Frostfire Ridge Echo

faust’s pale eyes held astier’s a moment longer.
a slow nod followed—not approval, not dismissal. only acknowledgment.
the silence stretched, taut as a bowstring, until faust turned without a word. there was nothing more to say. the path was drawn. the choice had been made. he trusted the man would walk it.
snow whispered beneath his paws as he departed, cloak of mist and ice trailing in his wake. whatever lay ahead, astier would meet it on his own terms.
faust would see to the rest.