[OPEN] you've come so far, it's time to rest

The man was put out by her hesitation, which was good. It was more comfortable if the both of them were confused and a bit wary, thought Eris with a twitch of her ear. She watched as he paused to think, her expression cool as steel. Shortly after, he shrugged two large shoulders and leaned down, seeming happy to take a few berries between his teeth and start chewing. Eris was like a hawk, watching and barely waiting for him to swallow before jumping into action.

Something finally snapped in her. Ravenous like she'd never been before, Eris couldn't devour the berries fast enough even while acutely aware that she was being watched. She heard the man say something from above where she crouched over the branch like a feral beast, but the words were completely lost to the sound of her own chomping and contented grumbles, her manners nowhere to be seen. Her mother would've been humiliated. Eris quickly banished the thought and instead let herself revel in the sweetness of the berries, which barely dulled the blades of thirst churning in her stomach, but it was enough for now. The man and his words would have to wait until she was done.

After all, any embarrassment she might or might not've felt was nothing in comparison to how much she hated herself for allowing this situation to happen in the first place. These past few days Eris hadn't cared if she lived or died, and that carelessness is what led her to this point. Now, thanks to this stranger, she didn't have to live with the consequences of that weakness. Without Dysnoma she truly was pathetic... a nothing. All her purpose died that same day her sister had.

After several minutes of eating Eris righted herself again, standing and licking her own chops clean the same way she'd seen the stranger do. She couldn't quite bring herself to meet his eye, let alone express gratitude, but she did manage to give him a nod. It was as close as he was going to get to a "thank you" from her. The branch was picked clean and mangled at their paws.

Clearing her throat Eris looked around, at anything other than the man. Somehow the forest seemed a little less suffocating, now. "So... is it always this dry around here?" she asked, low voice sounding gruff even while making awkward small talk. "I mean, you must be a local. Since." She jutted her chin down towards the berries. He knew the area, and it's name, so it wasn't hard to guess. Eris gave him a glance out of the corner of her eye, judging his next move.

Bri

Eris noticed that the man had turned his head away at the sight of her savagery, either uncomfortable or polite, she couldn't tell. Deciding that it didn't matter, she huffed, taking a seat where they both lingered under the protection of the trees overhead. She watched him and thought he looked pensive, until of course her question snapped him out of it. But even as he answered, he did seem more subdued.

"I am a local," he nodded, Eris staring at him intensely. She was stuck somewhere between trying to figure him out and if or why she should even care. "Normally it isn't this dry, this is something..." Jutting her chin upwards, Eris started wondering if he lost his train of thought entirely, but it eventually came. "This is something that hasn't been seen before. It's kind of concerning."

"You don't say," she deadpanned, but immediately shook her head a little. This wasn't his fault. "I guess you aren't from here...sorry this isn't the best time to do be here. Usually the valley is much more plentiful and welcoming. I'm Milo by the way." She released a short breath. "Well usually I'm not so easy to kill off. Looks like times are changing."

"I'm Eris," she added, finally managing to meet his eyes again and giving him another little nod. Milo, then. Milo the local. Eris thought for a moment, forelegs already straining with the effort to keep herself upright. Actually, maybe the time for thinking was over. It was time for her to go.

She stood very abuptly, wobbling like a tree in a storm. "Well, Milo. Your help has been appreciated, and I'll keep all this in mind, but-" she went to take a step and nearly faceplanted, but recovered quickly. In her voice, little cracks let on that something wasn't right. "I need to keep moving." She took a few more shaky steps before hesitation forced her to stop, and glancing back at him, she frowned deeply. Her eyes squinted like it pained her to ask for anything more... but maybe it just looked like she wanted to bite his head off. She had to ask, though. "The nearest water source. Where is it?"

An impolite end to this meeting no doubt, but between Eris' embarrassment and lightheadedness, her judgement was beginning to cloud. You're better on your own, go find somewhere to rest. That was her best option, surely.

Bri

Glancing over her shoulder, Eris saw Milo and his reaction to her struggling. Slowly and steadily he stood, bending each limb while they protested like thick branches on a great, old tree. He frowned at her, looking as though he was biting his tongue, and Eris in comparison felt like a brittle leaf caught in the wind.

But then he laughed at her question, and strangely enough Eris didn't crumple at the sound. Instead something inside her lifted. She thought she could find the most minute inkling that he, too, found something about all this frustrating, hidden in the grave tones of that laugh. A hint that she wasn't the only one struggling here, which was a comfort she hadn't known she needed.

