"Come on. Hurry up." Askan grumbled, casting a sour look over his shoulder as he stomped along, leading the way.

The journey back certainly was taking a toll on Askan. And it showed. His eyes were narrowed in a seemingly permanent scowl and his lips were pulled down into a thin grimace. His shoulders were hunched and tense, and his exhalations were long and dramatic, like sighs. To put it simply, he was throwing a strop. And as petty and as annoying as it must have been to witness, his company didn't seem bothered in the slightest. Not at all. Not even a little. What the hell was wrong with her?

He understood that they'd been travelling for days, even he could feel the slight burn in his muscles, but that wasn't an excuse to stop- for what felt like- every other minute to take in the scenery? No! No it did not. Yes, this was pretty. Yes, that tree was a nice colour. Yes, the view from here was amazing. But why oh why, did Sahalie insist on stopping, just so she could rattle on about how beautiful everything looked coated in snow? If he hadn't been following his alphas orders, Askan would have abandoned her days ago. Yes, that's right. He'd been putting up with this for days. And it was driving him around the bend- and back!

"If it weren't for you'd we'd already be there. Days ago."He grumbled to himself. "But no, I want to check this out. Ohhh? What's that? So pretty. Don't you think so Askan?" He mimicked her, with an overly squeaky voice and he batted his eyelashes in mockery. "Stupid. You're finding your own way home. Screw taking you back."

Askan huffed and came to a stop, so Sahalie could catch up. He glanced out over at the Fjord and allowed himself to take a deep breath, to calm his frayed nerves. Even with her slowing them down- to what felt like a snails crawl- it wouldn't be long now. He'd be back home and he could drop this tiny menace at Drestig's feet and get on with his life. That's all he wanted. He had stuff to do, being a glorified babysitter could not and would not be his lot in life.

Askan eyed her short, chubby frame with contempt. "Hmm, I suppose."

It wasn't exactly Sahalie's fault, but that didn't mean that Askan wasn't going to blame her. And yes, maybe he was walking faster than he usually would, but that was because he was desperate to get this over and done with. The sooner they got to the Field, the sooner Askan could pass her off to someone who actually wanted to spend time in her company. As callous as that thought was, it was the honest truth. Or at least, Askan would claim that it was so. If really pushed to admit , he would suppose that there were worse candidates for travelling companions. Funnily enough, all those that sprung to mind where Whitestone wolves. Ha, what were the chances of that?

And speak of the devil! Askan's nose twitched at a familiar scent. It had to be him, didn't it? One annoying wolf wasn't enough clearly, so the universe or perhaps even the Gods themselves decided to throw in another. Just for good measure. He couldn't see Lorcan, but he didn't need to. The Whitestoner was kicking up such a stink it would have been impossible for Askan not to notice.

Askan came to an abrupt stop and cast a look over his shoulder to Sahalie, who still seemed to be distracted by the view of the fjord below. "Sahalie. Wait here a bit, okay?"

Without even waiting for a response, Askan stepped forward with due care as he glanced about for the tawny male. "Lorcan, I know you're here. You been following us? And don't think of lying, cause I'll know."That was a bluff, he had no idea whether he had or not, but it seemed like a good idea to check. And as blunt as it was, asking seemed like the most direct way to find out.

"Why don't you crawl back to Craw huh? Like the good little subordinate you are." He hissed, the words tasting bitter as they left his tongue.

Askan had no idea how things stood between the Whitestone pack and Wild Rye Fields, but that didn't mean he was going to be all nice and lovey towards Lorcan on the off chance that they had come to an agreement. He'd sooner chew off his own tail than be nice to Lorcan. Blah, the thought alone was enough to make him want to gag.