Winter was once more claiming Boreas in its cold grip. As the days marched on further and further from late fall and into early winter, the world began to shift for the colder. Frost covered the ground through the night and into early morning. In front of his eyes, Alastor's breath formed a dense cloud of humid condensation before vanishing like a ghost into the chilly ether. It was still fairly early in the morning, the dawn sun just starting to peek up over the eastern horizon as he trudged along the banks of the Rio Grande, crunching frosted grass beneath heavy paws. He had made one last trip back to the prairie den his family had started in to make sure there were no left behind belongings before Manea got the pack set up somewhere on the eastern coast. Now the dire wolf made his way back across Boreas, a trip he'd been making more and more frequently as of late. His paws, aching and tired, were ready for a well deserved rest.

Alastor hadn't slept much the night prior, unable to settle while away from his family. It was a protective trait he'd developed following the birth of his children, it seemed. Perhaps that was why the usually highly alert wolf missed the initial snare trap he stepped right into. His paw hit the trigger, and the next thing he knew, Alastor felt a rope tighten around his ankle, and then a pressure try to yank him off his paws. His weight was too great though, and Alastor instead watched as the snare failed, its counterbalance dangling uselessly in the air. It wasn't heavy enough to whisk the heavy dire wolf off his paws. It was actually quite comical the more he thought about it!

Grinning to himself, Alastor gave a short laugh and began to look around the nearby woods, seeking out whoever had set the trap. It had been a good effort; the snare was well made, just sadly lacking enough weight to take him down. Alastor lifted his paw and bit through the rope with ease, watching the rock used as a counterweight drop harmlessly to the ground. He chuckled again and continued on, wondering who was setting a trap for wolves—when another snare went off around a hind ankle. This trap, however, had a heavier counterweight.

Alastor had been expecting another failure, so imagine his surprise when the giant dire suddenly found himself being thrown to the ground and dragged back. He yelled out in surprise, clawing at the ground to try and stop himself as the snare pulled him back to a nearby tree, then hauled him up into the air by his hind leg. Alastor blinked back surprised obsidian eyes, trying to reorient himself as he hung upside down from his leg. He squirmed in the trap, flailing in the air like a living piñata, but ultimately was unable to free himself or reach up enough to bite through the rope. He was well and truly trapped this time.

Ahhhhh... fuck. Well, looked like he'd be waiting for whoever set the traps to come and cut him down, the massive black behemoth swaying gently while he waited, hoping they wouldn't be long before all the blood pooled in his head and he perished.


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
____________________

Freedom had belonged to Sera for just over a year now. She had escaped in winter, and now another such season began to settle over the land. Her little camp was chilly, and if it wasn’t for the teachings of a dark wolf this time last year, she wouldn’t have survived this long. The man had taught her how to hunt and skin her prey, and she had been working on those skills these past four seasons. Now, she had a few coats in the hollow of a tree. A dark, barky coloured covering over the entrance made it all that more difficult to spot.

It was early morning, and Seraphina was slowly whittling away at a piece of rib-bone. Attempting to make herself a knife. She knew she would be found, one day. All she could do was prepare herself as best she could.

Despite that knowledge, he had expected to hear the sound of one of her traps springing a little in the distance. She rose sharply to her paws, almost hitting her head on the low clearance of her den. Quivering and alert, she listened a moment longer and heard the sound of a second trap springing - clearly, the first hadn’t done its work.

She picked up the bone, and tested its sharpness. It would have to do. She pushed aside the covering and stepped out into the chilling cold. Shivering, she stalked forward. Was it her ‘father’ the man who had kidnapped her as a baby? Had he finally tracked her down?

She pressed forward, heart hammering in her chest, closing the distance and - wait. “Alastor??” she asked, incredulous. Staring at the familiar form of the very wolf whos skills had kept her alive.


"Speech"

The dark wolf counted each slow minute that he hung there, given nothing else to do in the meantime while he waited for either death or rescue. As he dangled there, he couldn't help but wonder if this was what bait felt like, just strung up and waiting for something to come along and sink their teeth into it. It was a strange sensation of vulnerability; he didn't think he liked it. Gods, he wished he had a companion of some sort like Manea did! How handy it would be to have something to cut himself loose if he ever got trapped like this. Then again, this was a rare circumstance. Not many wolves laid out traps for other wolves like this. It did make him curious as to who had set all this up...

