Heron Lake Plateau I need a voice to echo

since there's no posting order i figured i'd go ahead and reply to this. :-)

it wasn't long after tywyll's howl rose through the air that someone approached. she was tall, with a blonde pelage ...legs for days the tundrian noted ( perhaps a bit appreciatively ) as his glacial gaze takes her in. how this looks does not escape him: he is a strange bringing a bedraggled and healing but still injured cub back to their doorstep. his healing job is far from expert level ...tywyll would still need attention from an experienced medic but wintersbane, despite that, is still proud of his patch job. nevertheless, he keeps a safe distance from their borders lest they assume he was the one to injure him. which seems unlikely because why would he hurt him only to patch him up and deposit him back where he belongs? but wintersbane is weary all the same and does not take the flash of teeth with anything more than a grain of salt. he understands and can hardly take offense to it. the tundrian averts his gaze as they exchange affectionate greetings ...he cannot help but feel that he's encroaching on something private and yet he wants to be sure that all is well before he departs.

the tundrian watches as the boy detaches himself the blonde's and approaches him. an affectionate smirk tugs at the corners of the soturi's lips as the boy asks if he has a home. it's been a long time since wintersbane had a home in the same context ...and settling down unsettles him more than anything else. the last time he attempted to 'settle down' hadn't went well for him and he is not so eager to jump back into it. he still seeks adventures and risks. "the wilds are my home," wintersbane answers carefully, not wanting to hurt the boy's feelings. he feels like he's walking a suddenly precarious line despite that he suspected it was coming. "i'll be sure to come visit." wintersbane promises. "besides, i'll need to check on how your skills as a soturi are progressing." he offers the boy a playful, conspiratorial wink.

maybe someday, he thinks but doesn't dare say out loud. he can promise to visit because he knows he can at least do that but wintersbane is a beast of his word and he does not feel comfortable making promises he is not positive he can keep. especially not to a cub whose innocence is still so pure and raw. another woman appears on this scene as tywyll heads back to the border line, seemingly having only eyes for the boy.

part of wintersbane tells him to quietly take his leave now ...but he still has a duty. it does not fall beneath his notice that someone should be told of how and what he used to treat the boy's wounds and to answer questions that the boy himself might not be able to ...if there were any.