Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Shiro is a dark grey and white wolf, age 21, at the age of 5 he saw his parents get killed by hunters and barely escaped. He was found by Kolivan and was now a member of the blades of marmora pack, taught under their wings... Er paw.

At a point in a wolf's life there is a need to find a mate, when Shiro turned 20 he was sent off on a journey for a week to find a mate. If he doesn't find one during that week then he is to return and wait for however long the pack leader assigns before he is to do it again, in his case 6 months. Though the mission is dangerous, he could accidentally be at the wrong place wrong time and run into a wolf or a pack who dont take too kindly in seeing a foreign wolf. Every step, every howl could cost him his life.

Luckily he found an Adam and brought him to his territory to get the approval from Kolivan.

During their run in finding a mate they had 2 options to choose from: when they find a mate they can stay and live in blade of marmora territory and form a pack, or live off the territory and make their own or live with their mates. Many different wolf territories dont have this luxury, but with the blades there is such a large number of members being strong and protective of their land as well as wanting to aid those who need the help. Thats why they have many allies from neighboring territories one of the closer ones is the Voltron's territory just to the west of the BOM, but the enemy being the Galra Empire south from them.

Surprisingly a lot of the older or original members of the blades were from the Galra Empire but rebelled against them. With the sheer number of blades there are individual packs within the bigger pack, mostly consisting mates and pups and possible other members of the blades that have no relations.

Having a small pack within the large pack unit can be kinda tricky and somewhat controversial with other wolves. Though you share the very large territory with other wolves that doesn't necessarily mean you are going to be in close connection with them on a day to day basis. Once you are in a smaller pack, that's your main focus and job and still have to be cautious with other wolves, even if they are a territory member.

On some occasion Kolivan has had to banish certain wolves from their pack if they have shown dishonorable acts or have turned on the BOM. They usually become a lone wolf but many have been seen becoming a part of the Galra Empire. But it is not unheard of that Kolivan or any other members helping each other out in a time of need. They do on occasion gather all members of the territory and have a rally, or have a great feast for times of celebration, and do take time to communicate with one another planning on strategies to protect the territory and assign jobs to wolves who are of age, mainly boarder patrol or even some more experienced wolves will work along with Kolivan on major hunts or diplomatic meets with other territories and allies.

Adam is a brassy brown wolf, age 21, he had a very small pack consisting of his parents and 2 of his other liter mates, older brother and younger sister making him the middle pup. Him and his siblings were actually born under the watch of few humans who lived in a manageable size territory, but at the boarders had chain fencing.

His mother said they were part of a "wolf project", is what the humans called it. The humans were nice and respected their spaces, but a couple of times they got closer but were fine with it during those moments. His father would often tell them stories of bad humans either calling them "hunters" or "poachers" and to be cautious of which humans to get close to.

His parents also tried real hard to teach them how to hunt. The humans will sometimes bring in live rabbits and we were able to practice our skills with that, but it was challenging to try and learn how to hunt deer and elk since the humans will only bring in ones that were dead.

When "wolf project" was done they put radio collars on his dad, and 2 other siblings wanting to further study their lives and assumed that it was better to put collars on his siblings and not him sense they were the first male and first daughter and their lives would be more documentable. No matter. It wasn't like Adam wanted the humans to further track his life. And so when he was 18 him and his pack were taken in these metal cages and released in some part of the mountains.

After a year of living wild his mother had fallen ill and was very weak. It was something to be expected given that she had pups a bit later in life than a wild wolf should. She was found a couple mornings later by the river bed not moving, it looked like she got up in the middle of the night and just laid down and closed her eyes. His father changed soon after and basically ran them out of the small little territory they had.

As another year went the pack they once had was now truly broken. First his brother left without any warning or goodbye. Then his sister, who found a partner and had given the option to Adam to join. But he declined. He didn't know why but his sister did somehow. After some nuzzles they parted ways, not "goodbyes" but "see you again" he would be lying if he said he wasn't crying for a bit. After that he left.

He was starting to get a feeling that he had never felt before but he somehow knew what it was. So he set out giving his occasional howl, hoping a potential mate would hear him. But he had standards.

One night he heard a response to his calls and literally started bounding with joy. His howl was obvious to other wolves that he was male and searching for a partner and to have a MALE wolf respond back, he knew that there was another wolf who is searching for a same sex wolf.

He's standing in the middle of a clearing as he sees one of the most beautiful wolf he's ever seen from his very eyes.

They both wag their tails and they both start trotting their way to each other. From scent alone, Adam can tell that this wolf is the same age as him, and so they both get to know one another, "Shiro" is great, and they hit it off.

After knowing for sure that he's the one he leads him to his pack to introduce him to his leader. After being accepted they live together in blade of marmora territory, but as their own separate pack in a temporary den for a year then come next winter they'll search the territory for a more permanent den.

Chapter Text

POV: Shiro

"Alright Adam, ready to head out?"

"Yes hun, we better start now before the snow gets anymore worse."

I give a short, clipped bark of approval before we head out of our now old den to find a new one, a bigger one that will be much better for us in the future.

I'm so lucky to have found Adam during my run for a mate. I knew from an early age that I wanted my mate to be a male, I just didn't have any attraction to females. I felt really bad when one of the female wolves in my territory tried to become my partner and court with me. And I didn't want to make the situation any worse by telling them I'm into guys, so I would always politically decline without any reasoning.

Kolivan knew though, after he found me when I was a young pup he personally took me to his personal pack with 4 other wolves. I was able to, still am, tell them everything on my mind and off my chest, one of which being my "love life". They were all very supportive of me, probably being that our pack had 2 pairs of mates both being of the same sex and an older pup who still supported me even if Regris was into females. Something rare, but totally possible in the wolf world.

I was fully prepared to come back alone after my week. Knowing that some packs may not be that open-minded with love and was expecting to not find my mate that week and to be mateless for a long while.

But on the 3rd night I found Adam, a extremely sexy brown wolf who -.

"Shiro you can think about me later, but right now you need to pick up the pace, I would like it if we find this den before spring".

Who is very smart and witty, I chuckle.

"Alright alright babe, I'm coming", I trot ahead to Adam's side give him giving him a quick nuzzle and kiss as we go at a light run side by side.
.
.
.
"So, which way will we go? East or West?" Adam asked, both of us decided to take a little break. Even though we had a steady jogging pace, we did that for an hour or so straight without stopping, so we were both panting.

"Hmmm, I remember hearing there's not many available dens over on the East and the ones that are available aren't going to be any better than our old den. There's plenty of available dens West, better hidden and larger than our old one, plus we'll have a better hunting ground and be closer to Voltron territory. "

Adam, finally catching his breath, nodded though a bit hesitantly.

Both know the unspoken words that Shiro would've said.

Reason why there are free dens further West and Southwest is because they would be closer to Galra territory. Even if the dens are better in the South and West as well as food, many wolves will do everything they can to steer clear of the possibility of a run in with them. They don't even call themselves a "pack" but rather an "Empire", what wolves would call themselves that? Crazy ones.

After a moment of silence, almost as though he was calculating all their options Adam said, "Alright, lets do this then".

I grin and walk closer to rest my head on his shoulders.

"We'll get through this, I'll make sure nothing bad happens to us." I tell him in the most gentle voice I can make.

Again, side by side, instead of running we decide to walk our way West to enjoy ourselves. With the timing we made to get here it was still morning time and we will have plenty of sun light to find our new den.

Upon arrival without saying anything we started running again, trying to find these dens as well as making sure we aren't intruding into another wolf and their pack's area. Adam and I have already discussed the type of den they were looking for. Finding a den with your mate is a big decision to make and we have to pick the right one as well as consider the welfare for a future pack. That doesn't mean we can't move dens again in the future, but it is slightly frowned upon because it makes you seen as a wolf with poor decision making. But of course if it was because of something out of your control then your move is valid.

After seeing several dens we found one that we settled on. It was a rock den on a hill side with plenty of trees surrounding it, an entrance big enough for us to fit but small enough that, in case of an intruder, block the entrance with our bodies. Entering the den it drops down a tad lower than the entrance level and in a ovalish shape. Both males can fully stand up with plenty of room to fit 3-4 more full grown wolves. This den was perfect!

On one of the walls inside was made of dirt, so when the weather is warmer they dig a secret back entrance or even a tunnel where pups can hide...

Pups...

The difficult part of having a same sex mate is the inability to have pups. Adam and I both want pups and raise them. Our option would be to wait for the birth of pups from a different pack and for that pack to voluntarily give us a pup.

But no wolf would ever do that. To give up a pup. Pups are the most precious thing to wolves, they would be out of their minds to do such a thing. Kolivan had told both of us that if he comes across a marmora pup with their pack unable to care, to put it lightly: die or going to die, then he'll let us know.

Shaking the thought of pups out of his head he exits the den to meet Adam who was taking in the surroundings.

"Takashi, I love it!" Adam says with his tail high and wagging.

"I do too. Ready to mark?"

"Yes!"

And so we take off and start marking the den site as well as the general area to make it our own. And howling as a celebration to let the territory know of our amazing milestone. We can hear a couple of packs respond as a congratulations, I can Kolivan's pack, my family respond as well. He probably come visit tomorrow to do so face to face as well as see what site we picked.

We're basically done scenting and Adam stops.

"What is it hun?" I ask him.

"I smell blood, very faint but definitely there."

"Food?"

"Possibly." He says. "Let's go."

We head out on our new land, on our search for the den we can conclude that the closes packs to us are more North and East. Adam wouldn't be able to detect the blood if it came from our neighboring packs.

With Adam taking the lead I'm taking the enjoyment of admiring my beautiful mate from back here. So much so, I didn't notice that he stopped dead in his tracks and I up having my face up his rear. Not that complaining about that either.

"TAKASHI!!"

"Sorry sorry!!! I wasn't paying attention."

"Obviously you weren't paying attention and was more focused on something else."

"Why'd you stop?" Trying to move the conversation off of me.

"Look." Adam says

And so I do.

Blood. A lot of it.

I couldn't understand why there was so much blood when I couldn't see a elk carcass. The two of us stay close and investigate, trying to find where it was coming from.

This time I stop.

"What is it?"

