Broken Antler Fen Largo

Eljay felt his cheeks flush when Lele asked what he meant by 'typical alpha', feeling a little scrutinised. She didn't sound scrutinising or anything, but he felt like maybe he was insulting someone. He could imagine that. He said, Oh, uhm, I mean, hierarchical and stuff. I'm not that uh, dominant. It was hard to explain what he meant precisely, because he mostly went off his own experience. Which was mostly just Redhawk Caldera wolves. And Wildfire, but she too hadn't been a 'typical alpha' in his view.

When Lele asked if his parents were still alive, Eljay shook his head and frowned. No. They passed away uhm, a few years ago. He didn't even remember when exactly. It was a sensitive subject, but time had certainly made it easier to process — now that it was a third of a lifetime away for him, it had become easier. Which made him realise that he was fast approaching their age, when they passed. Just another year, really. It was an eerie thought, but Eljay kept it to himself for now.