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A lone hawk flew high overhead, riding on the warm air currents. Below him stretched an endless sea of green. The hawk eyed the ground, searching for moment. There, a spot of brown and white fur! The hawk dove, wings back and talons outstreached, ready to take his prey.

Suddenly, a bit of tree detached itself from the trees and plummeted on top of the rabbit. Feeling cheated the hawk let out a cry of frustration and anger, flapping his wings and pulling himself back into the air.

Leo looked up from his kill at the retreating bird, grinning. Hawks and eagles were always useful for tracking down and easy meal, though the young rabbit he had taken down was a silly creature and hadn't even bothered to hide itself.

The green male settled down to enjoy his meal. One part of his mind was always trained on his surroundings, the other went to his life. The tribe was still very young, and not too active. There wasn't a whole lot to do. He spent most of his time with his mate, but the last few days Aegle had seemed especially distracted. Most likely due to her son, Dakari. He wasn't privy to the details, but he knew something about it was upsetting her.

Leo saw a shadow cross over the ground in his little clear space. It was too big to be a bird, but he wasn't quick enough in looking up. All he saw was a flash of reddish-brown color disappear from sight.

The green male didn't worry over it too much. No other animals in the sky really liked tangling with foxes, except for the the winged foxes called modiphims. Phims were usually a friendly lot though, and rarely ever looked for trouble. Omaticaya boasted of at least three among their ranks.

He made a mental note to head back to Hometree later in the day to report the stranger. Omaticaya was friendly, but very cautious of newcomers.

Leo had to smother a laugh. It was indeed a Phim he had seen, white and rust, a big male. The colors and size combined meant that sneaking would have been very hard for him, especially in their given surroundings. It was a point of pride for Leo to be able to stand still in front of a bush and seem to vanish.

It didn't help most Phims that air was more their domain. They weren't very quiet forest-walkers. In short, Leo was not taken by surprise by the newcomer's arrival.

His rabbit was finished anyway, nothing but fur and a few bones left. He pawed at the ground next to them to bury them, so that annoying scavengers wouldn't come lookin' to start a fight. "You'll pardon me for saying it, stranger, but you sure don't look like a Phim that spends time on the forest floor. You got business with me?" His tone was light and curious; he was not trying to evoke a defensive response, only show that he was confident with his position.

"I would have to agree with you. I have met very few Phims in my life, and all of them have been black and white." Leo glanced up at the tree he had been in. The green fox was more at home in the branches as well, and here in Omaticaya trees were big enough to provide homes for families of varying size.

The tree he had been in was too small for both him and the Phim to fit comfortably, but it would make a nice stepping stone to reach the larger tree next to it. There was a thick branch, some thirty to forty feet up, that was wide enough for both of them.

"Branches, huh? Tell you what, why don't we take this conversation to a more comfortable venue for the both of us then." A quick jump, a little scrambling, and he was up his smaller tree in seconds. He ran across branches like he was a squirrel and launched into the larger tree. Leo used the multiple smaller branches sticking out to pull himself up towards the target big branch.

Leo landed on the target branch. From his momentum he almost fell, but a quick jump to stop some of the energy and sharp claws took care of it. He admired the ground so far below, and then turned to look at the Phim who had followed him.

"I suppose an introduction would be in order. My name is Leopold, but everyone calls me Leo."

Leo shrugged casually. "There's no reason. I come from a small tribe, not even an official one. We live in forests, with trees that are many times larger than normal ones. The one we stand in now is a good example."

Leo looked off across the forest, taking in the view. "The closer to Omaticaya tribe lands, the bigger the trees. This is only the outer fringes of their lands."

He smiled and shook his head slightly. "I'm much a wanderer at heart still, so I roam the forest in seach of information or useful herbs for our healers. I also enjoy seeing my mate, who is not yet a part of my tribe."

Leo nodded. "I love my mate, very much. But sometimes it's nice to just be someone else." He paused, trying to gather the words in his head. "I've got a temper. I'm headstrong and do what I want to do. That's just a part of me. When I'm with my mate, much of that gets put to the side. You have to compromise to make a relationship work. But every now and then I need the chance to be the fox my mate doesn't often see."

Leo wasn't sure if Charis could agree with that or not. Some foxes believed you had to be your whole self for a truly happy mating. It was just a difference of opinion that made them all individuals. Secretly Leo believed there was no way possibly anyone was ever their 100% true self with their mate, not unless they had been together for a very long time. That's what it was about wasn't it, spending those years together to learn about the other after the initial attraction brought you together?

Leo tilted his head, gazing curiously at Charis. "You have no idea how odd that sounds. I'm no prophet or wise man, just a headstrong brawler that goes for what he wants. I don't think I've ever helped anyone with words before." He chuckled, still a little amused and bemused by the whole situation.

"So what about you, Charis? What do you believe in?"