Heron Lake Plateau pulled up, moped to the valley

When he mentioned they might not want to go, she almost instructed him to tell them the Alpha said you have to...but she resisted. She didn't want to force anyone into anything at this point. She wanted to see who, if anyone, was most motivated to serve the pack as she learned the intricacies of how Towhee had ranked everyone. She nodded with approval at his promise to use the buddy system, and then at his last question, she had to suppress a giggle. He was such a goober. The competition between the Blackthorn brats was almost too much sometimes. "Well, she said thoughtfully, "I can't make any promises. But you're doing your pack a big service by carrying this news for me, and that will count for a lot when it comes time for me to think of who deserves to be promoted over who." She winked at him. "Just sayin'."