King Elk Forest you're offering more than you owe

she confirms his suspicions. it's a shame that in his last few months burke hadn't been well enough to properly mingle. suddenly, selfishly, he wishes trajan and uka and brienne were still around, hadn't ever left or gotten into mangled relationships. who's left of the founding group? nova and malice, though they're barely present; mato and him, though he thinks maybe mato isn't gonna.. well. he looks at gracious as she brushes against him, surprised by the contact but secretly grateful for the comfort it offers.

"you're right," he agrees, ears drawing back as he looks down at the ground. "i guess i just thought burke's death would snap mato out of this funk of his, but he seems as distant as ever," delight admits. "i wasn't meant to be morwinyon indefinitely -- or i didn't think i would be, anyway." yet here we are, and so the question is: what does he do next? maybe gracious can provide some illumination -- or at least give him a shoulder to fret on. he's taken to authority slightly better than he expected but that doesn't mean he planned for this or has an idea of what to do with it.