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Ronan ^^ note to self this is present day, 10/24/25

North was as good a direction as any, though the dog of Rensley did not know how it felt about the cold biting into its skin. Physical bodies were a hindrance and an annoyance, it had decided, growing discomfort in all areas of its form causing it to walk slower.

One was an easy fix. If it got too tired, it would sit. Rest quivering limbs until it could walk again. The stinging in its paws was an easy thing to ignore, even when cracked pads left pink blood prints in the snow.

The others were not so simple. There was a burning sensation in its throat and its tongue stuck to the roof of its mouth, and somewhere around its stomach felt hollow. The dog did not know what this meant until it spotted the river.

Instinct led it to the bank, where it dipped its head and took a drink. Only, it was not used to the motion, and inhaled while it swallowed, sucking water down the wrong way and eliciting a furious coughing fit that burned and scratched up its throat and made awful noises over the sound of running water.

It was very bad at being a creature, it decided. There was a deep, aching homesickness somewhere behind its ribs, even past the choking.

The dog of Rensley was interrupted from its coughing fit by the sound of a deep, unfamiliar voice. It did the opposite of what was directed and spun to face the stranger, multicolored eyes round and surprised. He was a very large canine, not a hellhound but nearish the size of one. They fought the urge not to bare their teeth - there was no need for fighting, should the large wolf not start it, but the dog knew that it could bite now.

Ain't lookin' for trouble.

A strange accent. The dog had grown accustomed to the thick, lilting tones of the humans in the town, but this one was different. Odd, but warmer. It did not move closer, but it also did not move away.

In response to the question, it nodded its head, blinking slow at the wolf. The dog had not spoken before, but it attempted it - mouth opened, the only thing that came out was a hoarse croaking noise. Embarrassed, they flattened their ears to their skull and looked off to the side.

It really was so bad at being a creature.