Porcupine Ridge Mama, come here, approach, appear

Life was beginning to return to the ridge in the form of small budding shrubs and greening grasses. The male wolf inspected several blades at length, searching them with his nose to discern that they were healthy and well before he lifted a leg to mark the land, likely killing them in the process. Ears twisting, the wolf lifted his head high and scanned his surroundings, gave his jowls a hefty shake and continued on along the inner edge of the borders.

Jhala was gone. Her scent was lacking at the borders, although her presence had never been strong in the first place. For a wolf who had ascended to the station of beta, she had done very little for the pack, including their fight against Ryujin. For that reason, the tawny male was not unhappy to find her scent stale and fading, though it did leave the precious hierarchy of the pack in turmoil once more. Vuk or Diane would surely step up to take Jhala's place, but until that happened, the tawny beta was uneasy, as evidenced by his almost nervous manner as he patrolled.