Although these woods were far... spookier, he felt at home in them like the soulless forest on the mainland. The eerie silence and the fog might have bothered anyone else, but Grimshaw's mind was never quiet these days. He found it difficult to sleep at night anymore, or at any time really, without the company of Malachai and often found solace in hunting when he wouldn't find himself in the mans arms.

Perhaps it was the control he felt over the animal's life that helped, because he certainly didn't feel in control with his wild thoughts. While Bowen might have thought she was helping when enlightening him with this news about himself, he really just opened up more questions and more confusion. Coupled with the guilt he felt from leaving Malachai without saying anything, he couldn't get it off of his mind. Even as he tracked the strange animal (okapi) through the woods, the thoughts were heavy on his mind. Would hunting no longer be an escape?

"Speech."

Briar hadn't been out past the Fossil Ridge since she was quite young and had run into that giant dire wolf with Artorias. It felt like that time had been ages ago when really it hadn't been more than a few seasons. The big turning points in her life made everything before those moments feel like a different lifetime so even though she was only two it was still hard to think of herself as the same wolf that had experienced all of these other things. She probably wouldn't normally come out to these woods on her own, but she needed leathers for a project she was working on and Willow had helped her track down a couple of options for prey animals out this way so she figured it was at least worth a look.

She stalked carefully though the woods, being sure to mark a tree occasionally with her claws as she passed to make sure she had a trail to follow back out the way she came. She knew these woods could twist and turn for ages and she didn't want to end up lost. What she didn't expect to find as she worked her way deeper in search of her prey to hunt was a pretty familiar scent. She spotted the dark-furred male ahead of her and moved toward him until she was close enough to get his attention. She didn't want to make too much noise just in case he was out for a similar purpose so she waved him down instead and eventually came up along side him. "Hey, Grimshaw," she said with a little smile. "What are you doing out here?"

"Briar Fatalis"