"Best swan dive, huh?...I bet your swan dive from that cliff over there beat that record. Hands down," he teased lightheartedly, recalling the woman's previous plunge. For a moment he'd thought she'd lost control and would topple off the side or trip, but she'd kept it together long enough to execute the dive with a certain, young grace. The shewolf managed to glide her way beneath his paddling legs before resurfacing on the other side.

"So, what've you got to show for yourself?"

Immediately a string of thoughts flashed through his mind. Scars, the obvious answer. A shying grin swept over his features as he made his way back to where his paws touched, wading in the chest-deep water stoically as he considered the answer and the question in silence briefly. Warm, silver eyes would stray to the glistening surface of the water and the waves created by the amphibious wolves before casually tracing back to her golden ones.

"You're looking at it," he offered honestly. Everything there was to his life right now was standing before her, really - a humbled wanderer of man, searching for the missing pieces at the place where, until now, he'd enjoyed the solitude. But, he knew with all of his heart that there was more to show, more to the story. To the west was an ancient cedarwood forest, and it was the home of everything dear to him - the pack he'd die to protect and honor, the angel who'd brought him back to life, and three young souls to whom he'd sworn he'd never abandon. Pride swelled in his broad chest; the Hollow wolves had seen their share of turmoil through the winter months, but he knew the changing season brought hope, and when the time came he would make things right.

"...and a name, Kade," he would add charmingly before continuing with caution. "I am...Guardian of Grizzly Hollow." It was, perhaps, the only title he was truly proud of, an honor to be the first, a position given by Jaysyek, herself, though he was no longer the only one.

He would leave it at that, for now, forgetting the pack and place he'd purposefully left behind as his gaze swept across feminine features of the dark woman's face; in an instant it was as if the quaint, obscure cove were all there was to the world.

"Does...the impressive lady have a name?"

He would issue a subtle nod in the lady's direction, acknowledging her greeting without sparing any attention to take note of the fading daylight. "The pleasure is mine, Ava," he replied gladly, smoothly emphasizing her name as he spoke it for the first time. There was a quality about it which seemed to fit her perfectly - dark, elegant, feminine...mysterious.

Now that the two were officially on a first name basis, he had every intention of learning more about her. Where had she come from? Who was the 'he' she'd mentioned? What in the hell was she doing jumping from a cliff? More importantly, where had she been? A long-time bachelor, one could say Kade wasn't too concerned with women, or romance, though there was one in particular who'd changed his life completely. But this girl...she seemed...different than most. She was youthful, full of life, outgoing, sassy, and clever, not to mention she liked to swim and had the best swan dive for miles. She just glowed. What was her story?

A warm gaze would shift from Ava's bright, expressive eyes to her lips as she spoke and back, a docile flicker to the tip of his plush tail as he slid to his belly. As easily as it would have been to kick back and watch the sun set at his new companion's side, there were too many things he wanted to know, now. "Are you...from around here?" Speaking of stupid questions - could there be anything less intriguing to bother her with? On the same note, what better a place to begin.

The way in which she'd look upon herself in the water oddly reminded him of how'd he'd once looked to the refletion of the Marsh waters for an answer to his own life questions. Was she, too, on a search for herself? Before long Ava would fail to shake the persistent smile from her face and proceed to join him, and the male would steal a glance along the length of her slender legs before hushing his eyes to the darkening wood to the east. To the man's delight, the first spring firefly flashed in the tall grasses lining the cove's shore, and then another, and another...It would seem that their flirtatious swim awoke more than just their interests.

The landscape was now veiled in shades of violet and navy as the last bright rays of light fell upon the nook, a pristine silence hovering in the spaces around the pair of dark figures. The shewolf settled just far enough from him to leave a comfortable distance inbetween, and when the remnants of sun illuminated the honey hued shades of her eyes he would hold her gaze as she spoke.

Fresh blood? He wondered silently if she was now fresh pack blood, as well.

