Solaire simply nodded to his comment, continuing to walk beside him, "It won't be. You paid so the least I can do is help carry." she said, knowing that she had nothing to pay with even if he'd wanted her to. She still felt oddly for him paying nonetheless. When they entered the house the kits all gasped, looking aro und with large eyes. They'd never seen the inside of anything but the building the panthers had offered and fox huts so the appearance of a human like home shocked them. Wryned began to race in but Solaire barely managed to get her hand out in time, "No! Slow down. This isn't one of our huts. You can break things here, Wryn." she reminded him, Wriely squirming in her grip as well. The little boy calmed down though and started off again in a calmer fashion.

Siloh heard the door, smelled the mix of male panther with the female and male foxes permeate the room, but continued to hold Contessa's chin up, still looked at her. The look in her eyes was too tempting but he held back, running his thumb over her lips with a soft sigh, "Sorry." he whispered ad he turned away, placing an arm around her shoulders. He couldn't feel right, being where he was, with kissing her when her brother and the children that had comin inside with him were in the room. "Hey, Sol." he called, and responded with calling him Sy.

The vixen set down the tiny kit who after looking around did her best to totter over to where her older brother's voice had come from but in just that small space she seemed to get lost, standing and looking around in confusion as her sister went into the kitchen with the groceries. Solaire was speaking to Kristoff, "I don't want to sound stupid but I'm not sure I'm going to know how to work your stove. We used fire stoves. Sometimes not even that. Sometimes it was just a fire pit outside."

Contressa let out a low growl of disappointed. She felt the same as he did, she didn't want to creep out his sister and her brother. And it wasn't appropriate for them to kiss in front of the kits either. She sighed, then smiled bright at Wyn, Hannah and Wriley. "Hi gang! How was shopping?" She asked them, getting up to help them with the bags.

Kristoff smiled at them as they rushed inside. "Don't worry about them breaking anything. We don't have a whole lot for them to break." He said. As he shut the door, he caught a whiff of a familiar stench that had his stomach turning. His amber eyes scanned the around around their house, looking to see if he could see Brenda. Shaking his head, he shut the door tight, locking it. It was rare for him to lock the door. He trotted in after Solaire, giving Contessa a look as he passed them by. "Oh it's not hard. All you have to do is turn this knob to right and the flame comes on. The more you turn it to the right the bigger the flame." He explained as he showed her, turning the switch slightly to the right.

The kits rushed to Contessa as she spoke, Wriley following the two older ones to crawl up on The couch in between Siloh and the panther. It wasn't because she didn't like them being close, the was too young to know what their contact meant, it was because she liked Contessa after the woman had pet her ears, "Sista goht lohts 'a food fah brekfahst." she answered quietly in her distinct austrailian accent, smiling at her as one of her large ears twitched and both turned sideway sheepishly. Siloh chuckled at the girl's obvious liking to Contessa, "Wow, you should feel special. She's one of the shiest kits Ive ever known. It's special when she speaks to someone, even me and Solaire, her own family."

"Oh! Oh, that's so convenient. I'm now wondering why we clung so tightly to the past and the old ways." Solaire responded excitedly after having been shown the way to work the stove. After finding the proper bowls, utensils, and pans she set to cooking their breakfast, her hands moving quickly. She never paused to think about what she needed done next in her tasks and soon she had pancakes, waffles, and special French toast cooking and was anxiously watching the bacon sizzle. She'd seen it cooked but never done it herself, she was hoping she didn't ruin the small amount of meat she was making with the breakfast.

Contessa rubbed the little kit's ears as she smiled at her. "Really? I do feel special. " Tessa said, nuzzling the little girl. She smiled at all the kits, her tails swishing gently behind her. She looked up at Siloh with her amber eyes. She not only saw her mate but also the man who she wanted to have cubs with. She had a wide smile on her face as she pulled Hannah and Wryn into her lap with Wriley beside them. "I'm so happy I got to met you all." She said, nuzzling all the kits around her.

Kristoff watched as she set to work on the food. He was amazed at her cooking skills. She worked quickly and without making a mess. He moved in closer to her, wanting to feel her against him again. He stood behind her, breathing her in. His tail swished behind him slight, showing his attraction to her. He let out a low purr before moving away from her. "You're quite skilled at that. Tessa can't cook to save her soul and neither can I." He said, leaning against the counter, picking up a fruit to eat.

