The sudden scarcity of food had not yet done much to keep the children from playing most of the day. If anything, they probably needed it as a distraction from the seriousness of the adults and the frustration of not being able to catch much of anything to make it better. Not to mention the annoying feeling of being hungry more and more lately. The snow was getting deeper, but not so deep that Aleris had to bounce and dive across its surface when it was powdery and loose. Lucia sometimes had to she'd noticed, hilariously. Not right now though, as the trio romped through the mixed woods of their home; chasing and tackling each other into being “it” and throwing plenty of banter around. Ryker had been downed by his elder sister early on with a good pounce into the white flakes, only to catch the slightly more mired Lucia in a clearing where the snow was deeper, who then managed to again tag Eris when they were back among the trees and the shallower footing. Her tail had been the target, and the little black pup had somehow outmaneuvered her older counterpart when Aleris chose to, predictably, retaliate by whirling on her.

Now the big mottled pup was on the hunt again, her face plastered with an open grin and tongue lolling. The game was leading them down towards the banks of the springs, as all three galloped across the flatter ground and thicker trees. One thing she had always counted on was Ryker stumbling over or running into something, but luck was apparently on the boy's side for now, and Lucia could only be caught when she tired out in an area like this. As they charged on, the fatigue and the hunger began to get to the firstborn Lieris. She was panting pretty hard, the warm breath from her lungs easily visible in great, shredded puffs against the frigid air. They'd all swung just close enough to the water to see its surface between the trees, and it was this peculiar sight that gave the girl an excuse to end her pursuit for just a moment and investigate. The Springs looked like it was... missing.

Sides heaving, the pup slowed to a gentle lope and then a swift trot, light green eyes fixated on the strangeness that was the lake's new coating. For weeks she'd seen weird hard edges appearing and vanishing just along the banks. They were remarkably cold and fragile, though not nearly as cold as the water, and fun to goof around with and smash. Adults had called it “ice,” and it only came around when the white flakes replaced the rain and everything turned chilly, which was now. She'd been told that one day it would cover the whole lake, and as cool as that had sounded, the image in her mind was nothing like the sight before her now. There was snowy ground where water should have been!

"Guys!" She called into the forest behind her; voice breathless and shocked. "Guys look at the lake! It's gone!"