Cyanide wasn’t really sure what to make of this place, not yet. She’d followed the stars here, moving north, and then even farther north. Leaving home was a rite of passage at this age. She’d strike out on her own, and she’d make a splash, no matter where she landed. There was a certain magic to her… if, of course, mania counts as magic. It’s well after dark that she pulled herself from the sea after following a long, narrow inlet. The lush ground gives beneath her feet, and she finds purchase easily. Cyanide is wraithlike, even more so than usual with her sopping wet coat. She let go a great, wild shake, sending the salt water out in all directions. Though spring had come on, Cyanide was cold. It was invigorating. Despite her long swim from the south, she was alert. Everything about the new adventure made her feel alive.

As a Chunin it was Kuroki's duty to wander further afield and see what was going on in the wider world, but now things were mellowing out he'd concluded the answer was not a whole lot. That aside from the whole Abaven mix up, everyone was real intent on going back to how things used to be. He understood where they were all coming from, didn't wanna poke any proverbial bears whilst everyone was still tending to their wounds but...He was bored, almost out of his mind. He nearly thanked his ancestors when he came across an unfamiliar face out in the wild, someone new and hopefully interesting.

Casually making his way on over, he arched a curious brow as he noted the water dripping from her form. All dark and svelte, every bit a lady.

"Is the drowned rat look in fashion this spring?" He asked in place of a proper introduction, all humour and harm intended.

Bored, Cyanide knew the feeling. That was the reason she’d tossed herself into the sea, after all. No one expected the yearlings to actually full-on leave the country, but here she was. Really, she’d packed her metaphorical bags months ago. Not flighty, just bored. It was likely sheer luck that had spit her out in this field, or that she hadn’t succumbed to the sea entirely. Didn’t matter. Everything was excellent. Is the drowned rat look in fashion this spring? It took Cy a moment to see the boy in the dark. In the low light, she caught the flash of extended canines, and teeth to boot. Weird but also… kinda cool. The thought echoed through her head before she could stop it. Still, Cyanide didn’t skip a beat. She fixed him with her pink gaze, head quirking to the side. “I’m sorry, who?” Still, she couldn’t control the sharp undertone in her voice. Elegantly, she moved toward the boy, bold but not aggressive. Curious.

"You. You're dripping all over the place." He gestured at her with a wave of a taloned paw, his gaze falling on the beads of water that dripped from her underbelly. "Waterin' the plants huh?" He asked, though he nodded sagely as though he'd gotten the confirmation he needed.

Not that this place needed it, around this time of year it was all soft and luscious with green grass that tickled his ankles.  Great place for hunting and sightseeing, but from the look of her he doubted she'd swung by to sniff the flowers and piss on some logs.  She stepped close and Kuroki stayed where he was, at ease and confident in his himbo-youthful air.

"'Sides that though. I don't reckon you're from these parts."

You, he said, as Cy had anticipated him to. “No,” she paused for a moment, tail wagging just a bit at her haunches. “Who asked,” There was no venom to the words, but if he was going to tease then so was she. Cyanide gave another shake, chasing more of the saltwater from her coat. Much of the dripping had slowed, but she was still pretty wet. The swim had been long, and maybe Cy wasn’t quite ready to be dry yet. That seemed silly. I don’t reckon you’re from these parts, his words came, and this time the wraith’s curiosity was more genuine. In the back of her head, she could hear the self conscious voice– of course you don’t fit in here, you look like a fish out of water. Cy shut it up, focusing back on the boy intently. “How do you know that?”

"Me. Duh." He stuck out his tongue for good measure.

At her question, Oki pretended to think about it for a moment. His head tipped to the side as his ears flopped a little, like there was nothing rattling between them. It was pretty obvious as far as he was concerned, she was wandering about like a lost fawn. Like she had no idea where she was or where she wanted to go. That was fine and all, he respected anyone willing to wander a bit further afield from home but it wasn't as if it took a genius to put two and two together.

"Aight where are we now then? What's it called? His eyes crinkled in amusement, curious to what name she'd make up.

Me. Duh. Cyanide made a show of rolling her eyes, but there was a giggle in her throat. The attention was... nice. Not that she'd admit it out loud. As the boy thought about things, her attention was rapt. Her tail wagged high, standing confident over her paws. She pretended not to falter on his question, feigning confidence in the best way she could. Cyanide's tail slowed, and she thought for just a moment. "This is the... plant valley, duh." Her laugh gave her away, and there was no doubt the boy knew the actual name. Still, Cyanide was happy to play at the game and the dance. "Who are you, anyway?" The wraith was curious, taking the boy in with a curious gaze. His markings were so... weird. The orange, the raven blue-black, and the horns. Right, couldn't forget the horns.

Plant Valley? Kuroki glanced about, exaggerating the weight of his gaze as it roved over the hill and greenery. For a moment he was tempted to claim she'd gotten it right and rescind his assumption she wasn't new to these parts, but like a burp he couldn't hold in he just let it out. Because why not?

"Close but no dice..." It was easy to laugh along with her, eyes crinkled eyes and lighthearted banter. "Fern Gulley." Which yanno, there weren't nearly as many as ferns as the name would imply, but whatever. He couldn't think of anything else to call out.

