He had finally made it to lands that were worth looking into. Since departing his family he had been looking for a new area. He had passed through a lot of lands that didn't seem to suitable to settle into, but these lands from what little he had seen seemed nice. He had also found faint trails from the cousins that had departed the clan before himself. He was excited to get started, meeting new faces and forming relationships. To spread his wings and to pass what he was taught onto others. These lands seemed loaded with herbs and prey and even things some may be up trading for. Though first thing was first, the male had to explore and to collect, even find himself territories that he wouldn't mind living in. The trader was ready to take on the task and he found himself excited for his own future.

Today his travels had lead him to the knolls which smelled of various game animals and many plants. The male stood, nose high in the air taking in the scents around him, inhaling deeply to fill his nose and chest before blowing it out sharply. Then he moved forward, powerful legs carrying him over the earth drawing him deeper into the territory He could hear the faint snorts and heavy steps of buffalo in the distance, but he wasn't aiming to get anywhere near them today. Though he was a large wolf he knew that taking on one of those beasts alone was a death sentence and he would only watch them from a distance. Now though he was curious about the knolls wondering what else he could find here, or even who he may run into.

Finally leaving the west proved to be a very good choice indeed as summer began to roll in. It was far too warm out! How did anyone stand the heat? Her tiny body was positively roasting half the time, ugh. The very memory of the warmer weather hitting western lands was enough to make her narrow her warm brown eyes and stick out her tongue in disgust. No thank you.

It was the pursuit of cooler temperatures that brought her to the knolls, for it certainly wasn't the snorting, pawing buffalo sitting in a valley below her. Sometimes she wondered if she'd even be any use hunting something that big in a group. She might get squished or worse. Flopping down on the hill she'd staked herself out on, Maple glanced around, finding the lack of company a bit boring for once. Today might just be a social day - a rare occurrence indeed - so, where was somebody to be social with? Let's see... grass... grass... buffalo... aha! The figure of another wolf approached in the distance, but suddenly Maple found anxiety choking her vocal chords until she gave up wanting to call out and just sort of sat there like the pathetic, awkward lump she was.

He moved along at an easy pace, his baby blues looking ahead of him to see what he could find. There was bound to be other prey or others wolves nearby and he was eager to meet some of the locals and find out what he could about the lands. Oh a hill nearby his eyes spotted a smaller creature that looked like a wolf, but she was small and from a distance he found it hard to tell. It looked like she was also staring right at him so the tall male wagged his tail and began to close the distance.

With his long legs it really didn't take him long to close the distance and with the buffalo down below he got more closer then he normally would. He didn't feel like calling out and spooking the herd in the process. Sure they were at a distance but the creatures were flighty. He stopped a couple yards away, tail still wagging to show he was friendly. She was in fact a rather small creature, but Branch didn't mind one bit.

"Hello," he said with a smile. "Watching the Buffalo?"

Mouth parting and just sort of sitting open in a manner that Maple figured made her look like a weird guppy, she just sort of looked at the much taller male with a frozen, uncertain expression. Wait, no, say something, Maple!

"Oh, uhm, yeah. They're pretty cool. And really big." Was that lame? It felt lame and weird. Pale ears fell to the sides as the young woman tried desperately to stop feeling all weird and nervous and do something normal and not weird. What should she say? Oh, gosh, talking wasn't supposed to be stressful.

'You can do this Maple, stop panicking!' she thought in an attempt to calm herself. A few deep breaths helped significantly and she let a calmer, warmer smile play at her dark lips as she asked, "What about you? Doing anything interesting on a nice day like this?" Hey, that was pretty good! Getting a little braver, she would casually add, "My name's Maple, by the way. What's yours?"

She seemed somewhat nervous, was that because she was intimidated by him? Maybe she just wasn't used to socializing? The male remained calm and sunk back to sit down in the grass trying to keep himself looking calm and relaxed, which for him wasn't hard to do. He kept the couple yards distance between them for now, hoping if it was because she was intimidated the space would help her feel better. Then she finally spoke and his eyes drifted over to the buffalo.

"Yea they are big and rather fierce creatures, it's good to keep distance from them," he replied.

To him they weren't too big, but he could imagine what it felt like as a wolf her size looking at these creatures. His attention then turned back to her as she spoke again his ears taking in her words. She asked what he was doing then introduced herself. His tail lightly wagged again with her name, matching one of his own sisters.

"Exploring mostly, looking for a place to settle," he replied. "It's nice to meet you Maple I'm Branch Wreckage."

Turning to eye the beasts in questions once more with a wary expression Maple would murmur her agreement, "Yeah, I don't think I know anyone foolish enough to tussle with one solo." That sounded like a monumental task from her perspective. Maybe if she was more this guy's size she'd feel a little braver, but as it was... deer were massive compared to her pathetically tiny frame.

Smiling sweetly Maple considered this. Exploring sounded like fun, she could definitely get behind a few adventures into the great unknown every so often. But a place to stay also sounded lovely, especially since she hadn't really made herself at home anywhere since leaving her family when she turned a year old. A soft laugh fell from her lips as she amused herself with a thought, eyeing Branch before replying, "Sounds like a decent way to spend one's time. Found anything nice yet?"

His name was nice enough she supposed. She sure wasn't in a position to do any criticizing at least, considering her own calling. Hopefully if she ever had kids they got some interesting names. Her own name just made her think of sap and leaves, and while she didn't dislike those things they sure didn't make for a very impactful title. Then again, she was hardly a wolf who left much of an impression, so maybe it was fitting after all.

Rising to her paws, she would stretch for a moment to loosen up the stiffening muscles of her shoulders. Tail wagging gently a few times at her newest acquaintance, the little pale woman eyed the slope that descended away from the grazing bison. An idea formed in her mind and she turned back to Branch. "D'ya like games?" she drawled, a smirk revealing one pointy canine as she spoke with increasing playfulness, "Wanna roll down the hill and see who gets to the bottom first?" Games always made chit chat more fun. If she was less nervous she could actually enjoy talking to new people, so win win!

He nodded to her murmured words, completely agreeing with her. Even a wolf matching Branch's size would be a fool to try and take down one of those beasts would have a difficult time trying to take an adult down. Even a calf would be hard to catch with angry mamma started to chase. It wouldn't be an easily task and going solo would probably get you killed. Though Branch thought they were beautiful creatures, so big, yet from this distance they look so peaceful. Powerful creatures like these was something he liked to admire when he was first born and currently he still did.

Her words then had his gaze turn back to her facial features as she spoke. He quickly nodded a quite answer to her before she finished her words. He smiled.

"I'm really loving the Weeping woods here in the south," he replied with a nod, those trees are big and a perfect place to live in his eyes. "You know I have a sister that shares your name."

He thought Maple was a pretty name and didn't realize that she didn't care for it. His sister was a pretty female, more brown on her then the rest of his siblings. She had eyes that looked like the maples leave in the fall and she was darn cute as a puppy too.

She then asked about games and she thought for a moment. He hadn't played any games yet, but in sounded fun. He nodded with a smile before she went on to explain what the game was going to consist of. It really did sound fun, but he felt she would easily beat him.

"That sounds like fun! Let's do it," he replied with a smile.