Apart from the very first day he or she comes into existence—that is a difficult event to ignore-- a wolf’s birthday comes and goes every year without much of a passing thought from anyone or really even the wolf in question. Despite this, Karina knew upon waking the morning she became a yearling. The event was overshadowed of course by the birth of the new litter a few days prior, and it wasn’t as if Karina had expected much pomp and circumstance anyway. Although this was the day they officially entered the adult ranks, Karina and her brothers had been completing adult tasks for several moons now. Likely it was only she, Orren, and Aleksei that would even mark today as special—everyone else had already been treating them as ranked wolves with important roles. She a healer, Orren a hunter, and Aleksei a guardian and leader... no longer were they children to be taught lessons and played with and protected. No longer was Karina the littlest Baranski.

Her brothers seemed fascinated by the family’s newest additions, and though Karina visited the birthing den just as frequently as her littermates, her attention was always for her mother. The princess was quite possibly the only Hearthwood River wolf who hadn’t received Inna and Lekalta with pure, unadulterated joy. Constantly wrestling with her own confusing feelings toward her sisters, Karina found it difficult to even look at the little wriggling, suckling blobs of fur. Orren and Aleksei were clearly already in love with the girls, fascinated by their tininess and their every little movement and sound. It worked out just a little too perfectly; there was a new pup for each of them! One for Orren, to be the rambunctious, playful sister her never had, and one for Aleksei—a weaker, cuter, more helpless sister to protect and care for.

It surprised Karina to come across her fire-eyed brother wandering the territory; she had expected him to be nearer to their mother’s den. The princess hesitated awkwardly as they both noticed each other, wondering if Orren had detected her lack of enthusiasm toward the new puppies. Karina had been trying to conceal her mixed feelings by being as absent as possible, hiding beneath the excuse of all the work she had to complete. “Happy Birth-Day,” she offered Orren quietly, after a moment’s pause. She finally brought her eyes up to meet her brother’s smoldering gaze.

“Thanks, you too,” Orren finally said, brow quirked in a way that said to Karina that he’d no idea of the occasion before she mentioned it. Of course Orren’s mind was filled to the brim with thoughts of the newborns and their mother and pack duty; there was no room left to recall something as trivial as one’s own date of birth. When had Karina become the selfish one? “Thanks,” Karina echoed, words coming out like a sigh. She opened her mouth, but whatever she was supposed to say next was lost to her. What was she supposed to talk about with Orren? Most of their conversations growing up had been childish arguments, and they were now too old to behave like that. Karina could feel her anxiety swelling in the back of her mind, choking out her rational thoughts and leaving her speechless, as she often found herself in most social situations.

Her brother thankfully supplied the small talk though, and even so it took Karina a moment to find her answer. “I was.. ah..” The girl looked away, as if she was searching the scenery for her answer. She inhaled deeply to steady her whirling thoughts, settling on one worry in particular. “Well.. I wanted to find Aleksei. To share today..” ..with him. “With the two of you.” Their eldest brother had been strangely absent since the founding of Hearthwood River, and truthfully even before that.  It was incredibly odd behavior for Aleksei, who usually attached himself to Karina’s side like a tick. The appearance of Kjors in the princess’s life had coincidentally marked the disappearance of her original protector, and Karina felt suddenly guilty for how little she had thought of her missing brother since replacing him with Kjors.

An awkward tension hung in the air between them, both sets of eyes, one powder blue, one deep range, directed at the surroundings rather than each other. Their childhood days of fighting and playing seemed long gone, teenage worries now overshadowing any youthful need for attachment. Karina's reply came as mechanically as her brother's had, a sigh in her tone, and Orren glanced at her, seeing her struggle for words; What happened to us? Moving away from the threat of the Cedarwoods was supposed to have brought their family closer together, the addition of two new sisters a cause for celebration. Yet the Baranski's were scattered, Maksim fighting to establish their new pack and protect it from harm, Kisla busy with her newborns, and the three yearlings... Well..?

The salt and pepper girl stumbled in her attempt to answer Orren's question, eyes once more evading his. The black-saddled lad sighed, persimmon gaze growing sad as it rested on his sister's lighter form. Despite her general demure character, she had never had trouble speaking her mind in front of him; Until now. Finally the princess mentioned a concern, one that was not unfamiliar to her youngest brother either. Still, a tiny stab registered in his heart at the small hesitation, the unspoken words that he had no trouble adding in himself; Not me. Aleksei, the real prince, the first born destined to walk in his father's footsteps, the protector. He and Karina had matched so well from early on, inseparable for the first half year of their life, and close to each other for most of the second. Orren was the odd one out, the black sheep, more interested in pursuing his own adventures than interacting with his family.

A bitter smile curved on corner of the copper tinted boy's mouth; And now it's the other way around! While the second prince had shown an increased interest in his mother and her well being since she got pregnant, Karina and Aleksei had grown more distant; off knowing who knew what while Orren attempted to act as an older brother. But the pleasure was close to none, his reconnection with his family bitter sweet, without his litter mates beside him. Now he sought his sister's clouded eyes, trying to force her to look at him, acknowledge him, feeling a growing, bitter powerlessness in his chest. It took effort to not spit the words at her, but he tempered himself, sticking to a more neutral tone; "Why this day, exactly? What about the other days, you didn't bother spendin' those with us." A drop of poison snuck itself into the last word despite his care; We both now you didn't mean BOTH of us!