I quicken my pace, word isn't spoken.

We come to a clearing, with the snow picking up it was still easy to see all the blood, as well as the dark wolf laying in the snow not moving.

Coming closer he can smell over the very strong odor of blood that the wolf, a she wolf, was in fact a blade member.

"Takashi, over here!"

I turn to see where Adam was, he was no less than 10 yards to the left of me. I leave the female and head to where my mate was, noticing more of the blood that we saw. Upon reaching where Adam was I can see yet another wolf, a male who is also a member of the pack, was light grey and was also not moving. They are both are in the same terrible conditions.

I take in more of the male's scent.

"They were mates." I say quietly.

Seeing how bad there conditions were, this didn't look like no elk hunt gone wrong or even damage done from a moose.

I sniff some of the mangled fur and flesh from the body, trying to discriminate between scents.

"Galra?" Adam questions.

I nod. Definitely something you don't want learn after finding a den.

"We are quite closer to the border than our den is. It looks like they been like this for several hours, definitely before we started searching for the den."

"Mmm." He looks like he doesn't know what to say. What are you supposed to say after finding something like this?

I make my way back to where the female wolf is, I hear Adam follow a step behind. They both look like they fought hard to save themselves, to save each other. It's sad.

Further looking at the body I make another discovery.

"Shit." I breathe out.

"What?"

"This is Krolia. Kolivan's younger cousin."

I've met her many times, especially growing up as a pup. Kolivan has told me many stories of all the shenanigans they both did when they were pups. She is very bold and stubborn, but also very kind, protective, and motherly. She used to puppy-sit me when the rest of my pack were on a mission. She should be in her early 30s now. Knowing now that this is the same wolf that used to comfort me when I cried for my pack, and that her mate was just off in the distance also torn apart makes it even more difficult to swallow.

"Honey? Why don't we go back to the den and give Kolivan a howl and let him know?" My mate says, he's starting to groom behind my ear to comfort me, I didn't realize until now that I was whining.

"yeah... yeah let's do that."

We turn from the scene to head more North where our new den is located, we are more South than I think I have ever been.

"Shhh babe we're okay, we'll be back at our den soon please don't cry no more hun." Adam tells me.

I turn to him with my head cocked to the side.

"Adam? I'm not crying anymore?"

"What?"

We both stop and I'm about to repeat myself when I hear something. The snow is getting really bad now, which is surprising since its the start of winter and its never this bad at this time. Early signs that this winter is going to be a bitch. Maybe the wind? I'm about to continue when I hear again. So does Adam.

"Shiro.."

"Hello?! Where are you? Do you need help?!" I bark out. Maybe there's another pack member that's hurt and needs help.

No words, but I'm still hearing a whimpering. Its just so hard to tell where its coming from with the heavy snow fall and gusting winds.

"Start sniffing!" Adam commands and I give a bark, both of us having or nose in the snow.

Its very hard to try and find anything by scent in snow, especially if you don't know what exactly you're trying to find. But I'm still hearing a whimper and I'm determined to find it.

Maybe 6 or 9 feet from Krolia at the base of a tree I see one of the very many spots of blood with some black fur. Thinking its just some left from Krolia I also turn my head to continue to search when I see the snow move and shift where the fur is.

Huh? Snow is not supposed to do that. I go up to it to investigate, its still moving when I hear the whimpering but louder, coming from this lump in the snow.

"A-Adam!" I yell, not taking my eyes off of the lump. I'm so nervous, I begin to push the snow with my nose not batting an eye when I can feel and smell the blood on my nose. I hear Adam running to me.

As I uncover the snow, both Adam and I can hear the whimpering crescendo as well as seeing that the fur is attached to something.

Shit.

"Oh my full moon. Its a pup." I hear Adam say over my shoulder.

Indeed. There in the snow is a little. No. Tiny pup who is black as Krolia. The pup has a bit of blood on it but doesn't appear to be injured. After being uncovered from the snow the pup cries some more and shaking. Wait.

Pup. Plus. Snow.

Shit 2x.

"Adam we need to back to the den."

He barks, and I turn to the pup pushing more snow. Its a boy. I carefully wrap my mouth around his body coming from the top of his back particularly where his shoulders are. The back of his head meets my left cheek as he continues to cry. I've never done this before and I'm so scared I'm going to hurt him. I turn to Adam and he gives me a reassuring grin as we begin the trek up to our den. I'm running as quickly as possible without having to jostle the pup in my mouth wanting to do anything I can to comfort him and have him stop crying. The only thing I can do is give him the softest rumbles, not trying to make it sound or feel like a growl. It worked to an extent only lowering the volume of his cries.

I vaguely hear Adam say something about finding a mouse to feed the pup as quickly as possible. I can't necessarily respond to him so I just continue on my way to the den, moving solely on autopilot with no thought and see Adam go in a different direction.

As badly as I want to sprint to the den I know thats not a good idea. Left to my own thoughts and a pup in my mouth I begin thinking.

Is this actually happening? We find our new den stumble upon two desease wolves, not just any wolves, but one who literally watched me grow up and her mate. Then we find their pup buried in snow, did I mention the fact that it was winter above all else which is a very strange time to have pups his age, Adam will have to be the one to determine the age, he's always been good with anything medical related.

Just arrived outside the den when I hear Adam coming up behind me. My jaw is quite sore for trying to have a gentle hold on the pup for such a extended period of time.

"Was able to find two mice."

I tried giving him a smile but found it quite difficult with the pup.

"Lets go in."

We head in, I'm still amazed at how beautiful it is. I place the pup down gently and stretch my mouth out. Now out of my mouth the pup's cries get louder once more.

"Hey shhhhh you're okay, you're alright baby." Adam tells the pup in a soothing voice, having all instincts take over. He lays down to get closer to the pup's level and brings him in towards the front of his chest between his front legs and begins to lick him to clean the blood off his fur. This makes the cries quiet themselves and begins making cute puppy noises of enjoyment.

"Do you know how old he is?" I ask Adam when it looked like he was done cleaning him.

"I'd say 3 or 4 weeks old. His ears aren't fully perked up and his eyes are open a little bit and for short periods of time. Sad to know that he was out there like that at this age, but lucky for us that he's at the age to be off mom's milk." He responds in a gentle voice.

I crawl my way over to Adam and bury my face in his fur breathing in his scent. He can tell how nervous I am, so he starts to rumble.

"He'll be okay Takashi, we'll make sure of that." He proceeds to lick the blood off my nose.

And then the whimpering starts back up again.

Adam starts to chuckle, "How about you go give Kolivan a howl while I feed him and keep him warm?"

"Sounds good." I get up after we headbutt each other lovingly. I walk outside far enough to not be heard too loudly in case I disturb the puppy's meal and give a howl specifically for Kolivan to come over and that he is needed. Kolivan responds with a approval but that it'll be a while, so tops a couple of hours. I howl again to agree with the compromise and head back in the den.

When I entered I can see the pup was just finishing up. I tell Adam it'll be a couple hours as I curl up with him and the pup, trying to make sure both are warm and begin grooming Adam.

"I love you Takashi." Adam says as lays his head down.

I lay my head down as well this time on top of Adam. Our new addition cuddles closer to us and we both close our eyes to take a little nap before Kolivan arrives.

"I love you too."

Chapter Text

Shiro's POV:

I begin to wake up feeling a lot better and not so exhausted. It honestly feels like I slept 12 hours, but in reality it had to be two based on how much light I can see outside from my spot in the den. Also, Adam would've been waking me up and telling me to "get a move on for the day", but that's not the case as he is curled up lightly snoring we the new addition right next to him. I see him shaking so I inch closer breaking any gap between us to warm him up and it seems to work. Seeing both the pup and my mate sleep under my watchful eyes makes my heart swell with love and protectiveness. I will do everything I can to make sure nothing happens to these two, even if it kills me. I rest my head back on Adam to relish in the peaceful atmosphere not planning on going back to sleep. After a while I begin grooming Adam and I can hear him rumbling in comfort and enjoy, a noise I love to hear. Then I hear a howl off in the distance which makes Adam stir awake, I can smell the spike of anxiety coming off him.

"It's okay. It's Kolivan." I tell him and I can feel his worry and stress wash away and he sighs in relief. I get to leave after nuzzling Adam and make my way out the den, doing this causes the pup to whimper. Adam moves to rest his head to lay gently on the pup and rumbles softly and calms the pup. I flash a smile at him before making my way out the den.

I move up the hill from the den site and proceed to howl so Kolivan knows where we are exactly located. I wait there for a while until I see the light grey and white wolf with scars on his face and the permanent flopped ear up at the top of the hill. I give him a bark and he spots me and makes his way running down the hill seeing that he has a large rabbit in his mouth. When he is finally down to where I'm at he sets the rabbit down so we can properly greet each other, even though we saw each other yesterday it's still good to see my father figure.

"I found this on the way here and thought you and Adam could have it as a first meal at your new den. So far from what I can see the two of you picked a good spot, I was worried that you were going to choose one closer to the border but Antok assured me that you wouldn't do that. I already had planned on coming by at some point tomorrow but was surprised to hear you call earlier today, I thought you and Adam would've wanted some... Alone time on the first night at your new den."

I cringe slightly in the inside from the underlying meaning to what he is saying.

"Yes, well umm, we have a problem actually and we thought we should inform you about it as soon as possible."

"And what's that?"

"Further South of the territory Adam and I smelled blood and we went to see what it was, and umm."

Damn this is hard. But he needs to know.

"We found large amounts of blood and we found Krolia as well as, from what I can tell her mate, both dead."

Kolivan stays quiet then hums, but I can tell he's hurting on the inside.

"What do you think is the cause?" He asked but I already know that he knows what it's from.

"The Galra. Definitely not anything caused by prey."

He stays silent, looking like he's ready to maul someone's throat, so I continue.

"That's not the only thing either. We found a very small pup who is black as Krolia buried in the snow. He's in the den with Adam."

"Was there others?" Kolivan questions. I shake my head, Adam and I checked before we left the site.

"May I see him?" Kolivan asked me, as if I was going to say no to him.

"Of course." He carries the rabbit again and follows me to the den. I entered the den first see that Adam had moved to where I was before I left, most likely to feel like warmth.

