I'd rather be dead than live a lie
BURN THE WHITE FLAG!

Natha worked her way south to the edge of the Red Forest. It was a forest with massive ancient trees and when they arrived she turned to face Lyulf with a grin. "How are these for ancient trees? I wonder if they're a similar species to the ones in the Submerged Woods." She stretched her front limbs up the nearest tree and scratched lightly to sharpen her claws. The great thing about such large trees is when they had holes and hollows she could make herself a nice den. She was thinking of finding a den on the border between the Red Forest and the Mile-High Woods. Then she could be close to her favorite territories. Her smile fell for a moment. She'd be sad to see Lyulf go. It had been fun but it would ultimately have to come to an end at some point. She was expecting Shorty and the gang to roll in before winter and a wolf would not be accepted into the group.

But that was the future. They could deal with that later. She grinned again and pranced deeper into the forest, anxious to see what Lyulf thought of this territory.

The walk towards the woods had been a sightly quiet one, but not in an uncomfortable way. Lyulf just felt himself around the cat, and lapsing into a quiet stroll was no stranger for him. It wasn't hard to see where they were headed though, soon enough he could see the massive trees on the horizon, and these ones were on land! His pace picked up as he excitedly made his ways towards the Redwood trees, his face lighting up again as he brushed against the first trunk he came into contact with. These had to be the biggest trees that he had seen, at least in the prospect of being able to see all of the tree and not just a part of it. "They are huge! I feel like you could wander in these woods for hours, just looking at all the trees around here," He said softly, cranking his neck upwards to squint towards the canopy above. It was like an oasis in the otherwise barren land of the north, he was sure that it would be much easier to find prey in this area as well, no matter the season. "It would be a fine place to make home, I'd think," Lyulf said, nodding his head with conviction. Out of all the places that they had explored, this one seemed to be the best. There was no arguing it, that was for sure. He watched as Natha stretched upwards, raking her claws against the bark of the trees. He smiled softly, curling around one of the massive trunks before appearing on her other side. She seemed eager and excited, dancing further into the forest in front of him. Her attitude was contagious, a burst of laughter leaving his mouth as he took off after her, stretching out his limbs to explore further. "I think you'd be very happy here, Natha!" He tossed over his shoulder, running around the base of another tree with a soft chuckle.

I'd rather be dead than live a lie
BURN THE WHITE FLAG!

Natha wound her way around a smaller redwood that rested a few feet away from a much larger one. She wondered if it might be the mother tree of some of these smaller saplings. "They're the biggest trees I've ever seen in my life and there's one with enough of a hollow that you could make a den in it. Though… it was struck by lightning so the top part is gone but I suppose one wouldn't really expect to live in a living tree." She'd been thinking about what Tamsyn said and she figured it might be possible to repair and clean up the tree with clay and sediment. She was already thinking about how she would set up the place so that it would feel more like home.

She smiled sincerely at Lyulf. "Thanks. Do you want to see that hollow? C'mon I'll show you." She took off in the direction of the hollow and it didn't take too long to find it. Where once a great tree had stood only the bottom quarter or so stood erect. The rest lay awkwardly held up by its neighbors. The tree was burnt but seemed sturdy enough. In the bottom quarter a few feet up was the hollow. Natha hopped inside and stood aside to give Lyulf room. "Is there a certain kind of territory you'd like to live in?"

