Dragoncrest Cliffs But you gotta be there for me too

Eske didn't verbally respond to Ceres' apology, but the older she-wolf took her silence as acceptance. Had the pack wolf truly objected to her presence or questions, there would be teeth threatening her neck by now. That was the way of the north at least. Ramsey wouldn't have hesitated in the young Cheka's place, had they any secrets worth protecting. Alas, they had lived a quiet and unassuming life.

When another wolf swept out of the woods, bristling and curling his lip and lifting his tail, Ceres tried her best to press herself into the earth. Again she wondered what she had possibly done wrong, but ever the optimist, she didn't take it personally. There were half a dozen reasons for such a response and not all of them had anything to do with the wolf on the receiving end. She thought perhaps they were just a close-minded bunch, perhaps they'd had trouble with loners before, or perhaps she reminded them of someone unpleasant.

Eske recaptured her attention with a heavy title: The Commander. Where Ceres was from there was only Alpha and Subordinate. The title was foreign but, as intended, commanded authority. A coalition might succeed under the guidance of a single wolf. She'd mistook the notion to be one of an alliance between individual packs, but if there was one sole Commander, then Ceres thought, still incorrectly, it was more like many sects of subordinates with no rulers of their own.

She was surprised at the offer that was made, but Ceres was an old woman. She sought to satisfy the wants of her younger self, the yearning to live how others lived and experience their ways. There was no hesitation in her besides a quick dart of her yellow eyes toward Dio's chest as she sought to confirm, "you would allow me to live among you, to live as you do and experience your culture firsthand?"

There was a giddy trill to her voice as she eagerly said, "I may be getting on in years but I can still make myself useful!"