He might have noticed there were animals about, but hadn't been paying enough attention to realize they were animals of a sort that shouldn't be active in the morning. He'd later noticed he was being watched, but as he had no intention of hiding his activities, hadn't bothered to pay it much mind beyond making a note to be cautious in case of hostile intention.

This had the unfortunate, for him, side effect of leaving him alert to things such as sudden, loud noises.

The unexpected note garnered an impressive reaction, as he jumped so sharply that his feet almost actually left the ground. He quickly turned toward the source of the noise with a yelp, eyes wide with alarmed surprise...