After his ventures down further south the white yearling had moved back up North where he had originally come from, bypassing the Ghastly Woods with a wide berth. There would definitely not be a round two in there. While the open fields dotted with clusters of blackberry bushes had been nice, it just was not for him, nor the orchard with the stubby cherry trees. He preferred living in a forest where there was enough shelter to hide easily from the elements, but the trees not too far apart that large predators found appealing. Plus there tended to be more medicinal herbs in forests, and as a wolf trained in the art of healing that was very important. Maybe he was just homesick and that was why he had shied away from joining one of the packs situated in a more flatland type of area, but winter was already upon the lands and he needed to find a home somewhere.

Amber eyes lifted up as Niki's white form came to a sudden stop, gazing at the towering boulder right in front of him that was covered in moss. He had been so caught up in his thoughts that he has not seen it until it was right up in his face. White ears perked up curiously as he gazed it, wondering how it had come to be. Peering around its formidable mass, he could see signs of weathering as evident by three almost-steps carved into it, though there was no indication of how or why it was there. Shrugging to himself, Niki padded around until he stood before the steps, head lifting back to gaze up at the first step. There was no way he could reach that, even if he jumped to it. He was simply to small, and so he took a few steps backwards and sat on his haunches, a big grin on his face as he stared at the large boulder.

Niki sat there, gazing at the immense boulder with wide eyes, until his attention was pulled away from its mossy mass by the voice of another. Like all wolves he had met, this one was larger than he with piercing blue eyes, though had the same white pelt with a peppering of grey along his back. White tail thumping happily on the ground behind him, the white yearling woofed exuberantly in response. "Is this th'firs' time y'seen i'? It's huuuuge!" Amber eyes returned to it as his backside left the ground, hopping on his paws as he darted closer, lifting up his front legs so they rested on the side. "Tall as three o'me!" He crowed out excitedly, a wolfy grin on his face as he turned his head to look back at the other white male. "Think y'can get up on top o'it? I'm t'short myself t'do i'." It was a shame, really. He would have loved to sit atop the boulder and see the world from such a height, but he had to do with what he had been given.

The white yearling pushed back from the boulder so he stood once more on four legs, tail waving in a blur behind him. "Th'name's Neem, though y'more than welcome t'call m'Niki if y'like." This time he had not forgotten to introduce himself, even with the excitement of seeing the large boulder in front of him. Slowly he was learning to focus on the important things, such as noticing the scent of other wolves on the other male's pelt. It was the same scent that had been on the pups he had met previously on his trip through the area so it did not come as a surprise. "'m guessin' y'live 'round these parts?" Even though it was more of a guess he wanted to judge the other's character first; that was the first thing he had learned since arriving in the new land. He seemed nice though as evident by his light and conversational tone.

White ears twitched curiously at the other male's musing of how the boulder had gotten there, he too wondering with an avid inquisitiveness. Surely it was too heavy for wolves to move no matter how many paws there were to help, which means it must have already been there. With a glance at the mountain not too far off, he briefly wondered if maybe it had rolled down the mountain and came to rest at its current position long ago, giving the elements time to weather it down. With a wag of his tail Niki nodded, letting out a short and sharp bark. "I think y'would b'big enou' t'jump up t'the steps an' climb up ont'i'." Even if he could not get on top he would be happy seeing the other view the world from such a height. Of course he could always drag things over to stand on them so he could reach the first step, but that was far too much effort for something as trivial as a higher up view of the world, as interesting and wondrous as it would be.

"Fine b'me," the white yearling responded with a hum, not too bothered by the use of either name. One was his given name, used by the rest of the pack as a formal greeting while the other was what his parents and sisters called him. Outside of his pack he did not mind which one he was called by, not too fussed with that particular rule of his birth pack and knowing it would not make any difference out in the world. "nice t'meet y'too, Emrys." He shook out his pelt excitedly, paws tapping an excited beat beneath him on the slightly mushy ground from the snowy days prior. As a particularly social wolf, Niki was always so enthusiastic to meet new wolves and broaden his experience with their own individual ways of conversational actions and tones. It helped him understand the world around him and the wolves in it, plus he just loved to meet new faces.

