She was thanking him, which made sense. He probably could have figured it out, but he was correct on the second guess. Mostly, it sounded like. Eli nodded appreciatively as he explained his predicament and she tested out his work. He already wished she’d go easier on herself, but he’d let it go. She’d already chastised him for being overly concerned earlier. What he didn’t expect was for her to come with him. He picked up his thin jaw from the floor and recovered enough he wouldn’t be thought rude. She saved him he repaid her in healing, they were even.

However Zola went on, determined to take on his quest of finding those of the Klein name. He almost refused her, having only heard stories about his home land he knew they general attitude they had towards slaves and servants. Eliphas didn’t desire that for himself. Not that he could even hope of controlling the impressive amazon. ”I.. hm. Thank you, Zola.” He nodded his head in appreciation as she reminded him that she was making a fire. ”Right, and I’m.. getting meat.”

He chuckled softly to himself as pale pink paws carried him back towards the bear. ”Merlin will you keep a better eye this time? Zola is in no shape to save us again.” Eli shook his head as they came upon the bear, exactly where they left it. It was a giant of a beast, and unless e wanted to be there the rest of the night he was going to have to pick and choose. Carefully, or not so much, he worked on removing the creature’s left arm.

It was more than a messy job, but eventually he managed. Covered in the beasts stale blood now Eliphas returned to the camp by the spring with their spoils.

his own confusion was evident, and she frowned at him but said nothing. surely, seeing the state of this world, did he expect her to do any less? Eliphas was a small wolf, smaller than some men, and he did not seem to be able to fight. she did not care so much if he was small but wandering around in this ravaged landscape would only bring trouble. especially since he didn't know where these family members were. the volcano erupted and she was seeing the effects unknowingly. forced from their hibernation, the predators and small prey animals would be a problem. she half-expected a hyena or lioness to come across the young man, and gobble him up. as for the small mammals, they would be very hard to hunt.

but he didn't argue with her on it. he merely accepted she'd stubbornly trail after him until she was sure he was safe. when he brought the arm of the bear back, Eliphas was covered in blood. she shifted to allow him room to groom himself free of the crimson if he so chose, but she extended a massive paw to collect the arm. taking her spear in her jaws again, she worked to remove the pelt from the meat. tanning it would be trouble without salt. but she had a water source to soften and fire to char the oils from it. after removing the skin, she took the meat and threw it near the fire. with the iklwa, she poked and prodded it until it became a soft brown. "eat. please" she added in the formality, extending a piece of sliced meat to her new comrade.

- - "Talking!" Walking. 'Thought/Others!' - -
3/3 fought a large predator (grizzly bear)
1/3 crafted tanned hide

He was covered in grim and gristle after working so hard to remove an arm from a dead bear. Zola made room for him to groom himself and he nodded and did just that. He used the same bit of moss that he’d used on her earlier. Dual toned gaze watched her work, skillfully skinning the flesh he’d gotten for her. ”Make sure you save the claws,” he told her before the meat hit the fire. With his prize saved Eliphas continued removing the bright red liquid from his alabaster pelt.

There were still bloodstains remaining, but Eliphas was happy to indulge in the feast before finishing his task. He wasn’t one to turn down food. He did hesitate though, wanting to see that she was going to dig in as well. She needed the sustenance more than he did. He didn’t have near the body mass, or wounds to keep up with. Without anymore hesitation Eliphas consumed the bit she’d offered him and the boy looked expectantly towards her. He gestured with an ivory paw, ”Eat, please.” He echoed, his concern for his patient obvious in his voice.

"I leave claws." she assured him.

Once she made sure the healer ate, she sliced off another piece with her spear. Eliphas repeated her words, causing an amused snort to escape. He may be bossy, but he had the right to be with the severity of her wounds. The grizzly bear had left shallow and deep ones – she could feel it – but the worst had been the blood loss. She did feel a bit dehydrated and woozy. But only because her strength had been stretched thing during her travels. Typically, a few wounds like these were nothing to her training regime. She chewed thoughtfully, letting her gaze go to the warmth of the fire. Her people liked to dance around the flames, but she knew her gait would be awkward and embarrassing if she tried.

The bear meat was tough and slightly greasy, but she ate without complaint as usual. One cannot be picky in these times. She would preserve the rest of the bear – claws excluded for Eliphas – later. Right now, she worked on conversing her strength and distracting her mind. slicing off more of the fat, she propped the hide on her spear; both ends of the pelt secured after a bit of work. She held it in the water to clean before shoving it toward the fire to dry. Watching the flames lick the pelt, she spoke once more. “we start travel tomorrow after preparing food for road” briefly, her amber gaze found his dainty face “unless want to stay for longer?” the resources around the spring were better than other parts of Boreas.

“I make bear stomach into pouch. Carry water from spring” she added in, looking the delicate male over before deciding she’d try to craft him something to withstand the cold. She already was going to make bracers from the hide for herself to wrap around her slimmer legs.

