~*~ Drip..... Drip..... Drip.... Somewhere out there, the groudwater was trailing down the spire of stone to ripple the pools in the darkness. Silver brows, plumed with stray whiskers curled above grey-green eyes. "Well now," cooed the siren into the solace. "This is more like it." It was what any hill cat would've loved to find - a treasure hidden away in the mountains. From the outside, it appeared to be no more than a narrow scar in the rock face - the hollow of some crag, perhaps a crevice weathered by time. But it was no simple cranny. This was the mother of all caves! What had started out as simple clay tunnels studded here and there with grey stone, now opened up into an underground palace! Silverback's cat eyes enabled her to see everything to near perfection - stalagtites hang down like chandeliers from the cieling, stalamites rose up from the ground like furnititure, and some of them, some of them joined together to form columns that helped support the massive roof high above. It was marvelous. Their were pools scattered across the cave floor, some quite wide but all very shallow. This was a masterpeice of nature, and at once Silverback felt the desire to claim it as her own... but she wasn't out here in search of a home, was she? She was in search of another leopard, and here there were no scents of one. Oh well. At least there was the granduer of her surroundings to console her. But there was something else too. The scent, not of cat, but of canine. Silverback smirked to herself and awaited the entrance of the stranger. ~*~

Ivory paws carried the pale fea through the slight opening in the rock face, curious violet eyes raked over the walls of the cave. She padded farther and farther into the cave as she explored. She had almost completely passed the opening by, but she was feeling adventurous today so she decided to take a peek inside. She peered into the gloom as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Suddenly the cave opened out into a wide cavern, spikes of stalagmites and stalactites scattered around the edge of the area. This wasn't at all what the white wolf expected when she had ventured into the cave. Suddenly an unknown scent caught her attention. It wasn't wolf, it was something entirely different. She turned her gaze toward the source of the smell and her eyes widened at what she saw. The creature was of a gray color, with spots throughout its pelt. Its long tail trailed to the ground and had huge paws. She had never seen anything like it. She had heard stories of creatures with its shape, cats she thought they were, but she wasn't entirely sure. She approached the cat warily, dipping her head in greeting. She had no idea what to expect from this encounter as she spoke, "Hello, my name is Alena. Please excuse me asking this, but what are you exactly? I'm sure that's a weird question, but I've never seen anyone like you." "Speech."

~*~ And the owner of the canine scent did come. Bearing a question. It was a rather rude question, and one that Silverback had found herself becoming rather bored of, but it was refreshing to hear another creature with manners enough to realize as much. Silverback was on the verge of purring out an answer, but the second part of the stranger's speech hit her tufted ears. "-never seen anyone like you." Was that always the way it was going to be? For a heartbeat, Silverback had to swallow down a lump of bitter disappointment. Another creature who knew nothing of the existence of other leopards. Wonderful. Such a strange mixture of amusement and indignation and pride and curiosity smoldered away in those grey-green eyes. For, don't you know? That is what makes a cat's eyes so unreadable; not that there is no emotion peeping through, but that there is too much and too many. And of course, unlike wolves, cats are very good at keeping eye contact when they wish. The cat that looked at a king and all that. And Silverback did wish to keep eye contact. This newcomer had purple eyes! Something she'd never seen. And in the grey halflight of the cave, the mutt stood out quiet perfectly - all white and fluffy, while Silverback, dappled and mixed as she was, could fade into the shadows at a moment's notice. But she didn't of course. She wanted the wolf to look into her eyes. Wanted to answer the question that had been put before her. "Darling," she said with a hint of a rumble that could've been a chuckle, a growl or a purr. "I am a panthera uncia. A Snow Leopard, of the high mountain ranges.- Yes you can stare if you like, I'm real enough, and I seem to be one of a kind, now." ~*~

