Frostfall. It's prints were everywhere, the snow swirling in the sky, the drifts up sides of trees and the biting wind that now snapped at the bulk of d'Artagnan who scowled into the frozen arches. He'd managed to empty his bag of snow and didn't quite fancy having it filled up again, so he rather stomped off to take cover under the slabs of ice. Aramis was out hunting, though the shade didn't know what exactly his hound would find in the vast expanse of the steppe. Though his trips seemed to be much shorter these days since he'd discovered a new talent that allowed him to travel at ridiculous speeds. d'Artagnan had been astounded when his bonded suddenly disappeared from his sight, according to Aramis, he was simply slipping through time dimensions similar to the Nightshade's own barrier magic. Though d'Artagnan never really understood even his own magic, it just happened upon his will, did he really need to know the ins and outs? It protected him and that was that. There was something far more pressing on his mind than magic though, the mystery of Kou.

Why could he never find her these days? Was he destined to spend his life looking for her? Perhaps that was his punishment for leaving her in the Worlds Edge, for not coming up with a good enough plan to save her, for being a disappointment. Again. No matter how far he climbed in his life, no matter prestigious he became, he could never go that extra yard. Always a disappointment to someone. He had magic, knowledge, victims in the ground and Aramis, if anything, Aramis was saving him everyday. The hound never judged and simply followed, his silent and solid company the Nightshade's biggest relief. Defeating the boggart and claiming the egg that housed his hell dog was perhaps his best victory. Little did he know, that day, he saved himself years later.

Hooves echoed against the hard cold floor, he'd set out with the plan of finding more poisons since he could now carry them with him, but his mind had quickly switched to Kou. He would collect the flora and try find Kou, though this time he could not stray far, realigning himself with the Basin once again. He would never chase after his old role, he no longer wished for that title, perhaps he'd find a something more suitable. For now, the Doctor of the plague was keeping his mind busy by returning to his favourite hobby; poison gathering.