A/N: This fic is available on FFN and Ao3.

Three voices cried out at once. One was Lena's; one was the girl's; the third, surprisingly, was Thomas'.

The cat leaped down from his perch and charged at her with an angry hiss, his fur bushed up and bristling.

The girl let out a terrified yelp and snapped the gate shut just before he reached it, prompting Lena to cry out in protest.

"Thomas! What are you doing?" She scooped him up and held him securely in her arms, and after a brief bout of squirming, he went limp, defeated. That didn't make him any less angry, though.

"I know her," he hissed. "From town. She saw me get all tangled up in that alley, and she left me there!"

"Really?" Lena asked, shocked.

Marcel, who had drawn closer after the commotion, snorted in surprise. "Mina hates the city," he said. "Why would she be in some alley? You sure you're not mixing her up with someone else?"

"'Course I'm sure!" the cat spat. "She was there! I saw her!"

So did I, Lena thought.

"Well, that might be a problem," Marcel said.

"Oh really?"

Lena kept her eyes on where the girl–Mina?–had disappeared. Could all of that be true? Marcel knew her better than either of them, and seemed to think that what Thomas was declaring was too unlikely. At the same time, though, Thomas himself seemed absolutely certain he was right, and his anger felt genuine. Not to mention, she had been in the alley that day…

In the end, Lena supposed there was only one way to find out. Keeping a firm hold on her little charge, she walked up to the vine-covered gate.

"You're still there, aren't you?" she asked. "Why don't we sit and talk things out?"

It was as good a tactic as any, and she had some experience with negotiating. Mina would at least be curious as to why Marcel had come with unexpected guests, which should be enough to keep her from retreating into her home completely. From what little Lena has seen already, she appeared to value her privacy, if living in such a remote area was any indication. An ornery cat being here full-time might complicate that, so staying to meet with them was in her best interest.

…It also made Lena wonder how Marcel thought she would be a good fit for Thomas in the first place. Seems we all have some explaining to do. Keeping those thoughts to herself, Lena waited, and sure enough a timid voice answered her from the other side of the barrier.

"…Okay."

–––––––––

As it turned out, Mina didn't live in a "house", exactly.

It appeared to be little more than the abandoned ruins of a small mansion, as overrun with plant growth as everywhere else. It had clearly been a grand structure once, but now its great stone walls were green with creepers and crumbling, with parts having already fallen away and leaving gaping holes in the building. That, coupled with the quietness, gave the place an eerie look.

Maybe it wasn't so surprising she had them all sit outside rather than in.

Mina had vanished as soon as she'd unlocked the gate, but Marcel promised she would return soon. Lena sat on a flat rock in what used to be a yard, the boulder high enough that her legs didn't sink too deeply into the tall grass. Thomas was in her lap, his whiskers twitching irritably. She had promised to let him go if he promised to behave, only he didn't, so she was going to have to keep an eye on him a while longer.

Marcel, still a horse, was lounging contentedly in the grass, freely munching on the stalks.

"Is that safe?" Lena asked. As often as she worked with them, she hadn't given much thought to the Animali's digestive systems. The few times she did, she didn't think it polite to ask.

"Yeah, as long as it's all digested before I turn human again," he responded.

"Is that why you're still a horse? Because you wanted a snack?"

One of his ears swiveled back, and his answer came after a pause. "Not really. Thing is, transforming is a little more complicated for us with larger animal forms. We don't do it often because, well, it kind of hurts. A lot. So I'm not in a hurry to change back anyhow. The same goes for the really small animals, too."

"Oh," Lena murmured. That explained why she'd never seen him transform before today. He must only do it if his job required him to, or when he visited Mina. "I had no idea." She thought of Vika. His animal form was a bat small enough to fit on Shin's head, but he never seemed to have an issue with his transformations…

"It's true. I know the feeling."

Three heads suddenly turned as a third voice joined the conversation. Thomas' ears flattened.

