Grezig’s eyes opened when she heard/sensed nearby movement. She tended to be a light sleeper, as if her brain could never quite shut off its need to check the safety of a location. And since they had not claimed this mountain as their own, they were a bit exposed out here. There were a lot of them now, in the group, and they could probably take care of themselves if they were attacked. And yet, Grezig still felt on edge. Perhaps it was more simply impatience about wanting to find a home that kept her up at night. She had been on edge for some time.

She lifted her head off of her paws silently, watching a shadow move away from the group and towards the trees farther away. A sniff in its direction told her that the shadow was Kavik. Curious, and unable to fall back asleep now, she stood and followed, but at a distance, wanting to give him a bit of space before she barged into… whatever he was doing. She was not following him to be nosy, but he’d woken her up, after all (however unintentionally) and she found that she enjoyed his company. She wondered if he would speak to her now or want her to leave him in peace. 

He was moving fairly quickly now, so she decided to catch up to him and gave a quiet chuff. He had probably heard her already, but just in case, she did not want to startle him out here in the dark.

He responded to her presence with his usual stoicism, and did not seem to mind her company, so she came closer. He asked her what brought her out here so late, and her ears turned sideways along her head. “Actually… you woke me up,” she said, with a tiny smile. “I do not mind; I am a light sleeper. I admit I followed you to see if I could speak with you for a while, since I am now wide awake.” She tilted her head in a questioning way, asking him silently if he would mind conversing with her. If not, she would simply return to the group and fall asleep probably in an instant.

Grezig shook her head at Kavik’s apology. “No need,” she said simply. Kavik had never done a single thing to annoy her and waking her up accidentally wasn’t going to change that. He asked her what was on her mind, and she sort of just sat there, staring at him dumbly. “I am… not sure. I had no thought of what we might speak about if you allowed me to keep you company.” She shrugged and looked up at the night sky through the trees, trying to think of something to say. She had no questions for him at this time about the pack. It was taking longer than she’d expected to settle down, but she did not mind. The group was cohesive and that mattered more to her than having strict borders to call home.

Finally, her mind landed in a strange place, but the thought made her smile for a moment. “Would you spar with me tomorrow?” she asked, looking at him again. “I’d like to keep my training up so that I can be of use if there is a real fight.” Besides, someone as big as Kavik… she wondered what he could do, himself.

Grezig nodded her assent at helping Kavik with his patrol, falling into step beside him. They were silent for a time, which was fine with her. She enjoyed the smells and sights of the night, took solace in the quietude. A thought flitted across her mind for just a moment—that, if Kavik had not been mates with Liri, he could be a good mate for her—but she brushed it aside immediately. Grezig was not a home-wrecker and she respected Liri just as much as Kavik. She was sure someone would come along one day who would be right for her. Besides, she wasn’t very romantic, and would probably only want a steady mate for pups.

She shook her head hard to get her out of this train of thought and thanked him for agreeing to spar with her. “I look forward to it,” she said. And they continued on their patrol.

[Exit.]