It had not so much as crossed my mind, how my contact with Jericho might be perceived by those around me. Our constant closeness had become second nature to me, a proximity that I found unmeasurable comfort within. There was no label to put upon us, no quantification to sum up the way I felt about him. He was, perhaps, becoming a friend so close as to rival that which I held dear with Meryl. But it was something else, somehow similar and yet entirely different. He was my companion, and as I slid along his side I emitted the smallest amount of breath in a silent sigh of relief as his muzzle turned to connect with me.

And then I was with Meryl, nose pressed to his cheek in greeting and washing him over with a glance that quickly rewarded me with the knowledge that he was well. His coat practically shone in the rays of the high mountain sun, glinting down upon a reunion that was under far better circumstances than when last we had met. My inquiries were rewarded with answers that caused my tail to wag back and forth behind me, joyous to know that the family Meryl had chosen for himself was healthy and growing. Two children, a boy and a girl, and a healthy mother to care for them alongside him. Such a fate was not in store for my own children, but the notion no longer ate at my insides as it had when the pups had stilled kicked at me from within. I knew that I held the power within me to raise them alone, even though I was far from being the solitary figure in their lives that they could look up to. Meryl’s plans to bring them here, to introduce them to me, made my tail swing even more ferociously, pleased that he would wish such a thing to occur. My jaw parted slightly, widening my smile.

Once more an ear flicked backwards, listening to the tussle of the pups within the cavelike den. I knew before long they would erupt from the den, especially with Jericho taunting them from the entrance. I wished to confide in Meryl, to tell him everything that had happened, but I knew that this was perhaps not the right time for such things. As Meryl’s gaze tracked to Jericho once more I softened my smile and said softly, only for him to hear, “Leonidas is gone - I can’t know if its forever. But he did leave four permanent presences upon the mountain in his wake.” A coy smile pulled at my features as I spoke of my children, and almost on cue they erupted from the den. In one fluid motion I pivoted to stand beside Meryl rather than in front of him, and watched as the boys harassed Jericho.

As he pounced upon Jericho’s head, “Drogon,” I said with a slight motion, and then the multi-hued form that dashed around and between his legs, “Rhaegal,” and a third pounced upon a forepaw, “Viserion,” but my eyes did not catch sight of my daughter. My nose twitched slightly in concern, but I knew the boys would not have left her if something had been wrong. Perhaps she was simply tired. “My sons; and a fourth, Kalseru, my daughter, is probably within the den enjoying a break from her tireless brothers.” Pride made my chest well as I watched the trio continue their onslaught of puppy attacks upon their favorite adult playmate. I looked back to Meryl with a glint in my eye, wondering what his thoughts might be, if he was as curious about their father’s lack of presence as Viserion had been. “The birth was hard on me, but I was not without those who had my best interests at heart.”

Out of the corner of my eye I caught the golden streak dashing across the distance, escaping the distraction Jericho had so valiantly laid out for them to spare me a few moments privacy with my imprint. I grinned at Meryl, then looked upon my son as he approached us. For a moment I was quite proud of him as he kept himself respectful to a wolf who was his elder and was company upon the mountain. But then he opened his mouth and my brows furrowed in disappointment. “Viserion, do not be rude to a guest in our home.” I lifted a paw and roughly brushed it between his ears in a gesture of scolding, but withheld anything further, glancing between my son and my imprint, allowing Meryl to reply to such a brash greeting in whatever way he saw fit.