He daintily placed a front paw atop one of the fallen stones, looking up at the interesting structure with a curious expression. Many of them were far too large for him to even consider climbing on top of, but if he was smart, and he believed himself to be quite gifted in that department, he could use some of the toppled stones as stepping stones to get higher. The intrigue of seeing the world from such a high vantage point was too much for him to resist. Leaping up semi-gracefully onto the stone, he cocked his head to the size, eyes squinting as he marked out a suitable route to take. With a few heaves and grunts, Laith made his way higher and higher until finally, very ungracefully and with some quite frantic scrabbling, he managed to pull himself up onto one of the higher-standing stones. A gleeful bark escaped from his maw as he stood up as tall as he could, green eyes staring out at the landscape around him. It was quite a sight to behold, and he paid no mind to the fact that he would have to eventually find his way down without falling and breaking something.

It was rare Spirit wandered far from home these days, and when he did leave it was always with a purpose in mind. Today he was in search of something to help his sick sister, anything at all. It wasn't like he was having much luck - plant life was usually more abundant in early spring but with the nearly nonexistent daylight it seemed like everything was either wilting, or being overtaken with strange growths, by mushrooms and crystals. Though he was quick to avoid as much of these oddities as he could, he knew even a wolf as cautious as Gloom getting sick meant that he was just as likely to fall victim to this strange disease. He simply wondered now what might help her; a cure would be ideal but if nobody else in Abaven had found one yet, he doubted he'd be the one to.

Spirit wondered if perhaps something anti-inflammatory would help her? He wracked his brain for ideas and then went searching, heading a bit north from home. The strange stones up ahead briefly caught his attention, and it was only when he was heading that way that someone let out a bark and alerted him to their presence. At first he froze, paralyzed in the faced of uncertainty, but a moment later he managed to snap back to reality. "S-sorry," Spirit stammered quietly, though he took a few steps closer to one of the smaller stones. Herbs often liked to grow around rocks so he wondered if he might find some here. "I don't mean to intrude." Perhaps this was home, or perhaps not, but either way he didn't mean to be a bother if he could help it.

His pleasantly quiescent moment was interrupted by the voice of another, and he peered down with a scrutinising gaze at whoever dared to have spoken. It was a wolf who looked quite small from his vantage point, but going by the leg length Laith deduced they were likely taller than him, and they had a pelt comprised of a myriad of browns and whites. The one thing that stood out to him was the piercing blue eyes that stared up at him. "It's a free world, do whatever the fuck you want. I don't give a shit," he drawled out, taking the time to drop down onto his stomach and fold one front paw over the other as he looked at the other wolf with a somewhat disdainful expression. Laith did not own these stones, nor were there any scent markers placed around it signifying any ownership, so he was a little mystified at why the other male thought he was intruding. "Do you apologise to everyone you meet as a greeting, or is this a special occasion?" Laith said, a corner of his mouth lifting up in a small smirk. This wolf seemed a little cowardly, and he wondered just how far he could push any buttons to get them to open up a bit, or maybe even yell at him for being rude and disrespectful. He liked testing boundaries, even if occasionally he went a little bit too far and got a set of teeth to the face for his antics. But given he was all the way up on the stones, and the other wolf was on the ground, he felt pretty confident that he could leave this encounter unscathed no matter what the outcome was.

The stranger's reaction was hardly what he'd expected- it was the polar opposite of how Spirit would've responded, had he been in Laith's position. "A-alright..." He replied quietly, willing his stutter to calm, but to no avail. He wondered how much easier life would be if he weren't a stammering mess; but dwelling on it only seemed to make things worse. It wasn't something he could control on his own, or he would have long before now. Anxiety was a core pillar of his personality that he'd long since accepted; fighting it was fruitless.

Unfortunately for Spirit, he cared less for first impressions and much more for helping his sister right now - and of course, not stepping on any toes in the process. He frowned slightly at his reaction, though otherwise didn't do much else. "A-apologies aren't so bad," he started carefully. "I-I'd rather someone think I'm strange than.. r-rude." Not that he was implying Laith was, it was merely a fact. "I-if you want me gone, I'll go. I-I'm just looking for something."

