Dear Brother

Sparrow smiled as her brother approached. No matter how much they had or hadn't spoken, they were still family, right? The small girl felt that way, but also she could almost feel the distance between them as Lark settled in front of her. Her smile faltered, but she decided to close the gap between them, offering him a warm- and not quite as sloppy as Bass's had been when she returned- kiss on the cheek.

He did stink of Lillianna.

Sparrow nudged his cheek once more, breathing out the scent and putting it back where it belonged- not anywhere near her. She didn't need to bring that up. She didn't want to bring that up. The thoughts and smell of Lillianna could get lost in Lark's cheek fur.

Sparrow tried to put on a much more pleasant smile as she pulled away from her brother.

"It's been a while. I'm glad to be home- for now." She couldn't ignore the passive aggressive tone in her brother's voice. One ear flicked back, "I think home is wherever you feel most comfortable, right? So, if you choose, this can always be your home." Sparrow understood it was a big change. Did Lark feel like the alphaship had been stolen from him? A pitying look crossed the small girl's face, "I guess you aren't so thrilled, huh?"

Sparrow tried to throw on a crooked smile. She wanted it to seem like the effortless grin Ashmedai used to wear, but she could feel that it was all wrong so she just dropped it.

Okay, this wasn't going to be easy, was it?

"What would your ideal situation be, Lark? Were you really happy with how Abaven was- is- whatever? I mean- maybe you were, I really don't know. I mean, even I was a little surprised to hear you weren't going to be the next alpha, but..." Sparrow sighed, shrugging her shoulders.

A sad smile crossed her face,"I guess none of us turned out how we were planned to, huh?"