Phoenix Maplewood Remember me?

My pack disbanded. That wasn't what Saena was expecting to hear, but it wasn't all that surprising, either. The one and only time she'd interacted with Scarlett, the woman had spoken poorly of Bearclaw's alpha male and the man's attitude toward her as a co-leader. That the pack he led would fall apart under his iron grip wasn't shocking, but Scarlett showing up on her borders with three pups in tow certainly was.

The alpha female's gaze lingered on Citali, almost questioning—what did the burly healer think of all this, she wondered—before fixing back on Scarlett. She was definitely pleased to learn that Nochtli was already on the ball, but Citali's statement brought up concerns as well, ones that she unknowingly shared with the healer. "Your kids are half-grown," she noted, peering closer at the three younger pups. They were exhausted, but they were plenty big enough to be more than useless. This, she believed.

"We'd be happy to have you," Saena told Scarlett, "but I have a condition. We're not a very large pack and supporting three half-grown pups by our efforts alone will stretch us thin," especially with two stupid coyote pups, she thought bitterly, "so my condition is that your pups help to pull their weight. I expect them to seek out apprenticeships and do their part to help the members of this pack with their duties so we can all devote a little more energy to providing for ourselves and them. Whatever suits their fancy, so long as they are helping somehow." She met the albino's red eyes evenly and asked, "is that fair?"