Angelus was exhausted. He'd spent the better part of the last month serving as healer, hunter and protector of a very sick, very bitey King. With his father squirreled away under the tractor in The Range Angelus finally felt like he could breathe. Taking care of his father had been a surreal role reversal. While it was true that he himself no longer needed the kind of care he'd been providing, his father had been, until his illness, his leader and to some extent his protector. Temporarily taking his father's place had been a bizarre and oddly empowering experience. There had been more than a few moments in the beginning where he'd wondered if he was heartbeats away from watching his father slip into oblivion. The days had been long but those moments when he'd watched and waited with his heart in his throat had been infinitely longer. The brute sank to his belly on a precariously eroded bank beside the river and for the first time in what felt like a very long time, allowed himself to relax. A long, relieved sigh left his lips as he felt the tension leave his body. Angelus had wandered off in search of a moment of peace. Not silence per se, but peace. He needed a break from tension.

Amaranthe

Hmm, the south was quite preferable to anything in the north in the winter. Here it was much warmer and with a nice lack of snow; in the north, there was snow - even if was the white fluffy kind. Still, a black cat didn't do too well in white surroundings. So south she went, through wolf pack lands and loner lands, through water and over dry land... and now in what would be an orchid if the trees weren't barren of their leaves. She hadn't run into many wolves, other than when she wandered into pack territory, but hey, wolves didn't really pay attention to cats. They were just a small predator that ate the occasional mouse or rabbit.

She didn't really pay much attention to the wolves, either. A few interested her - like the bell lady, with the sweet chimes that she adored so much. But otherwise, okay, big fluffy predator that ate big things and left the little things for her to scavange on occasion. Big whoop. The cat paused by the river and yawned, multicolor eyes slits as she did so, glancing around.

While many wolves didn't catch her attention, the one slowly laying down and sighing certainly caught her eye. He nearly sparkled purple, and he looked so... relieved. He did smell funny, though, so she approached with caution, her mouth parting in order to breath the scents of the male better. Hmm, it wasn't him who smelled funny, but someone who he had been with. A sickness, she could tell.

"You look quite relieved, purple wolf," she commented softly, drawing to a sitting position several feet away. Enough that if he snapped at her, it'd be all too easy to scurry up a tree.

"Speech"

The sound of the river was almost enough to put him to sleep. Almost, but not quite. Over the past several weeks Angelus had been given few opportunities to gather his thoughts. Now that he had the time to simply be his thoughts threatened to keep him awake for days. He felt like he would need days, maybe weeks, to digest the adventure he'd gotten sucked into. A small voice drew his heavily lidded gaze away from the river. Upon laying eyes on the speaker Angelus spared her a slow blink as he processed exactly what he was seeing. It wasn't often that other species chose to speak to him. It seemed a rather dangerous thing for one of the speakers; in one way they were always mismatched. Prey and predator...predator and larger predator. Why this cat, this tiny, helpless predator, chose to speak to him, a wolf, was beyond him. "The last few weeks have been very long, tiny cat," he rumbled. Angelus stretched out his forelegs and threw his head back as his lips parted in a gross yawn. After a few moments he relaxed and once again let his gaze rest on the cat. "I'm glad they're behind me." He eyed the little creature with an openly curious gaze. If he had been so small he didn't think he would be so eager to speak to wolves, knowing how hungry they were.

Amaranthe

Truthfully, Amaranthe wasn't quite certain why she would approach the larger predators - perhaps because she was curious? Many have been quite confused, called her insane even, but she knew that for the most part she'd be fine. Quick, agile, and quiet when the need arises, Amaranthe had always been able to slide out of dangerous situations. Perhaps it was a dangerous quality, but surely life would become dull if there was no adventure, no danger!

