Redhawk Caldera and a happy new year [birth]

The trio of Blackthorns grimly and efficiently excavated a grave for Fox next to her mate's. There was little conversation throughout the entire ordeal, and while they hadn't dug a particularly big hole, Elwood was mentally and physically tired as they trudged back towards the whelping den. He felt exhaustion deep within his bones and knew was due to the emotional toll of the last few months.

He hovered outside the burrow for a moment as Finley went in. She suggested that Raven assist with Fox's actual burial, so that she could say goodbye to her mother, and he waited patiently for her response. Once the puppies had been moved out of the way and a path had been cleared, he would enter the shelter in order to remove the former Alpha female's body, and he steeled himself for the task by taking a deep breath. He reached out to gently nudge Eljay's neck, comforting himself as much as his son.