To Ridley's slight dismay, the stranger hadn't seen his little female. Part of him was glad for it. He didn't want others to find her as fascinating as he had. And yet, when he had asked the stranger if he had seen her or not, he had felt a slight tingle of hope that he would answer 'yes'. How dare he hope. He knew better than to do such a thing. Hope was for fools, for dreamers and believers. Hope wasn't for him.
When the other had offered to help him look for the lass, Ridley thought to turn him down. So far, they had survived the first test of a male on male encounter. But could they, two strangers, continue on together without either acknowledging where the other stood? Ridley knew that he could certainly behave himself. He didn't have that same drive other males had. Perhaps because when it came to his raising, he had been the weakest of his siblings in their brawls. So, instead of learning how to tussle, he learned other ways of being strong. Such as, being strong of Will and strong of Mind.
And yet, if he accepted the help of the stranger (who had a good point about more eyes) then he might find his little female that much faster than if he were on his own. If she resisted and fled and split herself again like she had done before, there would be one to chase each of her copies, increasing their odds of keeping track of her. It, he concluded, was worth it for that alone. Besides, if the other acted up and decided to turn lip towards him, Ridley at least knew how to take care of himself. He wasn't aggressive, but he wasn't a push-over either.
"Sure" Ridley answered with a tone even and untelling of how he had considered telling the male to continue and go off on his own. He turned his gaze to look out to the horizon, staring off in the direction of the desert, and started to head off in that direction when he suddenly smelt a burning smell taint the glands on his tongue. The stranger introduced himself unprompted. Ridley smiled slightly, amused that once again, the stranger was giving him information without Ridley even trying to dig it free. "Are you going to burn things the entire journey? I'd rather not give her smoke signals to track our movements by. She's a skittish little thing, and I suspect she'll burrow down like a tick and hide until she starves if she knows I'm coming."