The idea of leaving The Hallows, even temporarily, was a weird one for him, but he had come to realize just how little of the world he had seen. Of course he was thankful for this home that his father had made sure he and his siblings could have and the special place Artorias had given him among his ranks, but the more he thought about it he really didn't know what life was like outside of the pack. They had moved from Boreas to Auster when he was still a pup, but other than that he hadn't ventured too far from The Hallows or the lands that surrounded it. Considering how wide and varied Syanna's experiences had been, he wondered if maybe he should branch out some more himself. Besides, as much as he loved Syanna for settling into pack life for him, he felt like she would also enjoy getting to travel and explore again so it felt like it was going to be a good move for the both of them.

The only problem now was breaking the news to his best friend and asking him for permission to do it. He was a little nervous as he went looking for the Aegis–not because he thought that Art would tell him no, but because he didn't want to disappoint him. Art had been such a good friend to him for most of his life at this point and leaving when he held so much responsibility in the pack felt like he was letting his friend down, but hopefully Art would understand. He knew Art's routine well enough at this point so he tried to arrive in the courtyard when he was pretty sure Art would be coming back from his morning patrol. Sure enough, after a bit of waiting the blue-marked form of the Carpathius man appeared and he offered Art a little grin as he approached to get his attention. "Hey, Art. Do you have a minute to chat?"

"Ezra Adravendi"

The Hallows was abound with changes in the recent season, it seemed. Briar was expecting another litter of their pups meaning they would have a chance to do the whole parenting thing again from the start, their first litter had just become yearlings, adolescents ready to explore their world and discover who they were, his pack mates were all eagerly working to climb the ranks and prove themselves, and wolves were coming and going from the pack on the regular. After having just seen Anthea off to begin her own life's journey, Artorias was rounding out a morning patrol before making his way back to Hearthstone. Crossing the gates and into the courtyard, he was pleased to see the giant speckled form of his best friend.

"Good morning, Ezra!" he greeted his Councilor with a chipper smile, slowing his pace when the Adravendi man asked if he had a moment to talk. "For you, my friend, I'll even spare two minutes. What's on your mind?" Art chuckled as he joked with Ezra, coming over to sit next to his lifelong friend on the cobblestone path beside some barren wisteria trees, the usually vibrant plants looking so sad in the winter.

"Artorias" | "Carpathian"

Ezra chuckled as Artorias greeted him with his usual chipper energy and grinned as he was offered a whole two minutes. "How generous of you," he joked as he came to sit with his friend under one of the garden's currently barren trees. Even though he had rehearsed what he was going to say in his head while he was waiting for Artorias, he still had a bit of trouble getting himself to say them. After a moment of hesitation he finally replied, "I never really thought I'd be asking you to do this, but I would like to leave The Hallows with Syanna. Not forever, but I'm not sure how long we'll be gone so it doesn't feel right to take up an important position in this pack and keep things on hold while we're gone. I just know there's so much of the world out there that I haven't seen and Syanna was such a wanderer before she settled down here with me. I... I hope that Syanna and I can have a family like yours one of these days, but before that happens I think I need to get out for a while... You know, be more worldly before I start trying to teach kids about the world."

"Ezra Adravendi"

The conversation between the friends was easy and joking—at least, it was at first. When Artorias asked what was on his mind and Ezra immediately began to hesitate in his response, Art knew what was coming next. A pit sank in his stomach even before his friend started to speak, and when he finally did, the man’s face visibly sank, his smile slowly slipping from his expression while he listened to Ezra do his best to awkwardly stumble through his explanation. Though it broke his heart to think of his best friend leaving the pack, he could understand why he was wanting to leave. He couldn’t think of a single thing he wouldn’t do for Briar, and knowing how madly in love with Syanna his dappled friend was, he could not begrudge him for wanting to make his partner happy. Still, Ezra had been born into the Hallows along with him and his litter, they had grown up together, their entire lives had been built together here. Now he was losing that. Deep down, Artorias prayed that Ezra would someday come back home. He would miss his friend and Councilor dearly.

Once Ezra had finished making his appeal, Artorias turned his gaze down to his paws and released a heavy sigh. He really, really didn’t want to let Ezra go… but what kind of friend would he be if he withheld his best friend’s freedom and happiness? "Losing my Councilor and a physician in one fell swoop… You really don’t like making things easy for me, do you?" he poked fun at the Adravendi wolf at his side, a rueful smirk touching his lips. Amber eyes were sad, but understanding as the Aegis gave a slow nod of his head. "Just promise me you will actually come back one day. I don't think I could handle saying goodbye to my best friend forever right now." Raising a large sapphire paw, Artorias clapped down on Ezra's shoulder and pulled his fellow dire brute into a fraternal embrace. He just prayed that by the grace of the gods that this wasn't the last time he'd ever get the chance to do so. When they separated, Artorias gave the command, "You and Syanna are free to leave whenever you're both ready. Just know there will always be a place for you back home when you're ready to return."

"Artorias" | "Carpathian"