Learning how to live around other wolves again was proving more than challenging. It was something she wanted and was beginning to enjoy in some ways, but it was still something she needed to take in small doses for the time being. In general she kept close to her new pack’s lands just to prove, mostly to herself, that she wouldn’t simply disappear. Maybe once some time had past and she had truly settled in she would attempt to go back out on her adventures from time to time, but for now she only ventured as far as the areas surrounding the packs’ borders.

The sun was still fairly high in the sky, but she knew that it would start to dip toward the horizon soon enough. Ever since her encounter with Natha she had been paying much more attention to the skies and stars even though she still didn’t know how to interoperate most of it. She found a place where there was a bit of a clearing between the streams and willow trees and settled down into the soft grass there, resting on her side with her hind legs stretched out comfortably and holding her front half up on her left elbow. For a while she stayed there, watching the clouds drift by over head and trying to identify the different shapes and types of them.

Eventually her gaze drifted away from the sky and she scanned the surrounding area, taking in the swaying branches of the trees that shifted in a almost hypnotic way. The world felt oddly quiet and still, as if it was just waiting for something to happen. Tamsyn’s mint eyes slowly fell down to her forepaws and her gaze landed on the layers of scar tissue that was scattered down the length of her left leg from elbow to ankle. Her eyes traced each mark quietly for a while, noticing how calm she remained. Just seeing her scars was typically enough to trigger something in her, but her peace seemed to be firmly in place this day. Her right paw lifted and rested on the opposite leg, feeling the raised skin there with her paw pads as she slowly ran her paw down the length of her leg, almost as if she was curious about her own skin.

With her den bordering the Weeping Woods, all scents drifted her way. When the scent of an unknown wolf met dusty blue nares, the giantess was instantly on her paws and moving in that direction. With children moving freely through the territory, one couldn't be too cautious. Resin had known some truly evil wolves in her day and wouldn't put it past a stranger to abduct or harm an unchaperoned child. Not on her watch.

Thick, powerful legs carried the woman into the forest of streams and willows. Following her nose brought her straight to the unfamiliar scent. It was a smaller fae, dark in color. The woman was laying alone, inspecting something in front of her. Suspicion arose. Though this was not the territory of the Armada, their scent was strong on it. Why would a lone wolf want to come so close to an unknown pack of wolves?

Striding forward, the woman made her presence known by purposefully stepping on a dried branch which snapped loudly, killing the silence. The hulking woman lowered her head to the other woman's level, the ruined side of her face, complete with missing eye, clearly visible. Lips pulled back from wickedly sharp teeth and, thanks to damaged vocal cords, her words were low and growling. "Who might you be?" Her tone wasn't accusing, but the look on her scarred visage was quite serious.

The dark colored woman was far away despite her thoughts being mostly blank. She had gone from the deepest her depression had been in quite some time to this unusual emptiness and she wasn’t certain which was worse. She was used to the sadness, but now that the sadness had begun to fade away she wasn’t sure what was supposed to take its place. As she stared at her scars she felt no particular emotion and maybe that was a blessing. At least she didn’t feel that sharp, traumatized pain so maybe at least progress was being made.

Being so lost in her own contemplation, Tamsyn had no idea the larger woman had approached her until the snapping of a branch made her ears twitch forward and made her gaze snap up to see the gray and black stranger in front of her. She was frozen in place as she took in the much larger, heavily scarred wolf that was now looming over her. Her mint green gaze connected with the one remaining golden eye as female dipped her head till they were looking eye to eye. She had never felt like a tiny wolf by any means, but she was easily dwarfed in comparison this time. Once she had a moment to process the initial shock and fear that had hit her from the intimidating stranger’s sudden appearance, Tamsyn was able to actually see past just their stark differences in size and taken in the numerous scars that dotted the woman’s face and shoulder. She glanced over them curiously in a similar way that she had been examining her own moments ago before shifting her gaze to take in her striking and simple markings.

