Dawnlark Plains pause for paws

Phone post, sorry if it sucks!

The male lone wolf was silent, affirming for Saena that he wasn't interested in an offer of membership, but before Saena could ask him to move his party elsewhere (anywhere other than next door to her recently vulnerable pack), the female spoke up. Saena's gazed panned to her and her expression went from imperious to disgruntled.

"I don't think I'm mistaken of the whereabouts of my pack, thank you," she said flatly. The wind favoured the northwest, so of course Meldresi wouldn't smell Redtail Rise. She was upwind of it, as they all were now.

But then it became abundantly clear that Meldresi was actually a dense creature, for a third wolf approached, smelling very different than all the others gathered, and accused the southern female of trespassing. Saena opened her mouth to ask her to get lost, too, but then Nochtli identified herself as a member of a northern pack, and that silenced any disquiet she felt over a fifth member of this little party.

You see, to her, the north was like an unspoken coalition. Saena knew nothing of Scimitar's feelings toward her or her pack, having struck an agreement with Kaskara about where the Rise would hunt (and having been assured there were no issues with the arrangement she had made). She didn't consider Nova Peak an ally, per se, but they were a pack that shared the north and therefore they were worth more in Saena's eyes than loners and strangers. Perhaps they should have been rivals, but she wasn't raised to treat others nearby as rivals. That only caused unending conflict.

As for Nochtli, well, ever since Saena's attack in the south, she'd come to view the entire north as a safe domain that needed defending. Any new pack there would see her support, at least in spirit, so long as they didn't stir up trouble for the Rise. Both wolves were therefore on "her side", or she was on theirs at least, and they were in a situation where she could lend physical aid, for it was quickly becoming apparent that neither of her northern companions thought of Meldresi as a friend. So when Scimitar moved to flank Meldresi, Saena took a step or two forward to block off where the male previously stood, so that Meldresi had only one way to go—back where she came from. Besides, Saena didn't like the implication that she didn't know where her own pack was, so that was a good enough reason for her to step in.

Rhett was still ignored, mainly because he hadn't spoken yet, but she did twitch an ear toward him.