In the darkest days of the year, when the bite of winter was at its strongest, the Bend was falling apart. The irony was certainly not lost on Serach, who had felt himself living in a daze as he tried to overcome the shock and come to terms with the truth of what had just happened. He had been confident going into this winter, because his pack had been strong in numbers and in health. That had all been a lie, and it was hard to come to terms with that. If he had incorrectly assessed that, what else was he wrong about? But much to his dismay, this was not all some bad dream he could simply wake up from, so when he cracked open his pale yellow eyes and peered into the morning gloom he had no choice but to rise up and learn how to live with this new burden as best as he knew how.

The first step was trying to reassure those who still called the Bend home, and the best way he knew how to do that was to seek them out. Sahalie had come to seek him out after the challenge for her answers, but he was not going to wait for others to do the same if he could help it. So instead he set off, nose to the ground as he followed the scent trail of one of the Bend's quietest members. While there was an urgency in his step, he did not hurry. Instead of racing off to find her, Serach took his time and paused to sniff at the trees and dead foliage along the way. For some of them, he felt certain it would be the last time he would smell their scents, and there was some comfort in that, even if the pain from their loss was still fresh on his heart. As it was, it took more than an hour before the leader found his way to his original target. "Leotie?" He called out, peering through the trees to look for the golden coat. "It's me...just wanted to see how you were doing." No point in beating around the bush about it.

She came to a stop, and Serach padded closer until he was standing next to her. He hadn't expected anybody to be out and about on the borders today. After all, what was the point when you no longer had a pack to protect? That's certainly how it felt, although it did give him comfort to see Leotie there. Whatever feelings she had about the whole affair, it hadn't perturbed her enough to make her stay hidden. He envied her for that, knowing the amount of effort it had taken him to pull himself off the ground that morning and face the new day. "I'm glad you're doing okay...I know its difficult and confusing." She had been there in the aftermath, but he didn't recall how much she had seen of the fight itself.

"Will you walk with me?" he asked her, not waiting for a response before setting into motion. Movement helped, even if only marginally. "It is very hard. I care about Spieden a lot, you know. And Aponi has nothing but respect for her, but we wanted the opportunity to lead the pack together, maybe even start our own family. I don't think any of us could have imagined that the challenge would have turned into this mess." He sighed and looked to her, curious as to what was going on behind those blue eyes. She was a quiet creature, as far as he could tell. Who knew if "okay" really meant okay?

"Despite it all though, I don't want to leave. The Bend has been my home since birth, you know. I can't imagine any other place being home. I guess I took it for granted, that others felt the same way," he explained, his voice clearly resigned to the fact that his world had fallen apart. "And what about you, Leotie? Will you be following Spieden and Triell?"

Serach listened with a quiet patience that was growing thin as Leotie responded. She was a sweet girl, but sometimes her inexperience was more trying than he was able to handle. After his discussion with Sahalie, he was well and truly done with wolves who didn't understand why Aponi and he had done what they had done. Exhaling, he breathed a sigh of relief as she reiterated that she understood the reason why the two of them had made the choice that they had. He wasn't sure how much he would emphasize the family point if he had to explain it - although that is what he had said to Sahalie - but if that was a reason that the rest of the Bend wolves found acceptable, he was willing to roll with it. It wasn't entirely inaccurate, but there was no point in delving into his developed mistrust with Spieden now. She was gone, and so it was irrelevant.

He came to a sudden halt, though, as the next words spilled forth. "I don't think you should admit defeat yet." "I've decided to go with Triell." He turned his head slowly to look at her, his pale eyes wide in shock. It hurt less than it had when Sahalie had confronted him and told him she and her families were leaving, but it was a punch to the gut nonetheless. Did she even realize how hypocritical she was? Was this what Sahalie had meant when you were supposed to tell somebody bad news but not be bold about it? His lips curling into a snarl, he stubbornly decided he'd rather stick with the boldness than fake pleasantries or concerns.

"You should probably go then. Now." He snapped at her, the fur along his back bristling. She had asked for no hard feelings, just as Sahalie had, but that was not something they had a right to ask. Not when they were the ones who threw his loyalty back in their face.

She was like a child, and in any other moment Serach would have rushed to apologize to her for snapping like he had. But this was not any other moment. His heart had been torn into so many pieces he had lost count, and there was something about the way that she said it, as though she expected him to take it in stride and with a smile that infuriated him more than all the rest. Sahalie had at least known what she was doing, and although he had not yet crossed paths with the Tainn patriarch, he hoped that Triell would understand why his nephew would not greet him with a smile nor wish him well on his foolhardy adventure. But while Leotie had professed to understand, it was clear to him that she really didn't.

He watched her go with quietly, the snarl subsiding as quickly as it had come. He had not chased Spieden away, nor Sahalie, and he would not break the pattern by chasing out Leotie. This wasn't her fault, he thought as he turned back towards the den, ready to track down Triell for the final battle before he could put all of this behind him and begin to build anew. But it wasn't your fault either, he reassured himself, although he took no solace in that fact. For better or for worse, Leotie had made her choice. He could only hope that the world was kinder to her than he had been in their final moments together as packmates, although the frigid bite of winter on his haunches was a clear indication that it would not be an easy journey for any of them.