The days shortened, and the cold deepened. Every night's chill seemed to bite just a little deeper and she arose from her bed in the cover of moss and thick trees, alone and bleary-eyed, as dawn crept its way across the horizon. Amekaze moved slowly, stretching, and beginning to work towards full awareness.

She peered around with a small sigh. Eventually her path would head towards the borderlands and then beyond to keep working on her plant gathering, but she was not ready for that yet; she still felt the chill of the night and no amount of fluffing up her fur was seeming to ease it away. The cold evenings were increasingly lonely and her insistence on not inhabiting a proper den (and instead a crook of large roots) likely did not help her any.

In winters prior she had either simply toughed it out or had company to share her sleeping spaces with. Ways back, it had always been her mother she could curl up alongside to keep warm even at the high elevations of Rikudou. And, more recently at even just a handful of months ago, she had been growing used to sharing Ferdie's company for such means, although it had not been all that cold then... She frowned. This then led her to wonder if any others were feeling the same way, or would be in time to come..

Nevertheless, she yawned, stretched again, and picked her way through the foliage towards the edge of this treeline where it opened up to a sloping meadow. As the morning brightened, she set out with a moseying gait to gather more plants -- whether she knew what all of them did or not.

She descended the mountain and joined up with a well-worn path on the borderlands. The round had only just begun when she scented another, however vaguely, on the winds. She adjusted course and headed his way, then when she could spy him, she found herself upon a small outcropping of rock above him. Ame peered down, ever scrutinizing, as chilly winds whipped at her furs. What is your purpose? she asked, firm, as her tail lashed a slow rhythm over her back. From here, a vantage point over his shoulder and perhaps a stone's throw away from him, she got a good, long look at him -- a creamy furred wolf, male, of acceptable health, with no pack affiliations woven into his scent. She awaited a response.

His words were met with a mixed response. She appreciated that he was only a loner, not a wolf with pack affiliations (and therefore pack-related baggage) lurking around here. Ame was far more hospitable to their sort anymore, especially since they tended to be more neutral and less of an issue than pack wolves. Those made her more uneasy. But, his apparent recognition of her had her sweeping forward to approach him for a good, long look.

She settled in front of him with her tail tall and ears thrust forward, almost aggressively, as she looked him over. Creamy fur, likely arctic heritage judging by the density of his coat, probably not too old by his lack of bulk and the youthfulness of his face.. and, most notably, his dual-toned visage. She had been silent for a handful of seconds then eventually scoffed. Ah, you were the orphaned brat the old forests kept, correct? she asked, leaning her weight back onto her hind paws. You do not smell of them any longer, not even in the least, so I take it you have been gone a while..? She was still wary of him, for having history creep up on her unexpected was unsettling. But he had never been a wolf she knew well, and instead, only in passing at best. He'd been young, she'd been busy..

Subtly, she bristled anew -- just to remind him not to relax here. While she may have given him the go ahead for conversation, it was not to say she particularly cared for him here yet.

Mention of her father stiffened her tail tip. She only nodded in answer to him and wrinkled her nose in distaste towards his.. observations. Other than that, she was quick to gloss over them. I see. I cannot say I am surprised, she smirked; he was lucky to have had that home in the first place and was a brat for not respecting it better. His nonchalance didn't inspire her to like him any either. Well what do you plan to do? None of the packs here suit your interests..? she tilted her head as she asked. Ame had been notoriously picky herself.. or was he just too unmotivated to pursue one yet. While he had yet to impress her into wanting him in her own pack, she at least hoped he was wise enough to steer clear of a few certain packs in the region.

She gave him a long, frowning stare as she considered how much to even bother telling him. His answer was what she'd expected, and she was wondering how she could subtly steer him away from packs she did not favor any. While he was probably only a half-step above useless if her father had needed to run him off, she still didn't want him to be a free warm body to a pack she disliked.

I left because I decided it was best after a lot happened and I needed a change of scenery. At first I intended to return.. eventually, and this had never happened. Self-imposed exile was probably the weightiest title for it, but it was condoned by her parents anyway.. even suggested by her mother. So far I have not.. and I may not, since this mountain became mine, she said with a gesture towards it and a slow lash of her tail. Anyway. What packs are you familiar with here? she pried, steering the subject that way to see if she could leech information from him while offering just a touch of persuasion along the way.

He confirmed a few things, namely the general locations of their southwestern neighbors. They were not of a large concern to her, though. So far.

But she listened on and pressed him here and there for more information, although there really wasn't much to be had. Amekaze found quickly that he was relaying a lot of personal opinion and his bias could have very well differed from hers. While he looked at it from the eyes of a wild bachelor with no one to care for, she took it in as a hawkish mountain alpha with much to gain -- and simultaneously, lose.

If you ever think you can manage to be useful, the Sunspire is here. Ame said, lifting her muzzle up as well. He would know where to find her now. She wouldn't bait him hard at this time either, but set the possibility on the table for him to mull over.

Soon afterward, she offered a goodbye and was ready to see him go on his way. Only once the pale male was out of sight would she return to her slopes.