[Jaykobell]

He paced slowly in his den. His mind was spinning around in circles as he reviewed the events of the last few days, and what everything would mean for the future.

Despite his young age, he was now in charge of an entire clan of wild Kuhnas. Things shouldn't have turned out this way, but life was dangerous when the Kuhnas had had to settle into an area so close to the Fe'gan Mountains. Although the bitter cold didn't quite reach them, they dared to venture close to the mountains for food and herb supplies.

But to think that the mountain would take so many Kuhnas at once?

[Jaykobell]

It had happened fast, supposedly. An avalanche, caused by the ruckus of the hunting Kuhnas nearby. The group had ventured too close to the snowed parts of the mountains, and within the blink of an eye, the whole group had been swallowed and crushed under the snow, ice, and falling rocks. Five members of the group lost, just like that.

And now, with his mother — the former leader — and his father — the one who would've taken on the leadership, had he been alive — both dead, the leadership fell to him, the sole child who had resulted from their union.

And with the weight of what lay in front of him, it felt like he, too, had been swallowed up by that avalanche.

[Jaykobell]

Despite the cold, something primal burned inside him. Indignation: the fact his parents would still be alive had the group not been forced to settle here, in such a dangerous area. With Wilt'no Desert on one side and the Fe'gan Mountains on the other, they had to risk their lives every day to survive.

He stopped pacing. His claws gripped the earth underfoot. No one even wanted to live here. They couldn't keep living here.

His eyes remained focused on the wall of his mother's — no, on the wall of the leader's den. His den. His brain turning, working.

[Jaykobell]

Eventually, he found it in himself to emerge from the den.

Almost immediately, he could feel the eyes of his clanmates on him. They had seen little of him since the death of his parents and his subsequent inheritance of the leadership. He figured many were thinking that he was too young, too unfit to lead. His tails flicked to one side out of anger. There was no time for hesitation.

He went to the meeting point: a massive tree trunk from ages past, sitting elegantly in the middle of the camp. With a strong jump, he waited for the others to gather around him before speaking.

[Jaykobell]

Soon, everyone had gathered around; young and old both, their eyes shining with curiosity — and pain.

One Kuhna broke the silence. "Scarskin—" she started, only to cut herself off.

But another took the reign on the call, rectifying the other Kuhna's mistake. "Scarcrown," he voiced loudly, soon to be joined by others.

"Scarcrown! Scarcrown!"

His eyes scanned the group of Kuhnas. Some chanted his new name — the name of a leader — others were quieter about it — and a pawful said nothing, looking lost.

He raised a paw and swiped it to the side to ask for silence.

[Jaykobell]

"Everyone," Scarcrown said as the cheering died down, "we need to talk. With Searcrown and Bonetooth gone, the leadership onto me." He paused to give everyone a moment to take it all in. "And with that, some things will change."

Ears twitched and curious glances were exchanged, and some Kuhnas murmured between each other; but no Kuhna spoke or voiced an opinion.

"Searcrown and Bonetooth were pillars of this clan," one Kuhna voiced, sounding crushed at the realization of what was happening. "So were the others who died with them."

Scarcrown dipped his head in acknowledge and agreement to their words, many Kuhnas doing the same, and a few yowling despair to the wind.

[Jaykobell]

"They were all good Kuhnas, both as Kuhnas and as members of this group," Scarcrown said after the cries had died down.

"We couldn't even get all the bodies out of the snow!" an older Kuhna cried out with alarm. "What if the others aren't even dead?"

One Kuhna gave them a jab with their paw. "If any of them were still alive, they would've crawled out of the snow by now!" they pointed out with a growl. "You think Searcrown wouldn't have made it out, at least?"

"Whitebirch has a good point," Scarcrown agreed. "We should at least recover the bodies — all of them."

[Jaykobell]

"We'll organize groups to make sure we have Kuhnas trying to dig out the remaining bodies," Scarcrown promised. Not only was it important to make sure the deaths were true, it was equally important for everyone to get closure and to say their proper goodbyes.

His promise seemed to ease a few of them — old Whitebirch included — but some things were still on the minds of the Kuhnas gathered around the stump. "What about you changing things?" one voiced. "Like the interim?"

The mention of the interim got whispers started. Kuhnas trying to guess who would get to become a righthand to the new Kuhna monarch was the first exciting thing that had happened in the last few days.

