With time comes change

The worry that crossed Artorias' face reminded her that she should really lead her announcement or at least include that her mother was fine. She chuckled softly and nodded when he asked about the wellbeing of her parents, replying, "Yes, they're both well and very much looking forward to their retirement," she assured him. After she had explained herself and what had brought her here in full, Artorias unexpectedly motioned her to follow, inviting her to walk with him to avoid the awkwardness of simply sitting at the border for their discussion. If nothing else it helped to break the formality she felt in her efforts to appear prepared and competent as a new leader and she gave him a slightly grateful smile as she nodded and rose to her paws to follow.

Falling into step beside the Aegis, she began to walk around the perimeter of the plains with him, enjoying the temperate weather of Auster. While she did love the mountains that she had spent the majority of her life in at this point, she did see why her parents tended to take their vacations on the southern continent. Her ebony gaze turned to Artorias as he began to give her his assurances that the wolves of The Hallows treated their friends and allies like family and that the change in leadership for Elysium wouldn't change the relationship between their two packs. That at least was a relief and as he joked about the possibility that she might become a tyrant–and assured her that it was in fact a joke–she giggled softly and offered him a grin in return. "Well, I'm certainly grateful for the continued friendship between our packs. And I do promise not to be come a power-hungry tyrant," she joked in return. While she was undoubtedly more reserved and serious than her mother, she did enjoy the lightness that Artorias offered and hoped she could take on some of that easiness in her conversations as she grew more comfortable with this sort of thing.

Still, there were some more points she wanted to make sure she covered while she was here. It was a bit of a journey to visit The Hallows so it was best to check off all of the boxes while she had the chance. "Something I am going to be focusing on going forward is building the relationships between Elysium and our allies and with those relationships building up our trade of goods and learning," she explained, sharing a bit of what she had already shared with Kotori earlier in her journey. "I've heard a lot about the skill your warriors possess and the impressive knowledge of your healers. If you don't mind, I would love to bring some of our less seasoned warriors to learn from yours. I can arrange a trip to Auster so we can host the training here. And while we don't have very many healers, my youngest sister is certainly aspiring to be so I know she would love the chance to learn as well."

"Avacyn Medacium"