you do not know who is your friend

or who is your enemy

until the ICE breaks.

He'd spent a lot of time trying to map out their immediate surroundings, but he knew that it was just a thin, flimsy excuse for the real reason: he was looking for @Triell and @Marsh, always sniffing the ground and trunks for a hint of their passage, always looking for some copper hairs to be struck by sunlight... Day by day his quest seemed to grow more futile, as he caught no trace of either of them - they were simply gone, and it tore at his heart in a way that had him so confused and at odds with the joy he felt each time he looked upon his sons. It was like half of him was filled up with bliss, and the other half left out in the cold, dark snow without a light.

Today, his treks had taken him east, up into the red hills bordering their corner of the spooky woods. He wasn't really sure what was up with that place, for mist always seemed to hang in the most eerie fashion between the trees, but he hunting was good and their den was in a sunny, mist-free spot. Grunting with the effort of scaling the steep mountainside, Ice paused and looked down over his shoulder; it was a dizzying drop should he tumble off the path, but down there somewhere he thought he caught a glint of the creek.. somewhere there, was the oak and the den and the pack. He raised his eyes. And beyond that, the entire world. Somewhere out there Marsh was.

He turned back to the task at hand, hauling himself up the heights until he suddenly found himself on a small plateau of sorts, the path below him and the jagged heights above him. And.. a lot of other interesting things, too. The difference in altitude had hid her scent from him, but now that they were more or less in the same place, he suddenly realized she was here. Ava, his lost friend, the poisoned wolf he couldn't bring himself to hate, who had suddenly turned up smelling of Borden's old haunt: and in front of her, a wolverine who seemed quite intent to knocking her off the perch they shared.

Ice let himself forget about Marsh, forget about Triell, forget about the long way down. A twitch ran through his fur and his scruff rose, ears pointing forward; lips peeled back and bared fangs, and a low rumble thundered through his chest. That wolverine better run away.. lest the dark lady and her shining paladin cooperate tonight, and send him scurrying back to his den in tatters.

.ice aesir

you do not know who is your friend

or who is your enemy

until the ICE breaks.

Somehow, it didn't strike him as odd to see Ava there - it should've confused him but it just seemed natural, to see her again, when the Hollow had laid so far to the west. They had roamed far and wide in the west.. so why not in the east, too? His silver gaze went from the wolverine's back to her face, meeting her eyes for a moment, and the world paused: she was still fire and shadow, cloaked in the darkest night with sun-struck amber for eyes... Beautiful and haunting.

Then the wolverine was moving, scurrying forward and Ava met it head-on, Ice's claws scrabbling against the rocks as he propelled himself forward, too. Dark jaws closed on a bushy tail and stout claws raked across her muzzle, and then Ice was there, the filthy smell of the struggling animals thick in his sensitive nose. His lips still revealed his teeth, the growl a constant rumble in his chest, and the trapped creature spun to face him, knowing it had no chance but to go offensive with its butt stuck in Ava's iron grip. And Ice, didn't mind. Something about the movement.. the focus.. it took his mind off his troubles. Clawed paws flailed in Ice's face, his jaws snapping and finding nothing, little tiny cuts torn across his lips and nose before he backed off half a step - and threw out his great right paw, smacking the wolverine hard on the side and staggering it for a moment.

.ice aesir

you do not know who is your friend

or who is your enemy

until the ICE breaks.

It seemed that a good whack on the head did the trick: Ava let it go as it staggered sideways, and Ice growled warningly at it. But it didn't seem inclined to get all its brains rattled that day, because it began to scamper off, bleeding from the tail and unable to keep an entirely straight track. Ice snorted, watching it go. Seemed like it hadn't gambled on Ava getting reinforcements, but at least it had sense enough to live another day.

But with the going of the wolverine, and the fading of adrenaline, the things he'd kept at bay surged in again. Marsh, Triell, everything. Being a father. Ice's ears flicked backwards for a moment, and then he sighed. No point in wasting time anguishing about the whereabouts of Marsh. Because, if he could run into Ava in the unlikeliest of places.. what was to say the next unlikely encounter wouldn't be Marsh? Clinging to that thought, Ice found a faint grin on his lips as he turned to peer at the dark lady. As he saw her grin, his own widened, and his raised tail began its wag from side to side, clearly indicating his pleasure at seeing her again. To think they had started out as enemies... She thanked him with a bow, and he wondered if that meant the roles were reversed, and he should curtsy?

In the end, though, he simply inclined his head gravely (somber enough to fit a paladin). "I am glad to be of help, my wicked witch." The corner of his mouth curled up, and he made a huffing noise before taking a few strides forward, closing the distance between them and putting his nose against hers. A true greeting, and still his tail kept wagging as they stood up there on the mountainside, content to be silent for a while.

