin, she knew that Firefly was his sister and this was one of her pups. It was no surprise, the boy almost looked like a larger clone of her own brown daughter.



The mother's ears dipped at her friend compliment. "Thank you. Sometimes it's still hard to believe we made such beautiful things." Savina was and always had been a modest wolf. She didn't think of herself as particularly attractive or anything of the sort. The poor older boy seemed to be at a completely loss as to what he should do or how he should act. That seemed so strange to her. Hadn't he and his brother played? There was nothing she could do though, hopefully the pups would all figure things out on their own. Amata continued to stare at him, her tail wagging. Why wasn't he coming to play? Gotham smiled as Alexey nudged him with her nose and his little sooty tail showed his happiness. Savina watched as the shy boy came out from under his protector and went to poke Gotham, though as soon as he had he ran to hide behind Alexey once again.



Heaving a sigh, sorry for the boy's condition she looked back to her tan friend as she spoke. The corners of her mouth perked up again. "Alexey! Congratulations! That's so wonderful!" The Koios femme deserved it. She was so sweet and caring. Meanwhile Gotham was looking with a confused expression to where his cousin had ran off to, not understanding why he had taken off. Amata had a sort of indignant look. He had ignored her! He was a strange puppy. She decided to go play with one of her toys rather than mess with the weird boy anymore. Surprisingly though, Cambria unsteadily got to her feet and started walking carefully over to where Conor was hiding. It was the first time she had seen someone more shy than she was and she wanted him to know he was safe here. The little girl stayed on the opposite side of the lady's tail but leaned over and gave the hiding pup a lick with her little pink tongue.

Cousins? The revelation was beyond confusing, and the frown on her face demonstrated how uninformed she really was. She hesitated a moment before speaking, attempting to understand how the pups could’ve been related. Savina’s family was a mystery but thanks to her Italian roots, the Koios girl could safely assume that her friend was unrelated to Conor’s parents. Then who? Her mate? Lexey had to dig deep into her memory for his name, until it eventually emerged from hiding. Kansas. She’d never heard Haku and Firefly speak his name before. “They’re related to… your mate?” she asked hesitantly. The Caregiver was dumbfounded. “Oh, this one’s Conor.” Her gaze travelled down to the little boy hiding under her.

Both of the adults turned to the children, watching attentively as Conor got closer to the other little boy. Her protégé’s reaction was far from surprising. She was unfazed by it, unlike Savina who seemed a little puzzled. The Dahlian femme was getting a little nervous, Perhaps Conor wasn’t ready for this. He barely socialized at home; bringing him to Crimson Dreams might not have been the best idea.

Alexey was about to speak when Cambria took matters into her own hands. There was a pup on each side of her tail now, and she turned her head in order to see what was going on. A genuine smile illuminated her face when a pink little tongue reached out to touch Conor’s face. “Isn’t she a pretty little thing, Coco?” she remarked, stifling a laugh.

(500)

There was an uncomfortable pressure against his chest, but the force was invisible, and he feared it was panic creeping up on him again. It should have been expected, but he had decided earlier that he would be good for Lexey, because doing bad things made people leave, and there had been enough people leaving him behind in the past, and his life had not even started yet. His tail shivered pathetically as he hid from the staring eyes of the other, normal puppies. He too wanted to be normal, just like them. Smiles and laughter should come naturally, but such things seemed unnatural, almost foreign. He did not want to be here, the room was too small and there were too many wolves in it. It felt so overcrowded, and they were all faces that he did not know, did not want to know!

The world was dark as he had closed his eyes, learning lightly against the scent and fur of the person that mattered most to him. Something warm and wet touched his forehead, and his eyes opened to stare up at the little girl that had not seemed to want to play with him. Was that what she wanted to do now? Conor did not want to play; he did not want to interact with these children. Yet, her act made his eyes slightly glossy. They did not know eachother, but she did not hate him. Nor did the other puppies, but they would hate them because he did not want to play with them. He had nothing to offer, and this was why nobody wanted him. Mommy did not want him, Daddy did not want him, Emwe seemed to find him boring. It was sad, a lot of things were sad.