The flash of the unexpectedly sharp teeth and the rough, growling voice that the gray female greeted her with made Tamsyn worry that she had some how accidentally trespassed into someone else’s lands. Her ears folded back and she found herself too afraid to move under the stranger’s piercing gold gaze until she realized the scent the woman carried matched that of the pack she had so recently joined. ”I’m... I’m Tamsyn,” she replied after a moment. She slowly shifted her weight as she spoke so that she could get her feet under her and was able to sit up on her haunches so she didn’t feel quite so overtaken in the situation. ”You’re part of this pack, right? I’m new here, I just joined. Well, Zee invited me to anyway - I’m still getting settled in.” She felt the need to quickly explain why she was here before she said anything else just in the hopes of remedying whatever suspicion might still be lingering on her. The last thing she wanted was to mess up her first introduction to someone in the pack other than Zee. Tam suddenly noticed her ears were still folded back and tried to get herself to lift them and offer her new acquaintance a small smile. ”Sorry if we got off on the wrong foot... What’s your name?”

As the woman turned to her, the shock on her features was evident. The fae looked at the one-eyed womans scars. They always did. It was something that the older dame was very used to. It seemed as though the vast majority of wolves didn't expect a woman to be so heavily scarred. It was the menfolk that were supposed to be the warriors, right? Not in this case. Resin was a wolf that had always held her own. She stood in place, waiting for the darker lass to gain her composure.

Eventually the woman spoke, her voice wavering slightly as she introduced herself. Tamsyn was her name. She stated that Zee had invited her into the pack and that she was a new member. That... was relieving. The behemoth's grey and black form instantly eased, her pelt smoothing and her expression becoming less stern. If the one of the Armada's alphas had welcomed this woman into the fold, she must be at least a little trustworthy. There was nothing to worry about in that case. Haunches folding, the scarred dame brought her self to a seated position, tail curling around one thick hip.

Tamsyn spoke of having gotten off on the wrong foot, then asked her name. Resin scoffed lightly, casting her singular gaze to the landscape around them. "This is the same manner in which I greet all strange wolves." To her, there was no bad foot. This had simply been an encounter that was now progressing past the suspicious introduction stage. "With a litter of young pups out exploring, one can never be too careful." The brow on the ruined side of her face arched slightly. "Resin," she answered simply. She never had been a woman of many words.

As she waited for the woman to speak further, the giant fae allowed her golden gaze to take in the fae before her. The smaller woman was also scarred. It was obvious that she'd had a hard life. Resin found herself wondering if she had allowed that life to beat her, or if she had overcome it. By Tamsyn's reaction to her approach, she imagined that she had let that past beat her.

Once she had explained that she was new to their pack, she could see the scarred woman visibly relax. That helped Tamsyn relax more as well and a soft sigh passed her lips before she was able to smile a bit more easily. ”Of course,” she responded with an understanding nod when she heard the explanation that they couldn’t be too careful with pups wandering around. Her thoughts flashed to Zee’s son and was suddenly more grateful for her caution and defensiveness around their pack. She hadn’t met the boy as of yet, but felt a strange kindred spirit sort of connection with him given the situations they both shared. She hoped she would get to meet him at some point, but she also didn’t feel like it was right to go seeking him out. At least not yet while she was still so new here.

”Nice to meet you, Resin,” she replied to the simple introduction she was given. Resin. She was careful to tuck the name away in her memories so she wouldn’t forget. After their memorable meeting she couldn’t imagine that she would, but better safe than sorry. Tamsyn realized after a moment of silence that her eyes had naturally gone back to tracing the interweaving pattern of scars across Resin’s face and she forced her gaze to meet hers again. It was obvious that Resin’s scars were a prominent part of the larger woman’s features, but that certainly wasn’t all she was and Tamsyn didn’t want her to think that was all she was interested in. It was simply the timing of it all considering she had just been thinking about her own scars so deeply so they were fresh on her mind.

