Well this place was different.

Soren had been finding his new home to be rather scenic thus far; the lush rolling hills, the looming waterfalls, the mountainside.... And then there was the graveyard; a place he'd stumbled on rather by chance. In a bid to familiarise himself with unchartered territories he knew he'd have to head to the warmer spots at some point, the rogue headed West. Admittedly there had been a little trepidation once he'd noted the ground become warmer and drier beneath his paws - after all, he was of Northern blood and far more acclimatised to the cold - but it would take more than a little sand and dirt to put Soren Rurik off!

Maybe the copious amount of skeletons would do a better job.

He is visibly put off by his surroundings, but - beneath the surface - he cannot help his stir of curiousity. Some of these bones belonged to other animals, and that was evident, but a few of them were undeniably feline. He couldn't help but wonder what had happened to them; even he, Airhead Supreme, knew it was unlikely to be old age.

give a smile to the patient

The young lioness seemed to have made a wrong turn into ghost town. The area seemed darker than the rest of the world somehow, and the air felt thick with an oppressive heat that threatened to choke those not wary of it. Tread lightly was the instinct that kicked in when faced with the red tinted sands and collection of skulls that decorated the area. She could try to turn back now, but she already was neck deep into this land against her own volition. Cursed to be good at running without direction, the dark furred feline panted as she crept along the near silent space that was this graveyard of sorts.

Near silent. Paranoid as she was, her large ears zeroed in on a faint sound just ahead of her. 

Shft.

Her eyes widened as she froze in place.

Shft.

Again, again the now rhythmic sound of shuffling seemed to echo in the vast silence. She wasn't alone here. Not knowing what could be lurking within this hellish landscape, the dusty lioness slunk her way up a small dip of sand and all but scurried behind a massive elephant skull. She crept out slowly, her body all too aware of her pawsteps to utter as noticeable a noise as whatever it was walking so closely nearby. Curious by nature much to her own displeasure, the lithe feline cautiously peered from around the base of the skull. What she beheld wasn't surprising, yet still caught her off guard.

A bright, white lion with a sizable mane trekked along throughout the mazelike desert just as she herself was. She took another step out and kept her head lowered. Of course, being a reclusive creature as she was, she didn't know this lion nor his intentions. She felt a wariness crawl up her spine and raise the fur along its path as she watched him, the sense of not knowing being nearly unbearable despite it being such an unnecessary detail in the grand scheme. Her pursuit for such observational knowledge, unfortunately, put her in a predicament.

Her paw fell to the sandy earth quicker than she anticipated, and she felt something give way beneath it.

Criiick!

The sudden sharp noise nearly sent Snake right out of her skin. She immediately shot a wide eyed stare down to what lied just under her paw. A now snapped ulna of a creature she didn't wish to know the origin of. She darted her hazel eyes back up towards the lion just below. Surely she was caught now. Maybe if she tried to run she could escape? But what if he were faster than she was? But running was one of her best skills! But surely there were faster lions than she. He looked to be healthy too, far more well fed than the likes of her. He may have more energy to expend. He could catch up. He could catch her.

She froze. Watching. Waiting. 

@Soren

 you know the connotation

Table by Werge | stock image

While he would never really understand it fully, Soren was an awfully privileged creature. There were plenty of perks that came with being a large male carnivore; especially one that had been raised in a loving home environment, with well-adjusted parents and siblings and had never really faced any serious adversity at all. Maybe that made him a little spoiled, a little cushioned, but it wasn't really his fault. He was expanding his horizons every day, sure, but he'd never truly gone through hardship.

And so, when his gaze shifted at the sudden noise nearby to meet the terrified stare of Snake, it was an awfully foreign expression - the sort of thing he'd only seen on prey, and that (in his mind) was very different.

