The Heartwood You want me to stay

She turned at the very same instant a voice spoke from behind her, making her jump. Meerkat whirled, blinking hard when she saw the figure looming just a few feet away. It was eerie how close he'd gotten without her hearing so much as a footfall. She shrank back a step, freezing when she realized he wasn't totally unfamiliar.

They hadn't met, not really, but this was one of Eldritch's two remaining companions. Just because they shared a mutual acquaintance did not soothe Meerkat's nerves as she realized he was leering at her. She loved meeting people and considered herself friendly and outgoing, though there was something still deeply unsettling about this wolf.

"No," she replied slowly, "I know my way around here." As she spoke, her warm brown eyes tracked over his various scars and wounds. Suddenly she wondered if she wasn't being prejudiced. Maybe his disfigurement made him come across as sinister when he wasn't at all. Then again, Meerkat liked to think she could trust her instincts, which were definitely rubbed the wrong way by this guy.

"I never caught your name, the last time," Meerkat said cautiously. "You're a friend of Eldritch's, right? So am I," or at least she liked to think so. The woman had introduced her to poppy seeds, after all, and helped her out more than once.