Northstar Vale My world is burning to the ground…(MdC members highly welcome)

"I—apologize, Viskani. That was forward of me." His voice was measured, though tinged with sincerity. "Believe me when I say I am severely out of practice when it comes to conversation." A small, almost self-deprecating smile ghosted across his lips. "Years of solitude will do that, I suppose."

His silver eyes flickered with something unreadable as he continued. "I should be honest—I know very little about packs. Their structure, their customs... all of it is foreign to me. But I’ll do my best to stay out of everyone’s fur, and then I’ll be on my way."

A cough clawed at his throat, his voice worn from disuse. There were questions he wanted to ask—needed to ask. About this pack, this unfamiliar world he had stumbled into. And perhaps, most importantly, about the cursed thing wrapped around his neck. The chain that dug into his flesh, the reason speaking too much became a struggle, the never-healing scar branding him as something other than wolf. A dog.

Lowering his head, he bit into the snow, chewing and swallowing the cold, letting it soothe the rawness in his throat. When he spoke again, his voice was quieter but no less firm.

"Tell me, Viskani... do you know of anyone who could remove this from my neck?" He tilted his head slightly, the chain glinting dully against his fur. "I want it gone. But it has clung to me for so long, I fear it has become a part of me. Embedded itself into my very being. I cannot take it off myself."