772.
There were many instances where Kaena would have wished to change the past; it was as immovable as stone. There was nothing the silver-furred woman could have done to alter even a second of her own past or anyone else's, no matter how much she would have wanted to. There were many things Kaena would have changed. In most recent memory, the night with Haku lingered strongly. There were many things she ought to have done differently—the world was a dangerous place, and perhaps the silvery hybrid had forgotten that. She might never have left Inferni that night; she should have stayed at home tucked away safe and alone in her cold cave.
Lost love was no strange thing for the silver-furred coyote; it was as intimately familiar to her as violence. She'd been too wild in her youth to attract anyone, too frightened to commit to Zarah when they founded Inferni, too weak to protect Zulifer, too coyote for Ahren, too... whatever she was for Fatin. The russet-furred woman's absence still weighed on Kaena, though the grizzled hybrid regarded her with a slight edge of derision now. The Centurion had helped the red wolf recuperate from her injuries, nursing her back to fully health slowly, and Fatin had not been there for Kaena. There was certainly bitterness in Kaena for that; certainly she would not have suffered alone. Fatin would have pried the horrible night and all its graphic details from Kaena in under an hour—but the spot where she'd stayed in the hybrid's cave those long weeks, it was cold and empty as when Kaena had left the cave.
The coyote woman had no knowledge of the political climate surrounding Naniko's departure from Crimson Dreams; she only knew that pregnant Naniko had departed their midst, buckled down in the city, and ended up in Phoenix Valley. There had been an inner light, some happy glow about the white she-wolf the last time Kaena had seen her, though whether that was due to motherhood or contentment in her new pack, Kaena could not say. Urma proposed to visit the children soon and Kaena nodded her agreement; pups were quick to grow up, and their most precious moments were the most fleeting. Puppyhood went quickly, and though that was sad, there was something magical in watching children grow up, too.
The hybrid perked an ear at the mention of Naniko's other children, giving an inquisitive tilt of her head at that statement. "Her youngest seem quite well cared-for," the hybrid ventured, finding it too impertinent to inquire directly on a friend's shortcomings, though she was nonetheless curious to know what the ambiguous statement regarding Naniko's older children meant, exactly. The hybrid herself had not been the best mother to her children, this was true; some of them could certainly call her a poor mother, though now she longed for children once more. The subject of the unknown canine and Hybrid came up once more—this intrigued Kaena greatly, moreso than the latter, and it showed on her face in surprise. The other canine used rather polite speech, alluding to what had occurred between the other two canines in vague words that sounded like analogies. The hybrid woman could not have guessed what exactly the woman spoke of, but it sounded very much like the other canine had been a captive or tormented in some way by Hybrid.
The other canine had finished speaking, and the hybrid tilted her head to the side, considering her words. "I was absent from Inferni up until six months ago. I do not know of any wolves within Inferni territory, against their will or not," she confessed. She was unfamiliar of the situation, though she wondered now about Hybrid. What had gone on between him and this wolf? The Hydra always held quite a lot of rage where wolves were concerned, but as the Lykoi matron herself proved, such a thing was not always a guarantee of universal avoidance. "Many of my children have drifted away from these lands, only to return again later. The same can be said for friends, and sometimes it takes a very long time for them to find whatever they are searching for," the coyote said. Her own experience might be comforting to Urma in some way—whatever the hybrid believed, she knew it was sometimes best to simply sit back and wait for a return. "I was gone for a year and a half. I am pretty sure my family and clan thought I was dead," she confessed. It was a phrase she had heard often through her life.
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