Maksim had spent the night asleep, surrounded by others. It was strange, at first, to know that there were other wolves who slumbered near him but it was also comforting and reassuring. The large male hadn't slept so peacefully in quite a long time. Funny how a pack he had just joined calmed him so much. Still, that was pack mentality, wasn't it? Knowing there was safety in numbers, a sort of family you are adopted into that promises to keep you safe as best as possible. Maksim knew he promised the same thing to the fellow Hollow wolves; if anyone threatened to hurt them he would do his best to eliminate that threat.

When he awoke that morning he decided it would be best to acquaint himself with the territory further. Sort of a ritual of his, the Baranski would wake up (hopefully before anyone else) and simply walk. Learn the area, memorise the sprawling forest and the landmarks dotted across it. He was doing well, he could retrace his steps from the day before by looking over land marks and familiarising scents. He spent most of the day walking and if he found small prey like a hare he'd do his best to catch it and bring it back to the pack, help their food cache and such. He would have liked to bring back a substantial meal of deer yet he wasn't strong enough on his own. Maybe when the does were with young ...

He was dragged out from his thoughts as the howl of an alpha caught his attention. His ears swiveled to the direction it came from and then his whole body turned. He was calling them. All of them. Immediately Maksim took off in a fast lope, ran through dappled sunlight that peered through the cedar canopies. It wouldn't take him that long to arrive, considering he was not that far away in the first place. Soon enough, he saw the dark figure of Kade Attaya and the sound of a water met his ears. As Maksim stepped into the opening, the sunlight bathed him in warmth. He took note of the pleasant day. His family's pack had been a relatively cold area, there was snow for quite a large chunk of the year. Kade stood before a creek, water coiling around rocks of varying size. The Baranski lowered his head in a bow as he drew closer to Kade, greeting him as he slowed to a hault. "Sir." He raised his head. It was only then that he realised: he had been the first to arrive.

As the days grew longer and loped quickly into spring time Ava did her best to remain afoot, refusing to allow the extra weight to bring her to laziness. In a month - no, less now, was it? - her plumpness would become her shackles and as excited as she was to welcome their cubs into the world, she did not look forward to being so fat that the labor was simply unpleasant. As she recalled, Naira had been huge last year - and she'd come out with four. If four was her fate Ava would have to be quick with the recovery, and that meant maintaining her strength even as her sides widened.

So it was on a walk, then, that she heard the beckoning of her dark King. One black ear twisted toward his voice, a turning of her head to follow, before she pivoted on her heel and loped graceful as she could to the origin of his howl. There was much to be said, she knew, but the exact contents of his thoughts were much an enigma on the meeting today. They had shared many a conversation in privacy, leading Ava to hold a couple of theories regarding the proceeds that were to follow, but it was still with curiosity that she breached the gathering.

On delicate toes she moved smoothly toward Kade, her chin level, head and tail high to fill her spot as his equal. Coming beside him she placed a tender touch against his cheek, gold eyes closing for a moment as she inhaled his scent. Ava still held on to the residual fear that there had been a time so recent that she could have lost him, to a sickness or an unfamiliar mutt beyond the mountainside, but he was the warrior just as much as he was the guardian, the leader, the father. Ava was proud that the fire of her heart burned for him.

Reclaiming an authoritative figure she withdrew her head and let her haunches drop to the ground, choosing as regal of a seat as her expanding belly would allow. A brief smile broke across her maw, extended in greeting to Maksim, before she set her gaze on the treeline in eager wait of the other arrivals.

As Sibyl neared the river, the babbling song of the creek met her ears, rushing strong with melting snow. It was a reminder that through all that had happened in winter, life flowed continuous and strong in the Cedarwood. Jaysyek, Borden, Aniu, Follko, the children whom Sibyl had watched grow, were all gone. Sibyl had to admit, each had taken a small part of her with them, a small, itching void Sibyl wasn't sure what to do with. Sometimes she considered embarking to find them, or even to seek her own kin and see if anything could be salvaged there, but she felt that there was still something left for her here. At every turn could be seen sure signs of spring, and soon Ava would bear a new generation of cubs that would need help to be raised. There was yet still hope for a future in this wood, and so Sibyl remained.

Her steady trot grew slower and more measured as she caught the scent of the others. Kade and Ava were familiar among them, though a new scent she could not place to a face. It would have made her feel better if her similarly timid friend Destin were there, and she hoped he would show soon. Ducking her head low, with tail curled nervously by her hocks she approached the small gathering by the brook. Her greeting consisted of a few small squeaky whimpers, poking both Ava and Kade under their chins with her snout, before sitting herself down off to the side in her characteristic slouch. Though she was curious about the grey-coated male, she only glanced at his toes from the corner of her eye.

For several moments Maksim wondered what could possibly be the reason for this pack meeting. He knew he would soon receive the answer he so desperately sought; he simply had to wait for the others arrive. With his eyes scanning the tree line, the arrival of Ava did not surprise the subordinate. The signs of cubs within her belly were evident, not to mention she had grown wider. Soon, he took note. He wondered briefly what the pups would be like. Would they be as charming as their parents? Or would they have hellion tendencies? He highly doubted the latter, the Attaya pair would make exceptional parents, of that Maksim was sure. He’d do his best to keep an eye on the pups when they emerged from the den. Ava waddled up to claim her spot beside her mate and a brief exchange of love was shared between the two.

