Heron Lake Plateau We are young, we have years ahead maybe

The subject of Screech was complicated and loaded with baggage for Raven, so she was glad that Niamh didn't pursue the topic further even though the alpha was sure she still had questions. Perhaps at a later time, under more appropriate circumstances. Raven wasn't here to talk trash about her brother or to smear his name (that might have been different if she'd known he didn't seem to have a problem doing the same to her), but rather, she had just wanted to warn Niamh to be cautious. Screech was a sweet boy, underneath the bullshit front he put up for others to see, but in the end, he looked out for #1. It had taken a long time and a lot of really messed-up shit happening for Raven to see this, and she didn't want to see anyone else fall into the same traps. Particularly the ones that involved "demonstrations" of "playful wrestling".

Raven's face brightened considerably when Niamh mentioned her sister, Wildfire, and her tail brushed the ground behind her. She missed Wildfire a great deal, and part of her was still disappointed that her fiery littermate had gone back to Drageda after she'd healed up from her injuries sustained at Blackfeather Woods. Raven understood, of course, that Wifi couldn't turn her back on her family and kids, but that didn't make it any easier to accept. Sometimes she felt like the only person in the world who really understood her was Wildfire. They'd grown up together, after all.

Niamh mentioned that they'd brought back crabs, and Raven's curiosity was piqued. "What are crabs?" she asked, cocking her head. For all her intellectual prowess, the nerdy little healer had never spent enough time at the coast to experience all the flora and fauna unique to that setting -- tasty little crustaceans included.