i'm afraid of the monsters inside my closet

Things had gone fairly quiet within the Armada. Both litters of pups were relatively healthy, all of them strong. Even the handful that had worried Halo at birth seemed to be doing well. Winter had quietly slipped through her fingers, giving way to a verdant spring. She'd brought some supplies over to Valta, and she'd gotten most of the seeds from last year's harvest into the ground. What was there to do now? Halo didn't do particularly well, left to her own thoughts and devices. Mortis had gone back to his pack. Lia had slipped away from the Hallows. Basilisk was on assignment in Ashen. Hazel was training, day in and day out, to advance in rank. All of the pups were training in other professions. Where did that leave Halo?

Alone.

She'd never much minded it before, especially as busy as she'd been. But on days like today, when all of her chores were handled and even the market was quiet, she couldn't help but let the grey creep in around the edges. It wasn't like everyone was even busy. They were living their lives, and she wouldn't take that from them. Still, the pale creature felt an awful lot like a ghost in her own home. Maybe that was why she slipped out, away from the Woods and the Col. Though she wandered with a purpose, looking for new seedlings to transplant into her garden, it was more than that. Halo needed to get away for a little bit.

Her footsteps against the soft earth were light, gaze trained for the most part on the ground. Mr. Raccoon wandered along loosely by her side, taking interest in the odd bush or plant. The pair moved in companionable silence-- he'd never learned to talk, something Halo wouldn't push or fault him for. Spotting some yellow flowers among the dense meadow flowers, she stopped to investigate further. Agrimony, perfect. With gentle paws she began to rummage and dig at the undergrowth, attempting to free some of the plant with its root still intact.

"Halo"