Phoenix Maplewood daddy

Her trip out of the territory had left her whole leg feeling weak and unusually tender. Her leg didn't seem to be broken, but whatever was wrong with it didn't seem to want to heal in a hurry. Alya was being more cautious than ever, which when she moved at a snail's pace as she made her daily trek toward the stream. Maybe she should just stay closer or something. It would just be a pain to move camps. She had four rabbit skulls in her little nest, and she couldn't carry them all at once.

If she'd been going any more quickly, she might've tripped over the earthy boy that was lying in her pack, looking like nothing so much as a pile of overly emotional dirt. Great, thought Alya, another sad, urchin child.

This one, at least, did not appear to be physically damaged. "Oh, good. I've been needing a new pelt to line my bed," she said as she neared the crumpled figure, moving cautiously to sniff the younger wolf. As if she'd use something that color as a pillow.