Reaching out, with love from mom

Dorian packed the last of the herbs he felt that he could fit into his bag without damaging the herbs he was able to find and flipped the flap of the bag back over the opening to keep them contained with a sigh. The chilly weather of winter had made his herb gathering trips more difficult and less bountiful than he had grown accustomed to with Auster's usually warmer weather. Logically, he knew that the weather would change and it would warm up again come the spring, but the dreariness of it all wasn't helping his already bleak mood. It felt more and more like he was simply going through the motions without a direction. He knew that they would always need herbs, that their supplies should always be stocked, and that he had to continue on with his training, but without his father to guide all of those things he felt a bit like a ship without a rudder. Turning back toward the pack lands from the more southern reaches of Auster, he did his best not to think too deeply about anything and focused instead on just getting home.

Dorian was just crossing back over the border from the Grapevine Cathedral and making his way over Cattail Creek when his mother called for him, pulling his attention away from his path for a moment to listen. His immediate reaction was to wonder if something was wrong, if someone was hurt, but after a beat he realized that her tone didn't make it seem like that was the case. He sighed again and gave himself a shake to get rid of the momentary rush of adrenaline and worry before he turned his path to head toward where the call had come from. It took a little bit to make his way around the territory to where she was waiting, but as he approached he gave her a little smile. "Is everything alright?" he questioned, still not quite able to shake the feeling that something was always going wrong.

"Dorian Kedieo"