Grumbling under her breath, the female trudged through what she thought was a forested area. The wind smelled of trees, grass, and leaves as it brushed through her thick white coat. Her fur ruffled and she paused in step to raise her head. She felt a presence quite close to her. Reaching out a paw slowly in front of her, she attempted to see what she felt to be so near. It felt rough on her paw and quite large. Deeming it to be a tree, she turned a bit to the side and continued on her trek. Her ears flickering back and forth at the sound of the birds in the trees singing to one another, it almost seemed calming. She had been walking for quite some time and figured that now would be better than never to take a break. Sitting on her haunches, Salym raised her head into the air and felt the wind whip up her fur once more. Taking in a deep breath, she blinked as she felt the sun peak through the tree tops and illuminate her fur with a slight heat. She closed her eyes for a bit longer before opening them once more, each time slowly hoping she could see once more, but she was still blind. She would be forever, but that didn't mean she wouldn't stop hoping. I swear to god. She thought to herself as she looked around once more, still seeing nothing, but being able to feel a type of closeness in the area as the trees hugged close to her. Her ears twitched back and forth continuously as she caught her breath and kept wishing to herself that she could see once more. "SPEAK!" THOUGHTS

Art by Skylark

The youthful aura that this area emanated was what drew him back here. He'd met the woman with the fiery coat here, and he felt himself grinning lopsidedly at the recollection. He had come to know quite a few interesting creatures since coming upon these lands -- he certainly did not regret leaving his family's tribe, though admittedly found himself missing his sisters quite deeply. Each of his pawsteps were careful as he made his way through the nook, letting the scent of the young trees fill his flared nostrils. Though the day was warm, the gentle breeze that ruffled his pelt was refreshing, making the day quite pleasant overall. Only the sight of another in the distance would brighten his demeanor. Though unfamiliar to him, he felt an inkling of curiosity build in his chest as he examined her from afar. After a moment of thought, he decided to approach, his gait anything but quiet as the massive beast drew closer to her. Only when he was within hearing distance would he let out a bark to greet her, his head dipping to the earth respectfully. "Hello, miss," Áki would speak somewhat gleefully, glad for a potential distraction from the monotony of the day.

As Salym sat under the tree and began to start enjoying the feeling of the wind through her fur, she felt a bit of a big presence. She thought nothing of it, since she couldn't hear anything close at the time. Her ears constantly twitching at the possibility that it was more than she was expecting and the female wanted to be prepared for it just in case. She lowered her head lightly before she heard a huge big sound of a large animal rushing toward her. Jumping up in a bit of surprise but preparedness, she turned to the sound. She wasn't quite pointed right at the figure, but enough to where it seemed like it made sense. Her fur prickled and stood up along her spine as she lowered herself on her front haunches, teeth bared with a strong growl beginning to emit before she heard the sound stop. "Hello, miss." The sound hit her ears and she stood up a bit straighter, still not letting her guard down but enough to make it seem as though she wasn't going to try and attack what sounded as though a male presence. "What do you want?" She spat at the male. She was unsure if he was there to harm her or even if there were more of them. Her ears were frantically twitching to hear if there were more but all she could hear aside from him in front of her were the birds in the trees. She blinked a few times, secretly hoping she was pointed at him, but chances were that she was more so angled diagonally to the side of him, keeping him in front of her, but never looking directly at him. Her fur was still standing on it's end and her very white blind eyes staring harshly at the general direction of him. "SPEAK!" THOUGHTS

Art by Skylark

Most of the wolves that he'd met thus far in Alacritia had been quite pleasant. There was little reason to be anything but, in his mind -- he was only threatening when he had reason to be, and was never openly vicious to strangers. Aki was far too happy a man to be bogged down by needless anger. Though his steps were wary as he approached the stranger, he made no effort to conceal his approach. Only when he crept a bit closer did he notice her posture stiffen, her hackles raising in protest at his presence. "Oh," the massive brute breathed softly. Had he startled her somehow, unintentionally? Slightly bewildered, his head dipped to the earth and his ears flattened against his skull. "I want nothing," he admitted, quite taken aback at her harsh response to his simple, friendly greeting. The warmth of the summer day had lightened his spirits and he had been interested in the prospect of a conversation with a stranger -- though she seemed anything but friendly. "From you, at least. In general terms, I want everything." A crooked grin spread on his lips, his tail batting happily behind him. Oh, yes, he was selfish -- the world was his domain and he wanted to experience as much of it as possible. "What do you want, lovely?" There was nothing teasing in his voice, only genuine curiosity. A few small, wary steps closer had let him examine her more fully. Though scarred, she had a sort of innocent beauty and he couldn't help but wonder why she was so initially stand-offish. "Forgive me," he uttered after a moment, his voice thick and heavily accented with a northern tongue. "How rude. My name is Áki."

