Lost Lake hide away, they say - 'cause we don't want your broken parts

This thread shall become the discovery of Glacier Cave.

It was probably a poor decision to make, traveling up the mountain with the clouds, thick with rain, hiding the poor light from the moon and stars. But the forests had proven themselves to be unwelcoming, and perhaps if she avoided any packs, she wouldn't be tempted to steal from them or earn their ire by simply existing. Pip hunched her back against the cold, blustering wind. From this high, she felt it all the more keenly. She'd never realized how much the sea had prevented harsh temperature changes nor how much the trees of Cedarwood and elsewhere provided shelter.

The thin wolf pushed on, determined to find shelter in this harsh landscape. The slopes beneath her paws were icy and hard to find purchase on. Surely, she could find some comfort in solitude here... There had to be some form of cave or overhanging or something that would spare her from the wind's torment.

And there, she saw it. Even in the dark, its icy surface glinted enough to catch her eye. On aching, frozen paws, Pip dragged herself farther up the mountain peak to seek out the temporary shelter. The cave seemed to glow with a blue hue courtesy of the ice all around. Along the edges and back of the cave, there were outcroppings of smooth stones. While they felt nearly as cold as the ice under her paws, she opted to curl among them to try to warm herself and cease the shivering that was starting to drain her down to the bone.

Tomorrow, she promised herself. Tomorrow, she would go out into the weather and find food for herself. She refused to simply waste away into nothing. Burying her nose into the depth of her tail, Pip blew her hot breath onto her paws beneath. Maybe tomorrow, the sun would be out.

(This post was last modified: Dec 13, 2017, 03:55 PM by Pip.)

He had gone out hunting and the weather had gone and taken a turn for the worse as night had fallen. Solas's lips crinkled up in annoyance as a cold gust of wind came out of nowhere. Squinting his eyes he tried to find a notable landmark to guide him back to the territory and a warm den he knew would be waiting but he saw nothing. He could smell his own scent as well as the others but they were all criss-crossed and his was all over the place so he wouldn't be able to follow one back. Another gust and he let out a growl as he closed his eyes briefly.

The stormy male didn't like it but the best bet would be to find a place to spend the night or at least some time until the wind died down and he could actually keep his eyes open long enough for him to see where he was going. A twisted ankle was the last thing that he needed, especially when he was alone like he was. Another gust but this time from a different direction and with it a new scent. His head whipped in towards the source. It was fresh so they were probably still in the area.

Without thinking he began to follow it back to the wolf it had come from. If he was lucky they would have found a spot to wait out the storm if not then they might be able to suffer together. There was also the fact that they were near the pack's territory and he wanted to make sure that they weren't going to try and pull anything.

With carefully placed steps he followed the trail that had been left for him until a faint glow caught his eye. Confused he looked around to see the ice. It seemed to be coming from one spot in particular and it just so happened that the scent went in that direction as well. Warily he lowered his head and moved forward. The spot turned out to be an opening to a cave. He gazed inside at the blue-hued walls and how they seemed to glow. Had this place always been here? There were stones as well and curled among them was a small and rather thin wolf her nose in her tail.

He took a moment to look her over trying to see if she would be a threat all before he stepped completely into the cave. She was thin so that meant she was probably hungry and hunger tended to make wolves weaker but that also meant that she might try to do something stupid like steal from them. Deciding to announce himself he gave a low bark from where he stood not moving further into the cave even as the wind pushed at him through the opening.

A lynx has left behind the remains of a deer. +5 Health

@Solas Thanks for joining~ <3

Again, since they were separated, Pip let herself believe that the sudden shadow in the mouth of the cave could possibly be her mate. Her heart lifted with hope despite the unlikelihood and her tail even gave a cautious wag. Too quickly, that hope was dashed, for she could see two eyes rather than one. She had jolted at the bark initially, and now held perfectly still. If he meant her harm, surely he wouldn't have barked a greeting. Was this actually his cave?

The little mute extended her neck to get a better whiff, nose wiggling wildly. Nope, not his. His scent was thick with pack, though. Had he, too, been caught in the storm? Would he be okay with sharing? Pip knew if he had it in his mind to force her out, she would be hard-pressed to survive the night. The wind was far too brutal. And she'd been there first. He had no good reason to force her out, the way she saw it. The cave was plenty big enough for the both of them. For an entire pack, really. Not that she would feel comfortable sharing such a closed space with so many strangers. But she bet it would make the space much warmer.

