Redhawk Caldera shout! for my love

Elwood commanded her to watch him and Towhee nodded, lips pressed together as they closed the distance between themselves and the stranger. The pup eyed the unfamiliar she-wolf with open disdain and slightly prickled hackles. She glanced at her uncle, studying his body language for a moment, then turned back to the stranger. Her own tail lashed upward as she braced her forelegs and tried to look as intimidating and unwelcoming as possible.

She blinked when the woman instantly lowered herself, prostrating herself before the pair of pack wolves. Although Towhee's expression didn't change much, she licked her lips and shifted her weight. She didn't want to approve of this outsider but she instinctively welcomed the submissive behavior. It pleased her, even, though the young Xi mentally fought it.

The she-wolf spoke to Elwood and Towhee squinted at her mouth, trying to make out words. She missed a few, yet comprehended enough to fill in the blanks with context clues. The word "trade" was still relatively new to her, though it was one of her favorite concepts as of late. She knew that her adult relatives thought she would make a good mercenary, which was just one of several trades. Before she could get too caught up in that train of thought, Towhee realized with a start that she recognized the word for the stranger's name.

-Dot?- the child signed, looking up inquisitively at her godfather rather than Dot herself. She didn't understand why this woman would be called something so silly, though did any names really make sense?