Windsong Fjord under the midnight sun

Right. For some reason Askan found that single word so much more annoying than any curse or witty insult Reyes could have possibly pulled from his ass. It was so condescending, so haughty that Askan was tempted to nip him on the snout. But he didn't, somehow he managed to rein himself in and resist the urge. In such a tight spot like this, it was a bad idea to start squabbling, or at least physically. And really, with the way he was, he wasn't exactly in best form. After some rest he was certain that he would be fine, that he'd be right as rain, but as of then the ball was in Reyes' court. And oh how he hated that.

Reyes' sharp, probing question made Askan sneer in contempt. Did it look like he had a death wish? If he had he would have jumped in the river a lot sooner. In fact, no he wouldn't have. If he had been so desperate to die, he would gone north and bitten Craw's ass. At least then he could get his own back before he left this world for the next. Or so the saying went, Askan wasn't convinced there was any other world besides from this one. At the very least, the loner's next question was a little more reasonable. Honestly, he was surprised he hadn't asked it sooner.

"I was fishing, obviously." He huffed, then hesitated for a moment, seeing as he hadn't actually even caught a fish. "Or at least I was trying to. And before you get all smart, no one ever taught me how to fish so I figured I might as well practice. I get it now, standing out on the ice was dumb, stupid as fuck, so there you don't need to bitch at me about that either. I've learned my lesson, won't see me fishing any time soon." He grumbled, pressing his chin down on his paws again.

Reyes had resumed grooming him, despite Askan's earlier protests, and despite the mini-fit he'd thrown, he didn't see the point in keeping it up. Sure, he wasn't exactly being gentle but after years and years of being pushed around and gnawed on by his sister's Askan found that he had a pretty high pain threshold. It took something pretty damn painful to make him blink an eye. So this, the occasional pull on his coat, was like water off a ducks back.

(This post was last modified: Jan 29, 2017, 11:27 PM by Askan.)

“Obviously.”

Of course, why didn’t he think of that? Wolves trying to fish through the damn ice in the middle of winter, made perfect sense. Or, you know, testing the safety of thin ice for a chance at a meal. Did fish even swim in the winter? Come to think of it, Reyes wasn’t sure he’d ever seen one out and about in the winter months – not that he was looking, mind you – but it seemed personally reasonable to him that they’d go to sleep, not unlike bears or squirrels or any number of creatures arguably more clever than wolves. Reyes didn’t mind the idea of a good, long sleep, waking up when it was much warmer.

Alas. Here he was, his mouth feeling cold and dry, and an ungrateful companion, to boot. If there was anything he could say for Askan, it was that the wolf was at least putting any trouble from Cottongrass was minimal by comparison.

The solemn mood continued to hover over him, settled like a thick cloud as a heavy sigh escaped him. He drew back, and assessed his work. There were few things about him his mama would have been proud of, he reckoned, but she’d at least be pleased he rescued the moron and made sure he was set before leaving him to his own devices. She’d do as much, after all, no matter how many mouths she had to feed.

“There you go.” Asshole. “Go to sleep. I’ll watch.”

Again, Reyes' response was less than appreciated. Askan had gone out of his way to explain and respond to any and all questions he might have, but no! The loner had to paint him as the bad guy. It was always the same. When Askan didn't try, people hated him, when he did try they still hated him. He was damned if he did and damned if he didn't. He felt as though no matter what he did, he'd always end annoying, or worse yet being a burden to someone. And knowing that, recognising how much of a shit he was, well it didn't do his fragile self esteem any good. That was why he couldn't think like that, why he had to shove all of those nasty, painful thoughts to the side. They would make him weak, he couldn't allow them to fester and take over, no matter what. Because if he did, surely he would be lost.

Askan sighed, just as Reyes happened to pull away. Was he done? Well, if he had to be honest he did feel warmer and he belatedly realised his teeth were no longer chattering. For sure, his body still hurt but it was more of a dull ache than an ice cold burn all over. The Yukon wolf watched as Reyes climbed to his feet and stood at the mouth of their shelter, before venturing out into the snow.For a moment or so, Askan simply stared after him, his bright eyes unblinking, then without really thinking about it he scrambled out of their little shelter and stepped out into the cold. It was cold, he was still cold, but it was tolerable, he wasn't going to just drop dead from standing for a little. Besides, he needed to stretch and roll his shoulders before he got too stiff. And there wasn't enough room in there to do it, so getting out made sense.

