Permafrost Hollows when springtime came, red robin built a nest,

maybe @Wintersbane?

She feels like she could get lost in these icy tunnels. Maybe she already is, honestly. She can't fathom why any wolf would choose to settle somewhere so maze-like and cold. She has yet to actually meet the man who'd apparently chosen this place, and her mind offers all sorts of possibilities. The only constant among all her assumptions is the thought that he must be truly crazy. She misses the relative warmth and safety of Easthollow, especially when compared to the looming stacks of ice at the Hollows.
She pauses her stressed trek with a sigh, ears laying back as she shivers and glances around. It doesn't look any different here than it had ten minutes ago. So, she's probably lost. She swallows, briefly considering calling for @Derg — but something makes her hesitate. The man already thinks of her as a child, weak and clueless, and perhaps he's right but that doesn't mean it is what she wants him to think about her. She does not want to be seen as the girl always needing protection, the scared kid who refuses to grow up even when the world is pushing her toward it. So she takes a deep breath and stifles her emotions, resuming her steady pace through the tunnels with a little more determination now. She'll figure it out eventually, right?

wintersbane's decision to explore further into the permafrost hollow's tunnels is not entirely unfounded. it needs to be done. for the safety of the vartija wolves, for evacuation and strategic exits and entrance purposes. if there was one thing that the sotaherra liked being it was prepared. life was unpredictable — this is a painful truth he acknowledges — but still being prepared for possible situations was in his nature. was the tactician in him; but he has spent the better part of the morning? day? without sunlight he couldn't tell what time of the day it was nor how many hours had passed since he'd descended. he hadn't found a secondary way out ( yet ) but he'd found a cavern with glowworms stretched along the ceiling, dancing like the wisps of the dark wood's grotto in the reflection of the small pool of meltwater.

that is where he lingers, reclining in the glow that resembled a clear, starry night before he takes a drink of the freshwater pool and has decided its time to return to the surface once more. his path is familiar to him — after learning to navigate the labyrinth beneath the dark woods exploring the labyrinth beneath the hollows doesn't hardly seem daunting to the tundrian — but the scent that enters his nostrils isn't. not entirely. he recognizes derg's scent on the girl — confirmation given as his glacial gaze studies her upon his approach, a soft chuff given in an effort not to startle her out of her skin ...if he hadn't already unintentionally done so.

finding your way alright? wintersbane inquires softly, gently, not wanting to spook her and not wanting to assume that she's lost. there is a bit of a loss as to her identity ( because cap isn't sure if derg would've told him about keen or not ) and he's not even sure if she's apart of the vartija — and if not so then what is she doing here? many questions rise to trample over one another in his mind for priority but for now he bites them all back, confident that answers would come in time.

She becomes aware of the presence only a beat before she hears the man's chuff, flinching slightly and sucking in a sharp breath as she turns with eyes wide. He is an undeniably intimidating sight, though the softness of his tone as he questions her somewhat dulls the effect, and she finds herself frozen for a moment. Um — I um, I'm kinda lost, The admission comes unbidden, and her gaze drops to the floor. I'm sorry, I-I don't mean to be a bother. She's just not very good at keeping track of where she is, but she won't admit that to this man, who she assumes must be Derg's leader (because xyn isn't sure about who knows what either). She's already making a bad first impression, no doubt.

the girl responds, stuttering that she's lost and wintersbane gives a small nod of his chin — her answer does not necessarily come as a surprise to him. it's easy to get lost down here, wintersbane affirms in a consoling tone to his smoky timbre. he's got experience navigating tunnels and caverns from his time in blackfeather woods and he knows the little nuances that are tell-tale to a tunnel's exit or if it's leading you deeper underground. at the risk of getting lost and dying of starvation or dehydration in the tunnels beneath the dark woods he'd learned to navigate the underground networks quickly. while he'd been known for daredevil ventures in his youth ( picking fights with everyone and anyone ) dying in the dark of a cave was not the way he'd aspired to go.

you're not a bother. wintersbane is quick to assure her. i was just heading back to the surface, while he doesn't mind the labyrinth beneath the hollows — on the contrary he finds security in it — he's spent at least a good couple hours exploring and is ready to breathe in fresh surface air again. c'mon, i'll lead you out. assuming the lead; only pausing to glimpse back to make sure she was following.

i'm wintersbane, by the way. he offers his name to her, breaking from his normal cycle where he unintentionally remains enigmatic by never offering his name.