The other wolf did not rise to the bait, if anything he seemed to become more withdrawn and quiet. Well that was boring of him, he didn't even give Laith anything to tease him about with that response. Other than the stutter of course, but that was overdone and likely wouldn't result in anything fun on his end. He'd likely just drive away this wolf if he did anything too intense, but it was a bit of a lazy day so perhaps he could be incentivised to not be as cruel as he normally was. Laith had to resist the urge to roll his eyes and groan. Apologies meant one cared about how the other was feeling, and therefore they were inherently unnecessary in his opinion. He cocked his head to one side, squinting at the other male. "So that means you're strange but not rude... and I'm rude but not strange?" He hmmphed softly to himself. That he could get behind. Rude was at the very core of his nature, and he couldn't give less of a fuck if he came off as strange or not, so it was a win-win all around. He raised the paw he had folded over the other in the air in a sort of 'woahing' motion, wanting to halt the other wolf before he started doing anything else. "Hold on there pal, I never said I wanted you to leave." If anything he was just getting started. He was just the slightest bit curious as to what the wolf was looking for, and perhaps he could get something out of it for himself if he played his cards right. "Perhaps I could uhh," he raised his shoulders, quirking an eyebrow, "Help you out with whatever you're looking for?" He'd want something in return of course, but first he wanted to know if the other wolf even wanted any assistance. His green eyes then darted to the bag the wolf was carrying with him, pursing his lips slightly as he wondered if perhaps it had something to do with that. "What's in the satchel?"

If Laith was looking for someone to egg on, Spirit was definitely not his man. If anything he was nervous to a fault, to the point that he'd probably apologize tenfold even if the other man was the one at fault for anything; though with his sister being sick and wanting to find something to help her, he found himself a bit braver than he might normally be. Perhaps he would've already left by now, but instead he stood and faced this male with an admittedly strange attitude, giving a small shrug. "I-I didn't mean it like that," he admitted softly. Even if he sounded a bit offended by his words - Spirit wasn't totally sure if he was or not - he seemed at least vaguely interested in his company, if nothing else. Interesting. Maybe he was a bit rude and strange too.

"M-aybe," he suggested lightly. How could he help though when Spirit wasn't even sure what he was looking for himself? He wouldn't deny the stranger a chance though. "I-it's for herbs," he explained, taking a glance down at it. It wasn't like there was anything in it though, not after how the last few months had been; he definitely had his work in replenishing his stores cut out for him, if the sun only came out again. It was hard to imagine what life might be like if all this strangeness continued forever. Spirit shivered at the thought. "M-my name's Spirit," he introduced himself timidly after a moment. "I'm just looking for herbs to stock up." It didn't seem necessary to get into the specifics, not unless he pried.

He stared with a single raised brow down at the wolf. Yea sure the larger wolf didn't mean it like that, he definitely believed that. In any case, he let it be, not wanting to antagonise him too much at that moment. A soft half chuckle half scoff left his maw at the explanation for the bag. Of course it was for herbs. How pathetically boring. Why couldn't it have been for something cooler, like a collection of bones from defeated adversaries? He paused for a moment, considering doing just that in the future if he managed to swipe himself a bag such as the one the stranger had. That was a tempting idea. "Well I know fuck all about herbs," he drawled out, getting comfy atop the rock once again. Maybe he wasn't so interested after all. Herbs were boring, except for the poisonous ones, but e didn't trust himself to be able to reliably identify which ones were which. The male introduced himself after a few moments, and Laith softly sniggered to himself. That was a big contradiction; this wolf had no spirit whatsoever, and he was sure if he said boo loud enough he could scare him. "Laith," he said curtly in response, starting to feel a little bored now with the conversation, but perhaps he could spice it up a little, and get something out of it himself. He was no fucking charity, and didn't do anything out of the goodness of his heart unless there was something for him in return. "I could maybe be persuaded to help you look for your plants," he said with a pointed look, ears flicking forward to try and seem more interested than he really was, "but I'll need a little something for my effort. A little trade deal, just between the two us." Laith left it open for the other wolf to decide what that something would be, and he was not pedantic about exactly what it was, just as long as it was somewhat interesting. If Spirit was not open to his suggestion then he'd promptly send the stranger away to go look by himself, as he was not a wolf to beg for something too much.

Spirit didn't need much help feeling antagonized - he did it pretty well all by himself, a perpetual cycle of self-loathing and doubt that no one could really worsen at this point. Half the time he was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the nuances of the expressions of those around him, or maybe downplaying how others might view him was a coping mechanism of sorts. He'd lived a life rife with disappointment - he'd been disappointed as much as he had disappointed - and it wasn't like a single interaction with a wolf who was as gruff and unpleasant as Laith might ruin his demeanor. He had more important things to worry about, after all.