.ice aesir

you do not know who is your friend

or who is your enemy

until the ICE breaks.

His whole hind end was swaying from side to side with the force of his joy, and the pressure of her dark, wet nose against his sent his spirits soaring. Perhaps he had lost a thing or two, but he still had this, this mischievous dark little lady, who was just as happy to see him as he was to see her; the corners of his mouth tugged up, and for a moment his eyes closed. There were still good things in the world, things of joy, a reason to believe, cause to celebrate; there were pups in the Bend and friends he hadn't left behind in quite the same manner as he thought. While it had grieved him he hadn't gone to the Hollow to say goodbye.. he realized that even if he had, she wouldn't have been there. There was only a very, very faint scent of cedar on her, as if she, too, had closed the book and finished the chapters in the west.

He didn't mind at all. And when she began to pull back, his pink tongue darted out, trying to catch her on the nose before she drew out of range; his face split into a lopsided grin at her words. Ava, a lady? No way. She was a lady as much as a skunk was a sweet-smelling rose - that is, not at all. "The weekends must be really long, then," he said, lolling his tongue out at her. Things had changed the past half a year, and quickly; he'd taken over the River, and she.. she had taken over the Hollow. And then, they'd both just upped and left and become parents.

As she glanced aside he followed her gaze, then sighed quietly at her words. He shuffled one paw over the red rocks of the Hills, scattering a few loose pebbles before turning his head west. The faint outline of the Serpent hovered on the horizon, the Mountain of Dire jutting into the sky. Mountains on one side, mountains on the other, like jaws waiting to close. "I wish I had, Ava... the past year was very turbulent for us, not just with those pup-killing rabid rogues." For a moment his ears flattened, as he remembered Rissa's torn face glittering coldly in the moonlight. "We came here to escape the memories and the pain..." And suddenly he had moved, barely knowing it himself, trying to run his cheek against her face and seek comfort in the scruff of her neck. How long would it be until the wounds healed? There was so much new, but until he knew what had befallen Marsh and Triell.. he needed that final closure, but he feared that he would never know where they had gone.

After a moment's silence he asked, quietly, "What brought you over here?".

.ice aesir

you do not know who is your friend

or who is your enemy

until the ICE breaks.

Black fur bristled, and with two children of his own at home, he could relate to the fear and anger rising at every thought of a threat. He'd even felt the bitter taste of it made real, but swallowed it. That belonged to a different time. It wasn't something he had meant to carry with him over there, instead he would find new ghosts to haunt them. His eyes closed, lungs drawing in her comforting scent, so blessedly free of Naira and nightshade. All those nights ago in the willows, Ice had been torn between what was right: was it to abandon the lowly traitors, or to follow her oath? Both had seemed equally right, but he would be a liar if he denied he was glad it had turned out this way in the end.

Slowly they pulled apart, her fiery gaze meeting the soft silver of his. It felt like the roles were reversed, that it was no longer the paladin standing tall and proud and helping her on her way, but she being the strong one - she had always been strong, he suspected, but difficult situations can make even the strongest wolf need guidance. Ice was tenacious, even if his heart was breaking, and it was a relief to listen to Ava's voice. The corners of his mouth twitched at her words of beginning anew, as if not sure they remembered how to properly smile; she spoke of Kade, and Darkwater Rapids. Strangely strong as the bond between Ice and Ava was, he was not jealous of the other black-furred man: his heart had never beat for Ava in that way, and what little he had seen of Kade was.. promising. He'd helped defeat the Aniwayan wolves, and he trusted it was no idiot if he lived with Ava. If she thought he was good enough for him, then he was, but Ice still planned on meeting him again just to make really sure he was good enough.

His tail gave a few wags, the corners of his mouth finally pulling into a shy smile since his plunge into the icy waters of memory. So Ava had two daughters, just like Ice had two sons; thinking of Serach and Sceral was mixed joy and pain, for their aging was nothing but proof of how quickly time passed, and how overdue Marsh and Triell's return was. Bittersweet. "Corinna and I settled.. down there?" He turned away from Ava, balancing easily on three legs as he used one front paw to point in the general direction; it was barely visible from here, over at the horizon, where the strange, quiet forest thinned out. "We call it Oak Tree Bend, after the creek and oak tree we've got. And I'm no Prince, because we've got two other princes." There. It was the first time he'd admitted to someone else, outside of the pack, that he was a father: father to two little silvery pale males, mewling bundles of fur. Helpless, and perfect. His smile became wider, even if he was anxious to see, and hear, her reaction. Ava was, after all, someone who mattered a lot to him.

.ice aesir