The other side of the mountains didn't seem very different from anywhere else he'd recently been. There was some variety in elevation as he climbed down over the course of a few days, and then he encountered a series of booming waterfalls that kept his ears ringing long after he'd departed their range; by the time Larus stopped for a rest, he was slinking along a riverside with the mountain's shadows rolling across his flank. The cool air this brought was a welcome reprieve from the growing warmth of these past few days. It was still spring - but he wondered for how much longer.

This also brought him to another query: Wherever he was supposed to be, whoever he was supposed to be with (because Larus felt certain that there was someone he was missing), were they looking for him? For how many days now had he been cautiously examining every inch of the earth, every scent, every nook or cranny? And yet here he was, striding alongside this narrow bend in the river, feeling just as lost as before.

He sighed, and marched along. If anyone was hunting for him then there was little hope of being found. He had crossed too much territory between his waking at the dusty steppes and beyond - he'd crossed a whole mountain range, he'd -- wait, what was that? Larus didn't recognize the collection of stone and moss for what it once was, but he thought upon first glance it resembled a bear; it looked old, but not naturally forming aside from the dense greenery that coated it. He didn't know that the bear shape was an old grave - nor that his father had, at some point, crossed this same path and built it himself.

Larus stared at it for a few moments before carrying on, and only slowed his pace when he found something of more value - the scent of wolves, and they were all around him. Perhaps he had been too absorbed in his own mind to notice his trespassing, but now that he had, his tail tucked and he bayed an apologetic sound.

His call was met not with sound, but with action. The blur of red that came for him condensed in to a wolf-shape in mere seconds, and Larus watched this stranger keenly while keeping himself as relaxed as possible. They were young - maybe a year old, maybe a little older - and they did not strike him down immediately, which gave him hope. There was an agitated aura about the red-furred stranger that made Larus wary and also, strangely, a familiarity. The creature looked like someone he vaguely remembered — but like most memories lately, it was evaporating before he could get a fix on it. No, he didn't know this stranger.

But they were giving him the benefit of the doubt, or so it seemed. Larus could do very little to make himself small or meek, being such a stalwart fellow himself, but he wagged the tip of his tail and re-tucked it, and lowered his head so that it was level with his shoulders and crooned another of those notes. It felt most natural to behave this way rather than speaking - but to be clear, he took a breath and said, I'm sorry, I did not mean to come this far -- you must live here. I -- I can leave.

The way the stranger moved - so close, with sharp and direct insistence - did not bother Larus as it perhaps should have. These behaviors were familiar in the same way the yearling's red pelt was familiar: as if from another life, one that made much more sense than the one he currently lived. Bade to follow the crimson boy to the borders, Larus merely nodded and hurried to comply. How strange this moment was! He should have been attacked, chased, but instead there was leniency. Perhaps it was the stranger's age that created this awkward exchange, but Larus was glad for it.

As they passed through the territory it became clear how he had missed the mark — having come down from the mountainside, he had no way of locating the borders to begin with until the pair of wolves had passed near to them. The scents were unfamiliar (making Larus feel a touch depressed but otherwise unaffected), but they were clearly marked and in the opposite direction from where he had been discovered. It was as if fate had pulled him here - perhaps to give him answers, or to reunite him with something - but he was left with more questions.

Thank you -- I am no threat, and I am glad you see that. It was a mistake. But still, there had to be a reason for it besides the whims of a lost boy. The riverside did not seem special, the terrain did not feel familiar in any regard, but that monument he had found — the bear — it resonated with him. Something about it made him want to linger and investigate.

Where he came from..? By the sounds of it, this boy was just as fresh to the area as himself. It made Larus wonder about his own role. Was this his home? Was he meant to be here..? But he didn't think about it for long. His escort was explaining things but got cut off when another body came towards them - this dark figure held purpose in their step, and by the way the red-coated youth reacted, this was someone to be respected. Larus' ears twisted back upon his head and he tried to make himself look small (which was unsuccessful, again).

His situation was explained swiftly. He felt the need to clarify a little bit: I am sorry, I was lost and trying to find my way down from the mountains -- and I ended up here. He was quick to speak and even faster to silence himself, watching the newcomer with a few hasty glances before he averted his eyes in deference. Those glances didn't tell him much: this wolf was a bit older than the first and quite healthy, and his posture denoted him to be in control of the situation, perhaps the alpha of the entire pack. However, he did not look familiar, and so Larus was left feeling just as lost as before.

They were both very accomodating to the young man and he was greatful for it, but as he looked around — first in the direction that the swarthy wolf had mentioned, and then swiftly at all the others — Larus realized he didn't really know where to go from this point. Getting away from the mountains was one thing, but where to next? How could he be certain he wasn't leaving behind something incredibly important on the other side of the mountain? They had not been his home, neither had been the southern range of dusty plateaus, and it was unsettling to not remember.

After briefly observing his surroundings, Larus glanced at the two strangers with an expression of uncertainty and said, This is going to sound strange, but.. Am I familiar to either of you? He paused to absorb their initial reactions to this and then went on to explain, I'm not sure where I should go from here. Lately it feels like I should be somewhere, and that I've been... Displaced, somehow. I have been trying to remember where I'm supposed to be but for the life of me, I cannot. He had a small frown upon his face now, his expression creased with worries — hoping that he wasn't sounding like he'd lost his mind when in reality, it felt like that was precisely why he'd crossed the mountains on such an irregular path.