If I call your name...

Link to Inspiration Song

KARPOS SLAYER

If I could hold the stars in my paw, they would lead me to you...

Karpos was curious as to what had even brought him off the borders of Hollowheart Keep that day. He just felt drawn away from the pack lands that had rested him since the pack had moved from the mountains. Karpos could never forget the kindness He had been shown by Mrs. Naira, Sir Mapplethorpe, Mr. Chulyin and the rest of the wolves who had been so kind to take him in four or five months ago. He, most importantly, had Aponi to thank because he wouldn't have known about Nomad's Pass turned Hollowheart Keep if he had not met her in Spectral Woods. He loved his life there but the chocolate prince missed his family. He missed them all, his uncle @Lachesis and his auntie Capella. He desperately missed his mama Ana and his uncle Aeo was missed as well.

He could visit most of them whenever he wanted, even meeting his sister while on Nomads Pass' old lands about a week prior but he could not visit Ana because she was missing and no one knew if she was even alive because she had gone onto the mountain, looking for him and his sister during the worst winter the Relic Lore had ever seen. He hoped that she would just come down from the mountain to see them all, to prove that she was alive. With a heavy heart he drew another deep breathe as he pushed forward towards the south. Perhaps just a small visit wouldn't hurt! He gulped as he looked behind him at the borders. He knew them so well already that he went, by himself, on at least three patrols every day. Sir Mapplethorpe had even told him that he had the fine makings of a guardian. Just like da. He told himself as he started to tear up. He remembered his father standing up for himself and Adsila when a wolf had threatened to take him in the night.

...with moonbeams in your pelt & stardust in your eyes.

<33333 !!!

Things were getting better. Slowly, but surely, they were getting better.

He was still a bit of a nervous wreck – something that would eventually dissipate with time – but he had become much more positive as the days began to grow warmer. While he was still distraught over the loss of Anastasia, XIX was attempting to recover from her absence. There were days, now that the snow had left Relic Lore, where Lachesis found himself walking in the direction of the mountain. However, he would never get close to the base, as the memories of the snowstorm were unbearably vivid the closer he got. He wanted to search the rocks for his blue-eyed companion – even if all that remained was the remnants of her body… that was enough. He just needed to know if she was alive, or dead.

Unsure of where he was going, Lachesis wandered North. As much as he enjoyed being in the near-constant company of Capella, the gangly healer was still a loner at heart. He enjoyed his solitary walks and exploring the neighbouring territories. Now that winter had departed Lachesis could return to his herb collecting and properly stock his inventory once more. Today he was on a mission to gather as much as he could carry; with puppies arriving in the near future Lachesis wanted to be prepared if anything were to happen.

As he neared the woods a familiar scent struck his nostrils, causing the long-legged boy to stumble; Karpos! Without a second thought, the glum skeleton lurched forward to close the distance between them. It had been difficult to see his nephew as the winter raged on; it also didn’t help that their packs despised each other, making it even more difficult for them to visit each other. The last meeting between the two had been better than the last, but was just as sad. It was not long after Lachesis had returned from the mountain without Anastasia that he had come across the former Pitch Pine prince and broke the news to him. His heart pained at the thought, his pace slowing as he saw the chocolate shape of Karpos. Every time they crossed paths the shadow prince seemed to grow bigger and bigger; the lanky healer still towered over his nephew, but Karp was quickly catching up.

“Karp!” he exhaled with a wag of his tail, pale eyes searching the pup’s face. “Is ev-everything alright?” His stutter was still holding on, but it was better than it had been after first returning from the mountain. His heart still hurt, and there was a constant uncomfortable weight in his gut, but he was getting better. Things were getting better.

stick with those who stick with you

<333333333333333333333333333333

KARPOS SLAYER

If I could hold the stars in my paw, they would lead me to you...

