Broken Antler Fen just like that, i believe in ghosts.

@Sebastian

The land was both familiar and altogether new. On the distant horizon Silvertip peeked its crown over the stretching realm of Neverwinter, but before the forest, a great expanse stretched as far as Andalusia could see - one she had never crossed. The mountain stood as Andalusia's steady north star, and her compass to these lands. The snow obscured most other landmarks, but she could count on Silvertip to ground her bearings and lead her back into the known.

Yet typical of the Ostrega, Andalusia had abandoned that compass long ago. She followed a new star now, a scent she had picked up a while a back, when she had stopped near a small copse of trees to lap up the snow, and maybe catch a short rest from her near-constant travel. Her years of outriding had left her in good shape, and she still felt capable of travelling many months to come. Yet she couldn't stop counting her winters: this numbered her fifth. Time wouldn't stop dripping from the grasp of her snapping jaws, and even if her health gained her one, maybe two more years, there would come a day her legs wouldn't carry her far enough to reach her prey. That time still remained as distant as her paws did from Silvertip today, sure, but unlike her paws, Andalusia couldn't stop the sun's constant clock that bowed her, and every creature, closer to the dust.

What humored her most was that this thought surfaced again just before she'd picked up the scent - familiar, yet altogether new. Sebastian, but not his alone. Another entwined with his - or rather, many others. Little ones. The dry remnant of a grin remained a shadow on her face as she approached the thickening scent, and she stopped a respectful distance from where she gathered his domain began. The Ostrega knew the scent belonged to the grey giant, but apparently much had changed since she'd left him patched up and hobbling back to the Caldera. Her curiosity led her to break her silence, and Andalusia let out a short howl to herald her presence and muster the boy's appearance.