• PM To Join • Flowing Like Time.

[Sinnammyn]

Fifth of Ashan, 718

Sinnammyn

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”
Mae West[/color]

The Tunawa's sleep was restless at best. Twinged with nightmares of all sorts before she finally jolted awake. Darkness still fallen over the plains she wondered for a Trill if she'd gotten any sleep at all. Not that it really mattered. It was amazing that she'd gotten any sleep at all under the circumstances.

No it wasn't the fact that she was outside or in a tent, no it wasn't the fact that she was with a complete stranger, it was the fact that right beside her were the remains of the one that had been her only companion for many trials even arcs after she'd become free. It hit her once more that Avery was dead.

Something swelled up in her chest and throat, like a puffer fish small enough to fit inside of her was puffing itself up in the most inopportune places. Choking on the sensation and feeling pain behind her eyes she shook her head. She wasn't going to cry, not to-trial, she'd cried enough for her friend. She knew she had.

She looked up and saw that the one that picked her up was in the tent with her. He must have joined her after she'd fallen asleep. Slowly, she got up, but quickly she found her way outside as the feeling in her chest sank to her stomach. She ran as far as she could behind the tent before retching what little she had in her system out. Sadly it wasn't that far and if Nir'wei was awake, he'd probably hear the poor soul.

Of course she was going to get sick. To be honest, she should have gotten sick the yester-trial. But, the memory of the sounds, of watching what was being done to Avery, and carrying her innards to the edges of the land. It was too much. She was on her hands and knee for a good few Bits losing everything from the trial before. Eventually though she managed to shakily get back up and wobble back to the tent entrance.

She just stood to the side though, not sure if she really wanted to go back in there or not. She wasn't sure she was ready to look at the pile of parts again. Not when she'd just lost every bit of sustenance in her. She was going to need to find some berries somehow. She looked around hoping there was some bushes on the edge of the property somewhere.[/font][/style2]

[Nir'wei]

Traveller, the hulking Sohr Khal, was curled up outside the tent with one wing casually thrown over its awnings like a second canvas; bribed with fish and the last travel rations of their journey to stay the night and keep guard over their little camp while they prepared some rudimentary defences and a proper perimeter. Not that he worried all too much about trespassers and the like, considering their distance from Andaris, but it never hurt to be careful. Jasper had long since curled up in one of the dismounted saddlebags, making a nest out of Nir'weis roughly-packed clothes, though he didn't entirely fit and random limbs sprawled out of the heavy canvas at awkward and hilarious angles. Malice stood half-way across the world in Scalvoris, under the care of Faith and the staff of Cally's until he returned. Greyhide himself lay at Nir'weis side, yet with nearly all his companions so close, he found sleep near impossible.

It was like a hole had been punched straight through his life. This preconception he'd never even realised he had, shattered. Suddenly the death of his animals wasn't just something that he'd never allow to happen; it was something that would happen, sooner or later, one way or another. It wasn't a possibility anymore, it was an inevitability. As he looked over his sleeping charges, he wondered he'd do, how it'd feel. What about when Traveller died? Would he bury him, or would he burn him and scatter the ashes to the wind? Would Jasper be returned to the ocean? Would their time come when they were old and grey? Would Nir'wei himself even live that long? He'd been attacked before, at complete random; the memory of a spear spinning straight for Traveller's chest rose fresh in his mind and he nearly jerked straight out of his bedroll in an attempt to avoid it.

Greyhide was up in an instant, a low growl in his throat, looking around for signs of danger. "Hey, easy. It was just... nevermind. Just be quiet, you'll wake up Sinnamynn." If there was anyone that deserved a full nights rest, it was her; he'd made a makeshift bed for her out of one of his clean shirts, bundled together with spare cloth for a blanket.

"I wouldn't worry about that. She's gone." Nir'wei kicked open the tent flap, a thin blade of moonlight slicing through the spot that Sinnamynn had once slept on. Oh Karem, he hadn't accidentally rolled over and squished her, had he?! He'd wanted to make her bed close to his just so she might not feel so alone with the loss of her bird, but what if she'd gotten up to ask him for something and he'd somehow crushed her? "Oh stop that, she's probably outside." Greyhide left the tent first and Nir'wei followed, catching the Tunawa in her last bouts of vomiting, now that he was actually listening for signs of her presence. He winced sympathetically. "You alright there Sinna? I've got some water if you need it." He had rations as well, leftovers from the journey, though he didn't think she wanted to hear about food just after losing her entire stomach... if Tunawa had stomachs. They didn't, right?

