Verdant Basin she may have died; we're looking into it.

Artaax had expected her to begin asking him personal questions. Though he was typically a closed book (closed and locked), he was ready to tell her anything she wanted to know. How he'd killed that one dude on the borders of Drageda and earned his Mark. How he'd hunted and successfully killed a full grown golden eagle. How he'd battled his asshole neighbors and driven them out of the Sound. All kinds of the more awesome things he'd done in his life. Obviously it would be those things she asked about, and not things like how he'd had a panic attack when he first came to the Caldera and was reunited with Wildfire, or how scared he was now, worried that his mommy wasn't going to come home with him. Nobody needed to know that.

Niamh subverted his expectations, though, instead choosing to ask when they would see each other again. Artaax felt his chest tighten as he read the question to mean she was going to leave him soon. The thought gave him a sudden possessive lurch of emotion, but he held it back and forced his mind to clear. He could be patient. He could. He would.

"Then it won't be," he answered before giving a thoughtful pause, "I have been away from home for a long time. There will be matters to settle when I return." He paused again. He didn't want more than a single day to pass before he saw her again, but he knew he was not wrong about his obligations. "Will you meet me the eve of the new year?" That wasn't too far, he didn't think. I mean, he's a wolf and I'm not even sure how he knows about new years at all, but whatever.