Moonspear daughter knows best

She meant them, even though the instant the words sprang from her lips, her mind and heart both screamed, Floki! Wildfire's lower lip quivered but she stiffened the upper one to compensate and gazed steadily at Fox, making it clear her offer was genuine. But her mother quickly reassured her that she would not, could not, pull her daughter from the life she had built here.

Her lips parted to argue, to insist... but she thought of poor Floki and his bruised balls and there was part of her that was relieved to be let off the hook. "The offer's still there, even if I just stop by every once in a while with a gift basket," she murmured weakly. It would take away her time from her pack—especially Floki, whose schedule was already tight—but it was definitely a sacrifice she was willing to make for her blood.

Her amber eyes plumbed her mother's silver ones. "I really think everything will be okay, mom. Even if dad has to step down, he's still your mate and he's still our dad." She motioned loosely in the direction of her mother's middle, indicating the little lives growing in her womb. "It's crazy to think of him as anything other than an Alpha," she admitted, "but I think it'll work out."

Of course, she knew nothing of Fox's innermost thoughts, in which she was convinced Peregrine was no longer a wolf and that he would surely die. So her optimism shone through in the moment as she stepped forward and comfortingly licked the Alpha female's nose. "There's Nightjar and Raven too," she reminded her mother in a low murmur, "and Eljay and the others. Everyone will help. That's what a pack—what a family—is all about, right? 'It takes a village'...?"