Felltree Marsh Don't Be a Stick in The Mud!

"Mhm - a little bit of blood but I'm fine. I got the fish I promised too."

She nodded towards her small, neat pile. She then looked back to the berries.

"But really, what's up with those? are you changing diets?" She snickered at her own joke, as usual.

He wasn’t necessarily stoked to eat the fish, but food was food, and he was starving. 

He figured she wouldn’t leave him alone about them. And he wasn’t going to lie to her. 

”They’re for my legs,” he said, then headed for the fish, which he promptly grabbed and tore into. It was fine if he didn’t focus on the smell.

"Really? Did you meet someone there then?"

She asked, grabbing the second fish and dragging it over to herself.

"You don't know anything about herbs."

She tore into the fish, happy to eat away at the meat. She had always been fond of them.

”Yeah, I met someone. Helped him score a meal and he answered some questions in return. Said leeches could carry disease, but we’d be fine if we removed ‘em. Also gave me those berries.” 

He followed suit, picking the white flesh off of the small bones. It wasn’t actually all that bad. A bit slimy, but the taste was good.

"That was some good luck then - he sounds nice too."

She smiled, briefly pausing to look at Pepper before continuing on with her meal.

"Hopefully the berries can last you for a little while."

”He was,” he said between bites. He felt that if he didn’t tell her much about him, he could forget the exchange happened. Or forget that it happened how it did. 

”They aren’t hard to find. And pretty easy to identify,” he added. 

”So what about you? What all did you do besides fish?”

"Clean up, wait for you, that's about it. I didn't want to go anywhere in case you came back while I was gone."

She responded, tail flicking upwards. She wouldn't tell him she had worried, but it was likely a bit obvious. Eventually they would need to split for good though and she knew that - couldn't start missing him now.

It was harder to tell in the dark, but her fur still held brown from the mud. He knew it’d eventually come out, but it’d be a reminder of the swamp. 

He hadn’t properly washed up himself. He was able to stop on his way out, but he didn’t want to take too long. 

And now he’d have fish to wash out, so it was good that he waited. 

”Sorry I took so long. Phobos, wolf I met, looked pretty rough. I offered to help him with a few other things besides food.”

"It's alright - I knew you would make it back okay."

She finished off her meal, tossing away the carcass.

"Was he sick or anything? It couldn't have been that bad."

She frowned, attempting to picture the wolf. In her mind, if Pepper was trying to help them it had to have been some pretty heart wrenching stuff.

”Mmm,” he thought aloud through a mouthful. He swallowed. ”I’m not sure. Looked weak, but I don’t know about sick. Maybe just bad at huntin’.” 

He too finished, putting his carcass in the same place as Leto. 

”Or maybe he was. Told him we were headin’ west. If he knows what’s good for him, he’ll find a place to stay before winter. I doubt he’ll live through it alone.”

Ah, right. Winter. She had never gone through a winter without a pack - it may be best for her to speed up her search.

"Do you think he'll come find us then? Assuming he doesn't have anyone else to go to, that is."

She certainly wasn't opposed to another travel partner, particularly one who seemed to understand medicines.

”Don’t know, maybe..” 

The large wolf hoped he wouldn’t deep down. He didn’t dislike Phobos, but there were too many similarities that he’d just rather not face. 

”You sure you got all of the leeches off?”

"Think so - I checked wherever I could reach. There's none that I can see."

Deciding she had been sat in the water for long enough she rose to a stand, shaking the wet out of her fur as she moved to the shore.

"We should find somewhere to rest, hm?"

”For sure,” he said. ”Been thinking about sleepin’ since I woke up.” 

Pepper got in the water now. It was cold, working its way through his thick coat relentlessly. The water around him was thick with dirt as it freed itself. He sat, but was slow getting down fully—both because he was taking his time getting used to the cold, and also because he felt stiff. 

He exhaled a sigh. 

”Might just knock out here,” he joked. Though the thought of sleeping halfway in the water didn’t sound awful.

Leto snickered, laying down with her head on her paws. It wasn't a bad idea.

"Well, I won't be the one to stop you."

She soon let out a yawn, signaling her obvious need for a good sleep.

He pulled himself forward, leaving his body in the water, but his head and front paws on the shore. He probably wouldn’t spend the night that way, but Phobos did say it could help, so he’d try it. 

It took him only a moment to fall asleep this way.

Leto followed soon after, curling into her usual ball as she did so. Sleep was always pleasant - a chance for worries to fade away for a short time..