His investigations around Stonewatch Timbers had been mostly sparse. There were plenty of trees and rocks; it was a forest. But he had found little to break up the monotony of the trees. That wasn't to say that he was bored, quite the opposite, but he longed for a chance of scenery without having to go too far from home. It was by complete accident that Branwen stumbled upon Bowed Maple Bend. He'd spotted the tree from afar before realizing that a small section of river separated him from it. It would have made him happy if the river had not been frozen. He had few qualms with leaping into frozen cold water. But it was quite frozen, thick enough that he could easily walk across its surface.

Reaching the other side, he leaned against the barren Maple tree, lifting his head just so, that his crown rested flatly against the trunk. His eyes gazed upwards towards the sky, which he could hardly see from the fog. Was that sky or was it fog? What a game. A few stray flakes landed on his nostrils. His head snapped down as he sneezed, shaking his head violently. A shiver ran down his spine and he shifted his rump against the crusting snow. Watching the immobile surface of the water, he wondered how hard it might be to break it. In his current condition, he didn't have much faith that he'd do any damage to it. He slid to his belly and slowly crawled to the water's edge. One leg reached forward to let a paw rest against the surface and he let his eyes flutter closed.