The midday sun reflected off the glittery sand with blinding intensity. With that light came an unbearable, energy-zapping heat that beat down on the travelers without mercy. Odysseus, for the sake of his dignity, trudged on without complaint. Olafur, however, cared little for dignity and, not content to be alone in his suffering, was more than happy to make his displeasure known. The macaque draped himself across his friend's back. He let himself lay completely limp; his arms and legs flopping around with each step Odysseus took. If not for the occasional long suffering sigh he could have been mistaken for dead. Finally, after several minutes of putting up with the flopping and sighing, Odysseus caved and humored his companion. "Problems, Olafur?" The macaque sighed, then, "It's very hot. I think I have a sunburn." The giant harrumphed, then grumbled, "Think it'll kill you?" "I sure hope so," Olafur responded despondently. Odysseus groused back, "Me too." The monkey, satisfied that his friend was indeed just as miserable as he, fell quiet and the pair continued to trudge on in amicable, if somewhat sour, silence. "ODYSSEUS" / "OLAFUR"

With a smug smile on her face, the nymph sized woman fled across the warm sand. She paid no mind to the uncomfortable heat of the day, because locked between her jaws was a succulent prize,  a prize she has search long and hard for. Clams! She has never eaten clams before, but there is a first for everything, right? And she was excited to try these out! Marco seemed to like them, so maybe she would too.

As the tree line of the forest appeared closer than every step she would slow down to a lazy pace, her wolverine companion steadily following behind her. She wasn't in a big rush, just excited to pry these bad boys open and try them out, since Marco spoke so highly of them. Sitting down in shady spot, she would drop her mouth full of clams and hungrily stare at them. It was then that she realize she wasn't alone out here. A couple yards away off towards the shoreline was a very large wolflike figure, and she could only assume that it was another canine. Not very many wolves traveled all the way down to the southern region of Ala, so this strange figure appealed to her curiosity. Maybe this wolf was looking for clams too? Idly she would bark to let the stranger know she was there.  She wasn't trying to invite him over, but she wouldn't stop him if he decided to investigate.

Ooc: phone post! :)

Odysseus was perfectly content to continue walking on in silence; he enjoyed the time alone (well, almost alone) with his thoughts. Most of the time he preferred it to the near constant depressed musings of his pessimistic friend; other times it was kind of entertaining to poke fun at him. At least sunburned and "facing death" seemed to have silenced the macaque. For now. A woof off to the side brought Ody's head around. Without looking at his friend, the brute could only assume the jostling he felt was the macaque's head popping up as he too heard the woof. Odysseus blinked and then squinted to make sure what he was seeing was real. Not all that far away stood a tiny, vibrantly colored woman. "Vibrant" didn't quite do it justice; she was BRIGHT RED. An unholy, unnatural, unbelievable red. A gasp from Olafur snapped Odysseus out of the entranced spell the red had put him in. "She has clams!" Odysseus rolled his eyes and shot a glance in his friend's direction. Of course Olafur completely overlooked the woman's unnatural coloration in favor of her meal. "And...?" "And maybe she would spare a few for a dying man's last meal." He nudged Odysseus's shoulder. "Aren't wolves social? You should go say hello." "You just want clams." After a beat Odysseus sighed. She'd already seen them; they couldn't just walk away, could they? After dipping his head in greeting the brute took a few steps closer so conversing would be easier. His voice a deep rumble, he called, "Hello, miss!" Olafur was quick to chime in with a, "Nice catch you got there!" "ODYSSEUS" / "OLAFUR"

"Hello miss!" The mans reaction to her bark is cheerful and inviting, so she doesn't protest when he takes a few steps toward her. There are a lot of bitter wolves in Alacritis, (herself included) but this guy didn't seem like one of them. Hopefully their encounter would end well then.

"Hello." She responds softly, her crimson gaze sweep his gigantic form. (Well, gigantic compared to her) He is very handsome, and the little fuzzy mammal on his back is interesting. "Yes, I found some clams by the shore earlier. I have a lot, way more than we will eat." She signals toward Marco with her head to specify who she is talking about. "Hey!" He screeches, "These are OURS! And we aren't sharing with nobody!" "Oh knock it off Marco, or you aren't getting any of them." She scolds him to shut him up before turning her attention back toward the stranger. "My name is Fiamette." She introduces herself politely. This dudes lucky she's in such a good mood today, usually she isn't this nice to strangers, but something about him grasped her curiosity. Maybe it was his damn good looks?

