It was getting much colder as the progressed and with Ivory Ridge gone there was no place she trusted to stay that would allowed Mortar to come with. So she stuck with him and did her best to pull her weight to help both of them survive. She was a decent hunter, but without having a stock of herbs she was fearful of what to do if one of them were to get sick or injured. She could trade food for herbs with one of the packs, but who knew if it would actually work. So far both of them remained in good health despite the lack of prey. Trudging forward through the snow the female heading into the range where she had heard rumors of the barn that stood within the heart of it. She had heard that it was a good place for shelter and she hoped that it was good against the winter weather. She had a winter coat, but it wasn't as thick as most would have leaving her to easily get cold. She knew Mortar wasn't that far behind and she had clear tracks to fallow if he got sidetracked so she really wasn't worried about them loosing each other. It didn't take the brown and blue female long to spot the barn in the distance and when she did she picked up her pace, but doing her best not to overexert herself in the thick snow. It took her a little while longer before she reached the large barn door that was cracked open just enough for a creature of Mortar's size to squeeze through. This meant is was easy for her to slip into the door and out of the snow and it was much of a relief. Shaking her fur out she tried to rid of the stuck snow that was on her fur. The was out of the snow and out of the wind which made her feel warmer. Her bright green eyes looked around the barn and she then lowered her head and began to explore the barn as she waited for Mortar to catch up. "Talk" & 'Think"

God winter sucked.

He'd finally returned with Delaney after a lot of struggling around in the north. He'd just barely managed to get back down south and he was regretting going back to the north at all. It'd been nothing but a giant disappointment in terms of survival. He hadn't found Ray again so there was no telling if she was alive or not. He'd forced himself to focus on other things - almost freezing to death had been enough to distract himself for a while. Even the south was too cold and him and his new-ish friend weren't faring too well. They were cold, tired, and hungry and both of them had lost some weight. It wasn't enough to be concerning, but without a pack he was worried.

Her old pack had .... well he wasn't sure what had happened to it, but he could feel the pain. Donostrea had just vanished without a trace so he knew what that was like. Now it was just about trying to make the most of their lives and just survive until spring. For now he was content to just wander after his brown and blue coated companion. He'd fallen a bit behind her so by the time he finally caught up her scent already led into the barn thing she'd talked about. The structure looked stable and it at least offered some protection for a while. Food could always come later.

Quietly he slipped through the opening and was relieved to feel the lack of the wind and ground that wasn't covered in snow under his paws. His eyes adjusted to the gloom and lack of white that the barn lacked compared to outside and he easily spotted his friend. A soft smile tugged at his lips as he greeted her. "Find anything interesting?"

"SPEAK"

Her nose did most of the work, her eyes and ears just fallowing along as she searched the barn. She was looking at anything and everything and the smell of several creatures traveled through this barn. Perhaps they could have an easy meal tonight and now that they would be out of the wind they should have a warmer sleep. Delaney was getting comfortable having someone to travel with, it was nice to be able to explore and know that you had someone to have your back, plus two bodies for hunting is much better then one. Even if Ivory Ridge would have been standing when she returned the women still wouldn't have stayed. She was curious about this traveling deal, curious as to what else was out there, and of course she wanted to learn more about herbs. It didn't take him as long as she had expected him to and her tail wagged in greeting as he spoke to her. She lifted her head, abandoning her short exploration to go over and greet him. Gently bumping his shoulder with her nose if he allowed it. She hadn't done it before, but it had been a while since she had seen him and she was glad he kept his promise to meet back up with her. It was relieving after discovering her old pack had disappeared. She didn't know what she would've done if he hadn't come. "Smells like there may be dinner hiding in here, but other then that not to much yet," she said with her tail wagging and a bright smile on her face. "Talk" & 'Think"

He let his nose twitch as he took in the scents of the barn. It didn't seem to be occupied which was a good sign and he could even scent a few rodents around too as well as some bird he hadn't smelled before now. At least they'd have options for food close by. It wouldn't be the most filling option but it'd be enough to give them enough energy until they found enough to sustain them. He wasn't sure how long they'd be staying here, but he was happy to rest and recuperate. It felt like they'd been traveling forever so it was nice to take a break from it all. With no homes to return to it was easy to get lost in the endless cycle of traveling and resting their weary paws was a relief.

He smiled softly as she approached him with her tail wagging. She was simple to be around, no extra strings attached, and she'd stuck by him this long. He still felt guilty that he'd left her by herself for so long, but she didn't seem to be angry at him about it which was relieving. She came over and bumped her nose to his shoulder which caused his muscles to stiffen ever so slightly. She hadn't done that before. He wasn't sure how to act now, but awkward pretty much summed him up as he shifted nervously on his paws. It wasn't that he disliked it, but it was hard to avoid keeping her at arm's length. There was always the constant nagging fear that she'd eventually leave him too, everyone always did, but he was doing his best to keep the negative thoughts at bay. She was here now, no use in thinking she was just going to randomly vanish right in front of him.

"Dinner sounds great. At least this will give us shelter for a little while until we can figure out where to go next."

