Shay watched interestedly as the other wolf reacted to his appearance. Reacted angrily? Fearfully? Perhaps simply defensively, though he had always equated defensive with fearful. The female seemed to collect herself upon seeing him, however, a reaction that was not wholly unusual for him. He was hardly the most threatening wolf.
He cocked his head to the side as she spoke, processing her words. Analyzing them for any possible social cues. A smile curved her muzzle, a gesture that was generally friendly. He advised himself toward caution, however - he'd had the misfortune in the past of a smile heralding violent intentions rather than kindly. The odds were in favor of friendly, however.
Her voice seemed to change slightly on her second query, causing Shay some mild confusion as he'd not really encountered that particular tone before and couldn't quite classify it. He blinked at her for a moment before deciding to just move past it and hope it was unimportant.
He belatedly forced a smile of his own, an expression that felt stiff and strange for him. "I am called Shay Bearkiller," he informed her in his peculiar, nearly monotone manner. "I am here alone as solitary travel is faster and... simpler, than is group travel. There are far fewer variables."
He went quiet a moment, but the thought occurred to him that social niceties demanded a return of pleasantries, so he added, in his stilted way, "What is your name, and why are you also here alone?" It seemed like the proper sort of inquiry to him, though he never could quite catch the proper nuances of polite conversation.
"Speech"
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