Tayui saw Dawali's arrival was mirrored by that of his spirit guide, who was perched on his shoulder (and looking quite proud of this). Tayui chuckled quietly, wondering why she had not noticed the majestic bird until now -- certainly, the creature had been present before. Now that she thought about it, each time Tayui had met Dawali, she had seen -- out of the corner of her eye -- the eagle hovering nearby. She paused for a moment, curious to see if her children could also see his spirit guide, but none of them said anything about it, so she assumed they could not. After all, if they could see the bird, they would certainly enquire about it -- that Tayui knew for sure.



Tayui nodded at her friend's words, smiling quietly as he spoke. I'm very well! And more so now that I know that you and the young ones are ok. Again, Tayui nodded, as she too was glad each one of her puppies was in such good health. It was everything she could have imagined, and more. Perhaps he was a closet romantic at heart. Perhaps she had read too many human romance novels. Perhaps she was enjoying herself so much she didn't even care.



It didn't matter. She was surrounded by those she loved -- her puppies, Dawali, and so many others.



"This one--" she began, but was abruptly cut off by Attila. He stepped forward and introduced himself with a mock salute, stumbling from the momentum. "AHM ATTILA!" he shouted, grinning from beneath a pile of snow. He burrowed deeper into the snow, then jumped back out, shouting a garbled mixture of "hello"'s and "whatcha doin'?"s to his fellow puppies. "Thass Osheeyam, thass Clawdyus, and thass Nwar. Clawdyuss iss smelly!" he declared, then leapt for the snow once more. Tayui frowned and glanced over at Claudius, glad he had not been paying attention. She didn't want him to cry again -- he was easily upset, especially by Attila. "Attila, that wasn't very nice," she admonished, frowning. "Ohkayy, ah sorree, you's nuh smelly, okay," he said to Claudius. Claudius frowned, wondering what was going on, then shook his head. He didn't want to know.



Tayui laughed, shaking her head. "This is Attila," she said, scooting the boy over with a push of her paw so he was sitting next to her. "This is Noir," she continued, "Ocèane... and Claudius."

He did well with them. Tayui could see the kindness in his eyes, and for a moment, she wondered if he had children. Had, currently; or had, previously. Or perhaps he simply knew how to speak to them. How to smile and nod and help they understand that, no, rocks were not for eating (among other things). For some reason, some of the puppies had taken to chewing on rocks and almost ingested one. Although they had only been playing around with the rocks, trying to put them around with their paws and noses, for some reason Claudius had began to chew on the stones he'd found, which resulted in a short talk on why stones were not good to eat.



"Hi Dwaree!" shouted Noir, accompanied by Ocèane. Claudius mumbled the name quietly to himself, trying to figure out how to say it (and best his sisters), but remained silent. Attila sang Dawali's name out, overjoyed to have a new word to play with. Tayui laughed. They were all adorable.



This time, Dawali addressed Tayui specifically, and for a moment she was about to shake her head, no, but paused. She would appreciate some help, and Dawali was certainly reliable. "I have to stay with them a lot, so it's hard for me to hunt with the pack. They also need more food than our pack hunts provide -- smaller portions, but not so interspersed. I'd appreciate it if you could drop a rabbit or... some sort of small game you can catch yourself by the den every so often," she noted. "I don't want to trouble you, but at the same time, I dread leaving them unattended in the den..." she continued, then frowned. She tilted her head down to where the puppies were sitting, standing, and -- in Claudius's case -- rolling about in the snow. "You may go play in the clearing here. Don't go too far away, stay close," she said, adding the last bit. The puppies cheered and set off to explore the area around the den, with Claudius tagging behind his sister's and Attila leading the group into the woods nearby. She could hear their shouts as they explored, remaining near to the den, but far enough so they felt they had their own freedom.

Tayui was nearly five years old. In a few months, summer would arrive, and with it, the time of her birth. Although she did not know the exact date -- very few creatures did, she suspected -- she did know she had been born when spring became summer, the time when the cold and wet growth gave way. Five years it had been. For nearly four of these, she had been used to being independent -- first, living in Jaded Shadows, too afraid to meet anyone new, and then as she climbed the ranks, still finding it difficult to interact with others. After a year on Ashen Mountain, she had begun to open up and befriend those of her pack. But she had still relied on herself -- her paws, teeth, claws -- everything she used to move, to breathe, to live. It was all her. And now she had four others to look after and could not afford the frivolity of independence. She would accept any help she could get, for she knew she would need it. Already, the children looked like they were going to be a handful!



"In that case, I would very much appreciate it, and I'm sure the puppies would, too! They're always hungry," she noted with a quiet chuckle. "Not for a lot of food -- just... hungry. You were a father at some point...? Do you remember all of this? The craziness that is... having them. All of them," she reflected, smiling softly. Each and every one of her puppies was beautiful.

