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South had been a constant. Gabriel had always traveled south and then west, following older roads and cracked highways. That was how he managed to make his way through the Midwest, on the barren and abandoned old Route 70. Each of the rusting metal signs proclaimed new states every few days, but their names were forgotten as their purpose proved little. He could not recall the exact way he had gone, but known that barren highway and known it meant he was closer to home.
Gabriel smiled at his mother’s agreement, and his tail thumped on the ground behind him. There was a small swelling of pride at the praise; after all, he had carried on what she could not. To know that she had returned to see Inferni as it was—strong and still growing under his reign—meant something to him. His muzzle nudged the fur around her neck, in a familiar way, and he spoke as he drew back. “I’m glad you’re back,” he said quietly, though the sound carried over the faint tinkle of the charms around his neck.
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The coyote had never stuck to any specific route or any consistent direction in any sense of the phrase. The ashen hybrid was unpredictable, an unknown. The events in her life seemed just as randomized, as did the direction she followed. There was no central, comforting pattern for Kaena to look back at and nod her head; throughout her existence different loyalties had pulled at her and beckoned her opposite ways and often times she had been faced with harsh choices. But here she was at the end of it all, a length of the path still extended out before her, twisty and treacherous as it was. For all of her arbitrariness, here she still breathed. Having a purpose and a path earlier in life would have saved her some hard-learned lessons, but Kaena was thankful that she had her family and she knew her calling now, rather than never.
There was closeness between her and Gabriel, and a warm nuzzle at her neck made the Lykoi melt. In her own strange way, the Lykoi had always yearned for Gabriel's affections. Her golden son was devoted to her as any of her other children, but there was a wall between them, undefined and just barely there, separating them. The coyote hybrid's eye half-lidded and she pressed the side of her face into the shaded gold of his own neck, their scents mixing together as they had so long ago for the first time when Kaena had pulled Gabriel from her body before any of her other children, laying her golden eye on him before any of the others. "I missed you," she said, rare tenderness coating her tone. This was a side of Kaena Lykoi which did not surface often, and the warm look in her eye was supremely out of place amongst all of her scars.
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Despite the bond that he shared with both sides of his lineage, Gabriel’s loyalty to his parents remained a peculiar and oft fragile thing. At any singular point he could love or hate the pair. He had never dedicated himself fully to or against either. And yet here he was, carrying the de le Poer house and leading his mother’s clan. If there was one thing to be said about Gabriel it was that he was kaleidoscopic. Not one part of him remained constant—except his dedication to God and his children.
He smiled. “I did too,” he said, but did not refer to her by name. This too, was one of the telling signs. Even though Kaena was his mother, and even though she had raised him as a boy, he would not grant her that title simply for showing her face once more. The wind at his back tickled the bared skin that bore the chaos star in bold crimson and his smile deepened. “You’re welcome to stay with me until you get settled in,” he added, knowing that she was the only person he would offer such a thing too (besides his children and the other pups who had found their way to the clan).
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[html] http://digital-bonsai.com/katew/rp/kae/kae_rain.gif); background-repeat:no-repeat; background-position:bottom center; border:1px solid #FFFFFF; text-align:justify;"> LOL. I agree. xD
In many ways, Gabriel was like fire. He was uncontrollable and unstoppable, the wildcard that she hadn't even known she could count on to return. Indeed, she'd thought she'd lost him when he was young—but he had returned, time and time again, to serve her and Inferni for his own inexplicable reasons. She was grateful, regardless of his motive—so long as she was concerned, he was the eldest son and he was fulfilling his duties in that role remarkably well. Kerberos had been lost to Salvaged years earlier, and Gabriel had taken up that spot at her right in his absence, and though neither Kaena nor Ahren (at least, not to her knowledge anyway) had ever delivered explicit instructions to the golden-furred male on how to be the eldest son.
The coyote did not detect any lack in his voice or his actions; to her this was a moment of perfect reconcilation, though somewhere in the pit of her belly she knew all would never be completely healed between her and Gabriel. Even so, she would not let that lurking thought ruin her moment, and she held him for one more moment before stepping back, listening to him. The offer was unexpected and it delighted the ashen hybrid, though she did not wish to appear too eager. "I would like that very much," she said as evenly as she could, though the happiness was plain on her face. There was something lighter about her now, a visible shift from the pained, haggard creature who had found Inferni once again. She was still worn from her journey, but now there was something shining in her that had been on the brink of being extinguished for too long.
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