The Wildwood Pull me like a ripcord

Elias is maybe a half an hour away from CAD's borders, he isn't trespassing by any means nor does he intend to.

Elias would do whatever it took to keep @Nineva and her unborn litter safe. Though he had absolutely no experience when it came to childbearing even he knew that she would give birth sooner rather than later. Though pregnancy was a look she wore remarkably well, the sheer abundance of coyotes in the Cedarwoods made things difficult from them both. Try as he might, Elias just couldn't provide for them as well as he'd like. There was no food to scavenge, all the smaller prey had turned tail and ran- and in all honesty Elias couldn't blame them. Only he couldn't do the same, he was bound to Nin now and he was fine with that, honestly. Happy to be in her service.

And so, Elias wandered east, away from the roaming packs of coyotes. He'd been in these parts before, recognised them as he sniffed around the bases of the burnt out trees. This didn't seem like the best place to hunt, after all even with the shoots of greenery growing between the blackened trees this place didn't seem all that alive. It was quiet, almost too quiet. His nose wrinkled as he scented the air, his brows drawing together as he glanced this way and that. As it had before, his nose picked up on the lingering scent of the Draw on the wind. He couldn't help but wonder how @Kerberos was faring, he'd been awfully helpful that day...

Standing tall-so at the very least he wasn't hunched over like some sad gremlin- he untucked his tail from between his legs and limped on, his footsteps making an strange tappity-tap beat as he went along. He wouldn't let Nin or their litter starve, he'd sooner let his rips jut out from his sides then allow that. Hunger pains were nothing and he could deal with the deep set aching in his bones, their safety was all that mattered.

What with the sudden influx of coyotes, Nineva didn't like to be too far from Elias. The heavier she was, the more she should rest; she knew that, and yet it was still so difficult to do, especially when they were still relatively on their own. The mother-to-be refused to let her paramour be worked to the bone trying to provide while she laid around and coddled herself, and what if he did catch prey and it made him a target? Nineva truly wanted to do what was best for her litter, but staying still had never been an option for the Hervok, even now with her unborn children's health on the line.

Not wanting to be shooed away, she trailed her man at a distance. Her senses were focused on pinpointing the other living beings among the charred forest, be they prey or rival. Whatever came, she would have Elias' back.

Elias wasn't the most observant of beings but...you know that weird tingly feeling you get on the back of your neck when someone is watching? He paused mid-limp, his nose scrunching as he contracted the muscles on his neck, making it twitch and jitter. That didn't make it any better, if anything the fact that he'd paid it any heed made the sensation all the more prominent, like a tune he couldn't get out of his head.

"Umm?" Perhaps it wasn't awfully clever to point out that he'd noticed them but it was too late now. "Is someone there? I'm not up to no good...if that's what you're thinking."He paused, his expression squishing as he realised something. "Which is exactly what someone would say if that was the case..."He pouted, his ears flicking back.

Good going Elias.

Okay okay, he could fix this. He hadn't fudged things up completely, yet.

"Could you just say hi? He asked the burnt trees. "So I know I haven't completely lost it...Unless I have...and I'm talking to a forest."