”I’m sorry, I really don’t mean to stare,” she stated, her ears folding back again with a bit of guilt. ”I’m just... fascinated by them. Scars always tell such a story, you know?” She could only hope she was making some kind of sense and wasn’t outright offending her new acquaintance within moments of meeting her. Resin’s scars painted her as a tested warrior and only added to her imposing demeanor. If anything they were an impressive sign of what Resin had been though and could survive. Tamsyn wondered what her scars said about her, but she was honestly afraid to ask. A thought passed though her mind and once it had planted itself there it was hard to shake. She thought about how the scars on her leg had felt under her paw pads and now wondered how different Resin’s would feel since many of them were much larger than her own. But how was she supposed to go about asking this impressive warrior of a woman to feel her scars without making a complete embarrassment of herself? She opened her mouth to speak and immediately closed it again, feeling her face flush and suddenly being very thankful for her black fur that could hide her blush. She gave a small shake of her head and looked out at the willow trees, quickly muttering, ”Sorry, never mind.”

The gears were moving in the younger wolf's head. Resin could see that much by the expressions on her face. What she was thinking about, the black and grey fae did not know, nor could she guess. Her name was spoken and Resin replied with a single nod. In her growling tones, the woman replied. "It is good to meet you as well, Tamsyn." Though outwardly she may have seemed unfeeling and expressionless, she couldn't deny that she was slightly intrigued by the woman. There was something that she couldn't quite put her paw on that made her want to stay and possibly hold a conversation. Not that she was very good at it.

Tamsyn had been staring so intensely at her scars that she felt the need to mention it aloud. Ears perked forward as the darker of them spoke of scars and the stories that they told. Indeed... scars were stories written on flesh. Each one an experience lived through. Each a battle won. Resin's body was a novel with many stories etched into her flesh. "I do know and you needn't apologize." The interest that Tamsyn showed in the marred flesh interested Resin as well. Most pretended to ignore scars, they stared of course, but they never asked after them or spoke of them.

The smaller woman seemed to still be thinking on the matter, for she opened her mouth and closed it again. An obsidian brow arched as the dame gave her skull a slight tilt in question. Tamsyn seemed to feel slightly embarrassed about the comment or question that she hadn't made. It was... comical. It was also mildly endearing. Though Resin didn't smile, for she rarely did, she felt a smile inside. "You may speak freely. I won't get offended." She found herself wanting the woman to speak her mind and was quite interested in what she had to say.

Resin wondered if speaking of her scars might lighten Tamsyn's inhibitions. Which bit of damaged flesh should she speak of first? The most noticeable was her eye, but that was too easy to choose. Instead, she motioned to the large slash marks across her left shoulder and chest. "I received these defending my family from a bear. The bear lost." Perhaps they could make a game of it. A look of amusement crossed the behemoth's marred features. "Your turn."

Tamsyn’s gaze was pulled back to Resin’s when the gray and black woman spoke, surprised when she encouraged her to speak freely. Maybe if she knew what Tam’s request had been she would think differently, but she appreciated the meaning all the same. Somehow even with the encouragement she still found her words caught in her throat. Something about holding Resin’s intense, but surprisingly warm gaze made her even more tongue tied than before. This certainly wasn’t how she had expected this conversation to go when Resin first approached her, but she felt herself giving the outwardly intimidating woman a small but genuine smile all the same.

Before she could overcome her embarrassment and ask her question, Resin seemed to throw her a life line in the form of breaking the silence and telling her where the scars across her shoulder had come from. Tamsyn’s ears perked with interest and her eyes fell to the long, thick scars that wrapped her well muscled shoulder. She couldn’t help but giggle softly at the deceleration that the bear had lost, having no doubt at all that the statement was true. She couldn’t think of many creatures that could stand a chance against someone of her stature. Tamsyn’s eyes made it back to Resin’s face in time to see the amusement cross her expression and that alone made an unexpected flutter of butterflies fly though her stomach.

