Redhawk Caldera three little piggies

Okay, so she'd found her sister - and Finley, who had been fit to bursting - and then she'd fucked right off and explored the valley. Nothing seemed all that thought out by Fern's standards. She'd picked her way along the mountain range, spent some time wandering in the forests of the valley, and even entertained the thought of going north to the coast - but nothing really stuck with her for long. She was incredibly bored since losing Neasa's trail, and for the first time in her life Fern had no direction. She had no plan, no purpose, and it ate away at her.

As much as she had loathed caring for mom and dad's kids every year, she missed them too. The girl wanted to be useful, not out here roaming around without a care. Thus, inevitably, she found herself approaching the Caldera all over again. There were signs of increased border patrols since her last visit which begged an unspoken question, and briefly Fern was worried about Finley and the babies she carried. She realized as she slipped along the heavily marked borders that Finley's scent wasn't as strong as the others, but taking that into account with her older sister's chubby belly, she could only conclude that she was having her kids.

Maybe Fern had returned right on time, then. She paced around until she found a copse of trees that smelled distinctly like @Quixote and then plopped herself down, lifted her nose, and sang to her extended family: I'm back! I'm over here, come find me!