Odysseus could hear Olafur's breath catch as the woman hinted at sharing. He could feel the monkey's little fists tighten in his fur at the thought. The woman's companion, some kind of chunky mini bear, mouthed off but the red woman quickly silenced it. Odysseus was unperturbed by the creature, but the way Olafur's fists tightened further told the giant that his friend wasn't too keen on the mini bear. "It's a pleasure, Fiamette. My name is Odysseus and this is Olafur," he motioned to the macaque who quickly sat up straight and tried to make himself more presentable. "I didn't think we'd see someone this far out," he commented. "Are you from the north?" They hadn't seen anyone since deciding to cross the land bridge. "ODYSSEUS" / "OLAFUR"

'It's a pleasure, Fiamette. My name is Odysseus, and this is Olafur.' Odysseus... The name astonished her, and sent shivers down her spine. It couldn't be him... There was no way this was him. The red eyes, they didn't match the dark pools of grey her little Ody had. Plus, Ody was mostly black, and this man had other shades of grey and grayish blue mixed into his pelt. The build though, his large height and stunning bulk, matched exactly what Ody would have looked like as a grown man. She can't help herself. She's too curious and has to ask where he came from to make sure this wasn't her little Ody, her only son who had vanished with Artemis a long time ago.

"I was born in the south, and spent most of my childhood there. Now I roam pretty much everywhere, staying in one place is awfully boring." Her crimson gaze sweeps his form again, a tight knot forming in her throat. "How about you? Were you born in Alacritis? If so, perhaps in the southern region?" Her tone is hopeful, but she knows not to be too optimistic. There are so many wolves in Alacritis a few of them were bound to have the same name. How marvelous would it be though, if fate had brought her only son back to her. Oh the questions she would ask him, the love she would rain over him. If this was Ody, maybe he could lead her back to Artemis, and her heart could feel whole again.

The reply the woman gave him was confusing. He was now sure that she was coming from across the land bridge since no one he knew called the land he was coming from Alacritia, which meant the south she was talking about was still north to him. "Indeed it is," he chuckled. Both he and Olafur were fond of wandering. Occasionally homesickness made Odysseus wander home but for the most part he was content with traveling the lands. Technically Odysseus was indeed from the southern region. He was from the south of the south and one couldn't get anymore southern than his birthplace - any further and you'd be in the ocean. But he was sure that wasn't what she meant. He shook his head. "I'm from the south, yes, but not the south you're thinking of." He jerked his head in the direction of the way he'd come. "From the land back that ways. Never been up there," the brute motioned towards Northern Alacritia, "but that's where we're headed now." "ODYSSEUS" / "OLAFUR"

Anxiety gnaws at her heart strings as she waits for his answer, the black tip of her tail fidgeting behind her. When he does speak the shred of hope she has subsides, but she does not change her facial expression. She does not want him to become aware of her inner turmoil. Although it saddened her that this was not her little Ody it also brought relief. She knew that Artemis would be safer if they were still traveling together, which brought some peace to her worrying mind.

The fact that he has never been to the heart of Alacritis greatly surprised her. He has missed out on so much, mainly politics between packs and rouges but it was critical history nonetheless. "Oh my, you've never been to the heart of Alacritis"? She says astonished. "You're in for a treat then." Sarcasm emphasizes the word treat. "I've wandered those lands since I was old enough to walk, and I've witnessed many critical events within my three years of living." So much had happened within the few years of her life, from her being a princess to becoming a queen, she had already done so much for her young age. "One things for sure though, don't bother going up there if you don't know how to defend yourself." She eyes him curiously, her Crimson gaze searching for any scars or blemishes in his coat. He didn't look like much of a fighter, but neither did she. Looks can be deceiving though.

"Northern Alacritia," he corrected. Until recently the two continents had been isolated from one another. Their inhabitants had lived and died in their own separate worlds. What mattered in Northern Alacritia didn't matter in Southern Alacritia and the events that were considered relevant in one were, likewise, irrelevant in the other. "I don't know if I'd go so far as to call your half the "heart" of it all," he said lightly. "One things for sure though, don't bother going up there if you don't know how to defend yourself." At this he chuckled. That certainly made the north sound more interesting, didn't it? "Don't you worry about us," he said firmly. "We can handle ourselves." Well, he could. The only thing in Olafur's favor was his speed. Odysseus on the other hand was a fighter through and through. He was made for such things and readily accepted the violence he was predispositioned to. He didn't just look the part; he embraced it. He eyed the red woman curiously. She cautioned him that he needed to be able to defend himself if he were to head north but she herself didn't really look like much of a fighter. "What of you? Are you simply here for the clams or are you on your way to the south?" He caught his mistake and corrected it. "Southern Alacrita, I mean." If she was expecting the inhabitants to be softer down there she was mistaken. "ODYSSEUS" / "OLAFUR"