Time spent at home was almost always wasted. Gent tromped through the snow, thoroughly unenthused with his surroundings. Others who had grown weary of scouting and returned home for respite at the same time as him had already freshened the borders' scent markings, and there was activity enough to ward away wandering unfamiliars. Truly, he felt somewhat useless, and utterly bored. He felt as though he were wasting time, but knew he needed the rest. As much as he wished to push himself endlessly, Gent would not test his limits in this winter. As proud as he could be, the boy was above all a survivor.



His thoughts did wander somewhat, a straining attempt to entertain himself, though he wasn't one to dwell on memories. He sought to plan, but he'd been over those tracks so many times with an identical train of thought each instance. There was no plot left to formulate, no new course of action to act upon. The foul season had rendered him completely stuck in a rut, and all he could do was hope for a flood of opportunity come spring.



His nose then twitched, picking up on something very close nearby. Happily, he swiftly deducted that it was a pack mate within proximity, and not just any Hollowheart Keep wolf, but a fellow youth. A younger youth. One of the almost-yearlings, but the one that didn't belong the most. The orphan. Suddenly very intrigued, Gent picked up his lazy gate and slithered through the snow drifts, zoning in on where the boy was located. Since sniffing out the differences among the pups, this one had caught his interest, on par with Aponi in his usefulness should Gent succeed in conniving favor with him. And who knew? Perhaps he could actually bond with one of these youngsters.



"Hey there! Karpos, right?"



Gent called out to him as the other boy came into sight, a friendly and wry smile placed casually upon his striking face as glacial eyes sought Karp's; clearly intent on congenial conversation.

The whelp held himself with an odd sort of confidence, and Gent considered another option for their relationship as pack mates. The Lieris heir had yet to completely define his plans for the future, after all the options were nearly limitless, but there were two main courses. He would either gather all of the skills he could from living with these wolves, and then leave to form his own pack, or strive to be the successor to @Naira and her consort. If it was to the be latter, he wondered if this youth would be an obstacle to be maneuvered, especially considering his increasingly intimate proximity to @Aponi . But that possibility only made him more eager to befriend the boy.



"Yeah, I guess I haven't been around much since then. This winter is making it awfully difficult to feel at home anywhere," he commented offhandedly, gaze wandering for a moment before reclining across from Karpos. He then focused completely once more on the lad, musing over that posture of his. The spitting image of a boy who wanted nothing of his childhood and only to be an adult; an awkward and frustrating stage to be at. Gent could only relate, as he reflected on his unauthorized challenge of Crowe.



"How are you settling in?" he asked, conversationally.