"Hey, Kolivan is here." I say in a low voice and I move next to him and lay down but I don't get comfortable. I see Kolivan stick his head in the den with the rabbit still in his mouth, I had to pull myself together after he tried talking with it in, "'evening Adam" is what we think he said but it was hard to tell given that it muffled and the syllables didn't match.

"Hello Kolivan." Adam nods and smiles as a silent way of telling Kolivan he is granted access to the den. He enters and releases the bunny from his hold to the side.

"I most say, you two have found a very good den. I'm proud gentlemen."

"Thank you Kolivan." Adam was the one that said. Both of us smile. The sound of whimpering is heard and three sets of eyes land on the black pup. I crawl closer to lick at his head, rumbling heard from my chest, that always seems to calm him down. I can see a look of pride and admiration in Kolivan's eyes. Just as I suspected the pup stops his whimpers and replaces it with other puppy sounds and is wiggling a bit, it seems like he's starting to gain some energy after however long he had been outside.

"And you sure look just like your mama, you even got her eyes." Kolivan talks quietly in the "puppy-voice" more so to the pup almost sounding like you would be waiting for a response, but the pup isn't old enough to form words just yet. I look closer at the pup and notice his eyes are open, something we haven't seen much of since bringing him, and he does in fact have Krolia's eyes: A unusual but very beautiful violet-purple color that twinkle in the light that we have. I've never seen a wolf, or any other creature with eyes like this. Adam's were a rich chestnut brown which I absolutely love, Kolivan and many of the others in the pack have a bright gold color that pierces you in the soul and glow in the dark nights, and mine were a light grey nothing special. But purple is definitely special.

"He's got two older siblings, both from the same liter I believe they are 6? They were trying for another liter for 3 or 4 years but were having trouble, finally they got lucky and told me. Krolia's mate told me that they had the birth, that they just had one but was still very happy. He told me the birth worked her hard and that she needed more time to rest and recover than a normal birth. I actually had planned to stop by and check on them the same day I was for you two since their den is on the way to yours." His eyes are clouded with sadness as he continues to look over the pup who has gone back to cuddling up to Adam's side and gone back to sleep.

"We didn't see any other pups when we were down there." Adam spoke. Kolivan hums.

"It's possible the Galra may have taken the two older pups..."

Silence falls again over all of them only hearing the soft puppy snores. To think that members of our pack, young pups who were taken by our enemy. The fact of the reality is we can't risk anymore members to do a rescue. Yes, the Galra had come onto our territory and kidnapped our pups, but we can't necessarily know that the pups are with the galra or that they are even alive. We can't send our wolves in case of starting a battle between two of the toughest territories.

"Does he have a name?" I ask wanted to be out of the negative thoughts.

"He told me they chosen the name Keith."

Keith. I look down at Keith. It fits him, its unique, just like his entire existence. I sigh on the inside knowing that it's time.

"Would you like me to take you where we found them?"

Chapter Text

Shiro's POV

"Would you like me to take you where we found them?" I had to ask. I didn't want to ruin the happy moment that we were having with Keith, to be reminded that his parents were dead further down the hill and I would need to take Kolivan down there.

"Yes, that would be very much appreciated Shiro."

I get up once more giving a tender kiss to Keith's head.

"I'll be back." I whisper to Adam as well as giving him a kiss too.

"You two be careful." He tells Kolivan and I as we leave the den. I take the lead and we make our way running down the hill. I remember where they were but I was honestly worried of the conditions the bodies would be in. When Adam and I got there it we weren't sure how long they were like that for, in addition to the weather. I've only seen a pawful of dead wolves in my life, two of which were my parents but it wasn't like I really got a long look at their bodies as a 5 year old, I only saw them get shot and fall to the ground. Though I was big enough to run my father still carried me in his mouth so they didn't have to worry about us falling behind. My mother carried my twin brother, she was the first to get hit. Once my father saw he quickly put me down without word and ran back to where my mother and brother were, I watched as went to lunge at the men with the gun to ultimately get shot as well. Being so scared the only thing I did was run as fast as my short puppy legs can go. To this day that is the one thing I regret doing. After fleeing where my father left me I heard a third shot ring out and the cheering of the humans, knowing that they killed my twin as well. I should have stayed and tried to get my brother out of there so the two of us could be saved. Instead I'm the only one that made it and is forever left with all my negative thoughts and heavy guilt. Something I definitely don't like to talk about or have back in my mind. Kolivan and the rest of my pack had to deal with the aftermath of that, even Adam has had to wake me up from my nightmares.

Without realizing it were at the scene of the heinous act, being to invested with my thoughts. Everything looked the same as when Adam and I were here hours ago besides of our faint tracks in the snow proving that we were here. The snow had maybe gain a couple inches, but the signs of blood and our visibility if the bodies were still clear. I watch Kolivan silently take in everything. Fully understanding how he's feeling. He walks over to where Krolia is and gently resting the side of his head on Krolia's chest as though he's trying to find any sign of life left. His head rises and he breathes out a low whine, something not typical for the leader to do. I barely heard it, but he quietly whispered "I so sorry." I'm sorry too.

He slowly makes his way over to Krolia's mate and repeats the same action. After all that he came back up to me.

"Where was Keith found?" He asked.

"Over here." And I lead him to the tree we found Keith, he takes a sit and hums.

"I believe it would be fitting for them to buried here. To have their final resting place at the spot their youngest pup was found."

"Do you want to get that started now?" I asked him.

"No, I'll get a couple of wolves and myself to do that. But I would like you to come join me in looking at their den in case the other two pups are there." He tells me and I nod.

We begin heading North, a bit past our new den. I remember when Adam and I we searching for the den we smelled that the one we're heading to now was occupied so we proceeded further South. I didn't know that it was Krolia's den. Just to think, if this situation never happened who's to that Adam and I would see Keith around as well as his siblings, to watch them grow up. We would probably have been the ones to puppy-sit them and to soften the pain of our hearts that the possibility of not having pups of our own.

We arrive at their den, it's a very nice den and looks very similar to ours. Though theirs aren't in a hillside and looks well worn and lived in. They more than likely chose this one because it's further from the border. But, that now leads to some questions...

Kolivan was the first to enter the den, I decide to view from the outside. It just feels weird to me if I entered now knowing that a pack, a family lived here and we know that the parents were murdered. On the inside looks slightly different, theirs are more box shaped and I can see that they dug a hole on one of the sides, either another entrance or a place for pups. Seeing that the main den area is empty Kolivan looks in the hole. He fits most of his body in besides his back feet, he waits there for a sec until he backs out and shakes his head.

"What were their names?" I ask quietly and move out of the way to let Kolivan out.

"The first born was named Lotor, and the other Acxa. They both basically looked like their father besides Acxa who was a darker grey." I hum in response. I vaguely remember seeing them at me and Adam's ceremony in becoming official mates, though they had to leave early to put the pups to sleep. I didn't have any real interactions with them but do remember that. Kolivan continues.

"We can only hope that the Galra have some remorse in the hearts to not harm the pups. But I can only think of the possibility that they will raise them and corrupt their minds in thinking WE are the enemy." All I can do is nod. Its highly likely is the sad thing.

We begin making our way back down the hill to my den we take our time. Then I remembered that question.

"How do you think this happened."

We stop and Kolivan has his full attention on me and so I continue.

"If their den is further North, why would they be more South of the territory and from the looks of it, they fight there as well? Why was Keith out of the den when he could easily die from the cold alone? Were the other pups with them as well, which also ties in as why were they so close to the border? If the pups did stay at the den how did the find them its not like their den is close to the border? Why did they attack on our land, was it pre-planned? Why take the two older pups and not Keith who is far young and would be very easy to corrupt? There's just so many questions that makes this situation more confusing." I ranted.

Kolivan looks just as confused as I am trying to think all this over.

"If I'm going to be honest Takashi, I don't know myself either. There's many elements that dont make sense. My only theory is that possibly some of the members of the Galra who did the attack grew up with me and Krolia. She caught many wolves's eyes and many who did didn't join the blades. Maybe they held that grudge as well as towards her mate? But I'm very unsure at this point, I definitely look further into it and I will let you know when I do." We continue our way back to the den.

We're about half way there when it's Kolivan's turn to ask the questions.

"So, are you and Adam still wanting a pup?"

"Yes." Of course we still want a pup.

"Then I take it that you two are going be keeping Keith?" He smiles.

"C-can we?" I ask hesitantly, he chuckles.

"Yes, yes you can. If you need any assistance we will gladly help."

"Thank you." I'm smiling like a pup.

"No need to thank me, just as long as I still get to visit my grandpup." He smiles as well as has a challenging look in his eyes.

"Of course you can still visit Keith. You and the rest of the pack can see him as many times as you want." I chuckled. And by the 'rest of the pack' I of course mean Antok, Thace, Ulaz, and Regris. I wouldn't trust anybody else to just stop by whenever they want. But Kolivan knows what I mean.

We arrive at last to the den. Adam is grooming Keith. It feels a whole lot better to have something to call him besides just calling him "the pup". Keith seems to be awake and not crying for once, Adam looks up and smiles at us.

"Hey." He says.

"Thank you again for informing me on your findings, I apologize that you two had to discover that on your first day here."

Adam pauses from his grooming.

"No need to apologize Kolivan. I'm sorry for the loss." Kolivan nods.

"I will be heading back to be gathering several blades to aid me with burial and we will have a short service of honoring and remembrance at their grave site tomorrow. But if it would be in your best interest if one of you wanted to stay here to watch over Keith and pay your respects in your own time you're more than welcome to do that as well. I will need to decide what our next course of action will be pertaining to this incident of the Galra, but I'll be sure to let you know as soon as I do." He says.

"Would you like me to join you in retrieving those other wolves or would you like me to get started on those graves now?" I ask him.

"There won't be any need to do that Shiro. You need to get started on being a dad and take care of your pup and mate." He's right, I'm a dad now. Adam's a dad. We're both parents.

"Thank you Kolivan." Adam steps in after seeing I couldn't form words at that moment.

