you'll run for cover {but you can't escape the second attack} Senka was coming to learn the eastern lands like the back of her paw. They were growing more familiar with each passing day that she spent picking her way along, no particular destination in mind. Was there a home for her to go back to? Senka wasn't sure - she didn't know if she had anywhere to go, and while she wasn't stressing herself unduly about it, it was faintly worrisome. She could take care of herself, of course, and she wasn't exactly worried about her hunting abilities or anything. The yearling had lived somewhat on her own for almost a year now - though she had been under the care of Ignis for a few seasons, she had taken care of herself well enough these past two seasons and he had prepared her well for life on her own. She was handling herself just fine. But even Senka could get lonely sometimes, she supposed. Not that she was entirely sure that she felt lonely. It was just kind of empty around here. The lands were interesting and all, but it was like living in a ghost town. There were scents everywhere, but they were stale and uninteresting. She ought to move on and keep wandering, but Senka had heard that these lands were quite interesting at night. The idea was tempting enough that the gray and white yearling found herself settling down at the edge of a waterway, paws dangling towards the water. Her head came to rest on her legs as the wolfess relaxed outwardly, though she remained alert for any signs of another's presence. holding on for your life[ S E N K A ]

He had not travelled for very long, though his knowledge of these lands grew vast and wide. Through caves and rivers he had trekked by, and now he lumbered through the mangroves. It was nice and all, seeing the world like a free spirit but sometimes this world felt so empty. He had not met any other wolf since his leave of his home. There had to be others, right? It could not just be him and his inner demon. An air of relaxation and purity drifted through the warm air. How long had he been walking for? A couple of days? These mangroves did seen rather special, why not relax and cool off? The ragged ash boy emerged through the tangles of mangrove, amber eyes searching for the perfect place to rest his aching paws. His ears could only hear the faint trickle of the nearby azure water, it was so quiet and peaceful. Surely the solitary stalker was alone. As his golden optics found the perfect resting spot, they also found another soul. He wasn't alone. The other white and grey wolf seemed to have the same idea as him, relaxing amongst these peculiar trees. He would have turned around and found some other spot to rest by, but he was too tired to do so. Why not join this girl? It could be fun. "Nice day for relaxing, isn't it?" He spoke not far away, coming closer to the dame. He would try to make his tone more friendly, though his words could not escape their cold and wicked tone. And yet he couldn't escape his darker and ambitious side. He would just have to hide that, wouldn't he? "Speech"

you'll run for cover {but you can't escape the second attack} As the sounds of another's approach reached Senka's ears, she stirred slightly, purple eyes slitting as she sought out the form of the other wolf. It was an impressive black wolf that she spotted - roughly her age, it would seem, perhaps a season or two off. He was a little smaller than her, but not by much. Overall, Senka was neither particularly intimidated nor comforted by his existence. He was just . . . there. His words, when they came, would be friendly enough, though his tone was slightly less so. Senka hesitated for a moment, eyes narrowing as she examined the black and gray wolf. "That it is," Senka agreed at last, her voice cool and unemotional. Unlike him, everything about her was policed, kept under tight control. She had no room for errors. Everything in her life thus far had been built on her ability to control her emotions, to keep herself from letting anything shine through that wouldn't benefit her in a certain situation. And yet, that meant that no one - not even Senka herself - knew the true personality of the girl. For a moment, Senka remained still, before raising her body into a seated position. "Interesting area, huh?" Her voice was still largely noncommittal, but in playing the small talk card, Senka was showing, in her own way, that she was interested in this male. holding on for your life[ S E N K A ]

What pretty violet eyes, an interesting dame, isn't she? Yes, he did have to admit, those eyes were quite captivating. They were an unusual color indeed, yet they looked magical. The girl, who seemed to be around his age, agreed with his earlier statement. She sat up, saying it was a rather interesting place. He agreed with that. It wasn't everyday he found himself in mystical mangroves like these. It isn't everyday you find yourself staring into those purple eyes. Ruffling his fur, he tried to avoid looking into those mysterious orbs. Instead, he would seat himself beside the lady, she wouldn't mind his presence, would she? "Yup, pretty interesting." He agreed, his amber gaze trailing through the many twists amongst the trees. "I hope you won't mind my presence." Well, if she didn't want him here, he would whisk himself off to wherever he came from. But why not stay for a while? This area could be more than just interesting. "Speech" Thoughts

you'll run for cover {but you can't escape the second attack} Her ears remained pricked towards the male as he moved, keeping tabs on his actions until he came to settle somewhat near her side. Her gaze remained aimed casually forward, but this was not to be mistaken for Senka not paying attention to the male. She was hyperaware of his every movement, taking care to ensure that if he chose to move for her he would not catch her offguard. Something about the male made her feel strange - not uncomfortable, really, but off - and Senka trusted her intuition. Lazily, Senka nodded in answer to the male's words. "Not at all," She responded only to his second statement, "The view only improves with company." A little bit flirtatious, though not over the top. The last (and probably only) time that she had spoken in such a manner had been to Soliloquy, who'd been as out of his depths as herself. And yet, Senka found herself wanting to do it of her own accord, wanting the words to spill from her tongue. Perhaps the chameleon was discovering a new 'color.' The thought brought a flicker of amusement to Senka's mind - to cover that, the yearling turned her gaze on the other. "My name is Senka." Her interest in knowing his name remained simply implied. If he chose not to offer a name in return, well, Senka could hardly be bothered to care. Still, she thought that knowing the black and gray wolf's name could be interesting. He seemed interesting. Not that she would admit it to anyone else. holding on for your life[ S E N K A ]