As if reading his mind, the trapper appeared, crunching through the grass until abyssal eyes caught sight of the upside down wolf with tawny fur and accents of striking blues. The scales on her head gave away her identity to him, even before she called out to him by name. Upside down or right side up, Alastor knew this wolf. He recognized that sweet face and those intense blue eyes as if from a dream he'd had in a season just like this one, almost a year ago. Alastor blinked, blinked again, brought giant paws up to rub his eyes, then smiled. It was a huge, tooth-filled, ecstatic smile, one of true happiness the demon wolf rarely wore.

"Sera! It's you! Hello!" he greeted her in emphatic response while still gently swinging back and forth upside down in the air. "Why, I haven't seen you since the past winter! Or was it spring pretending to be winter...? I don't remember. But either way, here you are! I grew worried when I didn't see you around anymore. But you're alive, and you look fantastic! At least from what I can tell in this orientation, haha!" Ever the maniac he was, Alastor found no trouble in holding this casual conversation with the little wolf that had stolen a piece of his heart and mind while hanging like a cured meat.


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
____________________

There was something terribly comical about watching the large, dark, dire wolf swinging gently in the breeze. She might have laughed, if she wasn’t so busy being shocked about his reappearance. Her old friend had a lot more to say, and it wasn’t long before he was filling in her shocked silence. Now she did laugh, some of her caution dropping gently away against his familiarity.

“I didn’t expect to see you hanging around here! Heh.” She trotted forward, still a little timid about being close to him, even if he was an old friend. She held that bone knife between her teeth and contemplated the trap for a minute. It had been laid with the intention of giving her room to kill the swinger, but now that wasn’t going to happen. She trotted away from him and to the tree with the counter weight, sawing the rope until he dropped heavily to the ground. “All I remember is it was snowy and cold, has it really been a year?” She wondered. A long, lonely year. She had looked for him, needed a friend. She wasn’t going to say that outloud. “So… er… what are you up to these days?”


"Speech"

The surprise on Sera's face melted away into delight and... was that a touch of relief? Was she relieved that it was just this giant black-furred insane wolf in her trap and not someone else? She must have been hunting for something in particular. Sera's joke brought a barking laugh from Alastor, whose grin widened further. He watched while she studied her own trap, seeming perplexed by how to get him down until she settled for just cutting the rope and letting him fall rather unceremoniously to the chilled ground with a heavy thud. Rolling back too is paws, Alastor rose up to his full height and shook his coat, finding Sera with shining black eyes and a wide smile.

"Mmm something close to it," he said, trying to run through the months in his mind. "Yes, I believe it has been almost a year. Have you been practicing your hunting skills since then? These traps would certainly suggest so!" He glanced at the two snares he'd found so far, quite impressed by the ingenuity that went into them. When he'd met Sera, she's been a scared yet headstrong girl with no survival skills to speak of. Although they'd only had one lesson, she'd seemed interested in what he'd taught her, and she hadn't starved to death, so she must have been eating. Although maybe it was her pack feeding her... except she didn't smell like the pack he'd scented on her last time. His brow furrowed curiously. What had happened to Seraphina since he'd seen her last?

Sera asked what he had been up to, and Alastor let out a long, descending whistle as he considered his whirlwind of a year. "Hoo boy, let's see... Mostly I'm with my mate, trying to decide where she wants to establish her new pack. That's not an easy task, let me tell you!" He chuckled again, now actually able to take in the sight of the smaller woman before him. Although she seemed healthy, if not a little on the skinny side, something in her vivid eyes betrayed her mental state. Sera had not had an easy year. "What about you, little huntress? What have you been doing with your time—besides leaving toys out for wolves to get caught in?" he asked, calling back on the nickname he'd given her after her successful elk kill.


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
____________________

“Your lessons helped me line my den for winter, and my stomach!” she agreed as she yanked on the rope that Alastor pulled his leg free of - now that it had slack for him to do so. She bundled it up and tossed it behind the tree. She would deal with that later. She turned back to Alastor and blinked for a second. Remembering belatedly just how tall he was. Damn giant.

