In the past, Kohelet had always preferred to keep close to her birthplace. Home was safe, and even when it wasn't - like when the mountain wolves grew too bold - she at least knew how to face down the familiar dangers. The Crossing and beyond represented the unknown, and she did not know how to prepare for those situations beyond what little guidance her parents had been able to share with the anxious young filly.

She knew to watch out for both Peak and Lagoon members, as well as to avoid the Crossing and all strangers in the Fall. She knew the Commons was a place she absolutely should not visit unless she had the protection of a rank of her own or a stallion to keep her safe. And perhaps most importantly, she knew that if she were to ever become lost, all she would need to do was to swim northward until she could see the familiar mountains of Tinuvel, and then she would be home.

Still, there was something different about exploring with Fell. Not just the exploring of each other, although they had been very thorough about that, but in seeing things together instead of just alone. Even the world outside of Tinuvel seemed far less daunting now that she had a partner in Fell; as if his presence alone was a bulwark against the horrors of the world at large.

She giggled softly as he tried the moss that had grown flaky with winter cold and dryness, and nodded sagely in silent response to the way his lip wrinkled as if he wanted to sneeze. Winter in Tinuvel often forced its residents to get creative to find forage in the winter months, especially in the Cove. Trees took up most of the lower slopes of the mountains, and while pine bark was edible, it left a lot to be desired. The flatter areas to the north of Tinuvel were more habitable in that regard, although you did tend to trade shelter for food.

"We probably won't have to eat it, unless we get desperate," she murmured, wanting to reassure him that her homeland was not truly so bad. Tinuvel was a hard land to live in, but that harshness bred strength and resiliency while also deterring most of those that would do the residents harm. Or, at least that was what her father said. From what Kohelet could tell, it also made many of the residents proud of their self-reliance, and that pride begat stubbornness that was hard to shake. She could see no other reason why the Inlet would have constantly traded hands between Bjorn and Ironclad so many times.

They moved together again, orienting around each other as if they had done so all of their lives, rather than for just a few days. At her question, his emphatic no made her laugh, which was probably good because the truth of the matter would serve to keep her awake in the days ahead as the winter grew harsher and Fell grew leaner from his travels. But she wasn't yet concerned about his safety; at the moment, she could only think of how amusing it would be to see his reaction to the first true blizzard of the year, when the snow and the sky turned the same color and the only way to tell down from up was to rely on gravity.

To her surprise, he took the mouthful of water he'd gathered and sprayed it above them in an arc that made her brow furrow in confusion. She watched him for a moment, trying to understand why in the world he would spit at her before she remembered that he couldn't tell her whatever it was that he was trying to say... which meant that whatever he'd just done was an attempt to tell her something. Well. She'd just asked if it snowed, and he'd certainly said no. Was he saying his home was wet somehow? That it didn't snow it... rained? Didn't it rain everywhere?

"Did it rain a lot?" She asked hesitantly, brow still furrowed as she walked herself back through his logic. She hoped that the more time they spent together, the easier their conversation would be. She had seen how horses that were familiar with each other could have whole conversations without speaking a word, which was part of why Fell's silence didn't dissuade her.

"Were you from the Lagoon?" She asked, unable to keep the surprise out of her voice. She hadn't imagined a bachelor to be as kind as Fell had been. A different realization dawned a moment later - delayed by the fact that Kohelet hadn't ever actually been to Atlantis to see it raining for herself. "Or no, was it Atlantis somewhere?"