I was terrible to her.

This thought ran through his mind over and over again. The howls had rang up loud and clear from Taviora yet here he was rooted to the spot. Sorrow filled tunes had lifted from the forest lands that he had found out he was born in and so ironically now the person who had stolen him from there had died in. He didn’t even know if he should dare approach for surely her true children were there, the ones he avoided, the ones that didn’t know him nor needed too. He was an interruption to their happy lives, they didn’t need to know what their mother had done to him in a time long before they were even created. His heart ached and he sat curled in the den, his white chin resting on his one remaining front leg and a tear sliding down his cheek.

”I’m sorry Mom… I am sorry I was such a failure to you. At least they gave you the life you wanted.” He didn’t even call her that to her face. The only mother he ever knew, his own long gone from the lands and perhaps dead as well. Natu was his mother but that was not his family down there and he would not bother them or complicate what surely would be a hard moment for her true children.

He had spent time recovering in the old cave den of Natu’s another irony perhaps that he now lay curled up in the only thing they alone had shared. Ravenna couldn’t save his leg that was mauled while saving her little sister’s life, but really it hadn’t slowed him down too terribly. He couldn’t run as easily but nothing else truly seemed to change much. The pain was horrible when it first happened but she had gotten him here and it had changed a lot even in the short time he had been here. Grayson rolled over closing his golden orbs before rubbing them with a front paw. He stood up knowing Ravenna likely would be heading back to the den she had set up at the foothills and slowly began walking his way down the mountain.

It was a pretty long trip, his mind was filled with the thoughts and memories with how he had hated Natu and when he started to love her how she was taken away from him in a way. He was sick he had tried to kill himself then he found Ravenna and she had been there ever since. He didn’t want to see Natu not after she started her new family… but she found out about him and they had seen each other when she was still heavily pregnant with her first litter. He was happy for her but he still chose to let her be and her him he guessed, not that he could blame her after how he had acted. There was a lot of regret, really he just wanted to seek out Ravenna and lay on her and that sounded pretty great right now too.

He spotted her red and white form coming to the den he most certainly was not in, but she had left him at. He quickened his pace, a bit unsteadily as he picked up for a run down hill. That was down hills were a lot harder nowadays, but still he made his way down just as she called to him. ”I’m here.” He said just after she had shoved her head into the den. ”And I know.” Obviously there was no way he could have know her parents had died, ”You don’t have to tell me it was hard not to hear.” He says eyes downcast gritting his teeth and trying to keep back any tears that threatened to rise again. ”I’m sorry I know that she was your family too.” Perhaps that would be her first clue. How much could go wrong this winter?