[Sinnammyn]

Fifth of Ashan, 718

Sinnammyn

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”
Mae West[/color]

The fright in her eyes when Greyhide and Nir'wei got out of the tent died swiftly when she realized it was only them. She took a slow, deep breath before turning her back to them both. She probably looked like a mess. She certainly felt like it. She still felt like there was blood all over her. She could still feel the.. no, it wasn't time to think about such a thing anymore. Not when she'd just vomited for a good bit or two.

She looked up at him, looking over her shoulder. Hugging herself. Her big eyes looking pitiful and pained as she just stood there. No words came out of her mouth for a bit. If Greyhide came up to her, she'd put one hand on his snout softly before letting that cracked smile slip into a broken, maybe even shattered laugh.

"Nothing.. Nothing is okay about any of this Nir'wei.. I'm... I've never once done.. whatever I just did.. in my short 12 arcs.. And .. now... all i want to do.. is go do it more... I wa.. want to reverse time.. I want to undo it all.. I want..." Her voice cracked more and more as she spoke and she just shook her head and looked down at the grass again. Slowly taking deep breaths to try and get herself back together again. A hand moved up to her throat and she just shook her head vigorously before walking away from them both just in case she lost herself again.

"I... Don't know what to do... anymore. I'm lost... I get lost without Avery, I don't know where I am, I only know my way around this area by flight... I... If I don't fix my situation.. Things won't be good. I won't be able to move forward with my dream.. with.. our dream.. I.." She started breathing faster and was gripping at the sides of her head. She was turning a bit towards them but then turned back, her head shaking the whole time.

"N.. No.. I.. I have no reason to panic... I can figure this out.. I always figure it out.." She took a slow deep breath and looked up to Nir'wei. Her breath shuddering as she managed to get herself at least a little bit. She looked over the wolf and then Nir'wei for a moment. "This... wolf.. he's no ordinary wolf is he? He.. seems to understand." She looked at the wolf again and put her hand out to him for a moment.

"No.. Sorry.. Never mind.. My mind's probably just playing tricks on me. To be honest. All animals are smarter than we think. Just some are better at .... you know it doesn't matter haha... so uhm... I'm sorry for.. interrupting your flight and your plans yester-trial.. I'm sure... you hadn't planned to do any such thing.. But.. I'm glad.. you'd been there... I wouldn't have been able to do it alone.."

Taking a deep breath she looked up at the sky. Shaking her head a bit. "The trial... hardly has started huh?"[/font][/style2]

[Nir'wei]

One look at her was enough; it was more than he could stomach. Greyhide took the initiative and approached first, nosing around her face and gently licking at her tears. Nir'wei followed suit and sat down cross-legged next to her, averting his eyes from the small pile of vegetation and looking out over the view stretching before them. It was a beautiful one, from all angles. Before them stood Andaris, barely illuminated in thin ghostly lights hanging above the streets and in the windows of various shops, taverns and other places of residence. All around them, wide-open fields broken briefly by the occasional homestead. Behind them, a small collection of trees, the remains of what might have once been part of a forest, cut away into little islands of woodland by the steady advance of civilisation, one square acre at a time. He listened to her, the fears, the worries... the acceptance. All of it, nodding gently. Only when she'd calmed did he reply. "Yep. If you look over there, you'll see the sun rise over Andaris in probably a few breaks. It peeks between the buildings and crests directly behind the castle. Like the King himself is lifting it."

"A moment of silence drifted between them. "Look, you..." he started, but trailed off as his mouth worked soundlessly to produce the right words. He wasn't exactly used to being the one giving advice in a crisis; he was incredibly lucky to be surrounded by people to support him in his times of need, but that didn't mean he knew how to do it by proxy! "I'll take you around, if you want. Greyhide won't mind you on his back, or you can take my shoulder... we can take Traveller, if you feel better from the air, and we'll ride wherever you want and map everything out so you get a feel of the land. I've never really mapped out a place myself, we'll learn it together, we'll make an adventure out of it!" There was eagerness in his voice, but he hoped Sinn never realised how forced it was. He was desperately grasping at straws here, given the bleak situation. Thinking of something, anything to take her mind off Avery. He certainly didn't care about her interruption, as she so tentatively put it. He didn't understand Tunawa physiology, but a drop from that height surely would have caused serious harm! And Avery... well.

