Un

I figure the meadow is probably still iced over a bit? IDK weather I live in LA.

---

He wasn't always known for paying attention, at least not to the little things that weren't likely to cost his life. So the fact he'd gone to sleep on flat snowy ground and woke up on flat snowy ground, it hadn't seem like there was much change. He hadn't been eaten or anything, it was just a continuation of the same. He didn't give a hoot about the horizon, he'd just been walking without a destination in mind, so no change noticed. He'd just keep going and eventually he'd get there. Wherever "there" was.

So, he'd stood up, shook off his fur and kept walking, sniffing for signs of others and at least for the instant, not finding any. It was pretty quiet here. That was ok... Probably. It meant if he found food, nobody was gonna fight him for it. That'd be nice.
the staff team luvs u

Imagine it! Walking through sunny shoreline one minute, and then snowy plains the next. Kincaid had seen a lot of strange things in his time, but never something so strange as this.

Still, there was not much to do about it but take it in stride. He could lie down and cry about it, he supposed, and he might a little later, if his situation did not improve and if he was feeling sufficiently dramatic. But for now, he was happy enough to explore.

So abruptly it was almost like magic, Kincaid found himself walking toward a stranger. A young one, it looked like, and smelled like as soon as he got close enough to twitch his black nose.

"Hey," he barked, not unfriendly, but not quite polite either. "You from around here, partner?"
the staff team luvs u

The guy that showed up wasn't familiar. Not that he'd made a point of making himself familiar with anyone so far, so it was more like status quo. He paused, one foot off the ground, seemingly contemplating whether or not he was actually stopping for a conversation or not. The youth didn't seem to be afraid or anything, but could certainly be described as suspicious of the strange man -- whether suspicion meant Vidocq was street-smart was yet to be seen.

Vidocq seemed maybe a little perplexed, but trying not to be visibly, “Uh hey.” Awkward pause for a second. “Doesn't seem like there's much around here to be from.” That'd be a no.
the staff team luvs u

The negative was fully expected, at that point. Kincaid turned his sloe squint up toward the sky, noting the odd angle of the sun, and then back toward the stranger.

"I don't mean to be forward," he said, sounding halfway between perplexed and amused himself, "But did you mean to be here? Cause I ain't. Hell, I was at the beach. That's quite a thing, ain't it? To be walkin' the shoreline one minute and through the snow the next."

He studied the young man carefully, searching for signs of recognition. He was either going to sound crazy, or the story would be familiar, or maybe both.

"I'm Kincaid," he added, realizing he'd neglected to introduce himself in his confusion. "You, uh," he flicked a glance up and down the small, dark body. Admittedly, he was not familiar with when and how the kids left their parents, these days, but the stranger seemed a little young, to him. "You got people lookin' after you still?" Maybe they would know a little more about this place.
the staff team luvs u

Vidocq gave him a rather odd look that started even before Kinkaid spoke -- it only increased in its conviction as he did, “You whack your head or somethin'? There isn't shore around here for days, maybe longer. It all looks a lot alike out here though, maybe you dreamed it up because you wanted a break.” Apparently it didn't strike a chord. At all. In fact it was probably more likely he was wondering if there was much between his ears because the world didn't work that way.

A quick flick of a glance just to see that Kinkaid didn't have some keeper coming after him to stop him from scaring the locals before replying, “I do my own thing.” Trufax. Maybe a little cagey though -- but he had been so far, and maybe would continue to be. “Why?” A pause though, then he added with a shrug, “Call me Vic, I guess.” Yeah, Vidocq was a little stingy on the details, wasn't he? Too bad, what ya see is what ya get.
the staff team luvs u

Ah, thought Kincaid, unsurprised to be on the receiving end of a telling off, even from a kid many years his junior. He was, Kincaid thought, about the same age as his own kids. Who he had been on his way to see, before he'd abruptly found himself here.

Still. He saw he'd get nowhere by insisting on it. "Might be I did," he allowed, and amused himself with the theory for the span of a quick smile before his features flattened once more.

"I'm Kink," he returned, but seemed distracted, now. It was clear to him that "Vic" was not going to help him find his way, and so he had to decide now if his company was worth vying for, or if he would do better on his own. "I was just hopin' t'chat with someone with more'n fluff between their ears. You know anything useful 'bout this place? Like which way to the ocean, one."
the staff team luvs u

Vidocq was standoffish, that was true, he kept his metaphorical and literal distance for an array of reasons, some of which probably only made sense to himself. But at least he was careful. “No clue. It's all been like this the last few days. Not anywhere nearby, sure.” But what else was he supposed to think of a guy who seemed to be way too into the whole ocean thing? And combine it with how he was rather confused about how he'd gotten here in the first place and it was just odd. Maybe the guy was losing his mind or something.

But it wasn't like Vidocq could go and pull information he didn't know out of the sky. That would be even more irrational than the 'I was just on the beach' thing. “Look, I didn't start here, just passing through. Doesn't seem like much is out here to know about in the first place anyway. Definitely not worth sticking around for so I'm not planning to.” And that was pretty much it, shrug and all. The number of wolves he'd run into had been pretty low the past few weeks, so he couldn't even say to go bug someone else.. There just wasn't anyone else.
the staff team luvs u

Kincaid wasn't sure about all that; the place was kind of pretty, and he was a man who could appreciate that. Too, there seemed to be an abundance of prey in the area, which was a definite plus after eating fish and cetacea off the sandy beach for the past week and a half. It was only a shame to have done all that and see it wasted, since he hadn't actually gotten where he'd meant to go, or done what he'd meant to do.

Maybe it was fate. He didn't like kids, anyway, he was suddenly given reason to remember.

"Hm," he agreed, at any rate, looking back out over the half-frozen reaches of the plains. He said, "Well, I wish you all the joy of it," in a tone that did not seem to wish this at all. Wailing about things was looking more and more attractive, but he'd rather wail where the witnesses were not quite so judgmental. Rabbits were always a good audience, he'd found. Birds got just plain nasty. Other wolves? Well, they rarely took kindly to the sort of sounds he made in mourning and frustration. "Have a good one." And he was off, black nose twitching close to the ground as he attempted to pick up a trail that was not Vic's.
the staff team luvs u

“Yeah, okay then. Bye and stuff.” Yep, he was polite, huh?Vidocq was probably an acquired taste anyway -- salt and tar with a side of lemon, maybe, or some other foul combination that hit a number of unpleasant notes. It kept people at arm's length, which was right now what he preferred. It felt better. There were a number of things that he didn't right now and someone weighing him down was on that list.

And just as he promised, Vidocq was not long lingering. He shook out his fur a second time and trotted off vaguely to the southwest, much the direction he'd been going. Perhaps something else would happen that would stop his wandering there. Wherever there was.
the staff team luvs u