"Oh," Soren began, feeling very much like he'd done something wrong without even really doing very much at all. Breathing, maybe, and taking a few steps, but that was pretty much it. "Um, it's okay," he called out to the spooked stranger, tempted to try and get a bit closer to save his voice but knowing that if he made even one step she may well fly off the handle in terror. Even though she was a complete stranger, he - perhaps a little selfishly - did not want her to leave this brief interaction thinking him a horrible monster. "I'm not going to hurt you. Are you alright?" His brows furrowed, troubled by the idea of someone or something putting her in such a traumatised state.

give a smile to the patient

The male cast his gaze up towards her, her earthy green eyes meet silver ones. She flinched a bit at the meeting but otherwise remained. Snake wouldn't believe she were the best judge of character, but she knew deep down that she had experience with the face of cruelty. This lightly furred lion didn't carry that weight openly it seemed. Still always wary, the smaller rogue watched him with owlish eyes as he took a couple of steps towards her. The quiet lioness quickly scanned the surrounding area, taking note just in case things went awry. 

She blinked back to him when he began to speak, words forming full of uncertainty but with intent. He'd seemed calm enough, genuine in the way he carried himself. She had seen plenty of times how rowdy a male lion could be, how loud and scary. Thankfully he wasn't being loud, nor scary, at the current moment. Snake's ears slowly rose back to a slightly more relaxed position, the lioness not realizing they were pinned to begin with until they moved. She took a step back at first as she was still unsure of what to do with herself. It wasn't until he asked how she was that she took a step, then two, forward once more. 

'Are you alright?'

She mulled it over in her head for a moment. She was alone, tired, starving, naturally scared of everything imaginable… But that was a lot to unpack, and even she knew her limitations of how to convey her feelings. She took the easy route. A simple nod of her head would suffice hopefully. Her ears bobbed at the force of her nod before she stilled herself and offered a show of teeth which could have been taken as either a strained smile or a resounding grimace what with the way her nerves still holding a firm grasp upon her being.

She was polite! Or tried to be anyway, the results of her efforts were still uncertain. It had been a long time since she'd encountered a lion that didn't roar, or chase, or heckle, or abandon, or throw lightning at her (though the last example is still up for debate despite her being terrified, awestruck, and impressed all in one fell swoop). Maybe, just maybe, this could be a normal encounter for once? A new found sense of contained excitement filled her with purpose as she stood up fully. She took another step towards the mane, but luck was not finished with her yet. 

Criick!

It was this time that she leapt from her pelt entirely. Another unexpected bone sent her at least a tail length into the air before sending her tumbling down the the sandy hill. She slid to a halt finally at the base of the dune, but not without collecting a severe amount of sand in her already unkempt fur. She shook herself out quickly, but even her vigorous attempt couldn't spare her the embarrassment. 

 you know the connotation

Table by Werge | stock image

Gods, this situation was just going from bad to worse. The lioness, clearly petrified, seemed to relax a little at the attempted placations at first. Soren breathed an inward sigh of relief; big and bulky he may be, but he was earnest too, and he would never try to harm anyone who didn't deserve it. Fearsome families or not, both the Larsen and Rurik had always had a sense of justice, even if his mother's clan had - as a rule - been a little more savage than his father's brethren. Mathias and Anastasia had raised all of their children to have a sense of justice, and knowledge of right and wrong. Perhaps some of them had turned out a little more feral than others, but be that as it may, Soren was a soft guy at heart. The woman's nervous grimace was a little startling, sure, but all he could do was shoot her a grin in response and hope that it would put her at ease. And it seemed to, to begin with; she inched closer and closer. And then? The Rurik nearly jumped himself at the sudden lurch away. Jeez, this woman frightened easily - just what had she been through to make her like this? Swiftly closing most of the gap between himself and the female, he would linger at the top of the dune, looking down at the debris-covered stranger. "Look, I promise I'm not going to hurt you. Just take it easy - okay? You're gonna hurt yourself!" If she hadn't already. While it was tempting to try and get closer, he would hold off for now - the last thing he wanted to do was send her skittering into the ether like a bat out of hell.

give a smile to the patient

The young rogue peeled herself the rest of the way off of the sand. She stiffened for a heartbeat, though her gaze shot through the mane as he approached. It would almost appear that she was staring at him, but alas. Her body twitched once, and then she released a small chuff of a sneeze, more sand expelling from her being. Her mile wide stare was blinked away to that of something a bit more… Amiable than before. Her eyes wide not with fear, but with full blown curiosity now as they twinkled with interest. 

