Sun Mote Copse Gadgetville

The Regent noted the Sovereign's look and twitched her lips, nodding to acknowledge it. If Wraen insisted, they could talk about it some other time, when Meerkat wasn't close at hand. She didn't want to discuss it but she supposed she understood others' interest and she figured Wraen, more than almost anybody else, reserved the right to press for details. Towhee resigned herself to having that conversation at some point.

In the meantime, Towhee watched her daughter engage Wraen in play and couldn't help but grin at their antics. She might not be able to hear those cherubic giggles, though she could see the utter joy on her little one's face, not to mention the look of delight on Wraen's. It was a sight to behold, something so bright, carefree and uplifting in a world that had been so recently darkened by the Blackthorns' passing.

When Wraen looked her dead in the eye and questioned her about Arcturus, it almost caught Towhee off guard, she'd been so caught up enjoying the show. "Uh," she said artlessly, "is he going to stay with us as a Firebird? Pledging his loyalty to us and contributing to the pack's greater good?" If so, then she couldn't say she took much issue. That didn't mean they had to be friends and it certainly didn't make him Meerkat's father. But Towhee had already made all of that pretty clear to the man himself.