GOT AN ANGEL ON MY SHOULDER But the devil always won... Jaws latched delicately over the pine fronds that peeked above the still frozen lake. Hárekr chewed at them playfully. Funny frozen trees. He skittered across the ice, building up momentum then sitting on his butt and seeing how far he could slide before running into a tree top. What an odd little place! Scrambling back to his paws he moved on to the next tree, attacking it then backing off only to strike again. Hárekr's focus was scattered and his wandering spirit pulling him into new areas of the North. He knew he should probably be scouting down near other packs and assessing them but he just loved the norther territories so much and he still hadn't explored all of them yet.

The moment he rounded an outcropping and laid eyes on the lake Basileus froze. His eyes narrowed briefly in confused as he tried to figure out what exactly he was looking down at. Far below him and nestled between two mountains was what looked like a lake with one exception: he could very clearly see trees through the water. The brute cast a sidelong glance to either side while scenting the air. He was alone, which was both a blessing and a nuisance. He needed to find his man and head home already and if he wanted to do it quickly he couldn't risk anymore distractions. But... His gaze once more went to the spectacle below and he licked his lips. A couple minutes of investigation - perhaps he was wrong and Enrico had taken refuge down below? - couldn't hurt any. The trail was already cold; how much colder could it get? With his mind made up Basileus began to make his way down the mountain. By the time he reached the lake he was no longer alone but Basileus chose to approach anyway. Maybe he would get lucky - which was unlikely - and the stranger would speak Italian and be able to answer some of his questions, perhaps even point him in the right direction. And maybe, if he were really, really lucky, he'd suddenly sprout wings and Basileus could jump onto his back and let the man fly him to his target. He could hope, right? After stopping at the edge of the ice Basileus called out, "Buon giorno! Parla italiano, signore?" Briefly his gaze left the stranger as he placed a forepaw on the ice to test it. Clearly it could be walked upon since the man was sliding around on it, but how wise was it? For all he knew the man was crazy or diseased and as a result, fearless.

GOT AN ANGEL ON MY SHOULDER But the devil always won... With a crack Hárekr snapped off a branch, dragging it across the ice for a moment before shaking his head violently, sending a spray of needles everywhere before he dropped it.  He exhaled calmly, breath turning to smoke before his face.  Slowly he began to walk again, eyes gazing down below the ice, musing over the nearly vertigo feeling… suddenly his eyes would glint and raced and slid on his belly pretending for a moment that he was a bird and he was flying.  Slowly he'd return to his feet, eyeing another tree.  He was about to spring when he heard a voice.   Turning Hárekr gazed at the handsome ruddy fellow before him.  Ears would shift to attention as the man spoke and while Hárekr did not fully understand the language it did sound very similar to one he spoke.  "Buenos días, señor.  Ehhh…" Parla Italiano?  He wasn't sure what this meant exactly but he figured Italiano was a language and the other was asking if he spoke it. "Lo siento.  No hablo italiano.  Hablas español o inglés?"  He gauged the question carefully, making sure his enunciation was clear but he had no idea if the words would mean anything to the other.  "Me llamo Hárekr."  He gestured to himself.  They should be able to get each other's names at least but he wasn't sure what conversation might occur beyond simple introductions.

Basileus had been expecting many things. To not understand a single word put his way was not one of them. He was becoming accustomed to being answered in english, so being answered in something that most certainly wasn't that threw him for a loop. The first part was spoken like a greeting but the rest of it... Ha-blah what? His brow furrowed and he hummed thoughtfully as he tried to understand. That one word sounded an awful lot like inglese. It couldn't be a coincidence. Clearly uncomfortable with the language he was speaking, Basileus asked, "Inglés is English, yes?" The gesture and emphasis of the stranger's final statement made it easy to figure out what the man was saying. He was getting pretty good at introductions. It seemed some gestures were universal. Already he could tell he was going to struggle with this man's name. Before it even reached his tongue and he was simply rolling it around in his head Basileus found it to be unwieldy. "Harekr?" Taking what he assumed was a mention of english and running with it, the mafioso continued speaking it. "My name is Basileus. My english..." He shrugged. "Not good."