Siloh nodded, "She didn't say her first word until she was three." When she gathered the kits up his own smile turned thoughtful as he tried to picture how their kits and cubs would look. It was interesting, placing panther ears and tail on the slender elven body of a fox and placing ears and tail of a fox on the thicker body of a panther. The image of fox colors in a panther's face and vise versa. Even if it wasn't often accepted the mixes were beautiful. He moved Wriley into his lap to slide closer to Contessa, "And we're all infinitely grateful we got to meet you." he responded but his eyes widened, "Wriley!" he chastised gently, reaching for her hands and shaking his head. The girl, too young to have any real control over her tail had been trying to catch it but when she finally had she started sucking the end of it. "You'll eat the color off." he warned, a false statement but it got the reaction he wanted when she stopped trying to grab it back again.

Solaire felt the heat coming from him faintly as he stood behind her, her smile growing a little as she flipped a pancake, she wanted to turn and wrap her arms around him but she'd burn the food. The purr, just the sound, was enough to make her shiver pleasantly when he moved away, the tip of her tail wagging slightly as she closed her eyes a moment. The vixen turned around as soon as she could to look at him, "It helps when you're from a mostly patriarchal society." she smiled, "All the females older than six know how to be what humans call stay-at-home-mothers."

Contessa giggled at Wriley as she tried to suck on her tail. "It's true." She said, giving her a wink. Her nose tingled with the smells of breakfast being cooked. "Oh...that smells so good! I am starving!" She said. "What about you guys?" She asked. She looked back up at Siloh. He looked so good with a little one in his lap. She could just imagine their little ones sitting in his lap. She bit her lip, wanting that more than anything else in the world. "Should we go see if it's done?" She asked the little ones sitting on her lap.

Kristoff smiled at her, wanting her more than anything. "Is that so? Panther women are as strong willed as the men. So most of the time we share the chores." He said. He watched her, aching to take her in his arms again. He growled softly and pushed away from the counter. He encircled her in his large arms, pressing a hot kiss to her lips. He held her for a moment, kissing her and pressing her slight body close to his.

Sily chuckled as Hannah spoke up, "Of course it smells good! Solaire's cooking!" She could tell by the specific smell of strawberries and peanut butter being cooked. They all agreed to being starved though, chiming to go see if it was done, the young kits bounced at the thought of getting to eat.

"Our vixens are sometimes strong willed-" She'd started to explain that it was very rare for a vixen to be as strong willed as she was but her thoughts, and her sentence, was forgotten when she suddenly found his arms around her and his lips pressed to hers. Her body, having only once before been kissed like this, reacted strongly, stronger than before. Her eyes slipped closed and she heard the sound of her hand absently dropping the pancake turner on the counter. Both hands slid around him and traveled up his back as she pressed closer to him, going to her toes to lessen the gap in height. The warming of his skin on hers everywhere they touched was overwhelming, bringing a bright blush to her cheeks. The warmth as he pulled her closer to his body sparked a heat from within her that felt like it might burn through her. She was sure that her tail was bound to be swishing back and forth, wagging. Faintly she wished they were alone in the house, wondering just where this kiss would lead if that were the case. Would he end it and then go about breakfast as he normally would or would he turn the stove off and take her to his room for purposes very obvious.

Contessa was first in the kitchen. She stopped abruptly, throwing her arms out from her sides to keep the kits from entering. She had a blush on her face at the scene before her. It was passionate and adorable all at once. Contessa cleared her throat, watching for the two to move away from each other.

Kristoff held onto Solaire for a moment longer, his strong hands gripping onto her. He heard his sister clear her throat at the entryway to the kitchen. He pulled away from her, kissing her nose before moving to the other side of the counter. "Breakfast is almost ready." He said, a smirk on his face.

Siloh followed the kits, keeping them from wandering off but seeing Contessa's blush as she blocked the children he moved them back a little and frowned as he stepped in from of them, "Everything alright?" He asked, having not seen the couple in the kitchen but he caught the crimson in his sister's face and the way she was too intent on what she was doing with the food, the smirk on Kristoff's face further fueled his suspicion on what Contessa had seen. He frowned at the man as he moved to his sister, looking at what she'd had cooking.

