Hushed Willows east of the sun

I apologize for the exposition

Although Valiant had left, ostensibly, to seek his father, he'd really spent the last several months travelling between Round Valley and White Spine. Neither truly felt like home, even though he'd spent a lot of time within the former. Sunspot was always ready to welcome him with a ceremonial hunt. The other yearlings were all growing as quickly as he was, and Skraeling's lone daughter was being spoiled beyond all recovery. Next year, Sunspot said, her daughters would be ready to take mates and have children of their own. Silversong and Blueridge had left together to seek greener pastures, but Valkyrie and Saturnalia were both sticking around. Several times, he'd caught his family hinting at how he might make a suitable husband for one or both of them.

There was less pressure at White Spine. Easy had become almost like a mother to him, except she was quite transparently absorbed with her own newborn children. Dutch and Eldest were cute, granted, but he was still a little jealous. Even so, it was nice to be welcomed into the smaller, quieter pack. He felt big and strong and important when he walked the borders and caught his own scent in the breeze — but there were no prospects for him, here, and every time he caught Easy's eye he remembered that he was supposed to be finding his father and earning his name and he was not.

So he was back in the Teekon Wilds, studiously avoiding his other aunt's pack. He could not, after all, spend his whole life living on the charity of his aunts.

The willows were his first stop, because he missed them dearly, and because he was still keeping up the facade of searching, just in case he ran into anyone he knew. The scent of other wolves was disconcerting, and he spent several long moments investigating these before venturing further into the territory. Presently, he found the rose glade where he'd spent many happy hours as a young child. His tail whisked in idle pleasure as he scratched his back against the fragrant, prickly brambles.