Sunset had passed it's peak, and the world around Flint was descending into dusk. The twilight turned the world a milky indigo hue, and the moon was just beginning to gain it's power. The aftermath of an unusually warm day had left the world around her smelling heady and full of life. Flint had been watching the sunset from atop one of the larger rocks in the boulder field, one covered in moss and deliciously comfortable. Unfortunately, she had neglected finding a nook to spend the night in, inn favor of relaxing. Still, somehow she couldn't be bothered to care all that much. Unless a storm sprang up she could just as well sleep in the shadow of a boulder and hardly know the difference. Flint craned her neck upwards to stare at the moon for just a moment. She remembered stories her mother had told her about how the moon was the white eye of a great black she-wolf who watched over the wolves of Terra and when they passed, ran on hunts with their spirits in the sky. It was a comforting thought, but at the same time Flint had trouble believing it. She had never had much contact with gods, and she had never really wanted to. She liked to live her own life the way she wanted to, not the way any celestial wolf wanted her to. She stayed in the shadows as much as she could, trying to avoid their notice, but on nights like this it felt harder than usual. A shiver ran down her spine and she frowned up at the moon. Speech, Thoughts

It was almost a surprise to the brute when he glanced up and saw the sun quickly sinking below the horizon. It seemed like time always flew by when he was exploring new places. He had been carefully moving through the large stretch of land to take in as much information about it as he could. Admittedly, there wasn't a whole lot to see. There was nothing here but rocks, lots and lots of rocks. None of the less, he had given himself to learn the layout of the whole of Alacritis, and that's exactly what he was going to do. He had been here for hours and the sun had left him high and dry here. He sighed and looked around for somewhere to spend the night and came up with nothing. Literally, there was just rocks everywhere as far as the eye could see. He really should have left earlier. There had been nothing to see here. Unfortunately he didn't think of this until it was already falling into darkness and the stars and moon his only light. Tallis looked up at the moon, grateful for its light at least, and then swept his gaze over his surroundings again. He spotted a rock that appeared to be covered in moss and decided that would be better than sleeping on the ground. He had no problem sleeping under the stars, but he did want to at least have some grass or something to cushion him. The moss was a perfect solution. Not bothering to scent the air for signs of other wolves, he climbed his way to the top the bolder. He froze right as he stuck his head over the top of it, seeing that this spot was already occupied. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't notice you were up here," he apologized, giving the fea a smile. He wasn't always the most charming wolf... that was unless it was around a fea. Even when he had absolutely no intentions of trying anything, somewhere in his brain the charm and manners switch got turned on. "Would you mind some company? My name's Tallis. "Speech."

Flint's ears flicked as she heard the faint sounds of paw steps knocking through the smaller rocks and fragmented gravel. She had been nearly ready to doze off but now instead was wide awake. She yawned a wide, face stretching yawn and shook her head back and forth to clear any residual sleepiness from her mind. Flint peeked her head up just enough to see over the crest of the rock she lay on, trying to determine the source of the sound. As it was, she saw a male wolf roughly her size approaching her boulder. Just my luck... She grumbled to herself. She rolled from her side so that she lay on her belly instead, ready to spring up and away if the need arose. He picked his way up her sleeping perch and looked rather surprised to find her there. Flint listened to his polite apology with dry disdain, partially upset with the disturbance but too tired to do anything about it. It had been a long day after all, but apparently there was no peace in this land. "Hello Tallis, my name is Flint," she said as mannerly as she could muster. This male seemed polite enough, calm at any rate, and her first impression of him didn't exactly have her running for the hills. His gray coat melded with the twilight. He asked if she would mind some company and she could only shrug, "Sure, lie down if you want. I don't mind. The moss is quite comfortable." She had never seen herself as an exactly charming she-wolf, in fact more often than not her sharp tongue made her less-than-desirable company. Tonight fatigue had curbed her spite, and she thought it might be nice to know more wolves in this strange land. Having met so many recently, the thought of company was not for foreign as it had been in the past two years. "So what's your story, Tallis? You don't smell of any pack I've come across so far. Have you been in Alacritis long?" The question rolled off her tongue easily, and she lounged as she awaited a response. Speech, Thoughts

