Several times now he had planned to visit his sister again, certain that enough of time had passed for her to be away from her children. Yet, each time he had set out to see her, something came up, thereby preventing him from making the short journey. Today, however, he refused to let that happen. As the sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon, Alexander departed from the valley, his destination set in stone: Easthollow. Nothing would stop him this time, the weeks having grown too great in number since their last meeting. Deep down, it worried him as the realisation set in, wondering if she might send him away. Shaking his head, he shoved the possibility to the back of his mind and focused on where he was going.

So close that they were, it didn’t take long for the Inuk to reach his sister’s claim. Lingering along the outskirts, he raised his muzzle and howled for @Valette.

Whilst he was one with the snow, his sister stuck out like a sore thumb against the white backdrop. He spotted her immediately but remained where he was, not wanting to get too much closer to her lands; although they’re siblings, he didn’t want to make it seem like he had such little respect for her that he would march right up to her claim. By the time she reached him, he was already sitting down, comfortable enough around her to lower his guard. The first words out of her mouth made him wonder if the same could be said for her, but he didn’t bother with asking, not wanting to ruin their meeting. They were making progress with their relationship and he didn’t want to destroy that by lashing out in any way. “I told you I would,” was all he said in regards to her comment, voice even.

Moving on, he tried to forget the reminder of her lack of faith in him and instead focused on her follow-up question. “I’ve been fine. I’ve even met some others that are interested in joining my pack,” he said. “How about you? How have you been?” As the questions slipped passed his lips, he took the opportunity to look over her, the lack of weight around her midsection immediately standing out to him. “You had your kids,” he noted, returning his gaze to her eyes. “How many are there?” Even though he’d never shown any interest in children before, this felt different. They were related to him—family—and they wouldn’t be replacing him in any way; Alexander had despised his younger siblings when they were born, certain that they’d steal his father’s affections and leave him without a parent. Then, later on, he’d had a falling out with their mother and hated them because of her. But now… now the children were his nieces and nephews, there wasn’t any place for them to steal or affections for them to hoard. They were just new additions to his family that he couldn’t help but take an interest in.

Speaking to her didn’t feel quite as… forced this time around. He was more at ease, having started to heal after all that he’d gone through; he missed Kendra terribly and would always remember her, but focusing on Bearclaw Valley helped to keep his mind from constantly drifting back to her. Seeing his sister and reestablishing previously damaged and broken bonds helped, too, which added to his overall comfort felt towards being there.

“That’s good,” he said, glad she was doing well, though his mind was more preoccupied with the words that followed. She’d had her children—three of them. Healthy and growing, no problems thus far. Good. He didn’t know where his interest in them stemmed from, in all honesty. Similar to Desna, he’d never shown much interest in his younger siblings; he and their mother hadn’t gotten along at all following their falling out. He’d hated them, really, for more reasons than who gave birth to them. To him, they were nothing more than stains on his family tree, bothersome and weak. Had he the opportunity, there was a high chance that he would have killed them after their births, but by then he’d been gone. Yet, hearing about his nieces and nephews, he couldn’t feel any hostility towards them. It was easy to accept them as members of his family, despite the distance between him and their mother. So, when he was offered a chance to meet them, he was quick to say, “Yeah, I think I’d like to meet them.” He didn’t really know how to act around children, figuring that whatever he needed to do would just come to him.

Alexander’s ears perked, attention then drawn elsewhere. “She’s really here?” he asked, disbelief evident in his tone. When had she returned? Before he could ask, his eyes were pulled over to the sudden appearance at her side, crimson seeking copper. He didn’t need to hear her speak or hear her name to know exactly who it was; those were the same eyes that he saw when looking at his father, and had only ever seen on one other wolf. “Nanook?” he said, though it came out more like a question that a statement. And there his voice stopped, unable to string together any amount of words that might help him along. Glancing back at his other sister, he soon found his gaze drifting back and forth between the both of them, not knowing what else to do other than stare.

It was difficult to speak. He knew it was Nanook, he hadn’t needed the confirmation, but that confirmation made it feel real. Even with time and all odds working against them, they’d found each other; the final piece of their family was missing, still, but at least the three of them were there. It was nice, seeing them after so long, especially under pleasant circumstances. There were no arguments forcing them to take sides or parents whose problems would take them away from one another again—they were adults, each in charge of their own lives. And, perhaps, that made the reunion all the greater.

“I, uh…” he struggled to find his words. “Hey.” It was nothing spectacular—he wasn’t currently capable of saying anything elaborate—but it was something. He shifted his weight from side to side, feeling incredibly awkward and out of place. Although them each now being on their own would help them grow back together, right now it just didn’t feel right. He didn’t feel like he should be there, he didn’t know how to talk to her; things were entirely different now, compared to the old days in the valley. He had started relearning how to talk to Desna—he was nowhere near to perfecting his approach—but Nanook was new. She was different, grown and no longer the same pup he’d favoured and fought as a child.

“I don’t know what to say,” he admitted with a frown. Why was this so difficult? She was his sister, they both were, and they were finally back together—wasn’t that what he’d always wanted? Shouldn’t this be easy, then?