He was trying so hard, which was appreciated, to pacify her and her nerves. She flapped her rounded ears at the kind stranger before shaking out her fur once again, scattering more dust around herself into a plume. There were a few stubborn patches of sand remaining, but they weren't enough to bother her any longer. She returned her attention to the white furred lion just tail lengths away now. She could see the concern that crinkled his entire face, that expression stemming from silvered eyes. She offered a smile and a wave of her paw at his worry of her being hurt in any way. She stumbled quite a bit in her travels, rolling down a dune side was like landing in a nest of down feathers compared to some of the falls she'd experienced before. 

Still, even calmed, she remained at her position of close-but-not-quite. The serpentine lioness tilted her head to the thick furred mane before she gestured her nose to the surrounding area, sizable bones and all. She let her gaze fall back onto the other, head cocked to the side once more.

A silent question.

@Soren

 you know the connotation

Table by Werge | stock image

After a few moments Snake seemed to right herself and calm down a little; Soren sighed, relieved. Upon closer inspection the girl was rather pretty - even though she was covered in sand - with a dark pelt and bright green eyes. It reminded him of his Rurik brethren, even though he knew full well that she wouldn't be one. The more time that passes, it becomes increasingly obvious that his new companion was either choosing not to speak or.... couldn't, maybe? Instead, she would gesture out at their surroundings with intent before looking back at him curiously. Feeling a little stupid, Soren would offer her a sheepish smile. "Um.... I'm sorry, I," he shifted his weight from one side to the other, clearing his throat, "uh.... did you want to do something?" Did she want him to do something? He probably would - depending on what it was, of course - once he got a bit more information. If that was possible.

give a smile to the patient

Snake twitched her ears in the light furred lion's direction. It seemed so would have to come from a different angle, which was fine. Often times (near all times really), her language wasn't readily 'spoken' nor understood first try. It was worth a shot though. Always, if it meant finding someone to easily communicate with. The serpent took a moment to think, language in itself being like a complex puzzle she was keen on bending the edges of to fit in place.

Snake tapped her paw towards the young man once again, then while retaining eye contact, lowered her head to the sand and began to sniff around as if searching for something. Sure, her nose wouldn't pick up anything, but she was sure his would. She'd never met another soul with her anomaly as of yet, so it seemed safe enough to assume he too held that ability over her. She returned to her seated position, tilting her head once more at him. She nodded to him, prompting him to attempt an answer. She cast her gaze back around to the desolate land they both found themselves in. There was nothing out here for either of them presumably, so why…? 

@Soren

 you know the connotation

Table by Werge | stock image

As the brunette remained silent, clearly puzzling over how best to communicate him, Soren resisted the urge to squirm a little in his seat. He felt bad that he wasn't picking up on what she was trying to convey; he felt, in a way, that he should be able to at least understand some of the things she was trying to communicate to him. Sometimes he struggled to comprehend the common tongue, let alone anything else. It was only once she gestured around, with her head, that he began to put two and two together. Oooooh. "Oh! Um," he began, wrinkling his nose at the desert that surrounded them. "I guess it isn't the sort of place you'd want to explore for long. Not exactly a scenic spot, right?" Soren would tilt his head back in @Snake's direction, posing a clearly rhetorical question. "Did you want to see if we could find something useful? Maybe some food?" Maybe, in amongst all this dust, there would be something worth scavenging.