As if to show she took no offense to his presence, Pip nestled her nose back into her tail, though she watched him warily. A chill swept her small form - heat had escaped when she'd lifted her head and she'd have to wait until her breath could warm her again. She wished he would just come in quickly. Even watching him suffer that blustering wind was making her colder.

Part of her hoped he would be bold enough to simply walk over and lay beside her to share in that warmth. But another part wondered how Kjell would feel if he knew it happened. Would he be offended that she would cuddle with another male? Or would he approve knowing that she was doing what she could to survive? The thoughts left the tiny female troubled and at odds with herself. Was it a betrayal to even have such thoughts? If she had the voice to growl, she would have been grumbling quietly to herself. Determinedly, she shoved the thoughts away. They had no place in the here and now. There was no harm in sharing space with a stranger, male or not.

@Pip You're welcome :D

She jumped which didn't surprise him at all. The wind had covered the sound of his approach and she might have been sleeping before he had made his presence known. Her tail wagged a bit before stilling and his ears pricked curiously as she went very still. Was she still half asleep and confused? Had she even been asleep at all because she looked rather awake at the moment as she extended her nose to get his scent better.

The stormy male had expected something a little more drastic than this. He had thought that maybe she would have jumped to her feet and growled at him or maybe told him to get out of the mouth of the cave and inside. She remained silent and didn't say a word. Not even bothering to get to her feet. Maybe she just didn't care but even as he thought it he couldn't believe it. Not with how she kept watching him even as she curled back up. Why watch someone that close if you didn't care?

Our territory is near here do you plan on causing trouble for us? He questioned keeping his gaze on her as he stepped further into the cave and out the wind. Better to know now is she was here to cause problems then later. But then who would actually say that they were going to create a problem for a pack to a wolf that was part of said pack. Not anyone that he was aware of. If she was then he wouldn't get a chance to rest because he was going to need to keep an eye on her smaller form and make sure that she left the area. If she wasn't then he wouldn't mind sharing the space with her. There was no need for him to get defensive with her or chase her out. This was neutral territory and he had no claim here.

He glanced quickly over the ice blue walls again before returning to the smaller wolf. He would be interested in returning here again when the weather was better and he could even bring Kajika or Tagg and show them the place. They could use it in case something happened since it wasn't that far from the territory. In any case, first he would have to wait out the storm with his current companion and he had no idea how long that would last.

Pip frowned. What an odd, borderline rude greeting. Granted, most would see her own as rude, but she at least had an excuse. If anyone planned on being troublesome for a pack, would they really admit to that prior? And on top of that, Pip didn't even know where said pack lived. Were they higher on the mountain? She shivered at the thought. Surely it was even colder higher up. Part of her was tempted to not even acknowledge the question with an answer. It was a silly one, to say the least.

Finally, the mute offered a silent shake of her head. She never planned to cause trouble. It just seemed sometimes that she landed into it whether she wanted to or not. Case in point, apparently. There she was minding her own and a pack wolf was asking if she planned on making trouble for some unknown, unseen pack. It was exhausting to an already exhausted loner.

She pulled her legs closer to herself to conserve her heat more and winced at the scuffing sound that echoed around the cave. There was some comfort. If the male moved in the middle of the night, she'd have some warning first before he tried to attack.

You found it first, she reminded herself. If anyone was going to get chased out or attacked, it would be him! She was cold and tired and hungry and this was the first hint of shelter she'd found on this damnable mountainside. Pip knew then and there she wouldn't be shoved from it like a misbehaving pup simply for the crime of not belonging to a pack. She couldn't afford to roll over on her belly and give in anymore.

OOC: So sorry about the wait on this.

At his question, there was an instant frown from her. Of course, he would frown too if a stranger appeared and then wanted to know if he was going to cause trouble for their pack. Solas didn't want to be too careful it was winter and with prey scarce, any lone wolves could try and take from a cache that wasn't theirs. Hunger made wolves stupid and bold. Mostly stupid. He was given and answer in the form of a headshake. Once more she didn't say anything and the stormy male started to wonder if she simply didn't say anything because she didn't feel like it.

Rocks scraped as she curled herself up tighter. The sound harsh against his ears, don't move the rocks good to know. He frowned as he stared at her form taking a step closer unintentionally. He had seen that she was thin but now that he was looking at her longer she seemed a bit too thin. Her fur wasn't even that thick. Was she even staying warm like that? If he knew that he could find something out in the wind he might even try and find something for her to eat but he was well aware that he wouldn't be able to find anything with the storm outside. He had barely found this cave with the thin female before him.

