Blacktail Deer Plateau As we go on, we remember all the times we had together

Junior's ears slicked backward at the mention of a cannibal. She studied Saena's face, wondering if it was a joke, yet her stump of a tail was no laughing matter. She drew back to peer at it momentarily. It wasn't ugly -- not like the scars all over her own forelegs -- but it was definitely different. How did her sister convey body language properly, she wondered, though she didn't ask just now.

"Oh, I miss her," the yearling breathed at the mention of Blue Willow. "I bet she hates my ass, though. I bet they all do. They probably think I ran away on purpose because I was mad. I didn't, though. Swordfish told you the whole story, right?" she asked, two-boned eyes cutting worriedly to Saena's patchy face.

But Saena had asked a question. Junior took a deep breath, smiled and replied, "Good, good. I feel like I finally found peace -- and maturity -- in Thief River Falls," she said with a light laugh. "I, uh, actually... y'know Swordfish? We're kind of... mates. We're actually the Beta pair of the pack," she reported, almost sheepishly, black tail fanning the air. "I couldn't ask for more," she said, a peculiar look flashing across her face so quickly that Saena might not even have noticed.

"What about you?" she asked in the next breath, lifting a paw to playfully shove Saena's white shoulder blade. "Happy birthday, by the way! That's why I came here and I wanted to say it before I forget," she quipped with a chortle.