She’d been fuming, but she had forced herself to bury it because at the end of the day, the only actions she could control were her own. She couldn’t force others into submission, and as appealing as it sounded, it just wasn’t the type of wolf she was. She was angry, broken, rough around the edges, but she wasn’t a dictator. She of all people believed in freedom upon anything else. Perhaps that was why she’d chosen to follow his trail, her tail lashing from side to side with mild anxiety as she took a deep breath. She couldn’t fight for what was already gone. The love wasn’t there anymore… perhaps it never had been, and they had both just been kidding themselves.

For what felt like, and very well might have been, the first time in months she found herself speaking, the ebony woman’s eyes narrowing slightly. “I can’t do this anymore, Kerb. I can’t stay here.” She couldn’t be tied to him. She couldn’t sit there and watch as he fell in love with his current colead, while everyone else watched… couldn’t sit idly by as he fucked other women… yes, she noticed. Hidden Tree had been one of her favorite spots – it had meant something to her and she had found the scents mingled when she went to clear her head.

She didn’t recognize him anymore… hell, she barely recognized herself anymore and she so badly wanted to take it out on him… she knew she played a part, no matter how subtle. Lacey’s disappearance had hit her hard, and she’d never recovered. She was done. She refused to be laughed at, humiliated by the Draw any more than she was sure they already were. She needed change… she needed to go find their daughter, who was once again missing… less than a year old. Did he even care where she was?

She absolutely loathed the feeling that started in her heart when he looked at her. She hated the fact that she still harbored feelings for him despite everything else – it was a curse. “Did you ever really care to begin with?” She questioned, her heartrate spiking at his words as she challenged on. “About me? About your own daughter? About what might be happening to her right now?” She wouldn’t dismiss herself until she had gotten her full piece in, until he finally accepted the things he’d made her wonder for months. Who was she kidding – he was nothing like the man who she’d fallen in love with, and yet she had his face still, and she couldn’t get it out of her mind.

“Were we just a means to an end for you?” It was hard to imagine that to be true… that the caring but rather naïve boy she once knew might have truly just been manipulating them the entire time. He could have at least had the courtesy to tell her himself, Treyah too… “Is it just Treyah? I went to the old den the other day and you'd been there, but not with her… you’re going to tear everyone you come into contact apart… do you even care?” A part of her, despite her anger, felt bad for Treyah as well, like she was falling into a giant mess herself. Her tail lashed slightly as she finally felt everything coming to the surface.

He lunged for her, and she knew that she had hit a cord. She reacted, muscle memories, remembering how to fight for everything… it was a liberating feeling, and one she had not felt since she’d settled down in the Draw. Despite the pain she felt radiating from her chest, she knew in that moment she’d made the right choice. She ducked, not able to avoid the blow completely as his teeth latched onto her shoulder and she made a growling sound she had not made since she came to the Lore. The snarl was from the depths of her throat as she targeted his neck, just as he had done to her. She aimed for the base by his shoulder, intent on sticking her teeth as far into the fur as she could.

She wasn’t one for half measures… he should know that. She’d been the one to teach him to fight. Then again, she hadn’t taken him to be the one for physical violence, though she supposed they had both changed in the months since their daughter’s disappearance. She’d gone down a dark path, kept it all to herself despite her temper rising, her mind changing to more violent images, ‘bad thoughts’ while he’d tried to hold the pack together. A part of her, a very small sliver, did feel guilty, thinking she’d caused this. In the end, they’d only had themselves to blame for it all.

She gritted her teeth as his teeth connected with her upper leg, trying not to scream, so he wouldn’t have the satisfaction. She removed her teeth, aiming her next blow to be on his scruff, to bite down at the base of his neck directly above his spine. At this point, it was reflex – go for some kind of killing blow to stop the torment on her own body. She’d done it time and time again. She’d been forced to kill other wolves who tried to steal her food because both were desperate enough to fight and kill each other for it.

It was like everything she hated about her life was surfacing, and now, she was just trying to survive. That was who she was – a survivor… and survive was what she would do. The snarl that came from her maw when she did it was mixed with pain, rage, and absolute sorrow. There was a part of her that couldn’t believe they had come to this… that this was how they were going to leave each other, with tooth and claw to what could very well be the death.