---

Yes.

A torrent of grandchildren. Pups amuck. Baptized in the yapping, excitable continuation of her line, interrupted only by the occasional spasm of pain that blossomed from the base of her tail where a wound continued to fester. Harper had been absent for months, now, leaving Elysium without their primary healer; Valeska was too stubborn to let anyone else have a good look at her injury, hoping beyond hope that her half-sister might yet return, but it seemed a lost cause.

And so it ached.

Nevertheless, she was delighted to spend the days mothering Dimitri and Fiadh's litter, marveling at how quickly they grew with each passing day and remembering fondly the time when her own children were so young. It seemed as if she had blinked and suddenly they were all grown up, pursuing their own passions, raising pups, leaving home... it was bittersweet, but she had always known it was the nature of things.

Being a grandparent wasn't so bad either.

As Valeska wandered the meadow, she caught a familiar scent on the wind - like Dimitri's, like Sreda's, but more fragrant - more pronounced - very floral -

Violet!

The High Priestess trotted toward the direction of her scent, tail painfully motionless but spirit a-wagging as she did.