Blackbeak Bluff you got yourself in a dangerous zone

"Get up," she rumbled tiredly to @Whip as her nose collided with his shoulder. The light of dawn was barely peaking over the horizon, and the rest of the world was still slumbering. She waited until he was awake enough to actually hear her instructions, repeated them, and punctuated it with a simple: "We're going to the mainland." before turning tail and heading in the direction of the sandbar that would take them across.

It took them an hour to ascend to the redwood forests above Ankyra Sound. Akantha was quiet save for the occasional comment about the tide, the Sea, or Whip himself, but none of which were consequential—the Matriarch was decidedly not a morning person. But as they walked beneath the ancient sentinels, Akantha was finally awake enough to entertain the thought of a conversation. She hadn't needed him along for this trip, but his company offered the oppertunity to teach him a few things about their culture and learn just what he wanted out of his future. 

She drew to a stop to investigate the old roots of a felled redwood, the soil long washed away from the rains, exposing the intricate tangle that once gave the tree life. "What made you decide to stay with us? You could have just left as easily as you came when the storms passed." She inquired almost innocently as she nosed around the remains, seeking the source of the stale urine smell, wondering if it was wolf or otherwise.