Mina walked toward them with light, hurried movements, the hem of her flower-patterned sundress fluttering in the breeze. Watching her, Lena realized "walk" was not quite the right term. It looked like something between a hop and a skip, and from what she could see, Mina was doing it on tiptoe. Every now and then she would pause and look off in another direction, which made Lena tilt her head.

When she drew close to the group, however, Thomas hissed, freezing the young girl in her tracks. Lena glared at him sternly before giving Mina a friendly smile. For the sake of a reasonable discussion, she was determined to create an open and welcoming atmosphere. After several long seconds, Mina closed the remaining distance and nervously slid onto a stump across from them. She kept a wary eye on Thomas all the while and remained at the edge of her seat, poised to spring away at any moment.

"I wish you'd told me earlier you were bringing someone," she said, addressing Marcel. Her voice was soft but pleasing to the ear, though it also carried a hint of reproach.

"I know, and I'm sorry," he said. "But this is important." He looked at Lena, signaling for her to begin…despite this being his idea.

Hiding her exasperation, she cleared her throat. Introductions were probably the best place to start. "Hello," she greeted. "Mina, right? I'm Vladilena Milize, but you can call me Lena."

But Mina gave a tiny shake of her head. "My name is Wilhelmina."

'Mina' must be a nickname then, one she probably didn't like strangers using. Fearing she'd already soured first impressions, Lena glanced at Marcel, but he had gone back to grazing. "I'm sorry. What should I call you, then?"

"Oh, Mina is fine."

Lena blinked. "…Okay, then. Well, you already know Marcel, and this–" she patted the cat's head, partly in an attempt to calm him, "–is Thomas. I'm sure you have questions as to why we're here, but first…" She sighed. "I think we should clear something up. Thomas says you found him in the city, and you left after seeing the predicament he was in. Is that true?"

Wilhelmina flinched. Her hands twisted into the fabric of her clothes, and her voice trembled as she said, "I…I guess it is. But–"

"I knew it!" Thomas unsheathed his claws. "I could've died back there, and you just ran the other way! Why? What did I ever do to you, huh?!"

Lena kept him restrained, but Wilhelmina shrank in on herself in the face of his tirade, cowering as if he really was attacking her.

Marcel pushed himself up and was standing between them in a heartbeat, moving with startling speed for such a large animal. He stamped the ground hard with his hoof, nostrils flared. "Knock it off," he demanded. "You're scaring her."

"Stop taking her side!"

"Stop it, both of you!" Lena got to her feet, her own frustration mounting higher with every word. She knew how terrifying that experience must have been for Thomas, but that was why they needed to hear what Wilhelmina had to say. If she had acted out of cruelty, then there was no way Lena would leave the boy with her. But even though they'd only just met, Lena couldn't quite imagine the girl doing such a thing.

In fact…

"Wilhelmina," Lena said, looking past the stallion's broad frame and focusing on her. Those eyes were the same as they had been that day–fearful, anxious, and desperately trying to convey what she couldn't say with words. Lena slowly loosened her hold on Thomas. He climbed up to her shoulders and perched there, his tail lashing. Marcel huffed and settled where he was, an impassable barrier between the accuser and the accused. Once the situation had stabilized somewhat, Lena went on.

"Mina," she said again, "that day in the square…you weren't trying to run away from me, were you? Not really. You were trying to lead me to him." The moment she said it aloud, everything else made sense. When she'd seen Thomas in danger, she'd stopped everything to help him, and thoughts of the girl she'd been following had completely disappeared. It was only now that Lena realized that, despite losing sight of her several times, Wilhelmina had always reappeared whenever she was on the verge of giving up the chase. "Is that what you were trying to tell me?"

Hearing the gentleness in her voice, Wilhelmina relaxed a fraction. She nodded. "I wanted to explain," she whispered, "but the words wouldn't come. I was so afraid. But I knew I couldn't afford to wait any longer, so…"

"You got me to chase you," Lena finished. Earlier, she had gauged that the girl needed her, but couldn't figure out why. Now she knew Wilhelmina had been looking for help, just not for herself.