She shuffled on her feet and watched him as he considered her question. A flash of… something, coiled in her belly at his words. Surely it wasn’t jealousy, despite him being her only friend in the world, she barely knew him. He spoke of them making a pack together. Perhaps it was simply loneliness that was the green-eyed monster in her belly. He had found people, family, a place to settle.

Something about hearing his moniker for her helped to settle her a little. “A pack? That's a bit more ambitious than you were when I saw you last” she said evenly. “I’ve been… digging in here, to get through winter. I didn’t want to have to travel too much in the snow.” and ensuring she was prepared if her ‘father’ found her while she was settled in one spot.


"Speech"

"Ah, excellent!" He was very glad to hear she had taken what he'd taught her and applied them to her everyday life. Seraphina had always struck him as a bright young girl, and it seemed to be holding true. Her reaction to his explanation of what he'd been up to was well hidden, and Alastor didn't notice the flare of envy in the smaller wolf. He did, however, give a hearty laugh when Sera pointed out how starting a pack was much more ambitious than how he had been a year ago. It was a fair assessment, but Alastor had a lot to consider now. He had a wife, children, a future he had to provide and care for. He had told Sera how once upon a time he had been destined to lead a pack as a princess' betrothed. That might have fallen through, but he had ironically found another avenue to leadership he hadn't even wanted in the first place!

"Hmm, yes, I suppose it is! Though in my defense, the pack isn't my idea, nor is it ambition. I'm simply being dragged into politics again by a lady." He punctuated his words with a deep, belly-quaking laugh. "Ironic, isn't it? I keep ending up in these situations and I don't know how, hahaha!" Al shot Sera a humongous grin that showed nearly every tooth in his mouth, though his black eyes shining with a warm and welcoming softened the intimidation factor quite a bit. Sera explained her plans and Alastor nodded, looking around at the two broken snares. Yes, she had indeed set herself up in a fortified position. It provoked his curiosity like nothing else.

"So I can see," he quipped back, Stygian eyes meeting her gorgeous blues again with a softer smile. "I don't mean to try, but this is quite a lot of defense for winter survival." He leaned a little closer and took a deeper sniff of Sera's distinct scent, noting no traces of the pack's musk on her any longer. "You don't have your pack scent on you anymore. Did something happen, Sera?" The smile on his face faltered as concern darkened his features. Had someone harmed his little huntress? They would answer with their screams of anguish if they had. Nobody hurt his Sera. Nobody.


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
____________________

Alastor was the only person to offer her teachings as a free-woman, and it was something she would never forget. This dark coated wolf would always hold a special place in her heart. She tilted her head as he spoke again, explaining how he had wound up in this position. “That does seem to be your theme” she agreed with dry amusement. Certainly a more muted affair in comparison to his full toothed grin. She didn’t shudder from the expression as she once might have. She might still be opposed to his touch - and anyone else's - but she trusted him all the same.

Having packed up what she could of the used snares, she started to move back to her den. Stamping her feet to loosen the chill soaking up through the earth. “Er… if i’m settling in in one spot for a season, I don’t want my past sneaking up on me. I parted ways with the pack, It didn’t feel like my place was there” she explained, coming to a stop at her hollow tree. She pushed upon the tawny cover hiding the entrance, and looked back at Alastor with a frown. “Hmm… I was going to invite you in, but there's barely room for two normal sized wolves”

"Speech"

Alastor gave an amused snicker when Sera mentioned how he was making it a theme of bedding women of power and winding up in positions of authority himself. It was quite ironic and borderline ludicrous, wasn't it? This demented, demonic agent of chaos in command of anything sounded like a bad idea, and yet he'd somehow ended up in this position twice now. Despite the smiles and laughter though, he could sense the emotions coming from Seraphina. She didn't seem genuinely happy. Something was weighing on her mind. His suspicions were confirmed when she mentioned being prepared in case her past caught up to her. Alastor's smile drooped a little when he realized she was living her daily life on edge, anticipating an attack at any moment. She had left her pack, which he felt was a good move for her wellbeing, but it also made her vulnerable.

