There was something so familiar about the male in front of him. It wasn’t just his coloration either. No, that could be explained away as simple coincidence. There were many wolves colored similarly to his father. Brown is hardly an unusual color, after all. But no, many of this male’s features were similar as well. Nothing about him looked enough like Maddox for him to say something as clear as “oh, you have the same jaw,” but the overall impression was clear.

Sure enough, the stranger’s words confirm his suspicions. He had known that his father had siblings, but Maddox had never given him details. His chrome tail waved behind him. How intriguing, finding lost family.

Xavier listened intently as Amoxtli spoke of his grandmother, ears perked. He had kept to himself once he left Diveen and did not know much about the history of their family.

“I have never had the pleasure of meeting my grandparents,” he said, unable to keep the curiosity out of his voice. Father had never spoken of his parents, other than to mention that he had siblings. “It is good to know that I carry some of my grandmother with me.”

A smile crossed his face as he spoke. He could see both his father’s and mother’s influence in his body, but could not know who he resembled beyond that. He had his mother’s frame, that much was clear. His face, from what he had seen reflected in still waters, carried more of his father’s features, saving him from his light frame making him look too feminine.

Xavier shook his monotone head as Amoxtli spoke again. His faded green eyes left his uncle’s figure, drifting to gaze in the direction of his birthplace. “I haven’t resided in Diveen since I was a pup. I was young when I left, but even then I felt like an outsider there.”

The truth was a bit more than that. As a pup in Diveen, he had, of course, known the majority of the pack, or at least knew of them. He had quickly grown jealous of those of Heyel’s line, with their Angel marks. While none had ever remotely given him reason to think so, he had always felt inferior to them. With little knowledge of his grandparents, he felt as though he came from an inferior line, especially with the Alpha of Diveen being an Angel. What use could they have for him, when they came from such greatness?

Amoxtli, though, was most definitely not from Diveen. There was no scent of the cliffs about him. He smelled of a place similar to these woods, yet he had the scent of a pack about him. Xavier tilted his head slightly, eyes turning back toward his uncle.

“You are not from Diveen either,” he said, confident in that much. “You are of the forest pack?”

four | 30in, 140lbs | no heart | no soul | no shelter