<15>

	Without Starla's scent to follow, Carson was utterly lost in the Gilnean countryside.  He had lived in the country all his life, but since the loss of his family he hadn't dared to return to his old manor, ashamed of the horrid memories it brought back.  With sheer instinct guiding him, however, it was the only place he could think to go, and so he darted off as quick as a bolt of lightning toward the East.

* * * * *

	"Hmm, your guess is as good as mine, kiddo," Diana mumbled as she tucked her chin into her hand in thought.

	"That's pretty much what he said," Starla added with a sharp exhale, breathless after her... relatively succinct retelling of her experiences with Carson.  It was odd to think she had no qualms telling Diana about her romantic trysts with him, but the mage seemed to act like it was nothing out of the ordinary.

	"Well," Diana started with a sigh.  "The only one with our answers is my sister, but she won't return my letters."  Her green eyes shifted back to Starla.  "Any idea where she might be now?"

	"As late as it is, she's probably back home in Stormwind.  Why?"

	Diana steeled her gaze as her hands lowered and quietly clenched into fists.  "Because I think you're onto something.  I walked away when Dorothea did and chose to do nothing, but... I miss my dad and my sister both.  If we can figure out the missing piece to this, maybe the Shadowclaw Pack doesn't have to be so terribly fractured."  A tight-jawed smile crossed her face as she looked back to Starla.  "Touch my arm, and whatever you do, don't let go."

	Starla didn't hesitate as she latched her claw onto the mage's robe... and without warning, a bright flash of light engulfed the two, and they were gone.

* * * * *

	Through the dark woods, the towering form of the impressive manor loomed far into the distance upon a high cliff.  The instinct-driven male continued to careen between the trees, heedless of wildlife as he barreled toward the front door.  With a booming roar, Carson burst through the front door and skidded to a sharp halt, stopping himself within a grand-looking foyer.  His breathing was heavy as he slowly lifted himself back on two feet to take in his new locale, and gradually his humanity seemed to return.

	The once-grand manor had fallen into heavy disrepair over the past sixteen years.  Everything remained just as he'd remembered it, though many of the old portraits and furniture had either fallen or been damaged by leaks in the roof.  The carpets were frayed and tattered, but all in all it didn't look like anyone else had been there since he'd abandoned it.

	The clear-headed Carson quickly grew fearful once more, realizing there was no trace of his granddaughter.  "Starla?  Starla!?" he began to call and started to comb the manor from top to bottom, hoping against hope he might catch at least a small trace of her scent in the air....

* * * * *

	In the middle of a lamp lit street in Stormwind, a bright flash briefly illuminated the area, and in its place stood Diana and a wide-eyed Starla, the latter of which let out a sharp, dog-like yelp of surprise.  "Gahh!  Warn me, next time!" Starla cried as she backpedaled a few steps, adjusting to her new surroundings.

	Diana simply chuckled.  "Sorry, hon.  You made it sound like time is of the essence."

	Starla quickly composed herself as best as she could.  "It is."  Her icy eyes quickly scanned the street, realizing that she'd been teleported a meager two doors down from her home.  "How'd you get our location so close?"

	The cocky mage smirked and began to head for Starla's home.  "Just a little spell to ensure teleportation accuracy.  Either that, or I'm psychic."

	Starla shot her an unamused look and rolled her eyes as she followed suit, quickly pacing up to her home and sharply rapping on the door several times.  "Mom!  It's me!  Open up!"

	Mere moments later, the door swung open to reveal a disheveled-looking Dorothea in a loose-fitting, purple bathrobe.  Her slate-colored fur was more a mess than it had been when she'd dropped off her daughter, but a glance past her revealed no signs of a lover of any sort.  Her eyes looked half-bloodshot, and a deep look of frustrated anger showed on her canine face at the sight of her daughter.  "Starla!?  What in the Light...?"  Her aqua-colored eyes suddenly darted to the mage standing just behind Starla, and that anger suddenly intensified threefold.

	Dorothea let out a fierce growl as she grabbed the door and attempted to slam it shut, but Starla put her full weight against it instead.  "Mom, wait, please, we need to talk!"

	"I have [i]NOTHING[/i] to say to you, Diana!" she growled, ignoring her daughter and turning on her heel to thunder back into her home.

	In a flash of shimmering dust, Diana teleported directly in front of the fleeing Dorothea, looking at her older sister sadly.  "I don't think that's true, Dory," she said gently, forcing her sister to make eye contact with her.  "You can't deny the festering wound that has plagued us for... well, it's getting close to two decades anyway."

	"Hardly," Dorothea hissed, but she didn't take another step.  "I want absolutely no part of the Shadowclaw clan.  Our father thinks of me as nothing, and you are no better, traitor!"

	Diana's green-eyed gaze hardened.  "Traitor?  [i]You[/i] are the one who [i]left[/i] us in the dust!  How dare you call [i]us[/i] the traitors!?"

	"That's it, right there!" she shot back and pointed at her angrily.  "'Us'.  It's [i]always[/i] been 'us' against Dorothea the monster!"

	This seemed to instantly crack Diana's angry expression.  "What?  Dory, no!  You're my sister!  I love you just as much as I love our father!  I always have!"

	"Saying that doesn't change how you both treated me!  Maybe not so much you, but that... that bastard didn't care about me nearly as much as you!" she cried, the anger in her voice fading into intense sadness.  "This curse... you have no idea what it's like...."

	Diana turned her head to one side as she dared to reach out and touch her sister's shoulder.  "Dory, of course I do.  We all-"

	"No!  You don't!" she rumbled sharply, but did not pull away.  "This... gnawing... clawing urge to just... tear everything down around you!  To pounce on the first and every male in sight!  To run and run and run until your paws bleed!  It's unbearable!  Insatiable!  And when I finally found someone to love, he...."

	Throughout the exchange, all Starla could do was watch the two sisters bicker, but her white fur visibly bristled in shock as she saw tears form in her mother's eyes for the first time in her memory.  "Mom...."

	Dorothea didn't seem to hear her as she struggled to keep eye contact with Diana.  "I had control before then, when everything was happy... then something about Mum and Warren's deaths just... undid it all.  It became a constant struggle to not go feral, and it still is."