Pesto couldn't believe she'd lost her first fight in the raid. The possibility had not even crossed her mind and perhaps while she might have been able to reason away losing a fight past her first due to exhaustion or injury, she'd never considered that she'd be a one-and-done type of girl. It was disheartening, though it did not change her plans to leave. If anything her loss had sped her plans up, the shame too much to stand.

She left Hari's goodbye for last, it was by far the most difficult. Her mother she'd already had her talk with before she'd turned a year, she knew that the Empress had given her blessing and would welcome her back if ever she needed it. Hari however, Pesto wasn't sure how he'd take it. At first she thought he might be proud - after all, she did beat him in their last spar - but what if her loss in the raid made him believe she wasn't ready? He was so high ranked, could he force her to stay?

She took in a deep breath and blew it out her nose, swallowed, and then tipped her head back to call for her mentor and uncle.

Harbringr rinsed the mud from his paws and trotted back toward where Ari was packing the clay for his new kiln. They'd been working all morning to get it finished but they were just about there. The macaque kept working in the straw of the outer covering while Harbringr sat down to take a needed rest. He still hadn't recovered over his embarrassment at losing his first fight in his first raid in these new lands. Granted it had been against Zee who had proven herself to be a particularly skilled fighter.

Still, the more the days went on the more he was questioning whether daimyo or even samurai was his true calling. Anymore he'd taken more to crafting and navigating. His ears perked up at the sound of Pesto. Grinning he got to his feet and trotted to the shrine to answer her call. "Hello Pesto, what do you need?"

Pestilence was always happy to see her uncle, always infected by his carefree smile. This time however it only made it harder, and while the yearling did her best to return his grin it did not quite reach her eyes. Her breath bellowed out in a steadying exhale, and she tore her eyes off his face to address her feet instead shamefully. "I came to tell you I'm leaving." She admitted quickly, wanting to get it over and done with. "I couldn't have gotten this far without you, but I can't stay here anymore." Her reasoning went unsaid, but Hari had always known how she felt about her religious siblings. Her recent battle with Toxicity only fueled her decision, there'd never be a place for her here as long as Abraxas' presence remained. "I'm going to Fireside with my friend. Have you heard of them?" Her head lifted as she questioned him, looking at her uncle hopefully in case he had any extra knowledge or advice.

Harbringr's head cocked slightly to the side as he noticed Pestilence's strange smile. Oh goodness, what had happened now? His first thought was that she'd gone and gotten in trouble again. He didn't keep tabs on what was going on with all the Empress' children all the time but he had heard that Pesto liked to fight with her siblings and sneak out of the borders.

"I came to tell you I'm leaving."

Harbringr blinked slowly as her words started to sink in, his smile fading into a frown. Leaving? She stated she couldn't stay there any more and he had the distinct feeling it had to do with Archon and his stupid 'religion'. Hari was swiftly regretting not taking matters into his own paws and neutering the bastard the moment he learned that the man had had the audacity to lay claim to his brother.

Harbringr moved forward and reached out to nuzzle Pesto's left cheek. "I understand, you will be sorely missed. I only ask that you pay me a visit now and then."

At the mention of Fireside he shook his head. "I haven't. I did hear that you made a friend outside the pack but I can't say I know much about Fireside. What do you plan to do there?" He hoped this friend was a good and loyal one. Harbringr would hate to have to rip him limb from limb if he proved otherwise.

Her uncle's expression faded into a frown and Pestilence sighed, her ears flattening. While she desperately felt the need to escape Ashen, there were still a few that she hated to leave. Unfortunately Harbringr ranked high on her list of who she never wanted to disappoint. She leaned into his nuzzle, breathing in his familiar comforting scent and trying to keep her emotions contained. Thankfully he understood her reasoning, so she'd not need to elaborate on her alienation here and risk breaking down.

He asked what she planned to do there and Pesto grimaced, the painful clenching in her chest returning. "I do have a friend there, he's awesome his name is Alarr. And well, I just planned on living there with him..." She admitted quietly, her words trailing off. Never had Uncle Hari been untrustworthy, Pesto had always felt she could come to him but still she hesitated to continue. "At least, until I talked to Mom." The yearling was torn, desperately wanting a place she could feel accepted but unwilling to leave her loyalty to the Klein's behind. Her mother's words had confused her and she didn't know what she was supposed to do. "She's under the impression that I'm leaving so that I can take over Fireside for the Empire one day. And I don't want to, Uncle."