Bearclaw Valley So raise your glass now and celebrate exactly what you've done.

As he was inserting his head in to the thick shadow of the hole, something crept up behind him. The boy was not very attentive on the best of days, however, he was on high-alert with the strange smell in the air and was slowly learning to trust his gut; it told him he was in danger, so he paused and then backed up.

The emberous form of one of his tormentors was there beside him—no, behind. Close enough to make his shaggy nape prickle but not so close as to cause bodily harm (yet). The biggest surprise came when they blurted a word: friend.

That was not something he would have associated with either of his step-siblings. It caught him off-guard, and as he pivots to keep an eye upon her he snaps back, No. Go 'way. Even as he's issuing the command the bastard child recognizes the error of it.