The thought of rattling off his long name wasn't his idea of a good time, so the short of it would have to do. He doubted people really cared about his hailed heritage anyway, only meant a thing to those who knew anything about the history of this place,

"Kuroki. Oki's just fine though, only get called my full name when I'm getting my ear mauled." Which was often. "You?"

His gaze was careful, and Cyanide followed it in turn. There were a lot of plants here... and this did appear to be some sort of valley. A space between the mountains. It was a pretty sort of place, one that Cyanide already found herself liking. She'd take a shine to Boreas as a whole, soon enough. Falling in love with the land was easy enough for Cy. Damn, she was close. Cy's tail wagged, soft pink eyes glimmering with the light of the moment and the boy's company. "Damn, where are the ferns though?" Her tail wagged, the banter between them easy. Were there more ferns out here than the ones she could see? Probably. The dark girl stood comfortably over her paws, relaxed around the boy with the orange markings. Oki, that was a different kind of name. Still, she couldn't help but giggle-- parents really were all the same. She was glad to be free of her own. "Cyanide, but Cy if you're a friend." Her smile was easy, relaxed. Everything about her is relaxed where she stands. "What is this place? Don't think I wanna go back home anyway," she may as well learn about the land, after all. Clearly this boy was from here, and Cy was comfortable asking him. If she was lucky, maybe he'd even show her around.

Kuroki's eyes rolled, tipping from one side to the other in an obvious show of agreement. Right??? If he squinted he could see maybe one or two fern plants, whoever'd named this place really overestimated their numbers and importance. Pretty typical, now he thought about it. Everyone else had a way of blowing things well outta proportion, like it'd mean anything in the coming weeks or seasons.

At her giggle he wiggled his brows, hoping to prolong her bout of laughter. Everyone was so grim and glum, it made him want to be a shithead just to yank people outta their shells. But apparently with Cyanide it wouldn't be too much of an issue.

"Cy it is then." He announced, she had no choice in the matter. Sorry not sorry. "This place? Boreas." He told her, lifting a paw to sweep it in a wide motion. The big picture, sorta deal. "Imma local, but not really gone native yet." He used said paw to itch at his underchin, tongue poking out thoughtfully.  "Can't you tell by my mysterious foreign accent?" He stressed his voice, tensing vocal cords in his best, rumbly, gruff Iga accent. Basically Hattori gargling gravel.

The eyebrows were quite... interesting. Cyanide couldn't help but grin, her tail wagging high behind her. It's playful, rakish, and she can't help herself. The giggle doesn't fade from her throat either. Simply put, Cy is basking in the pure energy coming from the boy. She mirrors it in her own way-- Cy's presence speaks for her as much (if not more) than her words do. She has a way about her, one that fills the space. What Oki's eyebrows draw the most attention to, though, are the horns. She'd seen the first pair pretty immediately, but the smaller, darker pair, she missed on first inspection. She couldn't help but move a little closer to him, curious. Personal space doesn't mean a hell of a lot to this yearling, not that it matters too much anyway. The boy declared himself a friend, so she'd take on a friendlier space. Boreas it was called... wild. The place was broad and wild, and already Cy wanted to explore every last goddamn inch of the place. Mysterious foreign accent, the giggle that followed was one that she couldn't hold back either. "I don't know if mysterious is the word I'd pick, but let's go with that," she playfully batted at the boy with one of her forepaws, not intending to actually make contact. "You sound like a villain from the stories parents tell their kids to get them to follow rules and like, not wander off," her pale eyes glimmered. At least that's what he sounded like when he dropped his voice and exaggerated. Were those stories a universal experience? Cy didn't know, but it seemed like they probably should have been. The bedtime stories with the silly voices, the cautionary tales with even sillier voices... yeah, something like that. "You're not going to kidnap me, are you?" The words came with a bit of a wink. Hell, even if he did, it would be something to do. Cy was fresh off the boat and she had no plans.

Instead of dodging out of the way of her paw, Oki simply leaned forward and let Cydonk his forehead. He'd never really regarded himself as the villain type, but now he thought about it, he supposed he did sorta look the part. All big and bad, with long teeth that were perfect for gobbling. Tilting his head a little to the left, he let himself indulge in this line of thought for a moment longer, before shooting Cy a most dastardly look.

"Why you asking to be kidnapped?" There was no real force or malice in his tone, rather poorly hidden humour as he forced his tail to flick high in a show of dominance. Yadda yadda, he was big and tough. "Want me to drag you back home and call you mean names...like.. Fat?" Yeah, that was all he had on such a short notice, not his best work.

Oki let her bap his forehead, and she couldn't help but giggle. Maybe being a friend wouldn't be so bad. He could be a big bad, with teeth and two sets of horns. The supposed dastardly look really just left her in stitches. The company was good, and Cy had no complaints. For a girl that considered herself tough, it was nice to be something else. Anything else. Hell, Cyanide felt like a normal girl. Normal-- what a weird thought. "Hell, at least it's something to do. I don't have any plans." Cy shrugged. At least if she got carried away by Oki, she'd have more of a plan than she did when she'd tossed herself into the sea. More of a plan than she did when she washed up here. "I think mean requires more effort than that, though." The rakish grin didn't fade, no. It got wilder, stronger, playing across all of her features. "Where's home for you, anyway?" It was a curiosity, something that Cyanide couldn't really help. Home. What a concept.