Ankyra Sound but maybe that's a lie

calling @Illidan and @Rosalyn !! ... @Caiaphas to even tho ur not here :p 

dalia was exhausted. a full day of giving birth just to turn and travel for 5 days was absolutely miserable. she travelled as fast as she could with @Velen and the children. they each carried one, wrapped in one of the furs that dalia had used to line her den. they were literal bundles of joy, and despite their first week of life being rather... unconventional, they were surviving. dalia just hoped that velen's friend could really get them in. she hoped and prayed. 

when they arrived, dalia placed down the little tan pup at her feet, standing over him protectively. and together with her mate, they threw back their heads and howled.. praying they would meet mercy.

Yesssssss

With everything that had happened as well as everything they had learned, with any summons at the border, Rosalyn did not expect friendly faces.  She came aggressive, ready to face whatever harbringers Caiaphas had brought upon them.  Instead, she found a pair of exhausted wolves carrying what looked to be brand new pups.  And one of the faces was, even more surprisingly, welcomingly familiar.

Velen. She looked at the woman at his side, and their children, and immediately her expression showed she understood.  Something had happened, and now they were here.  There was only one reason for them to be bringing their children here with them, so small.  It was a risk only the desperate could make.

Please, come.  She was not about to make them stand here and wait for Illidan, who might not come, not with the search for Caiaphas.  She did not know that he was even here.  Velen's mate needed a den and her children needed warmth.

had they been able, velen would have insisted that dalia rest, that they both rest. as it was, with stormrift gone and no hope of life for the pups if they stayed, the pair had been forced to leave almost immediately.
sending up a plaintive call for @Rannveig, one that scudded across the cold and empty shoreline, velen held the bundle containing a child and set off alongside his mate.
where they could, they sought fitful slumber, but more often than not the boy stayed awake to watch over his little family, unwilling to miss any danger that might have followed them from the bay.
on the fifth day, they came to rusalka, and dalia wasted no time in summoning a leader. velen stood blinking tiredly alongside her, reaching down to check on the children.
and then the fierce scarred woman he had met only once appeared; she spared the length of a glance before she invited them in. he wanted to cry from sheer exhausted relief; instead he muttered ”i’m beginning to think the bay is haunted,” before lifting his precious bundle and looking to rosalyn to lead.

a heavy breath shook her as it exited. a woman appeared, scarred but beautiful, still. dalia watched her as, before she could even speak, the woman told them to come. dalia might’ve cried, had she not known better than to compose herself. 

thank you, she murmured with a low bow before grabbing the bundle in her jaws. her eyes shone as she looked upon the woman. i am a medic. i can offer your pack my services, she added, wanting so desperately to show her appreciation. 

when she heard velen’s comment, she looked quickly at him. you don’t mean that, she said through the bundle. despite its misfortunes, it had been their home.

Both of them seemed grateful, and Rosalyn knew approving them to come was the right call as soon as she saw it.  Illidan would agree - there was nothing better than surrounding yourself with those who owe you gratitude.  Had she known of Dacio and their precious plans, things might have gone very differently, but thankfully for all involved she did not and likely would not find out.

She cast Velen a knowing look despite Dalia's protest.  She remembered their conversation and her own bleak feelings well.  It was mine once too, but I wonder the same, she replied without looking as she set off to show them a place to rest.

There was a den she had built in the time she and Erzulie struggled, for there had been a stretch of time when she'd wondered if perhaps they would birth separately.  The drive for an impending mother to meet all likelihood's was strong and it had seen her digging those quiet nights, a space large enough for one.  Perhaps they could expand or find their own in time.

For now, I have this.  It is small.  But it is something, she thought.  A small and cozy space, sheltered from rain by the trees above but close enough to shore to hear the waves faintly lapping.

velen had not meant to offend dalia; truly his words had been callous in the face of their flight from stormrift. ”you are my home,” he answered instead, and it was true. the babes they carried, the woman at his side — they held velen’s focus now.
glancing thankfully to rosalyn, the young wolf sighed, setting down the little one between his forepaws. ”thank you so much,” came his mutter, covered in a gruffness meant to cloak the emotions rising once more in his throat.
”i am a warrior, a guardian, a hunter. whatever rusalka needs, i can be,” he told the huntress earnestly, glancing encouragingly at dalia. 
safety here. even if it was not home, or could not be home, his family would live.

i love you, murmured dalia in return, and then she followed silently. 

the russett woman explained it was not much, but that they could stay here. dalia quickly dipped her head, holding steady before she stepped into the place to lay down the bundle she carried. it is more than perfect — i can’t thank you enough, she returned, moving to settle as the little bundle began to whimper and wail. she used her forelimbs to draw the babe closer — as well as the one that velen carried, urging them to eat. as she quieted, she could hear the sound of the water against the coastline. her tired expression brightened, and she sighed gently. 

dalia has never felt so relieved in her life. she looked back to the woman before her. we will repay your kindness, rosalyn, she murmured, pulling the name that velen had told her on the journey, you’ve saved our children’s life.

It was good to hear them both offer skills that might be sorely needed very soon.  

Our leader is gone, but her son is her second and should be around soon.  It won't be a problem, she replied, with a sly smile.  But you may want to save some of that gratitude for him too.  She was confident that Illidan was too unlike his mother to let them die on their own, especially if Rosalyn vouched for them.  She'd only met Velen once but he had seemed a good sort.  Both of them did.  Rusalka could use a few steady heads, obviously.

There is food around and water nearby, and if anyone bothers you, give a call.  Welcome to Rusalka. Her good eye passed between them once more before she turned to depart, heading back to her own children on the shore.  She'd leave them to rest and to settle in, though likely she'd check in later.  Old habits died hard.

he nodded, expecting a blow to his pride that never quite came. rosalyn was firm but kind, and velen watched the woman depart before he turned back to his mate.
”rusalka isn’t half bad,” he murmured wryly, dropping to his haunches with a weary sigh.
and they were all safe. the thought brought a glimmer to velen’s otherwise solemn expression, and he reached to nudge dalia’s cheek in the warm glow of relief.