Kintla Flatlands we are the fortunate ones

Kaskara quickly backpedaled and explained she didn't actually know if her father intended to have another litter. Yet the seeds of discord had already been planted in the youngster's mind. Her heart squeezed painfully. Peregrine already had four perfectly good pups; why did he need or want any more? Junior rejected Kaskara's explanation on a purely emotional basis. And the plateau pack was huge; her dad and Fox didn't need to add to their numbers!

"What do you mean by 'take care of themselves'?" Junior demanded. That day was still far enough away that her parents and guardians hadn't even touched on it yet. Although the pups no longer used the den, nor even the rendezvous site, young Osprey didn't really realize that they were growing up, at least in the sense that one day they would be full-fledged adults who didn't need their parents anymore, and that Peregrine would move on to raise up another litter.

Without being aware of it, Junior began to breathe faster and more shallowly, her small chest rising and falling in an arrhythmic pattern. The pressure in her chest grew and her small face contorted with both psychological and physiological pain.