There wasn’t much time to dwell on the unforeseen reaction though as Resin opened the floor for her to explain one of her scars in turn. Tamsyn looked down at her foreleg as her ears flicked back for a moment. She had many smaller scars all over her body that perhaps she could speak about, but none of them were really visible unless she parted her fur to show them. The only fully visible scars she had were the ones that were scattered around her leg and the one that lied where her neck and jaw met. They were easier to think about now that she had laid out her entire story for Zee, but she almost felt ashamed of them compared to Resin’s heroic story behind hers.

Not wanting to disappoint Resin by refusing to join in on the sharing she had started, Tamsyn lifted the paw of her unmarred leg to point to one particularly jagged scar on the inside of her opposite leg near her elbow. It was obviously in the shape of a wolf’s bite, one that had sunk in particularly deep. ”This one is from when my father caught me trying to convince one of the boys in the pack to teach me how to fight. He grabbed me here and drug me back to the den.” There was no real emotion in her voice as she spoke, but she still wasn’t quite able to meet Resin’s gaze again until after she was finished. She was able to smile softly when she did look back up at her again, but it didn’t have the same kind of amusement as it did before. Tamsyn was slowly beginning to understand that she had done nothing wrong in these instances and that at the end of the day she was the survivor in these stories, but it was a slow road and she still struggled with her perception of it. ”Your turn again.”

Her offer elicited a charming response in the woman and Tamsyn's entire demeanor perked up. She seemed just as intrigued by the game as Resin had been when she initiated it. And, as she expected it would, it seemed to draw the woman out of her shell a bit more. She told Tamsyn of the bear, and when it was Tamsyn's turn, she told her the story of the scars around her leg. Resin's gaze instantly hardened. She was not one that bowed down to that type of tradition. There was no one that could tell her what she could and could not do. Though she was part of the pack for the sake of her daughter, she was still her own ruler.

"That was wrong of him," she spoke in low tones. Forelegs slowly slid outward and the warrior was soon laying upon her stomach instead. This placed her equally scarred paws much closer to the darker fae than they had been previously. Invading her personal space just the slightest bit. The struggles that Tamsyn had gone through touched something within Resin. Her plight was something that could be understood quite well. Resin's family had initially intended for her to be ladylike. A consort for some neighboring kingdom. The difference between herself and Tamsyn was that, when her father found out her aptitude for battle, he allowed her to embrace it. He encouraged it. Raising her golden gaze to meet minted eyes, she made the woman an offer. "I will teach you to protect yourself, if you'd like."

Sharing a story as Tamsyn had, one that no doubt shaped who she was, made Resin feel as though she needed to share something on a similar level. Lifting her head, she showed a swath of scar tissue on the underside of her jaw and throat. This one meant something to her. Just as Tamsyn's, these scars had shaped her, the ones that Resin now showed were from a major event in her life. "The father of my children almost succeeded in killing me." Lowering her head, she continued to speak. "He was trying to kill my children. They scattered. He hunted them. My three sons were murdered. My daughter, however, is ambassador of the Armada, and the reason that I'm here."

Before Tamsyn had a chance to feel anything about the story that Resin shared, she informed the woman that it was her turn. There was no room left there for pity. Pity was something that Resin didn't want. Though she had mourned the loss of her sons, they were gone. The past stayed in the past. The present and future were what mattered.

Resin’s statement that her father had been in the wrong in his actions helped to confirm the thought that Tamsyn was trying to instill in herself that nothing she had done had deserved the reaction she had gotten. Her expression softened a bit with a grateful smile even though Resin may not quite understand why she would react to the simple statement in such a way. It was something that she needed to hear from someone other than herself and her new friend, if she could be presumptuous enough to call her that, gave her the confirmation she needed. When Resin settled on her stomach Tamsyn did the same, shifting onto her side and laying in the same way she had been before Resin approached her.

”I will teach you to protect yourself, if you’d like.” That was an offer that touched Tamsyn more than Resin could probably understand. The ebony woman’s eyes widened with surprise and it was all she could do to contain her excitement enough to just grin and wag her tail in response. Fighting had always seemed like a form of freedom in her eyes. All of the men in her old pack had been strong fighters and they were the ones that had been allowed to leave the pack lands and wander on their own freely. Tamsyn had been given none of that. ”I would love that... so, so much,” she replied while she continued to hold back the wave of excitement and emotion building in her chest.

