With the ebb and flow of the small waterfall Sleekwing began to feel his worries slowly dissipate. Malina’s sheer presence set a feeling of surety in the air, which he breathed deep into his chest. As he exhaled, he tried to release at least a miniscule portion of the stress he was feeling. His gaze lifted back to hers as she shuffled closer to him, and he wanted nothing more than to reach out and touch her. Not to embrace her in the way lovers might, but simply to have some form of physical contact with the one wolf to whom he held the deepest emotional connection. For the moment he would settle for their proximity and gazes loaded with sentiment.

Her eyes averted again, and he afforded her the same silence which she had given him. It was a delicate conversation that they held, but there was no one else he felt he could speak openly to about this. Others amongst the pack might turn on him in their own interest in scaling the ranks. His family might not accept his reasons for staying behind when they had all gone. Gaining favor from Purge was hardly his intention in remaining when others had left. It was far more personal than that, rooted deep in his heritage. And the words that she spoke next reflected just those thoughts. The eloquence of her statement mirrored his thoughts, and when her eyes returned to his there was a look resembling some sort of relief shining through the pain. Each moment that they spent together saw the pain recede, even if it was by micro mental movements.

The crisp autumn air was sucked in through his nostrils, filling his lungs to capacity before he heaved a sigh. She was right; of course she was. Serving Purge would be far different from the life he had led under his parents’ leadership. He need not love a leader to do his duty to the pack, he need only supply her with the responsibilities that were set for him. At the edge of his maw, the very corner of his lips saw a slight rise, grateful for her words. After a moment, she asked him the penultimate question – that which would breach the wall of his moral dilemma and move into the territory of his utter and total loss. There was no point in delaying, in trying to compose his words here.

“I did. We all did. Even Isola, Kane, and Heyel were there. It was so strange, because not three days prior Alcide and I had hunted together and he had seemed as strong as ever. But the moment he felt her starting to fade he gave up the will to live. I think that was what made it so hard, to lose them both so unexpectedly…” His words drifted off, but he never looked away from Malina. Would he feel the same, if he were to lose her? Maybe someday they would have a closer relationship, perhaps only as friends, but closer none the less. But he would never push her to be closer to him than she wanted to. Regardless, he could hardly express how grateful he was for her to be there that day. He hadn’t even realized it until she had arrived, but she was exactly what he needed.