Chapter XXV: Scatter

When I woke in the morning I felt Ember's fur pressed against mine, his side moving up and down with each breath. I relaxed into the warmth of his fur for a moment, wishing to sleep for the rest of the day. He shifted, turning his head towards me.
"Morning, Mira," he muttered.
"Morning," I said softly.
"Can we stay inside today, Mama?" Korea asked. "Frito said there's a blizzard."
"Of course, dear," I murmured. "Just don't fight with your brother."
"I won't, Mama!" She called as she raced off.
"Mira?"
"Yes, Tanisha?" I whined, looking up at her.
She rolled her eyes. "Well, I'm all grown up now, and-"
"Don't you dare try to leave the pack!" I snapped, sitting up.
"I'm not," she said. "I need to talk to you about something else."
"Well, spit it out," I said.
"First off, I need you to talk to Yukon later about his new friend," she said. "And secondly, I'm having pups."
I squealed, lurching to my feet and licking her face. "Aw, Nish, that's amazing!"
She backed up, eyes twinkling. "Mira, stop it!"
"Did you tell Casey?" I asked seriously.
"Yes, I told him yesterday."
"Good," I said. "Now tell Ember. I'm going to talk to Yukon."
"Good."
"Yukon," I called, walking towards him. "I need to talk to you."
"Sure," he said, turning towards me. "What do you need?"
"Tanisha told me to ask you about your friend?" I questioned.
"Ah," he said, the smile fading from his face as he sat down. "Emma."
"Emma?" I asked.
"Yes, Emma," he said with a sigh. "Emma is a member of a pack that lives jut beyond our south border. Most of their land was recently destroyed in a forest fire. The males in her pack want to flee west, but she's been talking to some of the she-wolves, and five of them want to come with her to join our pack."
"That's fantastic!" I said enthusiastically. "I'll talk to Frito."
"Thanks, Mira," he said, looking relieved.
"No problem." I smiled, trotting off to where Frito stood.
"Really?" Ember said excitedly as I passed. "Nish, that's fantastic!"