Ouroboros Spine you were the only one

Interestingly enough, Mordecai found himself surprised slightly by the response he received from Sidewinder. Granted, he had already made it clear that his stay was likely only through the winter. The information that Mordecai had was old by any means, at least for tracking. The temperatures hadn't even dropped as sharply as they did now, though he couldn't have put it to an exact timeline. The trees had still had their leaves. Verrine's children had only just been born. And then he realized that the silence that had come was now lasting longer than it should have, and he reeled away from his thoughts.

“That's a lot to be asking for,” he said, wondering if maybe it really wasn't. Still, was that something he wanted to encourage? Having all of them roam? It almost felt hypocritical in hindsight, because Mordecai was a bit of a roamer himself. “What I know is quite old. The chances are your brother is long gone from these lands altogether, and I'm not saying that to discourage you either.” And either way, he didn't like the feeling that he was getting; the sudden resurgence of his distaste for politics rolled back like bile in his belly. Selfishly, he felt the Spine needed all the able bodies it could handle, at least to get through the winter. Mordecai did not venture to think of what spring would do to their pack.