All of her senses seemed to be constantly working on alert. Tipped ears swivelled every which way at every sound. Her nose twitched at every shift of the wind. But her eyes, the forested gaze that was so similar but different from his, stayed on him and watched his expressions cross his face, confused that she could seem to feel them within her as well. The strange feelings she had experienced over the year grew stronger within proximity of him. They were a part of her but different. Trying to shove it aside, something to explore later, she grinned at him.

’Spirited one’ was another way of describing her. She could almost hear Big Wolf contemplating this new name for her. He would have dismissed it on principle, claiming it gave her far too much credit. She smiled fondly at the thought. Even as he spoke that such a name would go straight to her head he would beam at her, knowing the truth behind the words. She liked the feel of it in her mind and wrapped around her shoulders. A strange look passed over her, her tail unconsciously taking on a different tempo. She could not deny that she enjoyed his eyes on her either. A deep warmth filled her when he watched her.

His explanation took her completely off guard. Never would she have expected something to be so accurate to what she had felt herself. Everything on her body froze with a sharp intake of breath. The extreme energy seemed to collide into her to instantly transform into a focus that was piercing in its intensity. His voice put words to everything she had been feeling and so she hung on every syllable. The rare moments of clarity and seriousness that occasionally gripped her showed the maturity she could possess, the reasons she had gained the rank she had. The puppy that pounced in puddles was nowhere to be seen in her features, but a wolfess of strange clarity peered out at him. I did feel it. I needed to be here, and I knew I needed to find you. There was a quiver of hesitancy. She knew her words were correct. Just because she did not understand something did not make it untrue. Though she did not truly believe in fate or magic, she felt as though there was something bigger than her in the world, and she trusted in it. This was one of those times she would take a blind leap, if only because it was him and she knew they would catch each other in the fall.

The intensity wavered and broke. Her shoulders haunched and her head dropped a little. So… You are here on your own… Tavioria is not trying to find me?