Nate hadn't doubted the existence of farmland, not after the bridges by the sparrow nests, and the dilapidated towers straight out of a fairytale further north.

But it somehow hadn't occurred to him that that meant farm animals, too. Chickens, cows.

Horses.

God, he missed horses. The earthy smell was familiar and comforting, and he trekked after it between broken down fences, an ear still turned to the old farmhouse, though it looked far too broken down to be home to any man.

Nothing that ate grass had deigned to speak to him, so Nate didn't expect it. Figured the sight of a wolf would do nothing but scare a horse, anyway. Only wanted the nostalgia of being close to one, again. So he ducked into a crouch downwind after a gorgeous appaloosa, a real spitfire of a mare, and snuck as close as he thought he could reasonably get just to admire her.

Nate, of course, wasn't known for his mastery of the four-feet, yet. He was getting better, but clearly not enough to keep his balance on a snow-laden hill. All it took was the slope being a little too steep, and then he was tumbling head over tail down to the cobblestone trail. Decidedly not stealthy.