Porcupine Ridge birthday in noir

Vuk. Her name was harsher than she appeared and the she-wolf's speech was clipped despite the friendly light in her eyes. Diane realized quickly why this was. "Dee.. an," she helped her gently, thick tail beating her his legs quietly as Vuk's weasel rolled limply against her paws. It was an overly generous offer, and for a moment Diane thought that the cloud and peppered wood might know it was her birthday. But that was silly!

She whined, anxious and thankful all at once. In her broken speech, Vuk bade her to reveal what had given her such a melancholy vibe. She looked down, ashamed that she had been unable to bottle her emotions, and her ears creased against her head. "I just miss my family, is all," she squeaked. "It's my birthday, and I was thinking of them..."

Diane swallowed the lump in her throat, bending down distractedly to nose Vuk's catch. Mutedly, she began to gnaw through the quarry's middle, and when it was severed into two halves, she nosed the larger half to get packmate. "Share with me," she directed hopefully, the wee order of a lamb.