He treated the girl’s move as one of accept, but his emotional state had already been pushed to its limit by the introduction of so many new faces and the lack of mental preparation. The Soul child felt his face seek the floor, felt the need to hide from the world. Instead he pressed his now wet face into Alexey’s tail, hoping that she could save him from himself. He needed her attention and love, in larger doses than what was normal. He felt shame burn in his face, because he was aware of that he was making a fool out of himself in front of the other puppies and the big, black lady. Maybe Lexey too would be embarrassed and send him away because he was bad.

The adult's voice asked if the girl puppy was pretty, and she was. He thought so, but he did not want to make her believe he liked her and wanted to play with her. He did not, he wanted to go home. "No." was the boy's simple answer, voice slightly muffled as he did not stop pressing his face against the caretaker's light tail. It was so sad, because the girl was pretty, but 'no' was a magic word that could make people leave. He needed it.

300+



Savina watched as confusion wrote itself all over Alexey's face. She didn't know that Kansas and Firefly were siblings? Though she guessed she wouldn't necessarily know. Maybe she and Firefly weren't that close to be talking about her brother. She really had no idea what kind of wolf her sister-in-law was. "Yes. Firefly is Kansas' sister, though I've never met her." She was the only direct relative of Kansas' she had yet to meet, she thought. At times the woman found that a little odd, but she never said that to her mate. It was his family and she would meet people when she would meet people. It was easier for her side, now that both of her siblings were living in Crimson Dreams with them.



The two adults watched her daughter as she attempted to reach out to Conor. Maybe another quiet, shy soul was just what he needed. She could see where Amata would have been a little intimidating. She loved her light girl's exuberance, but for someone like him it wouldn't have been so endearing. His head peeked up over Alexey's tail and she thought that maybe it had worked. Unfortunately all her hopes were for naught as his hide himself behind his caretaker's tail again. She had never seen such a scared, unadjusted pup. She pitied the poor boy.



Though things turned worse with his one word answer to Alexey's question. Cambria's ears fell back against her head and her tail tucked up against her tummy. Moisture gathered in her big eyes and she ran back to her momma, burying her face in the fur of her chest. Savina frowned sadly and nuzzled her daughter. "It's alright Cami...you are pretty," she whispered softly, hoping to calm her crying. Gotham gave a glare in the direction of the hiding boy and went to protectively sit in front of Savina's paws. Amata had stopped playing with her toy and just stared, wide-eyed, over at the rest of the group.

The fact that Conor’s mother was related to Kansas bothered her a lot more than it should have. She had the strong urge to ruin Firefly’s reputation by telling her friend all about what she’d done; how the witch had sent her own children away. How she was also responsible for Conor’s near death experience. Alexey was clearly ill at ease, and part of her wished she could’ve confided in the Lt. General. “Firefly was excluded from Dahlia de Mai,” she said quietly, turning to see if Conor was paying any attention to what they were saying. It didn’t seem like it; the boy had his own problems to deal with.

Honey-hued eyes widened in shock when her protégé voiced a firm “no” to her next question. “Conor!” Regret instantly washed over her; her body tensed and her gaze immediately sought Savina’s. “I’m so sorry,” she murmured, feeling incredibly embarrassed over the boy’s actions. He wasn’t ready to socialize with other pups yet, she understood that now. Although the Acer wanted to reprimand the Lillium’s child for the hurtful words he’d thrown at Cambria, she simply couldn’t. Not in front of everyone. “We’re leaving… now,” She stood up then, sparing Savina and her children an uncertain smile before nudging Conor towards the exit. He was in big trouble.

