Her enthusiasm was intoxicating, and Tomen's hesitations vanished as he grinned from ear to ear. Maybe it was the rush from running so much for nothing but the fun of it, or maybe it was the possibility of having someone to play with - someone other than his parents, who were perfectly capable of fun but were still
adults. Kat was an adult, but she was different, and he was appreciating her simple, child-like joy.
With a yip, Tomen changed direction slightly, diverting them from their direct path to the borders towards their new goal. While he was not as fast at Kat, he was infinitely more familiar with the territory, and never let a single danger trip or otherwise hinder him. Being aware of how effortlessly his paws carried him was a thrill all of itself, and one which he let carry them to the huge, hollow tree - or what remained of it. It had snapped partway down the trunk a long time ago, leaving a stump which was still far too tall to jump upon. It had rotted and decayed over the years to the extent that, through a tall split in one side which had widened with time and the efforts of forest denizens, it was possible to slip inside and enjoy a small space large enough for maybe two adult wolves, if not entirely comfortably. It was lucky that Tomen was still far from fully grown.
The sight and smell of it made him smile, for he had spent a lot of time here playing make-believe with himself, and while he had shared it with his mother and father, he hadn't shown anyone else.
"This is my tree!" he chirped, panting quick and fast after the run, doing a quick lap around the base of it as the energy hadn't quite run dry yet.
"It's hollow and the pack's called Grizzly Hollow so... when I first found it I kinda made up that a bear lived here and that's what we're named after. But it's too small for a real bear so, uh, so I pretended it was me." That the pack was named after bear-him, was the part which went unsaid, which helped him feel connected to it all. He nosed at some crude grooves in the tree, made to try and look like bear scratches - but it was hard to emulate long, sharp claws with baby wolf teeth. The grooves were numerous, evidence of his repeated attempts as he had grown up and his teeth had matured.
Looking at Kat, he beamed, self-conscious but excited to be sharing this little, private piece of himself.
"D'you wanna go inside? I think we can both fit."