Blacktail Deer Plateau auxiliary + verb + subject

I am sorry for the wait!

The starlet watched him from afar — he was new, at least to her, and he was young. He seemed to be in the midst of the same endeavor as she was, attempting to secure a modest winter home. The boy was ahead of her in the process, however, and Starbelly could not help but admire his chosen locale. Perhaps he knew this plateau, and the wolves upon it, better than she! 

Silently, she continued to voyeur from afar — he only noticed her presence after he had shaken himself clean. Starbelly chuffed in greeting, as it was never her plan to remain unnoticed for long.  “No,” she affirmed and chuckled, striding closer to the greyscale brute. She was immediately curious about him; so young, yet so familiar with this place. “Hmm,” she hummed softly, regarding the male in his entirety. She quipped, “Why are you so dirt-y, then?” although the answer lay clearly in the freshly-dug den off to his side.