"Just like what I told Shiro: as long as I'm still able to visit my grandpup, then there's no need to thank me." Adam gives him a nod and smile and shifts over to let Kolivan know that he's able to get closer to the pup in front of him with his body language. And so Kolivan gets closer and licks Keith on top of his head, his eyes barely open looking up at him.

"You have two amazing daddies who are going to take good care of you and make sure you are safe. Your mama would be so thankful and proud." He smiles at Keith then gets up.

"You'll probably hear us coming down to work maybe tops of two hours. If you need anything, and I'm saying ANYTHING at all, you can give me a howl and I'll be there. I'm proud of you boys, and Krolia and her mate would be as well. Take care, love you both." He says as he heads out the den, Adam and I tell him goodbye as well.

Once we hear his steps fade Adam and I look at one another.

"We're parents." Adam says with a huge smile. I crawl closer to him and give him kisses.

"Mhm, are you happy?" I ask him and he vigorously nods his head. We start kissing more intimately when we are interrupted by whimpering. Adam begins to giggle.

"I believe it's now your turn to feed our pup." I pout but not at all serious.

"Really Keith, we were just getting started there." I feel Adam push a paw at my shoulder and I get up to start a leg of the rabbit Kolivan gave us so I can spit it to feed my pup. I truly feel like a provider for my small pack.

Chapter Text

Shiro's POV

After giving Keith his small portion of the rabbit Adam and I begin digging in the rest. Today has definitely felt incredibly long with so many things coming up unexpectedly. Its honestly felt like we've had Keith for a week and not just the majority of the day.

Just like Kolivan had said we were able to hear him and others over an hour later work on the burial of Krolia and her mate.

"So, how do you think we're going to tackle tomorrow? Having the service and everything." I ask Adam.

"I can stay back and watch over Keith like Kolivan said. When you get back we can switch. I just don't want him left alone and I certainly don't want to take him out of the den." I nod and we finish off the hare.

I take a look down at Keith and chuckle, he looks drunk and moments away from falling into a food coma and that's fine with me just as long as he wont starve. He's a pretty thin pup for his age and so I wonder if he was fed well or if he has a faster metabolism. Maybe it's something to do with his birth? Kolivan did say that Krolia was having a hard time with his birth than a normal one, but he's just one pup and it wasn't an entire liter.

"Is he okay? Health wise I mean. Is his conditions normal for a pup his age?" I ask.

"Hmmm, I feel like he may be smaller than he should be. I'm not quite sure, I'm not as skillful in puppy development than other areas in the medical field so maybe Ulaz would be a better wolf to ask. But while he's with us he'll be fine and all good, we'll make sure of it."

Feeling the tiredness kick in after our dinner I curl up closer with Adam and Keith finding a spot in the middle of us as I begin to drift off into a sleep, only hearing the breathing of Adam and Keith and the the quiet fall of the snow hitting the ground.

I start thinking about the other two pups, Lotor and Acxa, they're only a year older than I was when I lost my parents and brother. Did they see their parents get murdered by the same wolves that took them? You begin to wonder if they fought back, they're old enough to understand what's going on, I sure did. Why? I just don't understand what motive the Galra had in doing such a thing. Were Krolia and her mate able to call for help? She should know that someone would have helped if they knew. How many sleepless nights are Lotor and Acxa going to have? Would the Galra care enough to comfort them, and ingrain lies in their heads? How much is Keith going to be effective by this? He's so young and more than likely when he gets older he won't remember this. But who's to say that he won't remember it now? It's so fresh and he's still growing as well. How much did Keith actually witness from this whole event? If we found him as close as he was to Krolia's body, he would've had to seen something, I'm sure he couldn't have slept through all that.

I remember my first night with Kolivan and the pack, my first worry was that they were going to eat me at the first chance they get. When that fear went away it was the battle of sleep that was cruel to me. Seeing my parents lay dead in the snow, hearing three gunshots repeated over, and over, and over again. I'd either jolt awake myself or have one member of the pack wake me, both leaves me panting and fear to go back to sleep. That went on for a long while every night. Overtime it became less and less, now I only have them couple of times on very few occasions. When I do have them they aren't nearly as bad as when I was younger, I don't scream or yell in my sleep no more but will whimper or whine at most. Adam is always there to comfort me in a instant. I feel a tinge of shame and embarrassment when it does. I'm grateful to have Adam comfort me during those times but he shouldn't, I'm the one who should be strong. Adam has will have nightmares of his own and I'm always there to fight his demons away. I just don't want Keith to have the same problems either, same with Lotor and Acxa. I can only hope.

I'm unsure of the length of time we have been sleeping but I still feel very tired and want to go back to sleep. Looking outside it's very deep in the night have the moon reflect its light on the white snow. Usually Adam and I would be up right now either eating, or having random conversations about our days, or even waking up. But with everything with figuring out our new den and now with Keith and our rabbit meal, our sleeping schedule is a bit of a mess. But with all that aside, I wake up to hearing loud crying. Realizing that it's Keith my initial thought was that I accidentally rolled on him in my sleep, his crying was almost gut wrenching sound like he was is massive amounts of pain. Adam is obviously awake as well as Keith continues his crying.

"Mm baby what's wrong what's the matter? Takashi is he okay?" Adam asks frantically, his crys are not at all to what they were earlier today.

"I'm not sure. Keith shhhh you're okay, Daddy's here." I'm going to have to start getting used to be "Daddy", the name feels foreign and strange on my tongue. But I bring our pup in closer to do what we've had Keith: rumbling and licking/grooming. But he's not calming down like he normally does. Well shit.

"Let me try." And so I let Adam take him. He lays down his throat on top of Keith's and rumbles just like he did earlier in the day and is murmuring sweet nothings in his ear. But he's still crying. Adam looks up at me with worry in his eyes.

"Keith. Keith baby, come on shhhh." I don't really know what to do anymore. I haven't really been around a pup as young as Keith, not even close. I just start licking at his face and surprisingly it lessened the crying/screaming as he only gives out softer cries and whimpering. He has his eyes open seeing his beautiful violet eyes from light of the moon, looking watery and scared, he's hiccuping and shaking as well. Shit.

"Shhhh Keith you're okay now.. You're safe and your daddies will make sure of that." I whisper to him as I'm doing everything I can to make his crying stop completely. I know he can't understand my words but it's more so for me to always know, and if he can pick up on my calming voice then that's all I really want. Keith is better for the most part but he's still shaking, he tries to wiggle his way over to me but fails, the cries pick up.

"Hey hey hey, you're okay." And I scoot him closer to my chest and rests his little head on my paw. Adam crawls even closer making sure we have body contact.

"What was all that about?" He whispers and watches as Keith goes back to sleep. I sigh.

"I was worried this would happen. He had a nightmare, honestly looked like he had a full blown panic attack even. He was remember what happened yesterday, reliving it. That's what I believe anyways. It reminds me so much of myself and my nightmares of my parents and brother." He went through something traumatizing, even at such a young age it'll bit him in the butt for who knows how long. Adam whines after hearing that.

"How long do you think it's going to be like this."

"I honestly don't know hun. Let's try and go back to sleep, yeah?"

Adam gives me kisses.

"Yeah."

Chapter Text

3rd person POV

"Dad why are we so far from the den?" Acxa asked.

"Because he's trying to teach us how to hunt, but we wont get anything if you keep talking you dummy!"

"Lotor! That's not how you should talk to your sister, apologize."

"Yes dad, I'm sorry Acxa."

"Thank you Lotor. Sweetie, yes we're out hear so you get a head start on hunting. Normally we would wait another year or two but your mother needs as much rest as she can after having your brother, he's still just a baby."

"But it's starting to snow and I'm getting cold. I can help mama with Keith!" Acxa said.

"Mmm, I suppose we can head back. We can see if mama needs help."

And so the trio make their way back to their den completely unaware that they were being spied on by other wolves.

"Sir, now's our chance to do an ambush." One wolf whispered.

"No. Didn't you Krolia's mate? Our main objection was to take out both of them. But seeing that they have two pups, well made pups, and hearing there's a third; there's going to be an addition to the plan. We can easily follow their tracks with the snow, till lead us straight to the den. We'll come back with more wolves, I know the damage she can give, we need as much of an advantage as we can get. Let's go." He growls.

"Yes, Sendak." And they make their way further in their own territory to retrieve more wolves.

.
.
.

The adult and two pup continue their way back to the den.

"Lotor, what's with the long face?" The adult asked.

"Are you sure you and mom want to keep Keith?" Lotor groans.

"Of course your mother and I want to keep Keith. What brought that question up?"

"Dad I don't want a little brother. Why do we have to have Keith, why do we have to change?" Lotor whined.

"Lotor, me and your mother wanted another liter and we tried really hard to. We were lucky to have even one pup if anything. You should know that change is not always a bad thing, we just have another member of our pack. And your mother and I will always love you, all of you; nothing will change that." Lotor didn't say anything further.

"I love Keith and want keep him Dad." Acxa piped up and her dad gives her a smile as they made it to the den. Krolia was in the main den area and actually has Keith out. He's been mainly kept in the small hole on one side of the den since his birth. Ever since he was born he's been scarily smaller and weaker than most pups. They were worried he wouldn't make it after the second week, but slowly and steadily he's been coming along and is now 3 weeks old.

Acxa came up to mom right away but being careful when she got closer to Keith and she greeted Krolia and was licking her face. Lotor was less reluctant but after a push from his father went up to his mom, gave her a quick kiss and left to a different side of the den to lay down, wanting nothing to do with little Keith. His father opted to stay close to Lotor and keep him company while Acxa stayed close to her mom and almost being nose to nose with Keith. Lotor huffed at the sight and closed his eyes to take a nap.

.
.
.

It had to maybe an hour or so after their little hunting lesson, everyone in the den sleeping. When unknown smells woke up the father of the pack he opens his eyes two stranger wolves in his very den. He gives an alert bark making everyone in the den wide awake and soon fear after seeing the unwelcome guests. Before he can order his pups to go in their dug up hole, one of the wolves makes a dash to block it with his body. With no place to hide Lotor was left to stay behind his father while Acxa and Keith are behind their mother, Keith is heard wailing as well as the growling of both parents.

"Leave now!" Their father yelled.