Drama-puppy -_- (300)

The boy failed to see the reaction that swelled up in Cambria’s face when his firm answer sounded in the air, but it was soon revealed to him by the puppy’s mother’s words. Why did that puppy have a mother that cared about her and Conor not? He had hurt the little girl, and he felt additional sadness pinch at his bleeding heart when his face strayed from the Caretaker’s tail to let his eyes see the result of his insolence. The Soul boy did not even dare to meet the dark mother’s eyes, but the black male boy sent him a rather angry glare, and despite the age difference and the fact that Conor was technically superior to the other puppies, he felt fear grab his chest. They all hated him now. They did not understand. Of course the girl puppy was pretty, but.. The boy did not remember why he had insisted she was not. Maybe he was just like his father; mean and made everyone sad. A sniffle sounded from the sorry fur ball with the lilac eyes. He only ruined stuff..

However, the worst of it all was Alexey’s sharp voice. The child curled up into a pathetic little ball of regret, ears and tail glued to his underdeveloped body. He wanted to say something, wanted things to be alright again, but he had come to realize that it was hard to make things come undone, if possible at all. Alexey was angry at him, and he was pushed towards the door as the Dahlian adult announced that they were leaving. A sorry glance went over the other wolves in the room, silently crying for help, although there was nothing they could do, as it was them he had wronged. Exactly where would Alexey take him? Leaving? Mommy had said they were leaving too when she had taken them to Uncle Ly and left them forever, and after that his world had shattered. Was Alexey going to do the same to him now?!

A squeal forced its way out of his throat, fear grasping his throat, choking him. ”Nnonononononooo!” He did not want to go back to uncle Ly and back to the loneliness and misery under the bench in Halifax where the woman had found him after a week of solitude. His limbs exploded into motion, attempting to carry him somewhere, away from the Caretaker, although it was the thought of being separated from her that fuelled his panic in the first place.

She could tell how uneasy Alexey had become at the topic of Firefly. Savina looked at her friend curiously, her brows knitting together. What was wrong with Kansas' sister. She didn't know anything about the woman, only that she was her beloved's sibling. Even if Kansas had told her about his twin it would have painted a very different picture from what she would hear from others. The she wolf acted differently around her brother. The news was a bit shocking. "Excluded? You mean kicked out?" What had she done to receive that fate? Did Kansas know? She had a feeling he didn't. Perhaps she didn't want to know the details. She didn't want to keep anything from her mate and she didn't want to tell him second hand stories about her bad deeds, it would only upset him.



The Koios woman was as surprised by her charge's response as everyone else in the room. It was really too bad that the visit had taken such an unpleasant turn. This would do nothing to help Cambria's shyness. Though she didn't blame Alexey at all. She couldn't have guessed that this would happen. "It's ok Alexey, it's not your fault..." Cambria was continuing to sob against her chest, but the mother didn't have it in her to be mad at the boy. He was just a confused, sad little pup. She nodded at Alexey as the femme nudged the pup to the door and it seemed that that would be the end. But then Conor squealed and took off. Savina craned her neck to look and see what would happen but she didn't dare stand up and leave her daughter's crying form.

Conor's terrible! End here?

Just when she thought things couldn’t get any worse, little Conor lost it completely. His reaction was so sudden and unexpected; the Acer found herself unable to prevent the child from going ballistic. This side of her protégé was entirely new to her; what the heck had triggered it? Her body refused to move, as if her limbs had turned to stone. Multiple emotions kept her from seeing clearly; shock, embarrassment, and confusion were the most prominent at first. Then sadness came, hitting her like a ton of bricks. Was he running away from her?

The Caregiver’s face dropped and panic washed over her. It was hard to say who was most distressed at that very moment; her or Conor? It felt as though her heart was being squeezed by a vise; a terrible feeling she’d never experienced before. She’d hurt the most important person in her life, and there was doubt as to whether she’d ever forgive herself for doing so. A sidelong glance was spared to Savina and her children, before she turned and bolted out the door in pursuit of the little boy. What had started out as a pleasant day was rapidly turning into a nightmare.