The white yearling nodded when Emrys stated there was a pack nearby, already knowing that even if he did not know the specifics of its whereabouts. It would be easily scented out, anyways, if he chose to pursue the borders. "Far to the North," he stated with a grin on his face, "Deep in a forest with many trees." Sometimes he missed his home, but it would be impossible to go back so he tried his best not to entertain the idea. It was no use dwelling on things he could not have. He nodded again at the other white male's query of his travels. "Yea, heading 'round th'mountain 'cuz I'm t'scared o'fallin off t'go over i'." Niki let out a laugh at his own words, knowing it was a silly reason to go around instead of over, but he was still nursing a sore shoulder from falling into the ravine only made worse by the cold weather. He was sure if it was summer it would be gone by now, but sometimes he felt a twinge here and there if he moved the limb too quickly.

Niki glanced at the boulder when the other male dropped back down to the ground, eyeing the large gap between the first weathered step and where the stood. "Yeh, bes't'leave i't' th'bigge' wolves. No' sure how I'd ge'back down an'ways." If it had not been covered in by slush from the previous snow storm the white yearling would have at least attempted it, but now the immense object was a dash slippery that would most likely send him tumbling back to the ground. He was certainly not the clumsiest wolf around but he had a knack for tripping over things that he should not and falling off things from carelessness. As a more-or-less trained healer he was easily able to treat himself from his little accidents, but being on the constant move meant he was not able to stockpile herbs he may need and so had to do with whatever he found. Most of the time they were not what he needed at that moment but he made sure to remember where it could be found in case he had need of it in the future.

The white yearling grinned at Emrys, nodding heartily in response. "I fin' i's int'restin' meetin' new wolves an' learnin' a bi' 'bout th'm an' how th'y view th'worl'." It helped him better understand the reasons behind why wolves acted certain ways and how he could better treat them as a healer if they were an unwilling patient. "I also like t'meet new wolves an' make s'me friends." A world without friends would be a world not worth living in. He was a wolf who was most happy surrounded by those he felt close with and accepted him for who he was, and that had partially been the reason for him departing from his birth pack and moving onward.

White ears splayed to the side as Emrys asked why he left his home. He had not told another about it simply because they had never asked him about it, and being a wolf who simply could not lie, he struggled with wanting to tell the truth but not wanting to talk about it. Niki settled with something in between after a few moments of thought. "M'fathe' wanted m't'b' someone I didn'wan' t'b' an' so I... left t'g'somewh're I cou'b'th' wolf I want t'b'." He cringed ever so slightly at his words. They were technically not a lie but he felt uneasy nonetheless. Glad for the change of subject, Niki quickly answered the other male's question. "'m no' goin' an'wh're spec'fic bu' I am lookin' t'see wha's on th'othe' side o'th'mount'n."

A chuff left the white yearlings maw, head bobbing up and down in agreement with Emrys' words. Once up there he was not sure how he would get down, although with all the snow jumping would be one option. At the same time jumping off would be absolutely terrifying as the height was greater than anything he had ever been on top of. "I'd b'stuck up there alllll day 'cuz I don'like jumpin' off o'tall thin's." Niki let out a bark of laughter as he turned his body to fully face the other male, focusing fully now on him rather than the boulder as his mother had taught him to do. He sat down on his haunches to take some weight off his shoulder, feeling a dull ache in the join from the cold and walking around for so long. Rest would let it heal faster but he had no time for rest and so he just had to deal with it for the time being.

Niki listened attentively as Emrys spoke, tail thumping behind him on the ground. He rather liked the other male, not just because they shared a very similar view of the world but because he was nice, nice just because that's the way he was and not because he wanted something. A much smaller grin appeared in his maw, ducking his head slightly, unsure of quite how to respond. "Uh, tha' means a lo't'me... Thanks." It was not as if he could have stayed in his birth pack - as much as he wanted to - but to hear those words come out of another wolf's mouth made him feel a little bit better about the event. White ears perked up as the white yearling agreed with Emrys, this side of the mountain was nice enough, but not form him. "Well," he began with a soft hum under his breath, "From wha' I saw i'was very for'st-y, no' as open as thi'side is." As a wolf that had grown up in a forest he felt much more at home in one than in an open field which was his reasoning for going over to the other side.