Moonspear this soul's a stowaway

Keres was pleased to learn so much about her extended family all in one go. As he said the names, Keres remembered Hydra telling her the same, though this second round helped hammer them in a little more.

I look forward to meeting all of them. The statement was heartfelt and proud, glancing sidelong to her long lost brother with a smile upon her silvered maw. Fortunately, I have some experience with the young ones, so I am sure I will be able to handle any antics they might have. Besides, they couldn't be worse than their litter, though this was something she kept to herself rather than giving voice to such a notion; their childhood had not been the best and there was no reason to keep bringing it up, despite the fact that she herself had never quite reconciled with it all.

When the question was volleyed back, there was a falter to her expression, a crack in the pleasant and cheery facade of the Ostrega woman. Memories and thoughts swirled deep, a black hole that she could get sucked into if she wasn't careful. As Dirge had been careful with his wording, so now was she, something that was off-kilter and out-of-character for her. Whether he would pick up on that was up to his memory, and also the fact that they had been apart for so terribly long.

A common tale, I suppose. I fell in love and moved to his pack. Having pups there... To be frank, she had been staunchly against such a thing, and though it had hurt to leave Mother and Lestra behind, Keres had made the decision to do so anyway. I had a litter of four; one was stillborn, and another fell ill almost immediately. He did not survive two moon cycles. A grim smile, small and pained. And then it was gone. My daughters though, Delphi and Themis, were strong ones. Hard-headed and willful but smart. They grew into themselves faster than I could blink, I feel like.

Their dreams drew them away, though and they moved on to have their adventures. Erebus and I were planning on another litter but She drew a breath here, yet rattled and shaky. Another wolf betrayed the pack and pinned it on my Erebus and killed him in an attempt to gain favor with those who led. There was a bitterness to her voice, laced with a raw sort of hurt, the pain of a wound that had not yet healed.

The question she expected to arise would be countered with a quiet but fiery statement, a betrayal to the so-carefully-concealed burn of anger within the woman. I pissed on his remains and left them to rot.