Dragoncrest Cliffs In a fruit fight, I aim at your Adam's apple

"Bob—!" Wildfire screamed compulsively, her voice cut off when the she-wolf collided with her. Her shoulder and ribs took the brunt of the hit as the aggressive stranger essentially tripped over her. A sharp breath hissed between her teeth but she didn't have much time to react before another, darker wolf pressed against her, much more gently this time.

"Mom!" Bobby's voice was muffled as he buried his face against her neck. Wildfire leaned into the gesture. She wanted to close her eyes and savor this reunion with her son, though she kept them fixed on the white she-wolf, who gave her a gruff command. Somewhere nearby the other stranger must have lingered, though Wildfire couldn't see him from her current position.

"I'm okay," she said quietly in response to Bobby's concerned look before addressing her interrogator. "I'm Wildfire, Heda's mate," she explained quickly, too tired from her trek, relieved to see Bobby and wound up from the hormones to bother feeling indignant. "They're still at war. I was with a group that went into hiding. My heat started unexpectedly, so I came here for safety. I let Blixen know before I left," she finished, speaking more to Bobby than the unfamiliar woman now.

Feeling that the imminent danger had passed, the fiery Drakru slowly sat up, still hugging closely against Bobby. "It's so good to be home," she murmured, marveling at how much she had to crane her neck to nip affectionately at his ear. "I should've stopped at the borders. I just wanted to make sure I was somewhere safe."

"It's fine, mom. It's so good to have you back. This is your home, exactly where you belong," he rejoined, shooting a dirty look at the white she-wolf over his mother's head. "Don't mind her, she takes herself too seriously," he whispered for Wildfire's ears only. There was a pause where his face softened and he gazed directly into his mother's eyes. He paused, then took a step back, gesturing between them. "Do you need me to—?"

"No," Wildfire replied firmly, pressing her face into the side of his neck now. "Don't you dare. I want you right here." Her heat be damned, this snuggle was long overdue.