"And look, nothing has to happen right now. We can just sit here and relax, right? Nothing has to happen straight away. Nobody expects you to just... get up and keep moving the next day. Your dream will be still be waiting for you in a few trials. Stay in the camp, all of us will be collecting food every day and you're free to stay and join us as long as you want." Greyhide looked up from his place at Sinnamynn's other side, and there was a brief touch of understanding. "Greyhide says he wouldn't mind staying back from hunting and keeping you company, if you need it. But he says you'll have to provide most of the conversation." He let her make of that what she would.

[Sinnammyn]

Fifth of Ashan, 718

Sinnammyn

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”
Mae West[/color]

Sinna just sat there, listening, softly pressing her hand on Greyhide's snout as Nir'wei spoke. They would help her? What was it with most of the humans that she'd been meeting recently? She really couldn't be this unlucky, yet lucky at the same time. It was ridiculous in her mind. She took a deep breath and shook her head. Returning herself back to the world as it was. This man wanted to help her? She'd tried to draw a few maps from the air, but it never really helped her, though her skills weren't really all that great in the first place.

She looked between him and the wolf, she didn't say anything when the wolf had lapped up her sap tears. It probably was unpleasant for the wolf but at least he was trying. She actually had a bit of a smile on her face just thinking about it.

"A... map would be a good thing to have, for my... dreams for the future. I don't see why we couldn't do that."

She looked up at Nir'wei, a soft smile on her lips. She could tell that he was a bit uncomfortable right now, though he seemed genuinely interested in making the map of the city.

"Though, to-trial, I don't think we should bug Traveler.. You managed to get all my sap from Traveler and same to you yes Greyhide? I think there was a bit on you too. It's hardest to get out of hair and fur."

She paused. She was talking to him like he could talk back. Though she'd done that to Avery a lot. She thought that maybe that was the Tunawa in her. But then something that Nir'wei said made her pause. She raised an eyebrow and looked over Greyhide.

"Greyhide... isn't just a normal wolf is he... Nir'wei?"

She paused and then pulled her hand away suddenly.

"I.. I'm sorry, I'm.. b.. being rude.. uhm.. you... both... have been so kind.. really thank you.. uhm...no need to put aside your hunts for me.. I can go with Nir'wei.. help him find.. non poisonous berries.. See.. if I eat anything poisonous, a flower will form that produces an antidote. Uhm... I was going to use that... originally, to get a job with royalty.. but... I thought that might just land me back in slavery. So... I decided against it. I wouldn't mind helping you guys with food procurement... seeing as I really should uhm.. eat and probably drink myself."

She laughed a bit and looked between them. Mostly looking at Nir'wei, but finding that Greyhide might actually be something more than meet's the eye, well just based on the fact that he didn't seem like a normal animal it was.. something of a shock to her system even with the knowledge that she did have.[/font][/style2]

[Nir'wei]

Now that was new. "You can produce antidotes when you eat poisons? Huh. That's a new one." Not something he'd ever been told about before, but he supposed there was no reason to tell him up until now. "I... like to think I know my way around most of the poisonous plants around here, but I'd love to have you along regardless." An idea came to mind, but he had to word it very carefully. "Honestly, I don't know how Tunawa are treated here. If it turns out that it's something you still want to do, then go for it. Hah, I'll come with you. Wouldn't mind meeting a bit of royalty myself, just for a quick hello." The thought brought a cheeky grin to his face, but he wiped it off quickly. Best to get those thoughts out of his head fast.

Back to the matter at hand. "The place we're sitting on, right now... I hope that it'll one day become a place that helps people. All people, in Rynmere. Gives the homeless a place to sleep, and work, and live. Gives the sick a place to be healed. Hah, maybe even gives the animals both wild and domestic a place for the same!" What a dream that had been, before the Rot. "I don't know when... and I honestly don't know how, either, but I want it to happen." He looked back over at Sinnamynn. Tiny, crestfallen, nowhere else to go. "You're the first customer, I guess." The place was nothing more than an acre of empty grassland, yet he was already beginning his service. "You don't have to, if you don't want to. I won't ask anything of you that you're not comfortable with, and you're always free to leave at any time. But if you find the chance, if you find anything poisonous... make an antidote. As much as you can. I've got some vials somewhere, if I run out, I'll go and buy some more... and we'll give them to those that need it. Free of charge." It was an ambitious suggestion. He knew what he was asking; he only hoped that she understood that he asked with only the best interests at heart.