"Sorry, but we have orders." Another wolf says slyly as she enters the den as well. Now having three wolves who are a threat in the den. They have to have all the pups in one place.

"Lotor." Is all he needed to say for him to understand. He begins to move, growling at the strangers to away from him. They do give him some room, but they are smiling. He maneuvers his way with Lotor right on his heels to where his mate is. Now all the pups were behind Krolia, he stayed in front of all four of them. He's snarling at the wolves in front of him.

"Out! Now!"

"It's still a no."

They're getting closer, so he starts snapping his teeth at them. He's too ganged up on, having two wolves right in front of him and a third on the other side of the den who could join at any time with his buddies. He's gotta protect his family. Krolia could help, but that gives one wolf a chance to take the pups. He needs to figure something out and quick. The den being loud and stress inducing, it's hard to think properly. He makes a decision. He hopes it's the right one. He looks to Krolia.

"Take the pups, and run." He says in a low voice. Krolia is hesitant, she see the look in his eyes. It's a look of, "I'll try my damn hardest, but I might not make; this could be the end." She turns to the two older pups trying her best to not panic but still making them know that this is urgent. "Stay close" she tells them, picking up Keith who is still crying in distress.

"B-but Dad..." Lotor whispers to his mom, she gives him a small growl. Lotor stays quiet and follows. He knows she's not angry at him, or that he necessarily did something bad. No, she's just trying to make sure he's safe. They're wasting time and they need to hurry. They quickly make their way to the den entrance and see their father lunge at the other wolves.

They begin to run with Krolia taking the lead at first. They start to make their way to the North when they see more wolves, blocking their way to safety. Krolia turns and roughly pushing Acxa to make them go the opposite direction and they run, now having Lotor and Acxa take the lead. The two pups certainly can't run as fast as an adult, but after a nap and now a climax of adrenaline to save their lives it feels like, they definitely booked it. Poor Keith being carried in Krolia's mouth is already not fun, but now with her going at a speed he's never experienced in his 3 weeks of living, being jostled about, made it even worse. His wails get louder.

"Keithy.. Please... Be quiet." Acxa panted out.

"Yes, please shut up." Lotor added. If Krolia's mouth wasn't full and they weren't running for their lives she'd definitely be scolding Lotor. Krolia can still hear them being chased, she can tell they are still in their territory but it's a lot further than she'd like to be. It dawned on her that the Galra were trying to corral them into their territory or at least close to it. With her mind making this realization she lost her footing and slipped, hitting the ground with a yelp.

"Mom!"
"Mom!"

Her pups stopped and ran to her. She was getting up, a little painful in her left front paw most likely strained, but she can still use it.

"I'm okay, I'm fine; let's-."

Wait.

How is she able to talk normally?

Didn't she have...

"Keith!"

She must have dropped him when she fell. She looks around her, trying to find Keith. When she finally sees him ten feet away, crying and wiggling she lets out a sigh. He's alive. That relief was short lived when one of the wolves chasing them caught up with them and spotted the black pup and pick him up in his mouth. It must have never picked a pup up before, or simply didn't care he was bitting down too hard, but it was obvious it was causing some sort of pain to Keith. Krolia was livid. The growl she did earlier with Lotor was nothing compared to this. Before she can do anything she spots her mate running towards them, but not without several other wolves chasing after him. He must have noticed something wasn't right given that Krolia didn't have his pup in her mouth and the furious standoff between her and this male wolf. So he charges, attacking this wolf from his back end, making the wolf to snap his head back to fight off his attacker, it wasn't until he noticed that the wolf dropped his baby pup that he became much more aggressive. Krolia was able to grab Keith before he got trampled on and stuck between the blood bath.

Having Keith back she gets back to her other pups and looks to see where they need to run. But there's so many Galra from every direction. She and he pups go towards where there are the least amount of Galra. While doing so someone gets a hold on her back legs, there's not much she can do besides fight back. She puts Keith down and turns to her attacker and doesn't hold back and her pups watch her in awe, hopefully they can learn something out of this. Her opponent scampered off limping and she has to make a decision she might regret doing...

"Kids, what I need you to do is take Keith and hide him. Put him at a base of a tree and cover him up with snow. Then I want you two to run and hide yourselves, get somewhere safe. Can you too do that?"

"But what about you and Dad?" Lotor asked in a small voice.

"We'll try and come find you two. Sweeties just remember whatever happens to your dad and I remember we love you so so so much, we always will." She basically forces Keith in Acxa's mouth.

"Now go. Hurry!" And so they scurry off. Krolia is aware that Keith would be heavy for Acxa to carry, but she knows she is capable of doing so; that's why she had them go hide him while they run off somewhere else, he would've slowed them down if they didn't. She makes a mad dash to where her mate was and sees he's not looking good at all. Puncher marks covering his body, clumps of fur pulled out, torn flesh, just terrible; and so she joins.

.
.
.

Acxa and Lotor did as their mother instructed to do and found a tree and place Keith in the snow. They had no idea where to go. They were never really allowed to be away from the den by themselves. So they just ran until they felt ready to collapse, they found a hallow log and decided that they were going to hide in there.

"Do you think Mama and Daddy will find us here?" Acxa whispered.

"I don't know." Lotor whispered back.

"Lotor I'm scared."

"I know Acxa, but we have to stay here and be quiet." And so the two pups stayed where they were both curled up with one another for who knows how long. It wasn't until they heard crunching in the snow that they held on to their breaths.

"Do not be afraid young pups, I'm not here to hurt you. My name is Ladnok, what might be yours?" This female wolf spoke. The two pups look at one another, she seems to okay. They don't recognize her though so they are hesitant.

"Lotor."
"I'm Acxa."

"It is nice to meet you Lotor and Acxa. Why don't you two come with me, I can take you some place safe." Ladnok said.

"Will you take us to our mom and dad?" Little Acxa asked. Ladnok grimaced, she knows she has her orders from Sendak to get the pups and return then to their own den. But after hearing the male's plans, she wanted to rebel against it terribly. She knows how wrong this is, but for whatever reason he wanted to take vengeance from his past and some how their leader was okay with it? When the pup questioned about their parents her grimace was sincere, she knows what's happening to their parents right now and she feels awful about it.

"I'm sorry sweetie." She needs to choose the right words for this explanation. "If I could, I would take you two to your parents in a instant, but sadly I can't. Your parents cared for the both of you dearly and they would do anything to make sure you two were safe. I can make sure you both stay safe, I'll take care of you." You can see the realisation in their eyes as now know their parents are dead. Acxa begins to cry while Lotor stays quiet and shuts his eyes.

"Come here you two." Ladnok said softly and slowly the two pups come out of their hiding spot and lean their bodies against Ladnok and mourn.

"I'll take care of you both." She says again. She never considered the idea of careing for pups until now, she hates what her pack is doing so the least she can do is to take these pups under her care. So they begin their trek leaving the Blades of Marmora territory and enter the Galra Empire.

.
.
.

Both Krolia and her mate were barely hanging on. Maybe there's a chance they can make it out of here, get her pup and go get medical attention from Ulaz.

"I must say Krolia, I'm glad to see you haven't lost you fighting abilities. Things could have been different, we could've been mates, raise far more beautiful pups and rule our territory. Instead, you left our home to live in such a low life territory and be mates with some weak runt that belongs at the bottom of the food chain." Sendak said standing over Krolia.

"I will never be with you... I.. Will never be a Galra... Again. I'm a Blade!" She pants out, the blood loss is really getting to her. He growls and stalks over to her mate who's also laying in the snow, Sendak latches on his throat and sinks his teeth in deeply hearing the sound of her mate struggle until silent. Sendak makes his way back over to Krolia.

"I do hope you know this is all your fault, if you would've just stayed and become my mate non of this would be happening. Victory or death Krolia?"

"Fuck you... It will always be Knowledge or Death."

"Keep telling yourself that darling. You will die a slow and painful death. Hope you know, your pups will be in good hands, they'll be raised better than you and that disappointment of a mate have ever planned." He snarled as he walked away leaving the bleeding female. When he left she waited for her body to its course when she heard whimpering.

Holy shit.

She spots a tree in the distance and can barley see her little black pup. Miraculously he stayed quiet during the whole ordeal with Sendak. Krolia cries out. She doesn't know where her two older pups are, but by the sounds of it the Galra have them. She won't see them again. She found a small amount of energy and struggled to get up and slowly makes her way to her pup. She takes him back closer to where she was finding a better tree so he's getting the full force of the cold wind, he's not supposed to be out here. After setting him down she begins walking again. She not in the right mindset. Maybe she can find another blade, maybe she go to Ulaz and they can find her pups. But she doesn't make it far until she collapse and can't get up again. She knows her time is coming. She's in so much pain, both physically and emotionally, but at the same time she feels numb. She moves her head towards her crying pup and prays the galra dont find him. As her vision begins fading the last thing she sees is her black pup in the snow.

"I love you Keith..."

.
.
.

"Where's the third, the baby?!" Sendak growled quietly, at least being considerate to the two pups sleeping. A considerable amount of time had passed when everyone got back.

"I told you, these were the only ones I found. No one told me their was another." Ladnok replied with a frown, she was laying with the pups but in her head she was actually happy to hear she didn't find another. Sendak said no more and stormed out of the den.

"You said you saw the other pup?" Sendak said to a different wolf.

"Correct sir, I was even able to grab him until her mate attack me, that was when she took him and ran off." The wolf said he was pretty beaten up by nothing life threatening.

"What did he look like?"

"All black sir and I saw his eyes for a split second, they were purple sir. He was small, had to be 2 maybe 3 weeks of age." He's described exactly like Krolia, Sendak had to have him.

"Gather the others, we're returning back to retrieve him, she must've hid him somewhere. Smart bitch.

"Right away sir!" And so the group had returned to where the bodies were left, the snow really coming down but that didn't stop Sendak's nose.

"Someone was here." As he smelled different wolves tracks. He continued the search until he found a clue. A small hole not too far from Krolia's body with the snow moved around. He sniffs deeper in the hole and he got the strong smell of the unique smell of a puppy, so pure and full of innocents.

"He was here. Other wolves, blades, found him." He growled. He was pissed. That pup was supposed his! A pup that looked exactly like Krolia to the tea, a prize trophy of a living being and he NEEDED it.