Resin had her undivided attention now as she went on to explain a scar that Tamsyn hadn’t noticed at first - a large marking of scar tissue right across the larger woman’s throat and jaw. This one hit much closer to home for Tamsyn and made her expression grow much more solemn in response. There was no response that felt appropriate to say, so Tamsyn settled for shifting one of her paws closer to Resin’s to close the couple of inches of distance between them. Her paw brushed against the woman’s in a small, silent sign of support. Even though her own mother had not been willing to protect her, she had a deep respect for mothers that did try to do that for their children. It was one of the things that had immediately helped her gain trust in Zee and helped her make the decision to stay with the Armada. Now this story helped her see the same sort of moral strength in Resin.

Now that the baton had been passed back to her so to speak, Tamsyn pondered for a moment which scar to speak of next. There were dozens and dozens of scars scattered along the length of her leg, all of them similar in story. She did something that made her father or brothers mad and this was how they punished her. She could talk about the time she dared to briefly leave the pack lands unattended or the time she had tried to stand up to her father when he reprimanded her about something small... But all of the memories seemed to blend together into one blur of anger and fear. One of the few that really stood out in her mind as one that she was still actively trying to process and get over wasn’t on her leg at all. She turned her head so Resin could see the largest of her scars that wrapped the side of her neck and dipped down around the beginning of her throat, nearly matching the curve of her jaw. ”My father was furious that none of the males in our pack would take me as their mate and he took out his anger on me.” Tam’s eyes found Resin’s golden gaze again after a beat of silence. ”He was going to be responsible for me until he was finally able to give me away and I think he was just tired of dealing with me. But no one else wanted to deal with me either. Murder was out of the question in their religion so he did this and then banished me from their pack. I guess he had hoped I would die on my own so he wouldn’t have to directly kill me himself.”

She was quiet for a while after that, letting her gaze drift down to their paws. With her mind distracted by her own memories, she didn’t have a chance to fully think through what she was doing or second guess herself before she lifted one of her paws and rested it gently on top of Resin’s paw that was scattered with scars. She lightly traced them thoughtfully with her paw pads, feeling the smooth, raised skin curiously. When she spoke again her voice was quiet, almost speaking as if she wasn’t really aware that she was saying it aloud. ”I almost killed myself that night and have thought about it several times since then. I just always thought there was something wrong with me or I was broken in some way and he was trying to fix me. I thought I had deserved all of it and I just didn’t know how to be better.”

The offer of teaching her to protect herself was accepted and Resin could see just how much it meant to the obsidian woman. She believed that everyone, big or small, deserved to know what they were worth. If Tamsyn wished to learn to keep herself safe, then Resin would provide her with that knowledge. She would teach her those skills. Tamsyn wouldn't be the first, either. The maned fae had a knack for attracting the meek and downtrodden. She was a protector at heart. If one wasn't able to protect themselves and they proved themselves worthy of her time, the woman would rend the heavens to keep them safe. Those that fell within these parameters she considered 'hers.' Her family always fell into that category. It was rare for an outsider to gain a permanent standing there, but if  Tamsyn was going to remain as part of the pack and she continued to be as open and true as she was now... then she would always fall beneath the protection that Resin would offer.

It was strange, this feeling inside. The mint-eyed fae was kindling a fire that had long lay dormant within the big woman. Iolaire no longer needed her protection. Resin protected Meadow, but her sister had gone walkabout. There was no one that needed her and it was something that hadn't lain easily with her. She felt as though there was no direction in her life. No real purpose. Her days were spent doing nothing more than patrolling and seeking out anything that might bring danger to the pack. She wouldn't admit it, but she needed to protect someone again. It was who she was.

With her sad story told, she was thankful when Tamsyn didn't comment on it. The charcoal dame simply placed her small paw beside Resin's much larger appendage. The gesture was appreciated and the corners of the woman's mouth quirked up in the barest of smiles. Could that even be considered a smile? For her, yes. She was glad to be sharing that small smile with someone who she felt needed it.

