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The forest seemed quieter than usual. Perhaps it was because the battle with the mara had ceased. The strange creatures had either been destroyed or fled back to Eowyn, leaving everyone on Soudul to try and regain some semblance of normalcy.

Natzathil sat in the grass, thoughtlessly plucking at the blades that brushed against his legs. This was where he'd been only a few weeks ago, carelessly joking about the importance of his life with Aeris. He stared at the place where she'd crouched next to him, informing with with all seriousness that it was wasteful to throw something so unique away. At the time, it had been so easy to refute her points, but it was impossible to disagree with her now. Where he'd once been careless with his actions, Nat held an actual purpose now, something to keep him going even when it seemed futile to do so: revenge. The only problem was figuring out where to start. Laying in the grass wouldn't get him far, but the solitude and serenity the forest offered was more than welcomed.

Despite the battle that had waged right near his home, Nat still had yet to come face-to-face with the foreign creatures. The only contact he'd had was watching one depart from his home with his sister tossed across its shoulder. He'd asked Granda about them, but even the elder warrior had little knowledge about the mara. He wasn't ready to set out from home yet, but it would be easier to get a move on if he knew something about them. If only he knew someone who'd been near the battles...

It shouldn't have been so easy to drift off out in the middle of nowhere, but the tinkering of leaves in the wind, cool grass beneath his palms, and comfortable shade of the forest brought with it a certain serenity that left Natzathil dozing, despite his generally negative thoughts. Not awake, and not yet fully asleep, it took the young man several long moments before he recognized the disgruntled rumblings of some foreign beast as reality, and not a figment of his imagination. With this realization, Nat's lids popped open, his body jerking roughly to the side as he started.

He notched himself up on his elbows to look around. Heart pounding and body tense, the boy scanned his immediate area. Instantly, his attention riveted to the muted rumbles and footfalls of something almost certainly large enough to cause actual damage to him. His lids pinched together, creasing near the corners and nose wrinkling as a small... dragon emerged from the trees. Slowly, Nat stood, lips swishing to the side as the creature approached him. It wasn't exactly moving quickly; not pouncing as a predator would, and it was small enough that Natzathil didn't find himself in immediate danger. And despite its grunts and growls, it didn't seem expressly angry. Just annoyed. Likely not even at him.

It was with some hesitance that Nat hummed out a muted, "Hello," with a polite inclination of its head. He'd never seen the creature before, but perhaps it lived in this area? If he was treading within its territory, there hardly seemed reason to be rude about it.