"N-nice to meet you, Laith," he stammered out. Finally letting his attention drift away from the man who wasn't completely a strange anymore (at least by some slim measure he wasn't), examining the bottom of the stone structures more closely for anything that grew there. The past few months had been unkind to these lands though - even the grass that remained was sad and wilted, and only the smallest weeds seemed to catch his attention. Veering around the rock he was laying upon, he sniffed at the plants there, his nose digging around the vegetation for anything of interest. Laith spoke then and he tilted his head high to glance up at him, curious. "W-what are you looking for? I fear I don't have much," he admitted nervously, shifting his weight from one side of his body to the other as he tried to wrack his brain for anything that might interest him.

Laith let out a silent sigh between his lips, feeling his shoulders physically lower in exasperation at Spirit's attempt at pleasantries. Had the other male not figured out by now that it was completely unnecessary? The wolf then began to sniff around the base of the large stone he was perched upon, and he watched with a single raised brow. It just looked like grass, moss, and some flowers, so what the fuck was he looking for? His head dropped at Spirit's query, muzzle now resting on his front legs, his paws dangling over the each where he gentle waved them, indiscreetly showing his waning interest in the conversation. God, this wolf was a bit of a bore. No imagination at all, going by the apparent struggle at thinking of literally anything to offer in return. Laith let Spirit suffer for a short time, simply watching him silently, wondering what might happen, but then an idea struck him. The other male was kinda pretty, not stand-out handsome, but he had a few things going for him, and the blue eyes could be an excellent feature if Spirit had the balls to actually make use of any flirtatious tactics. Laith also liked physically larger males, and Spirit was definitely taller, but he was a little too lanky for his own personal tastes. And the personality, bah, it needed a lot of work. Overall though, it was workable. "How about a kiss?" He said with a suggestive lick of his lips, half wondering if Spirit would even be receptive to the idea. Laith was quite curious how this shy and reserved wolf would respond to such a question, and that thought along made him a little giddy. Even if it was refused, it would be entertaining to watch. "Then I'll help you search for your plants," he added as an afterthought, hoping to sweeten the deal a little.

There was nothing of any use here. It was time to move on, and he would soon, but Laith talking to him was more than he'd gotten in awhile. As skittish and introverted as he was, he didn't really like being alone, but that didn't mesh well with how terrified he was of nearly everyone he met. Laith's gruff demeanor was no exception, though he hadn't told him to beat it quite yet. Maybe he'd stick around for a moment long to see if he knew anything, or could help - he offered to help him look and he felt a bit of hope rising in his chest, though it was swiftly silenced when he realized he had little to offer in return.

But Laith did all the thinking for him, suggesting a kiss. Spirit felt a swift surge of blood rush to his face and he felt his legs begin to wobble beneath him. Was he goading him? Perhaps he wouldn't help him at all after this; perhaps it was merely an attempt to humiliate him. But he had very little pride when it came to helping his sister. He'd go further lengths than this for something to help cure her, or even relieve her suffering. "O-okay. Fine. A kiss." He didn't move right away, trying to muster up the courage. "B-but you come down here first," he demanded, not half as confident as he wanted to sound. He'd do it, but he wasn't climbing all the way up to him.

He was expecting to be met with either a resounding no and hurried backing away from him, or reluctant agreement. Instead, Spirit seemed oddly... receptive to the idea. Not completely interested per say, but he had said yes. Maybe there was a little bit of a spark inside this reserved wolf after all. A soft bark of a laugh left his lips at the demand from the other male, a little surprised the wolf could muster the courage to even make such a request. But he wouldn't push back, he'd need to get down to help search anyways. It took a bit of wobbling and balancing, but Laith eventually scampered his way down the large stones without making a fool of himself, and came to stand in front of Spirit. His head tipped back to look up into the sky blue eyes, a small smirk on his own face. "You're a little tall, so it'd help if you bent down a little." He wasn't ashamed of his smaller height, in fact it worked in his favour to make him a smaller and faster target for when he pissed off the wrong wolves. Laith wasn't sure if Spirit knew how to kiss, but he had had some practice of his own before, so was fairly confident in his own abilities. He reached up with his neck to close some of the distance between them. "Just a quick kiss, I won't be too greedy." Once Spirit bent down to close the gap, Laith would bring their muzzles together for a gentle kiss, using his tongue to spice things up a little by trying to lick into the other males mouth if he'd let him. He would only let the kiss last for a few seconds before drawing away, not wanting to press his luck too far.