He seemed to agree with everything she had spoken about, which he rarely ever did. The view did seem to improve with the company of others, or perhaps it was just his lonely self. Every once in a while, he needed to take a break from being Mikal, whatever he might do. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad spending time with this girl, after all, interest leads to more exciting things. She introduced herself, saying her name was Senka. It was a lovely name, suiting her quite nicely. He wondered what it meant, but did meanings really impact the wolf? It didn't matter what the name was, as long as it sounded perfect. "My name's Mikal." He finally introduced himself, taking a brief glance at the girl, meeting those irresistible purple eyes. "Tell me more about yourself, Senka, I can tell you anything about myself." Really? Anything? Why not? If she was interested in him, she would want to know at least something about him, right? "Speech"

For a few moments, silence fell, leaving Senka dwelling within her own thoughts. She was content in this, of course - Senka was not so codependent that she could not entertain herself for a few moments. She had been on her own for some time now, after all. First she had left Ignis and then her mother had left her. Neither had had much of an impact on the girl, but that was simply due to how apathetic she was about everything. One of these days, motivation would come her way. But today was not that day. It was only when the other wolf spoke again that Senka stirred, ears pricking back towards the black male - Mikal. The name was committed to memory as Senka let her paws stretch out, moving lethargically into a more comfortable position. "My mother's name is Cataleya," Her father, now long gone, had had even less of an impact on her life than Cataleya and so Senka did not even deign to mention Taurig, "She was once the Queen of a pack known as Arcanum." And now she was gone, missing in action and presumably never coming back. With Zaria dead, and her brother also auspiciously not present in Senka's life, she hardly saw the point in bringing them up. As disinclined as Senka was to say anything about herself (it wasn't like she was very interesting, in all honesty), Senka had to admit that she found the other intriguing. His interest in her was clear to the intuitive creature, who had spent seasons studying the actions of other wolves. He was angled towards her, catching her gaze often enough that it didn't seem entirely coincidental - or bad, in her opinion. "I've been a loner for most of my life. I was separated from my mother as a pup and raised by a warrior." Not much else to say, was there? Senka had hardly done anything worth telling a stranger about. "And what has your life been like?" There was (strangely enough) genuine curiosity tinging Senka's words as she gazed thoughtfully at the other. Did she actually want to know anything about him? How . . . interesting. Senka, apathetic as she was, hardly even cared about her family, but found herself genuinely curious about this odd stranger. Speech,

A silent creature would watch as her words unveiled a tale like no other. The daughter of a once-queen? What had happened to that pack, Arcanum? Had it fallen? Had another superior force taken over it? He never took much interest in packs, too much togetherness. He was sure there were other packs, having all their bloody fights and disagreements. All the royals and leaders...much too complicated. But then again, what did he know? What was his life like? That was pretty much a straight forward answer. He had family, of course, who didn't? But his father abandoned him when he was a pup, and his elderly mother had to tend to two weak pups. Eventually his sister went off, disappearing into thin air, and then he tried to follow her but he ended up chasing shadows instead. Now he was pretty much on the prowl, doing absolutely nothing. Well except for eating, sleeping, night-prowling...all that. "I guess I've had an average life so far. Haven't got much of a family, father left me with my mother and sister, Shannon. I'm pretty sure she's somewhere out there, doing whatever she does best." He answered slowly, looking out beyond the mangroves, like as if he was searching for the pretty rose dame. It wasn't likely for him to ever find his sis, if she was well and happy, he was okay. "I'm a loner too, nothing special." "Speech"

Silently, Senka listened to the other's words. Her amethyst eyes were empty of anything - no judgement, no harshness, but then, nothing kind touched them either. "I never knew my father." Serra would offer the information casually, for it meant little to her. She had simply not seen it to be worth mentioning before, but if it was common ground between them, there was no harm in sharing that little bit of information. Not having much of a family seemed to be a thing that they shared, in fact. Neither knew their father, and he didn't seem particularly close to the remainders of his family. Like Senka, Mikal seemed to feel little in the way of familial bonds. She approved, in her own way. Many wolves got too hung up on blood rather than having wolves that could help them out. But then, Senka had been taught to have a clinical eye, and she had never been particularly inclined towards sentimentality. At last, Senka would speak again, finding herself wishing to continue the conversation. "What brings you here, Mikal?" Senka inquired easily, pricking her ears towards him. Between the active body language and her casual use of his name, Senka hoped to inspire a little bit of camaraderie between the two. She rather enjoyed Mikal thus far, and hoped to keep him around for at least a little bit longer. Speech,