[Jaykobell]

Scarcrown allowed them to allowed them to revel in the excitement for just a little bit. They were right to wonder: with the death of his mother, the current interim gave up their title by default. Nothing prevented Scarcrown from giving the title back to the Kuhna in question, but in this case, that wasn't his intention. That, too, had been a big question weighing on his mind.

Finally, he yowled for the others to silence. "I do have an interim to appoint," Scarcrown confirmed, but before announcing his new righthand Kuhna, he bowed down to one specific Kuhna in the crowd. "Whiskerdew," he called out loud and clear, "I can't thank you enough for having served my mother. Thank you for your service and your loyalty to her, through thick and thin."

The female Kuhna he had called out seemed surprised, behind the sorrow in her eyes. She blinked slowly, and then returned the grateful bow of her new monarch.

[Jaykobell]

The clan followed their monarch and also offered thanks to Whiskerdew. Although she would have been a fantastic choice in being Scarcrown's interim, she was also getting older. In his honest opinion, he felt that she deserved to live the rest of her life in peace, with none of the stress the rank of interim brought to a Kuhna.

All of them deserved to live in peace. Every single Kuhna that stood in front and all around him.

He shook his head to clear the alarming thoughts away. "Whiskerdew, I hope you'll approve my choice in my new interim, as we move on to a new monarch," Scarcrown continued, and he scanned the clearing, looking for the Kuhna he wanted. "My interim will be Earthstrike."

[Wild Pet Found]

[Jaykobell]

The choice seemed to surprise a few of the Kuhnas in the clan. Some looked at each other curiously, others did nothing more than twitch their ears in surprise. The Kuhna Scarcrown had named was young, a close friend of Scarcrown's. When there were so many older, more experienced Kuhnas to choose from, the decisions seemed a little questionable, to some.

"Earthstrike has done nothing but be a dedicated Kuhna to the group," Scarcrown pointed out when he picked up on the wariness from his followers: from the Kuhnas he ought to protect and take care of, now.

As a show of confidence, he narrowed his eyes and asked, "Or would there be anyone who would argue with my decision?" as he scanned the group of Kuhnas, a challenge in his eyes.

[Jaykobell]

Perhaps some would have questioned him, but with the state of affairs, and maybe because of the fact Scarcrown was a victim of his parents both being gone, no Kuhna meowed a peep. Scarcrown relaxed a little bit. To be challenged on his first decision would have been a problem.

"Take some time to eat and relax," he told his Kuhnas, his expression softening as he looked back around. "I need to have a word with Earthstrike," he pointed out, "but once I'm done, I'll be ready to organize groups to go dig through the avalanche." He was pleased to see relief in the eyes of many a Kuhna, showing he was starting his lead in a good direction. "Those who are interested in contributing, come see me later," he instructed, and with that, he jumped down from the stump, calling the meeting to an end.

[Jaykobell]

Once the meeting came to an end, Earthstrike looked up at his leader. His appointment as interim had come as a surprise even to him. Even in consideration of his close bond with Scarcrown, his young age had been an obvious reason to him never being picked as interim. Part of him wanted to ask Scarcrown why he'd picked him; and maybe he would.

Just as he'd announced, Scarcrown joined Earthstrike the moment the meeting was over. Considering he had never expected this title, Earthstrike had no idea what their new leader could possibly want to discuss.

When Scarcrown stopped in front of him, Earthstrike bowed his head. "An honor to be your interim, Scar—" He gasped. "Scarcrown," he corrected.

[Jaykobell]

Hoping Scarcrown hadn't picked up on his blunder, Earthstrike quickly added, raising his head to meet his leader's eyes, "What did you want to talk about?"

But all Scarcrown did was tilt his head to the side. "You can still call me Scar," he assured his interim, his voice assuring his friend that he hadn't been offended. "We're still friends," he promised his interim, although his short pause quietened his voice as he added, "Even if things are different now."

Earthstrike inwardly relaxed when Scarcrown said they could keep to their old habits. "They might be different, but that doesn't change my loyalty to you," he promised with a smile, now feeling a little bit more comfortable.

[Jaykobell]

Tilting his head, Earthstrike added, "So, what did you want to talk about?" Thinking about it now, he figured it was probably to organize the group better, how to put together the best patrols they could, how and where to hunt for the most prey; the usual. It just hit him that this would all be Earthstrike's responsibility now. His chest tightened again.

Scarcrown nodded, but then he shook his head. "Not here," he said, and he flicked his head toward his den. "In there. It has to be between you and me," he explained, his voice now a whisper.

Earthstrike blinked as he started following Scarcrown to the leader's den.