It wasn’t wise for him to be straying so far from the Tarn—especially when his mother’s due date was fast approaching. He’d gone out in search of something to hunt, as prey had grown quite scarce since the arrival oft he coyotes. He knew, considering his age, it wasn’t the smartest move for him to be on his own. He had little experience with fighting or the scrawny creatures, but he couldn’t imagine it was much different than hunting. His ears remained pointed to the sky, swivelling around to pick up on any unusual sounds as he patrolled the gnarled forest below. He kept close to the mountain just in case he needed to make a run for it. He’d make sure, if that were the case, to cover his tracks. He didn’t want to lead the coyotes east, to the tarn. Not when there was a little one present and more on the way.

He moved quickly; deliberately. Like a shadow. His yellow gaze flitted through the array of trees; his brows furrowed with worry. It was obvious that the yearling was on edge—especially after what had happened outside of Lenae’s den. It was evident that tensions were high between the Clearwater wolves, but his mother had put a firm paw down (and backed him up, which was pretty neat). At least he had been in the right. He knew that the others were obviously drawn to the new mother’s den and intended to help her, but things had quickly gone awry. Due to the tensions in Odin and that blonde nuisance’s relationship Cyril understood why the Archer had reacted the way he did. Cheedo always tried to play the neutral card, or help the underdog, which was why she had been on Kip’s side. Cyril, however, didn’t care for any of their bullshit. As far as he was considered they had all been bothering Lenae when she didn’t need them. It was Piety—maybe Odin—that she needed. Even Cyril would have departed if his mother had asked him to stand guard.

Whatever.

He dismissed his thoughts with a heavy roll of his shoulders as he continued his hunt. His nose twitched anxiously as he tried to locate something, anything, to chase, but the forest appeared peculiarly bare…

At least it wasn’t a coyote.

But, at first glance, he thought the pale fur belonged to a seafoam-eyed female he wanted nothing to do with. Instinctively his legs stiffened and his movement ceased, a deep grimace appearing on his dark features. Upon closer inspection, however, he realized that the girl before him was much younger than the blonde, and that her eyes were all wrong. These ones were a brilliant yellow, much like his own, and her fur was a softer white. She did not smell of any pack he was familiar with, and she did not looked pleased with her current situation. His tail twitched as he glanced around once more to ensure that there were no tawny creatures lurking in the nearby trees. You tryin’ to scare all the prey away or what? He huffed in mild frustration, his frown deepening. Typically he would have avoided her and disappeared into the trees, but with coyotes lurking about it was smarter to have numbers on his side. Even if company was the last thing he wanted.

Clearly she wasn’t doing a good job of getting herself out of this place. It almost appeared as though the land had other ideas, and did not appear keen on the pale girl vacating the area. The bridge of his snout wrinkled as she spoke, a deep, crooked frown cutting deep into his dark features. Her persistence on leaving made him wary of their surroundings—was there something she wasn’t telling him?

It was north she wanted to go, but why? What beckoned her to the northern corners of the Lore? Cyril had no intentions of returning to the stretch of tundra that lay beyond the northern woods. It held nothing but painful memories for him now; memories he wasn’t ready to confront. Shouldn’t you know where north is? He countered as mild amusement reflected in his golden irises. His maw canted slightly to one side, his expression softening slightly. He could have asked her what was so special about the north. Who, or what, she was looking for. Why she wanted to get out of this place. But he didn’t care enough. For now she did not appear to be a threat. Not unless she was working with the coyotes or had rogues hiding among the surrounding trees.