Bearclaw Valley and heaven knows,

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i'll talk to @Arlette, he murmured, bringing their fur to touch once again, enveloping her with the whiteness of his own pelt. i'll see what i can do. i don't want you to have to wait anymore. i hate it, too. maybe he could come down to the valley, and come back with something for the creek. a deer on the way, maybe.

he chuckled, then. bittersweet in its edge. i know. you love it and you hate it, so did adrian, a harsh breath, momentary, as the words whisked away. i wish you would come to swiftcurrent, but i understand why you won't. the valley needs you, more than the creek could possibly need me. after his first patrol, he would speak to akavir.

it would soon be time for frederick to move on.

do you remember when i called you resourceful? frederick smiled, then, face and muzzle buried within her brown fur, words close to her ear. low. only for her to hear. it's true, you're very skilled. the wolves here rely on you, milan. you may not think it, but they appreciate you. just as i do. and he would spend another moment within her grasp, her presence. a comfort that he had yearned all too much for.

his voice was a whisper when he spoke next: are you hungry? he wished to provide for her, to show her and those within her valley that his arrival would not be a misfortune. he was no leech. the deer'll be weak from the winter. a fact.