The Sparse Pines

Briar's smart ass quip back at him about the forest never changing earned her a wry sideways smirk from her husband, Artorias shooting her a look that screamed "I'm so going to get you back for that". "All right, wise guy," he remarked with heavy sarcasm in his voice, leaning in closer with his strides to give her a playful bump with his shoulder. Despite the coolness of the spring season in the north, Artorias did notice the budding shoots of fresh grasses and tundra flowers beginning to pop up around the pine forest though, indicating that perhaps the summer months would be more temperate than what they were experiencing now—at least enough to grow new vegetation. He breathed in deep the rich, sharp scent of the various pine trees around them. Compared to the Antiox, this land made much more sense to him for a pack to want to hold onto.

Artorias veered their path through the pine trees, watching the way the murky sunlight overhead filtered in through the openings in the tall trees. It was so quiet around them, the northern territories of Boreas seeming to be the most sparsely populated and isolated. Perhaps that was what had driven Sirius to decide to move the Armada northward? Was southern Boreas getting too crowded with all the shifting packs and activity? It would make sense from a safety standpoint. Turning back to his mate, Artorias smiled at Briar and asked, "So which direction would you like to head in now, Mrs. Carpathius? Or would you like to start heading back towards home so we can work on getting you warmed up again?" He punctuated his last offer with a suggestive wiggle of his brows and a charming grin, his bushy tail flicking out to playfully smack against her braided tail.

"Artorias Carpathius"