She had made the right decision, though; this wolf would not hurt her. He simply regarded her curiously, and she grinned in his direction, a rumbling, amused purr coming from her. She quieted down as he began speaking, though she stood and drew closer to the canine. She nodded slowly to his words. "I would imagine so. Were you sick? I've seen... several wolf corpses through my travels that have reeked of sickness. No other species shows sign of this sickness, though, other than you guys." It was quite curious; the scenes often stank with the rotted, deathly scent of sickness, and, well, death. She avoided them, but it was hard to miss them when you traveled places. This wolf didn't seem sick, just tired, but it was possible he had just fully recovered.

Of course, said wolf just yawned, and she grumbled a protest as her own jaws parted in a yawn, though she tried to find it. Nope, instead came a huge yawn... that she squeaked. While yawning. Ugh. Huffing her herself, and blinking rapidly after the yawn, she listened as the wolf spoke again. She nodded. "I imagine so, regardless of what your troubles were." And then he was regarding her with the most curious of gazes, and she laughed quietly. "Wondering why I'm talking to you?" she questioned lightly, tail flicking behind her. Of course he was; what else would he be curious about?

"Speech"

Perhaps it was dumb luck plain and simple that had spared Angelus from the sickness. He's been surrounded by it for weeks and even played, albeit poorly, doctor to someone afflicted with it. Somehow he'd managed to bumble his way through that without contracting the illness himself. Dumb luck indeed. In response to the cat's first question Angelus shook his head. "No," he rumbled, "It passed me over. Got my dad and brothers though. My dad was bad. Ended up chasing him halfway across the continent." The man could travel, Angelus would give him that. "He's finally getting better," the brute added slowly. "Don't know about my brothers..." And there went his moment of peace. Were they alright? Surely they were. He couldn't imagine life without them. "Wondering why I'm talking to you?" In response to this Angelus grunted an affirmative. It was a little odd, yeah. Didn't seem very wise. "Yup," he added. "Doesn't strike me as a very bright idea." She might be confident in her ability to dart up a tree, but Angelus was equally confident in his ability to keep her from reaching that tree.

Amaranthe nodded to his words. That sounded like an... unfortunate situation. Certainly would be a tiring last few weeks, if he had to chase his father halfway across a continent. And even so, out of worry, since he didn't know the status of his brothers. But why did the father run all the way across the continent? Hmm. Well, several wolves she encountered that were sick seemed almost delusional, clearly sick, and still were moving. Likely, that was why. Satisfied with that logic, she responded to Angelus. "That does sound difficult," she agreed. "And if it makes you feel any better, if your brothers look like you or were of your size, I've seen no corpses - nor sick wolves - of either. I've been a lot of places, and while I haven't seen every wolf, I'm pretty sure I might have at least glimpsed them." Okay, maybe that was a bit cocky... but not wholly inaccurate. She did travel a lot, and she go through some of the most populated areas of the sick wolves, and it just struck her as likely that if they died, she'd probably run into them unless they went straight north.

It wasn't a topic she concerned herself with, however. They were not her brothers, and even if they were, they'd be capable of fending for themselves. That was her species' way, though there were some groups, and of course if someone was in need no one would hesitate to assist. But so long as one insisted on independence - like her siblings - she would leave them very well alone unless they direly needed assistance, or requested it. Wolves were different, though. They were group creatures, pack creatures, through and through. Whoever they gathered as their family they stuck with, for better or worse. They didn't have the tendency to travel from those they chose as their family, their group. That was alright for Amaranthe; after all, it wasn't exactly her species.

She purred in amusement as Angelus responded to her inquiry, nodding. She knew it. Of course that was what he was curious of! And truly, it was humorous. She grinned up at the wolf, tail flicking to and fro. "Well... yes, and no," she admitted. "If I were to charge recklessly into the first wolf I saw and exuberantly greet them... yeah no, that'd be stupid. But with caution, a moderate friendliness, and having an escape route, it's quite easy to approach and interact with bigger predators. Plus, most predators do not see a creature such as myself much a threat. And truly, we aren't. True, given the advantage of surprise and luck, I could probably fight a wolf. But without the advantage of surprise? No way, unless out of complete luck. And even then, I'd likely be super injured." She hoped that made sense; it made sense in her brain, anyways.