Jade Fern Grove departure to the west

She did better coming across the stream the second time, although again, there was room for improvement. There always would be. None of his children would ever truly live up to his unrealistic expectations, but they might come close on occasion. He felt he had done his job to teach them well. Which led him to thinking about his next move. He mustn't give anything away, of course. He had been tight-lipped about his plans to everyone around him, most notably Arbiter. Alas, dropping a vague hint here he thought would be safe.

As they padded back toward their home, he gave Malrok the only vague clue he was willing to give about his plans. Keep practicing your tracking skills; you will need them in the coming months. It would be some time before she was prepared to take on the unspoken task that he would leave in his wake, but he assured himself that she would be up to the task. And if not, she was not the Anneriwok he thought she was.

I will call you Inukun now. It means "prowler" in my mother's language. He fell silent then, content to remain that way throughout their journey unless Inukun wished to say more.