Redsand Canyon It's got a lead foot down when it's leaving

this is assuming she joins <3 no rush and no obligation!

Germanicus had gone to speak with Reyson and Fennec assumed he would come back alone. She doubted the soldier would come back to claim his position when he already had three feet in Epoch. It was probably a formality.

@Aquene was back. And as tempting as it was to take a patrol instead, Fennec knew she needed to speak with the woman whose rank she’d, essentially, eliminated entirely. She could make a good Prefect. That wouldn’t mean much if she’d expected to return as Matrona.

Fennec should have known her better before but had avoided her for two specific reasons. The first was resentment. She’d owned up to that a while back; it wasn’t personal. The second was that she’d recognized a sentiment in Aquene that Fennec knew too well. When Bronco disappeared she’d pushed everyone away. Aquene was mature enough not to leave the scarred wake behind her that Fennec had, but that didn’t mean Fennec had felt right shoving herself at the Matrona at the time. She’d been sorting out her own shit - no use combining those powder kegs.

Fennec sought her out in the Tablinum first. She wasn’t sure if the couple would reclaim it - if she wasn’t there, then she would circle the lake and hope to find some trace to follow.

She had spent time reacclimating herself, enjoying the embraces of her husband when she could get them, and attempting to push down the aching hole in her heart that still lingered. Her sons were gone, scattered because they hated Germanicus. She did not understand where it all could have gone wrong. A part of her still wondered if Mereo could be her home anymore. All of the meaningful connections she had made short of her husband and the Imperator had disappeared… gone to Epoch, or Paleo, or simply disappeared… she wasn’t sure how to feel about that.
 
She couldn’t explain how it affecting the aching hole in her heart. The tablinum had even changed… she made note of it, her stores all shifted about… at the very least her marital den in the married quarters had remained relatively the same after everything… it began to drive her mind crazy, moving about and moving things back to the way that she preferred for her herbs to be sorted.
 
She had a system, anal and articulate in everything she placed and everything she did… it had saved lives… it had helped injured soldiers, even helped herself when she had been attacked at the borders… it wasn’t until she saw a familiar form moving towards her that she was able to pull herself out of her work. Fennec… the new… Imperatrix? Mereo had changed much in just a few short weeks.
 
“Can I help you?” The tone was polite, if distant… she did not truly know her, just as she did not know much of Mereo. They were strangers to her.

Ah, formal. Fennec couldn’t tell from the woman’s tone if her presence was welcome or not, but for this conversation, that didn’t really matter anyway. She might get more useful honesty if she wasn’t welcome.

I wanted to meet you, officially. Fennec paused at the threshold, listening for a clue as to if the conversation would happen inside or out. She’d move to accommodate however she heard Aquene shift.

And I wanted to hear your thoughts. I imagine you might have some. With that she gave a slight, sardonic smile. Offense was welcome. She always preferred when feedback was straightforward.

So sorry for the delay

Fennec spoke about officially meeting, reminding Aquene of just how poor of a job that she had done as Matrona, not ensuring she knew every face well… “My mother used to say one of my biggest flaws as a healer was my rigidity, and my resistance to change.” She hated being told what to do or how to change her own thoughts and feelings.
 
“I have systems for organization, for treatment, for everything… and I don’t like to deviate from them.” She offered, a kinder tone than one she had first offered though the apprehension and hints of anxiety showed in her voice, leaking in from the background.
 
“This is just… a lot of change.” The past few months had been a lot of change… since having her litter, there had been a lot of change… and she hadn’t grown to like it any more.

I know she’s inactive <3 sorry about the wait on this! We can always resume this if she comes back or they can meet up again down the line

Fennec wondered if Aquene meant more than just her herbs. As far as she knew, no one had touched them, but perhaps Germanicus had settled one of the others in the space she had left. If so it made sense; the woman had left and healing had been required in the interim.

It would be easy to be rude. She wasn’t sure if Aquene’s sense of humor would take it, though, and recalled that both of her sons were gone too. Maybe it was better to be straightforward.

Sometimes change is necessary to survive. Fennec stated, her tone matter-of-fact. Mereo had no reason to exist before other than to serve as an army for other packs’ wars. An “outpost” is no home worth defending. And no home worth being loyal to either. She snorted lightly. I wanted our children to have better.

If she and Kallik had more, she wanted them to have just as much reason to stay as her own.