Fairspell Meadow shed every skin that no longer fits

there it was again, that almost overwhelming feeling of gratitude that expands in his chest, making it feel tight ...and perhaps something else. this is a blood debt, a life bond. she is saving his life and thus he will owe her in ways that he may never be able to fully repay. though from everything he can tell, maegi means this as a simple act of kindness: a repayment of her own blood debt towards the pack that had helped her as a child but this is how scarab perceives it. he has always adhered to a strict view of 'gifts'. a 'gift' must be repaid with something of equal value in his mind. usually, a favor. but this was the ultimate gift. a common favor wouldn't possible do. at the very least, she deserved his unwavering loyalty.

i will, scarab assures her — a bit late — to her words of him focusing on regaining his strength. his gaze flits from her towards the stretch of meadow behind her, letting the words she speaks sink in. the pack, blackfeather. her name, maegi. her children, sakhmet and sobek — their names reminding him a bit of his own. scarab subconsciously nuzzles the petrified sandpiper for a brief second, drawing comfort from the dead thing, and glimpses back to maegi where his gaze rests. i think i will rest for a bit and then maybe i'll look for your twins... he says and then hesitates. if that's alright? he asks a moment later, never having a situation before where his confidence wavered.

this isn't rusalka, scarab reminds himself. it was blackfeather. and he would have to learn his place here and where he would come to fit in.