GOT AN ANGEL ON MY SHOULDER But the devil always won... Hárekr was chatting on happily until he saw the that the other man seemed very confused as to what he was saying. Ah… well, it had been a shot in the dark. The bi-colored male gazed at that red-pelted male as he started to speak very rough English. Hárekr nodded quickly. "Yes, English. My English is good." He resisted the urge the immediately pick up chattering on in English as it was clear the other man wasn't comfortable with the language. Shame. Hárekr's head tilted to the side as the other introduced himself as Basileus. "Nice to meet you Basileus." Hárekr nodded as the other pronounced his name. "Yes, or Háre, if that is easier." Hmm… how to have a conversation with someone he couldn't quite speak to. "Are you… exploring?" Hárekr took a few steps like he was walking away and looking around before turning back to the male.

Basileus latched onto Harekr's greeting. It was one he'd unknowingly butchered on more than one occasion so hearing it again was useful. Nice to meet you, insert name here. He committed it to memory again. Greetings here seemed to be just as important as they were back home. He had yet to meet someone who didn't part with some kind of pleasantry before leaping into a conversation. "It is nice to meet you, Harekr." There. Ritual complete. "Are you… exploring?" Oh, boy. Here came the hard part. Basileus eyed the man as he tried to act out the unfamiliar word. With the visual aid it was easy to get the gist of what was being asked although the meaning of the word itself was still a mystery. "I'm looking for someone. A friend. Are you..." he ventured, testing out the word in the hopes of gaining insight. "Exploring?" Hover speech for translation

GOT AN ANGEL ON MY SHOULDER But the devil always won... Despite the language barrier Hárekr did not feel uncomfortable though his thoughts were drifting and his spirit was urging him to move on to the next new location. He wasn't sure where this new found restlessness was coming from. Perhaps the winter was just making him stir crazy. Yfir had been rather quiet. He knew he would need to start pulling more weight in the pack but being in any sort of leadership role just wasn't his style. He would follow but he would not lead. It was not his place. The ruddy man would speak back to him. Oh? Looking for a friend? "What does this friend look like? Perhaps I've seen him?" It was unlikely but Hárekr did run into a rather odd assortment of loners. He just hoped this friend wasn't the wolf he'd maimed recently. "Yes, I'm exploring. I like to travel… to move."

The odds of this man being able to help him were slim, but it didn't hurt to give him a description. Who knew, perhaps this man was the one person in this whole god forsaken land that Enrico had encountered. It seemed highly unlikely since Harekr wasn't at all familiar with italian, but stranger things had happened right? Maybe he'd simply seen him, simply glimpsed him from afar. There wasn't anything about the man to immediately commit his appearance to memory, but perhaps this Harekr fellow had a thing for short, dark and handsome. Slim, slim odds indeed. There were a lot of what ifs, but he already knew the odds were poor so it wasn't like he was setting himself up for heartbreak. "He is eh, your...tall? Height? All gray. Dark face and legs. Blue eyes." The description was poor at best, but it was all he could offer in a language that wasn't his own. Hover speech for translation

GOT AN ANGEL ON MY SHOULDER But the devil always won... Hárekr gazed at the man, taking in the description of the wolf he was searching for. He was as tall as Háre, a few shades of gray with blue eyes. Well he knew of a strange little gray wolf with blue eyes but he was tiny and he was Cesar and probably not the wolf the scarlet man was looking for. Hmmm…. he sat down, eyes narrowing slightly as he pondered. Mind racking through all the wolves he’d met recently but alas he came up with no one that seemed like an appropriate match. Háre shook his head. “No. I have not seen anyone like that. I’m sorry.” He offered a lopsided grin. “I wish you luck. I must get going, goodbye.” He dipped his head deeply to the other to show that it was a parting gesture, not one of agreement. Time was traveling swiftly and he needed to get back to Yfir before sunset. -exit-