Shadewood I'm gonna run this nothing town.

Winter came again; it as as if the descending chill summoned the flame back to the forest, but she did not drift too far east until after the melt. The scent of wolf was persistent here — stronger than the last visit — and it intrigued her, so she lingered.
She continued to lurk in the dark of the wood for some days. It took some time before she felt comfortable enough to make herself known, and crossed through thicket after thicket until the stench of the claim was all around her; there, the ember lingered in wait. There was a fresh stain seeping through the trunk of a tree — she inspected this in silence too, and did not breach the invisible line that it represented.
The woman did not call out for any reason, but kept her wits about her. For such a fresh mark meant someone was lurking near, and it would be a waste of her energy to call to them. Let them come to her, she thinks; let them be tested.

The gray girl was thankful to have a pack during this years winter. She'd been on her own through the last and it hadn't been pleasant. Still she'd made it through and made it to this place that was now her home.

Amaya traveled through the darker parts of the forest on her way to complete her patrol. She always tried to get a least one done a day. Often she didn't find anything out of the ordinary but spent a lot of time refreshing the markings. This day was different as she caught the scent of a wolf that didn't seem to far from the border. Amaya couldn't tell that she had actually crossed the border but she was cautious as as she came to the last place she smelled the scent of the woman.

A brownish wolf came into view soon enough, Amaya didn't waste any time to figure out what was going on, why she was there. “Is there something you need help with?” She asked as she drew nearer.

They are not a tribe of warriors; this is a fact that arrives as swiftly as the stranger, and earns a slight scowl from the wayfarer. Nootka did not wait long before a patrol found her waiting there, but it was not malice or caution that the guard metes out, merely questions. Words. Inaction. She does not let this foul her mood nor her assumptions too strongly, though it was a black mark against them.
She sizes up the oncoming body with her shrewd gaze. Their gait, their posture, their build - and when closer, their health, she is critical of all she witnesses. But she is also silent for a long moment.
When the woman speaks there is a tone of strength - arrogance perhaps - but her own posture remains neutral. If there was, would you freely offer it? How bold. The lilt of her voice indicates curiosity, or maybe slight humor. Are the wolves of this dark place so well off that they can squander resources so easily? And at a time where they should be covetous rather than forthcoming? Her lips form a tense line as she considers this.
I am a hunter. I desire respite and can offer my services in return. Nootka says this with that same serious nature, and watches for further nuance from the guard. She is so much more than that, but the ember does not share her secrets easily.

This visitor would be her very first since coming to Shadewood, anyway the first one she'd ever met. Amaya wasn't sure of the protocols when it came to visitors but she did know what she could and couldn't say. That was a start so she reminded herself to be careful of what she let slip past her lips.

She kept a confident posture as she neared the woman. She was part of a pack now and all she had to do was call for them if there was trouble. Amaya had no doubt they would be there quickly, they were family.

A smirk crossed the gray females lips at the question that was spoken to her. “I suppose that would depend on the kind of help you sought.” Amaya was of course in no position to accept this woman into the borders nor offer any kind of help that would require the approval of Cry but there were other things she could offer. For now she thought best to let the woman go on.

Amaya nodded, “A hunter is a useful skill to have and I am sure that your skills could be put to good use here.” Especially since they were expecting pups in the pack. “However, it is not my decision to make.”

Should she want another present while she was in the presence of Nootka, it might have been much more pleasant and easy depending on who showed. 
But this time, the Phantom himself strode silently, commandingly, from the shadowy recesses of The Keep. And it was clear he had much more rigidity in these matters than Amaya. Or atleast, now he had.

Head up, erect auds, the only remaining neutral aspect of him being his banner, left flaccid and uncaring as he stared this Nootka down with authority in his wintery gaze. He had watched the interaction for far enough. And should anything happen to anyone or anything under his claim, he would not be gentle in punishment.

“She is right.” The birds hushed and the wind near seemed to cease at the baritones that smoothed cold across the warming ground betwixt the trio. He stood tall against the gray woman, lethal and ominous as he seemed near molded from the jungleforest’s shadows, themselves. 

“We have hunters. And all of them are elite.” 

His glacials were made cold slits through ink lids. In the far distance, he had studied this woman as much as he could gather, feeling the way, he perceived, her looking down on his Amaya. 
The draconian was here, upfront, and willing to see exactly what more this woman could give than a basic ability. It was easy to hunt, to kill, to eat, to give-
But could she plan? Could she map? What of her maternal capabilities? Could she prove worthy enough to sit their coming young? What if she held more brains than brawn? More wit than wanderlust? What could she offer that no other could?

”Besides hunting, what more do you progress in?”