"If you really wanted to help me, why didn't you just do it yourself?" Thomas asked, his words laced with anger and confusion.

Wilhelmina fell silent, her head bowed. It was Marcel who answered for her. "She's not all that great with carnivores, even small ones. Believed it or not, this kid probably still scared her even in the state he was in."

This explanation, however, dredged up more questions for Lena than answers. "If that's true, Marcel, then why were you so sure Wilhelmina would be able to take Thomas in? If she has a reaction like that even around a young cat, then this isn't a good setup at all."

Wilhelmina frowned, her confusion evident. "Take in?"

Marcel blew out a breath. "Okay, so 'taking in' probably wasn't the right word. I more meant we drop the kid off somewhere around here and let him do his own thing, and have Mina check in on him from time to time."

"What?!" Lena cried. "You mean we were just going to leave him to fend for himself?"

Marcel flicked an ear. "Well, Mina's gonna be around, too."

"That's still a terrible idea!"

"I don't mind." It was Thomas who'd spoken, much to Lena's surprise. He purred with amusement at her astonished look. "It's okay, Lena. I've been on my own as long as I can remember, and at least here there's no one around to scrap with over food or anything. I'll be fine–I'm a lot tougher than I look." His eyes narrowed at Wilhelmina. "But that's only if there's nowhere else for me to go."

Marcel huffed. "See? He's fine with it."

Despite their reassurance, Lena still could not be convinced. She turned to Wilhelmina. "I know this is a lot to take in, and we should have given you prior notice, but do you think you can consider it? I'd feel much better knowing someone is watching over him." When the brunette said nothing, Lena tried a different angle. "What about your parents? Maybe they could weigh in on this?"

Again, Wilhelmina didn't respond, though Lena saw her shoulders hunch.

"Come on, Colonel," Marcel muttered. "Would a parent really let her live in a place like this?"

Lena winced. Really, she should have made the connection instantly. Perhaps she did, but didn't want to accept it. Whatever the case, Wilhelmina put into words what Marcel hadn't.

"I'm alone here. Have been for a while, actually." The sadness in her voice pricked Lena's heart. She couldn't have been more than fifteen, yet at that moment, she sounded so much older. She nodded in Marcel's direction. "Erwin looks out for me, and others like me. I always look forward to his visits. But I also felt like…I've been away too long. From other people, I mean. So I thought I'd go and surprise him, check up on him for a change. I thought if I could handle the city, I'd be okay anywhere."

By this time, Lena had returned to her seat, and Thomas–who had returned to human form–was sitting beside her, their attention fully on the girl in front of them. Marcel had moved out from the middle, but still stayed close to his young friend as she went on.

"I thought I could do it," she murmured, "but I couldn't. The sounds, the smells, the people everywhere. It was all too much. I tried to get out, but I got lost. It's like I didn't even know which way was up. I ran and ran, until I saw the cat. Then I…I don't know. I panicked." She glanced at Lena. "Actually, seeing you care for him helped calm me down. Enough for me to straighten myself out, anyway. Thank you."

Lena hadn't even known she was there in the first place, and wondered if that still warranted thanks, but Wilhelmina had already moved on.

It was here that she spoke directly to Thomas for the first time. "I'm sorry. Really, I am. I only wanted to help, but I know that probably wasn't what it looked like." More hopefully she added, "I know it's not much, but if you're still looking for a place to go, you're welcome to stay here. We don't have too many rules–it's not exactly my forest, anyway."

She tried for a joke, but Thomas' expression was unreadable. There were clearly a lot of emotions for him to work through, but at the very least, the option was available to him. Eventually, he gave a tiny, almost imperceptible nod. In all likelihood, he wouldn't stay in the house with her, but that was probably better for both of them.

There were still things that needed to be ironed out, but knowing that, at least, neither of them would have to be alone anymore, Lena sighed quietly in relief.

