RoseDawn, or Rose, as she preferred to be called, blinked as she slowly opened her eyes and groaned. Last thing she had remembered, she had been on a swim when a sudden storm blew up out of nowhere. She had tried to make it to a nearby island, but her head had knocked into a branch thrown by a wave, and blacked out. Now, as she slowly lifted her head, she had no idea where she was. She sniffed the air and sneezed sand from her nostrils. Nope, didn't recognize a single scent. She rolled to her belly and looked in disgust at her once sleek black fur, now crusted with salt and sand, and still very damp. She wondered how long she had been laying on the shore of this new island before she awoke. Lurching to her paws, she shook vigorously before padding up off the beach. She kept her head low and ears straining as she sniffed around, hoping she was alone here. Satisfied, she sat down in some shade and began cleaning her fur, ignoring her thirst and rumbling stomach. She really just had to get her coat in order before she looked around for fresh water and food.

Sometimes Kuroki just needed time away from the Empire, from all the stuffy expectations and watchful eyes. He'd never come out this way before, didn't really have a reason to, but the crumbling building that stood at the centre of the island was enough to keep him distracted for a while. He clambered over rubble and down dark corridors, pale nose twitching as beads of seawater dripped from his stomach. It seemed as though he'd never be much of an explorer, old things weren't nearly as interesting as some folks made 'em out to be. Heading back outside, Kuroki climbed over the ledge of a shattered window, only to pause when he noticed a figure stagger ashore. Well you didn't see that every day. Remaining balanced where he was, the Chunin watched as she stumbled to her paws and made her way further up the beach and began to groom herself. Seemed like a waste of time if you asked him, after all if she wanted to get off this island she'd have to get all wet and sandy all over again. Maybe she was a bit prissy, the sorta lady who liked to look all prim and proper. Well, Kuroki knew plenty of girls like that. Stepping down from his perch, he made his way onto the beach, making no attempt to mask his approach. "Ain't that a waste of time?" He asked, feeling no need to point out the obvious.

Rose popped her head up, scrambling to her feet quickly. She had no idea there was another wolf around and internally screamed at herself for letting her guard down. "No." She replied nervously. "My pelt itches." Didn't this male wolf know about that? Did he not care for his own comfort? After all, as long as she could find fresh water on this island she had no need to leave for awhile, unless there were other wolves here yet. She tilted her head, keeping her tail high but head low. "Who are you?" She questioned, her soft voice raspy from thirst and nerves. Her weak grey eyes took in his long fangs, the horns, his massive size, and poised her body to book it back to the water should he prove hostile. She felt confident that she could outswim him. Sea wolves outswam most wolves anyway, so this one shouldn't be any different.

Kuroki tilted his head to the side, black eyes curious though barely visible against the dark of his face. She was itchy? Did she have some kinda rash and was it catching? The Ashen Prince made a point of staying right where he was, he didn't wanna catch whatever condition she may or may not have. More than that it was as obvious as a barn on fire that she was skittish, gaze darting to the waves like she was ready to take another dip if he did something even remotely close to threatening. Chicken. No fun at all. "Kuroki." He told her, raising a paw and picking out the sand that had gotten wedged beneath a talon. "Does it really matter though?" From the looks of it she didn't know this way from that, he doubted she was aware of the packs that called Boreas their home. Or the old families and legacies that had shaped history in their own, stubborn ways. "If you don't give me a name I'll just call you...Limpy." He noted she was lame on one paw, putting less weight on it than the others.

"Matters to me." Rose replied a bit testily. "I'm Rose." She eyed him some more. "What are you doing here?" She asked, shifting her weight a bit as a throbbing pain began to spread through her left hind paw, and she wondered if she had broken open the fracture again sometime while she had ben blacked out. "Because if you don't mind, I'd like to get back to getting all this salt out from my fur." She blinked at him, realizing his eyes were as black as his fur, as black as her fur should be, were it not encrusted in sea salt at the moment. "And what kind of wolf are you?" She really needed to know that. Never in her life had she seen a wolf with black eyes, horns, and long fangs like that. Nor even one this large. Not even her father nor Grizzly had been this big. Her heart ached at the thought of her late best friend and she quickly banished the thought, needing to stay in the moment with the potential threat before her. Her stomach growled angrily and she was reminded that the last time she ate was that salmon a day before her swim.

Yeah, she really was no fun at all. All questions and pointed gaze, on edge but not in any way that made Kuroki feel like he could get anywhere. Usually he didn't really have much of a problem getting along with people, sure they made their annoyances known for the most part but no doubt sensed he meant no real harm. After all, regardless of how tall he was, he was still just a kid. For now at least. "Explorin'." He said simply, making a point of ignoring her curt tone. "S'a free island. Ain't no one who can tell me to get lost." Which was to say he caught her hint but wasn't gonna give her the satisfaction of leaving. If she wanted peace she'd either have to swim back to mainland or lighten up. As for her next question he quirked a curious brow. "What's that supposed to mean? I'm a wolf."  Wasn't much else too it, far as he was concerned. Naturally he heard her stomach rumble, no doubt running on empty after her long journey from...wherever she came from.

Rose slowly sat down. "That so." She mused, almost to herself. "I don't recall ever wishing you to get lost." She curled her tail around her paws thoughtfully. She slowly was catching onto the fact this was a youngster, and her posture relaxed just a tad. "Why are you out here alone?" At least, she hoped he was alone. She didn't feel up to being chased away by a pack of oversized fanged and horned wolves. Then she realized he had asked her a question as well. She blinked once more. "You have horns, black eyes, and abnormally long fangs." she said simply. "Do you see any indication of those on me?" She arched an eyebrow at him. "Not even timber wolves get those, at least not that I've yet to have seen."