Their daughter was home now; that was all that mattered to the shadow. The worrying could cease and things could return to normal—or as normal as they could be. Things were still tense in the south. Between the heights and the ridge. Greer knew he needed to visit his younger sister. To apologize. Make things right. Especially if she still had scouts looking for the scarlet Archer. Would that even do anything? Would it mend their frayed relationship and establish peace between the Archer packs once more? As long as his older sister remained in the south, at the lagoon, Greer doubted that there would be peace. Morganna always had something planned, even if she didn’t know it herself. Her brain was always ticking.

He was reluctant to leave the heights, especially after travelling for so long, but an unknown scent pulled him away from his borders. It dripped with familiarity but he couldn’t put a face to it. Or a name. Not without seeing who it was. His curiosity drove him over the rugged terrain, his spider-like legs moving with easy over the rock. A dark shape in the distance caught his attention, causing his silver gaze to narrow as he exhaled sharply out his nostrils. He didn’t speak. Instead, the shadow observed from a distance, his tail arched high over his back. The stranger picked a poor time to venture onto the heights. 

Fortunately for Greer he did not need to announce his presence for the larger male to acknowledge him. He was greeted by two pools of warm amber before the stranger offered a low bark. There was something rough about the loner’s dark appearance, but familiar as well. Although there was a surplus of black furred wolves in the south not all of them were related to the Archer lineage. But this one—it was possible. Fancy helping a fellow fool? His head tipped to the side at the question as a frown cut across his ebony lips. Perhaps he was a fool to live atop the mountain, especially in the winter, but he had grown accustom to the higher altitude and the strange weather that accompanied it. Help with? He asked, his voice much smoother than his dark companion. 

A line formed between his brows. The dark stranger wanted to head further north? The weather was growing warmer, so it was likely the path wouldn’t be too difficult, but the threat of encountering an avalanche was very possible. Either this wolf was very bold or very stupid; maybe both. Greer hadn’t decided yet. The shadow nodded in response, confirming that he would help the dark loner make his way north. He stepped closer to the large male when he spoke once more, asking if they had worked together. Immediately his steps ceased and his lips fell into a frown. Worked together? Unlikely. Greer was a lone wolf at heart; he did not work well with others. Aside from Kyna, but she had always been the exception to his loner tendencies. No, he started, his expression still grim, not think so. A shrug was given. Live here once? If the loner was a Lore native it was possible they had crossed paths before. Greer wasn’t the best with names but he was pretty good at remembering faces. 

His ears twitched as the stranger spoke. I was born where the willow trees are. Wait—had Greer heard him correctly? Willow Ridge, the dark loner repeated, earning a perplexed expression from the long-legged shadow. His nostrils flared as he leaned forward in an attempt to catch another whiff of the stranger’s scent. If he had been born in the willows surely Greer would have remembered him… right? But he’d never paid attention to the wolves in his birth pack. Not unless they shared the same surname as him. Greer born there also, he responded, a hint of uncertainty playing with his words as they tumbled off the tip of his tongue. His expression remained grim, his ears cupping forward as he took a hesitant step forward. Who? Why couldn’t he remember?!