Kyle dug one large hole in the mud. It was in a clearing, away from the bloody massacre that had happened last evening. Now it was early morning, the sun was rising and everything was starting to dry off. But still he dragged his claws through the mud, pulling it away until he had one deep hole ready for the burial. It was hours upon hours of back breaking work before it was suitable enough, and once it was he carried Grey Lady into the hole first and set her down. He lay her on her side, curled up nice and comfortable as if she were sleeping. He stroked her fur and caught a sob in his chest, silently thanking the elder for giving her life trying to save Pup. Once he had her in the right position he left the hole and went to pick up Pup.

He cradled the lifeless whelp in his arms for a moment, gazing at him and longing for him to wake. He wanted it to be some kind of sick joke that Pup was playing on him, and he would wake to show him that all was well. But after moment of silence, he truly knew that Pup was not among the living anymore either. Kyle's eyes burned as his memories of the whelp flooded his brain and he could barely move. He thought of their talk in the storm and how he calmed the whelp down. He thought of their time back in the other territory, their time with Mother. With Kali. Oh, what was she going to do when he told her the news? Another sob caught in his chest and this time he let them come. He let the sobs happen, for with each tear he drew strength. He would not let their memories be washed away so easily.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here to protect you," he whispered to Pup's body, slowly carrying him over to the hole where Grey Lady's body rested. Kyle then set the pup down nestled up next to his grandaunt, making it so it looked as if they were merely resting. Kyle gave the both of them a few more gentle pats before he backed up from the hole a little bit, beginning the begrudgingly long process of pushing all of the muddy soil over them to bury their bodies back into the ground. He growled each time he scooped up a pile of dirt, growing angry with himself as the moments passed on and on. He should have been here. He shouldn't have strayed so far from the cave, he could have taken down some smaller kills and fed them. If he just hadn't gone so far away...they'd be alive.

He remembered the day he found out the rest of the pack was murdered, and how Kali was there beside him trying to console him. "There was nothing you could have done, this is not your fault." He heard her voice and those words echoing in his mind, which made him question his own thoughts. Was this his fault? He did not remember smelling bear when he scouted the cave. He didn't remember smelling bear anywhere, actually. So in all honesty, he thought the cave was safe. He thought it was alright to stray far to get good food, because of that sense of security. He didn't know any better, so maybe this was not his fault. Kyle grunted, throwing the last bit of dirt over the mound and he did the only thing he could think of for he could not write words. He drew a cross in the dirt mound and then put a few sticks in to maybe make it last a little longer. Once he did that he stood, staring at the mound for a few moments.

"Say hello to our family for me," he whispered to them, grabbing his crossbow and slinging it over his shoulder before he walked away. Looking at the dried bear tracks he debated on going forth to track it and kill it but considering how much time had passed the bear probably had too much distance on him. He'd never catch up. Kyle still stared at them for awhile, the urge to follow still strong but yet he heard the lioness' voice in his head again. "Stop it, it's not worth it." Pup and Grey Lady were worth their burials. They were not worth a wild goose chase into the Canadian wilderness that may or may not lead to an angry bear that would no doubt try its hardest to rip him to shreds. They were worth so much more.

So instead, Kyle turned away from the tracks and headed the only direction he thought was best; south. His journey had already been strung out this long, and now heading back would take even more time. He had no money left to use human transportation means, so the only thing he could do was head back on foot. Sighing, he trudged forward. Many suns would rise and set, and many more moons would rise and fall before he really noticed he'd made some headway.

For quite a bit of time later, he passed under a large metal sign that read as follows: "Welcome to the State of New York".