The violet eyed fea took in the dappled gray form of the cat in front of her, putting the characteristics of her form to memory along with the name of what she was. A snow leopard. Alena couldn't remember ever seeing a cat face to face, much less a huge leopard like this one. She didn't quite know what to make of the leopard, looking at her curiously as she sat down, her fluffy tail resting to the side of her. Alena noted the comment the big cat had about her being one of a kind now and it was hard for the fea to wrap her head around. Maybe it was because every time you turned a corner in Alacritis you ran into a new wolf. There were countless numbers of all creatures here, how could this cat be the only one of her kind. "Surely there's another leopard out there. I find it hard to believe that you're truly the only one. Perhaps the others just aren't near as friendly as you," Alena suggested as she voiced her thoughts, kind of hoping that was true for the cat's sake. There was so many things the assassin could ask, her curiosity running wild as she peered at the leopard. What kind of things did cats eat? Did she live up here in the north? Do cats like cold? Why was her tail so long? The questions went on and on in her mind, but she had to wonder how often the leopard got asked all those questions. Alena had been all over Alacritis and hadn't spoken to a cat before so she was sure that almost every wolf the lonely leopard came across asked her the exact same questions. Alena pushed them away for the moment, focusing her gaze back on the leopard's eyes. Digging around in her brain for something else to talk about she said, "It's nice to meet someone other than a wolf. It gets boring, you know, meeting one wolf after the other. May I ask what your name is?" "Speech."

~*~ Silverback hadn't been looking for pity or even sympathy when she'd spoken. In fact she'd chosen her words to give as unaffected an air as possible. Not that it seemed to do much good. Either the wolf before her was very perceptive, or the simple idea of being the last in the world was so forelorn sounding to her packish mind that she could only hasten to assure the cat that it was not so. Whatever the reasoning behind it, it was topped off with a compliment. Flattery, even when it wasn't taken seriously by the snow leopard, tended to be a shortcut to her good opinion. She flicked her tail playfully and bobbed her chin, giving the she-wolf a good of you to say so look. The mutt's next statement was upon the ordinary-ness of meeting those of her species. Perhaps a little inconsiderate considering the cat's fate. Silverback didn't take it to heart however, she just gave a mental roll of her eyes and made a wish that one day she could become bored with the sight of another feline. "My name is Silverback," murmured the mountain cat in return to the next question. "And I am four years old - an young adult for my kind. I was born under the constellation Lyra, which, with my family's rich traditions and mythology, signifies that my life is to be bound up in music, and dreams, and the distant reaches of the next world." Her eyes grew glossier with the throats of the ancient tales her mother wove above the fur lined nest. "I am considered terribly huge for my breed, but I suppose it's a result of my siblings dying off young and all the food going to me." She grinned, or rather smirked - it was a rare day that a true smile showed on that muzzle-. "Figured I'd cover all the basics to save time. You see, darling, I'm quite new at this whole 'conversation' thing, it's an art I've neglected most awefully." Oh the she-cat could spin words and she could put on graces - she could appear as beautiful and lofty and proud as a prietess of old, but the truth was, she was inexperienced with socializing. All of Silverback's graces and skills were ones that she'd been born with and had been smoothed overtime. Any that she did not possess she wouldn't be bothered about learning, but she felt it only right to warn the white fae. ooc: edited just to switch table ~*~

Alena listened to Silverback's explanations with interest. It was interesting to Alena that the two of them were in fact the same age, though for Alena it was an age that was firmly into adulthood, not still considered all that young. Soon enough she would be five, half way through her life span. From the way Silverback spoke, she still had quite a bit of life left ahead of her. At the she-cat's warning about her lack of social skills, Alena smirked and waved it away with a slight wave of her paw. "No worries. I'm no great conversationalist myself." "Speech."

~*~ Silverback mirrored the smirk ever so slightly. Her only show of gratitude was a cat?s bow, this is, a lazy lowering of her eyes lids. She didn?t rush to assure the white wolf of the negative. After all, she wasn?t doing anything for either of them by such few words of slang. Silverback had been raised with an ingrained distaste for canines, but her recent ?socializing? had developed a tolerance and even the most casual of goodwill towards certain individuals. Being self sufficient, for Silverback, meant that she was her own world and she didn?t hurry to feel anything for others. She was just a lone hunter. Up until her forrary into the south, her only meetings with other creatures had involved her trying to eat them. Considering that, the two ladies were getting along swimmingly. "What about yourself?? The snow leopard asked, letting her grey-green eyes glaze over the other. ?Tell me, what are you great at?? ~*~

