Ravensblood Forest aperitif

She looked up from her cleaning sharply, with a shrewd little glare that almost read as "no shit, that's what I said," but she held her tongue, even as his questions grated at her ears. Are there others like you..? What kind of question was that? No, she was the only medic in all the world, a wandering immortal set with the quest of healing all that ailed; obviously she wasn't the only one. But then Stryx recalled Sugar, and wondered to herself if this thick-skulled man was referring to the scents she currently wore.

Still, silence. One thing Stryx had learned years ago was, you could always learn more by listening than by speaking. The man seemed to like hearing himself talk (which was typical), and through his own admission he was laying some form of claim to these woods. The woods - the bleeding forest. It clicked, albeit a little too late. Just her luck that Stryx would go traipsing through an area after being warned away from it.

—having an alliance could be beneficial for the both of us. The man concluded, to which she remained mute as if mulling over the possibilities. She resumed cleaning - this time her other paw - but as she neared finishing her work, Stryx chose to give him a once-over with her eyes, a flick of her gaze to the trees around them, assessing.

Then, her answer: I align myself with nobody. That was a pointed refusal to the proposition, however she was not finished. But I have sworn an oath to tend to the wounded regardless of their personal ties. All lives are sacred, even those that seek to eviscerate the occasional lone wolf that may pass through a poorly marked pseudo-claim.

She thought of Praimfaya, of course. This man's scent was thick among the trees, and the wounded woman had carried a different one, sweeter, more feminine. But two wolves did not make a strong claim no matter how self-important the leader felt about themselves. Stryx knew she was an asset to any pack, especially so to a group trying to solidify their place, but it was not her nature to stay rooted.