flowers where your face should be

She pictured a dimly light night, moon half full, padding through a maze made of stone. Theo imagined there would be moss there. Wasn't Auster a bit warmer? Tepid, summertime weather. Thick moss underpaw then, hardly making a sound as she wove in and around towering, cold stone columns. No warm breath turning to fog. No bone-chilling winters. But also... no family. No Rhyme. No tumbling, chubby little nieces and nephews to take care of. The mystique of Auster - and of Thalia - had her spellbound, but there would always be something that drew her back home. Perhaps it was selfish of her to "keep" her here, but in the same breath she knew that Thalia would never allow herself to be kept. Everything between them was a careful dance. It struck her as incredibly intricate and beautiful even more so because it was unchoreographed. They simply found themselves here. Together.

"I'd imagine Brandr is already on it. He knows these lands far better than I do. But perhaps we can run our own reconnaissance mission... maybe venture north a bit. See if we can see any hints of change." Theo sighed and peered towards the source of the frigid winds. They wrapped around the base of and soared down the slopes of the mountain relentlessly. All of nature was crying out for release from the cold. She imagined the plants, buried beneath the snow, also somehow bewildered. "Would you be open to staying? A bit longer," she corrected herself quickly, even though she wished that she could home to Thalia curled up in her den day after day, season after season. "It might be unsafe to travel extensively in these conditions anyway. Until we survey exactly what we might be dealing with." She spoke haltingly, aware of how she sounded like she was making excuses even as they came so easily to her lips. Anything to get her to stay a while longer.