She had disappeared, and instantly Ruiko had hardened all the more for it. He only blamed himself fir trusting so carelessly.. for caring too sonly. The only consolation to the male was that he had never spoken his feelings for the she-wolf aloud to her or anyone, and so the day Ranger’s scent began to fade from the pack lands was the day Ruiko Tainn had pretended that she had been no more than a temporary member that had come, used their resources, and then slunk away without a second glance. It was far easier to move on that way.


Just as life was beginning to take on a trend of normalcy with Indru and his siblings slowly returning, a sudden cry that shot across the cold winter sky stirred a curl on his lips. It seemed impossible to him that she would dare return, and yet.. he knew her voice. With a grunt, the regal male lifted himself regally, his tail lifted high as he prowled to the direction of her voice.. He moved swiftly, uncertain of what to say, or if he would say anything at all and simply chase her away from the lands.


It wasn’t until he finally found her and his eyes fell upon his tarnished angel that his anger smoothed away to concern.. which then melted back to anger at the idea that another had done this to her. He stared at her for a moment, his gaze taking in the angry wounds and his features hardened. “Who did this to you?” His tone was quiet.. demanding.. coldly furious. For certainly he would hunt them down and he would kill them for daring to touch her.

A lynx had done this to her. It was almost a disappointment to him that the creature had already been killed, for while it was not a wolf as he had initially suspected, he would still have sought down any creature that dared lay a paw or fang on her and let it know it had made a deadly mistake. He listened, his paws digging in to the ground as he refrained from moving forward to inspect her wounds, for while she had clearly been taken from the pack.. from him, he still could not grasp if he could trust her or not.


Guilt had suddenly coursed his figure though, weighing heavily upon his chest. He should have looked for her harder. He shouldn’t have assumed she had abandoned them during that hunt.. “I’m sorry,” he said suddenly, his tone serious and deep as it rarely was. Ruiko rarely apologized; his pride never let him. “I should have looked for you harder.. I thought you left.” His resistance to trusting her was fleeting, though the tawny regal still composed himself to stay back. She had every right to be angry at him. He had failed her as a leader. He had failed her as a guardian. He had failed her as a potential lover.

She moved forward hesitantly, murmuring words of forgiveness that he felt were completely undeserved. Indru would have trailed after any wolf of the pack that went missing. He would have went after them, and made sure they were okay before giving up on them. She had suffered for it – another pack had saved her, not the pack she had once decided to make her home. He didn’t deserve her.


And yet she seemed to think he did; her words caused his bright eyes to focus upon her features once more. Ranger was large for a she-wolf; her muscle was solid and yet she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, even with her body tattered and torn. He swallowed thickly, unable to say anything in return for the moment. Instead, the regal male moved forward, closing the distance between them both as a low and protective growl released from his throat. Briefly, the male rubbed his muzzle to her cheek, though it was only a momentary touch before he bent his muzzle to explore her wounds.. especially the one on her chest. “You should rest,” he finally uttered, inhaling her scent sharply. "You're home now."

It was painfully obvious to him as she moved how badly she had been hurt for the dark she-wolf’s once graceful gait was now hindered by a limp. Ruiko felt his ears press back to his skull as he glanced over her quickly once more, the worry quite clear within his bright amber eyes. He kept his pace slower than normal – not just because she was injured, but because he wanted to steal the few moments of quit he could have with her before they came upon the others. Already, the idea of Indru, Damascus, or Avalloc even giving her a second-glance caused a frown to briefly flash over his features, and the tawny male realized he was loathe to share her.


“A few of them,” he responded quietly, his eyes now scanning the land before them. He was only regretting now that Niija was not among them, for she would have aided Ranger in her healing. “Indru has returned.” There was a tenseness to his tone, and he knew she would understand what it could possibly mean for his brother to be back.

He was almost relieved by Ranger’s words, though he would never admit such. The she-wolf was precious to him; a gem he wanted to explore further. Indru seemed far more interested in females who were of a more delicate nature, and as such, Ruiko wasn’t worried about his brother forming affections for the dark warrior. But jealousy was a strange thing, and he felt satisfied that she was his. Canting his muzzle, the tawny regal gave the ebony girl a nudge to her cheek, releasing a soft sigh. “He is entirely in his right,” he murmured softly, realizing she might not understand this as she hadn’t met his brother before. Indru was a leader by nature as well, just as he was. “We’ll figure something out.”


Ruiko fell to silence then as the two finally came upon the main pack den. No one was in sight, and the leader was unwilling to wait. Leading Ranger back to her old den, the male settled himself in there with her for now, willing her to rest and heal while he protectively curled against her, his own thoughts hindering any chance of sleep.