It didn’t take long for another female to arrive, a timid little thing. She was small and her coat consisted of grey, copper, cinnamon and cream. Her eyes were a mixture of gold and brown and they seemed wary. She scooted up to Kade and Ava and prodded them both gently under the chin with her nose before shuffling to take her place, avoiding eye contact with Maksim the whole time. He wanted to ask her name but felt that it could wait until after the meeting. The group of four sat, no words exchanged with the trickle of water and swaying of trees all that broke the silence. Was this all that remained of the Grizzly Hollow pack? Kade seemed unable to wait for any other to arrive and began addressing the small group.

Maksim had been completely unaware of any kind of threat in Relic Lore and the fact that Kade spoke of a plague caused him to furrow his brow. He wanted to know more, to understand what exactly had happened. What had carried this disease? Foxes? Prey? Or wolves? This plague had caused death, that much was apparent, and the alpha male spoke of ruin upon the Cedarwood Forest. Whilst the Baranski had not been here long at all, he had to agree. This forest should have been bustling with the activity of a healthy pack yet it was a ghost town with a few souls clinging to it. Ava’s children needed a life better than this, they would not be raised in the bones of a pack but in the fresh borders of a new one. Maksim nodded slowly, watching Kade the whole time. It was time to leave.

Kade’s wish was to travel to the other side of the mountains at the break of dawn, to find their future beyond their peaks. His pledge of loyalty had already been made weeks ago. “I will accompany you to the other side of the mountains, sir.” Would Ava be able to make the journey at this stage in her pregnancy? He did not think the black woman as weak but he merely wished to remain cautious; a trek across mountains was a dangerous thing, the Baranski had travelled across a few to end up where he was now.

Ava remained watchful of the treeline for the remaining arrivals, smiling delicately as Sibyl emerged and crept forward to greet them. She was a nervous wreck a good deal of the time, but the smell of Cedars was deep within her fur - she'd been here a while, she knew how it worked, and most importantly, she had a soft heart that Ava would not mistake for weakness. Their personal conversations had been quite limited, but she could only assume that so many losses had been detrimental to the she-wolf's morale. At least she had Destin; the two seemed to be quite a pair. Where he was, of course, she had yet to discern.

Alas, once Kade had began his introduction she saw the movement beyond the tree-trunks, apologetic in his movements as he took his place. She withheld the severity in the stern of her gaze as it fell upon Destin. He had traveled with Kade to the other side to fight the threat against the Lore, so she did not intend to get cross with a wolf who'd displayed such a courage for good. So lateness was forgiven, what little hardness that had occurred in her gold stare melting away.

The lean of her body fell instinctively toward her mate, subconsciously hoping he might draw strength from their gravity as the words he so dismayed to speak formed upon his tongue. As he explained the situation at hand, as ugly as the truth was, Ava passed her amber gaze among the gathered wolves, hoping that the resoluteness of her stare might further prove that it hadn't been decided on a whim. Ava drew her head up as the point came across, speaking gently to the gathering. "I understand you will be losing your home, a place of familiarity to you. But I can promise if you follow us, we will find you proper safety, shelter, and happiness." Then, quietly, "I would not wish to see any of you left behind." Ava was fond of them, these three timber-colored wolves, preferring their kindred spirits. But this was not her choice to make, and as Kade commanded speak now, she hid her anticipation and waited.

It was Maksim's voice that cleared the silence, agreement in his strong tone. Ava's dipped her head in gratitude as she looked upon him. He had only recently sworn to serve Grizzly Hollow and she was pleased to see him prove himself every bit as loyal as Ava thought. Her gaze shifted toward Sibyl and Destin, whose eyes she could not read, though she did not look upon them directly. She would hate to influence them with her stare; a true response was what she wanted.

Sibyl acknowledged Destin with a small thump of her tail against the ground, a small and subtle shift in her posture towards less of a sulk. Her attention was drawn back to the Kade as he began to speak. His proposal struck Sibyl as a sort of shock, her wide bronze eyes even rounder with surprise. It was almost inconceivable to leave this place, having grown so used to the safety it... Actually, it wasn't very safe at all anymore. What Kade said made sense, and Sibyl had seen first hand the sorts of larger beasts that had been steadily encroaching on the packland, seemingly growing bolder by each passing day. It was no longer a suitable place to live, nor to raise the children that Ava would soon bear.

For a long moment Sibyl stared at her paws, and at the soft ruddy ground between them. It almost felt like she would be betraying the very place, but it had to be done. With a slow breath she looked upwards, towards the two black wolves who she was putting her trust into. "I'll go with," She said softly. She looked sidelong towards Destin, attempting a reassuring smile to the poor wolf who she'd dragged into this mess. She couldn't blame him if he wanted to split ways at this point, though she hoped that he wouldn't