Mazikeen had gotten into the habit of being more obsessive about border patrols for Hyaline when she had lost her shifting. It was a way to contribute and a way to tire herself out. And, of course, to keep an eye out for any more monsters that might slink across into the shadows and harass those that called this place home.
Now that she has her shifting back, the habit has been hard to break. It is, in a weird way, comforting to keep it up.
It’s something to do, something to keep her focus on, so her mind doesn’t stray into the multitude of topics she thinks she’s better off avoiding. And now there’s a host of different animals she can become, to practice with this new form of shifting. On this particular day she wore the shape of a sabre-toothed cat, black instead of her usual white colouring - only keeping her bright orange eyes and relishing the ease with which the feline pupils cut through the darkness.
It’s almost a relief when she spots the stranger cross into Hyaline. Someone new to meet, something else to focus on. She’s curious if it’s a new shifter recruit or someone just passing through.
As she approaches, she shifts from the sabre-toothed cat to herself - the glow from her twisted horns not doing much to light her way but they illuminate the white mare she becomes and the area around her. The gentle current of the lake catches the orange and red light too as she comes to stand nearby on the shore, fixing the stranger in her bright gaze. There's a wariness to her tone when she speaks, but it's not particularly cold. It's been a while since anyone new has wandered in here - anyone that wasn't crafted from shadow and bent on blood, anyway. “Hello. Can I help you?” Which is a friendlier version of the question she wants to ask: ‘what do you want?’
@[Ciri]