Nash had been reluctant to allow his daughter to join him at first, but knowing Magg she would take off on her own if he didn't bring her, and he'd rather know where she was. The last thing he needed was for her to go off in search of her brother and never come back.

Her question caught him off guard and he stopped to look at her. "A guardian? Why?" he asked. He hadn't known she'd had those thoughts, those ambitions. Had they been obvious? Had he missed them in his pursuit of other things?

His child's straight forward response made it sound so easy, like he could just go about granting ranks to anybody. He wished he could give her what she wanted without fuss, but she was still so young. He smiled gently. "Yeah? You want to be a guardian just because I am?" he was a leader now, but he hadn't ever really felt that he'd stopped being a guardian just because he had a new title.

He nodded for her to join him and continued walking; they could patrol and talk at the same time. Besides, if any of the missing pups were around and heard them, they might be able to get their attention. He just wanted them found.

Nash had been about to offer to train his daughter, to show her the moves his brother had shown him - maybe even ask Chan to teach her himself - when she spoke flippantly. His expression turned from warm to stony in an instant. "Don't say that. Don't you ever say that!" he snapped. How dare she? How dare she dismiss Al so callously? How-

He stopped again and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. When he opened them he looked down upon his middle child, expression schooled more into stern than angry now. "How do you think Galen would feel if he heard you say that?" Even if his children didn't understand how devastating his predecessor's loss was, the Vuesain children were feeling it. He wouldn't tolerate his litter being so cruel. Besides that, it seemed Magg might need a lesson in humility. "There is a vast difference between fighting a cougar by yourself and facing a bobcat with three of your packmates at your back. Have you ever seen a cougar?" he asked, waiting a moment for her response before continuing. "They're as big as me and your mom put together, and faster and stronger. Their claws are as big as my teeth. Uncle Chan's tail is as short as it is because a cougar bit it off - while I was sitting on it and Flair was attacking it. I wouldn't face a cougar on my own if I could avoid it. Al was very brave, and he was protecting you. You and your siblings and Galen and his. I expect you to show a little more respect."

Feeling he'd suitably lectured his daughter - for now - Nash returned to a happier topic and his voice warmed to reflect it. "As far as being a guardian goes, I think you would be good at it, with some training."