She had been intrigued by the gunmetal woman, increasingly so. Claudia was almost always held in thrall by the actions and movements of grown female wolves, and she watched them with a jealous eye; in the depths of her innermost heart, she longed so to be one, but knew that she would never reach that most desired form.

But her interest had been piqued for more than one reason, and so she bid Madeline escort her upon the scent-trail of the mysterious wolfess. Quite ecstatic, the girl loped alongside her guardian in a silence that fair pulsated with anticipation. They came upon the borders of a packland, and here it was that Claudia caught the fragrance of the shadow-female again.

"She lives here," the child muttered, eyeing with frustration the fettered borders of the place. Then, with a shift in interest, Claudia beheld the raised ruddy hackles of the woman who would be alongside her in all things. "What is wrong with you?" the child demanded, stamping her paw against the earth. "I will not have you making a mockery of us before her, Madeline!"