The subject of families had soon faded away, nothing else from that topic seemed to spark any interest. They had parents, even if they both never knew their father, and that was all that mattered. There's no use crying and worrying about a family and kinship. Just move on some would say, there are better things in life than worrying. Senka had asked a good question, wanting to know what brought him here. That was a simple question, with a simple answer, but the man would not mind telling the dame what she wished to know. "What brings me here?" He spoke as he observed the mangroves carefully. They were definitely something he had never seen before, and they did look rather odd. The East seemed like a good place for him to stay in for now. "I don't really have a home, so I just go where my paws take me." He turned his gaze to Senka, meeting her delicate plum eyes. Of course he wanted to know what brought her here. Requesting the same bit of information from her, he would ask. "What about you?" "Speech"

She was silent, allowing the male to speak as he would. The answer that he gave was not particularly informative, but it seemed to be overall truthful - he was showing no telltale signs of a lie, and even if he had, Senka would have respected his privacy. "I understand." Senka spoke simply, no pity touching her tone. Should she feel bad that he had no place to go? The idea didn't really occur to her, though it might have to some others. For a moment, the girl mulled over her answer, before simply shrugging internally. "I am in much the same situation. I've just been exploring these lands lately; they are rather interesting." Idle chatter did not come naturally to Senka, but she was making an effort, as she enjoyed the company of this stranger. He did not require any strange behavior to fit in properly; no, for Mikal, Senka was more herself than she had been for many others. She did not have to think things through as much as she did with others, and it was a nice break. After a moment, Senka would shift almost infinitesimally closer to the black male, amethyst gaze examining him curiously. "How much of Alacritia have you seen?" The girl would question, idle curiosity touching her tone. Was he well traveled? The thought was interesting to the apathetic thing. How much of the world had he seen? Speech,

Alacritia? Was that what these vast lands were called? So once upon a time one wolf came along and said, hey, let's name this place Alacritia! Yeah, that didn't seem likely, because Mikal himself, had never heard of that name. His mother had always referred to it as the world which wasn't very creative. Most rogues probably have their own strange names. But that didn't matter, as long as there was a beautiful name to call the beautiful lands, it was all okay. So where had he been so far? So far wasn't really that long. As a pup he grew up in the dry and arid west before finally deciding to run from home and begin his life. He had travelled around the east, through craggy mountains and these unique mangroves as well as exploring the southern plains. It wasn't much of the world, but he planned venturing in the freezing north or perhaps returning to the scorching western heat. For now, the eastern lands seemed to be his best choice of residence. "I've explored the eastern mountains as well as the hills and plains in the south." He replied in a relaxed neutral tone, feeling a tad more comfortable talking to this girl. Where had she been? More exciting places than he? "Speech"

He didn't seem to have seen much of these lands, Senka noted absently. Not that it mattered - Senka had not seen much of them either, and she had wandered the lands outside of these for a few seasons as well. She nodded as Mikal spoke, if only to show that she had been listening to him, as there wasn't much else for Senka to add there. He had seen what he had seen, and that was that. Was there any point in saying anything? Not in Senka's eyes. Still, the girl was enjoying this conversation enough that she was willing to put effort into continuing it. "I have also explored the eastern lands." Senka admitted slowly, ears pricking towards the other to display an interest in the male. "As I am sure you have realized." Lighthearted laughter would leave the female's maw as she spoke. Oddly enough, it wasn't entirely fake - in Mikal's presence, Senka was being more her than she'd really ever been. Interesting. It was strange, but not entirely bad, and Senka felt a desire to see it through to the end. Speech,

The grey and white dame had also explored the eastern lands, expressing the statement with light chuckles of laughter. A faint grin came to his maw, only to show he was amused. The man rarely ever smiled, and he didn't think he could. That never bothered him. The burning ember glow flowed beyond the tangles of mangroves. The sky had faded from a summer blue to a sunset hue. The sun was gradually falling, telling the world there is only a few moments left before eternal night. He had spent the morning and noon with this newly met lady? Had time flown that fast? The day passed so swiftly, just like wind. It was an interesting day for him, meeting another interesting individual. His gaze flickered back to the mangroves. He did not plan on staying too long amongst these strange trees, in fact, he would probably venture out into the night and explore more lands of Alacritia. Unless there was something unique with these mangroves, that might persuade him to stay for the night. Senka might know, and for that he would ask. "Do you know if anything happens to this place at night?" He was curious to know, as night was a rather spectacular time. Surely something mysterious happened within these mangroves. "Speech"