Sloane was back in her fog. Hearing about Cam and Maddy's deaths had rocked her in ways she couldn't even begin to articulate. She had know—wanted life to move on without her at home, but life, not deaths. She'd gleaned more information about the zoo in letters from both Alvin and her mother (Alvin complaining about Stephen being housed in the backyard and her mum with real info), but she was still reeling from the news of the loss.

Just when she'd thought she'd started to claw her way out of spiraling, something pulled her back in.

Thank goodness for her friends here. She'd made quite a few, but fortunately she could happily count on Sunny and her fellow apprentices to keep her somewhat planted in reality here. Currently she was feeding Bram by the fire before he went off on a nighttime adventure. She was careful about what bugs he ate, so wanted to make sure he was full before flying off. "Stunning addition." She teased. "Suits you," they were always covered in something, an unfortunate byproduct of their jobs, but Sloane didn't really mind. At least the dress code was pretty relaxed around here. "Fwooper? All better, at least?" It had been a fwooper or a phoenix, she thought.