"Don't think of it as payment for staying here either, I've already said. You can stay here for as long as you want. Think of it as serving more than just the royals. You'll be serving all of Rynmere." A funny notion, to serve an entire kingdom. He could think of a few doctors who would call it very different, if they ever found out that charging for their bottles of antidote was soon going to be a thing of the past. "If you need someone to go with you when you collect poisons, you can always ride Greyhide." The wolf gave a very unamused snort.

Just like that, they were back to the subject yet again. He supposed that he'd played himself, trying to keep it all mysterious. "No, Greyhide isn't a normal wolf. I suppose you've shared one of your abilities, so it's time for me to share mine." He chuckled quietly to himself. "I mean, I'm actually rather surprised you never noticed it yourself. These are normally pretty difficult to hide." Turning to her and flashing a grin, he spread his lips a little wider to expose his abnormally large fang-like canines... and flashed wolfish pale blue, nearly grey eyes in the process. "Me and Greyhide have both been touched by the Immortal Karem. Greyhide used to be human, and she gave him a choice, to stay human or become a wolf." He reached up and rubbed the wolf's neck; an empty gesture, since their connection ran so much deeper than the physical. "He understands everything you say and he can respond through me. He can't talk normally, though."

[Sinnammyn]

Fifth of Ashan, 718

Sinnammyn

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”
Mae West[/color]

Sinna looked at Nir'wei, a small smile coming to her tiny lips. "Unfortunately, I'd more likely be placed in captivity and forced to do what they want me to do rather than letting me offer my services for nel. Though maybe if you were there, it would allow me to not get put in captivity. Maybe." She sighed and ran a small hand through her frayed petals.

She paused in her movements and just stared at Nir'wei for a moment, before starting to laugh a bit. "It's bad when my dream is much the same as yours, yet at the moment you're the one saving me from a bad situation. I'm, going to save those that are enslaved in Rynmere, and hopefully end slavery." She sighed and stood up, wiping herself off before looking back up at Nir'wei. "I was going to open a delivery service around here in Andaris, or in Venora to start, and expand as I free more slaves. Giving them homes, and a place to work. Much the same as what you want to do with this blank space here."

She looked around and smiled. This whole plains was going to be the home to many beings. Hopefully, he'd be able to build a mansion the likes of which no one has seen that hold home to those that are troubled or are in need of work, just like she was aiming to do across Rynmere. She paused in her looking around though when Nir'wei made a suggestion. She smiled softly and looked up at him.

"I might do something like that, it doesn't work well with manufactured poisons from my knowledge. But I haven't really tried it out. It might work well for things like venom's though. I'll have to test it out at some point. I don't know if i might grow more than one flower if there is more than one ingredient to a cure or not. I've got to do a little research on my own first. When I find out though, I'll let you know."

She watched Nir'wei like a hawk as he showed her his fangs. She blinked a few times. Touched by an Immortal? Hadn't she heard something of the sort before. Yes, with Caius, though... he was the .. grandson of one. Wait. She blinked a few times before looking up to Nir'wei. "Wait... Immortals... they have... they can give us mortals powers?" She looked at him then the wolf. "Karem.... made Greyhide a wolf? Isn't there a sort of magic that does the same thing? Well whatever the case may be... I'm sorry.. I'm prying, and shouldn't. It's an amazing gift that Karem granted you Greyhide. Sorry I found out. I'm just, in tune with such things you know? Being a Tunawa and all." She shook her head and took a deep breath before shaking herself off.

