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Raisa could hardly believe her nose. She'd thought, at first, that she'd been imagining things, or finding stale traces of her only sister within Ichorwood after being gone for a while. But after accepting Stream into their ranks and giving her a tour, she'd caught fresh scents. It took everything in her to remain polite and not abandon the poor fossa to navigating her new home alone after she'd taken such a leap of faith in joining a group of mostly canines; but excitement for the new member kept the queen genuinely engaged, and it wasn't until after making sure Steam was comfortable that Raisa set out on her mission.

She tracked down her sister quietly, keeping her paws light, her heart beating against her ribcage like an upbeat melody only she could hear. She would do what she must to try and keep herself quiet, her unfettered joy shaking her into mischievousness.

The striped coat, so much like her own but stripped of the blue, was easy to pick out amongst the bloody forest, and Raisa crouched. She offered no welcome, to scolding, no words of any sort. With quick steps, the Sovereign loosed a yowl just as she pounced to tackle Serafina.

There might have been some small sense of smug victory that siezed Raisa as she pushed her littermate into the dirt between reminiscing over their childhood and a punishment for being gone so long. That's what happened: squished, smothered with love, oh the horrors!
Sera didn't expect the hit and went sprawling, and Raisa lay atop her prize long enough to rumble a happy sound and lick her sister across the forehead.

After another long moment, she moved to let her sister up.

I've missed you, she admitted softly, eyes shining with happiness, Have you come to claim your place as Lady of Seiiki?

A new name she was toying with, and this was the first she'd spoken it aloud. Still, she hoped Serafina would accept; she wanted her littermate to know she meant the world to Raisa.

It would be good, to have Sera home again. Raisa didn't think Andrei was still lurking (perhaps the misunderstanding with Koku hurt his feelings more than he let on), but maybe one day all three of them would be together again. Even if their parentage had always been a bit... unconventional, Raisa shared a special connection with the two siblings who'd gone through the same things she had, who might understand the way she felt. Cirilla and Benkei, they just couldn't, Raisa thought. How could they? Just like she couldn't imagine how it felt to be separated, told to keep a monumental secret, they couldn't understand what watching everyone die or abandon her had done to their Sovereign.

But Serafina was home now, she was staying, and Raisa grinned wide from ear to ear even as her littermate dulled under her own anxieties.

"You'll always have a home at my side, Sera."

Not that coming and going for long periods of time with no warning would be well received, but Raisa didn't see fit to punish her sister for adventuring and seeing all the sights young wolves like them should've been enjoying, especially after the travesties that were their short lifetime.