Tallis gave the fea a smile as she introduced herself as Flint. That was an interesting name, one he wouldn't easily forget. He then gave her a grateful nod and finished climbing up onto the rock to lie down beside her. "You're right, it is very comfortable," he agreed as he settled in on the bed of moss for the night. His ears flicked forward to catch her words as she questioned his story. "No, I'm not in a pack. Well, not officially yet. I guess I've agreed to join Amenti, but the new alpha is still getting some stuff sorted out and I haven't been with them very long at all. I dunno if I'm even going to stay yet." He shrugged, not worried about the state of his new 'pack'. He was doing fine before he joined and would be just as fine afterward. He continued, saying, "As for how long I've been in Alacritis, I've been here awhile, a couple of years at least. Long enough to explore almost all of it. How about you, Flint? What's your story?" He wondered what she could be doing out here in the middle of nowhere by herself, but to each their own he guessed. He didn't really care what other wolves did with their time. Some may think it's strange for him to explore all the corners of Alacritis so he had no right to judge. Tallis also wondered if he had bothered her, intruding on her space like this, but if she really cared then she should have told him no and to leave, but she hadn't done that. His golden, amber-hued rested on her as he waited to hear her answer. "Speech."

Flint listened to Tallis speak with easy interest, gaze meandering around the scenery, sometimes on him and sometimes not. I haven't heard about that pack yet, she thought to herself as he went on, not wanting to interrupt. Just as well, it sounds a bit shaky. She wondered if she would ever be ready to join a pack again. On good days she was fine company, but other times when the spite was upon her she lashed out at whomever she could. Not good qualities for a pack wolf at all, but in moments like this she found company enjoyable. Perhaps she could only endure it in small doses or with a select few. She had yet to find a large gathering of wolves she could stand since leaving her family all those moons ago. Her interest sharpened as he addressed her, and her brain began to churn as it fought to spit out the correct answer. How long had she been here? time had seemed to run together, what with all the odd climates here, it was hard to tell seasons and she had never been particularly adept at keeping track of the moon or stars. "I've not been here nearly so long," she began. "A moon perhaps. I'm still learning the lay of the land and of the wolves who live here. I've met two wolves from Valhalla and one from Glaciem but none yet from Amenti. Where does your pack live precisely? I must not have come across your lands yet, for all that I've been exploring since I got here." She had hardly slept a night in the same place since arriving, it was instead constant motion, constantly changing scenery. It was not in her nature to be stagnant, or to deprive herself from experiences or adventures. She grew bored too easily. Perhaps that was why she had agreed to spend a night beside a fascinating stranger. She took stock of herself before beginning again. She hadn't thought much of her 'story' in a long while, but if he wanted to know she'd give her best at answering him. "As to my story, it's nothing special. I was born to a small pack with a small claim. I have siblings and aunts and uncles, and was born to the alpha and alphess. It was very boring though, and while my father had me lined up to carry on his line and take over the pack, I couldn't stand the thought of living in the same damned place my entire life, with the same wolves. After my first taste of battle, I passed the torch onto my oldest brother and left. I've been roaming ever since." It all seemed fairly lackluster to her, and she was suddenly a bit self conscious. Her most interesting tales and experiences had been recently, since she had come to Alacritis. For this male to have lived here for so long, she must seem that much more drab. She sighed and looked away, waiting to see what he would make of her. Speech, Thoughts