After a stretch of Tamsyn being deep in thought, the woman's soft tones poured forth. Again, scars from her father. She had been a clear disappointment to him. He had then been too much of a coward to kill her, and so had sent his daughter out into the world on her own, scarred and damaged. The man was a bastard. Resin found that she wanted to sink her teeth into him to show him how it felt to be weak and afraid. She almost voiced this desire, but the feel of soft pawpads caressing the scars on her paw and foreleg brought all attention to Tamsyn. The touch was foreign and it wasn't something that Resin was used to. Though she had taken a mate in life and had produced children, the fae had never been one for casual touching. Having lost her eye at the age of three, she had had a frightening appearance for so long, that many were averse to touching her. This... this simple little act of the onyx woman brushing her pads back and forth over the raised skin, it was strange, but welcome.

Tamsyn spoke again and the larger woman's single, sulfur colored eye flashed dangerously. The rejection of her father and the ejection from her home had left her feeling alone. So alone that she had considered ending her life. And not just once, but many times. Blackened lips peeled back from whetted canines almost involuntarily, the woman's dusty blue nose wrinkling with the action. A moment later the rage cleared enough that she regained composure. It wasn't like her to allow emotions to take control. She found her voice. That low, growling voice thanks to the scars that she had shown upon her throat. "There's nothing wrong with you. All of the fault is on your father's shoulders." Raising her own paw, she placed it gently upon that of the smaller fae. "Would you like me to kill him?" The offer wasn't made jokingly. If Tamsyn wished it, Resin would seek out her old pack. She would challenge the woman's father and would show all of the bastards just what a woman could do.

Tamsyn was happy that Resin hadn’t pulled away from her touch as she continued to trace the lines of scars along the larger gray limb in front of her. It was soothing in an odd way to have this methodical following and tracing for her to focus on the the moment and to be able to give the kind, protective woman some small form of affection. At the time Tamsyn didn’t realize how much it had been a show of appreciation and affection it had been until Resin spoke again and pulled her out of the self induced trance she had put herself into. She had been too focused on their overlapping paws to notice the flash of a snarl that crossed Resin’s features, the quick, violent reaction to her words gone by the time she looked up at the woman’s scarred face again.

Tamsyn thought back to her first reaction moments ago to seeing Resin standing over her and the instant flash of fear that had sparked in her gut from the gray and black woman’s appearance. Looking back on it, she felt so foolish to have felt that way. Now all she could see was Resin as she protector she was and only felt safe laying this closely with her. When Resin pointed the blame toward her father Tamsyn’s first instinct was to doubt the validity of those words, but it was something she was quick to push away. It was something that was so ingrained into her psyche that she was certain it was going to take years to fully work out of her, if she ever did at all, but having someone like Resin to reinforce that message was so incredibly helpful. She didn’t look down when she felt Resin’s paw settle on top of her own, keeping her mint eyes locked with her golden eye instead.

The offer caught her off guard and she could tell from Resin’s demeanor that there was no joking involved. It was a serious, deadly offer that Tamsyn for a moment seriously considered. To be able to see her father fall and experience the pain that he had put her though for all those years was something that felt tempting, but ultimately not something that felt right with her soul. After a few heavy beats of thoughtful silence, Tam finally responded with a small shake of her head. ”I would rather just... Put it behind me. If I do somehow cross paths with him again I’d rather him be able to see how I survived him and be able to... to defend myself from him. If I see him again... I want to give him a scar that he’ll have to carry with him for the rest of his life.” The emotion in her voice was surprising even to herself and her ears folded back against her skull as a knot of anger formed in her stomach. She had never had a vengeful bone in her body, but the longer she untangled the web that was her past, the more she cursed her family for shaping her into what she now had to deal with on her own.