Solaire jumped in surprise and her face turned an instantaneous crimson when she heard someone clear their throat by the door. She quickly turned back to the stove, trying to clear her mind as she slid the omelets onto a plate, followed by the other foods, "It's done." She corrected him, glancing over at the door. When her brother came over she let her ears fall sideways, nearly against her head as they normally would when she was content. "Grab a plate and server yourself. I don't deliver to reynards or vixens." A beat later she added, "Or.... adult panthers." She turned around a plate in her hand, "What do you call your adults anyway? Do you have specific names like we do for males and females of our kind?"

Contessa smiled at the kits as she helped them settle at the table. She glanced up at her brother, who smiled back at her. The question on her mind was answered by his smile. Krist never smiled that way before, not with a woman. He had found his mate. It made her happy to think that he lone panther brother had found someone he wanted to mate with for the rest of his life. She caught the frown Siloh made at him and hurried to help pass out the food. "Thank you Solaire, this is amazing." She said, smiling at the other girl. She knew how she must be feeling at the moment.

Kristoff smiled at Solaire until her brother came in. He caught the other man's frown and forced back a snarl. He shook himself clear of any aggression the other male may have stirred up in him. "Just panther for the males and the females are she-panthers." He said as he grabbed a plate and sat next to Hannah. He took a deep breath of the food, smelling it before he started to dig in. "Man..I haven't had food like this since mom." He said, looking up at his sister. She smiled softly at him, nodding in agreement.

Solaire nodded, patting Siloh's shoulder and pushing him toward the table after he'd gotten his own plate and still hung around her, "I'm fine, go sit down." She mumbled at him, frowning as her face slowly returned to it's normal color. She'd caught the change in Kristoff's eyes when Siloh frowned and she wanted to apologize to him somehow for the reynard's idiocy but her brother was just worried about her. They both knew that Kristoff wouldn't know that most vixens, when it came to kissing and touching in public as mates, were more reserved but she was enjoying being treated differently. She wasn't like normal foxes. She smiled proudly from the compliments to her food, "Thank you very much. Both of you." She said as she got her own plate and settled beside Kristoff, close enough their hips and thighs touched, beginning to eat herself.

Siloh didn't stay by her side long after she pushed him toward the table and he settled next to Contessa and looked at Kristoff, "Sorry." He said, glancing down at his plate as he began eating. He hoped Kristoff could understand. It was easy to be over protective of your sister when she was one of only two of your family members left alive. He looked at Contessa with a smile then back at his food, a sudden thought hitting him, "Solaire, where'd you put..." He glanced at Wriley, "The gold whistle?" but the vixen shook her head, but answered him with a soft voice, beginning to simply pick at what was on her plate without really eating it, "Kristoff has it. I'm not allowed to have it yet, Siloh." She wasn't looking at him so he dropped the subject.

"Don't worry about it." Kristoff said. He understood how the other man felt. He also felt the same when he saw Tessa with him. Kristoff held back a purr as she sat next to him close enough for them to touch slightly. He loved having her close to him, he wanted in his lap. They were in his home, so him being affectionate with her wasn't anything strange. He ate his plate of food without another word. He did wonder what Siloh would say to him if Soliare told him that they have chosen each other as mates. For now, Krist didn't care. He was happy, he had found the woman who made him feel whole. He had no idea that Brenda was outside his house plotting to kidnap his mate.

Contessa watched the two men as she ate. Males were impossible sometimes, she thought to herself. She looked up at Solaire and smiled at her. "No thank you for this wonderful food. I'm an awful cook." She said with a joking smile. When the two siblings spoke of a gold whistle, Contessa was curious. "What is the gold whistle?" She asked, unaware of what it was and what it meant. Her brother looked at her and gave her a shrug, he wasn't sure of it's true meaning either.

The two foxes looked at each other, the kits giving the panthers an odd look but Siloh spoke up to explain as he stared at his sister's sad expression, "The gold whistles are the equivalent to the human's crowns. The leader of the troops wears the gold whistle as a symbol of power, honor, and justice. His mate wears the second to symbolize compassion, patience, and protection. The whistles are the only two that can call all of the three troops. My whistle will only call red foxes. If Wriley was old enough hers would only call Fennecs." He pet his sister's hair as he continued, "Anyway, the mated pair always has at least two kits. When the younger, or female if they're twins like myself and Solaire, of the two is bound to their mate they get their mother's whistle. The older, or male, gets their father's when he, or she if they were both females, steps up to the position of leader and his, or her, mate gets the other whistle."

