Hunched over as he was, Gage didn't look like much of a threat. Not that he'd been trying. At the sound of the voice, he snapped his head to the side, almost perfectly meeting the other's gaze through the branches though he didn't know it himself. To others, it often seemed that way, but he only met gazes because he looked in the direction of noise. It seemed people liked to think their gaze was being met. Tense because of the intimidation, he swallowed hard and took a second to answer. Just what sort of person did he confront? What was their purpose here? Could he escape from a panther, human or bat form? Though a part of him wanted to be afraid, he squashed the feeling, leaving his heart beat even and easy to hear over. "You're a shifter." Not a question or an introduction. He just stated the one fact.