"SPEAK"

She could easily tell that he hadn't been sure how to react to her touch, but Delaney didn't want to make things worse. So she acted as though she didn't notice, that she didn't miss a beat as she sniffed the air behind her, licking her lips as she thought of an easy meal. She had some luck scavenging as she made her way here, but it hadn't been a big carcass so she didn't get much and was starting to once again feel hungry. She looked back at him as he spoke and smiled, nodding in agreement with him, it would be good shelter for a while. She was hoping that winter was soon over, she was tired of the cold and tired of the snow. Besides spring meant good weather and the start of herb hunting. She was excited to see what else she could learn about herbs and what things her and Mortar could discover together. She smiled her thoughts giving her a sudden swirl of energy and her tail wagged again as she looked back to Mortar. She pranced lightly on her front paws as she looked to him. "Come on lets catch some grub," She said with a slightly playful growl before turning around and bounding deeper into the barn. Nose to the ground she searched around for some fresh scents. She nosed around in every nook and cranny she came across. Then all of a sudden a vary large rat shot past her nose and she took off after it, claws digging into the wood floor. She was quick to snatch the creature up in her jaws and kill it before trotting back over to Mortar and dropping it grinning with her tail still wagging in happiness. She nosed the dead creature towards him before turning tail and heading off to find another for herself. "Talk" & 'Think"

He was relieved when things didn't get weird and awkward and he was happy to shove it away for now. Fiery colored gaze followed her movements as she sniffed behind her before turning back to look at him with a smile. He offered her a halfhearted one before shifting on his paws to look around the barn. He didn't mind the idea of being holed up here for a while. It would be warm and he was so sick and tired of the damn snow. After almost freezing to death in the north he would have been content to never see snow again in his life. Needless to say he was eagerly awaiting the arrival of spring.

His attention flicked back to his companion as she pranced on her paws. He watched her curiously for a moment before she padded off to sniff around their temporary home. He headed off along an opposite wall and began sniffing around some corners seeing if he could find any hiding spots for a rodent. They wouldn't be very big or filling, but something was better than nothing and he wouldn't complain. He'd gotten used to eating smaller meals since becoming a loner so he'd long since gotten past the whining stage about it.

A flurry of movement caught his attention and he looked up in time to see Delaney snatching up a rat in her jaws. He smiled excitedly as she padded over with her tail waving. "Nice catch." At least she could hunt well for herself. It'd taken him a while to figure out how to be quick enough to catch rodents before they disappeared into some hole. Surprise and confusion quickly overtook his face as she dropped the rat at his feet and nosed it to him. He opened his mouth to protest but before he could she went off to find another. "Thanks." He said before lying down to enjoy the rat. He began to tear into it and after a few bites he glanced up at her. "So how come you left your pack? I don't think I would have traded pack life for this."

"SPEAK"

She was glad to see a more excited smile on his face this time and it made her body buzz with more excitement. They had both had it rough this winter and she too would be glad to never see snow again. She didn't care much for the cold, but she never complained about it. It was odd, but Delaney was really enjoying the company of the quieter man and she liked the chance to explore. Though Exploring would go a lot better once it warmed up. Being a healer traveling meant she had more chance to discover new plants and she was excited for that also. She headed back towards where she had found the first rat, nose to the ground and tail wagging in the air. She was sure there would be another rat in the same area and she would find the little bugger no matter how long it took. She moved around sticking her noses into the small places and moving things around with her no in an attempt to flush out the creature. It took her a few minutes but soon the rat let out a squeal and darted from it's hiding spot. Claws dug into the hardwood floor again as she got traction and darted after the creature, light form easily keeping up and cutting the creature off. Snatching the rat up in in her jaws she killed the creature before prancing back over to Mortar and flopping down in front of him to enjoy her catch. Mortar then asked her why she had decided to leave Ivory Ridge and her bright green eyes glanced up to him as she tore into her meal. Her tail gently wagged as she ripped a piece off and ate it before she could reply. "Well there was a few reasons. I always liked to travel, but never wanted to travel alone and when we met I found I enjoyed your company that I wanted to continue to travel with you. A big plus to that is while I travel I could potentially discover new herbs I haven't used before which is a big thing when trying to heal others." she started before taking some more of her rat. "That was why I decided before going back that I was going to take my leave from the pack. Though when I got there to talk to my alpha I discovered that the pack was gone so it only helped to finalize my decision." "Talk" & 'Think"

Bi-colored gaze watched her as she managed to sniff out another rat. It wasn't the best meal but it would tide them over for a little while and where there was one rodent there were always more. He'd noticed that about the little creatures. Their nests always consisted of more than one so at least they had something to eat while they waited out the snow. It hopefully wouldn't be too much longer before the weather cleared up and they were able to travel more freely. He didn't mind the snow too much, but he liked having better places to sleep and better things to eat that the warmer months offered.

He felt better once she was able to catch one of her own and joined him to eat. He tucked into his own meal as he listened to her explain why she had left her old home to join him. He was flattered, and maybe slightly awkward, that she'd chosen to come with him. Her mutual interest in healing also helped him feel better about it. At least she had other reasons for leaving as well and if she knew some things it meant she could possibly teach him as well.

He was disheartened to hear that her pack had vanished in her absence. It was painful to think about when something more than similar had happened to him after his first birthday. His ears flattened against his skull as he thought about it and licked his lips free of the remains of his meal. "I'm sorry to hear your pack left." He murmured. "I know what it feels like. I lived in a pack called Donostrea. They took me in when I was only a few months old. Unfortunately they just left one day and left me behind." Even with Ray's half-assed explanation as to why they had left, it hadn't made him feel any better. They could have at least brought him with him, but he'd never been a true Elementas so maybe that was why. Blood family over adopted family? In his case it didn't work out for his own siblings. Ricochet had abandoned him too.

"SPEAK"