Neverwinter Forest well, i am the rose you relinquished again

since joining with fjorneska, ezra has paused his search for anselm and gideon. to him, jumping right back into his search despite the hospitality offered by solharr, felt extremely ungracious. so, ezra re-familiarized himself with neverwinter forest and hunted for the caches. birds and small woodland critters. nothing huge or substantial really, but he'd once survived on birds and eggs — the thought alone brings with it a painful spear thru his heart, grief rearing it's ugly head. but he resists all and ever urge to sequester himself away.

he did not think he would ever truly stop grieving heda.

but he had to try, give it its own space without letting it consume his life.

the morning sun was warm along his back as he stretched out the stiffness from a tense sleep and makes his way to the borders to run a quick patrol.

Hope it's ok to snag!

It came to no surprise that Fleur had become restless in the Quarry, now another venture taken to the surrounding areas to ease the need to just move. The winds did not sing to her today; to her dismay, it meant there was no reason to dance. Only to just press on.

She soon found herself back to where Forneskja began, where the pack had left their ghosts behind.

No sooner had she reached the forest's border did a scent of the minutest familiarity, of pack, hit her nares. Ears perked, she listened, eyes scanning for any movement. A flash of a sun-kissed back in her peripheral, the scent slightly stronger as she turned to look.

This one she didn't know--granted, she didn't know any but Solharr. A small woof of greeting left her lips.

of course! thank you so much for joining!! <3

a soft woof snags ezra's attention, drawing his focus away from his path. steps falter to a stop, head swinging to the side to focus on the owner of said small woof. as his gaze assesses, he turns to face her in full ... snow white and light grey and kissed by fire like him. like heda.

ezra's heart gives a soft pang, wondering when he'd stop finding heda in things ... and then wondering if that was how he was meant to keep her memory alive.

hello, ezra says after a moment, giving a soft clear of his throat. i'm ezra. he offers after a smaller pause yet.

"Happy to mee you, Ezra. I am Fleur." She smiled softly at him, her voice warm and bright.

A quick pause as she cocked her head, a question in her eyes. "You are of Forneskja, aren't you?" 

She did not recognize him, not by his own personal scent and neither by face, but she was glad to have found him. Another, maybe, lost like her? He had remained here in the forest, it seemed, though maybe he had something to hold on to here.

If he was willing, she would bring him back to the Quarry and welcome him home.

of fornjeska made it feel solid, like a tangible thing, despite that ezra'd been brought to solharr and accepted the offer ... and it was true that he'd temporarily put a hold on finding anselm and gideon in efforts of earning his keep here. it almost forces him to face an uncomfortable truth: that by doing so he was unknowingly tilling land in preparation for placing roots.

abruptly, those thoughts are cut off.

a twitch of his ear is given — annoyance at his own thoughts, at the paths they were leading him down. an attempt to ground him and pull him out of his inner monologue and back to the moment.

i am, he hears himself answering in a voice that his both his and not his. it has his accent, his cadence, his deep timbre but it also holds with it the tenor of Vessel. of Justice's ... or perhaps even Yahweh's guiding hand. that ethereal cord that ties him to something divine, to some mythos beyond himself. persistent. stubborn. unyielding.

i have not been here very long, he admits. vhat about you? ezra asks, eager to shift the conversation to fleur and off of himself lest he be forced to face any other uncomfortable truths about himself that he cannot seem to escape these days.

A shake of her own sun-kissed head, she responds. 

"Neither have I, actually. Solharr and I crossed paths in a glen just southeast of here not too long ago, and I have been following him ever since." A soft smile forming on her lips as the memories of her recent past comes forth as if drawn out by her words. Gone were the days of wandering, for she now had a place to call home and these memories to cling to if the darkness of the past year decides to try and drown her again. There was now a light to follow should she ever feel lost.

 She looked at him curiously. "Speaking of, the Hárkonungr has moved the pack to the Quarry. We are currently staking our claim there. There was--are too many memories here." There was uncertainty in her attempts to recollect if Ezra was in attendance when Solharr announced the move. In any case, Fleur had only just joined Forneskja then, and she had been almost too in shock at being around others to truly take in appearances and names.

"You will come? To the Quarry? I know what it's like to be left behind and...well, I'd hate to see that happen to you. Come back with me?" Her plume waved gently with a hint of excitement, her lips still plastered on her face, eyes bright.

from what she says, they are not so different ... in terms of how established they are within the pack. though he is, embarrassed with a soft flush of heat to his cheeks and a diverting of his gaze to learn that the pack was moving to a the quarry. he excuses it as being the newbie but it seemed like something even a newbie should've known. then again, he had intended to search for his father and brother and had stated such intentions to solharr ... it was possible that the leader simply figured ezra would not be a stable presence within the pack.

or... perhaps things had been happening at a flurrying pace and he'd simply fallen behind.

oh, breathes ezra, not sure what to say. if only, he thinks perhaps with a stab of jealousy, he could leave behind painful memories by leaving a place. his were seemingly attached to him, haunting his every step: becoming and morphing into his very shadow.

ezra regards her for a moment, considering. weighing. perhaps establishing himself somewhere was what he needed to heal. even if this thought leaves him with even more guilt, considering it would put his search for his father and brother on a back burner. they would find each other again, of this ezra is certain.

i vill go vith you. ezra agrees after a few prolonged moments, offering a twitch of his lips into a ghostling of a smile and a soft tilt of his head.

Tail waiving fervently, she danced with excitement. 

Great! Oh, I can't wait to show you around, there's so many interesting places there! Wait, I mean, if you want me to, that is. I would understand if not--sometimes being in a new place can be overwhelming and-- she stopped, a paw coming up to suppress an embarrassed giggle, eyes wide as she realized her rambling --I'm talking too much as it is. Sorry, it can't be helped sometimes.

With a bounce she turned back around to face the way she had originally come, her gaze reaching behind her to lock eyes with her new acquaintance. An idea struck her then--how about a little ice breaker?

Ezra--how fast can you run? 

She didn't wait for his answer; a wink thrown over her shoulder before she dashed off, a whoop ringing out to trail behind her.

she is excited and he can feel it creeping like an infectious root into him; near impossible to help but catch it. no, do not apologize. it is ok. ezra attempts to reassure with a soft laugh rumbling in his throat.

i don't ...— his words cut off as she takes off, not giving him a chance to actually answer. know... trails off unspoken left to the wind as he takes after her; gaze locking on her as he follows and races her to the quarry.