Sun Mote Copse “The things that make me different are the things that make me, me.” —Piglet

With Bronco now involved, it all happened rather fast, not that Meerkat minded. @Phox and @Niamh had given the pair their okay and, following that, she had gone around the copse trying to locate every single member of the pack to say "see you later." Because this wasn't a goodbye. She could never leave the Firebirds for long, this place would always be home.

There were still a few left to see when she arrived at the rendezvous site in the middle of the afternoon. She needed something to eat. She rustled up some grub from a nearby cache, then settled down and ate her snack. When she finished, she thought about setting out again to find the rest but decided to summon them to her instead.

"@Bronco and me are leaving in the morning!" she called to anyone who might care. "Come to the rendezvous site if you wanna hang out!" It would be their last chance, at least for a little while.

She moved to a spot of shade and sat, glad Towhee wouldn't have heard that message. After talking to her dad and Neema, Meerkat had sought out her mother again and they'd had a very, very, very long talk. Meerkat knew she was really upsetting her mother and she hated that. But it had ended on a reasonably good note, she thought, after a thousand reassurances she would visit as often as possible. And having Bronco along did seem to make a big difference to the Sovereign. But mostly, Meerkat knew Towhee had recognized defeat.

As she waited to see if anyone might show up, Meerkat gazed around the rendezvous site. She would miss it, though she still didn't feel any real hesitations or reservations. It was going to be an adventure, an experience, and they would be back.