Siding eyeing his grumpy companion, Askan took in the awe-inspiring scenery around them. Even he had to admit that it was pretty, that the slanted steps covered in snow were a sight to behold. But as usual, he didn't let his thoughts show on his face, his expression remained grim and steely.

"I've never seen a formation like this before." Askan stated, breaking the lengthy silence. "How about you?"

Reyes honestly had not expected the other wolf to join him – after all, he’d offered to keep watch with every intention of actually doing as much. He was an asshole, but his mama didn’t raise no liar. His ear flicked sideways, briefly acknowledging the other wolf, and he huffed a sigh, watching his breath form a pale cloud in the moonlight “I didn’t haul your ass out of the river so you could freeze to death out here, you know. Wasn’t easy.” Finally, he tipped his head to one side, the corner of his mouth threatening to quirk upwards. “I might not be the only one who needs to lay off the marmots.”

Shuffling a little closer, the wolf allowed their sides to brush. If Askan was going to insist on sitting his ass outside in the cold, then Reyes could at least act as a windshield until they guy finally got tired and went to sleep. Or hell, maybe he’d go to sleep if his offer was denied

“Naw. Ain’t seen anything like it, neither. Pasos al Ceilo,” he hummed softly, looking from the strange, stony formation up to the sky the rocks seemed to reach for. “Steps to the sky.” Not that it looked like any wolf could actually climb up those steps, but it was an interesting thought. At least there was a cave for them to bed in. “You going back to your pack tomorrow?”

Askan huffed and cast a shady look in Reyes' direction. He wasn't going to die any time soon and he certainly wasn't fat either. Sure, he was pretty well fed considering the season and all, but that was down to Askan's and his fellow packmate's hard work. He knew for a fact that if he was a loner, he would be all skin and bone just as he had been when he'd first entered Relic Lore. But here he was months later and he was in great form, hefty and built like a tank. Considering that Reyes was a loner, Askan had to give him a little bit of credit. His form wasn't to bad either, he was clearly built for strength and stamina, the sort that could take hits but dish them out twice as hard.

"You're such a child. Grow up." He grumbled. Was that the best Reyes could do, the whole 'I know you are but what am I' stick. How immature. And yet he had the nerve to look all smug and pleased with himself. Once again, Askan thought he deserved a nip on the snout, or the ass, but instead Askan took the high road-for once- and simply let it go. For now anyway.

It seemed as though Reyes had the same, or similar line of thought as a few moments or so later, Askan felt the warmth of Reyes' side push against his own. Once again, he was tempted to flinch, to pull away from his touch. But he was rather warm and Askan was quite cold... Maybe this wasn't so bad, maybe it was tolerable. Besides, if he did make a scene again he was sure that Reyes would just throw another pissy fit, that he'd get all snappy like before. So the fact that Askan didn't move away didn't mean anything, not really, he was simply doing what he had to to keep the peace, to stay warm. That's all there was to it, it didn't mean anything. Nothing at all.

The Yukon's bright, intense gaze roamed over the treacherous, snow coated valley and his ears twitched at the roar of a waterfall, that was out of his line of sight but no doubt nearby. At first he didn't think that Reyes would even bother to respond to his question, but he did and was seemingly unable to resist the urge to add some of his babble on the end. What an ass. But Stairs to the sky, that was a bit...Flouncy wasn't it? A bit romantic? Askan wouldn't have pegged him as that kind of wolf, but he supposed that looks were deceiving. Not everything or everyone was as they seemed.

"Huh? Yeah I guess. It's not far from here, I'll be able to make it." Askan told him, his voice firm and sure. And then a sly smile tugged at his lips before he covered it with a scowl. Smiling wasn't a part of his image. "Why, you gonna get lonely?"He knocked Reyes with his shoulder, and made a show of looking forward, as though he did no such thing.

(This post was last modified: Jan 30, 2017, 07:21 PM by Askan.)