An ear flicked back to the opening of the cave and he could tell that the wind had seemed to have gotten stronger. Simply going with a gut feeling he walked over to her and lay down so that he was between her and the cave opening. It would help stop any of the wind that might have been reaching her and hit him instead. So to put it simply he was creating a wind barrier for her and it wasn't hard with their size difference.

He then watched her to see how she would react to him being closer to her even though there was still about a foot of space between them before he asked in a softer tone. Do you plan on staying in the area? If she was planning on staying then maybe he could catch her something. He could skip a meal or two if it would mean that she wouldn't go and try and raid them or some other pack. Hunger had been a constant for him when he had been younger however he had never gotten that bad due to his mother's hunting.

@Solas No worries~

The little wolf's body tensed as the stranger walked closer to her. To Pip's surprise, the male lay relatively close, his body serving as a barrier between herself and the harsh wind. The temperature gradient was immediate and the tip of her tail wagged with gratitude. The male's question was met with a noncommittal shrug of her shoulders. She had no idea what she was doing, if she were honest. Survival had been her only goal since she was carried down south by the river. During the in-between moments, she would wish for her family and her goal would become finding them, but it was always trumped by survival seeing as life kept throwing rocks at her lately.

Pip found herself staring at his long, plush coat. How warm it must be to be able to burrow against him...

Embarrassed, she looked away. But inevitably, he would draw her gaze again as she would battle with the morality of moving closer. Was it a betrayal to her mate to associate with a strange male like that? She couldn't decide. But in the end, the promise for warmth won out in the war.

Cautiously, the thin female stood and edged closer to the male. She watched him closely, looking for any indication that he didn't want her near. But since he'd already come so close in the first place, she thought it might be alright. Pip lay down again, curling close enough that their fur could just barely brush. Already, her heart was thundering from the risk. Maybe in time, she would scoot closer and relax. But for now, she lay stiffly in a little ball hoping he wanted the same thing.

As he walked over to her he saw the way her whole body tensed as if bracing for an attack. That wasn't what he had in mind far from it. She remained where she was as he lay down next to her and since he was watching her so intently he saw the moment she realized what he was doing. A sense of satisfaction filled him as she wagged her tail briefly at his gesture. Stretching out his legs in front of him he questioned if she was going to be in the area long and he received another silent response. A shrug this time around. She didn't talk much did she? Well, they were communicating just fine so it really wasn't a problem that she refused to speak to him.

Solas could all but feel her staring at him. He raised a brow as she looked away from him an obviously embarrassed look on her face. Did she feel uncomfortable with him being so close to her? Just a second ago she had seemed okay and now she was back to staring at him again. Did he have some dirt on his pelt or something? Is there something in my fur? He asked wondering why she kept looking at him with such intent.

He continued to watch her a confused expression crossing his face as she stood. He thought she was going to move away from him and further into the cave instead she moved the few inches that separated them and lay next to him their fur brushing. So she had been cold, probably colder than he had realized. She was a little ball of tension next to him and with her so close he could see just how much of size difference there was between them.

Shaking his head he let out an exasperated sigh. Then before she could do anything else he shifted closer and curled himself around her. It was so simple for him to curl around her he almost found it irritating that she hadn't asked him to do so when they had been staring at each other. If you were that cold you could have just asked. He mumbled to her as he put his head on his tail his gaze wandering across the blue walls.

@Solas

Her ears sat high on her head and she curled tighter when she heard his sigh. Oh, no. Was he annoyed with her? Did he not want her that close? Pip was expecting him to stand and scoot away, but was shocked when the stranger instead curled around her. The sudden press of his warmth against her was an instant, and gratifying feeling physically as well as emotionally. She'd gone too long without the natural contact of another wolf against her. It was embarrassing enough to realize that she'd forgotten what it felt like.

It wasn't as mortifying to have a male curling around her that was not her mate as she expected. She loved Kjell, but he wasn't here and she was cold! That this stranger was willing to offer a night of cuddling was appreciated.

When he expressed his annoyance at her not asking in the first place, she shook her head in denial. Pip simply couldn't ask. At least, not with words. She'd asked in several ways with the subtle language that was all her own, but he hadn't caught on. The mute didn't fault him for it, though. Most wolves didn't understand.

But that wouldn't stop Pip from trying anyway. She pressed her nose to his in silent thanks, tail thumping sweetly.