The den had been cleared out and Red stood alone in the empty main chamber. She remembered what it was like when she first stepped foot in here, the stone pillars draped with rich fabrics, rugs and pillows lined the floors, light from the lanterns gave everything a rich and warm glow. Quinn was by her side and everyone had turned to look at her while she walked by. They did not stare, instead, their gaze was welcoming.

They had all welcomed her.

There was still a bloodstain on the stone where Snow had died. In a matter of days, weeks, her life had been turned around, shaken, a storm of good and bad days. She lost Peter, she lost Snow, but she found her mother, she found a family and soon she would have a home.

Home.

Red smiled, what a wonderful word to think of.

It was dark and cold down here now, without the drapes and pillows, the only light came from small candles that were almost out of wick.

"Are you ready?" Red turned to see Quinn descending down the staircase. He walked up next to her and took a look around. "It's hard to believe that we are leaving. We had been here for years before we found you, I will miss this place."

"My mother says that we are going back to the land of our ancestors. Vilkas… Have you ever been there before?" Her mother had tried describe the place, she had gone through the whole history, but a lot of it became lost in Red's own imagination of the old werewolf kingdom.

Quinn thought for a moment. "Once, when I was little. My parents were constantly on the move, my mother was a wolf and my father wanted to protect us from the hunters. One night we were ambushed, my father told me to run and I did. They were killed, but I found myself in the ruins of the castle. A few days later, Anita had found me and took me with her."

Red felt his fingers intertwine with hers.

"You are going to love it there." Quinn finished.

Quinn was right.

The sun had just begun to rise as they crossed the border of Vilkas, most of the pack had run all through the night to reach their new kingdom and as light started to trickle over the horizon, Red crossed over the broken fence of the city.

Houses were damaged from years of neglect, bearing scars of the battle that Anita had only described as gruesome and unspeakable, the near total annihilation of the were-people of Vilkas at the hand of the human army. The roads were overgrown with grass and tree roots that turned over the cobblestones, Red had to watch where she stepped. She had imagined a graveyard, but what she was seeing?

Simply a place of neglect, ruins of a once great place.

Birds started to chirp in the early reaches of morning and all around her started to glow with the sunlight.

Red walked along a path, away from Anita and Quinn and the rest of the pack who stopped at the edges of the town. Lost in the overgrowth, small sticks and dust stuck to her skirts but she kept going. After a mindless trek through the skeletons of houses and shops, Red came across something that made her stop in her tracks.

The castle, made of crumbling stones and held together by vines stretching across the ruins, rose tall above her, it was the largest building Red had ever seen, broken glass panes and scorch marks from hundreds of years ago dotted the walls. It had been nearly destroyed, everyone inside had perished, but it still stood tall and proud.

And near the entrance of the gates stood a white wolf, it's golden eyes settled right on her. Patches of black lined it's body and it tail, the tips of it's ears and thick around its eyes. Red took a step forward, and so did the wolf.

Years ago, like any other girl living in her villages, she had been fearful of wolves. But she learned recently, she should not be afraid of them, she shouldn't be afraid of something that was a part of her. She knelt down, her knees cold against the stones, and the wolf came to her. She stretched out her hand and it nestled its face right into her palm.

She felt like she was staring into a mirror as the wolf met her eyes.

"I see you met a friend." Her mother's voice made her turn, startled, but the wolf had not moved at all.

Anita came and knelt beside her, and the wolf leaned into her mother's touch as well, as if the animal was familiar with her as well. After a moment, the wolf pull away from Anita's touch and returned to Red's side.

Anita stood, as did Red, and they both turned to look at the castle before them. "Welcome home, my daughter."

Red stood before the ruins, but smiled at the thought. She could see it, as clear as day, crimson banners flowing from the gates, the roads busy with people, children and animals and men and women, similar to the stories Snow used to tell her of the royal city she grew up in. Her mother's hand reached to caress her hair, a touch that Red had still not grown familiar to. "And it's all ours."

"Yes my dear, it is all ours."

The rest of the pack had reached Vilkas by the end of that day, the old and the young, the ones who had stayed behind with the wagons of their things, along with a few of the Queen's own carriages, carrying gifts from Regina herself. They had set up camp in the castle courtyard for now, erecting tents and gathering supplies to last the first few weeks. It was only mid-spring, the nights were still cool and there was no warmth or security of the den, but for now, the open courtyard would do. They all sat around the large fire and dug into the large feast they had put together. Red's wolf laid at her side and didn't pick up it's head as Anita stood up and gathered the attention of the pack.

Anita said construction would begin tomorrow, with the few men and building supplies gifted from Queen Regina, and within a few months, Vilkas would begin to regain it's glory.

Anita declared herself Queen, and not a single soul opposed.

"It had been my father's dream to return to the land of his birth, it had been his hope to see it rise again, it was something he shared with my all the nights of my childhood until it became my dream as well. Vilkas met with a crushing defeat but we will show the whole world that just no army can extinguish the fire that burns in wolf blood, no matter how hard they have tried to forget us, we refuse to be forgotten." Anita spoke out in front of the pack. "We will no longer be the monsters feared in the night, we will be the saviors of the light, the ones who fought against the darkness of the Dirweyr. We will reclaim our might and we will rise again!"

Voices howled in harmony up to the waning moon and soon, music filled the night air. People rose to their feet and the courtyard livened up in celebration. Red watched in amazement at the people, at her people

She saw Quinn hold out his hand to her, the light from the large fire that burned chased the shadows from his face. "Care to dance, princess?"

Red laughed at the title, although she supposed it was true. Her gaze shifted to her mother, who simply smiled and nodded her head and Red eagerly grasped onto Quinn's hand. He pulled her up and they started to dance. Wildly and clumsily, but Red could not think of a single moment where she was happier.

As the fire died down and the pack fell asleep, Anita walked the forgotten hall of the castle until she reached a great room. The moonlight cut through the darkness of the castle, the glass and mirrors that still held their place illuminated the room enough for her to keep her step, avoiding the skeletons and discarded armor and swords that littered the floor. She kept her pace until she found herself in the very back of the hall and Anita smiled at the man who sat in the old throne.

The corpse that previously held the seat was carelessly thrown aside, but the crown of gold had been pried off and it was now held in the scaly hands of another.

"Rumplestiltskin," Anita put her hands together. "Thank you for coming on such… short notice."

The Dark One's eyes admired the crown in his hands. "I wasn't sure I would see the day when Vilkas rose again. We sure could have used your power in the Ogre Wars, dearie." His eyes then darted to Anita, and he smiled a wicked grin. "My my, it has been longer than I thought."

"Indeed. Time certainly flies."

He rose from the throne and pranced around the corpses strewn around him. "The last time I saw you, you were nothing more than a little girl hiding behind her father's legs. So scared." He danced around her. "You don't seem scared anymore."

"I am not a girl anymore, Rumple."

His eyes took her in. "No, certainly not."

"In any case," Anita took a step forward towards the throne and sat upon it. "Let's get this started. Did you bring it?"

"I should first congratulate you on your… coronation. Rather unconventional, but then again…"

"Rumple, did you bring it?"

There was an unearthly chuckle that filled the great hall. "Short story, no."

Anita rose from the throne and her gaze settled on him. "My father entrusted the moonstone to you and I have more than paid his debt. You will return it." Her voice was sharp, but all Rumple did was continue to chuckle.

"Of course, dearie, all in good time. You have many things to do, yes? But there is just a little thing we need to discuss first."

"And that is?"

"Your daughter."