This place was.. uncomfortably familiar for him. He'd felt defensive upon initially realizing that the pack was changing - he'd never been a fan of change of any kind, not really, and having to move his young children was rather distressing for him. The journey hadn't been a difficult one at all. In fact, it'd been enjoyable to travel with the children, and let them see more of the world than they'd ever seen.. and likely ever would see for quite some time, if he had anything to do with it. This place, though.. was less than ideal. He hadn't known the name of it, and he was taken by surprise as they first started to explore the flat terrain here, so far from where he had started his family in the north. This, he quickly remembered, was the same place he'd come after he found his parents after they'd died. Being here again felt strange. The part of him that he'd tucked away, that he'd thought he had left behind, was resurfacing. The grief and the torment that he'd felt that day felt closer than it ever had, though he knew he had no reason to feel anything but elated. He had a beautiful family - his children were perfect and amazed him every day, and his mate was far too good for him and to him. He knew feeling so awful here wasn't reasonable, and knew he should've been over it by now. It wasn't something he wanted to burden Esarosa with, so he trudged on as usual as they got used to their new home. Today, though, he found himself on his own. He wandered through the plains, grateful for the cloudy day, the somber mood matching his own. He wore the faintest hint of a scowl, without meaning to, as he moved quietly through the terrain, crimson gaze fixed on little more than his two paws.

set in The Starlit Plains

Gryphon moved over the flat plain in a slow lope, his green eyes taking in the grassy land around him. It felt so strange to be back living in such a wide-open land. Last time had been in Imperium, and even then his family had lived in the orchard rather than one of the more open territories they claimed. He'd needed to adjust his hunting style entirely without the cover of trees and brush to move through, not to mention the strange prey animals to learn. He didn't feel entirely comfortable in his role here, and he was uncharacteristically anxious. It made him wish to just be Esa's apprentice again, and let her make the hunting decisions for him. But no - he was an adult, and a full hunter. It was his responsibility now, especially with her taking care of children. It must be hard for her, to be cooped up in a den and not able to go out hunting for herself. He briefly latched onto the idea of catching one of the smaller prey animals for her, but he reluctantly dismissed the idea. She had a mate, one who was also a hunter, probably a more capable one than he was, and probably also wouldn't appreciate other men bringing his mate gifts.

Gryphon blinked in surprise, and then a weird surge of guilt, when he realized that Esa's mate was right there, right within eyesight. Why in the world would he feel guilty? He had just been considering hunting for Esa, not anything... inappropriate... or anything. His pawsteps faltered a moment in confusion and embarrassment, then brought him to a stiff halt in front of the other, smaller male. He stood a beat in awkward silence before offering a stiffly polite greeting that he hoped wouldn't just betray his confusion. "Uhm - hi, Steel. Are you, uh, hunting for Esa -aaarosa? And the kids?" He winced internally as he stammeringly corrected his former mentor's name from nickname to a more formal and therefore more appropriate - right? - full name. He should have just left it at hi, but he couldn't help the question that had tumbled from his muzzle in the wake of his thoughts earlier. What the hell was wrong with him?

The memories that this place brought back to him were hard to handle. He'd been at his lowest point here - this was the first place he'd been when he realized how utterly alone he was. He'd been young then, little more than a yearling, when he'd lost both of his parents. Briefly he recalled the boy that had approached him, to see if he was alright, and how harshly he had responded to his thoughtful sentiments. He shook his head as he moved, remembering and hating every painful moment of it. Steel was so deeply engrossed in his thoughts that he hardly even heard the sound of someone approaching. He felt like someone had grabbed him, suddenly holding him in place as he stopped suddenly to face whoever had spoken, glued to the earth. His head tilted, finding the stranger quickly nearby. He wasn't exactly a stranger, but to say Steel knew him by anything other than his face would be a lie. He'd never been known to pay much attention to that sort of thing, not unless he needed to. His world revolved around his mate and children - and until this moment, he'd hardly thought about anything but them. It took him a moment to register what Gryphon had said. He knew his name, and Steel felt the nagging feeling of awkwardness that he didn't know the other man's name. "I.. uh.. no?" he answered, though his words came out as more of an uncertain question than anything else. Maybe he should be hunting for them? In truthfulness, he'd delved into a moment of personal reflection, and had forgotten his duties as a father and as a husband. Surely he was allowed some alone time, but he felt suddenly guilty for thinking about only himself, albeit only for a short while. His ears twitched as he shifted to face Gryphon properly now.  His face contorted in slight confusion. "Are you? I mean.. hunting?" He regretted not spending more time around his packmates now; he felt suddenly, unquestioningly awkward and at a loss for what to say.

His greeting seemed to take the other hunter by surprise, and Gryphon felt a tingle of embarrassment wash over his skin. "I'm... n-no, no I'm not hunting," he stammered quickly, then realized in another flood of embarrassment that maybe as a hunter he really ought to be since it was his job, and he didn't have a family to look after, after all, so he should be doing the bulk of the hunting shouldn't he? Would Esa be disappointed in her apprentice if Steel told her that he was slacking? "I-I mean I could be. I mean yes. I'm just here... uhm... looking for... birds?" Oh what on earth was wrong with him? He cast around desperately for something clever to say to change the subject, but his intellect quailed under the force of extreme embarrassment, leaving him standing helplessly and awkwardly silent.

Steel had never been very good at talking to others, especially those he didn't know well. And though this man was a packmate, he was still very much a stranger to him. Most of his life had been spent in solitude, besides the few he had grown close to.. briefly he thought of his parents, then of of Faria, and finally of Esarosa and the family they had created together. His acquaintances had been few and far between, and he found himself suddenly wavering under the expectation to interact with this man. He knew he ought to -- making a good impression on the other wolves in Talis was important, to maintain a safe home for himself and his family. He had to push himself to reach out and to get to know others, even if he truly wasn't that interested in it. The other man seemed as uncertain as he did, which made him feel infinitely more awkward. It was easy to talk to those who spoke freely and confidently, and he was adept at listening. But he caught a hint of discomfort in the younger one's voice, for reasons he couldn't begin to comprehend. It would never cross his mind to tell Esarosa he hadn't been hunting; he'd never been one to interfere with the affairs of others, and had no interest in starting now. He simply watched as he stumbled over his words, curious. His mouth tightened as he considered Gryphon's statement, almost an offer to hunt, but a hesitant one. "I.. could join you?" Steel asked, his voice slightly impassive though his gaze was not unkind. He found it odd that the man had denied hunting, only to verify it a moment later, and he couldn't help but wonder if he was merely as much of a introvert as he himself was. "You're, uh.." His mind wandered for a moment, brow furrowing as he tried to recall the meeting. Though he recognized him as someone who Esarosa had been assigned to help mentor, it took him a long moment to recall his name. "Gryphon, right?"