Steph strolled up to the borders of Bearclaw Valley, tail wagging and ears perked. She stopped before she crossed them, mindful that while her Uncle led the pack, it didn't mean she could just waltz right in. She was pretty sure this was going to be an interesting altercation, seeing as how she had basically called him a liar the first and only time she had met her Uncle
@Xan.
She tipped her head back and howled specifically for him. She wanted to have a private conversation before speaking with anyone else. She sat back on her haunches to wait patiently for him.
The white wolf approached, and Steph watched him, no confusion in her eyes to match his uncertainty. She knew exactly who he was. When he spoke her name, she knew he knew, he just didn't know for sure. She nodded her head once in confirmation. Hello, Uncle Xan, she replied, her voice full of sass and humor and a grin on her face.
She hoped there were no hard feelings about their first, and only, encounter. She had been but a pup, and had never talked to anyone outside the territory before. While Clary had been right that he was okay to trust, Steph had needed more proof, and hadn't wanted to take his word for it.
She saw his frown, and for a moment she regretted teasing him. Maybe that encounter was more serious to him than it had been to her. Her own smile slowly vanished as he questioned her. His voice seemed flat, and void of any humor. Her front legs shuffled uncomfortably before she answered. No, she said softly. Mom confirmed who you are, she explained.
She was suddenly regretting her decision to visit Bearclaw, and her brain scrambled to find a reason why she was here. Maybe she wouldn't need to lie, just not tell the whole truth. She thought it would be good to visit, she responded finally. That much was true. Steph had prepared herself to stay a while, but seeing her Uncle's response to her, she figured it wouldn't be such a good idea.
Her smile did not return, nor would it in this conversation with her Uncle Xan. Inwardly, she sighed as he questioned her reason for being here. She didn't think he would believe her that she simply wanted to visit, and she would not tell him again. But, she did answer him.
Everything is fine in Easthollow, she said, her voice flat.
Actually, I should get back, she said. It was obvious to her that he didn't want her here, and she wasn't going to force herself on anyone.
Nice meeting you again, she said as she turned to leave, but there was no joy in her voice to accompany her words. She would return home to
@Valette, tail tucked and defeated, and wouldn't want to talk about why she had returned to soon after saying she was going to visit Bearclaw for a while.
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