I did. Not that there weren't larger trees anywhere, considering my home's known for pine tree forests, but they weren't where I grew up. Instead it was more steppes, deserts, and prairies.

[ Fortunately for Steve - or possibly unfortunately, depending on whatever chatter Claude can come up with at any given point in time - he can multitask by climbing and talking away all at once. This much is easy to tell Steve, hand in hand with the trust extended again and again over so many months. Even more so in the aftermath of more recent events, of which he glances down yet again. ]

You're not the first person who's tried to harm me, war aside, though I'm pretty sure you didn't mean it or else you wouldn't be here offering to catch me.

[ It's meant as an explanation more than anything since Steve seems reluctant to believe this shouldn't be something more. And it is, somewhat and in the technical sense of what'd happened, but in Claude's mind attaching fault to something neither of them could have ever predicted doesn't make sense.

There's better things to focus on instead, such as their task here as he swings himself up onto a branch while holding onto the vine just in case. The branch seems sturdy enough to support his weight, so he'll take his chances on it (and Steve's reflexes) to look up into the branches above. Nothing stands out at first though when he's about to say so, something catches his eye. ]

Hey, we picked the right tree since I can see several of them. [ And he's already on the move again towards the ones immediately in reach, though a plan wouldn't hurt. ] If I can get the ones right here, I'll drop them down to you if that works.