"Thank you, Mina," Marcel said, sounding equally relieved. "I'm sorry I sprung all this on you out of nowhere. Well, it kind of happened out of nowhere, but I also thought that if I told you beforehand, you'd refuse." Horses didn't have many expressions, but he lowered his head, contrite. "Of course I'm glad to see you doing well out here. But I know how much your fear is affecting your life, and I thought having the kid around can help you with it. He's small enough that he isn't any real threat."

"Hey!"

Wilhelmina smiled. It was a small smile, but a smile nonetheless. "I thought as much. That's why I'd like to give it a try. I…I don't want to be afraid anymore."

Lena herself was still miffed at Marcel for a lot of reasons, but Wilhelmina had obviously forgiven–even appreciated–his actions, and Thomas finally had a home, so all that was left was to head back and hope no one would be too angry with her for being away so long. Just as she made to stand, though, Marcel shook out his mane.

"I understand," he said. "Though maybe it's best you left town when you did. They're everywhere now." Wilhelmina gasped, and he nodded grimly. "Yeah. We practically had to smuggle Thomas out of our base for the same reason."

Lena's brow furrowed, and Wilhelmina's head whipped around to stare at Thomas. "Is that true? The hunters are still there?"

"What, the werewolves?" he asked. When she nodded, he propped his face on his hands with a sigh. "Yeah. There were so many, I thought I was gonna be found out any second. Can't believe I got out of there alive."

Lena looked back and forth between the three of them, feeling as though some invisible line had been drawn, closing her out of the conversation. A strange atmosphere had descended over the group, one she didn't like in the slightest. She had a feeling that this was what Marcel had been working towards this whole time, and if that was true, then it couldn't be allowed to go any further than it already has.

Lena exhaled deeply. She didn't appreciate the turn the conversation had taken, but keeping a cool head was crucial. "Alright, I know what this is about. I understand that the werewolves in the Strike Package have a reputation, but it does not define who they are as people. They didn't serve the Republic voluntarily. Don't we all know that?"

She thought of the many werewolves she'd befriended, and all she'd come to learn about them. Their personalities and quirks, their likes and dislikes, the things that hurt them or made them happy…everything that made each one his or her own unique individual. "People fear what they don't understand. So instead of letting that fear get the best of you, just try getting to know one of them for a change. You'd be surprised to learn just how alike you really are."

Having said her piece, Lena fell quiet and allowed her words to sink in. It was saddening just how much damage stigma and misinformation could do to a person's image. She understood Shin and the others because she worked with them, and got to know them; not everyone was in a position like hers. They probably didn't care what others thought of them, but Lena didn't want such negativity following the werewolves everywhere they went. Not when they already give so much to fend off the Legion again and again.

It won't be easy, but this was still fixable. Wilhelmina and Thomas just needed firsthand experience, a chance to learn that there really wasn't anything to be afraid of. Marcel was a little different; she didn't know where his animosity came from, so convincing him will be harder. But, if he could take even a few of her words into consideration…

Lena then realized with a start that no one had said a thing since she'd finished talking. Marcel, Wilhelmina and Thomas all stared at her with a wide range of expressions. Marcel looked resigned, as if he expected to hear this from her; Thomas looked surprised, which was sort of what Lena had been going for; Wilhelmina, however, looked utterly horrified.

"'Get to know them'...?" she repeated. She hugged her shoulders, and Lena was startled to see that her whole body was trembling. "No. No, no, no, no. That isn't even a possibility. That's not…why would anyone…?"

"I know it sounds hard to believe," Lena began, "but I've spent time with them, Mina. I've worked with them. You don't have to be afraid–"

"You're wrong!" Wilhelmina's voice rose to a shout, cutting through the quiet like a knife. "I have every reason to be afraid!"

To hear the soft-spoken girl use her voice in such a way was a shock, to say the least. It was enough to stifle any arguments Lena might have had. Wilhelmina didn't seem to notice; she rubbed her arms, her breathing quick and shallow. Her eyes were round as saucers, seeing things only she could. She seemed trapped in her own world, oblivious to the unsettled faces of Lena and Thomas.