He had been minding and holding his own until he saw Lachesis off in the distance and heard Lach call out his name. His ears perked up and he tilted his head to the side. Was his entire family visiting him now? First Capella, then Adsila and finally Lachesis. The three wolves that he was closest to all visiting him within one week. "Uncle Lache?" He called out softly for his uncle, almost not believing that the lanky uncle would be there, just as he had with Adsila. The shadowed prince saw the white form of his uncle heading towards him and he appeared to be doing just fine, recovering very well. He drew a deep breathe as he ran towards towards Lach's body with a smile presented on his muzzle.

Karpos pushed forward and practically tackled his uncle, his tail wagging as he held a large smile on his muzzle. "How have you been? How are the rest of my aunts and uncles? I found Adsila and talked to her! Her and Uncle Ace are quite fine too!" He blurted it all out as fast as he could. It was his Uncle Lachsies!!! How could be not be excited to see his, by far, favorite uncle Lachesis? He wondered what brought his uncle around Hollowheart Keep lands, especially since Cut Rock River and Hollowheart Keep seemed to have many disputes between members. Karpos saw it as a perfect opportunity to catch up on everything that had gone on since the last time that they had seen each other.

...with moonbeams in your pelt & stardust in your eyes.

Karpos’ enthusiasm was infectious. His voice broke the slender male away from his thoughts, causing a lop-sided smile to fall lazily across his dark lips as he closed the distance between himself and the Slayer child. Without warning, the pup’s chocolate body lurched in his direction, nearly causing the spider-like healer to fall over as their bodies connected. Lachesis could barely catch the words that fell off the youth’s tongue; his bright voice filled the air, causing the ache in XIX’s heart to dull.

The first question that was thrown at him caught the male off-guard – and it wasn’t one that he wanted to answer. He didn’t want his nephew to know how miserable he had been since arriving back in the forest without Anastasia at his side. He was getting better – thanks to the aid of both Capella and Bastet – but it was still a struggle. For them he was trying harder; he had been so reluctant to fix himself that he hadn’t realized what a toll it was putting on those around him. For them he was making a constant effort to be happier.

“We are g-good!” he started with a brief fumble, a wide smile pressed against his lips as he pressed a quick lick to Karpos’ forehead. “Auntie Pella has been s-stayin’ with me, and Aeolus has b-been busy. The winter’s been hard,” he added with a soft shrug as if to dismiss the topic. Lachesis didn’t want to talk about himself – he wanted to know everything that had been going on in Karpos’ life since they had last seen each other. The healer could barely contain his excitement at the news about Karp finding his sister. While XIX had never been close with Adsila he still cared for the other Slayer child; they had once been family (sort of). “That’s good to h-hear! What else h-have you been up to? How’s Hollowheart life?” Lachesis wanted to know everything.

stick with those who stick with you

Karpos had moved his arse off of his uncle with a wagging tail as he sat in front of him on his rump. It was good to hear that all of his aunts and uncles were doing very well with their lives so far and it was no surprise that his uncle Aeo was staying busy either. They were all hard working and quality wolves, Karpos was confident with that for sure. He was asked how he had been doing and how life was at the Keep. He smiled and talked slower than he had before, at a normal pace, so his uncle Lache could understand what he was saying. Things have been really good here uncle. After the big giant hunt attempt that failed we found another elk and took it down and kept fed. But after the first hunt two of the other pups went missing. They both just recently returned and one of them was Aponi. He started to explain, he felt mentioning Aponi was very necessary.

The chocolate prince went on with his explanation as to how he had been with little detail as he didn't want it to be some form of pack security liability issues with it. I got training with fighting from Sir Mapplethorpe, one of the leaders and he said I have the makings of a fine wolf and he thinks I'll be a fine guardian too. The prince said with a matter of pride swelling in his chest. He loved that he would be accomplished in life, which he would be. His feelings about everything that had happened in Hollowheart Keep were immiscible. He had no mixed feelings about anything that had happened. Occasionally he wondered if he should really like Aponi like he had but he never had mixed feelings about it, that would just be silly.