Keeping her guard up, Salym listened as the male drew a bit closer. She lowered herself a bit more at each step in preparedness. "Oh, I want nothing." Salym heard and lifted her ears a bit higher from being flattened to her skull. Her fur was still standing up along her spine, and she was now directly looking at the male with her blind eyes, doing her best to keep him in front of her and listening frantically for any sudden movements from him. She kept her teeth slightly bared when she listened to the next set he spoke. "From you, at least. In general terms, I want everything." She wasn't sure how to take that. Was it a joke or what? She lowered her guard a bit when it seemed as though the male was smiling. "What do you want, lovely?" She listened and believed about as much as she could and put trust in this stranger that he wasn't going to end up ripping her throat out. She sat back on her haunches, her ears constantly twitching. "I... I'm not sure." She spoke, softer and less harsh this time. Her ears picked up as she faced in his general direction, listening to see what he was going to do next. Hearing his words, she tilted her head a little bit. He was actually saying sorry for not introducing himself. This confused her. Where she came from, you never introduced yourself unless you were in a pack or you were about to kill someone. She curiously lowered her head a little bit and blinked with her blank blind stare in his general direction and nodded to him slightly. "I'm Salym.." She spoke calmly, but still had an underlying hint of confusion and distrust. "SPEAK!" THOUGHTS

Art by Skylark

Only when he moved closer would he note that her eyes were milky-white; they reminded her distinctly of Kalliope's own vacant stare, though he knew better than to assume anything based on first appearance. Her posture relaxed a bit at his cheerful words, though she did not grow completely comfortable in his presence. His own gait was completely nonthreatening, his tail hanging limply behind him as he approached with his head tilted slightly toward the earth. She was significantly smaller than himself and he was aware of this, and though he wasn't the most honorable of creatures, he certainly was not one to purposefully strike fear into the hearts of others for no reason. 'I... I'm not sure,' she answered in response to his question. Though her tone was not quite as harsh, it was still not as friendly as he would've liked. Still his gaze was questioning as he watched her, hesitant to move much closer for fear of angering her.. or worse, scaring her.  "It's a pleasure, Salym," he greeted her with a smile in his voice, testing the name on his tongue, finding it strange to him.  "You sound like you aren't from around here," he observed with a hint of curiosity audible in his deep tones. It certainly was a strange name, though he knew that his was likely strange to her as well. "Or is this young forest your home?"

Salym shifted her posture a bit in a slightly uncomfortable way. Her ears constantly twitching more at the sound of the birds in the trees. She felt a gentle breeze brush through her pelt and she shook out her fur a little bit with it. Her gaze blankly staring in the general direction of Aki. "It is a pleasure, Salym." She heard from him. Her head slightly tilting with it, she never heard someone say something like that to her. It was a bit refreshing but still didn't make her feel more comfortable. She listened for his thick accent once more. "You sound like you aren't from around here." She thought about it for a moment before he paused mid sentence. "You're right. I'm not from around here. I'm passing through." She spoke to the point and reached up with a paw to scratch at her ear. She settled back down and sat back on her haunches. "I'm at least attempting to." She admitted to him, making a slight motion to her nose and eyes. She twitched her ears once more. I can't see." She spoke, once again to the point. She didn't seem upset about it, but treated it more as a matter of fact statement. Her eyes looking in the area of where she thought him to be. It's, uh.. It's nice to meet you." She said softly, almost as if it was an awkward thing for her to speak of. "SPEAK!" THOUGHTS

Art by Skylark

It was strange to feel such an uncomfortable aura coming off of her, though she seemed to relax slightly at his presence as he spoke further. The woman's gaze was vacant even though it was fixated in her general direction, not looking as though they were staring, and her gaze was eerie in its emptiness. 'I'm not from around here. I'm passing through,' she informed him, and he would nod in understanding. "As am I," he told her carefully. She went on to inform him that she was attempting to pass through, elaborating that she couldn't see. His initial assumption had been correct, he noted -- and this new bit of information might explain why she'd been so standoffish initially.  "I didn't realize," he admitted a bit sheepishly, feeling awful for having approached her suddenly. Had he startled her somehow? Hopefully she wasn't afraid of him.  "And I honestly mean you no harm I was merely hoping for conversation." Despite his own selfish nature, he certainly wasn't cruel; and the worst he would do to her would be to leave her on her own, if she honestly didn't want his company.

