Blackfeather Woods When I wake up, I'm afraid

He seemed more than reasonable about the whole thing, which surprised her again. She had not seen this side of him while he was injured or while they traveled; they had all been focused on surviving, so not much time to get to know each other—well, not much time for her and Zephyr to get to know each other. Taikon and Zephyr had managed to get to know each other just fine, unfortunately. Now things were more complicated than they needed to be. That was beside the point, though. 

He wanted proof—proof that she and Taikon could be trusted and proof that they would be acceptable parents to him. She couldn't necessarily blame him, although it ruffled her pride to have to prove anything these days; it was part of the reason she had been against packs when they first set off on this journey, not to mention the unresolved anger and resentment she still had towards Mahler. Regardless, things had changed quite a bit. She had Taktuq, and she had Taikon, and they couldn't exactly roam the wilds indefinitely with what they had planned for their future. 

That sounds reasonable, she finally answered. What kind of tasks would you be asking us to perform? What could they do to prove to Zephyr and Rowan that they would be good parents? It seemed an odd request, but one she was willing to go along with if it meant getting what she wanted. And if it didn't work out, then they had promised to find them somewhere where it would work. So she had no reason to give it a try.