Phantom Hollow It's been a little cold and not outside

So he had gone back to check on his sister more than to check in with the ones who had treated him badly, or it seemed that way from what she could tell. Monarch could understand that; even now she wondered how her siblings were. She hoped Ego and Mesa were okay, and even if Stag constantly got on her nerves and seemed to go out of his way to terrorize her, she still would do anything for him. So she didn't blame Mal for going back and checking on his sister or for trying to create a pack for her. She nodded her head, offering him an expression of understanding but not offering any information on her own family. She didn't want to dredge up painful shit; not right now anyway. When he spoke of the missing members again, she shrugged a little. He probably is; most are. Or she assumed. She didn't actually have many experiences to compare, but she just naturally assumed the worst in others, especially after life had dealt her such a shitty hand. 

Yeah probably not, she agreed; anyone who expected life to be easy was probably just really dumb, and those were't the kind of wolves you needed in your pack. When he suggested they return to the forest, Monarch nodded. Yeah, let's go, she replied moving closer so that she could follow in whichever direction he headed. Without even one wistful or regretful look back towards Diaspora, she began to walk. She didn't regret her decision, and she didn't feel sad about it; she felt free. She hadn't even realized how suffocated by grief she had felt in Diaspora until now when she offered a different way to live. Maybe she would feel differently one day, but she didn't think so. She loved her family, but she wanted to find out who she was away from them and maybe finally heal from losing something so important to her.