Sun Mote Copse blood in the water

Honestly, Eljay was as surprised as Towhee was that she was uninformed. He knew that she and Niamh were close, so he expected her to share. Fennec was too annoyed and maybe even embarrassed, he imagined; and she very clearly wanted to fight her own battles rather than run to Towhee. But Niamh... Well. The surprise was written on his face.

Oh. He blinked, then went on to explain, as he intended in the first place: I asked Fennec to help me by cleaning the boy's wounds. I... Didn't expect trouble, so I went off to see if I could find herbs for the pain. When I returned, Fennec was gone. Niamh had told her to leave and shoved her off, apparently.

He paused a beat or two before he added: I wanted to talk to Niamh to ask her.. to tell her that, when I'm working as a medic, she... She should respect my decisions. He didn't want to be undermined -- what was the use of being a medic if he wasn't taken seriously? And even if she still did, even if it was just Fennec, then others might still see it otherwise. And allow my assistants to do what I asked them to, even if it's difficult because she's understandably feeling protective of the wounded wolf. There was a nervous quiver in his voice as he spoke and watched Towhee's face, unsure what she might think of that. Niamh was a leader after all, and he was not. But he was their medic, and he was slowly beginning to feel more confident in that role.