Phoenix Maplewood mine mine mine

Saena is asleep when Reek's commanding howl goes out over the maple wood, and though the force of his voice rouses her, she is too drowsy to recognize the meaning. She shifts, for the umpteenth time forgetting about the pups sprawled at her side—this time it's Indra who feels the weight of Saena's leg before she catches herself—and pulls herself to the den's entrance. The pups are now large enough to spend a little time unattended before a chill would settle over them, and the den is warm with her breath and the heat of spring. She worries not for them as she pulls her shoulders free of the den.

But she doesn't go any further than this, tethered by maternal instinct and temporary blindness as the sun through the canopy dazzles her. "Mmm," she murmurs quietly as she locates Luke through a severe squint that blurs almost everything else. He's exactly as she remembers. White fur, blue nose, expressive silver eyes, huge red gashes... wait, what?

Blinking rapidly, the alpha female pulled the rest of her body free of the den's entrance and takes the two steps toward Luke, bristling with worry and fear alike. "What happened?" she breathes, wasting no time in sweeping her tongue soothingly over her friend's bloodied muzzle.