Despite the fact that he was sad to part ways with the lynx, it was hard to not pick up on her enthusiasm of this place. The trees really were massive, and he found himself smiling as she described the den that she had found for herself. He had to admit, it was quite cute, picturing her curled up in the base of a hollow tree. "Maybe you can gather some lichen and climb up to patch the top of the tree, that way you won't get wet if it snows or rains," he suggested softly, wrapping around another massive redwood. He was sure that the canopy above kept the forest a touch warmer than the outside, away from the more exposed elements, but the north was unpredictable at best. It was always best to prepare for the worst, but he was sure that Natha knew that. She offered then to show him, and he nodded his head in earnest. He liked the idea of knowing where she would be, and not in a creepy stalker way. He was the first friend that he had made in a long while, and it gave him comfort that he would know where to check if he ever got worried about her. He was shocked when they made it to the hollow, his bottom jaw dropping in surprise. He knew that the trees were big, but seeing the inside of one was more incredible than he could have thought. There was room not only for the two of them inside, but perhaps even two more wolves. He leapt inside after the cat made him room, tossing her a grin as he looked around. "Okay maybe more than just lichen will be needed..." he said teasingly, a small laugh following it. Seeing the large trees from the outside was different, being literally inside one made him realize just how massive these giants were. Lyulf turned back to look at Natha as she spoke again, asking him if there was a certain place he wanted to live. His ears pulled back against his skull slightly at the question, his emerald eyes peeking back outside and into the forest beyond. "I'm not sure, really... I think part of me is looking for a replacement of home, even though I know that's not possible," Lyulf was usually very closed off about his own life, but he felt safe with Natha, a comfort he only had had with his family before. "I'm not quite sure I will ever just settle in one place. I love the North and the cold, my thick coat wouldn't survive in the warmer climates. I'd still like to explore them, when winter hits I might. But otherwise? I just... I just don't know..." His voice had taken on a more far away note, a certain somberness to it. Ly blinked rapidly, a hint of a smile touching his lips as he turned back towards Natha. "This place is truly incredible though, you know."

I'd rather be dead than live a lie
BURN THE WHITE FLAG!

"That's a good idea!" She'd be willing to give it a shot when it started to snow. She could handle snow much better than she could handle rain. Her coat was insulated well enough that the snow didn't readily melt on her coat. She trotted through the redwood forest until she arrived at the hollow. Bounding in she peaked her head out and grinned, rubbing the side of her face against the opening of the hollow.

"Well, you wouldn't have to settle down in one place. You could stay a loner and maybe find some other like-minded loners. I wonder if there's some sort of nomadic pack here in Boreas." It wouldn't surprise her if there was but since they were likely to always be on the move it would make it difficult to track down but Lyulf could always try asking around.

At Natha's words, he hummed softly. It was an idea, but his nose wrinkled as he thought of being around too many other wolves. "I find it hard to trust others, which is why I think I move around often," He said softly, unsure as to why it was so easy to speak of his feelings with this cat. Usually he was quite closed off, but he felt more like himself around her. It brought him a sense of peace, something that he was afraid to lose. He shuffled his weight across his paws, a small sigh blowing out of his parted jaws as he looked up at the burnt log that they rested in. "I like the idea of having a home again, but I'm not sure that I know what that is anymore..." After a moment of silence, he let out a halfhearted chuckle, shaking himself to look out at the tall standing trees outside. "Sorry, didn't mean to get all mushy on you. I've just really been enjoying this time with you, it seems," he said, leaning over to playfully bump his shoulder against her own, if she allowed it. He did find comfort in the fact that he knew where her home was now, having a feeling that he might linger nearby for some time. It would be strange to go out there on his own again, after seeing a lot of the Northern lands with her at his side. "I want to try to explore all the lands up here in the North, maybe I'll find what I'm looking for here," There was a note of hopefulness in his voice, really and truly hoping that he could find somewhere that he belonged. It might take some time, but he was willing to wait. Green eyes looked up at the sky again, frowning as he saw that the sun was making it decent once again. The day was about to come to an end, making him let out another sigh. He knew that they needed to part ways soon, but he was reluctant to let go. His gaze found Natha, a small smile painting his face again. "Thank you for these past few days, I've really been enjoying it," It sounded like a goodbye, enough to pull his ears back against his head for a moment. Whoever said that parting was such sweet sorrow was correct, this was the most at ease he had felt since leaving his mountainous home. It wasn't the last time that he was going to see her, he hoped, but there was that fear in the back of his mind. After all, it had been quite some time since he had seen any of his family. He had to cling to that sliver of hope though, and that she would feel the same way.