"Well, I'm proud of you for doing what was right for you in the end," he remarked while they approached the hollowed tree she was using as a den. She went to slip inside, then glanced back at him and determined he wouldn't be able to fit inside. Undeterred, Alastor's smile returned as he strode up to the tree and held open the covering to allow her entrance, waving her in with an exaggerated bow. Once she was inside, Alastor slumped down to rest on his belly in the doorway with just his head and paws inside the tree and his entire rear half sticking out. It would be a comical sight for anyone on the outside, but the dark-furred man didn't care. He didn't want to leave Sera alone right now. She looked like she needed a friend more than anything.

"Hmm, it's cozy in here." He glanced around the cramped tree before settling his obsidian eyes on the littler woman. He felt things for her that he rarely ever felt for another wolf. Caring. Compassion. Protectiveness. "Are you really doing all right here on your own, Sera?" he asked. "Has your past been threatening you to warrant snare traps?" If her prick of a father had managed to track her down to Boreas, she would never be safe, he knew that. He would help her kill him if that were the case. She deserved her revenge and empowerment, but above all, she deserved to feel safe and happy. Finally, he asked the question that had been hanging in his mind since the moment he'd laid eyes on her. "Are you happy, Sera?"


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
____________________

She gave a sharp nod of her head in agreement. SHe hadn’t felt like she was progressing in the pack. She wasn’t entirely sure she was progressing much here, either. She was honing some skills, learning how to craft traps had kept her on her toes. Hunting to fill her belly had also been a busy endeavour. She was living on a knife's edge, and perhaps that had helped to shore up a little of her budding skills.

At Alastors prompting, she slipped into her den. Stomping snow off her paws with a shiver. Brrr, but she wasn’t fond of winter. His bow did bring a twitch of amusement to her expression. He was also careful not to overcrowd her. He knew that about her, and he respected it.

She opened her mouth to let out some sort of empty bravado, and then sighed, and closed it again. Pausing, and giving a more honest answer. “It’s certainly not what I imagined my freedom would look like. But it’s my freedom.” she snarled out the word ‘my’ possessive of this newly gained thing. “I thought I caught his scent towards the North, but I’m not sure. I don’t… I haven’t honed my fighting enough to take him on yet.” she admitted. Hard to practice when all you had to practice on was rabbits.

"Speech"

Alastor noted Seraphina's hesitation to answer his question right away, as if she'd had a canned response ready to go and then decided not to use it. That was good; it meant whatever answer he got would be more genuine and from the heart. Sera confided in him that the freedom of being a lone wolf wasn't what she had expected, but it was hers. A nod of the thick black head of the wolf in understanding. He'd lived the life of a loner for a while too, and while it had never bothered him, he never knew what he was missing from his life until he found camaraderie with Manea and the Mendaciums. "Indeed it is, and no one can take that from you," he agreed with a little grin. He was proud of her for doing what was best for her. But he couldn't help but wonder... was this what was best for her?

Sera explained how she thought she'd caught her "father's" scent toward northern Boreas, and instantly Alastor's hackles raised, fur bristling in instinctive response to the wolf that dared threaten Seraphina. She confessed that she hadn't honed her fighting skills as much as she wanted, hence all the traps. They were for her safety and to give her the advantage in a one-on-one fight. Alastor pursed his lips, chewing on his tongue while he looked around the sparse hollow she called her home. He glanced back out at the cold world, at the minefield of snares she'd laid out. She was free, but she was living in fear more than ever before. That was no freedom, being trapped by your own mind.

"Would you consider spending the winter with friends? There's safety in numbers, after all." He reached a single paw closer to her, resting it on the ground between them. "You could winter with me and my family while we establish a pack. I could bring you into it too if you desire. You know I'd protect you, teach you and train you, just like before. You wouldn't have to hide out in this tree waiting to see if you get attacked in the night." He didn't know if Sera would accept his offer or if she valued her solitude too much. It was a noncommittal proposal; she was free to leave or stay as long as she liked. Once Manea had officially established her pack, he could see about pulling some strings to get her in and somewhere where she'd never have to fear the lingering shadow of the man that had destroyed her childhood. "Come with me, Sera. Don't wait out here living in a prison of fear. Take back control. You're so much more than that." Come, Seraphina. Come be part of my family. Be mine.