She's undeniably relieved when the man proves kinder than he seems at first glance, offering a shy attempt at a grateful smile as he offers to lead her to the surface. Thank you, She murmurs, moving to follow him without hesitation. Her gaze drifts over him briefly as they walk, only to fully take in the dazzling effect of his coat. She's never quite seen anything like the frosty bluish colors cloaking the man — but she doesn't let herself stare too long. She tears her eyes away from him when he offers his name, thinking that Wintersbane is a strange name and wondering what sort of parents he must have had. My name is Keen. She returns, refraining from commenting on his pretty fur or his weird name. Instead, she asks a little tentatively, speaking carefully to avoid stuttering again: Is there anything... cool in these tunnels?

keen, is the name the girl offers him, and out of habit, keen, he repeats it back in acknowledgement, testing it. as far as names go it's a lot simpler than others he has came across on his travels. he wonders if he should offer some sort of platitude but he can't remember the last time he said 'it's nice to meet you' to someone — not because he didn't find it nice, just because sometimes convention got old — and doesn't see the need to start now. there was still the mulling issue that their first meeting begins with her wandering around the tunnels beneath the hollows. all new recruits — though unlikely to be turned away — have to be brought to him to be vetted; even if she wasn't planning to stay he's a little affronted that his permission wasn't sought beforehand — despite that he realizes his frequent recruitment drives makes it a bit hard to ask permission.

before he can begin asking questions, however, she has one for him first. i found a cavern with a hot spring in it, wintersbane recalls. but the coolest one i've found so far is the glowworm cavern. the glowworms look like thousands of little blue stars on the ceiling and on the walls, illuminating the whole cavern and the small meltwater pool. that was where i just came from, actually. he admits. there could be other cool features deeper in the tunnels but those remain yet unexplored, at least by wintersbane.

how did you come to be here at the vartija, keen? the sotaherra asks her over his shoulder after a small lull in the conversation. wintersbane's tone isn't accusing but the question itself wasn't entirely casual; there is information he's missing and blanks to be filled in.

His response is a little dazzling, and she has to resist the urge to ask to see the glowworm cave he describes. Surely there will be time later, if he feels inclined — right now she just wants to breathe some fresh air. That sounds amazing, She murmurs. Before she can come up with anything else to say, though, Wintersbane is speaking again — this time, with his own question. She flushes, feeling a little sheepish as she realizes he must not know anything about her. I um — Derg found me. I was... lost, She swallows, hating the surge of emotions that comes with speaking about the situation. I went too far from home and I couldn't find my way back — and Derg offered to help me. Even past the grief in her tone, there is an unmistakable warmth to her voice when she speaks of him. She could have survived well enough on her own — but she'd been so tired of being scared and alone, she can't help but feel like he'd saved her in a way by taking her in.

it is. wintersbane affirms. he's never seen anything quite like it before — the closest, he recalls, is the wisps in wispmother grotto. but they are a marvel that are best left in his past; a memory. there were plenty of new marvels to discover in the present and in the future, which is where he divides his time largely between now. he's learned the value in remembering but also in moving on. his ears cup forth atop his head, steps slow as not to slip on the damp and dewy rocks, as he listens to her explanation. a small pang shoots through his heart. her story reminds him of his own, but not half as bad. she isn't as young as he'd been when he'd wandered too far from teaghlaigh and she'd been fortunate enough to have been found by derg instead of an unsavory stranger that intended to leave her for dead.

there is a kinship towards her forging itself beneath his breast. he sympathizes and is glad that her story was not as bad as his; regardless it makes him wonder if she aches to see her family again. if she will stay with them or if they are a temporary stop to finding her way back home. i got lost too when i was young, he tells her, to communicate that he understands. wintersbane does not tell her that when he did find his family it was his mother's grave and that his ( ex ) sister and him fought every time they came in contact with each other, the last fight of which wintersbane had wanted to kill her. he doesn't tell her that getting lost forged survival instincts out of the hottest flames and unyielding iron. it changed you.

maybe she'd be different than him. she had hope. more so to the point, she had the vartija. we will help return you home to your family, if that's what you want. but keen was old enough to make her own decision. the pair talked for a bit as he continued to lead her out of the hollow's tunnels and back to the safety of the surface.