Sun Mote Copse We get wild like a safari.

Meerkat’s attention span was much like the average young pup’s, and the sight of the more familiar presence of her brother drew her eagerly to the darker youth’s side. Feeling a jab of disappointment that his interlude with her was so brief, he now had Towhee’s audience—and she cut right to the chase with words sharper than any small baby teeth.

Irritation flashed in his own eyes, and he studied her, his features clouding with the storm of annoyance he felt. So that was it—the cards were laid out in front of them. This was Pippin’s worth to the dark woman, and it had foolishly taken him this long to figure it out.

The months of trying to garner trust—the feeling that perhaps he did belong was taken away like a rug pulled out from under him, and the agouti wolf, wearily.

“So, what…?” Towhee spoke loud enough for their voices to be heard, and childishly, he didn’t care that she wouldn’t realize the octave of her tone, and so he matched her own. “I don’t get a say, after all that? You lied to me,” he accused, his tail giving a lash through the air, his eyes sharply falling to Meerkat before drifting back to Towhee, attempting to steel himself. He didn’t want the girl involved in this—and surely she would hear them.

“So your brother raises her as his own, even though we both know she’s probably my daughter. That’s messed up, Towhee.”