'... hm.. was it something I said.' He wondered, as the noise of hurried footsteps and crunching leaves quickly carried away the presence of whoever had approached.

'Perhaps this one could give me some information.' He thought, even though he was not exactly looking for company. 

In fact, he was keen to avoid company for the rest of the day if possible, with the exception of the one he was searching for - the one whose head he was to take as bounty - the one who had been abducting children from the nearby villages, to the extent that the various village heads had come together to post a rather massive bounty on the head of the abductor - dead or alive.

The catch though, was that none had seen the abductor, or even seen any trace of the person, neither head nor tail. But these were the kind of bounties Cloud preferred. More often than not, it was the strange sixth sense he had developed over the years that led him to the prey, and perhaps a bit of luck, rather than any specialization in tracking or the like. 

Turning away from the bank, Cloud started heading in the direction of the nearest village, which is where the last abduction had taken place. He assumed that it would be as good a place to start as any. It just so happened that the hurried footsteps he heard also seemed to head in the same direction.

He was not looking for company, but he figured it would not be a bad idea to ask the traveler some questions, and perhaps some directions.