"But... Back to what I was originally asking. Can...most any Immortal do this? This.. gifting of skill? I've heard about it before I think... but I just thought it was a tall tale." She frowned and put a finger on her chin. "Then.... there may be.... one or two that I may be able to gain favor with to help me towards my goals. Don't you think?" She looked up at Nir'wei. "Or, is it not all it seems?"[/font][/style2]

[Nir'wei]

As she vented her frustrations and fears, he felt bad that all he could really do was shrug his shoulder. "Just because I'm helping you today doesn't mean that you won't end up helping me tomorrow." He'd once helped a slave, and she'd gone on to save his life when nobody else in the world could. There really was no telling what could happen next, to either of them. "All you can do is keep true to your goal and you'll make it, sooner or later. In big leaps or small steps, as long as you're moving in the right direction, you'll get there. You've set yourself a noble and lofty goal. It won't be finished in a day... and who knows what tomorrow might bring." It was actually quite funny, just how similar their goals were; how fate had, one way or another, twisted them together. A courier service wasn't a half-bad plan. It'd have to start out cheap, of course, since messenger birds were in such abundance, not to mention the strange magical items that bypassed the issue entirely. Not a few steps away from where they sat, Nir'weis bag held a mysterious enchanted scroll gifted to him by a friend, a so-called 'echo scroll' that removed the need for couriers across any distance. Still, it had its merits. Many, in fact, Nir'wei realised as he mulled it in his head.

"I wouldn't worry about... man-made poisons. The further both of us stay out of that part of the world, the better." Poisons had their benefits, there could be no doubt; hunting wild game and subduing dangerous animals, to name a few excuses. Killing his fellow man, however, was far from excusable. "I mean accidentally eating some poisonous berries... brushing against a plant, maybe even stung by the wrong bug." Perhaps the last one, not so much, though if she had anything to offer against those types of poison, he was all ears. "Salves cost a pretty nel, actual antivenoms considerably more... and not everyone has that kind-of money lying around the house when danger strikes. Rare and exotic types can cripple a person financially... and if they can't afford the cure, it can cripple them physically." It wasn't fair for the rich to shrug off such things without a care while common workers lost their livelihood to an easily-avoidable ailment. "If you can help them, even if it means growing the cures one at a time, do it. Neither of us probably know how much it could mean to them."

He realised he'd been... horribly silent about the Immortal business. But there was a reason for that, the same reason he'd been rather reluctant to mention anything about Greyhide, and why he still remained silent now, as she prodded dangerously close to the darker regions of his past. The truth was, he simply didn't know. "Karem does, at least. She transformed Greyhide, and she touched me, and... it left something." Something he was still coming to terms with, honestly. Information, senses and understanding poured into his mind without consciously thinking about it, he'd felt it when he went outside, when he hunted for meat alongside Greyhide. Knowledge not his own. Honestly, it'd scared him at first, but he'd accepted it as something that just came with the bonding between man and wolf. "Honestly, I'm not the person to ask about this. Karem's the only one that's done this for me... or near to me. The others, I don't know." He had met others, of course. Thetros in a dreamscape, Ziell right here in Rynmere... Famula, Qylios and Moseke at a wedding, to boot. Qylios had done something to Padraig, so... maybe it was something similar? "It could be." They were venturing into uncomfortable territory again.

Greyhide turned away, back towards the camp, and ghosted silently into the dim of the early-morning light. "I think he's still tired," Nir'wei lied. "If you need a few more breaks out here, I'll leave the tent open or something." He really was tired, their flight had been a taxing thing. But looking down at the Tunawa, that pang of remorse lodged uncomfortably in his throat again. "And if there's anything else you need, let me know?" Gods, he was unbelievably bad at this.

[Sinnammyn]

Fifth of Ashan, 718

Sinnammyn

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”
Mae West[/color]

She sat there thinking about what she should do. She really didn't know a lot about how to run a business.. everything she'd been thinking about was just stuff that seemed like commonsense or something that she picked up from watching other's running their business. She didn't really know how long she would have to take to get everything up and running and even worse, she didn't even know if she could get the business loans necessary to get her started. Maybe she should also offer tonics and such. Learn more about poisons and what cures them? More than one business in one? She started to feel frustrated all over again. Was this even a good idea? Others seemed to kind of think so at least...

She looked up at Nir'wei for a moment, listening to what he had to say so that she didn't really have to think about things herself for a trill. She couldn't let thought's of doubt crush her like this. She had to keep moving forward, even if things were hard she had to keep moving. She took a deep breath and looked around as Nir'wei spoke about what tomorrow might bring as well as about poisons and venom's. She would have to see about if she could figure out a safe way to test out some venom's. She might have to see about earning and saving some money first for that one. She knew though, that she could definitely help with the first part. The berries and plants. She took a deep breath and smiled up at the man.

"I understand. Money is always something that is hard to keep and make.. I've been lucky so far to keep most of what I have, but I've not had so much luck being able to find a job to be frank."