Tamsyn didn't immediately give her an answer and justly so. Demanding the death of another was a heavy burden. Ending the life of a sentient being was something that many could not handle. Justice was something that Resin had meted out many times. Her first kill had been a shock, no matter how prepared she had believed herself to be. After that, she became numb to it. Killing a living, breathing wolf was no different than killing a calf. It was good that Tamsyn thought about it. It was good that she wasn't like Resin. Had the one-eyed woman been the one to make the decision, Tamsyn's father would be a dead man.

The obsidian woman spoke of wanting to be the one to scar the man if she ever saw him again and Resin nodded. That would be a good lesson for the man. A good lesson for Tamsyn as well. It would prove to her that she wasn't any of the things that he said she was. She had worth. She was capable of being strong and thriving. The desire to defend oneself was something that Resin could understand and support. It was the reason that she had always been so hard on Iolaire. How a creature so small could be produced by two giants, Resin would never know. She liked to believe that she had made her daughter tough. Size didn't matter if you were quick and clever. If you knew how to work with that size, then one as small as Tamsyn could be just as deadly as one much larger.

"If you wish it to be so, we can make it happen. I can teach you how to defend yourself. Should we ever encounter the bastard that gave you those scars, you'll be ready for him." Or I can take care of him for you. Those words remained unsaid aloud, but they were spoken within her mind. Tyrants taking advantage of those weaker than themselves needed a taste of their own medicine.

They never did get to finish listing their scars. Duty was calling to the large dame. She needed to finish her patrols before night fully fell. Though the night didn't bother her, it was a goal that she set for herself. Back home around dark. Gently extracting her paw from Tamsyn's, the woman rose and gave her thick pelt a shake, preparing her muscles for miles of walking. "Did Zee give you a place to stay?" Obsidian ears flicked forward as she stared down at the dark fae. No doubt the pair would run into one another again. In fact, Resin was quite looking forward to it.

Tamsyn felt certain now that fate was putting these strong women in her life for a reason. Zee had stopped her from sending herself over the cliff’s edge that night. She had brought her here and ended up giving her a home. Because of that she was able to meet Resin and was able to find someone she could truly connect with - someone she felt she could confide in and know she would understand. For so long it had felt like the world was stacked against her and all of the sudden it seemed to be turning around. She wasn’t sure what she had done to warrant this change in her life, but she wasn’t going to start complaining now.

She have Resin a small, thankful smile when she was told that she would be able to learn to defend herself. She prayed so deeply that she’d never have to see his face again, but if fate decided that her luck was over and he did somehow find her... she wanted to be ready. She most certainly wasn’t going down without a fight. Not this time. She had a feeling that even if her best efforts were not able to fend him off she would still have Resin there to back her up and for that she was endlessly grateful. Even though they had just met, it somehow felt like she had known her for ages and could trust her with her life. Maybe the fact that she had so few wolves in her circle I’d trust had something to do with it, but Tamsyn was convinced it was more than that.

The dark coated woman had no concept of how much time had passed and didn’t realize how late it had gotten until Resin stood and shook her fur, clearly preparing to head back. Even though her mind was still going a hundred miles an hour and she was sure sleep wouldn’t come easily tonight, she got to her paws as well. She nodded in response to Resin’s question, adding, ”Yes, I’ve been staying in the dens by the bonfire for the last couple of nights. I was planning on looking for something more permanent in the morning. Maybe I can come see you after I’m done settling in... You know, to start training!” As she asked to see the larger woman again she quickly realized it wasn’t at all for the training that Resin had promised. The reality of it caught Tamsyn too off guard and made her too nervous to admit. She tried to add on the clarification to hide her thoughts, but she wasn’t entirely sure it landed. Her ears flicked back as she smiled, feeling that blush warm her face under her fur again. Without waiting for Resin’s answer, Tam stretched up to press her nose to the larger woman’s cheek. “Thank you,” she said sincerely before darting off, running back into the pack lands before she could embarrass herself any more than she already had. She had been right about her assumption that she wouldn’t get much sleep that night, but the thoughts that kept her up were much happier than the ones that typically haunted her.