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
____________________

Alastors fur bristled as the mere mention of that man's scent, and she gave a sharp nod, understanding and appreciating the sentiment. She would love to get her teeth into that wolf's scruff, even as the idea of him getting that close to her sent fear curling through her belly.

SHe gave a wry smile at his question, responding with the gesture before the full impact of what he was saying really registered. “I only have one of them” she admitted, glancing at the dark toned wolf. She twitched. A barely imperceptible movement when he moved his paw closer, but he didn’t touch her with it, just resting it between them. A gesture to go with his words. She swallowed a sudden lump in her throat, moving her eyes from the paw, and back up to him again. That giant head taking up the entrance of her den.

”I…” she swallowed, hating the way her eyes misted. Did he know what his question meant to her? Did he truly understand? No one had offered out their paw to her like this before. This offer of safety, of training. A safe place to become a wolf that could defeat her father. “I don’t know what to say...” she said lamely after a moment, overwhelmed.


"Speech"

The emotion in Seraphina's expression was palpable in the cramped space of the hollow tree. Even if he was incapable of feeling them himself any longer, Alastor knew what she was feeling, knew the strength of those emotions. She balked, hesitated, eyes bleary with growing pools of liquid crystals as she stammered and struggled to find the words to say. Alastor simply waited, waited and smiled while she worked her way through her thoughts and feelings. He didn't reach any closer to her—he knew how much close physical contact made her skittish—but left his paw where it was. After a moment, Sera admitted she didn't know what to say, and a deep rumbling chuckle rose in Alastor's chest.

"So say yes," he remarked with a crooked, toothy grin. "What have you got to lose?" Alastor extended the gesture of acceptance and welcome further when he turned his paw over, reaching out to her with soft paw pads turned up to her. He wanted her to take his paw, to step out of the shadow of fear and learn to not only survive, but to thrive in the wake of the pain and the terror and the sorrow. He had done it; he could show her how to do it too.

"You don't have to stay permanently if it's not your speed, but I'd feel better knowing you had a giant dire wolf watching over you so you weren't alone, at least until you were confident you could kill him on sight. Although the offer of a permanent home is always on the table." He gave her a wink, still waiting with bated breath to see if she'd accept his offer or refuse him.


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
____________________

He chuckled gently, and she gave him a wry glance back. Hoping fruitlessly that he wouldn’t notice how her eyes swam with unshed tears. Yes. she said, because what else could she possibly say to that. Yes, she wanted what he was offering her. Wanted everything about it. To be taken away from this place as through Prince Charmings could possibly exist in this world.

His paw lay between them, and that ask was much bigger than the first. She sucked in a breath and her brow furrowed with determined lines. She grabbed ot her paw and slammed it down to his before she could possibly chicken out. Her paw touched his, and her heart slammed against her chest as she reacted to the contact, but she held on anyway. Gripping her paw about his. “Look at you, saving lost damsels” she whispered a little breathlessly.


"Speech"

For the briefest of moments, Alastor wondered if he might be pushing her too hard, or if she might decline his offer. He didn't want her to. He wanted to take the chance to help her grow, just like he did a year ago during the long winter. He wanted to show her the potential she had within her, to watch her overcome the struggles and restraints of her past and become the powerful, confident independent woman he knew she could be. They could stalk through the forests together on hunts, spar and practice the art of fighting with one another. He would take her under his wing, protect her and love her, give her everything he could offer. All she had to do was say yes.

That was the exact word to leave Sera's lips a moment later. Yes. She agreed, and Alastor beamed, black eyes lighting up with a light usually devoid of those obsidian gems. He watched her swallow a deep breath, then with a look of concentrated determination, she brought her paw down hard onto his until their paw pads smacked audibly together. He expected a moment of contact and then retreat, but much to his amazement Sera didn't pull back. He glanced down at where her paw was gripping his, and he left his paw relaxed, not wanting to freak her out by squeezing or capturing her daintier foot in his massive one. This alone was a monumental step in the right direction for her.