He looked at Contessa first to see how she was taking their customs, wondering if she would accept the whistle. He then looked to his sister who had set down her fork but she seemed calm enough, her ear and tail were even relaxed so Siloh continued, "Solaire was supposed to get our mother's yesterday but the reynard she was given as her mate was killed." The male was surprised when his sister stood from the table, "Excuse me." She said softly, ears laid back flat enough it was hart to tell they were even out at all as she walked from the room. Siloh nearly stood from the table when he heard Solaire struggle to open the front door and it closed.

Contessa looked up at her brother as Siloh spoke of their whistles. They didn't really have anything like that. Instead their parents and all the tribe leaders before them bore a mark that would appear when they were ready to lead the tribe. Right now, there was no panther with said marking. Kristoff's ears laid flat, a sign of his disappointment in himself, his anger towards his parent's death as well as his sadness.

"I see. That's..interesting. I.." Tessa trailed off as Solaire excused herself from the table and headed out. She looked up at her brother when she heard the door open and close.

Kristoff had been listening and taking in all of this new information when Solaire stood and took off out of the room. Kristoff stood quickly as he heard the front door open and close. He glanced at his sister then at Siloh, wondering if he should go after her. After a long moment, he growled to himself and went after her. When he reached the outside of the house he had no idea where she went. He could still smell her, as well as someone else. He stood there trying to figure out the familiar smell. When he realized who it was, his heart dropped and his hears perked straight up. "Brenda..." He growled with intense hate.


Brenda had stalked the little vixen as she had come out of HER mate's house. She stalked her as she walked, it was almost like the vixen was in a daze. Brenda was so filled with hate and anger at the vixen that had been sleeping with her mate, she wasn't sure if she should attack her or just kill her. Brenda decided to kill the vixen, but she had to wait until the other woman wandered deep into the woods in order to attack her. She couldn't do it on tribe land.

Siloh frowned when Kristoff left, looking at Contessa then to his plate, "Maybe that wasn't the best topic." he commented. He'd forgotten how much more attached his sister was to their mother than he. "What were you saying?"

There's a reason why the fox tribe never made efforts to make modern establishments. Foxes had a tendency to feel trapped if they became stressed in a surrounding that had no airflow of outside air. They needed the scent of trees and forest to feel calm so like most of her kind would she started for the nearest patch of trees, shifting as she went. She could smell a panther near but inside their borders the scent didn't seem out of place, it raised no alarms for her. Instead she focused on the smell of earth and pine, trying to get rid of the last memory of her mother. The thought that she already accepted this land as her home surprised her out of her grim thoughts though she knew she shouldn't have been so surprised. She had found her mate here, of course she would settle here quickly. Thinking about Kristoff eased her a little but she still didn't turn from her destination of those far off pines, intending to get as close to them as she could without leaving the panther's lands.

Contessa frowned as her brother took off after Solaire. She shook her head, Kristoff was head over heels for the vixen. She looked back up to Siloh with a soft smile. "Oh, I was just going to say that I don't think our parents had something like that. They just had mate and leader marks." She commented.


Kristoff broke out into a run, shifting before his paws hit the ground. He followed Solaire's scent, hers being the most important to him. He had to find her before Brenda did. He raced into the woods, hoping he'd find her soon.


Brenda was shifted into her primal form. She loved being in her she-panther form. She stalked the vixen, who seemed not to be aware of her being so close to her. Brenda sneered as she continued to follow the fox. Th vixen was falling into her trap and Brenda was going to make sure that the girl paid for stealing away her Kristoff.

Siloh blinked, "Leader marks?" He asked, confused, "Will you explain about those?" He didn't understand the thing about marks with her tribe, not that it bothered him a lot, since his tribe never altered their skin. To alter your skin is to alter your coat. That's what all fox kits were taught from a very young age.

