Redhawk Caldera Kangaroo court

He seated himself opposite his sister and curled his tail around his haunch when she announced that they needed to have a talk. Nightjar wasn't much of a talker, but maybe because of that, he was an okay listener, or so he thought. In sooth, he was actually not a good listener at all, and tended to hear what he wanted rather than what was actually being said. In fact, that would become painfully obvious in less than twenty seconds, because when Wildfire said, they want me to join their pack, what Nightjar heard was, I'm not part of this pack anymore, and everything after that went in one ear and out the other.

For as soon as she announced that, the little figurative scissors in his head went, snip, and she was no longer his pack mate, but a rival who needed removing.

The transformation was very sudden. One minute the male was sitting there calmly, eyes cast around Wildfire's cheek, posture respectful and open. The next minute his shoulders came forward as he closed off, his eyes snapped to hers, his ears went forward and his muzzle wrinkled. She was his sister—always would be his sister—but to Nightjar, a wild wolf with only wild senses, dutiful love and very little in the way of emotional love, a sister who left was no better than a stranger out there. And so there was no anger, because Nightjar didn't fault her for leaving—all young wolves, even himself, had felt the call of nature and the desire to disperse—but there was no acceptance, no gentle goodbye, either. She could choose to leave and he would remove her right now as he felt was fit, but she could never return on his watch.

He found his paws quickly enough and stepped forward, intent on crowding Wildfire until she did leave the pack, and then she would join his list of wolves to chase away if she got too close. His heart would beat painfully every time, but that was how shit went in his world. He would miss her, but he wouldn't treat her differently than any other outsider. He wouldn't hurt her while herding her out, but if she returned, that would be a different story, no matter how much it hurt him in the process. His loyalty was to the caldera and the wolves who called it home, and no one else, not even his beloved sister.