Bearclaw Valley I don’t want anything more from you

As they walked, his gaze scaled the walls countless times, searching. Although it’d been a while now since he’d seen the children climbing, he couldn’t help but look out for them—and anyone else. Really, he didn’t worry too much when he thought about someone trying to sneak in that way. The walls, though climbable as some points on the outside, were far too steep to maneuver down on the inside. Anyone that tried would surely fall to their death—or, at the very least, fall and nearly die. Still, he kept an eye out anyways, wanting to get rid of any potential infiltrators before they fell into his home; the idea of having to get rid of a body somehow didn’t appeal to him, seeming like a total waste of time.

He didn’t answer her immediately, her question taking him by surprise. He’d never liked talking about his parents or what happened, especially when every time he’d made an attempt at bringing the topic up a fight broke out between him and his sister. But Laurel wasn’t Desna—she didn’t have the same connection to the events as the siblings did, so the chances of an argument occurring were slim to none. “They split up,” he told her. “I don’t have all of the details, I just know that my mom ended things and took my sisters away with her. And then she died soon after.” And for a long time, he’d hated her because of it. For breaking their family apart, as well as for dying. “I don’t know where one of my sisters is, but the other two live in the pack next to us,” he added after a brief pause. “One of them leads that pack, actually. Only reason we haven’t had any trouble with them.” Had the pack been led by someone else, he doubted his sisters’ presences there would have mattered—his claim to the valley still would have been challenged.

Glancing her way, he asked, “What about you? Are you from around here?” She’d asked him questions, so he figured he should make an effort to get to know her better in return.