Solaire wasn't oblivious to the panther behind her but she felt no fear from it. She thought perhaps the panther following her was just a curious one. She wouldn't be surprised if there were a few panthers that wanted to get close to the foxes, simply to look at them more, study them a little. For a second she began to slow as she thought about it but she was brought from her thoughts rudely as pain shot up from her right forepaw. An earsplitting yelp came from her mouth and she stumbled to a stop, staring at the thorn through her small paw and the blood that was already welling out around it.

Contessa tilted her head slightly, her ears twitching. "Mm.. they're marks that appear, by magic I'm believe, that marks the leaders of the tribe. It's the same with mate marks. True mates become branded with each other's marks. They only appear on the skin and never the fur." She explained. She wondered if they were to have a mate mark. She felt a stab of disappointment at the thought of not having his mate mark on her.

Kristoff caught a scent of blood. It wasn't strong, but faint and it was Solaire's. He growled, his anger flaring at Brenda. If she hurt a single hair on his mate he will murder her. Kristoff took off like a bat out of hell and sped towards his mate and Brenda.


Brenda saw that the vixen and slowed to a stop. Her blood was in the air, she watched the fox for a moment. She was waiting for the perfect time to strike. Brenda always liked to play with her food, and Brenda was going to make sure that the small fox was going to be played with. When the girl yelped and jumped back, Brenda pounced. She knocked the fox down onto the ground, a massive paw on the smaller mammals back.

Kristoff heard a far off yelp, his fear and anger fueled him. He knew that sound, he knew it was Solaire. He raced as fast as his panther muscles could take him. He dodged low branches, rocks and brushes as he raced towards the yelp.

Siloh head tilted with hers, one ear perked and the other sideways, "That's so interesting. Is there a particular shape that the marks take form of?" He asked. He was amazed by her culture. It was so different from his own he couldn't believe their lands bordered. Then again, they never had come into prolonged contact before now.

Another yelp, one closer to a human-like scream was ripped from Solaire's throat as she was forced to the ground, winded by the weight that was pinning her down, crushing her into the ground. She squirmed, whining and yipping, trying to see who or what was on her. She was suddenly becoming aware this panther wasn't just curious, this one wanted her dead. She started trying even harder to get away, kicking, scratching and clawing at the ground, trying to find some footing that would pull her out from under the weight that pinned her down.

When she got out of this she wouldn't be leaving the house alone, she wouldn't be going anywhere alone. The only panthers she'd give the benefit of the doubt would be Kristoff and Contessa.

Contessa smiled at him when he tilted his hers. It was an adorable movement. "They're unique to the couple. Usually taking shape of what represents them the best. " She explained. "My Mother and Father had matching marks in a shape of paws that made a heart as well as a crescent moon with tribal swirls around it." Tessa tried to describe her parent's marks. They were beautiful and she always admired them and wanted her own markings. "Is that strange?" She asked him, worried that he wasn't fond of the tradition.

Brenda snarled at the fox beneath her paw. The welp was already whining and she hadn't even dug in her claws yet. Brenda pressed down more on her prey, breathing heavy on the back of the fox. She then lifted her paw and then swiped at the vixen, an evil gleam in her eye. She snarled and hissed at the fox, she hated the foxes. She hated that weak minded sister of Krist whined her way to get them to stay. Brenda couldn't believe the lack of outrage by the tribe when the foxes came into their lands. Brenda wanted to make sure that all the foxes know that they are not welcomed here.

Kristoff panted as he raced, pushing his body to it's limits. He heard a human like scream. It was loud, meaning he was close. He exploded through some pushes and into a clearing. What he saw filled him with rage, Brenda, his ex, was playing a game of cat and mouse with Solaire. He let out a raged roar, making Brenda whirl around and glare at him.

"That's amazing." He said, interested by her culture. Her question drew a soft laugh from him, "I think strange is the wrong word. New would be better. I've never heard of anything like it but that doesn't make it strange or bad." He said looking at her hands and taking one, "But I do wonder, since we're not the normal traditional panther male and female, will we still have mate marks?"

Solaire's whines stuttered to a halt as the air was forces slowly from her lungs, still clawing at the ground as terror began to seep into her mind. She pushed herself back up as the weight was lifted from her, hopping around to face the panther and only getting a second's worth of a growl out before the swipe sent her sprawling. She'd been caught off guard with it though she knew she should've seen it coming but her head was still fuzzy. For a second she thought about pretending she was unconscious but a roar got her to her feet and streaking out of there as fast as she could which was still too slow to keep herself from being caught. The roar had been Kristoff, she could tell by the waft of his scent that had filled her nose when he came upon him but she'd rather get out of there and let him take care of the other panther before finding her than get injured more by staying.