"Let's go. We will not give up. That pup will be mine. I swear on it. He will be mine."

Chapter Text

Shiro's POV

"I honestly don't know hun. Let's try and go back to sleep, yeah?"

Adam gives me kisses.

"Yeah."

.
.
.

Thankfully after that whole fiasco Keith didn't wake up again, probably tired himself out to complete exhaustion. He did move around quite a lot and making little noises in his sleep, more than likely trying to get warm probably haven't fully recovered after being in the snow for who knows how long, hours likely. But I would wake up multiple times in the early hours of the morning to make sure my family were all okay and safe. Sure it's probably not the best for my sleep schedule, but dammit my mate and I just got this new den and now I have a baby, anyone who thinks I'm gonna let my guard down and have anything happen to my pack can kiss my tail because I will die for these two if I have to.

I should probably be trying to catch some snoozes but I just can't stop admiring my little family, my mate and my pup. There's the sight of the sun peaking when Adam begins moving. He's still mostly asleep but I know he will start to slowly wake up, which is probably one of the cutest thing I've seen. When he's in this state he almost acts like a pup himself, he'll start making little noises in his sleep, he always says it's not true but we all know he makes those cute little noises. He stretches his neck out closer to me while making a humming sound and opens his eyes.

"Good morning cutie." I smile at him. He takes a big breath in then out as he murmured "morning", and he closes his eyes again. Adorable.

"I don't wanna move." Adam says softly.

"Then don't babe." He chuckles at that.

"I think I'll go out and find some breakfast, how does that sound?" I ask Adam.

"Good. Need help?"

"Nope. You can stay right there and relax and watch over Keith." I say as I get up and stretch my legs and back.

"Mkay."

"Love you Beautiful. No throwing any big parties while I'm gone you two." I joke on the last part.

"I'll make sure everyone is gone before you get back." He plays along as he flops his head down to rest some more.

.
.
.

The rest of the morning is pretty uneventful. I find a hare, not as large as the one Kolivan gave us but its enough for the three of us to finish without us going away too hungry. I'm not quite sure how hunting is going to go now that we have a pup. One of us is gonna have to stay and watch over him, I certainly don't feel comfortable with leaving him alone quite just yet. We'll be fine. Me and Adam can go days without eating, it's really just Keith that needs the food frequently more than anything. He's so little. So we may not get elk quite as often like we used to, but we can take a deer down our own fine, it may not be a big buck but it'll fill our stomachs good.

After a little nap it was now late afternoon when Keith becomes more lively. He can't really do much at this stage, but that doesn't mean he's any less cute. Adam and I played with him for a short while until he tires himself out once again. We watch over Keith and look out to see the beautiful glow of the sun become an orange-purply color when we hear Kolivan's howl from the south of us. He's over where we found Keith and calling to our many packs to join if they wish, the tone of his howl gives out a sorrow sound so our wolves know that his request for others to come is to mourn the loss of our member(s) of the Blade of Marmora pack.

"I can stay and watch over Keith while you go to the gathering Takashi." Adam tells me with a little smile.

"You sure?" He nods. I go to get up and give him a tender kiss and nuzzle Keith.

"I love you."

"I love you too." And I leave our den. I can see tracks in the freshly layered snow and smell that they are Kolivan's. I know where to meet him and being so close to the sight I didn't really need to run but I didn't want him being by himself for too long. Living with him for so long I know how much he tries to present himself as a strong leader, and he is, but other wolves don't know the true him, his worries, his own fears and sadness, he hides it under a mask. Krolia was his cousin, younger cousin. Kolivan often wants to fight his inner demons on his own, I have to be there for him just like he was, still is, for me. I've arrived, being the first one like I suspected. I see Kolivan over at the tree we found Keith, see that the ground was dug up with the light powder of snow resting on the two, hardly noticeable mounds. They did a good burial, easy to tell that there's two separate graves but still close to one another. I can't imagine how hard the ground could have been for digging with it being cold and hard. The graves are presented with many large stones that a wolf would have to open their mouths really wide for. As well as several large sticks that two wolves would have had to move together. Usually there would be flowers but we would have to wait until spring for that. Kolivan is looking over the graves, his tail very low and not moving, something you wouldn't want wolves of your pack to see if you were the pack leader. He notices my presence and he lifts it slightly higher with a small wag.

"Evening Shiro."

"Good evening Kolivan. Is the rest of the pack joining?" I ask with a tilt of my head.

"Yes, they had gone out earlier letting others know of the gathering and is taking them here by groups to avoid anyone arriving late. They shouldn't take long, they had left a while ago." He said.

"How are you holding up with all this?" I ask him and gives a breathy laugh.

"Holding up as much as I can Shiro. I suppose it's been difficult, being left with my thoughts and trying to wrap my head around the whole situation. Though, you and Adam both have made me feel not as bad as I could be, the pack as well of course." He says with a smile.

"How so?"

"Knowing that you and Adam have taken Keith in your care. Yes we no longer have two other pups but we know that one is in good paws. Krolia would be thrilled to know that the two of you are taking care of her pup, I know she is. I don't think I would have trusted anyone else to take care of that pup besides you and Adam."

"What about you and the rest of the pack?"

"Well, yes, but do you think us old wolves will still have some of that kick to keep up with a pup for 18 years?" He says.

"Kolivan you guys aren't THAT old."

"Takashi do you and Adam want to keep this pup or not?" He says with a small grin.

"Yes yes yes we want Keith we want Keith, I won't question it any further." I said in a rush.

"Good. And looks like the group as made it." I look up the hill and indeed we see quite the large group of blades with Antok, Ulaz, Thace, and Regris taking the lead. I see that Kolivan's tail has risen higher to show his status as Alpha leader of our large pack. And so the service begins.

.
(Time skip towards the end of the service.)
.

"Again it's very much appreciated to have all of you to show up in honoring Krolia and (insert mate name), as well as the remembrance of their two pups, Lotor and Acxa. We are fortunate enough to still have their youngest pup, Keith. I would like to give special thanks to Shiro and Adam, who could not attend as he is currently staying with the pup, for not only making the discovery of Krolia and (insert mate name), but for also finding the pup here where we have decided shall be their resting place. I'm proud to announce that both Takashi and Adam are now new fathers and will be from here on out raising Keith as their own pup. This is the doing of the Galra and we will make sure that this will never be repeated again." Kolivan ends his speech with a beautiful sunset behind him. He points his nose towards the sky where we can see stars starting to appear and he gives his low but booming howl as a strong leader should have, his howl is the start of our rally and soon everyone is howling now. You can also hear some of the wolves who couldn't make it to the memorial also howling with us strengthening our pack, I can even hear some wolves from the Voltron territory howling along with us for sympathy, we are allies with one another. With all the wolves howling at once and can still pick out my mates vocals making me smile and I howl louder to make sure he can hear me. Most of the wolves who showed up have stopped howling now only hearing the ones further in the territory. I hear very faintly, but knowing it's not from far away just that it's quieter, a little howl, but the one that's making it I can tell isn't experienced in howling. Still fresh or even their first time. I hear Adam again, still audible but quieter than normal. He stops and there's a pause until I hear a smaller howl that's trying to imitate Adam's and I smile. It's Keith. He's howling for the first time...

He's howling for the first time. And I'm missing it! Dammit!

Everyone else seems to catch on who's howling and there's many "awwww's" heard. Definitely gonna have to start getting used to being a dad with the most precious pup ever.

Chapter Text

3rd Person POV

It has been about a week and a half since Shiro and Adam adopted Keith and being new fathers. Having to be accustomed to this new life has been manageable but definitely different. Keith still has his time of terror and that has been probably the hardest challenge the two wolves are having to tackle. Keith isn't like Shiro when he has his night terrors, Keith doesn't understand their words of comfort and they can not just ask him what his dream is about, what exactly is frightening him to find a way to make things better for him. They simply have to wait.

Keith has been more active and more aware of his surroundings and definitely more vocal. But Shiro and Adam have started to fall into this new routine with careing for a young pup. The two will take turns going out to hunt down food, mostly mice and rabbits for Keith's sake but Shiro was able to take down a small doe and the three have been feasting on that. Despite the fact that Keith was obviously getting fed by the two wolves he was still quite small and tiny and doesn't look like he was getting any bigger. So when Kolivan and the rest of the pack came to visit Shiro and Adam both consoled with Ulaz.

"And you said he's eating okay?" Ulaz asked, the two males nodded.

"Has he been overly lethargic or having issues with sleeping? Have you guys been regularly stimulating him? Any vomiting or bowel movement problems?"

"We've been stimulating him fine and no issues with relieving himself or vomiting. He does have issues with sleeping ever since the first night, falling asleep he seems fine with it's just staying asleep is the problem. He starts be crying and screaming." Adam answers Ulaz. The older wolf hums.

"What's the duration are those usually?"

"About 15 minutes until he calms down." Shiro says. The look of concern appears on the the visitors' faces.

"15 minutes?" This time it's Thace.

"At the very least yes. Though the first was definitely the worse, I believe it had to have lasted probably a half hour." Adam chimed in. Ulaz pulled himself together once more.

"The length of time is very concerning... With the case of event that he experienced is understandable to an extent, but with his age is what's shocking about this severity, a young pup shouldn't be having all this stress." He whined and continued. "I don't think it's anything parasitic as he is eating normally and his bodily functions are doing fine. His growth can be from a couple of things, since I'm unaware of his size when he was born he could have been born early given that pups aren't usually born this time of the year, and as far as I know there are no other wolves in the pack expecting a liter this year. He could just have a fast metabolism and he's behind which can happen in a lot of pups, but with his sleeping problems and everything that has happened, with great amount of stress can interfere with his growth which can lead to other issues for him in the future."

"So what can do for now?" Shiro asked.

"For now keep a close eye on it and hope that by the end of this week things are looking better and he's growing more. But regardless, I'm going to be looking into some herbs that can reduce his stress. Again with age that might take awhile to do, we can't really give him the stuff that we gave to you Shiro when you first joined us, that could risk his health." Shiro and Adam both nodded in agreement and all the adults looked down at the young pup who was awake for the entire conversation.

