Roamer's Rest old money, nouveau riche

It didn't take long for their combined body heat to thaw the air around them, insulating the little hollow into quite the quaint space. Levi found himself surprised nothing was already dwelling or hibernating here. Despite winter's cold, the earth inside beneath their paws was soft like loam; it was in fact so cozy, Levi was pretty certain he'd be nodding off within the hour. They were due some rest anyways, in his opinion.

As he listened to Sawyer speak, he finished carving out a set of wolfish ears and began tracing a smaller set next to them.

Is that what his friend wanted, some kind of family he could say was specifically his? That meant a pack eventually, didn't it? Leviticus wondered what other packs were like, if they all thought the same as the one he'd been born into or if wherever Sawyer ended up, him and River could fit in there too. That would be nice, and yet...

Doesn't everyone? the question echoed within his thoughts; Levi honestly wasn't so sure, but it wasn't like he definitely didn't want those things. He just... didn't have a strong affinity toward anything really, and certainly no passion yet to speak of much less guide him.

"Yeah, I got parents n' sisters," he answered, but like Sawyer he didn't go into detail about them; unfortunately, Levi had never been close to any of them, and it actually had made him more sad how much he didn't miss them than it had leaving in the first place. He'd never realized how suffocating his home had truly been until he'd escaped it.

"They wanted me to be a doctor. It's in the family, grandpa was pretty well known 'til he got silly. I never came up with my own plan though. So now I guess, I'm just floatin'. You seem to have it a lot more together than me..." he looked past his shoulder at his friend, mossy eyes inquisitive.

If Sawyer was truly honest with himself, he wanted to believe that he was capable of wielding such power, such desires of leading a pack of wolves and extending the Archer bloodline. He knew he was capable, but he also knew he needed the support. Being out on his own meant he would have to rally it... and, so far, well... his charm was doing something if he had to stack up the numbers it had done on Levi.

He hummed in response to Levi. Of course he, too, had parents and siblings. Most everyone, of their kind, he knew did. And, as the wolf at his back continued his wall art and his little spiel about his family's wishes for him, Sawyer tried to imagine it all behind unseeing eyes. A youth with everything at his feet, knowledge and skill to do as he pleased... a mold to fit into (which had once housed his grandfather).

"So now I guess, I'm just floatin'. You seem to have it a lot more together than me..."

The Archer slowly set his head down over crossed paws. A glance upward and their eyes met. "Mm, maybe," it was a weird sort of answer but he was gonna run with it. "Things have to happen certain ways before everything else can happen, y'know what I mean?" Mature up, find one's feet, maintain a rank, find a lady, find a pack, have a family... It was all easier said than done, really, but in Sawyer's mind, what was an Archer who didn't find {or keep} his calling after all? He had but one answer: Dead. He and his sister had come to Relic Lore to do so much more than lie down and wait for life to pass them by.

you musn't be afraid
to dream a little bigger, darling
⟡ ⟡ ⟡

Maybe? Levi blinked. It wasn't really what he'd expected, though that didn't make it a bad answer to hear. In fact, it bolstered his trust in the other teen in a way; he felt maybe Sawyer understood him then, even if only a little bit. Still, it continued to be shown that even if they overlapped in some ways, the russet Archer was one, if not several steps ahead. Levi's ears perked up.

Step by step then, is that what his friend meant? What decided these steps and their order? Were some of these steps universal? It had certainly seemed so back home, but that had squeezed @Riven out and the dissonance that had created within Levi's head clearly had impacted him greatly, enough so to lead him to shed his natal pack entirely. He wasn't sure how he wished it to be, different or closer to the same. Leviticus wanted happiness and freedom for himself and others, but he also wanted structure and guidance. This being on your own thing had gotten far too difficult, long before Sawyer had come along to help out.

"What do we gotta make happen now, you think?" he asked, hoping his friend had an answer that could point Levi in some kind of direction that didn't revolve around simply seeing River's face again. Just in case... after all, he couldn't wander the Earth asking the same, singular question over and over forever.

"What do we gotta make happen now, you think?" Levi asked. To this, Sawyer gave a shake of his head. It was simple. "We find ourselves some buddies, bud," he grinned up at the artist beside him. His tail gave a wag before curling around his hindlimb again. "We're each other's wingmen, right?" For a split second he thought about whether or not he had to explain the term, but ultimately went along with something more watered down. "Birds of a feather?"

His smile morphed into a smirk. Spring, which he could sense was on the rise, wasn't gonna know what hit it... and he and Levi were going to make an impression one way or another.

you musn't be afraid
to dream a little bigger, darling
⟡ ⟡ ⟡

Sawyer didn't leave his friend hanging. Levi grinned, the expression slipping only slightly as the foreign term wingmen passed into his ears. It regained traction when something more familiar followed; he knew what that phrase meant, and the wandering youth would be honored to be considered one of the same kind as the Archer he was idolizing.

"Right," he didn't hesitate to confirm. As long as Sawyer was willing to lead, Levi would happily follow.

He let out a breath, and felt a good amount of tension leave his body along with it. Finally, another goal. Something far more doable, something Levi might actually be good at. He was friendly and kind, he knew that much about himself, and that had to be of some benefit when finding buddies.

"This can be our base then, yeah? If we wanna meet up, and if we find someone, we come here. Until, y'know. We do something else."

His little analogy was taken in stride and while the Archer's smile softened, the warm sentiments remained. His eyes fluttered closed, sleep would come in due time, he was sure, but he was simply enjoying Levi's closeness. The companionship, the conversation... the ease of just being allowed to be.

"This can be our base then, yeah?" Levi proposed. The ear closest to the paler man swiveled to one side. Sawyer hummed; he was still listening. "If we wanna meet up, and if we find someone, we come here. Until, y'know. We do something else."

"Mmhmm," he answered, heaving a contented sigh. "Sounds like a plan." An unbidden yawn split his jowls and his jaw clicked before it slowly shut again. He cracked open an eye, if only to catch one more sight of the masterpiece that was starting to show on the side of the inner trunk by Levi's nail and paw, "An' if there's ever a time when you want to move out of here, jus' let me know." He made out the smiling wolf accompanied by a larger - smug-looking - wolf and laughed to himself in his head. Charmed. Guess this was a sign that he would have to keep this one. Levi was one of the good ones.

"Just don't wake me up too early," he half-joked, eyes closing again as he nestled the side of his muzzle against his forearm. They had made it this far together and, while tomorrow would be another day, Sawyer and Levi now had a whole world of new possibilities awaiting them as established kinsmen.

{fade.}

you musn't be afraid
to dream a little bigger, darling
⟡ ⟡ ⟡

Levi's tailed knocked happily against the packed ground and wooden walls as Sawyer confirmed it was their new home. Temporary, but still so much more than he'd had in a long time. That great wealth of gratitude that always laid just-barely dormant within his chest rose up and filled him to the brim once more with happiness. Life was good.

"Same to you," he replied on both counts, voice softened as he glanced over and saw how near to slumber his friend was. Levi smiled down at the rust-coated wolf, then turned to finish his little pictograph. Maybe one of these days, he'd be able to add a little River onto it... regardless, whatever the future brought their way, there was hopefully-indelible proof that they'd been here, and a bond formed.