Alena chuckled softly and replied, "Well... I'm an assassin. So I guess you could say I'm good at hunting, in a way. Just not your typical sort of prey." She shrugged, curling her tail over her paws. She wasn't the least bit ashamed of her profession and for the most part felt no guilt over her kills. She was sure it had earned her plenty of friends and enemies alike, but she had never brought herself to care either way. She looked Silverback over once more, very sure that in a fight the cat would be able to easily take her, assassin or not. "Of course, I'm no threat to you, certainly," she commented with a smirk, voicing her thoughts. "Speech."

~*~ "Assasain?" The she-cat repeated. Her eyes fluttered in surprise that was only half real. "So there are wolves that specify in the killing of their own kind?" She have voice to the first musing of thought that popped in her head. What a strange thing. Here she would give half her tail just to speak with another of her kind. She would never want to hurt, unless it was a matter of protecting herself and she had no way to escape ? or if it was a just for a bit of rough play. ?I suppose it?s no surprise really,? she mumbled, ?with how close you all choose to live with eachother.? Silverback had lived with her mother for a year or so and they?d ended up brushing eachother the wrong way plenty of times. But cats could just bat at eachother, hiss venomous threats and then swagger proudly away. They didn?t have to kill one another to get their point across. Idiot wolves, Silverback drawled inwardly. But the she-wolf wasn?t quite finished. Her last note was so true it didn?t even warrant a smirk. ?Certainly..? was all Silverback repeated in her lilting, silken purr. ~*~

The ivory fea wondered if leopards ever had the problems that wolves had with each other at times. Wolves were emotional, fickle creatures at times, Alena would readily admit it. She nodded in response to both of the snow leopard's comments, replying, "Indeed. I don't often get asked to do things over petty arguments though. Most of the time they'll settle those with a spar or some other thing like that. Most of my jobs are over larger issues. I go after murderers, rapists, the like. They want revenge and I'm willing to give it to them without staining their poor, delicate consiouses." Alena wrapped her tail over her paws, watching the leopard curiously. "Speech."

~*~ The she-wolf?s information was interesting at least. Silverback was slowly collecting more and more intelligence upon the ways of wolves. At this rate she?d soon enough be able to join a pack. Fates forbid. Apparently there were darker souled wolves. Real brutes and monsters. Hmm. If there were more leopards ? would some of them have the same flaws? Something she?d probably never find out. She could only study wolves it seemed and what sorts there were out in there in the big, wide world; Seemed that they came in as many shapes and shades as the leaves of southern trees. Killer or not, the fae had manners. Even seemed to believe she was doing something good with her chosen path. Silverback decided it was worth knowing a simple calling detail. ?So, tell me white knight. What?s your name? Or are assassins not supposed to tell?? ~*~

A slight grin crossed her muzzle at the feline's last question, amusement flicking across her features. "No such rules, I'm afraid. I'm Alena Leone, scout for the Amenti pack." She dipped her head in a slight bow, chuckling softly as she added, "At your service." The ivory woman was enjoying this strange conversation with the leopard. It was unusual for her to find someone who caught her curiosity with all the traveling she had done in her life, but Silverback was a very interesting creature. "What do you do in your spare time, hmm? What are you good at?" "Speech."

~*~ Alena Leone. Two names eh? This wolf must think herself quite important. Hmm, she did have lovely eyes, Silverback decided as a mulled after thought. However, in the end, she was a cat. It was unlikely a creature of any other species could impress her. The wolf also rattled off a rank and a pack. The she-cat had noticed that the girl smelled faintly of the great redwood forest she had seen from afar. Was that perhaps where her ?pack? resided. Silverback usually made a habit of stearing clear of groups of wolves. Against an average wolf, Silverback was nothing but a noiseless death. To a monstrous wolf, she?d prove a match ? if she were ever uncreative enough to get herself in a direct fight.- But against a pack? Therein, she lost all advantage. If she had to deal with the precense of another predator, she preferred it to be like this; Where she had not only the upper hand, but plenty of ways to escape should things prove brutish or dangerous or ?worst of all- boring. No chance of that just yet, however. Silverback?s ears twitched at the sound of the white fae?s voice. One that was pretty enough but rather metallic in comparison. ?Darling, the better question is what aren?t I good at?? Silverback let it be there, she didn?t feel like going through any displays of prowess for the entertainment of another. ?Lately my free time is spent in searches. You wolves have so many creatures to choose from as companions. If I ever sunk to the level of being jealous, I would say I envy you that.? ~*~