Tayui nodded quietly as Dawali spoke, content to hear his story, and wishing she could hear more. She wondered why he referred to his daughter as one he had -- was she dead? Gone? Estranged? Tayui did not wish to ruin the conversation or make Dawali feel uncomfortable, so she remained silent. There was a slight lull in the conversation, but soon enough, Dawali was speaking again. He leaned in closer as he began to speak, wondering why his voice had suddenly become softer. She tilted her head, frowning slightly as she listened. The father? Ah, yes. The father. Or lack of one. He was not their father. He was more like a kindly donor who happened to contribute to her cause. But he was not a father. Ember was more of a father to these children then Haku could ever be, and Ember was not even male. But it mattered not to her. They did not require a male to be connected to them by blood to be called their father. She had Pilot and Dawali, both of which would make much better role models than Haku ever could.



"Then I shall be a widow. Their father may as well be dead. He does not even know they exist, and I would prefer for it to remain as such." She paused. Dawali had the right to know who it had been. She had not told anyone yet, but she knew she would have to tell Dawali. He was one of the leaders, afterall. He had a right to know -- for the safety of the tribe as a whole. She was not being selfish; she just wanted to keep them safe. No, it was not selfishness, but pride. All a warrior had after they were stripped of their armour was their pride. Until that time, she had her puppies, her life, her love. But deep within, she still had her pride. "Haku Soul, of Dahlia de Mai," she stated.

Tayui inclined her head slightly in acknowledgement of Dawali's question. "Somewhere," she echoed. She had not visited the pack lands -- she never had a reason to venture so far from Shadowed Sun when she had been leader, and she had only passed by on her trek through 'Souls. After the Dahlian war, named after the pack itself, she did not have much of an interest in visiting the lands themselves. It did not feel right, not after she had pledged, as a leader at the time, to remain neutral in the war. Even though the war was over, she preferred to respect the pack's boundaries and refused to impede on them for the sake of asking questions.


The real reason she refused to tell her children of the existence of their father was because of who he was. He was a monster. And in some, strange perverted way, Tayui was still hoping Gabriel would murder him. For the crimes he had committed. He was a war criminal. He had murdered an Inferni coyote and her child, then strung them up in the trees to 'dry'. But it had been revenge. Revenge, for Haku's sister had lost her puppies due to an attack by a coyote, which was the catalyst of the war. And by then, it was war. Not long after, Haku struck again, perhaps taking more lives with him. Perhaps he raped another. Tayui did not know. All she knew was that he was a vile beast and her children would never, ever know who he was. They deserved better. Much better.



I think I met a woman from that pack earlier this year.. Firefly Sadira? Tayui paused, then nodded. Yes, that name sounded familiar. Ember had mentioned her before. "Ember's sister," Tayui replied, nodding her head once. "Their mother... I believe her name is Iskata. And if it is, then she is the leader of Phoenix Valley, to the north-east." A pause, and: "I remember hearing of Iskata and Phoenix before the fire. I think another of Ember's siblings is around here, too."

Tayui jerked her head quickly, the motion something halfway between a nod and a shrug. Dawali pointed out the obvious, and for that, Tayui had to restrain a chuckle. Everyone around here had ties to someone else. Everyone was family, so there was no way for all of them to all join in one pack. And it was the differences between these families -- be it within or outside -- that created different packs. The de le Poer and Lykoi families had a strong hold on Inferni, but for a long time, the de le Poer's had been little more than an afterthought. Now, many of the two families had become intertwined. Tayui knew of a few others in Inferni with different names -- frightening names, that of murder and Destruction -- but could not recall them completely. "More than you could imagine," Tayui reflected. "Ember Phoenix was named after Ember Agaric, my adoptive daughter, and the child of two of my best friends. I know of the rest of her family through Ember - her brother Kansas, who I believe is in Crimson Dreams, her sister Firefly in Dahlia, and two other siblings, but... I don't know where they ended up. These lands... they have the ability to claim you. Luperci up and disappear all the time. It would be romantic if it weren't so alarming," she noted dryly. She glanced over to where her puppies were, suddenly anxious. But they were still there. She exhaled, relieved. No one would steal them away from her.



Tayui glanced back at Dawali as he began to speak once more. She titled her head slightly, frowning. "How is it different? Do we not all work together to fell our prey and feast upon it? Or do you hunt in some other formation?" She frowned. How else could one take down a creature as large as a caribou? She had never done it on her own, and had only managed to take down a weak, sick fawn once. But opportunities like that rarely presented themselves. They needed the strength of the entire tribe to take down a caribou, did they not?