Only one person wasn't taken aback by her behavior.

Marcel walked over to the young girl and wordlessly nudged her shoulder. While she didn't respond to the gesture directly, it did have an effect; her vacant gaze cleared just enough to focus on Lena. Her volume had returned to its normal level, but something new had entered her voice, something frail and brittle. "You don't know them. Not the way I do. A human can't understand. You can never understand what we went through, trapped in that horrible place with them."

Lena watched her solemnly, the pieces falling into place. "You're an Eighty-Six."

Wilhelmina nodded once, her face pale.

Up to this point, Lena had suspected that she was an Animali judging by her words about "understanding" what Marcel had to go through, and the familial bond they shared. She hadn't asked, because it hadn't seemed relevant at the time. But to hear that Wilhelmina was also an Eighty-Six… "I'm sorry. I had no idea." It hadn't even crossed her mind.

The girl seemed too shy, too timid–nothing at all like Shin and the others. What kind of Animali was she, and how did she survive the Eighty-Sixth Sector?

Wilhelmina's breathing had steadied somewhat, but she still looked shaken. "I try to put it behind me. I try so hard to forget. But now you want me to… No. I can't. You can't ask me to do that."

"Actually, Mina," Marcel began, "I was hoping you'd explain some of it to the Colonel. She doesn't have the full story. You don't have to if you don't want to, but I thought it'd be best if she heard it from you."

Thomas stayed silent throughout the entire exchange, for once deciding to observe rather than participate. This conversation was, effectively, between the three of them. And Lena sensed it was only just beginning. "You don't have to share anything you're not comfortable with sharing," she said softly, "but if there's something you feel I need to know…please tell me."

Part of her didn't want to inquire any further. She wanted to believe that there was a mistake, that this was somehow just one big misunderstanding. But looking into the other girl's face, Lena knew it wasn't so. Wilhelmina's terror, Marcel's anger, the people's aversion. It all came from somewhere, something Lena wasn't seeing.

Wilhelmina laced her fingers together and stared into her lap. When she spoke, her answer came in the form of a question. "Your Strike Package. What kind of Animali do you have in it?"

"Canines, mostly," Lena said. "Though we do have a few wildcats in the mix, among others."

"Then your numbers are made up almost entirely of hunters. You don't think that's strange?" Wilhelmina asked.

"I don't see why it would be," Lena responded. "When the sector was finally liberated, the 'hunters' as you call them were what remained of the Eighty-Six. When it comes to facing something like the undead, a wolf would naturally have better odds of surviving than something like, say, a hare."

For some reason, the brunette cracked a dry smile at that. She shrugged. "Yes. But there were more than just hares there, Lena. We can take the form of many land mammals, unless it's something terribly large or small, like an elephant or a mouse. Don't you think a horse Animali like Erwin would've held their own against the Legion just as well as a werewolf can? Or a stag, or an ox? Even if they are more rare, wouldn't at least one have volunteered to join your Strike Package by now?"

Lena felt something like a knot begin to form in her stomach, but she kept a straight face as she replied, "Marcel tells me it's rather painful to transform into an animal that size. Such a thing can easily lead to complications during a mission, which is something we'd like to avoid. Maybe the Animali you spoke of knew that, and decided not to enlist."

It sounded like a reasonable enough explanation to her, but to her surprise, Wilhelmina simply shook her head.

"Maybe there are a handful out there who did just that, but to be honest, I doubt if there are even that many still alive." She looked up. "The vast majority were wiped out. And it wasn't the Legion that did it."

Beside Lena, Thomas shrank back at those words. This must have been the first time he'd heard the story in full, given that he wasn't an Eighty-Six and had no experience outside of that one week he'd spent avoiding them. Whether it was worse than what he'd heard or he had simply hoped it wasn't true was anyone's guess. Lena couldn't spare time to comfort him, though. Her eyes never left Wilhelmina as she continued.

