Sabine's smile grew a little wider out of amusement, but she closed her eyes and stayed silent.

For while longer, Sabine sat by Peiter and rested. It wasn't until she caught herself about to fall asleep that she forced her eyes open and stood up, leaving Peiter's waterskin on the ground behind her. She walked up to the tree with the climbing ropes and bent her head backwards to look up to the top.

Considering for only a moment, Sabine hovered her palms near one another and began to let magical stamina flow through her body in a golden, sunny stream. The spell stopped after a few seconds, leaving her feeling invigorated enough to feel confident climbing the tree. Before she began, she turned back to Peiter, "I am going to ask if there are any places to swim nearby." With that, she grabbed onto a rope with both hands and climbed all the way up to the platform.

Once at the top, she did as she said; finding one of Ra'maranja's pack and asking about places to swim and if they were safe.

[hr]
Gallus angled his head back and to one side, regarding Irenya and her answer. He thrust one finger into the air and motioned his hand forward as if hitting his finger against a door or someone's head, "Close! Very close!" He lowered his arm, "A master requires a servant to be obedient, but you? You are a pack mate. An alpha needs something more. You are not a servant, per se," Gallus placed his hand on his chest, "-and I am not a master in the exact sense. What I need from you, dear Irenya, is to trust your independent decisions."

Gallus' tone shifted to being closer to a superior officer than a negotiator as his posture straightened and lost the previous flippancy again, "I need to trust you to protect the lives of the champion and her pack as if they were your own family. I need to trust you to work alongside them without your personal feelings compromising anyone, including yourself. Most of all, I need to trust you not to make situations where a rift of distrust and isolation pervades between anyone amongst us. Do you understand?"

If Irenya decided to let go of her pride here, Gallus intended to resolve the rest of the situation with her cooperation. If not, he would have to become exceptionally harsh. Irenya might be much older, but she was acting like a child, and Gallus was still in charge.