"With the heat nearly everything has dried up. Rivers are becoming creeks, creeks are just cracked mud and fish bones, even ponds and lakes are starting to disappear." Eris stopped trying to make her feeble escape and listened. He shook his head while describing how the berries were what he used to stay alive, and how... birds were relaying information to him. She pulled a face at that bit but decided it was a question for another time. "There are three packs here, from what I've heard all are struggling for water."

"Three?" She said, just short of astonished. Not one, not two, but three packs nearby? And all of them thirsty, too. She could imagine with great detail what kind of conflict conditions like these would breed; three packs in an area would already be at each other's throats over control of prey herds and land. Now with water sources more valuable than ever and the herds thinning without reliable watering holes, this place must've been taunt with tension. She was beginning to wonder just what kind of hellscape she had found herself in. "I don't think it is wise to go it alone."

Milo approached her, clearly being careful, which Eris could appreciate. She watched as he contained his excitement to the glittering pair of eyes he regarded her with. "I know what, we can look together! Two sets of eyes is way better than one, and sometimes the birds help me by telling me where to go."

Eris followed his gaze upwards, where a small flock of birds watched them with (admittedly intelligent looking) small, black eyes. Trying to gather her thoughts, Eris turned back to Milo as if to say something, but no words came at first. The most recognizable part of her mind colored her thoughts with frustration. She was sick, and tired, and this onslaught of enthusiasm and bad news only made her long for a solitary hole to crawl into. But there was a smaller part there too, planted deep inside her, that Eris could not ignore. It reminded her that she did not want to die, and she did not want to be alone. That she would be a weak fool to decline Milo's strange, undeserved kindness, and if there was a chance to make it out of this alive, she was honor-bound to take it.

Expression mirroring her weakening resolve, Eris dug her claws silently into the earth. Dammit, fine.

"Okay," she conceded, hating how pathetic the word had sounded in her mouth. Looking back at Milo, she tried again. "I suppose I don't have much choice. Lead the way." She looked to him, wondering if he would start walking or maybe, perhaps, climb up a tree and strike up a conversation with the birds. As soon as the unkind thought crossed her mind, Eris felt guilty for it. Her face contorted into something unreadable, and before she realized it she was holding out a shaky paw, signaling him to wait just one more moment. "And uh, Milo... your help... it is appreciated. I don't understand why you're doing this, but..." She set down her paw with a small thud and seemed to gather herself. "As soon as I am better, I will repay you somehow. Just name your price."

Bri

Eris waited for Milo's reaction to her apology, and unshockingly, was met with a smile. "Sometimes it's better to not understand, it makes things hard to process," he brushed off. Seemingly so calm and happy-go-lucky, he would be the type to say something naïve like that. Not that she thought he was actually naïve. Something told Eris that a man of Milo's size, age, and demeanor, would have seen a thing or two. Still, she couldn't agree with this take, but she held her tongue. He was just trying to make her feel better. "And you don't have to repay me. I'm just doing what is right."

"Tsk. I pay my debts." Milo's good intentions or not, the thought of letting him get away without the chance to even the score made her fur prickle.

"Besides, what I want isn't possible." Eris glanced at him at that comment, her teeth clenching in familiarity. Before she could sort out her thoughts to argue further, though, Milo turned a focused brow up to the birds and quickly changed the subject. She let it drop without further insistence. Once her strength had returned she'd catch him a hare or two and let that be that.

Milo mentioned that they happened to be close to one of the three pack's territories, and that it was wise they move on. The thought of being found by a patrol party in her current state egged her into standing and following him with a few shaky steps, brushing past him with a grumble at his insistence she didn't push herself. "Let's get moving."

And so Eris focused on walking, pushing forward in the direction Milo had started with trust that he wasn't far behind. Each step sent a trembling jolt of unease through her body like a lightning bolt, but after a few minutes her pace fell into a steady rhythm. When she could finally break her concentration enough to focus on something else, her mind started wandering back to the conversation her and her new babysitter just had.

"Tell me more about the packs," she said, turning to look at Milo now that the movement wasn't going to send her toppling over. "You seem eager to get away from this place - the one that lives here must be territorial?" Eris' dark, tufted ears flicked in curiosity, wondering what Milo had to say. She silently hoped he would wipe that concerned, paternal look off his face as well, knowing it would only make her irritated after a while. Everything would be fine if they just kept walking, she told herself, but it'd be a more convincing sentiment if Milo would fix his expression to agree. As it stood, him and his big dumb face were all she had.

Bri