"You know, by the time you're able to walk your daddies will be covered in in graying fur." Ulaz said softly as he nuzzled Keith.

"I think he's going to give everyone gray fur." Antok chuckled. The five male wolves said their goodbyes to the couple and their pup as they all gave kisses and nuzzles to Keith and left the den.

.
.
.

It had been the next night of the Galra taking Lotor and Acxa. The Galra's alpha leader Zarkon had formed a hunt with many other wolves after spotting a herd of elk in their territory, Sendak being one of them. Ladnok stayed at the den to watch over Lotor and Acxa who were play fighting.

"Miss Ladnok are there any other pups here?" Acxa asked innocently where she was under Lotor.

"There are." Ladnok answered.

"They're not babies are they?" Lotor sneered.

"No they're not babies, they're actually the same age as the two of you. The three of them are close friend but I don't see why they wouldn't want two more. All three of them are girls though, sorry Lotor."

"That's fine. Just as long as they are not babies then they can be my friends." Lotor was caught off guard and was then tackled by Acxa.

"I miss Keith!" Acxa whined as she chewed on her brother's ear.

"Why Acxa? He's too little to play with us and he would have just slowed us down. Maybe mom and dad would still be here if it wasn't for him!"

Before Ladnok could step in there was a noise at the entrance of the den that made Lotor and Acxa run to Ladnok for safety. In came in a brown wolf who was panting and sporting a couple of scratches on his face.

"Where have you been and what happened to your face?" Ladnok asked in concern.

"Had overtime patrol, then I ran in with Sendak and some of the pack who are on a hunt. Me and had a scuffle, no biggie." The male wolf said.

"Hun..." Ladnok started.

"Who are these little guys?" He asked her softly as he continues his way further in the den being cautious not to startle the pups.

"This is Lotor and Acxa. We will be taking care of them..." She hopes the look in her eyes are clear that there's more to the story that she'll explain later. He gets it.

"It's nice to meet you Lotor and Acxa, my name is Khas and I'm a member of this pack." He says with a friendly smile. The two pups begin to relax. Khas makes his way closer to Ladnok and gives her a kiss on the side of her head.

"Are you her mate?" Acxa asked with her head cocked to the side.

"Yes pup, she's my mate. But we are not supposed to be mates, it's a secret." Khas says in a hushed voice.

"Why?" Lotor questioned.

"A wolf who's name is Sendak says we can't. He's the leader and alpha of his pack which is us. We are hiding our love from him." Ladnok whispers.

"Is he gonna hurt us like he did with Khas?" Acxa asked. At hearing this Khas rumbles soothingly and curls next to the pups.

"No no no, young one. We won't let that happen while we're here." Khas says and Ladnok nods.

"Who else is part of this pack?" Lotor asked. Ladnok answers.

"Well, there's me, Khas, Sendak, and Haxus."

"Do you two know pack dynamics?" Khas asked and the pups shook their heads and so he continues.

"Sendak is the alpha, that means he's the one we must follow every order he gives us. Haxus is second in command and is called a beta and Ladnok and I are omegas, we are basically at the bottom of the ladder. We have to do what Haxus and especially what Sendak tells us, we eat last for meals and always have to make sure that the alpha does everything first, following the beta. Omegas are supposed to be the ones to keep the peace in the pack, but if I'm totally honest with you two, Sendak is really taking advantage of his power and doing so incorrectly." Ladnok nods in agreement, perhaps what they're telling the pups may be too much and they're too young to hear this, but if they're going to live here they are gonna have to know how things work here and not with the Blades.

"Can you two keep a secret?" The pups nodded. "Promise us you wont tell Sendak or Haxus about our relationship? They must'nt know about us, if they do then we are at risk for being harmed by them."

"We promise!" The two pups said.

"Thank you. Just remember, to follow orders from Sendak and Haxus, try not to upset them, and just stay close to us as much as possible unless told otherwise. I know this is probably really difficult to switch over from where you two came from but just know that Ladnok and I will protect you and WE will take care of you. Does that seem fair?" Khas said and the pups nodded again and moved closer to the two adults and leaned against them. Then the four wolves heard a noise from outside, Khas quickly but smoothly moved away from Ladnok, not a great amount but enough to not raise suspicion as two other wolves came in dragging in a leg of an elk and bringing in a bit of snow in the den. The two wolves barely acknowledge the four as they started eating the leg. Khas laid his head on the ground trying his best to ignore the food and keep his hunger to himself.

"Haxus, give the pups some meat." The dark grey said with a mouth full of meat.

"Yes Sendak." Haxus said, a dark brown wolf who tore off a piece of the leg made his way over where the pups and two adults were and dropped it at his feet. He lifted his head to Ladnok and Khas.

"For the pups only!" He growled and turned to go back to Sendak. The pups looked at the couple and Ladnok nodded over to the meat giving the pups assurance to eat. Lotor and Acxa both shared their elk quietly, too scared to make a sound. They finish it quickly, it was definitely less food than they would normally get with their parents but they weren't going to voice that statement. Both Sendak and Haxus have stopped eating but still didn't stayed silent, Sendak looked like he was thinking about something.

"Okay." Sendak finally said and he and Haxus got up to move to a different side of the den as Khas stood to make his way over to the elk leg. Ladnok stayed where she was but she did sit up as Khas returned with the leg that looked like had hardly any meat on it, looking like just bone and chewed up gristle.

"Young ones. What are your names." Sendak said, it wasn't even a question but more of a demand.

"Lotor."

"I'm Acxa."

"What is your age and who is the eldest."

"We're 6 and I'm the oldest." Lotor says louder than they were before in hopes to prove to these wolves that he's brave and not scared. Sendak hums.

"I'm Sendak, alpha wolf of this pack you are now a part of, and this is Haxus, beta of the pack. I'm sure you two were already introduced to Khas and Ladnok already. You are to obey those higher up than you which is all of us, don't test me or I will be forced to show you where your place is in this pack. Understood?" He says coldly and the pups quickly nod their heads.

"Good. Now, in first order of business now that you two are a permanent placement here you are to call me 'Father' from here on out. You pups are probably too young to understand but a long time ago before you pups were even thought of your mother and I were very good friends." Ladnok did not like where this was going and can already predict what Sendak is gonna say after years of hearing him go on about his past and how Krolia should have been his mate and that she should have stayed with the Galra. Good on her for leaving this psycho and for going to make a better life Ladnok thought to herself, she wish she did that instead of staying. The pups were paying close attention to what Sendak has to say after hearing their mom being mentioned and falling into Sendak's trap. Something the secret couple forgot to tell the pups was that Sendak was a liar and manipulative.

"We were friends for such a long time, things were starting to get serious and I was in love with her and she knew that. Your dad though didn't like that and so he did everything he could to hurt me and to ruin the relationship me and you mother had. We were supposed to be together and be mates but he took that away from me and your mother, she was happier here." Sendak tried to make it look like he was the victim in this situation which appears to have worked given that Acxa has started to cry.

"D-did Daddy really do t-that?" She sniffles and crawls her way to Ladnok to receive comfort, Lotor didn't move or say anything.

"I'm afraid so Acxa. Your father.." Sendak said it in disgust, "only cared about himself and was selfish and didn't consider other's feelings. Your mother was a good woman but was totally blindsided by him, being persuaded to leave me. Be glad that we have taken you in, your dad would have raised you to fail in life." Ladnok hopes the pups aren't falling for this but she cant say anything about it now.

"I've heard that their was a third pup who appears to be absent from here am I wrong?" Sendak speaks.

"Yeah. Keith." Lotor says like it burnt his tongue.

"Keith. Odd name. I take it that you're not very fond of him?"

"No. Keith is a baby and has been in the way for everything and just drags us behind. Dad said he and mom wanted a second liter and that they tried hard to only get Keith and how they wanted to keep him." Lotor glares as he talks about Keith.

"Tell me what he looks like."

"He's all black with purple eyes." He spits, then quieter, "like mama." Sendak hums for reasons the pups have no idea why.

"And I take it that they didn't come to you before to ask you how you felt?" Lotor shakes his head.

"I miss Keith!" Acxa whimpered.

"He's is a life form that was precariously brought into this world, sadly it isn't his fault and didnt ask for any of it. I know how you feel Lotor, I really do. Perhaps when he grows older and is able to run around thoughts may change. I will get him one day, but I will raise him for the better just like I'm going to be raising you two." After his statement all the wolves in the den heard off in the far distance one wolf howl following by many others creating a rally. They all knew it was the Blades. Acxa's ears dropped as she slowly laid down and trying to make sure to not cry again. Lotor held a scowl on his face as he tried to ignore the sounds of his family. Sendak and Haxus just tsked at the Blades.

Everyone was getting tired and were all getting comfortable. Sleeping was truly the only time the secret couple could be in contact with each other without any questions. Acxa was asleep in no time as Ladnok and Khas arranged themselves on either side of the pup. Sendak and Haxus were also getting situated on the other side of the den as they curled up close to each other. Lotor was with Acxa but he wasn't as close to as normal, he just laid down by himself for a while struggling to go to sleep. Thinking that everyone in the den is asleep he was slightly startled when he heard Sendak's deep voice.

"Lotor, you can come over here and sleep with us if you wish."

Lotor waited for a couple of seconds until he got up and slinked his way over to the two male wolves and settled in between them.

"You're safe with us Lotor. You will be raised well and you will succeed in life. Now, rest." Sendak whispers. Khas and Ladnok can both hear what is being said and are genuinely worried. Only having the pups for a day they can see that Acxa is the more naive of the two, but she is more trusting of Khas and Ladnok. Lotor on the other paw has a build up of hate in him towards his baby brother and Sendak was the first to notice and is now using that to his advantage. It's clear that Lotor is gonna be easier to mold to Sendak's likings, and with how quick it is going, its hard to say if he can be saved.

"Thank you. Good night Father." Lotor said as he went to sleep.

