Krinn just chuckled a bit. "Kiyoshi...You keep yourself down. Your the only one here that's holding you back." He thumped Kiyoshi lightly on the back of the head. "..and..throwing rocks work. When they hit their intended mark." He let his arm slip from Kiyoshi's shoulders so he could reach up and grab Korai. To hold him close to his chest. He was rather fond of that little dragon and he did enjoy holding him so close like that.

Korai, sensing that Krinn wanted a hug, let himself be hugged. Reaching his head up, he pokes Krinn's chin with his nose, purring happily as only a dragon can. "Goood Kurrinn." He was grinning as he says this, happy he was getting better at talking out loud.

Kiyoshi, getting an idea, throws it out to Yuzo, even though the water dragon hadn't answered yet. Wait, you guys stay wherever you are. Krinn and I will go to the west side of town, if you're not there, then we'll have problem. Out loud, he looks at Krinn, making sure no emotion was showing on his face. "Either I told Kenji west side of town, they're completely lost, or they're in trouble. I'd like to try the west side of town before panicking though."

You aren't going alone, Kiyoshi. Kenji said a pack stays together, right Krinn? Korai pokes Krinn's chin again with his nose.

"Mm." Krinn murred softly and snuggled Korai for a bit. At first not really paying attention to Kiyoshi or what he said. Though after a few moments of it being said, the words registered in his mind. He blinked a bit and looked up. "I could track their scents..I am a wolf." He smiled a bit, looking down at Korai before nuzzling him again. "Right." He looked at Kiyoshi, those eyes set. "A pack stays together, and I'm sorry cousin, but you're a part of the pack." He grinned a bit. "Come along then." Though he said that. Krinn made no move to leave. He just nuzzled Korai again and licked the dragon's cheek.

It was a little difficult to hear the reply, if any, from the little dragon. The fact that the two elves near him were going on about something in an energetic way made it harder for him to focus. Not that he could focus properly in the first place. Communicating in dragon wasn't the best skill Yuzo had. He had been raised in human form after all and had left his ancestral home earlier than most of his kin.

"Umm..they're saying something about a tiger or were-cat?" he finally said to the two lovebirds, unsure if they were listening at all. But that was all he would say for now as he tried once more to communicate mentally with the other party. However, Krinn's attempt at hitting Kiyoshi surprised and amused him. 'A rock, huh? Smooth Krinn. Real smooth.' he thought. He had forgotten he was supposed to say something until Kiyoshi asked him where they were and why weren't they in the east outskirts. Yuzo was about to answer when Kiyoshi changed his mind and said they would try the west side of town.

"We're by the big tree. You'll know when you see it, it's hard to miss. See you when you get here." Yuzo finally managed to reply. He then turned to Merisa and Kenji. "Apparently, they went east. Kiyoshi said to wait where we are. They're on their way here now."

You shouldn't have to do that, Krinn. We can just walk west... And after that monster, could you really pick up the scents with all the other people running around? Korai was stunned by the lick on his cheek, but he figured that as long as the wolf's teeth stayed where they were, then a lick wasn't a bad thing. After all, dragons gave licks as kisses. ...at least, that's what he thought they did... They didn't really have proper lips like a human or an elf...

"I thought that Yuzo flew them off the roof. Can you pick up scents from a flying dragon? We don't always fly straight to our destination..." He shifts out, back to elf, happy to be shed of the scales and wings, especially if they were to be seen by other people. "West is that way~" he points in front of them "~anyway, it's not too easy to get lost going west. Anyway, we have less than two miles to walk."

"Kuuriin?" Korai was commanding the male's attention once more, looking somewhat appologeticly at Kiyoshi. How are dragons part of a wolf pack?

~X~

"Oooh, werecat? Oh, wait, you mean me?" Merisa puts on a pouting look, her tail giving her away with a happy swishing gesture.

Kenji, unable to keep the laugh at bay with a look like that and a case of 'happy tail', snickered, his own tail wagging happily. His ears, perked up to listen around them, twitch once toward town. "I think whatever was going on has finished."

"Yeah, there's not so many moving targets down there now." Merisa didn't realize what she'd said, not knowing that it was a cat thing that made her say it, not that she knew what she even said at all.

"The wind carries scents. I can easily discern the scents of my friends from those of strangers..As long as I can catch their scents on the wind I can track them." Krinn had shrugged a bit and when Kiyoshi pointed, Krinn started moving in that direction. "Well go this way, then." He looked down at the dragon in his arms and smiled softly. "Packs aren't exclusive to just wolves. A pack is a family, or a group of friends that consider themselves a family. Anyone..anything can be in a pack or have a pack." He was nuzzling that little dragon again.

"Well, I suppose that explains why you keep calling me 'cousin' then." Kiyoshi starts after Krinn. "Wow, all you need are wings and you could be a dragon if you can scent things like you say."

And being in a family means that no-one gets left behind or forgotten, right? Does that mean you don't want to leave anymore? Korai leans away from the nuzzles until Krinn answers him. Because you know that Kenji and Merisa can get into plenty of trouble if you are there to bail them out...

The wolf shrugged again. "I thought all animals could scent things like that?" He blinked then added. "I can't track things in water though..." At Korai's question, Krinn stopped, looking almost as if he'd be slapped in the face, that body tensed then relaxed and he smiled down at the little dragon. "I'm still here aren't I? I won't leave." It wasn't a lie. He didn't want to leave them..and perhaps for a long while he wouldn't leave them. He inhaled deeply, those two scents were still following him and he was still hungry. Krinn started walking again...His mind on other things, an almost distant look in his eyes.

