For the first time in a long while, the Bend's new leader had decided to take the afternoon to rest. He was happily concealed amidst some tall grass in one of the small clearings in the southern part of the pack's territory. Sprawling out on his back, the ghost of a smile played about his lips as the sun's rays warmed his underbelly. He looked ridiculous, he knew; although he could not see with his eyes closed. But with very few exceptions, he had been hard at work for many of the previous days and weeks. With the births, followed by his ascension to leadership, the moments for relaxation had been few and far between.

Ears perking, he turned his head to the side as his legs fell to the ground with a quiet thud as Kyna howled. He had thought it for Aponi, so it surprised him when the yearling instead called out for him. As rare as relaxation was, this was far more rare and he was quick to put his annoyance at being interrupted aside as he rolled over completely and hoisted himself up to all fours. Tilting his head back, he howled back to her - he was on his way.

Perhaps @Aponi had spoken to her? Serach could not help but wonder, thinking back to his conversation just a few weeks earlier with the yearling's mother. He had expressed an interest in the older of her two daughters, although more about her general wellbeing than anything else. Still, he supposed he would find out soon enough.

A half hour had passed before the leader found Kyna, and as he approached her, his ears lowered in silent apology before perking up once again. "Kyna! Sorry for keeping you waiting," he smiled kindly at the ginger furred girl, although he was sure his eyes betrayed his curiosity. "Can I help you with something?"

As Serach approached, Kyna rose to her feet to greet him, and he returned her smile with one of his own. She brushed off his apology, and he was grateful for her understanding. He had certainly not been so patient when he was younger. Chuckling, he shook his head and shrugged his shoulders to dissuade her that she had interrupted anything of importance, but before he could respond, she paused in thought and he waited in silence as she continued on the point.

When she finally finished, and apologized for rambling, he smiled kindly at her. "No need to apologize," he assured Kyna. "I was actually taking a bit of a nap. Even leaders need to have a lazy afternoon every once in a while. You won't tell, will you?" Serach joked, his tail wagging easily behind him. "Let's walk for a bit, it help me wake up," he invited her, motioning with his head for her to follow along beside him. He didn't have any destination in mind, but the warmth of the sun was intoxicating and he needed to be up on his feet if he didn't want to give in to a second round laze in the sun.

"Things have been going well," he responded as they walked along, referring to her earlier question. "I wish the circumstances weren't what they are, of course, but thank you for the support. It's all been a big adjustment, you know. My mother led the pack until her death, and Triell has led it more or less since then, so I can't say I ever really thought I would take on the role myself." He explained, turning his head to look at her. It was true. He was no longer the young man who lurked in a self-imposed solitary confinement in the woods. He had grown up, in many more ways than just his rank. "How have you been, though? I spoke to your mother not too long ago. She said you were settling in with Lila?"

The blonde girl was quick to agree to Serach's proposal, and he appreciated her approval. After lazing about most of the morning it was good to get his blood flowing. As they fell into step and moved into the wood, she responded to his question. For half a moment, he was worried that she would stop at "I'm fine", leaving him to try and fill the space. But again Serach found himself grateful for the girl's agreeableness as she continued and elaborated on her answer. As she spoke, though, he felt himself cringing internally, almost wishing he had not asked. Denied her existence? He couldn't wrap his head around it. Having been a child himself, he knew that children could be cruel, but never to that extent. For all his sense of confusion after the birth of Darrah and Zera, Serach had never found himself in the position of not being recognized amongst his packmates. I won't let that happen to her, or anybody else, he vowed silently, turning his head to the side to respond to her.

Before he could open his mouth, though, Kyna moved on to the next topic of discussion - her place in this pack. "The fact that you want to try and be a kinder soul than them already makes you better," he reassured her, stopping his walk to make sure she could see the sincerity in his eyes. "And I'm glad you want to work within the Bend, too. Now that we have Lila, Mako, Marina, Reiko, and Treyah to take care of, we need all the help we can get." That was undeniable, especially with Triell out of commission and Sahalie wanting to take a trip north to visit Hearthwood River.

"You did great at the hunt," he reassured Kyna as he continued to walk, his nose twitching as the scent of blood wafted into his nostrils. "Have you been thinking about taking on a role as a hunter, perhaps when you're a little older?"

He hadn't expected Kyna to rebuff his suggestion of becoming a hunter, but he was happy to listen to her concerns regardless. He didn't want to shoehorn her into a role if she wasn't interested, and he could understand her trepidation. She was lean, which made for an ideal chaser if she was quick enough, but she would always need to have a bulkier partner to help pull down any prey larger than a deer. "That's true," he confirmed. "But successful hunters aren't all just brawn, you do need fast wolves to help herd and chase." Serach continued, wanting to reassure her should she change her mind later on.

"Ah I understand. It's hard to not know if you didn't have any examples to watch," he murmured, his brow furrowing in thought as he tried to think of examples he could give her. Jessie had been Oak Tree Bend's scout for as long as he could remember, and Drestig had been a guardian. But he knew that packs also had medics, and advisors, and teachers. "If you remember Drestig and Jessie, the pair who left soon after you and your mother joined the Bend back in the spring, they used to be a guardian and a scout. I don't know that a guardian would suit you as an official role, but I do think every wolf should know how to defend themselves. As for scouting, Jessie would routinely leave the Bend on trips to visit other packs and gather information about them. If I remember correctly, that's actually how we learned that your family moved from Magnolia Glen to Silent Moon Plateau," he explained with a smile, trying to gauge her interest in either of those two positions.

"But there are other skills that a pack needs. I don't know anything about it, but there are wolves who know how to use plants to help heal and offer relief. @Naira might actually be somebody to ask, if you're interested in that kind of thing. But we also need wolves with level heads and interest in helping manage the pack. With so many pups in the pack, they need teachers. Not only to teach them how to hunt, but how to socialize and to learn about their family and the pack. And I could always use an advisor."