Sinna sighed and watched the as the suns started to peak up from the tree line. She smiled meekly as she looked over to Nir'wei once more. Listening intently to his comment's about this Karem, and his thought's on how she might be right about other's leaving a mark. Though it seemed that maybe she had made him and Greyhide uncomfortable. She frowned at that thought. She didn't want to be a burden on them, or make them uncomfortable with conversations that they didn't want to have. She looked down at the ground and took a few slow breaths. Waiting just a trill before looking up to Nir'wei. She didn't want to be a burden.. but for the next few trials until she found a bird... she was going to have to be. She cleared her throat and smiled at him.

"Uhm.... well.. help finding a bird.... eventually... and... maybe... if you have time.... I'd like to get to either the bank here in Andaris, or the one in Venora.. and well uhm... get a business loan so I can buy a building.. and supplies for my .... business... "

She was hesitant in her requests as she pressed her hands together. Clearing her throat.

"And maybe... eventually... a talk about maybe being business partners? Since.. our goals are very much similar?"

She felt like she was asking for a lot, in return for a whole lot of nothing... this... wasn't going to look good if she didn't straighten up. but to be fair, she was nervous and had never done this before.[/font][/style2]

[Nir'wei]

He blinked a few times. "A new bird." Yes, she would need a new one, wouldn't she. As often as he could offer her a lift, it just wasn't the same thing as riding herself, but of course he couldn't just suggest it so soon after losing something so precious. "I have some things that might help. I hope. I've... well, I must admit, I've never really dealt in birds. Especially ones of the size that would suit you. But it'll be a learning experience! Just means we'll have to try even harder." This time he didn't have to force any cheer into his voice. He really did have the kit to help, and, well, it really would be a valuable experience. What would even suit her, he thought abruptly? A falcon, an eagle, something of that calibre, though he didn't know any vendors that sold such birds. Nor did he know how to find one in the wild; they'd have to find a nest, surely, but that was said easier than done, since one couldn't exactly hunt down a bird through their scent trail or nearby markings.

His mind twisted over and over the conundrum until it overtook everything else. "Huh?" he said dumbly. "Oh. Right. I can give you a lift whenever you need it, I've got to make a visit there myself." After all, his own place wasn't going to build itself. That was another issue entirely; one he'd wrestled with all the way over, and one that he still wasn't quite sure how to achieve. He'd need builders, materials, architects... except he had none of those things. Money, he had - thank Karem there were people who needed someone to take care of their animals in Scalvoris and Desnind, or else he'd be forced to fall back on second-rate hunting. If only he'd not spent all of his time in Rharne bleeding out of every orifice, he could have found a place working there too and come back laden with even more nel, but the real problem was just pulling everything together. Of course a business partner would help with that... but... "I'll think about joining with you."

It wasn't a yes or a no. It was an option, of course, but this wasn't about a business. This was about Isonomia. He didn't have any qualms with her joining, but he needed to make sure she was ready to commit to it; it sounded like she wanted to help people, for sure, but from her lofty talks of serving the king, he couldn't quite tell whether it was helping people that drew her... or the fame and money of helping the rich. Those two were very different things, after all.

Slowly he rose, pressing both hands to his lower back and stretching until his spine popped audibly. It was still late, and they had an even longer day ahead of them now than they had a few breaks ago. "We'll deal with it all in the morning. The first thing to do is get you a bird, if that's what you really want. After that, a job... and after that, a loan. We'll sort everything out one bit at a time, and take what we can get." It sounded like a plan to him! Though his mind immediately began to spin again. What jobs could a Tunawa even get? What could they do better than a human, apart from crafting antidotes to poisons? No no, no point trying to pursue that now, he'd be up all night. He didn't even think there was a bottom to that rabbit hole.

He returned to the camp to find Greyhide waiting for him outside of the tents entrance, sat on his haunches and fixing him with an unblinking steely gaze. His pale eyes and their brightness had always reminded him of Greyhide's apparent intelligence before he'd discovered the truth behind them. Now, they reminded him of Archailist, in a horribly unsettling way. "She asks too much," the wolf said, "and you tell her too much." He let the words linger in the air before rising and stalking off beyond the edges of the limp embers of their campfire's dull gaze. Likely to begin another patrol sweep. It was true; he was guilty of spreading their secrets a little too wide, but honestly, what harm could she cause them?