"It is," he replied softly, regarding his home having taken note of her casual way with her words. "It is just less than two days to the west and north, makes for breathtaking journey." he added in the latter part on a whim. It was true, but perhaps she liked to travel...Shifting his weight, he leaned the slightest bit closer.

"Do you belong to a pack?" If she did, they may not take kindly to the scent he was bound to leave upon her, granted their relative proximity.

She would lay her head upon her foreleg, eyes reaching upward to watch the words he spoke. For a moment he nearly felt guilty for keeping her up when it was plain to see that she needed rest. Breathtaking? Sounds a little biased, she quipped easily, and he would throw his muzzle up in the slightest in appreciation of the humor behind her words.

And then the conversation would take a serious turn, even if it were only temporary. The hard tone of her voice was like a contradiction to her words. On the one hand, she was almost a member of some pack, but something about the way she stated the fact made it seem as though she were in a way disappointed. This made little sense, and the man's brows would draw together as he thought about how this was so. She'd agreed to help? Help by being a part of the group? Did she plan on staying?

"I'm sure your pack will benefit from your presence and impressive swimming skills," he replied thoughtfully, attempting to reimplicate the play in their exchange. "You know...serving a pack loyally..." he would drift from his words briefly, looking to the surface of the water and the young stars reflected in it. Would he choose to remain loyal to Grizzly Hollow, in the shadow the Lyall male had cast upon it? Would he end or sacrifice his own reign or life to thwart the imbalance that had plagued them all? He didn't want to consider it any further, remembering why he was here at Lost Lake to begin with. "...Honor them." His message was fragmented and probably didn't make any sense to the young shewolf, but his intent was genuine. There was nothing more noble than to stand by the decisions one chooses to make, and honor, at least in his mind, was the golden rule.

Kade was in no way disappointed by her assertion about her new pack, instead offering encouragement. "You will be well fed and not without company - many wolves are not allowed such a privilege," he continued smoothly, thoughts of who the mystery male in her life was still. "This man, is he your mate?" There was no point it beating around the bush, after all, the pair were only just friends, right?

In a natural movement, the stout man rolled to his side, laying his own head on the wet sand of the beach without taking his silver eyes off of her.

So she held no true ties to the man in question, and all the same would be a pack wolf, and with all of the luxuries. It sounded like a win-win to him, but hell, what did he know about winning, anyway.

"So I can't help but wonder if you're over here, Guardian of Grizzly Hollow, who's over there... y'know, guarding?"

He would grin at the irony warmly, but it would be short lived. Yes, there were many who patrolled the territory now, some more so than he, and he knew that Cedarwood Forest was well protected. But guilt still poisoned him. What worth did he possess if he was not on the border himself, fulfilling his duties? What if something had happened in his short absense? Did it? Jaysyek...He was nobody, a loner even amongst his family, and knew they all would probably be just fine should he never set foot in Grizzly Hollow ever again.

The inward, endless, irrational blithering was pushed down, back, far away once more. He'd come to hate it - the uncertainty of the future, and the sting of the past, including his more recent past. But it was all now just fuel to the fire he would set upon his life.

"Gosh, I hope someone is!" He gasped sarcastically, eyes opening extra wide as if he'd come to a life changing realization about having left without issuing a temporary replacement or something. A short fit of laughter ensued, but eventually he'd clear his throat and lean in even closer to her. "There are many wolves in the Cedarwood forest, none of whom have any problem seeing to it that their realm is protected."

He was running out of time, even the dark female had spoken the words that had been running through the back of his mind. It was time to go...home. He may have joked around, but the reality was that he was far from where he needed to be, and the people who needed him to be there. Knowing he was about to have to say a first goodbye, the man's pale silver eyes would sweep over the shewolf's face - from ears, to nose, to lips, and to her eyes, where they would stay with reverent intensity. Beautiful Ava.

He was glad it had been her to stumble upon him.