Tony surged forward with me right behind him. I didn't want him scaring Poultice or worse making him run more. I took the lead and skidded to a halt as I saw Poultice laying on a bed moss on the roots of a giant oak tree. His head was lowered into his paws and he was crying and shivering.
I sighed and padded forward. "Poultice," I murmured but as soon as he heard my voice he darted to his paws, ready to flee.
"Wait," rasped Tony as he lumbered forward, panting. We have traveled a surprisingly long distance and he looked extremely tired. "Just listen to what she has to say."
Poultice curled his lip. "What do you want to say," he asked as his tail lashed. "Is it that we have to go."
"Not just that," I assured as I sat down and wrapped my tail over my paws. "I want to tell you why we have to go."
"I know to help Charles and Keen and Mirage and the rest of the students and stop Stryker," murmured Poultice as if he was reciting it. When he saw the look of confusion on my face he shuffled his paws. "I read your mind."
I narrowed my eyes. I hated when someone did that! "Anyway if you know then you have to come back."
"We need a wolf like you Poultice," Tony added as he took a step forward. "A kind sensible and intelligent wolf like you to fight."
"But what about Triflud," he asked with dark eyes.
"Triflud is dead," I assured as I arched my neck and touched my nose to Poultice's ear. "He can't hurt you anymore and this time the X-Men and some of the Brotherhood will help us."
He looked toward Tony who had sat down and tried to give his pelt a quick grooming. "Is that true?"
Tony smiled and dipped his head. "Starlight may do many things but lying isn't one of them. You can trust her."
Poultice sighed and pushed himself to his paws. "Alright. I'm ready."
He started forward before he tripped over the roots. He yelped as he fell forward. I was about to stick out a paw to catch him but before I could Tony thrust something out and it caught Poultice. He leaned him backwards back on his four legs.
"Thanks," panted Poultice before he romped forward, his head held high.
I looked at my father before I did a double take. Sure enough he had caught Poultice with a wing. It was a large black wing to be precise. He then folded the wing back against his body so it blended in. I looked at him with round eyes of shock.
He growled, warning me not to say anything. I just gulped and stalked forward, a bit self conscious about my own wings. So my father wasn't all Claw Wolf. He had to be part Wolvy but I didn't know why he didn't tell me. I had never seen him fly. I wasn't even sure if he knew how to.
We strode on in complete silence and I was praying that Poultice wouldn't read my mind, at least not now. My brain was spinning. Tony had kept a lot from me and I had kept a lot from him but this was different. I wondered if Erik knew but I wasn't about to ask him.
I just shut my muzzle and prayed that we would exit the forest soon so I could release my surprise.