"You already know, but the undead can't infect us in our animal forms. Most of us didn't have experience with weapons, so transforming was the best chance we had at surviving. Even if we couldn't stay that way forever, it was our only hope…but that just created more problems. Animals eat. A lot. And the Republic's rations didn't compensate for that. You can guess what happened next: Famine.

"It was a little easier for Animali like me. My animal form is a rabbit; berries and grasses were enough for me. Others weren't so lucky. There were many much larger than us who had to eat their weight in plants every day. Plants…or meat." Wilhelmina paused to take a breath, and by this point, even the breeze had stilled. "The environment wasn't meant to accommodate so many. The natural prey populations dwindled to nothing. And when that happened, the hunters had to find other ways to sustain themselves."

The knot in Lena's stomach twisted again, and she had to fight to hold back her rising nausea. Thomas also looked sick, but Marcel merely listened without a word. He was watching her, gauging her reaction as the truth finally came to light. She felt his eyes on her, but Lena wouldn't look at him. She couldn't look at any of them now. She could only listen, because Wilhelmina's story was not yet done.

"It was all we could do to survive when the hunters were on our side. When they turned their fangs on us, we didn't stand a chance. The largest of us–the cervids, the bovines, and others–were the first to go. Their size made them obvious targets, and unlike real animals, they didn't have a herd to protect them. The hogs and swine were next, and so on. I always managed to escape, but there were a few close calls." She brushed her hair behind her right ear…

…or rather, what was left of it.

Lena's hand went to her mouth, unable to tear her eyes away from the mangled appendage. Wilhelmina didn't seem to take offense; she merely let her hair fall back into place, her expression solemn. "I know you mean well, Lena. And I'm glad you never had to see what I saw. But I hope you understand why it's too soon for me to 'befriend' a werewolf." She had gone back to rubbing her arms, as if staving off a chill only she could feel. "I want nothing to do with them. Not now, not ever."

Lena struggled to gather her thoughts. Whatever she'd been prepared to hear, this wasn't it. Now she understood why the werewolves' romp in the city square that winter had been treated as such a serious matter. Many of Giad's residents had family in the San Magnolia, and the Eighty-Sixth Sector by extension. The few who'd survived the massacre had told their stories to any who would listen, and the results spoke for themselves. Maybe the populace didn't lash out directly–the Federacy generally considered itself above the Republic, after all–but the fear and resentment was always there, simmering just below the surface.

Now, Lena's earlier speech seemed incredibly callous in hindsight. But she still clung to one last shard of hope. The hope that, just maybe… "What if they hadn't known?" she asked. "It's hard to tell Animali and normal animals apart, isn't it? So, maybe they just mistook you for…" Her sentence petered out when she saw Wilhelmina's face.

She didn't look confused or pensive. In fact, she looked as though she'd expected Lena to say that very thing, which unnerved her.

"When you're in animal form for a long enough time, it starts to do things to your mind. It affects you in ways that never really go away, even as a human." Which, unfortunately, explained a few things about her behavior and mannerisms. "One of those things is time. The days start to blur together at some point. But there is one thing I'll never forget, no matter how long it's been.

"It was winter. I could smell a blizzard coming on the wind, so I went looking for shelter. I walked all over, and found a small crack at the base of a cliff, and I managed to squeeze through just as the snow started coming down. Turns out, the tunnel led to a cave. …That's where I saw them. A golden wolf and a white deer, talking to each other."

At this, Marcel turned to look at her. Apparently, even he hadn't heard this part of the story.

