The forest was thick and dense, its branches bridging across from one tree to the next. Naturally, Maki made the best of it all, her imagination whirling into overdrive as she seemingly had the whole woods to herself. She fancied stories about heroes at the moment, the sort who roamed the land, with no real home to claim as their own. With nothing but the wind at their back and bravery in their heart. This was the perfect setting for such a story, clambering along the branches had her heart racing along to the beat of adventure, she could easily imagine swaying bridges beneath her paws, the hero so valiantly trying to pull up their unfortunate beloved who was barely clinging on for dear life.

She shuddered, her heart fluttering as she imagined the panic and concern the hero must feel. Only for their grip to slip again! And then their love was plummeting, falling and falling- and Maki let out a heart-wrenching "NOOOOOOOOO!!!" As though her very own heart was breaking.

Even though she knew these strangers were allowed here, at least for a little while, Tethys felt odd with them hanging around. She wasn't really a big fan of things changing - no, she'd much rather things stay exactly the same - but she was getting old enough that she knew things didn't stay the same forever. She and her siblings were growing up, and soon enough they'd be yearlings. Though she wasn't all that different from when she was younger, she did know she felt increasingly different than most wolves, even her siblings sometimes, and fitting in anywhere felt... difficult.

Sensing a stranger nearby, she watched the girl - who looked to be about half her age, still closer to pup than adult - quietly. Tethys wasn't really sure what she was doing and studying her for a long while, hidden around the base of a particularly large tree, didn't give her much insight. It seemed like she was imagining something, but then she sounded sad.. and for no reason at all? Tethys furrowed her dark brow as she finally decided to emerge, curiosity outweighing her desire to continue studying the girl. "Are you sad? You sound sad," she pointed out. Relating to others was difficult for her unless she had very clear indicators, but without a reason for her sadness the galaxy-marked girl felt even more confused.

Maki hadn't realised she had company. Her ears perked as she jolted a little, like she'd gotten a static electric shock, and perked her ears as she peered down at the newcomer. Well, maybe not that, from a wiggle of her nose she could tell she was from the Armada. That this was her neck of the woods, that the Gazers were just lucky to know and love so many good people. Her question made Maki jitter again once more, remembering her previous line of thought, oh the tragedy, the heartache!!

She nodded so enthusiastically it felt like her eyes rattled around in her head a little, two mismatched marbles with not much going on behind them. Like Father, like daughter.

"Mmm! See see, Maggie just fell to her death from this bridge." She stomped a little, only to realise she was supposed to be on a bridge then spread her gait a little, so that the bridge wouldn't wobble under paw. "At the bottom there's pointy rocks and bones from where other heroes fell too. It's very dangerous down there. You should come up, it's safe here. A little, just watch out for a strong gust of wind!"

Ever-curious, Tethys was quiet as Maki confirmed that she was sad and explained what about. Maggie had fallen from a bridge. Who was Maggie? There was no bridge here either, just a vast forest full of trees that reached high into the sky. She supposed some of the branches overlapped in a way that sort of resembled a bridge, but... what? Her expression was quizzical as she tried to make sense of it all.

Even though it didn't make a lot of sense, Tethys had an overwhelming urge to relate to this younger girl. Following along seemed like the easiest thing to do, so she finally nodded and carefully moved to stand by her, trying to mimic her stance. "Like this? We'll be safe here?" It was a game, she deduced finally. Something imaginative. Something she didn't really get, but she could try. "What's your name, anyway? I'm Tethys Fatalis." Making a good impression was a good idea even if her head was spinning from trying to catch up - and keep up.

"Mm hm!" Maki confirmed with a pleased hum, grateful that the colourful newcomer was indeed safe and had a good sense of balance.  "M'Maki!" She replied without much thought, eager to just speak and be heard. But then her mismatched eyes widened, ears flicking forward as she dwelled on the stranger's name, how pretty it was. "Oh oh, you have such a name!" Indeed, most people had such names, very helpful and descriptive Maki. "I mean, it's all Goddessy and you look like one too. Like a sunset. Is that who you are? The Lady of Twilight?" Maki whipped around, nearly losing her balance in the process.

It all made sense now! But why was she being visited by a Goddess of all people?