Chapter Text

3rd person POV

The poor pups are restless, being holed up in the pack den for a little over a week. But those were orders given by Sendak. After the first night the pups had to receive their Galra mark. Every member had to get one, usually when they are young pups, where the pack alpha has to bite at the wolf who's being marked upper back or the base of the neck to become a official member of the Galra Empire. No wolf, let alone a pup enjoys being marked. And it isn't different for Lotor or Acxa getting theirs from Sendak. And since they are from a different pack, they couldn't leave the den to ensure that their original Blade of Marmora scent is masked with the new Galra Empire one.

"How much long do we have to stay in this den?" Lotor whined.

"Until Sendak says its okay." Khas replies, Lotor gives a humf. "But it's so boring in here.."

"Well, you won't be getting out with that whining of yours." They turn towards the den's entrance to see the two hierarchies of the pack.

"That isn't necessary Haxus." Sendak growled as he finished entering the den. "But to answer your question Lotor, I believe you and Acxa are scented enough as a Galra to leave the den. Ladnok, watch them." He stepped to the side to allow room for Ladnok, Lotor, and Acxa to exit the den.

"Now," Sendak comes closer to Khas and Haxus follows, "the plan to get that last pup."

.
.
.
The two pups follow Ladnok with excitement in each step, they have been in cave fever for far too long.

"Where are we going?" Acxa asked. "Well, I figured you two wanted to meet those other pups right?" Both nodded their heads quickly, finally other pups to play with! The three continued their walk through the territory to a more populated area with several dens nearby, they spot three pups playing with one another. The all white pup stopped playing and turned in their general direction, this made the other two pups look up.

"Girls, come over and meet our new members." The three pups came bounding towards them, all with wagging tails. Ladnok nodded to the siblings. "I'm Lotor, and this is my sister, Acxa." "Hello!" Acxa said soon after.

A dark brown pup with yellow eyes stepped forward, "I'm Zethrid, and this is Ezor," she nodded towards a cream colored pup with also yellow eyes, "and that's Narti, she doesn't talk and can't see, but she can play just fine." Narti was an white wolf pup with red eyes.

"You're very pretty Narti, you all are." Acxa commented, which made Narti bashful. "Do you guys want to play with us?" Ezor asked, both Lotor and Acxa nodded and they all ran to where the three pups were playing at. Ladnok watched as the five pups played, not knowing what was happening at the den her secret mate was at.

.
.
.
"Wait, we're doing what?" Khas sat up, completely shocked at what he heard.

Haxus growled, "pay attention you idiot!" Khas held himself back from growling back when Haxus got up in his face. But he knows if he did that there would be consequences, and he learned that quickly when he joined the pack. He just hates being treated like this, to Ladnok too, the two definitely don't get treated with respect.

Sendak got even closer. "Keith. The youngest pup. The Blades, they're keeping him somewhere when he should be here with me!" He was getting worked up the longer he was talking. "I'm getting him, we're going to get that pup." He began to pace.

"But, why though? I mean, if we have two pups already why bother risking to get the other?" Khas asked. Why kill two parents and take two out of three of their pups, make them believe their parents did something wrong and for them to think you were the victim and you're the good guy? Why do such a sinister act? Was what Khas really wanted to ask. But even what he DID ask was the wrong thing to do. Sendak stopped pacing mid step and turned to where Khas was at and began making his way to him, hackles raised.

"Why? Why bother?! Obviously you don't understand you pathetic excuse of a wolf!" He then lunged at Khas, knocking him to the ground as teeth clamp down on his neck, being thrashed around. He would give almost anything to fight Sendak back, but he knows the outcome will be much worst than if he didn't. So he just takes it, being tossed around, feeling teeth in various places on his body, tasting blood coming from his nose, he takes everything without fighting back. Its only when Sendak steps away that Khas sits back up again. "The younger pup is supposedly an exact copy of Krolia. She was mine, and that pup is the closest thing I'm left with to have a piece of her! I will risk everything to get that pup if its the last thing I do." Sendak, along with Haxus make their way out the den. Sendak turned to Khas and scoffed. "A fool like yourself is lucky to even be standing right now, you being raised by humans; at this point you're no better than a domesticated pet." Then they left.

.
.
.
Ulaz is still working on trying to find a suitable medicine for Keith to take, so in the meantime Shiro and Adam have been staying in the den with Keith and getting little hours of sleep. With it being winter it is unsure whether it's a good thing or a bad thing based on whatever perspective you look through. Shiro's family have been saints. They help the new parents as best they can, being they help watch Keith while the two mates go sleep for a couple hours at Kolivan's den, or giving some food, mainly rabbits, and helping limit visitors as best they can. Many wolves have come and seen Keith and the news of the young pup, but after a while with constant visitors it gets a little bit overwhelming for the new parents. But of course they can make the exception with allied packs.

The Voltron pack are neighbors to the Blades and have frequent meetings with them discussions on boarders and food and most importantly, working together against the Galra Empire. Many times with these meetings it usually ends in having a feast with the joining packs. Shiro and occasionally Adam are at these meetings, but Keith came first so they stayed in. The big topic of this meeting was the recent events with Keith and what the Galra did. It was obvious to the Voltron pack that Shiro and Adam weren't at the meeting nor the feast. The two wolves are a favorite, especially with the pups that came along to the feasts. And of course, no one wants to say no to pups. So when Thace came by saying they had visitors the two males were pleasantly surprised to see seven pups cautiously poke their heads in the den.

Adam chuckles, "you may all come in, he's awake." Been given permission all the pups were still hesitant on coming in, they've never been in a Blades' den let alone Shiro and Adam's with a new pup. When they were all in they came up to the two males to greet them, their excitement evident from their wagging tails. Shiro and Adam have come to know and love these pups and were happy they visited. There were the Holt's, Matt and Katie or Pidge is what she prefers, they're from different liters with Pidge being the younger of the two. Hunk Garret was an only pup but his parents are talking about more pups in the future. Allura and Romelle are sisters with Allura being the older but both from the same liter, their father Alfor Altea is Voltron's pack leader. Then there were the McClain's, a large, spunky family that had Veronica and Lance, they have other and older pups but Shiro and Adam have only gotten to know these pups with Veronica being the oldest. All the pups were close in age, Allura, Romelle, and Matt being five. Veronica, Lance, and Hunk, and Pidge being three. Pidge was the first to speak. "What's his name?" "This is Keith." Adam replied.

"He's so small, even smaller than Pidge." Lance said, Shiro smiled. "That's because Keith is only a baby."

"He is quite adorable." Said Allura, even as a young pup she is she has an impressive vocabulary.

"When can we tussle with him?" Matt said enthusiastically. Adam replies, "Not until a couple of years, you'll still be bigger than him by then."

"That's okay! He'll still be our friend!"

All the adults smiled at Lance's comment. It reassured Adam and Shiro that Keith will have some extra support for his future. During this Keith had been watching everyone as they spoke about him, soon enough the little pup started yawning as he wiggled closer to Adam.

"Alright everyone, let's start heading back and let Keith rest." Thace spoke. One by one each pup said their goodbyes to the small family and began leaving the den. Having the slightly older pups around felt nice, and to think they get watch Keith grow made them so excited, that was on their mind when they closed their eyes and joined Keith in a nap.

.
.
.
"You guys are so fun!" Zethrid laughed as all five of them were panting in a pile, Narti rumbled in agreement.

"Yeah, I can't remember the last time I had this much fun." Lotor said with a smile.

"Why's that?" Zethrid asked, Lotor spoke again, "At the Blades there wasn't as many pups our age, they were either too young to play rough with or they were older and didn't want to play with us."

"Ah, it's sort of like that here except there are several pups that are our age but they just don't like us."

"That isn't very nice." Acxa responded.

"You said you were from the Blades, so why are you guys here?" Ezor questioned, Narti growled a bit at her. "I mean, sorry, that was kinda a rude question, you don't have to answer that if you don't want to." She said in a flustered.

The mood had shifted, the two new pups looked at each other before Acxa reassured her that it was alright. Lotor then spoke.

"Our den was attacked by stranger wolves. We had to escape and hide from them, our parents didn't make it."

"That's when Ladnok found us and brought us here." Acxa added in. Narti step closer to Acxa and nuzzled her as she can hear rumbling from her chest. Neither Acxa nor Lotor mentioned Keith, but for different reasons. Lotor knew if he brought up Keith then Acxa will start to cry, and Acxa knew bringing up Keith will make Lotor angry.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Ezor said sadly. Zethrid came closer, "We all also had our losses. My family was also attacked by stranger wolves and I lost my parents and my little brother. Ezor's parents were slowly dieing from illness and her older sisters off to get some help but they never returned. And Narti, she was from a different pack, she never got to know them because they abandoned her and she was found by our boarder patrol team. That's why none of the other pups here like us, because we're so different and broken."

"You have us now. We'll be your friends." Lotor spoke softly, all the pups smiled. Just then Ladnok came up to tell them they had to return back to the den, they said their goodbyes and they started their trek back.

.
.
.
He was hoping after what happened earlier with Sendak would be done and over with, he wanted nothing to do with that wolf, but alas, that wasn't the case. He could hear Haxus talking to Sendak as they were approaching the den.

"Alpha, is he really worth the time and effort to be in the discussion of such an important plan?" The two wolves enter the den, Sendak not responding to Haxus. "Up." He orders and Khas stands up.

"I plan on sending a member down to the Blades territory and find where they're hiding the pup."

"Wouldn't a group attract attention and put them more on guard?"

"You're still stupid enough to question -?!"

"Enough." Sendak interrupts Haxus. "It'll be a solo mission."

Like the stubborn wolf he is, Khas dares to oppose this whole plan.

"It'll be a suicide mission."

There's a pause in the air.

"That's the case if you make it one." Another pause.

"Alpha?" Sendak ignores Haxus and comes face to face with Khas.

"That's why you're going to do this mission."

Chapter Text

This isn't a chapter but just a little update:

As of today I've posted some art of Shiro, Adam, and Keith for this fic on my Tumblr. They're just some line art, but if you want to see what the boys look/will look like go to my Tumblr @xshydevilcryx.

The ones of Keith are him slightly aged up than he currently is right now, but he's still pretty young, age 2-6.

In like two chapters he'll be older than he currently is, probably will be 2 years old. I want to apologize for the slow updates, I do struggle with severe mental health and in school so its hard for me to get chapters out.

Anyway I hope you all the best.