Sun Mote Copse bruises

Weejay said very matter-of-factly that he was stuck in a rut. Eljay wasn't too sure about that, unless he'd been stuck in a rut for most of his life. He had always enjoyed staying in one place, and he wasn't too sure that would ever change. The thing that it made him think about most, though, was is she stuck in a rut? Because if she felt that he was, then maybe it was really because she felt stuck here. Not able to leave because her father needed her by his side, but feeling stuck staying here. He'd always thought that the Copse was Weejay's home, and that was one of the reasons that he had always been so adamantly against moving away from it.

It was as if his eyes were opened for the first time that she might not think that way at all. That maybe he was reflecting himself onto her too much. That she needed more than what he could offer right here and now. He should've seen it earlier, what with her regular trips outside of the territory, that maybe she had more of his mother's genes in her than he initially thought.

And in the same way he wondered if what she said was just a reflection of what she wanted; what she needed. Then again, did it really matter whether it was what she wanted or what she needed, rather than he? Should he maybe go along with it, suggest leaving, because it was what she wanted? Eljay frowned as he thought to himself. He was silent for a good length of time after Weejay finished talking about stretching out his roots. To Eljay it felt that staying in one place was like stretching out your roots. That was growing to him. But even despite his longing to stay here, to have a home, there was a small itch inside of him. It was only tiny, but a part of him really did feel like he wanted to go. Maybe not to spread out his wings or grow his roots per se -- though Weejay certainly had a way with words around that -- but he felt like an idiot for letting his insecurity get in the way of following the wolf that really made him feel good and comfortable. The others, he felt good enough around them, he enjoyed teaching Fennec, he enjoyed hunting with Niamh, and he felt helpful enough. But there weren't any that made him truly feel like they were a close friend. Not like with Maia. But was that enough to give up everything that he had here? And what if spreading his roots wouldn't be as good an experience as Weejay marketed it as now?

There were still so many questions and insecurities, and at the center of it all was his thought that maybe what Weejay said was really also a reflection of what she needed in her life.

I need... I need to think about this, he said after a long thoughtful silence. I'm training Fennec to be a medic. It wouldn't feel right.. leaving.. just like that, without any other caretakers around. And if we... If — where would we go..? Presuming that Weejay'd come with him, of course.