Sun Mote Copse you must believe in spring

it didn’t take as long as he had thought for her to arrive. the warmth in the woman’s green gaze could not cover up the concern that was there. deku felt dreadful for having bothered her, but he did not think that he could exist as a loner. orochi surely wasn’t too far behind him, but the starchaser knew that they needed a pack soon. even though he had been blindly wandering through the wilderness, it was fortune that had carried him to the border of the firebirds. it was memory that had instilled a way for him to find goodness again.
 
“wraen…” his young voice cracked pathetically. “my mom is gone. my dad… he… he died,” the young man sputtered sadly to her, feeling tears prick at the back of his eyes again. deku didn’t want to cry; he wanted to be brave like his mom would expect from him. he wanted his father to be proud, even after death. “i dunno what to do or where to go… i just want a home,” he finished and then looked to her with tear-filled eyes and hope in his heart.