Blacktail Deer Plateau PACKTIVITY — Then the quiet explosion

Kaihra distracted herself from the growing tension by watching the rest of the pack file in. She made note of faces and scents, marking in her mind those more familiar to her than others, and trying to decipher familial relations amongst the ranks. She caught sight of Finley further up the circle and felt her shoulders relax at the familiar face before she continued to move her gaze around the circle from wolf to wolf. Her eyes met Peregrine as he began to speak, and she pricked her ears to listen. She would not miss a word.

She watched with a steady gaze as Peregrine spoke and allowed his words to lodge deeply in her mind. At the mention of Fox, she flicked her gaze to the russet girl and felt her heart and gaze gradually harden against her. So the girl had abandoned her pack to be with Peregrine? Didn't she know the responsibilities that came with being Alpha? What enemies did she bring with her, and what of her pack now? How could he name her Beta and entrust her with the pack's well being when she had abandoned her own? As her suspicions took root, she shifted her thoughts as Peregrine continued. He made motion to a wolf Kaihra assumed to be Lasher, and Kaihra followed his gesture to the wolf he beckoned. Her steady gaze faltered when she saw the dark wolf, but kept her mouth firmly shut. At this revelation she had no words to give, only a brief flash of confusion that she couldn't stop from crossing her face.

The persistent knot in her stomach tightened as Peregrine concluded the meeting, his words promptly stressed by his daughter who seemed to have the making of an alpha herself. Tension hung heavy on the air, but the pack stayed silent. She couldn't tell if they shared her suspicions, or if they knew of circumstances surrounding Fox's arrival that made them accept this girl as their Beta with less questions than she. Peregrine seemed to trust her, and she wondered if Blue did, too. But Kaihra knew how easily trust could be misplaced.

Still she remained as silent as her packmates, the suspicions in her mind a million and the words on her lips none.