Alastor laughed at her comment about him saving a lost damsel, tickled by the notion that he could ever be the hero in anyone's stories. "And look at you, grabbing the bull by the horns." Several moments passed between them like that, Alastor simply allowing Seraphina to hold his paw and surmount the shock she seemed to be in from touching him. Her paw was warm against his, and as much as he wanted to scoop her up in a tight embrace, he would take matters slowly. Maybe one day she would open up to physical affection—or maybe not, and that was fine as well. "All right, Sera, let's get you to your new home!" he said after some time had passed, slowly shuffling his way backwards out of the tree so he could stand up properly again. "Any things you have, gather them up. I can carry some things as well, if you need a paw."


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
____________________

She held his paw for a moment, noticing the way his own eyes tracked to their paws and the prolonged contact. He didn;t move, simply held himself there, still and careful. Always considerate of her. She would never forget this, never forget that when she was alone in this world with nothing and no one, he had been there. Twice, he had found her, and each time had been monumental, changing.

She released his paw, letting out a short, pleased sigh. Look at that, she touched his paw and the world hadn’t exploded. She let herself find a small smile for that. “You, my bullish friend, have horns in weird place” she commented as she took one last look at the den, and grabbed one of her bedding coats. Tossing it over her shoulders for warmth and a reminder of what she could achieve, she turned around and left that den without a backwards glance.

“If you want any of the coats for your budding pack, grab what you want, but I have no sentiment over any of it.” she declared. “And… thank you, Alastor. Your…” she shook her head, trying to find the right words. “You're someone unique in this world.”


"Speech"

Seraphina continued to impress him by now retreating as soon as she could from him. It would have been just as easy for her to pull her paw back, pretend nothing had happened, but the smaller lady stayed her course, steeled herself against the nerves he knew must have been raging in the more primal part of her brain. She had learned a lot of self-control in the time since he'd last seen her, he realized. The smile that Alastor wore was a much more genuine one than he usually did.

Alastor never would have called himself a support system for anyone until he met Seraphina, and even that hadn't been intentional. Something about the younger, smaller wolf appealed to him, some part of his brain or heart that had gone untouched for most of his life. Maybe it was the way he related to her, empathized from his own traumatic upbringing. Misery loves company, after all...

Sera rose and grabbed a single fur to drape over herself as shielding against the frigid air, then joined him outside without a parting glance to any of the miscellaneous supplies and trinkets she'd gathered on her own. She offered to let him take any of the furs, and Alastor was happy to oblige, gathering a couple of choice pelts so he could help make her a more comfortable and spacious bedding when they arrived back home. Sera's words of thanks caught Alastor by surprise. No one had ever thanked him before. It wasn't a gesture he knew how to process. A crooked smile that showed only the faintest glimpse of teeth rose on his lips, strangely soft and nonthreatening for a wolf of his size and demeanor.

"Being unique is not always a good thing in this world, my darling Seraphina. But in this case, thank you for the compliment." He motioned with a nod for Sera to follow him, starting his path back along the Rio Grande bound for the northeast and for home. "So, before I end up upside-down again or impaled by spikes, where exactly did you lay these traps of yours?" he asked with an amused snicker.


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
____________________

She hid her amusement as she waited by the edge of her small camp. Letting her big friend grab his choice of whatever he pleased. Anything else would be free for the picking of scavengers, after all. She ignored the urge to give a fond pat to the tree that had sheltered her. She wasn't sentimental about this place, even if it was the first camp she had ever built. A slice of freedom that was wholly hers.

When Alastor caught back up to her, and made his comment on uniqueness, she shook her head in silent amusement. Thinking of course about her own strange quirks. Aspects of herself she would rather live without. "My pleasure" was all she said. He picked a path and started down it... and then ruined her fun. She let out a soft chuckle. "I suppose it would be bad manners to let you get trapped a second time..." She mused, before moving in front of him. "We are heading Northeast?" She clarified as she let the way out of her little pocket of safety. Hiding a dark chuckle at the thought of her father following her path here. Of getting trapped for hours in one of her little traps with no one to head his cry. Maybe she wasn't exactly a good person... after all, she made no move to disassemble any of the dangers before leaving them in the dust.