Ouroboros Spine phases

She nodded mutely, recalling Sialuk's words from yesterday: "Her foot needs a full turn of the moon to heal." Meerkat wasn't a healer or a hunter, yet she still wanted to help however she could. Perhaps she should still make the trip to Redhawk Caldera soon, delivering news and any wolves who wished to stay there, then fetching @Fennec back here to help...

Before her thoughts could go much further, Sialuk's tone grew sorrowful. Meerkat's lips parted as she listened, a little surprised by what she heard. A week seemed like so little and so much time, all at once. Her stomach clenched as she realized that anyone who had survived the initial impact had either been gathered up by the search parties or perished somewhere beneath all the rubble by now.

The invitation gave her pause too. She already intended to stick around for a little bit to help the two women. But she hadn't imagined they would want to start a pack here formally. And Meerkat wasn't sure she wanted to stay on a permanent basis. She still craved to be with her family. More importantly than anything else, she wanted to keep her promise to her brother to stay together.

"I appreciate that. I'll definitely consider it but I'll have to speak with Bronco first," she replied truthfully. "But I plan to stick around for a few days, for sure. If you plan to establish a pack here, you'll need help staking a claim." She nibbled at her lip. "Are you sure you wouldn't rather go to the caldera?" Founding a pack was a lot of work, she knew from firsthand experience, the horrible circumstances notwithstanding.