They felt groggy. Opening their blue eyes, they found the world they had been forced into. Washed ashore after one too many underage drinking. In a new place, with no friendly face. They groan, covering a snout with one limb. The blinding light of the afternoon was too much to face. They lay there like that for a good ten minutes before something in the Mangrove moved. The being rose regretfully, water pouring from their frame. Making them seem small and insignificant. But weren't they anyway? Before they knew it, someone had egged them on to drink. It probably was a simple little crush on some random stranger. A boy, a girl... Who knew? All they knew is they wanted to impress them. Peer pressure in the end. Taking a drink, they liked it. They liked the burning sensation of the alcohol as it went down their throat. They did not like the dizziness. They had liked laughing and fooling around, perhaps straying a bit close to the water... In another place, another realm. And then, the waves took them. They did not know how long or how far, but they were lucky to be alive. They felt sick. Despite best efforts, they turned their head and heaved their stomach. Gross. Now... if someone was watching them, they would be quick to kick dirt over the contents. They turned back to the lush paradise before them. They were laying on one of the rivers' banks, feeling a bit better after yacking. Composing themselves naturally, they walked forward. There was a brief hesitation. Lost. They were lost, indeed, but they kept going. Moving into the dense foliage, they made their way. Seeking help, directions... Whatever.

She had helped hunt the water buffalo with a group of almost strangers. Having taken her fair share and was now carrying a good-sized chunk back to Ashen, the petite girl kept a good pace. The scent of blood was still fresh in her nose and that was perhaps why she hadn't noticed the other wolf wandering nearby. Slightly exhausted and ready to lay her head down with Oki, Celeste was surprised to see the chocolate and grey wolf looking rather waterlogged.

Freezing in her tracks while mud squished between her toes, Celeste waited a few moments. Did they seem... lost? Definitely not all there by the looks of it. "Oi! You there!" The petite girl chirps toward the stranger as she approaches without caution. Bright aquamarine eyes blink toward him as she stops a few feet away. Definitely lost. "Need help, yeah?" Celeste asks as she shifts her weight, the meat across her shoulder blades feeling awfully heavy. She wouldn't mind sharing with the wolf if they were hungry too.

Celeste Akizora

They nearly jumped out of their proverbial tree when the voice shouted to him. His fur spikes along his spine. Did she have to yell so loudly? The ocean still roared in their ears, making any noise secluded... Which said a lot. She was loud. Much too loud. If they could hear her shouting over their unpopped ears... Yeesh! Still, the wolf did jump. They gave a startled gasp, cat-line in gesture as they placed their paws together and leaped upward. It was a short little jump but still. That meant something. Fur still sticking up, they turned to her. "I... ahem. Yes" Fine, they could be nice. For now. She was offering to help, and the smell of meat was rather... tantalizing. They faced her, their pale eyes not lingering on the food she had. Other wolves could be defensive and territorial around food and concerning food "I do need directions" Their voice was expressive but neutral in gender. Light and forced at the same time. Time to play, they supposed, another round of 101 Introduction to Socializing! "thank you, madame." Bexley glanced back the way they had come. "I washed ashore with no 'shore' way of knowing where I am..."

The reaction of the other wolf was startling in its own way. Taking a step back, Celeste dropped her eyes and narrowed her eyes. She hadn't been that loud, had she? Letting out a soft snort while attempting to keep her hair flat along her spine, she waited for the stranger to give their attention to her. When they did finally turn to her, looking still quite out of sorts, Celeste waited impatiently for them to get their shit together. Their admittance for needing directions made her nod her head. That much had been obvious by their appearance and a dazed expression. She would quickly let out another snort at the word madame. Celeste was in no way a madame, miss, ma'am, or anything proper of that sort. "It's Celeste," the petite girl retorted quickly as her own aquamarine gaze flitted toward the shore. Had that been a pun? So the wolf had jokes albeit poor ones. "They call the continent Boreas and where we stand is Lover's Mangrove," she shot them a wink as her ivory chin turned back to give them her full attention. "Is there a certain place you're looking to be?" For now, she would try to be polite. She had appearances she needed to keep up - being the Renja of Ashen after all. Though she would not offer the stranger a piece of the meat, yet.