After leaving Pitch Pine Trail with Anastasia, and breaking the news to Karpos, the slender healer had worried that he would never be able to mend the relationship he had with his ‘nephew’. He had thought that if the shadow prince hated him it would make their departure that much easier on the impressionable child. Fortunately they were able to mend their relationship, and it seemed as though things had almost completely returned to normal. (Normal would be having Anastasia back home.) He leaned back on his rump, his pear-coloured gaze focused on the chocolate teenager as he responded to Nineteen’s questions. A faint smile was perched effortlessly against his lips as the tip of his tail wagged absently. This was precisely what he had needed – a distraction, and Karpos was the perfect one.

The mention of another (female) caused his attention to spike – who was this Aponi that Karpos spoke of? Both his expression and voice had softened at the mention of the girl; it was obvious that this Aponi was awfully special to Karp. A sly, crooked smirk replaced the grin he wore previously as his head cocked slightly to one side. He purposely by-passed everything else that the youth had said as he was curious who Karpos was so infatuated with. “Who’s Aponi?” His tongue rolled on the foreign name as he studied the boy’s small frame with a raised brow. It was so refreshing to push aside all of his sorrows and focus on something positive; something that Capella had been constantly encouraging him to do. “And you already are a fine wolf, Karps,” he added with a soft nod. He was proud of the Slayer child. Although he wished that it could have been him teaching Karpos what he needed to know, XIX was glad that he was learning it from someone.

stick with those who stick with you

This natural selection picked me out to be

Karpos Slayer

A dark horse running in a fantasy

He looked at his paws with embarrassment as he realized that he had not told his uncle of the Hollowheart Keep pup yet but only his Auntie Pella. Truth was that he only trusted his family with that information because he was terrified of one simple thing. Rejection. Ever since returning from being lost, Aponi had been asking for Mercy, the crow child and his friend. It stung because Karpos had always tried to be there for her but she seemed to be pushing him away. He drew in a deep breathe as he started to explain who she is and why he appeared to be infatuated with the female that he talked so fondly of. Oh, it was a long story indeed.

"So back about a few days before Pitch Pine Trail collapsed I had gone out into Spectral Woods where I ran into you uncle Lach. Upon leaving the den I was birthed into the world into I ran into a pup who had come down from the mountains named Aponi. She was really nice and stuff and even offered me a home in Nomads Pass, her pack at the time. I said I couldn't leave Adsi and then her parents showed up and scared me off because they didn't know me. I went back to find Pitch Pine Trail collapsed and so Auntie Pella took me to the mountains upon my request to join Aponi's pack. I went there and Aponi's mom, Lady Naira, accepted me and then Aponi showed me around. We fled the mountains due to the snow and lack of food where Hollowheart Keep was settled. I've been trying to grow close to Aponi and just through the interactions we've had.... I love her." He explained and ended with the words he had been dying to say for almost a month.

He waited patiently for the youth to begin explaining who this Aponi was; his pear-coloured eyes remained focus on Karpos as the words started to spill off his tongue. Although their packs kept them apart, Lachesis enjoyed catching up with his nephew and discovering what he had been up to since they had parted ways. While their packs disliked each other it didn’t mean that they had to; it was impossible for XIX to dislike the Slayer child. Not only had they been through so much together, but as far as the healer was concerned they were family. Nineteen had been there for most of the child’s life, as Anastasia had acted as their mother when their actual mother had abandoned them, and had formed a close bond with the pup.

‘I love her.’ A smile spread across his maw at the words. Lachesis didn’t really understand what love was. He knew he loved his family – as well as Anastasia, Capella, and Karpos – but he didn’t know how to differentiate it. There was a difference between loving someone like family, and loving someone much more than that, but XIX didn’t understand what the difference was. “How do you know you love her?” He asked out of curiosity, the words falling off his tongue before he could stop them. He knew that he cared for Ana and Capella differently, but he wasn’t sure how he felt about them.

“Have you told her how you feel?” His head was cocked to one side as he questioned Karpos further, his curiosity growing as he waited for a response from the former Pitch Pine prince.

stick with those who stick with you