Swiftcurrent Creek Hey December, guess I'm feeling unmoored.

Viinturuth had found himself withdrawing in recent days, feeling as though he was struggling to keep his head above water. Things hadn't been easy since his reunion with Akavir. He sat alone at the river's edge, grey-white furs windswept, reflecting on recent happenings, and allowed himself a time to wallow in the unfairness of it all.

Grey clouds gathered overhead with the promise of rain to come, and his thoughts turned to gentler times when he and Akavir resided in the vale. It was there he'd watched his nieces grow and learn, where he'd willingly stood watch over his young kin - and recognised the intensity of feeling for his brother's mate. He remembered how deeply he'd wished to explore it and how light she'd made his heart, until ultimately he turned away to protect what Akavir had built for himself.

It still pained him to think of those days and the way they'd changed him, the way they'd damaged his littermate. Viinturuth breathed a sigh and lowered to his belly, propping his chin atop a rugged forelimb, as dark eyes swept lazily over the frothing edges of the creek.