Thankfully, peace seemed to reign, at least for a time. Reyes was content to allow the little heat leach to sit where he was – frankly, no matter how much of a chill the river had given the other wolf, two bodies against the wind was better than one. And it might have stayed that way, too, if he hadn’t opened his own mouth to pose a question. Silly, to think the swarthy male would answer his query and leave it there. At least the constant sass lifted some of the melancholy that had threatened to blanket the loner entirely, he supposed.

“You wish,” he gruffed, silver eyes dancing as he returned the (friendly?) shoulder bump. He did not pull the guy out of the water because he was lonely, dios mio. That sounded like maybe something his mother would do. “There’s a yearling I was traveling with. He’s trying to find some girl he was separated from. Tcht.”

Cottongrass was okay. The floozy he seemed to miss so badly? Reyes wasn’t sure how keen he was on this Victoria girl, but he supposed he hadn’t actually met the woman yet. That she’d ditched the pale youth on his own, in the middle of a snow storm, though. That was probably all he needed to know about her to begin with. “That your backwards way of telling me you’re gonna miss me, Askan?” He kept his eyes forward, even as the grin started to stretch across his scarred muzzle. “You wanna go back inside and cuddle?”

Oh no, contrary to Reyes' assumptions, Askan wished no such thing. It would be rather vindictive of him to wish loneliness upon someone, and as grumpy as Askan was he wasn't exactly malicious. Sure, he'd say a mean thing or two every now and then but he never intended to hurt someone's feelings. So wishing loneliness on someone was pretty uncharacteristic of him, especially seeing how it was such an unpleasant and upsetting emotion to deal with. Or so he thought. It didn't really occur to Askan that it was simply a witty quip, that Reyes' was just turning the situation on him and implying that he was the one who would upset once they split up.

He thought little of this yearling Reyes' mentioned, to him he was simply a nameless and faceless wolf he didn't know. If he had known that Reyes was speaking of Cottongrass, well he would have been surprised, at the very least. It would have been hard for him to imagine those two standing side by side. One coward and one trash-talking hardass. What a pair they made.

Reyes apparently couldn't leave things there though and when he continued to tease, Askan realised what he had been getting at earlier, what he had been implying. And of course, that made Askan scowl as though a bug had flown into his eye.

"Miss you? Pfft I think not." He scoffed, as though the idea was ludicrous, simply impossible.

His next words were all the more startling and Askan couldn't help but whip his head around and stare at him with wide, confused eyes. Cuddle? Were there not dozens of more suitable words that he could of used? Really? Cuddle ?How...How..Askan turned to stare out at the snow but promptly gave up and glanced his way again, and- oh he was grinning, and was clearly enjoying himself. What a comedian, wasn't he so damn funny and smart? And so frustrating! Askan huffed loudly as he watched Reyes with clear contempt. Smartass. What a dick. Askan should have snapped at him, put him in his damn place. But he didn't, he simply sulked and tried to structure his thoughts into a cohesive stream, rather than the dazed and befuddled jumble they were. Damn the things Reyes did to him, damn him.

"We can go back, but we're not gonna cuddle, or whatever. That's-that's, I don't want to do that, so lets not."

He might have laughed at Askan’s rebuke, had the man not looked so horrified by the suggestion of a midnight cuddle session with the guy that had pulled his stupid ass out of a freezing river. Hell, someone might think he’d invited the guy into wedlock, or maybe asked for his first born child, they way he coiled back. Damn, Reyes thought dryly, idly wondering just what had happened to this pack wolf that he was so opposed to the idea of a damn huddle in the middle of the night. What did he think Reyes was gonna do, run back to his pack and tell everyone he ever met they curled up together to go to sleep?

“Dios mio.” Reyes rolled his shoulder, gathering his feet underneath as he stood, moving to usher his companion back towards the small shelter provided by the rocky walls. “I ain’t askin’ t’ mate you. Don’t get your tail in a damned knot. I asked to cuddle – y’know, so we don’t freeze our asses off.”

