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It had been nearly two weeks since the combined forces of the Dreamers and Courtiers had raided AniWaya in order to bring an end to the fighting. Things had been blessedly quiet around the Crimson Dreams territory, something that brought Ehno more relief with each passing day. Those little nagging worries of leftover threats were beginning to disappear. It seemed like Fate was becoming kind enough once more to leave the Dreamers in the peace they so loved. The peace of mind was becoming a blessing in itself to the Italian man. He was no longer as restless as he had been in recent weeks, and being able to finally relax was aiding him in his lengthy healing process.

The Marino had set out to take a short walk along the eastern borders of the pack that morning, a more relaxed patrol than he had been used to. His wooden spear had been carried with him, both to aid in his walking and to provide comfort in the security it offered him. His bag was also slung over one shoulder, filled with tools and supplies for use in a small project while out of the Manor. His arm had been healing without complications, thankfully, and it was no longer requiring the bandages that had once concealed it. A fresh scar going down the length of his right arm had replaced the wound. Bandages remained wrapped around his chest, doing little good but to remind the Marino of his healing ribs. As if the continuous ache of them didn’t do that job well enough.

Ehno brought his wanderings to a halt in the afternoon, settling down beneath a large tree near the borders of the land. It was a crisp fall day and slightly cloudy, but otherwise rather nice out. The Marino leaned his spear up against the trunk of the tree beside him and set to digging through his bag. He brought out a flat block of wood and a small blade and began to carve out a familiar scene of a bustling seaside dock that he had sketched out on the wood’s smooth surface. He wanted to try something new, different than the small models and figurines he often created.

No worries! I understand how school can be. o: Also, bit of pp here, lemme know if its ok. wc:300

Ehno was pleased with how his little experimental carving project was coming along. It had been rough going at first, some of the indentions he began with being too forceful or too jagged. But he was soon able to correct that, experience and familiarity with his tools making it easy to adjust. The shadows on the dockside scene were marked with deeper engravings, the lighter portions mostly untouched. He’d managed to make good progress on the docks themselves and was about to move on to start etching life into one of the ships in the scene when a voice called out, one that had him sitting up immediately.

That voice… it had been so long, but he was almost certain. Amber eyes searched around the area, widening when they spotted the source of the call. Fur as dark as coals, touched with white. And those gentle periwinkle eyes. Yes, that was most certainly his daughter. Happiness and relief swelled together within his chest at the sight of her. When Haven had delivered news of what had happened to her all those months ago, the Marino had been beside himself with worry and guilt. He had hoped that she would one day return home, and it seemed that she had.

“Rio!” The Dreamer practically dropped his carving materials to the side in an unceremonious heap in his excitement to see her. Standing up so quickly caused a fresh wave of pain to spread from his bandaged side, but he winced and did his best to ignore it. “Cara mia,” he said as he hurried over to her to envelope her in a hug. “Cara mia.” The Anatheman scent was strong on her pelt. So she’d found her way to her mother? That was good. The girl needed to be around family.

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Hugging her so tightly caused his wounded ribs to freshly ache, but he ignored the pain, filled with too much happiness and relief to let it bring him down. He was beginning to think that he would never see his children again and it was such an incredible surprise to see his daughter show up here. He smiled broadly as they finally released each other, still trying his best to ignore the throbbing ache of his ribs. The smile faltered slightly as she looked him over and asked him what had happened. “There’s been some… troubling times here for us. War.” He shook his head, not eager to think about it. Finally reunited with his daughter, and what is there to speak of? War. It made him bitter to think of how it was affecting him still. This was supposed to be a happy moment, not one brought down by thoughts of warfare.

“I’ve missed you too, cara mia,” he said, that smile of his regaining some strength. He still couldn’t believe she was right there in front of him. He followed her lead and began walking back to the tree he’d been sitting beneath while he continued. “I’ve… been holding up alright. Better, since the fighting’s stopped.” His left hand reached up to his wounded side in a subconscious gesture as he remembered the battle in the AniWayan village that had brought him to this state.

As they reached the tree, he pushed aside his tools with his foot to clear the area, then very carefully settled himself down onto the ground. He beckoned for his coal-furred girl to sit beside him. “How have you been, sweetheart? It’s been so long.” Hopefully life had chosen to treat her more kindly after all this time and trouble did not plague her. Perhaps Anathema offered her the safety she needed. He wondered how long ago she had arrived in her mother’s pack.