In any other circumstance he probably wouldn't have even considered what Laith had asked him for, but the truth was that his sister was quite sick and he'd do anything to help her. Even if he couldn't manage a cure, and he was doubtful he could, at least he could find something to help her. Maybe an herb that helped ward off inflammation would help, or even something to help her sleep while she she was riddled with the strange ooze that had gripped her. Accepting his little kiss was much, much more about that than anything else, but he'd do his best to be brave and hope Laith held up his end of the deal. He didn't seem the friendliest of wolves but he had to hope he was at least a man of his word.

There were few things in the world he was good at, and kissing was definitely not on that list. He'd never kissed anyone before, never even considered it. It seemed a straight forward enough task though and with his goal in mind he knew he had to do it. He nodded when Laith came down to meet him, suggesting he need to lean down - and he did just that as Laith initiated the kiss. The act was strangely intimate and he swore he felt his soul momentarily leave his body, like he was actually floating away. But it was finished nearly as soon as it started, and left him feeling even more flustered than usual. He'd liked it, quite a bit actually, but it wasn't time to dwell on that. "L-l-let's get going," he said finally, his voice as stuttery as ever but a bit stronger now in tone.

Spirit leaned down willingly, and as their muzzles touched it was like a little spark shot through his mouth and spread down his cheeks and neck. He hadn't kissed anyone in a while, and it felt just as dazzling as he could remember, even if his kissing partner seemed a little shocked and froze up. Maybe this was his first kiss after all. Laith spent a glorious few seconds taking in the experience before pulling away with a smirk, more than happy with his end of the deal. He held back a snicker at the stuttered response from Spirit, glad to see his amorous abilities had not diminished since he last made use of them. "You lead the way," he said with a motion of his paw, wanting the other male to decide wherever the fuck they'd be searching, and for whatever herb he was after. His knowledge of herbal plants was exactly zero, and he had no desire to know what they were for or who Spirit intended to use them on. "Describe to me what you're searching for and I'll try to look, but I'm gonna be honest here, all these plants look the fucking same to me." They were all some shade of green or brown with either flowers or no flowers, and sometimes they had thorns. He'd never bothered to figure out the small differences between them, and he wouldn't start now. As they began to move away from the collection of strange stones, Laith spared a glance at the other male, eyebrow quirking up as he grinned wolfishly. "You ever kissed anyone before?" Sure, Laith knew how to kiss someone, but he knew he wasn't that good of a kisser to make his partner react the way Spirit had, so he could only assume it was the others' first time.

Their kiss concluded nearly as quickly as it had started, and left Spirit with a dozen questions that wouldn't even begin to reach his lips. He'd never even considered being attracted to anyone, certainly not anyone he'd just met - was it possible he liked males, like his brother? The heat he'd felt rise to his face only intensified, and he felt it trickling down his neck and making his whole body feel like it was on fire. "O-okay," he stammered, beginning to move away from the strange stone structures. He hadn't found anything of use there, so he feared finding anything elsewhere, but he had to try, and hope that Laith had a fresh view that might help him spot something he'd otherwise miss.

"I-I'm not sure," Spirit started, licking his lips nervously. "M-maybe we can find some boneset. It's.. very recognizable. G-grows in tiny little white clusters, like little white hairs instead of petals, sometimes in really big groups," he explained as well as he could. Boneset was said to help against fevers and he hoped it might do something to whatever illness gloom was afflicted with. He had to try, even if he wasn't sure it'd work.

It shouldn't have surprised him that Laith wouldn't let the kiss thing go. "No-no, never," he answered dumbly. His life hadn't been.. easy. His nervousness wasn't just a cute little quirk, but instead a deep character flaw, and wolves as flawed as Spirit didn't go around kissing other wolves. That was completely out of the question.

What the fuck kind of a name was boneset? He stared silently with a single raised brow at Spirit as the wolf began to describe what it looked like. At least it seemed simple enough to locate, white flowers (or... hair in this case) didn't seem to be that common, and that was coming from a wolf that often didn't focus on the plants he walked by. He'd keep his end of the deal and keep an eye out for anything vaguely white that didn't look like a petal, whatever that was supposed to look like. Laith prowled after the other male, head lowered as he scanned the plants. It was all green, or brown, or shades in between. No white so far. When Spirit spoke up again he most definitely snickered, unable to keep that one inside. He felt just a tad accomplished at having taken the lead in the other male's first dip into the world of snogging. "Well if you ever want to go a second round and I'm nearby, I'll never say no," he said with a wink at Spirit, devilishly grinning. It was too fun to rile up the soft-spoken wolf, and Laith wanted to see just how much he could make him blush and feel uncomfortable. Ugh, right the bone... whatever it was called. He'd already forgotten the name. His gaze shifted back to the foliage, eyes squinting as he looked around. Something white peeked out from between a thick bush, and he padded closer to inspect it. The colour looked white enough even with the small splash of pink-ish colour at the ends, and it didn't seem like it had petals but what the fuck did he know about that, so he motioned towards it with a paw. "Is this what you're looking for?"  Little did he know that he was pointing at a small shrub of Ayahuasca.