"I don't think it was you, otherwise they'd say Merisa. At least I think it wasn't you....And targets?" Yuzo looked toward the town once more before unfurling himself from the tree. He decided to fly up a little higher to see if the other three were anywhere in sight. But he had only risen up a few feet before he dropped back down in his human form. "Ow!" he exclaimed, landing hard on one of the great tree's roots.

"Targets?" Merisa thinks back over what she'd said, looking somewhat embarrassed when she realizes that she did say that. "Oh, moving things. I guess cats see things that are moving as targets to pounce on. I have noticed that moving things draw my attention easier that things sitting still recently." She watches as Yuzo turns humanoid again.

"Good thing we weren't in the air when you changed back. That might have hurt from a higher position in the sky." Kenji goes to Yuzo's side. "The tree says 'ouch' by the way, and is happy you landed on it than on the rocky ground."

Merisa was at their friend's side quickly as well, nearly leaping to be next to Yuzo. "Yuzo! Are you hurt?" She was concerned of course, what friend wouldn't be. It's not her fault he looked like a squirrel falling out of a tree. At least she didn't pounce on him, just next to him.

~X~

Kiyoshi shrugs. "Animals yes, I'm sure all animals can scent like that, but you're not necessarily an animal right now. Even when I shift out of dragon form, my senses dull." He looks toward the town as they pass it by. "I merely thought maybe yours did the same thing. I sincerely apologize for my wrongful assumption." Somehow, he refrains from adding 'sire' on the end of his sentence.

Krinn? Are you alright? You seem distracted, like you're waiting for something to happen, but don't want to say anything until it does. Korai had moved to his friend's head, laying down in his hair and holding on with his feet claws in what shouldn't be a painful manner, given that he healed any wounds he might have made when climbing up to his perch. Don't worry, we'll be there soon. I already see the tree Yuzo meant.

"Wait, speaking of the tree, I thought we were to meet up near an old decrepit tree, not a large young tree." Kiyoshi had noticed the tree as well, and with his elven sight, was able to watch Yuzo change to human as they approached. "Well, that's the right tree, I can just barely see them. Yuzo just changed back to human."

Krinn's attention was returned to those with him, blinking slightly looking at Kiyoshi and then looking away rather quickly. "No...I'm more animal than human." He hesitated, frowning slightly. "A day is coming when I will no longer be able to change into human form." Krinn's body tensed then relaxed and he shook his head lightly, gently enough so he wouldn't shake Korai loose.

"I'm fine Korai..." Krinn was still frowning until the tree and the others came into sight. His frown turned to a slight smile. "It's about time. I'm hungry, I've been more than ready for my breakfast..." He glanced at the sky. "Though now it seems more like it might be lunch instead of breakfast."

"My apologies sir....ma'am....sir?" Yuzo wasn't sure what the ancient plant's gender was, assuming it had a gender at all. Aside from being uncertain as to how he should address the tree, the dragon was also feeling the pangs of landing on his backside. Still, it was better to have landed on the woody roots than the even harder rocks. "I'm fine Merisa. Thanks though." It was only after he had carefully brought himself back up to a sitting position that he noticed the approach of Krinn, Kiyoshi and Korai. "What took you guys?" he called out, not able nor wishing to move again any time soon.

Kiyoshi nods slowly, not really knowing what to say about this revelation, but knowing that it was a bad deal.

On Krinn's head, Korai nods and lays his chin on his ride of choice's head, looking ahead. He was anxious to get back to Kenji and Merisa, but he wouldn't leave Kiyoshi's head until they were closer. A late lunch by this point too. But food is food, no matter the time one gets it.

Kenji chuckles quietly, resting a hand upon the trunk of the tree, as though her were resting his hand on an old friend's shoulder. "As I said, the great tree was happy to catch you." He looks up as their friends approach. "We were beginning to worry about you. What took so long?"

Bouncing over to Krinn to poke Korai in the nose, Merisa points the tree out to Krinn. "Kenji healed it. It was dying and he sang a song that the tree remembered, and it's young again." She bounces back over to Kenji, careful to not hop on the roots of the great tree.

Krinn nodded slightly, silently agreeing with Korai. Food was food, and food was generally more delicious the hungrier one was. He licked his lips and smiled just as Merisa came bounding over to them. When she pointed to the tree, Krinn stared at it, hard, his head tilted to the side slightly. Magic? Or could it have been something stronger than mere magic?

Krinn pushed those thoughts away, it didn't matter much. Really. "We got lost?" He shrugged slightly. "Doesn't matter. Only thing that matters is, we're here now and I'm starving." Krinn made his way to the tree, careful to not step on the roots, he looked at it for a moment. "Seems a nice enough place to have lunch."

"Yes. Lunch.", mumbled Yuzo, though his aching backside decreased his appetite somewhat. Content to stay where he was for now, the dragon watched as his companions moved about. He wondered where they'd go from here. He still needed to reach the sea due to his sister's wedding. He remembered the elves were looking for a stone in the same direction, though their destination would be to some mountains near an ocean. Krinn was looking for someone. Korai needed Kenji to survive and Kiyoshi must help them in order to defeat the more corrupt members of his kind. Their stay at this bustling town was...eventful to say the least. But where would they head out from there? While Yuzo mused about the future he caught the scent of salt. "You guys don't have any dried fish with you by any chance?", he asked, hoping he didn't sound too eager.