"I don't know how they got there or what they were saying, but it didn't sound like they were arguing or anything. They were just…huddled together, talking. I thought maybe they were friends, or there was a truce. But I was wrong." Wilhelmina's eyes glistened, and her voice wavered as she forced herself to finish. "The wolf killed him. One moment they were chatting, the next it had its teeth in his throat. It was so sudden, I couldn't even cry out. And I knew if it saw me, I'd be killed too. So I had to keep quiet and listen while it…while it…"

She buried her face in her hands. It was too much for her. More than anything else in her story, this was what drove Wilhelmina to tears. Seeing them talk, she must have hoped that peace could be made between their species, only to be proven wrong in the very next breath. Worse still, she must have been even younger than she was now when it happened. Marcel laid his muzzle on her shoulder, the only comfort he could offer.

And while he didn't look at Lena, his voice echoed in her ears. "I had family there too, you know. Just like Mina. They're all gone now." He kept his voice level, but there was no hiding the anger in it. "Right now, we have a common enemy–the Legion. But that doesn't change the fact that each and every one of them has the blood of their own kind on their fangs, no matter how sweet and innocent they pretend to be. Maybe they forgot, but I won't. And neither should you."

Lena felt Thomas' trembling hand close around hers, seeking reassurance. She squeezed it, unable to offer any words–to him, or anyone. She wanted to comfort him. She wanted to console Wilhelmina, to challenge Marcel. She wanted to do something. But all she could do was sit in silence, reeling from all that she'd learned.

Images and scenarios that she never would have imagined were now appearing in her head one by one, each more nightmarish than the last. Now she knew, and there was no going back. She would have to ask them herself when she returned, and get both sides of the story. She had to know the whole truth. And if she asked, would they tell her?

Would he? Surely he would. He couldn't possibly believe that this would change how she felt about him, or any of them. Because it didn't. Of course not. She thought of the gentle, trusting black wolf who'd allowed her to enter his personal space for the first time, even though the experience was entirely new and foreign to him. She thought of the incredible strength he possessed, always wielded for the benefit of others.

She thought of him using that same strength to run down a prey animal, dragging it to the ground, tearing into it, all while it screamed and begged for mercy…

Lena stood abruptly. "I think it's about time we were on our way, Second Lieutenant."

Goodbyes were short and subdued. Lena and Marcel promised to visit Thomas and Wilhelmina when they were able, though they didn't specify that they'd do it together. Lena doubted she'd be going anywhere with Marcel again after this. It was all just…too much.

Soon enough she was astride his back again, and the two started the journey home.

After a minute or so on the road, Marcel's voice came to her. "Are you going to tell them?"

She didn't have to ask who he meant. "That doesn't sound like something you'd go around telling everyone out of the blue," she said neutrally.

"If you don't, I will."

She closed her eyes. "Let's focus on what we're going to tell our superiors when we get back first, Second Lieutenant." After that, they rode in silence. Lena tried to take in the scenery as it went by, filling her head with meaningless thoughts of the beauty of nature, and nothing else. But even as she did, her mind latched onto a stray detail that was floating around inside, something from Wilhelmina's story that had caught her attention.

A golden wolf.

She quickly dismissed it, though. They were certainly more rare, but it wasn't like he was the only one in existence. Besides, Lena thought, Theo doesn't eat deer.

Though now she had to wonder why that was.

–––––––––

Theo lay on his back, his eyes glued to the bedroom ceiling. It was long past time for him to get the day started, but a familiar reluctance gripped his limbs and wrapped around his chest, weighing him down like blocks of cement. In his mind he replayed the conversation he'd had with Shin that morning, and further back, the one with Frederica. Their advice seemed to clash, each saying the opposite of what the other suggested.

Who was right? What was better? Did it even matter at this point? There was no guarantee she'd even listen to a single word he said. And if she did, well, there was a decent chance she'd end up hating him even more. She wouldn't be the only one. But still, wouldn't it be best if he told her himself?

And maybe, if he told her, that heaviness in his heart would lessen just a little. Strange. It hadn't crossed his mind in years, yet recently it was all he thought about. Well, half of what he thought about. The other half was about her, and what she'd say if she knew about it.

And then there was that small, stubborn part of him that told him no matter how it turned out, he still had to try.

With a long sigh, he pushed himself up. "Guess I'd better get going, then."