It took only a few spoken words to have their undivided attention, which left the young gryphon highly amused. Clearly, they were not used to having anyone like her talking to them. Golden hawk's eyes watched them intently, pupils wide against the darkness. She had no owl's vision, but her sight was still good enough to pick up the nuances of their movements. Even the little ones that might have gone unnoticed by one who did not have a lingering concern in the back of their mind that the one they were speaking to might attack instead of listen. She could never be sure upon approaching a horse if they would be open to her overtures or not, and she would never expect them to be anything but wary at the very least.

"Ssso do not ussse the ssspoken worrd, Ssshadow-sssisssterr. Have you not hearrd one sssay that actionsss ssspeak louderr than worrdsss? If it upsssetsss you, ssspend that enerrgy on sssomething that will not bite back. You do not need to know the name of the emotion to know it doesss not make you happy." It was quite simple to her, and she did not understand why they did not see the wisdom in this. The other one tried to explain in dry tones, and she flicked her tail in disdain. "You do not embrrace what isss inssside, and fight it. Yourr sssisssterr is prresssent prroof that sssuch an outlook is dessstrructive to herrself. While ssshe crried, any hungrry prredatorr would have made an easssy meal of herr and ssshe would not have noticed until theirr clawsss and fangsss were in herr flesssh." This too she saw as simple truth. She had been a silent witness to the blind and hurried path the white-marked one had made on her way to this cave within the ice. A pack of wolves or a hungry bear could have stepped into her path and she would have blundered right into them.

But then they turned the conversation to herself, and the gryphon fluffed her feathers. "I do not sssocialize with the norrtherrnerrs. They are vile sssavagesss concerrned with nothing but mating and hunting. I do not eat what they do, ssso they leave me be. Until sssome young male trriesss to take me asss hisss mate, and I do not apprrove of them. Ssso they have no luck in that rregard." Her beak clacked once, expressing her distaste of the subject clearly. "Asss to why I guarrd you? The Woodlandsss in Isssilme accepted me asss one of them, brriefly. I apprreciate having converrsssation that doesss not cirrcle arround bloody land-meat orr mating." This time her tail lashed and her ear tufts flicked back, before she resumed her calm and relaxed pose. Being expressive was second nature to her, being of a species and clan where body language was so vital to survival. How else could a hunting pair decide on a target while aloft? How else would youngsters express themselves to their siblings and parents without having to fall back on lengthy talking? She knew this held true amongst herds of horses as well. A warning against danger was more effective when you could alert others of that danger before it became aware of you. And a simple squeal or a neigh could convey more than a string of words that took exponentially more time to say the same.