Well, wasn't she a bitch? Bex didn't know whether to be amused or annoyed. They settled with indifference. If she persisted, they'd leave or applaud. Whichever came first. "Sorry, love" Bex seemed unimpressed by her brief display of annoyance, lifting a paw to examine their nails briefly before lowering it "my mistake" Despite being loud, they had to admit she was a stunner "beautiful women tend to like formalities... My name is Bexley" They shrugged idly "and unless you can point me in the direction where I came..." They sighed, chuckling "well, I am not terribly keen on returning. No matter." It hadn't been a very interesting place if they were tempted by drinking so easily! "This place will do for now" Lover's Mangrove? Huh. Perhaps she was passing by, or on her way to a special date. Hence the food "you do not need to help me if you have places to be" They added, attempting to return the politeness. Whatever that was worth. They fixed their pale eyes on her "but if you know of a fun time to be had somewhere, I'm all ears." They'd leave it up to Celeste to determine what 'fun' was. The wolves in Boreas could be fun or boring. They leaned on stiff right now. Their head still pounded but... Ah, what did people say? A good hangover was cured with another, stronger, drink!

The attitude of this stranger was amusing. Perhaps waking up on some random shore hadn't been that much of a doozy after all. Rolling her eyes in an obvious manner as the wolf picked at their nails, she slowly took a seat. Carefully wrapping her braided tail around her front paws, she pursed her lips. "Honey, females that insist you address them by a formality simply have a stick up their ass," Celeste slowly turned her nose up into the air. A tantalizing smile did tickle at the corner of her ivory lips as she eyed the stranger. "You're not a bad looker yourself, Bexley" she comments as she brings her nose back to a position where she can look at them straight on. As this Bexley continues, she looks them over once more. Not that she was particularly picky about who she hung around, they weren't exactly her type either. Friends, sure, maybe possibly frenemies if their attitudes clashed. Definitely nothing with benefits though. Celeste needed someone who could pick her up and throw her over their shoulder. You know, those big, goofy, dumb types. "I always have somewhere to be, Bexley," she bats a paw in his direction before a shrug lifts her shoulders. "Yet, I can make time for someone who looks like they just tried to drown themselves," her aquamarine eyes glance over their waterlogged form once more. "Depends on your definition of fun. Do you prefer the hunting type of fun or the getting drunk type of fun?" Celeste's attention never strays as she now awaits their answer.

They could not help but chuckle. "And you obviously do not, else you'd be walking funny" Bex retorted, falling easily into banter more than forced formalities. Yes, that sounded much more fun than being all stuffy! "but you still carry the regalness of a queen, love" They did point out to Celeste "better be safe than sorry, hmm?" They gave her a wink. It was just playful banter and nothing serious. While she was a looker - anyone could see that - Bex didn't really care to form attachments yet. They literally just woke up ten minutes prior. A queen should be pampered, and they were not the type to fall over another wolf. They preferred to be pampered instead, but good luck finding someone who would. Probably an ugly wolf would bow more easily... "Oh, I'm too pretty to drown" Bex cawed "or I'm just dumb fucking lucky" They admitted, shrugging "drinking sounds better than hunting right now. I am afraid I won't be much help, smelling like a dog and alerting all the prey" Alas, Celeste did not seem to have any drink on her! "but I am very open to your type of fun."

Their answer to her question would tell her what type of wolf they were. If they chose hunting, they were all work and no play. If they chose to drink, they were all fun and no work. Curious, Celeste was honestly not surprised when Bexley offered the other type of fun due to their smelly demeanor. Letting out a warm laugh, she moved to where she had set down her small supply of meat. Grabbing a decent-sized piece, she brought it over to them. Placing it in front of them, Celeste took a step back to give them some space. "We can fix the smelliness," her nose wrinkled in jest about just how smelly they were. "If you follow me, I can take you to a good place to bathe and a stash of some good booze," Celeste shot them another wink before smiling once more. Of course, she was talking about the Hot Springs and generally, there was a traveler or two who had some sort of alcohol wandering around these parts. "We can take a dip and have a drink. What do you think?" Her head tilts gently to the side as she awaits their answer.