He listened quietly as she told him how long she had been in the land of Alacritis. He was a little surprised at how short her time here had been, but he believed her. The wolves here came and went pretty regularly. At her return question, he answered, "It's up in the north, in the Red Forest. Not an awful place to live, all things considered. The trees are gigantic so at least there's something interesting to look at." It was the truth. He didn't mind living there. He was a wanderer at heart though, an explorer. That's how he ended up here, far from his new home. She continued on with her story, answering his question. He listened intently again and nodded in understanding. "I know that feeling, being bored and wanting to wander. It's what made me start exploring Alacritis." His gaze drifted over the scenery in front of them, looking out at the field of rocks that was dimly lit in the moonlight. She was easy to speak to and he found himself speaking freely, telling her his history. "I was born a loner, but my father was killed when I was really young so my mother moved me and my sister in with a pack after that. She was afraid she couldn't care for us on her own, you know. Anyway, I never liked it there. As soon as I was old enough I left. My family was happy enough there so I figured they'd be okay. That's when I came to Alacritis and started exploring. Several years later, here I am. I don't have any family or many friends, but I know Alacritis like the back of my paw. I can tell you how to get anywhere." He shrugged and glanced over at her. "I guess maybe it's a sad life, but it's not a bad one. And now I'm part of this pack so maybe I'll settle down, eh?" He chuckled, knowing that was a ridiculous notion for the wandering ladies man, but who knew. Weirder things had happened. "Speech."

Flint's ears flicked when he spoke of his home, and she recalled a conversation she had had with another Alacritis wolf not so long ago. A giant forest? Her birth pack's ancestral home was an ancient forest, but it had been lost to a fire before her birth. Ever since, in her wanderings, she had been looking for the type of awe-inspiring stand her grandsire had told her and her siblings of when they were still confined to the den. He describded towering trees, so wide three wolves would have to stand nose to tail to match their width. It had been the story that had birthed and fueled her itching paws, her need to explore. As Tallis spoke, she felt those flames within her grow. Still, it was not in her nature to outwardly show such things, so instead she remarked, "Massive trees, huh? Well, maybe one day I'll have to check it out." One day as in tomorrow, a voice in the back of her head whispered. As Tallis continued to speak, Flint felt a certain growing empathy for the male. He reminded her in some ways of herself. To busy to settle down, too much wanderlust to be content with pack life just yet. If only there was a pack that roamed, instead of stayed in one place for so long. I'd join up in a heartbeat, she mused. Tallis spoke of his life so far and Flint listened with a higher degree of attention, trying to learn as much as she could about this wolf who seemed so kindred to herself. When he was finished, Flint shrugged. "I know what you mean," she said. "For years I've roamed around, looking for any place worth calling home, and Alacritis is the first realm I've found that even has a fighting chance. I just can't stand sitting still, you know? If my scenery is the same two days in a row I get antsy, and that is sad," she joked lightly. It was only recently that she had had any thoughts at all about settling. She was far more used to feeling the relentless pull of the horizon. Speech, Thoughts

The dark gray wolf was kind of intrigued by the fea next to him. He had never met someone that had the urge to constantly wander, constantly see something new like he had. He kind of wished he had met her earlier, back when he was just starting out his adventures and his exploring. It would have been nice to have had a companion. It got lonely sometimes and he felt like she could have been good company. But there was nothing to be done about that now. Life was life and there was no changing it. Life was funny that way, always throwing in weird twists and turns when you least expected it. Like meeting Flint. That was an unexpected twist that he was actually kinda happy with. At her comment about the trees he grinned and nodded. "I'd be happy to take you there sometime, show you around. It's a pretty neat place." Tallis happily listened to the rest of her words, her voice pleasant to his ears. It had been a long time since he found someone he had really wanted to spend time with, but so far she was good company. She was pretty easy on the eyes as well, which Tallis always liked. He laughed lightly at her joking, nodding in understanding. He completely understood what she meant because he was the same way. Deciding to join a pack had been a weird choice for him, but he was getting older and his exploring was about done. He needed a new chapter for his life and Amenti just happened to come at the right time. His golden-amber eyes looked over at the timber colored fea beside him as he spoke, "I know exactly what you mean! That's why I started exploring. But now I'm running out of new things to see. I love living in Alacritis though so I don't want to leave. I guess that's why I decided to join this pack." He shifted his position a little bit on the mossy bed to get more comfortable, sighing contently. He turned his gaze up to the sky, peering out at the stars and the bright moon that dotted the black sky. It was a beautiful night and he was laying next to a beautiful wolf. What more could a brute ask for? "It's huge isn't it? The sky I mean. There's billions of stars and I'm sure there's more we can't even see. Makes me feel really small sometimes," he mused. "Speech."