Contessa gnawed on her lip at his question. She was happy that he didn't find her tribe's marks disgusting in anyway. "I don't know. Either way, I am glad we are mates." She smiled at him. It was true, even though she always wanted a mate and bear her mate's mark, she was happy to have found him. Mark or no mark, she was his mate and she was hers. "I wonder if those two are ok?" She pondered aloud about Solaire and Kristoff.


Brenda growled as her prey got away from her. She whirled on Kristoff, the bastard was actually pissed at her. "Why are you protecting her?!" Brenda growled out at him as she circled him. "We're suppose to be mates!" She hissed at him.

Kristoff saw that Solaire was able to get away. She was smart and he was proud that she had enough sense to leave him here and go hide. He growled back at Brenda. She was delusional and far too gone to leave alone. She snapped at him, trying to bite him. "We were never mates. I can't stand you!" he growled back at her. That comment caused Brenda to lose her mind. She howled at him before she struck, trying to kill him. He easily overpowered her, getting a few deep claw marks from her. He hissed and then bit down on her neck, breaking it. Brenda's eyes grew wide, a howl escaping her before her body became lifeless and slumped to the ground. Kristoff stood over her body, blood dripping from his fangs. He panted heavily, staring at her body, he let out a pained howl of mourning. He may not have liked Brenda at all, but killing a follow tribe member wasn't easy.

Siloh wrapped an arm around her, "Well, I hope to have your mark. I don't know anything about what my mark might look like." He didn't have to say why. "I'm glad we're mates too. I never thought in a hundred years that my mate would be a panther but I'm glad." Her question got him wondering too and he stood, offering his hand to her, "The kits will be alright in here. Let's go check on them." He smiled at the three kits, piled on each other asleep.

Solaire had no idea where she was going as she heard the pained howl but she picked up speed as terror filled her head, knowing that Kristoff had killed the other panther. She panicked and raced off randomly, changing direction only when she smelled another animal near. She feared that she'd some how made Kristoff angry or gotten him in trouble because he killed a tribe member. That the truce between her tribe and his was now over because a panther had been killed over a pitiful fox. She was so blinded by the fear that she didn't even see the creek until she was coughing and choking on water, drenched with the freezing liquid and she didn't even take the time to shake the water off her coat before she was running again. When she finally stopped she had come to her tribe's lands and had wedged herself under the burnt remains of her family's house, trembling with the chill of the water and the fear. Only then did she turn to removing the torn only to find it gone, pounded through and out of her paw from running so she licked it clean of the water and blood, resting her head on a rock with a sigh. She tried to settle into sleep but she couldn't stop her mind from racing into all the problems, deaths, and hurts that the events of today could cause.

Contessa blushed slightly at him. He was so sweet and always knew the right things to say at the right moment. She looked at the kits who were all piled in a cozy pile asleep, it brought a smile to her face. "Yeah, but I don't we should stay away too long. It wouldn't be good if they woke up and we are gone." She said as she took his hand and rose up to him.




Kristoff shook off the blood that drenched his face. He had to get the scent of Brenda off him. He needed to find Solaire and as quick as he could. He sniff the air around him for her. He got her scent, it was faint as it was being overpowered by Brenda's blood. He took off in the direction of her scent, racing to find her before she got too far. He had started to get confused at some parts, her scent crossing over itself several times.

He paused at a creek, her scent seemed to have been washed away. He dunked his head into the water, washing away the blood. He picked his head up, able to focus his sense of smell. He picked up her scent again and went off after her.

Siloh nodded, "Of course not." "He led her outside before looking at her as he shifted, sniffing along the ground. He found his sister's scent quickly and looked back at Contessa to see if she was following his lead or if she wanted to follow behind as a human.

Solaire shivered as she curled further back into her tiny shelter after the breeze brought Kristoff's scent to her. Her mind was still filled with terror that he'd hate her and for a second her heart stopped as she wondered if he was looking for her to get rid of her but she shook herself. Kristoff would never kill her. There was no way. She didn't know if he was angry or not though and was too afraid to find out.