i stood for nothing

She took comfort in his presence, where once she had been so bored by him; where once, she had thought him weird and broken, a wolf who ate seaweed for pleasure, and watched the treacherous sea like a captivating lover. But Kerberos' loyalty had never really wavered, and even now she could not be angry that he had left, not when she herself had as well. She had to agree with his conclusion, and did so with a thoughtful hum and a nod: they had been brought there, and then brought together, purposefully, and were merely unprepared to receive the truth of why. The Divine Bears worked Their magicks and made Their plans, and the wolves were but roles in Their play; but they were pivotal roles, the Chosen Ones, perhaps.

She would've liked to tell him that they had been brought there to renew Shearwater Bay and return it to its roots, one where the Nereides were not immediate family — for Kerberos, no matter his mother, was right in saying he had never been a Nereides, and it was no secret that Lecter, being not a Nereides, had always had an affinity for the Sea, and so having an affinity for the Sea could not be said to be exclusively a Nereides trait — and where the blood of their enemies painted their soils, where they didn't cower from Siku's tyrant reign upon the mountain merely because they were too young to do anything about it, and where leadership was shared properly amongst wolves of differing genders, and not split between two sisters who constantly rivalled one another.

She would've liked to tell him that, but she could not be certain of it either, and what had Shearwater Bay's true roots been, before it became what it was now? She knew it — subconsciously, the knowledge of her parents was inherited by her, and locked behind the curtain of conscious memory where she could not willfully access it — but couldn't begin to imagine it. “You are a Kesuk,” she confirmed sharply, as if it was the only truth, “and a Nereides, and an Aok. But rightly, a Kesuk, with the bravery and the honour of a Kesuk, and the power of a Kesuk. You need not have been my mother's charge to be a Kesuk wolf, though you were.” From whence had come the name “Aok”, she wondered, but did not ask. Who had been his parents, to name him “Aok” and give him up so simply? Jinx had never been the type to like pups, and much admired the Nereides' old traditions in her own private way, but of course, she would sacrifice all her young to her Gods if they so willed it, not just the male ones.

And even then, she might feel her heart wrench for them, even if compelled to the point where it was impossible to refuse. Who had been his mother, to hand him over to Nanuq Kesuk without complaint? And who had been her mother, to require a first-born son as treaty, when she had her own offspring to tend to? Jinx had to remind herself that her mother, first and foremost, was neglectful, but did not wish to think further than that on it. “You can therefore claim any name for yourself,” she continued, revealing none of her innermost thoughts as she smiled warmly, “but I will always regard you as Kesuk and nothing less.”