Dayton had been exploring for the past two days, and this morning he chose to stray beyond the borders of Tortuga. There were many interesting lands here, and he wanted to familiarize himself with each one. After all, the north territories were his home now. Small feet padded across a strange sculpture of ice that pressed its way between two tall mountain peaks. There was a gently chilling wind that blew threw here, keeping the flooded lands frozen and still. It was eerily still here. Tops of trees broke through the hard ice, begging to grow higher but being kept in their prisons. Dayton moved his delicate frame around each of the sharply needled points, his body disappearing and reappearing behind the dark green branches. The boy had been feeling more confident lately. Making more friends in Tortuga seemed to have helped with this, and what was more, he had found a mate. But he hadn't seen Misha these past two weeks. It was like she had vanished. His mind went back a bit, thinking of how much they had shared with each other as they'd curled up under the waterfall. Or that night they had spent on the beach together. But then she had broken down and run away, leaving Dayton on his own. Perhaps he would find more company elsewhere. He felt a twinge of fear at the thought of encountering another wolf out here on this ice, trapped and with no escape. But he quickly tried to drown the thoughts. Things would turn out fine. Walk. "Talk." Think.

There was a lightness to the girl?s steps, a strength and freedom that allowed to her go where she pleased with no fears nor restraints. From chasing sunset to the flow of a stream or whatever else took her fancy. Today her exploration took her to this place with the trees that hugged the bottom of the water, there tips swaying through the top she contemplated leaping from top to top but the thought of landing in the freezing water stilled those thoughts. She stretched out her limbs instead, a gently sigh of contentment leaving her as she walked around the edges of the water. It would be here that she would catch the form of another being, a little brown thing with bright eyes, dimmed with a sadness she could not identify. The carefree being tilted her head as she approached the scene, intruding upon the boys thoughts as she came up before him. ?My dear, someone with such sweet eyes shouldn?t look so sad?? Her tone was soft with a hint of teasing as she waited, see if he would find his way to a reply. Speech Thought

The frost was just beginning to bite his paws as he moved silently over the land. Dayton weaver between a few more trees before the cold became truly uncomfortable, and then he decided to retreat to a relatively sunny piece of stone. Stone was always very subjective to changes in the weather, but luckily the layer of sunlight that was bathing it gave his pads enough warmth to stop trembling. Freezing temperatures took their toll on the fragile man, so what could he think of Misha? Her condition must be far worse, and it only worried him more that he hadn't seen her in so long. What if something terrible had happened? Of course the brute couldn't think of such things, so he shook his small head and stared into the sky beyond. In the midst of his distraction, the russet man did not hear the woman that approached him until he heard her sweet voice directly over his shoulder. He flinched as a natural reaction before composing himself. Before him stood a young maiden with chocolate fur and strange markings about her golden eyes. Surely a pretty sight, and her words displayed an inner sense of kindness. Dayton was able to relax almost instantly. "And someone so lovely shouldn't waste her time with me," he retorted, that same note of teasing in his words. His communication skills were definitely getting better. How else could he chat with this woman, settling into routine as if they had known each other for years? His smile widened as his confidence surged, but he knew that there was still a touch of sadness in his eyes. The brute chose not to address the topic. "My name is Dayton. What might I call you?" He gave a slight bow to be polite, genuinely interested in who this maiden was. She was not familiar to him at all. Walk. "Talk." Think.

Another smile teased at the corner of her lips at the boys reply, words gentle and nice but self-deprecating and she sighed softly as she eased herself onto her hunches before him. He did not however make any remark to the sadness she saw in his eyes, that faraway look that hold her his mind had been elsewhere, on sadder days. She didn?t approach it again since he did not offer anything forth, instead she cast her eyes towards the sky and the chill that touched the air between them ? she was well over winter by now and couldn?t wait for warmer days. ?Well, Dayton, I?m Motif? and it?s my time to waste? one eyelid closed over bright sunny eyes as she gave a wink his way. She had had little company since entering the lands of Alacritis, and she wasn?t about to let this delicious piece of male leave that easily. ?So Day, what brings you out here alone?? her soft voice would ask next. Speech