It was an interesting to think about being the only one of something. It was impossible for Alena to fully grasp the meaning of being completely alone like that. Even when she had been a loner and had purposefully tired to avoid other wolves she had still come across them from time to time. Alacritis was crawling with wolves after all. "After meeting some of my fellow wolves, I'm not so sure I would be envious," she said with a chuckle, attempting to lighten the conversation. "Some wolves I wish I hadn't met. Some of us wolves are... well, scum, weirdos, and idiots, to put it bluntly." "Speech."

~*~ Silverback flicked a dismissive ear at the she-wolf's response. She listed the faults of her species and Silverback resisted the temption to say yes, well, they're -dogs-, she had been meaning that she would've loved to have many of her own kind. Probably there would be cats who were arrogant, selfish, bastards (like her) but at least they'd be the same genus. But as Alena rattled off the list of undesirables, the she-cat just smirked. "That, I suppose, is where you come in." Maybe wolf assassins weren't such a bad idea. After all, they exterminated the worst of a species that was overpopulating. Rather useful really. ?Tell me dear, how many have you killed?? To the she-cat it didn?t seem like too personal or taboo of a question. If that was what this miss Alena chose to do with her life than she should be proud of it. ~*~

Silverback's question surprised the ivory fea, but didn't bother her in the slightest. Alena felt no shame when it came to her killing. It was a craft she had been honing and perfecting for years now and was happy to share with those that were interested. "17 for jobs, 2 personal," she replied matter-of-factly, thinking back over the last two and a half years that have been her carer. She felt like that was a pretty high number for someone her age, though she had never compared scores with another assassin. She was good at what she did, simple as that. "Speech."

~*~ The purple eyed assassain replied readily enough. Even with a touch of pride perhaps. Silverback approved most heartily. She could only imagine what sort of crazy, depraved adventures those numbers entailed. As for her, she was more the assassain type than the outward fighter - despite her obvious abilites. She was a stalker, a hunter, a poisoner, the ghost of the mountains, that spirit that dropped out of the sky upon her prey, to break it's neck before it felt her land. She didn't know if Alena was that sort or if she was the bruteish, uncreative, outright sort. Either way, she hadn't done bad for herself. "My, my," murmured Silverback, taunting, but clearly impressed. "And here I've only managed three." What would the she-wolf think about that? Did it make a difference that Silverback was an outside species? Possibly. Plus if the white-knight here knew the circumstances for the kills, it's highly unlikely she would disapprove. In fact it was highly likely Silverback could be added to that hunting list of hers. And it would be such a shame to kill so friendly a wolf. And honestly, Silverback's attitude towards these long-muzzled mutts was slowly changing. Oh she still found them as distasteful, but they did have minds. ... a rare few of them even seemed to have souls. ~*~

Alena appreciated that the snow leopard seemed impressed by her score and gave a pleased nod at Silver's own number. Three was still an impressive number. If it hadn't been for the fact that she had she had been given so many jobs and fell into her job as an assassin so whole heartedly her number would most likely be close to that. She didn't know why Silverback had killed the three she had, but she didn't feel the need to question her on it. She was sure Silverback had her reasons. Alena glanced back over her shoulder toward the entrance of the cave, seeing the light peaking through faintly, knowing it was going to be night soon. She turned her violet gaze back to Silver as she stood, bowing her head as a goodbye. "I'm afraid I should be getting back. I enjoyed our little chat. If you ever find yourself hanging around the Red Forest, you should definitely let me know. I'd love to introduce you to my alpha, I think she'd like you." Alena dipped her head once more before turning and padding out of the cave, her tail waving gently behind her. -exit Alena- "Speech."