The smile was gone – it wasn’t the rejection, not really, but the clear abhorrence found in those yellow eyes. And maybe that was what really stung, a clear reminder that maybe not all wolves were as unconcerned with certain measures of biology. But then, he shouldn’t be surprised. This guy didn’t like his accent, either. Didn’t like the language his mother taught him, because it wasn’t his.

Stupid, Reyes, he scolded himself bitterly, and waited expectantly for Askan to shuffle inside first – he was still the one who needed protection from the wind, after all.

"Oh for fucks sake." Askan groaned, his voice ladened with frustration. He dropped his head and sighed, before slowly raising it so he could look Reyes in the eye.

How the hell was he supposed to explain this when he didn't even understand it himself? It'd never been a problem before, so why was it now? Sleeping in the communal den in the others had never been an issue for the Rye wolf, he just found his spot and got comfortable. And if someone happened to touch him, he'd scoot away-unless they were Percy. But this situation was completely different, Askan was at a loss, how was he supposed to react? What was he supposed to do? Nothing was coming to mind, nothing seemed natural to him. And it wasn't because he was repulsed by Reyes, because believe me ,if he was he would have rather crawled home, than huddle up with him. Nor did he dislike the guy. By no means was he on the top of his list, but he wasn't at the bottom either. Reyes was okay, all things considered.

Gender was irrelevant to Askan, he didn't care about the...parts. And neither did he particularly find one sex more attractive or alluring than the other. He simply, for some reason or another, didn't feel a pull towards others as everyone else seemed to. His sisters-particularly Everly- made a big song and dance out of fussing over the occasional attractive loner that passed the Selwyn borders. And whilst he could see that they were good looking, he didn't feel anything, he didn't want to do anything. For the most part, Askan didn't think about it as it didn't impact on his daily life. But at quite times when he had no one but his own thoughts for company, he couldn't help but worry that he was broken. That he wasn't a man, because of his possible 'condition.'

"I'm not deaf, I know what you said. I'm just..." His mouth was dry and for once Askan struggled for words. "I just-you-I don't.Ugh. Come on, forget it."

Giving up completely, Askan scurried beneath their shelter and curled himself up as tight as he could managed. When he felt Reyes plop himself beside him, he didn't flinch or try to move away. He simply held still and did his best to steady his breathing, there was no use in getting all worked up. It wouldn't help. The silence between them was pronounced and heavy, like a weight baring down on the Yukon's shoulders. For what could possibly be the first time in his life, Askan found the silence awkward and stifling. So much so, he longed to break it.

"I'm not a people person. I'm no good at the whole talking thing, I always say the wrong things."

“Consider it forgotten, pendejo,” Reyes muttered coolly, refusing to give the other wolf the satisfaction of a temper tantrum. Yeah, he was fucking pissed with the guy’s shitty fucking attitude – who did he think he was, King of the Damn Tundra? And yeah, he reckoned there was probably a better way to phrase in that ‘cuddling’ but damn, it wasn’t that big of a deal… Was it?

No. No, damnit, it wasn’t!

Ears remained flat against his head, his equivoque unreadable as he watched Askan retreat inside, settling in the small crevasse. For a moment, the dark loner briefly considering shifting coarse and trekking back down the waterway until he found a slope mild enough to climb. Cottongrass was somewhere out here, after all.

Reyes ground his teeth before turning himself, heading back inside and settling with a heavy plop. Their sides brushed out of necessity, and little more. The cold wind bite at his backside and the wolf muttered under his breath, wadding himself up into a tight little ball as he tucked his tail over his nose. Sleep was finally beginning to sound tempting when Askan spoke back up, and the loner cracked a silver eye, squinting at the dark shape right next to him.

“Yeah, I figured that part, cabrón. I’m gonna make a suggestion here – if someone actually helps you out, you might consider not, y’know. Going for the throat.” His expression was grim, though it was difficult to see beneath the bushy tail. “I wasn’t lookin’ to take the piss outta ya, you know. With the – cuddle thing.” Fuck, the more he said it, the stupider it was starting to sound. Since when had he had any problems with words? Shit, what if Askan’s vocabulary deficiencies were rubbing off on him? “Thought it’d be better than being cold.”

And, you know.

“You aren’t that bad. Generally speaking.”