ohhhhh lover boy!

He'd camped for the night near the edge of Hallows territory. The predators had been acting more out of pocket than usual lately, and it just seemed... safer. Totally, Tate was doing it for the sake of safety and certainly not in hopes he'd be able to catch Bramble in the morning. It had been a late night for him, out trying to sort out exactly what was wrong. The bear that had come after him, and then harmed Bramble... yeah, that was still weighing pretty heavily on Tate's mind. Something about it wasn't sitting quite right with him. He'd even gone back to check out the carcass of the bear after. While it looked pretty normal, it still troubled him. Well, as much as anything ever troubled the boy. Though he couldn't exactly explain why, he'd wrenched all four of the creature's canine teeth free.

Waking up to Bramble had been equal parts lovely and embarrassing. With siblings like his, if you weren't a heavy sleeper then you wouldn't get any rest. That was even more true on the nights he spent hanging around home-- his younger siblings were even more rowdy, if that was even possible. Walking mom and the kids home from the North had been an interesting few nights of camping, to say the least. Still, Tate was getting better at doing all of that walking. The last of the puppy fat had melted from the boy, leaving him dense and muscular. He'd always been a big boy, but now? Well, it was clear just how big he was going to be.

But yeah, heavy sleeper that he was, it had taken some doing for Bramble to shake him awake. He'd been passed out, using Kaiju as a pillow, drooling on his companion. Fur a mess around his face, mud matted into the longer fur around his chest and haunches. Late nights do be like that sometimes, after all. She'd managed to wake him, to ask if he'd meet her at the Shimmering Shore for dinner. Of course, he sleepily obliged. Upon waking for the second time that morning, far closer to noon than Tate would have admitted, he was worried that it had all been a dream. Had he dreamt that she'd come to him, that she'd boldly asked him to meet her for dinner?

Hopefully, Bramble was real. Well, he knows she's real, but-- yeah. Was he... nervous? Fuck, what was up with him? Still, Kaiju confirmed that the princess had been real, had asked him to meet her. His companion had the audacity to sass Tate as he set about actually putting effort in to get ready. While the boy made some comment about how Hattori would want him to be respectful enough to be clean and tidy to meet another pack's princess, they both knew the real reason. A good idea came to the boy as he bathed, and with just enough time to complete the job well, the young man was able to whip up a little surprise for Bramble.

Arriving at the Shore, it took Tate only a few moments to pinpoint her location. Tate unloaded two small parcels from his traveling things. The first is a soft deerskin pouch, well-loved, patched with all manner of bits and pieces that he'd come across in his travels. Pieces of cloth scavenged from Kiriko's scrap pile, from t-shirts that he'd stolen from his trips to the Isle. Within it, dice that he'd made and dice that he'd scavenged, a tattered deck of cards, and a smaller silk pouch with his favorite recreational herbs. The second, a carefully folded strip of birch bark containing his gift for Bramble. He released Kaiju, watching the dog slip into the treeline before approaching.

"Was almost worried I dreamed ya up this morning," he admitted with a brassy grin. Tate spoke as he approached, his eyes going wide at the picnic laid out before them. It was more food, more variety than he'd seen in weeks. His mouth near watering at the sight of it, tail giving a wag. "By th'look of it, maybe I still am."

Long steps close the gap between them, and Tate presents her with the small parcel. Inside it, she'd find a necklace of leather cord, with two of the bear's canine teeth wrapped carefully in silver wire hanging as a pendant. It's in the same style that he wears, with the remaining two bear teeth now hanging beside a caged die. "How're you feeling?" The question was genuine, expression gentle. Tate couldn't admit how scared he'd been that night. How worried. Words he couldn't say out loud, but there's real concern on his face now, mixed with how happy he was to see her.