Aponi was practically a walking skeleton, her frame has grown into its yearling size but her weight continued to drop drastically. Bones poked out through her skin and each rib was clearly outlined, her fur hung limply and patches were thinning rapidly. Deep circles had grown beneath her ice blue eyes which no longer held the fire they once had but instead a staring glassy look. The princess wasn't sleeping though exhaustion hung over her at every minute, whenever she lay down deep shudders would run along her limbs. Constant coughing racked her lungs and her throat was raw, there was little that could be done to calm the burning sensation. It had been nearly six weeks since the girl and her guardian had seen their home and even longer since they had received a decent meal. She was on the verge of dying and they both knew it, if they weren't rescued soon Aponi wouldn't live to see the spring.

At first they had tried to keep travelling home from the forest where they had met Karpos' uncle but it had been two weeks since they last moved locations. She just couldn't do it, it was almost too hard for her to move from the small cave they had found at the base of the falls to the pool of water just to get a drink. Once a fighter who wouldn't take no for an answer Aponi had accepted the fact that she would probably die here with @Mercy by her side. He had been her enemy, someone who she had taunted and had no respect for, and now she relied on him, respected him, needed him. No longer did she bicker back at his suggestions, just followed the instructions as best as she could without a word. He had gone out in search of food for the both of them earlier that morning and hadn't returned yet when the most recent storm hit.

Blue eyes stared blankly out the opening of the cave, looking but not really seeing anything. The wind howled and occasionally snow would sting her eyes as the storm changed direction but Aponi barely blinked. A dark form seemed to be moving and the princess furrowed her brow but couldn't bring herself to move and investigate, instead she croaked, "Mercy?" Could he have found his way home in this weather? She had assumed he would have taken shelter until the storm quieted before returning to her as he had done in the past when events like this occurred. Dull silver fur swung limply across the ground as her tail wagged half-heartedly.

There was no answer to her call and this troubled Aponi, where was Mercy and why wasn't he answering her? Had he not heard her? Squinting she used her front paws to shuffle her body closer to the entrance calling out louder this time, "Mercy is that you?" A horrible burning scratch gripped her throat and the princess grimaced, flinching away the entrance and swallowing furiously to attempt to heal it. So it was she was not watching the entrance when the boy flew through it, the air flooded from her lungs as the silver girl hid the ground in a heavy thud. Spots danced in her eyes and it seemed as if she was being crushed, frantically the girl panicked, flailing out with her claws in an attempt to get away.

She was too delirious to look and see what exactly had landed on top of her and instead wasted momentous energy trying to claw out from under it. Her paws collided with anything she could reach, the stone below and around them and possibly even the stranger themselves. Convinced that the cave had collapsed Aponi gasped for air, closing her eyes and using all of her strength to pull herself from underneath of the other pup.

The princess managed to roll away from underneath of the boy who had flung himself so foolishly through the entrance until her side became pressed firmly against the cave wall. It was only then that the adrenaline subsided and Aponi was able to see that the cave had no in fact collapsed but it had been another body that had been on top of her own. Too exhausted now to do anything but glare at him from her spot upon the ground she did her best to regain the high power she once held, "Who are you?" she demanded. She wished she could leap at him, force him out of the cave and back into the storm where he belonged but she just couldn't, she could barely find it in herself to raise her head and look him in the eye.

Her breath billowed between them in great puffs of white as she stared him down, even in her current state Aponi was a hurricane. Blue eyes narrowed at his answer and her own retort was practically a snarl, "A princess." He would not be allowed to have the upper hand, it was clear which one of them was in better health and the silver girl wouldn't allow him any more knowledge than he gave out. The adrenaline still shot through her veins, keeping the constant exhaustion at bay for once even though she had wasted precious energy in her struggle to get out from under the boy.

Barring her teeth in an attempt to look as menacing as possible the silver fur along her spine rose to stand straight from her back. Inching closer Aponi snarled again, "Give me one good reason I shouldn't force you out into that storm or better yet, rip you limb from limb so I can finally have a decent meal?" Eating another wolf would be disgusting to anyone in their right mind, but Aponi was not, her mind was driven forward by wild starvation and exhaustion, she would do anything to survive at this moment. Inching closer again she felt a growl building in her throat, low and menacing her eyes switching from the boy's own orbs to the spot on his throat she knew if she sank her teeth into would kill him. A deranged smile crossed her face at the thought of warm meat in her belly once more.