All the conversation about kissing aside, Spirit was glad that Laith was willing to help.. or at leas to try. He gave a tiny little nod as they set off together, his attention on his surroundings and seeing if he could find anything of use. Even if not boneset, anything would be helpful at this point. He'd figure out a way to make the herbs palatable for Gloom that might help her survive this illness. Though he was happy to move past the kiss it seemed Laith was amused by goading him. He practically flinched at the offer. "O-okay," he replied dumbly. "D-do you normally kiss... m-men, then.. or...?" Maybe it was unfair to even be having these conversations when his sister was sick but he was feeling uncharacteristically bold - at least by his standards (and very likely nobody else's).

Laith spotted something and Spirit followed him, sniffing at it. No, that was definitely not it. "I-I don't know what that is," he answered with a little shake of his head. It was definitely not boneset though and he wouldn't risk messing with a plant that he didn't know anything about. He continued on, trailing over the field and looking for anywhere boneset might grow. He caught wind of something familiar though and veered toward it with determination, pausing at a wilted patch of lavender. It was hardly fresh but he might as well collect some while he was here. "L-lavender," he explained, if Laith cared to know he had no clue, but he explained it anyway. "C-can help relax you enough to sleep."

He noticed the flinch from the other male, simply raising an eyebrow as he continued to grin. Was it so difficult for him to talk about kissing? It was simply a part of life to Laith, nothing weird about it, so it amused him greatly to see Spirit respond so... well he didn't have words to describe it. It was funny either way. He laughed out loud, a sharp barking sound, following by a chorus of chuckling. Oh so Spirit was that in the dark about it all then? "Oh yes, exclusively. Women are too... soft." Just thinking about kissing a female made him want to hurl, and so he focused more on the plant in front of him. A half-hearted grunt and shrug was his only response when the other male said he didn't know what the plant was. Oh well, guess he'd keep searching then. Laith was silent as they moved through the field, poking his face into some of the bushes to see if he could spot any of those white hairs Spirit had mentioned, only looking back at the other male when he suddenly moved away. He lazily followed, squinting at the small bush that looked like it was dying. Oh of course, Lavender, he recognised the smell when he leaned in to take a whiff. Not that he needed help relaxing at night, but perhaps he would keep that information in mind for the future. "Wouldn't need this if I have someone to sleep next to at night," Laith said with another grin. But he didn't stare too long, choosing instead to turn away and continue searching for the bone... whatever it was called. As fun as it was to poke and prod at Spirit he really just wanted to go do something else, maybe take a nap, or grab a bite to eat. And that faster they found the plant the faster he could leave. Laith stepped over to a green bush, eyeing the white tips at the end of the stalks. It kind of looked like fur instead of petals, but he'd leave that up to the expert of all things boring about plants and so he called over his shoulder to the other male. "What about this one?"

He didn't really expect Laith's answer to be so straight-forward, though he wasn't sure why he hadn't expected it, considering how blunt he seemed overall. Women were too soft? "Hmm," he hummed thoughtfully, quietly, considering what he'd said. He wasn't sure he agreed with the sentiment, but he knew Laith's intensity did make him more attractive... or maybe he was just intimidated, he wasn't totally sure. Maybe a bit of both. That seemed far more likely. He was glad for the fur that covered his cheeks to hide the heat that had traveled there and now refused to leave.

His next comment only intensified the blush, and he gave a dismissive shake of his head. He was here to help his sister, to look for herbs - not to flirt or talk about these things. But his kiss with Laith had made his head spin, as hard as he tried to keep it on straight now. He was temporarily distracted from his thoughts though when Laith called out to him and he made his way to his side. A quick sniff from a distance told him that the herb definitely was boneset, and he allowed himself a little grin. "Y-yep, this is boneset." Immediately he set out to start to gather some, tugging them free from the earth close to the base and then trimming the excess plant carefully. He cast a glance up at Laith. "T-thank you, for your help." There was a finality to his tone, knowing Laith likely wouldn't stick around much longer. "A-and the kiss too."