Rising Sun Valley I'll go anywhere you want me

Malachi could tell he had worried Scarlett, and in a heartbeat he wished he'd told her some vague excuse instead. An extended hunting mission, or a simple desire to scout the outer territories himself. But he bowed his head, a sheepish grin spread across his face as he deflected her concerns with a cool reply. "Don't worry. You'll be fine." They were words he could not back up with evidence, but it was a reasonable assumption. Emotional turmoil aside, they had not had external trouble since the lynx attack. Still, Scarlett's words reassured him more than he thought they would, and he gave her a gentle bump on the shoulder to still her rapid bout of good-wishes. "You sound like my mother," he mused with a flashing grin.

His ears canted to catch Linnéa's words, and with a slow nod he bid the cinnamon girl a silent farewell, feeling not for the first time the sharp bite of winter upon his own skin. A bitter wind had trickled from the North even before they'd stopped to chat, and now it tousled among them with even stronger gales. She had a good idea to return to her den, and Malachi wished he could return to his. But such would not be the case tonight. Turning to Scarlett again, he dipped his crown to her before nodding after Linnéa's departing form. "You should go with her. The night's no time for someone so young to be travelling alone."