- - "Talking!" Walking. 'Thought/Others!' - -
3/3 fought a large predator (grizzly bear)
2/3 crafted tanned hide

She was going to leave him the claws, not that he expected her to deny his simple request. Bear wasn’t incredibly enjoyable, especially such a tough cut, but it was palatable. He would be sustained for the journey ahead. They had to return to the mainland, and the swim would be difficult. He’d need the strength of the bear to get back, that was for sure. Zola ate her fill as well, and Eliphas felt himself smile with satisfaction. Alright she ate and drank, the woman was going to make it through.

Zola didn’t take long to take charge of their journey either. After preparing their food she planned on taking off, he chuckled as she decided to include his thoughts, asking if he’d prefer to stay. ”I’d like you to take a couple days to heal before we go anywhere.” He told her with his genuine concern. How easily had she taken up the duty of watching out for his less capable self? The least he could do was make attempt to keep her safe and getting better as well. ”The stomach thing is a good idea. Who knows the next clean water source we’ll find.” He had every faith in Merlin, but if the water wasn’t there the owl couldn’t find it.

”They’ve managed this long without me, I can wait a couple more days.” He said in regards to finding his lost kin. He’d never met any of them before, but he had heard of them. Especially Hannibal, his uncle’s heir.

“Mm” the apprentice grunted, squinting her eyes at ‘days’. Perhaps she could keep herself busy by building a base around the spring. Make barriers, keep predators out so they had a safe place to rest. It was only because she agreed with her thoughts… that she didn’t complain about ‘wasting time’. It would give her plenty of time to get a lay of this land. “then make preparations until then.” she grumbled, resigning herself to this. If she did think he wasn’t capable of fending for himself, she would have left him right after he used the muti on her. Zola hated downtime. She hated feeling useless when there was always something to do.

So, she focused entirely on making the tanned hide. Releasing it from the fire, the inside was charred nicely while the outside remained thick and warm from the fur. Looking to Eliphas, she'd nudge the still-warm pelt in his direction. He could use it as a blanket. Her own fur was not as thick as his, but her muscle kept her warm. She would have no problem falling asleep to the cold air as it soothed her open wounds.

Settling more comfortably on the ground, she would begin to curl up to rest. Though her wounds still ached a bit, Zola did not complain. “did family separate from you? Or lost them?” she did need to know the details of his people’s disappearance and why he was trying to find them. If anything, it would make for a good story to drift off to. She hadn’t known that when she came in from the west, she had been very close to Eliphas’ family. She had skirted around the packs and did not linger for long. She had never known there to be a ‘northland’ and was curious. So, she immediately made for the north, finding more of the strange white cold on the ground as she went.

- - "Talking!" Walking. 'Thought/Others!' - -
3/3 fought a large predator (grizzly bear)
3/3 crafted tanned hide

She didn’t seem pleased at all with his suggestion of remaining for days instead of leaving now. She didn’t argue with him though, a point he was thankful for. Morning was nigh, and he was ready to take a long nap. Zola’s words stopped his dream about sleep though. They needed to make arrangements. Or maybe she meant she was going to make preparations? Eliphas finished grooming himself and watched her as she hardened the hide against the fire skillfully. He was allowed the claws, and already their uses bounced around in his head.

Eliphas lost himself in his thoughts as he watched the oil seep from the raw hide. The fire warmed him and after a bit of foul smell from burning flesh, was finished. Zola removed it, inspecting her work before offering it to him. His eyes widened in confusion, but realized the cold was likely welcome on her lashes. The boy recovered quickly though and smiled in thanks as he took the gift and settled himself beneath it. With his body sphynx like by the fire and hid back covered with the pelt he pulled his ivory tail around his hips and decided to settle in for the morning. He had a few hours before he had to worry about sun exposure.

”It’s kind of a long story, I'll give you the highlights.” He started, but they had nothing but time. ”My mother’s family really, I’ve never met any of them before. They called out to her in their time of need, but she could only send me to aid them in her stead. When I arrived, there were no living relatives left. However, I found evidence of migration and followed them here.” And now, well his journey had almost been finished before he’d even really started.

she liked a good story, but it was clear Eliphas was weary. unwilling to part with too much information. the saber girl gave a nod as he began to speak, committing the details to her mind for further use. it would seem there was some urgent need of help, only making her work her front paws on the ground restlessly. they would need to hurry then. Zola would try to recover as fast as possible so the boy could be reunited with his family.

once the little story was done, she'd nod before resting her massive head on her equally massive paws. he had accepted the hide and curled up himself for the impending sleep. "then rest. recover. I wake at dawn, prepare supplies. not open wounds" she added in, looking at him with faint amusement. she knew that he would protest her working too much on things, fearful of not having the muti needed if she had the luck to re-open them. physical exertion was to be kept limited.

"I sleep now" Zola stated bluntly, beginning to close her eyes. there would be plenty of time to speak later on when the morning hit them both. she immediately felt a wave of weariness consume her, and soon her mind went blank. replaced by little visions in her head called dreams.

/ EXIT VIA SLEEP

- - "Talking!" Walking. 'Thought/Others!' - -
3/3 fought a large predator (grizzly bear)
3/3 crafted tanned hide