the difference between us

His smile was reflected in the face of the stranger along with the slight wagging of his tail – all the more pleasing. The other would inquire as to Nagendra’s findings, to which Nagendra would reply with a tasteful amount of cheer, ”Oh, around every turn I find something new and magnificent. The wolves here, the land – it’s all so different. So far I’ve only really been farther up where everything is covered by snow, and even though I don’t find the cold so agreeable, even that is a wonder to behold.” He let out an exhale after his substantial rush of words, still grinning, though mostly in amusement of himself. It must have been longer than he had thought since he’d talked to anyone.

The bigger wolf would reply that he was doing the same. Nagendra had made his glance away by then, but soon returned his attention when the other’s voice parted the soft roar of the waves. Áki. That was a nice name. He was sitting now, Nagendra noted. He smiled. ”My name is Nagendra Bahri. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Áki,” he said, his tongue carefully molding the simple yet elegant syllables of his company’s name, pleased to try it out himself. "Do you live around here?" he'd ask, curious.