When Zelda's call had gone up, summoning the warriors and hunters of the forest to aide her in a quest to rid Moladion of one of the beasts terrorizing the nights, I had remained silent. Once, long ago before I had come to these lands, I might have thought to answer, to pledge myself to the task. But in finding my place within these towering trees, I had also found my place as a caregiver. I'd always been a proficient hunter, but my heart was not so filled with a need to pit myself against beasts that I didn't need to. There was no shame in this, truly, but I felt a bit guilty nevertheless. But with the hunt looming close at hand - to take place that night - I realized that there was still something I could do for the pack in lieu of participating in the hunt.

At least one wolf who had raised his voice in response to Zelda's request had children within the forest. Though I'd not met Tithe myself, it was my responsibility to know about the youth of the pack. His sons, Bazyl and Thyme, had not been born here, but I was still aware of their presence since moving to Taviora with their father - now the pack's Power - and their mother, a shewolf named Pandora who I'd not yet met. There were also Shem and Asriel, Zeltzin's boys. Surely the four yearlings could use some distraction - and it also might put Zelda's mind at ease to know the youngsters were looked after so that they did not get wild ideas about trying to join in on the hunt. Cato, too - and perhaps it would give Roman some relief to have another look after his son for a night - as well as his elder sister Ceres.

Yes, yes, this was the thing to do, the way to help the pack while staying behind. Though it would mostly be yearlings, no pup was beyond the allure of having a bit of fun. Socializing was so important for youngsters! So I took the afternoon to gather up as many of the fallen autumn leaves as I possibly could. The task was more difficult than expected, but by the time the sun began to set I had created an enormous mountain of leaves. Stepping back, I looked up at the pile and grinned. And then I lifted my head, calling out to the six youngsters - and any others who might need a distraction from the outcome of the hunt - summoning them to join me for an evening of fun in this small clearing now piled high with leaves just ready to be jumped in.