There was no time to say so, but Serach was thankful for Ruiko's act of kindness. The older male had fallen back, keeping close to the youth. There was no telling what might happen, but judging by the rumbles in his stomach and the free flowing saliva in his mouth, the youth had no doubt that things could get ugly very fast. They were all hungry, and the freshly spilled blood on the snow called to them all. @Drestig might have made landed the killing blow, but it was clear to Serach's green eyes as he drew closer that these other wolves hardly cared. His pale fur bristled along his spine, and when he looked at the strangers threatening Drestig, there was no warmth in his gaze.
He looked braver than he felt, though. The thud, thud of his heart was loud in his ears, and his legs were beginning to shake with the force of adrenaline. He stepped closer to @Ruiko, evermore thankful that his uncle had wordlessly declared that he would be Serach's protector should a fight break out. With no fighting skills and very little speed, Serach couldn't help but see the dead caribou on the ground and picture himself. Would wolf blood be spilled today as well?
Perhaps not. Abruptly, the boy turned his head to look at his uncle @Triell. The pack leader had stepped up alongside Drestig, his mere presence a challenge to the strangers who had the audacity to claim what was not theirs. But as the black beast spoke, the whole situation changed. Serach followed Triell's gaze, and looked upon @Borlla. Sister. No, stupid. Aunt. Your aunt. It took him a moment to work it out, and when he had, he realized that Triell was talking about him. Putting on a brave face, Serach flicked his tail, trying to step around Ruiko so they could see him. "Please," he said, his voice wavering as he mustered the courage to speak up. "Drestig killed it, but there's more than enough to share." He looked around the group, his youthful gaze begging them to see reason. He stopped on Triell's face, his look clearly asking, We can do that, right?
![[Image: AplcUOC.png]](https://i.imgur.com/AplcUOC.png)