The sun had only been out for an hour or so when Kajika found himself winding through the trees of the code. There wasn't really a rhyme or reason in the direction he was headed his paws having a mind of their own as they carried him across the snow fresh from the day before. A light crunch could be heard as each of his paws landed creating a new print in the almost pristine powder. This part of the forest didn't seem to have been trodden on the previous day but I'm the paw prints from not only the inhabitants of the cove but the prey they hunted to sustain themselves would litter the snow.

Once again as he had been more and more lately his thoughts had been consumed with the past just as much as why were they drifting to a time that was gone? Was there something he needed to figure out? Something he hadn't seen before? Kajika was no closer to figuring out the answers then he had been months ago when the memories had started to haunt him.

Shaking his head for some peace Kajika was finally able to look around him to find the familiar paths that ran between the patches where the nightshade grew. Here it always seemed he ended up and if not here the lake, a growl left him in frustration that he constantly felt he could not move forward. Sitting back on his haunches his tail wrapping around his paws he let his large, dark head drop to his chest as a long, deep breath left him.

Here in this place he could be alone, he could get wrapped up in his thoughts and let his imagination run wild with all of the what if's. What if he had told her? What if he had gone with her? Questions that would never be answered since he had long ago given up on the hope she would return. Now he had to find away to move past it instead of pushing it aside like he'd done for so long. Ignoring what was bothering him was never going to help him to move forward with his life. The areas around the cove held so many memories that sometimes they suffocated him. He couldn't keep living his life in the past, he knew that and yet he made the choice everyday to stay stuck in it.

It had to change but Kajika had yet to come up with something that would help him to get past what haunted him everyday. The sound of a faint whine caused his ear to twitch but he disregarded it as his mind playing tricks on him. No one in the pack knew he was there so they would not be seeking him out so he let himself fall further into his thoughts. It was the place that he wanted to be, his paws had brought him here for that reason, he was sure of it.

It wasn't until heard the whine once more only closer this time and then the nose in his shoulder did he open his eyes. With her head low he found Moonshadow at his side looking rather unhappy. His heart hurt for her and the embarrassment that she had suffered the day before. He could imagine the things that were going through her mind after the spar was over and he hadn't seen her the previous night after leaving her. Something told him she needed to talk and he needed to talk with her, to let her know she shouldn't feel badly about what had happened. Lowering his head he brushed his muzzle against her cheek, “Where were you last night?” He asked her, “I've been worried about you.”

Moonshadows appearance was a surprise for the dark man and her interruption of his thoughts was not unwelcome. Though she had worried him the previous night and caused she of his fears to creep in as they did during her first disappearance. Seeing her there beside him was a relief that she had not left the cove without a word. He couldn't help the fear that she too would leave and not return but he tried to keep it from his tone. She didn't know what had happened before and he had to remind himself that she was not Des and she had returned. His questions were merely that, not accusing or said in anger, just curiosity of where she had been. “It's not safe out there,” he told her gently, “And you must stop beating yourself up for what happens yesterday. Everyone has a bad day and if it helps I don't feel I did my best either. You can't expect to be on the top of your game every single day.” He didn't know how to get it through to her that just because she had one bad day didn't mean she wasn't good. “I'm not angry with you for what happened,” he told her quietly.

He did worry about her and that her failure to land a single hit in their spar would take a toll on her. He was doing what he could to make her feel better about it because beating herself up wasn't going to make it any better. “Perhaps, when you're feeling better we can have another go. Then you can see that it was just a bad day.” He suggested hoping it might bring her spirits up if she had another chance to prove to herself that she was more than capable. He had seen it before in their first spar and he knew she could do it again. “Cheer up Moonshadow, I don't like seeing you this upset,” he told her giving her a nudge on her cheek.

It saddened him that she beat herself up so much over things that couldn't be helped or mess ups because she was still learning. If he could he would change that part about her so that she wouldn't wouldn't have to be so upset. He didn't know if it would never change but maybe over time with plenty of reassurance it could get better. It didn't really surprise him that she was surprised he wasn't angry with her. “No, what good would good would being angry with you do? It's not what you need, understanding and support is so that I can help you learn and get better.” He realized after their spar that she needed him to be there for her and help her through whatever she was putting herself through. “You're welcome Moonshadow,” he said before looking at his paws at her compliment and nudge, “Thank you,” he said quietly. He was glad that she thought so since not too long ago he hadn't been a good friend or teacher to her.

Kajika hadn't thought that her finding him in poison path would bring any questions about his presence there. Clearly he was wrong because that was precisely what she had asked him, 'What was he doing there?’ That was a good question. His gaze drifted to the path once more as he tried to figure out the best way to explain it to her. He knew it was time to tell her and she deserved to know what he'd been keeping from her for so long. Why he'd been so worried that she wouldn't come back when she had left the first time. She needed to know that he trusted her and he hoped that by sharing with her she would see that. “Visiting the past I suppose would be the best way to answer that,” he said thoughtfully his gaze meeting hers. It was the best way to describe what he was doing there, he thought.

By explaining to her why he wasn't mad that it might help her to see that she hadn't really done anything to warrant him being mad at her. He also wanted her to understand that there was still things that she needed to learn and while she has mastered quite a few things while she had been in the cove it was important to keep learning. Even when he was her age he had still been learning and still learned now that he was working to become a teacher. It was a never ending process that he hoped she would one day see. However, before he could say anymore on the subject she changed it to focus on him and why he was in poison path I'm the first place.

He knew it had to be puzzling to her since she probably didn't know how regularly he came here. Kajika usually tried slipping off when everyone else was busy with their own things but she had caught him. He wouldn't lie to her and he couldn't keep it from her any longer, he made her a promise. They were supposed to talk to each other when something was bothering so when she told him she was there if he wanted to talk about it he nodded. His gaze fell on her once more, “I told you how I came to Fallen Tree Cove?” He asked as a reminder and to give her more of a clue to what he was talking about. “I'm going to skip over the details of my birth pack. I have accepted and moved on from that. If you have questions about that I will answer them,” he assured her, “But to understand why I'm here all that's important is I left them to live a different life. I had been on my own awhile, around a year when I found the Lore. When I arrived here I only had finding a pack that I felt shared my values and could be a family so I learned about the different packs but still hadn't made a decision. I'm not sure how long it was but while hunting one day she ran into me, Des or more formally Desideria. She changed everything.” A small smile crossed his maw as he remembered the first day he and Des had bumped into each other.