Sleep was a thing of the past. Xander and Wintermoon walked around like zombies. Taking care of five toddlers and one eight year old took up every minute of their day. Father Janus, Darkwind and Firesong helped all they could, but the boys were still wary around anyone except Xander and Wintermoon.

Ghost spent most of her day studying with Firesong. It wasn't unusual for her to come home so exhausted she barely had enough energy to feed herself. She'd crawl into Xander's lap and let him feed her. She seldom made it through an entire meal without falling asleep with her head tucked under Xander's chin.

The boys would watch avidly, their dark eyes never blinking. Xander and Wintermoon got the shock of their lives when they came home from scouting a potential threat and found Ghost curled up on a pillow with all of the boys crouched around her. They all took turns feeding their new sister, and when she finally started dropping off, they curled around her to keep her warm.

The two men exchanged grins; their family was finally starting to come together.

**********

Xander jumped off the balcony of their ekele when he received Ghost's mind call. His wings flared out and he darted through the trees, flying amongst the branches as fast as he dared. Below, he could see Wintermoon running full tilt down the path, only slightly behind him.

The trees were bunched tightly together in this part of the Vale, causing Xander to twist and turn, to avoid catching his wings. As they neared the clearing where Ghost was studying with Darkwind and Firesong, Xander could clearly hear growls and snarls. Cursing under his breath, he tucked his wings in tight to his body and dove into the clearing.

Ghost was on the ground, both of her hands over her eyes, screaming in pain. Darkwind and Firesong lay crumpled on the ground near her, singe marks covering both of the men. All five of the boys had begged to be allowed to watch practice today; they loved watching their big sister juggle fireballs. Now all five of them had shifted into their wolf forms and were keeping several scouts and mages away from their sister and her teachers.

Xander landed in front of his children just as Wintermoon burst into the clearing. The two men stood side by side, facing the angry crowd.

"What is going on here?" Xander asked loudly.

Darkstone, one of the few mages who still had problems with Xander being Champion of Kal'enel, stepped forward. "Your 'daughter' tried to pull power from the Heartstone. It was too much for her to handle, that is why it is forbidden for students to touch the Heartstone. We came to stop her and those 'animals' attacked us! You brought Change Children into our Vale! That is in direct violation of our law! Not even the fact that you are Champion puts you above our laws!"

Darkstone pointed at the wolf cubs and said to the scouts, "Confine them. And get a healer for Darkwind and Firesong. Who knows what that mongrel did to them? This is why outsiders should not be allowed in our Vale!"

Iceblade pushed his way through the ever growing mob, "What is the meaning of this, Darkstone? Who died and made you Elder of this Vale? You have no business and no right to give orders here!"

The low growls coming from Xander's chest increased in volume as Iceblade and Darkstone started yelling at each other. Wintermoon, normally the calmest man in the Vale, wasn't doing much better controlling his own anger. He'd had had enough of these, his people.

"Silence!" Wintermoon's voice rang throughout the clearing, and the arguing men fell quiet. "I am sick of this bickering. And since our children are not welcome here, neither are we." Turning to his mate he said, "Get the children back to the ekele and start packing. We will not stay in this place for one more night."

Xander smiled, he'd been wanting to move for a while now, but the Elders had always talked him out of it before, not this time. He knelt in front of Ghost and pried her hands away from her eyes. They were both badly burned. Using some of the skills he'd learned from Father Janus while the elder priest had been staying with them, he used his link to the earth to heal Ghost's injuries. Moving quickly, he did the same for Firesong and Darkwind. Once the two mages had regained consciousness, he asked them what had happened.

Firesong grinned ruefully, "Ghost is much stronger than I gave her credit for, and her connection to the Earth is much like yours. When she linked to a ley line, the Heartstone came looking for her. She wasn't ready for that much power and it backlashed. It wasn't her fault."

Xander quickly explained what was going on and told the two lovers that he and his family were leaving the Vale. The two mages communicated silently with each other and then grinned. Darkwind smiled at Xander and said, "Do you have room for two more?"

Xander nodded, "For you two? Always."

**********

Xander sent the boys out to play with Tarlac while he and Ghost packed. Darkwind and Firesong took care of their own things while Wintermoon dealt with the Elders of the Vale. Xander's hearing was more than capable of picking up the arguments taking place in the clearing around the Heartstone. The Elders were basically having a fit about the Champion and their two strongest mages moving out of the Vale, but they did think that something had to be done about the boys. Wintermoon was the proverbial immovable object, he didn't argue or try to change their minds, he simply told them that he and his family were leaving.

One of the mages suggested a spell that would prevent the boys from shifting to their animal forms, Wintermoon very calmly told him that any such action would result in immediate, physical retribution.

Ghost contacted Wintermoon and told him they were ready to go. Wintermoon said goodbye to Iceblade and walked away from the meeting, ignoring the shouts that rang out. Xander was waiting for him at the base of the ekele they had lived in since their bonding ceremony. They held each other for a moment before joining their family and friends on the trail. They left K'Sheyna Vale for the last time, and never looked back.

**********

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