Staring blankly as the male explained the situation, Salym exhaled gently. "Oh." She spoke gently before turning her head slightly to the breeze. She closed her eyes for a few moments, taking in the new smells that came with the wind before she adjusted her head back to normal. "I'm sorry. I'm not used to people being... kind.." She spoke gently, her ear twitching as she remembered back to the time where you had to keep your head lowered or you'd lose something. That pack was definitely something else. She sighed gently."If you're looking for conversation, I'll talk. It's been quite some time since I've had good company." She spoke gently and offered him a gentle smile. Her eyes a pure milky white as they stared off in the direction in which she thought he was. "SPEAK!" THOUGHTS

Art by Skylark

He was happy that she confirmed her blindness to him, though he would've been content had she not said anything at all. His own sister, Sabine, rarely spoke about her own lack of sight -- to her, it was not a weakness, merely a fact, and one that she saw no need to talk about. Gods help anyone who dared imply she had any sort of defect The brute would crack a smile, nearly laughing at the thought of his fiery sisters, briefly wondering what had happened to make Salym so defensive and so unlike his own blind kin. "No apology needed," he dismissed her words with a shake of his skull. She said she wasn't used to others being so kind. He wouldn't necessary say he was kind, but he was deeply social... interested in conversation, merely curious and adventurous. Perhaps he was selfish in that regard, but he certainly didn't mean harm to anyone unless they gave him reason to act against them. It was a bit surprising though that she wasn't used to kindness; though he himself had been met with some resistance when meeting the wolves of this continent, they seemed rather accepting and eager to talk, though her cold exterior might be off-putting, the more he considered it. "I love to talk," he agreed with ease. Perhaps the only thing he'd like more would be to talk to someone in his native tongue, or someone from his tribe, or a related tribe... though he knew he had journeyed too far south to find any kin or familiar clans here. Her features lightened a bit as she smiled gently. Warily he took another few steps closer to her, his pawsteps somewhat aimless so she could hear where he was moving to -- he'd grown used to his own sister's blindness and had picked up on subtle behaviors to make their life simpler. "Though what sort of conversation interests you, I do not know," he admitted a bit forlornly. He'd grown used to his tribe's culture and he knew little about these wolves.. if they had any sort of beliefs or interests that differed from his own.

Keeping her signature blank stare, her ears continued to twitch to the sounds of his words and the animals that surrounded them. The wind blew into her chest and fluffed her white fur up a little bit as she pondered on what to say in return to the male.  "You seem like it." She admitted, though whether or not it seemed harsh was something she hadn't thought beforehand. She lifted a paw and rubbed her cheek lightly before shaking her fur out. "I haven't talked to anyone in such a long time, I'm not sure what kind of conversations interest me." Her voice was softer as she slowly began to realize that he wasn't a threat. Her mind bounced to the past, then to what the future may hold, and continued to bounce to and fro.  She sighed lightly. "I truly think it's best if you were to decide the conversation." She admitted, shifting her weight and keeping that blank stare.  She wasn't sure where she was, but she was curious to see what kind of stories this male had. "I'm sure you have interesting stories.  We could take a walk if you'd like? I get a little nervous sitting in one spot for too long."  She admitted once more to the male, she stood and shook out her fur again, letting the wind dance along the way of her body. A small yawn approached her face and she did her best to hide it as to seem like he wasn't boring her. He wasn't, but she hadn't really slept decently for so long. "SPEAK!" THOUGHTS

Art by Skylark

Though she couldn't see his expression, he wore a pleasant smile, happy to get to know a stranger -- even if she was one of the colder creatures he'd met this far in his life. His smile was likely audible in his voice, his tones chipper even despite her wariness. Her comment elicited a snort from him, though the sound was friendly.  "At least you are honest," he'd comment with a chuckle. Her demeanor was quite flat and he found himself wondering what all she had gone through to make her so... blank. She seemed to grow more comfortable in his presence, and yet unsure how to direct the conversation. For a moment, he felt at a loss -- without much to work with and in the presence of a female that was nearly impossible to read. And yet her suggestion to walk together would ease his discomfort slightly.  "A walk sounds good," he nodded eagerly. This place would likely be easy for her to navigate without much focus, too, as the land was relatively flat and the scent of the growing redbud trees was extremely pungent. "I could tell you about my sister," he began as he started to move, moving one paw carefully in front of the other. "Well -- one of them. She is blind too, though she likes to talk even more than I do and she's quite intense, if I do say so myself."