Dawali's answer was unexpected; she had never heard of hunting in one's Optime form, especially not as a pack. Intrigued, she raised her eyebrows -- then frowned, trying to figure out how that might work. Were luperci not fastest in their Secui forms? And more used to their Lupus forms? She knew of a travelling gypsy band-turned-pack that had utilized their Optime form more than the creatures native to Nova Scotia, but still found the idea strange. Although she shifted regularly, choosing a form based on the task she would complete, she was uncertain of how hunting in one's Optime form could be beneficial. They could not run quickly and their balance was reduced. Comparatively, her Secui form was much larger than her Lupus form; her mass increased dramatically and her muscle mass increased. But her Optime form had always seemed so... weak. Better for reading and writing, not... hunting and killing. Her musculature was not as pronounced and she felt as though it was too "dainty" for lack of a better word. As such, Dawali's answer perplexed her, for she could not figure out how hunting in their Optime form could offer any benefits.



"How do you do that? I could understand hunting in our Secui form, which I regularly do, since you have the added strength and speed, but... how could you hope to be successful in a hunt in your Optime form?" She tilted her head, frowning slightly. She was not unpleased or annoyed at Dawali's answer; just curious. She had no idea how this tribe worked, and she felt as though Dawali was spending a great deal of time (re)educating her on how life worked. The traditions and customs of the tribe were so different here; it would take some getting used to. At the same time, it had been many seasons since she had been a pack member. Perhaps she was just allowing her pride to get in the way. She no longer led a pack; she was a member, like everyone else, no matter what she had done before. Even if she had spoken to Gabriel, he would not regard her now as he had then. She had been a leader, someone whose opinion was not taken lightly. Now? She was a mother of four with no father to speak of in a pack where child-rearing was to be done by a unit of two. Her pride had gotten in the way. She understood now. She had told Dawali Haku was dead (which, to Tayui, he was), but had not considered... No. What had she not considered? She understood the impact it would have on her children. But she had not ever considered what it would do to her. Again, she frowned. "Would you be willing to teach my children on I how... you do this?" A compromise. Her pride would have to wait.

Ah. Her first response was something of vague understanding, but she still found the concept of hunting on two legs slightly mystifying. Although she had since honed her ability to move about on two legs, it did not mean she was proficient enough to hunt. But she did not understand the need to invent tools to hunt with when one's four legs were as good of a tool as any. Luperci were slower on two legs, so why waste time with such tools?



Dawali regarded her curiously in reply to her second question, and for this, she felt as though she owed him a curious look in return. She remained alert as the male spoke, wondering why he thought her question strange enough to warrant such an expression (a frown, no less!). His reply was respectful enough, and this made Tayui wonder if her question had some sort of silent, disrespectful undertones. She paused for a moment, re-evaluating her question. No, it had not; it had been simple and straightforward -- and polite, if anything. She felt a little chaffed, not at Dawali, but her own lack of knowledge. This pack had customs and traditions so deeply different from her past ones that she was uncertain if she would -- at any point in time -- step on a land mine and never lift her foot.



"I'm afraid I don't yet understand the benefits to this -- this two-legged hunting -- but I would be willing to learn and listen. Eager, of course. The concept is so... foreign to me -- excuse the adjective -- that I have yet to figure this out. What sort of tools do you use? How do they benefit you? How do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages? Of hunting on four legs, I mean. Did you never learn to hunt on four legs?" The entire situation perplexed and confused her, and she was fairly certain Dawali did not intend for this to happen, but still felt completely alienated. It was different. Not too different -- just different.

There were so many differences between them. That was her first and most immediate thought as Dawali spoke, elaborating on his habits and personal customs. Did all of the pack members walk about on two legs and travel long distances on horses? It seemed as though they did -- for, if Dawali's previous words were any indication, Aniwayans seemed to spend more time on two feet than anything else. Tayui chuckled, nodding slowly as Dawali spoke. She wanted to know more about the pack, more about how all of this worked, but did not want to take away from what Dawali needed to do. He was busy, most certainly. But at the same time, she wanted to continue talking like this for days. She wanted to know why they did everything they did, the reasons, the why, and soon, the how. Tayui had never seen a horse. It seemed like a silly thing, but she had never been in a pack that kept them and never saw them lingering in packs that did have them.


Again, Tayui found herself nodding as the male spoke, eyes shining as she absorbed all of the information. "You will have to show me, then," Tayui replied with a nod. "We will have to trade knowledge soon, yes," she affirmed with a warm smile.



And then -- the feeling of silent security descended upon her. As she sat beside Dawali, she could see her children playing off in the distance. She could hear them, too, shouting and whooping as they ran in every direction. She glanced from Dawali to her children, then back again. They were still young. Very young. For a moment, she wondered if she had let them wander too far. But then she saw them once more, rolling around in the snow in the clearing. She smiled, shaking her head. They were beautiful.