Duchess moved south with Jynn, staying true to her word and helping her move through some of the Auster lands. It was dangerous to travel alone with the dires and the saber cats running amok.

They moved near the grove, and the colder months of Auster were still warmer than what the ice age had brought them. The trees were somehow growing their golden leaves just not as lush and beautiful as they could be in the warmer seasons. As they moved closer to the waterway, she took note of how the melting snows made the ground slush under her toes, she wasn't very fond of it even though she never really cared much about getting dirty.

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

Come down, come down sweet reverence

Jynn trotted along content to have some company for her journey. As they worked their way through Auster they came to a beautiful river winding its way in gentle, silvery curves through a field of short green grass that was occasionally punctuated with bare rock and earth. In the middle of the river was a large pile of sticks, bark and debris heaped up into a mound. A beaver's dam! She bounded over toward it, reaching out to sniff at the warm beige scraps of wood. She could dimly see it continue down into the water.

Jynn glanced about but didn't see any beaver nearby. Along the creek grew brilliant birch trees. She marveled at the white bark, tinted with a bit of sable here and there. The trees wore their golden crowns proudly and she glanced over at Duchess. "See any beavers? I hear they're good eating but I've never tried one."

Duchess was actually quite happy with how vibrant Jynn was, she couldn't relate unless she was in the presence of Indigo.

She followed behind her temporary companion, admiring the white bark of the birch trees as well, and looking down at the dam as Jynn asked if she noticed any beavers. Duchess' nose lifted slightly to scent the area. Finding prey was her specialty, providing for her pack and her loved ones. But she shook her head gently, "I don't smell any nearby, I prefer a meal from a deer or a bison personally. But I do always suggest trying everything once." She gave a gentle smile, closing the distance between herself and the dam. She sniffed it's structure, looking for the bothered ground from the smaller creatures. Her nose pointed behind them, "If we go this way, we may be able to find one if you'd like. They are pretty slow.

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

Come down, come down sweet reverence

Jynn leapt on top of the beaver dam, balancing atop it with only a few sticks dislodging and rolling into the river below. She nodded. "Yea, I don't smell any either. They must be off doing something, maybe gathering more wood." Jynn grinned. "I prefer rats!" They were her favorite snack but they took time to catch and weren't as filling as larger prey. However, for a beast with long legs and large ears she was particularly well suited to hunting rodents. "That's alright. I ate well before traveling and I hate to cut our journey short just yet for a food break." She leapt of the beaver dam and started wandering again along the creek.

Suddenly she spied tracks along a small game trail that tracked along the creek. "Oh, hey Duchess. Look at this! Elk tracks." She bent her head and sniffed at the tracks. From what she could gather it seemed like large herds of elk frequented this area. She also caught the scents of several rodents in the area.

Duchess cringed as Jynn jumped on top of the damn, the few loose sticks falling through and down the river. She definitely wasn't that brave, but Duchess tended to be a pretty flighty character anyway. She relaxed as Jynn continued talking. Rats? Duchess definitely couldn't agree to that. She may have been a picky eater but if rats were the only thing left for her to eat then sure. Otherwise she would avoid them.

She gently smiled towards Jynn when she joined her again, and looked down when Jynn mentioned the elk tracks. Her paw gently ran over the disturbed ground, looking forward where the herds would have traveled, "Can't say I've seen elk in a while." It may not have sounded like it, but she was excited for the thought. Maybe she could get together with a few of the pack members for an elk. That seemed like a nice meal to share with Indigo. "Maybe we should move west, we can part ways once we get closer to the pack."

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

Come down, come down sweet reverence

Jynn pondered over the elk tracks for awhile before deciding that they were probably too old to be of particular interest. If one had a pack or band and could be in the area for awhile it might be useful information but to the duo passing through and exploring it probably didn't matter much. Jynn nodded. "Yea, I hope this means the herds are starting to come back. The winter had been hard on them." There had been a large amount of weak and sick animals and she'd spied many a frozen carcass on her travels. Jynn nodded. "Sure, what's west of here?" She hadn't explored the western side of Auster much yet.