Greens always lock with mine.

Our smiles spread wide.

Happy to be back in our Winter grounds.

Replacement of herbs, roots, grains is in our packs when we come back from the summer grounds. Heavily laden with our fruitful harvest of what this land offers us.

We are blessed.

Ryeson is taken out of his cradle at my chest. Odin's pack is taken off by his father. He never once took it off the entire walk out.

Watching.

"Odin, you did well. You helped your family bring in the food for winter. You are growing into a strong male that I am proud to call mine." Odin looks into his father's eyes as he has been trained to do.

His sound is terrorizing now that he has spent the summer running barefoot and naked in the Wilds of the summer grounds.

We have to remind Odin he is skin and not just Wild.

"Now we need to unpack all of this, it's your job to take everything out of the pack. Put it in neat piles on the floor. After that, you can eat, Odinson." Clear words from a father that expects his Male to follow orders.

Odin prefers to use his Wild language instead of real words. A low growl from a small throat states understanding.

"Odin your words, use them." Reminding him.

"Sorry mother," more of a grunting afterthought than a pup with his puppy teeth remaining. When he looks at me he gives me his green eyes that are a few shades darker than his father's. Grabbing him, kissing his cheek he tries to get away. Teeth flash a warning to me. The Wild within flasher her War out to a pup who thinks he's more than who he is in this moment.

She growls her low tone towards him that makes him still so we can handle him the way we want with sniffing, soft bites to his flesh before we let him move on from us.

Dinner is quick, the unpacking quicker all of us exhausted from the long walk in.

We all sleep together in the bed like we are still in the tight tent that housed us for months.

Morning brings the rest of the packing away for winter to its completion. Borson makes plans for the hunt before the Night starts to come. Odin is beside his father, watching the plans, looking at the map.

"Odin, this is the cliff that we will drive them off of." Odin's eyes follow where his father is pointing.

"Are you ready Odinson?" instead of words Odin's sound ranges out further than it has ever inside this house. Enough to wake his brother up with a startle of hands and feet.

Cheeks brush against cheeks of father and son.

The smile spreads wider on my face, reaching the corners of my eyes.

A big dinner is prepared by the Savage, Odin eats more than his fill to the point he can't move and neither can the Savage.

"We eat like this Odin because on our hunt we don't know when our next meal will be. So eat as much as you can today because tomorrow is a different day."

The day brings the crows caws to ruffle up the air.

Odin's back is to me as he walks away with the loincloth Luki has made for him for this hunt. His spear is clutched in his right hand. His ax hangs on his right side beside his sharp knife. He's the only pup that is going with the juveniles and adult males. There are only a few females that go with the group.

Morvared comes forward, wickedness is held on the crow lovers face in a form of a smile of knowledge.

Orv with her bulging Nest that holds a new Future inside it. Her eyes still haven't healed from the loss of her first pup. Eta carries her male slung tight to her chest.

"I have news." Morvared sings out, blue eyes brighten.

"What is that lover of crows." I don't like this healer and she seems to feel the same.

"Luna, that's no way to address your Healer."

"I'll address you the way I want." Eyes maul into pupils that do not dilate. A shiver of something unright within her scuttles over the bones of my spine. Nerves tickle and hair stand on end. should burn her.

Two crows land on her each side of her shoulders. Black orbs stare, head to the side, a clap of beak before they take flight.

Orv and Eta stand on each side of me. Weapons are sharpened with their stances towards what's in front of us.

"We could burn her, it's in my right as Luna." Talking to the females besides me.

"If you burn me, you'll never know who has taken the East."

Orv and Eta stumble before I catch them.

A snippet of Elska. 

"What can you hear?"

"There are many hearts beating fast behind the wall of the garden." The sweet smell of pomegranates competes with the smell of the males sweat that clings to their bodies. 

"Elska, when the beat of those hearts gets above our heads start throwing the knives as hard as you can into the center of the sound." My grandfather's voice isn't shaking but my Uncles sound does. He's shaking within his body that I can feel the bones vibrate. 

"We know you are there, many will die today." My Grandfather is beside me, silver stenches the air around her.  

"You can't hold of us forever." The Luna's male is the voice of them. His heart is beating faster than my Grandfather. His breathing is getting slower along with his heart. 

"We don't need to, we sent word to the Far North that the Luna's daughter is to be taken in the Ancient ways of the Dunes.

"Liar."

A heartbeat rises up past the wall of the garden to be stopped instantly and all that can be heard after that is a hard thumb where a body lies. 

"Do I lie?" Grandmother's voice does not get a reply back instead there is now the first taste of smoke in the air. 

"They are lighting fires." Squeezing the hand that is squeezing mine back.

"We practiced with the Smoke. Inhale hold your breath, listen, then throw." Another heartbeat rises up above our heads and another throw is made by my Uncle. My Aunt is by his side, silver surrounds us. To the point, my skin burns from the smell of War. 

"We know how to fight against the Moon Touched. We can defeat her." The same male that told me I was beautiful calls out in a taunt. The grip of the handles of knives made for my hands tighten. 

A caw of a crow is heard beyond the smokes reach.

"Elska, be strong. No matter what happens we will be always with you in this world or within the Moon." The smell of salt cries out of eyes. Tears flow from my Uncles mate her pups cry as ten heartbeats scale the garden wall. 

"Now Elska, throw them now!" The apex of their hearts sounds out similar to the great rushing of galloping hooves on the ground. 

Throwing. 

Throwing.

Throwing.

"You did it Elska!" 

"I did it, Grandfather!"

The smoke is thicker now, the heartbeats are stronger, excited - hundreds of them behind the wall. Waiting, staying in their spots.