Turtleback Lake everything is ordinary

all welcome. Snowmaggedon! A foot of snow has fallen overnight!

He was always chasing water. It was what he was used to, what he was comfortable with. It gave life, and took it away, and offered him solace in these foreign lands.

The long-legged youth still did not have a destination in mind, and continued to walk until he deemed he had gone far enough. He would stop when his paws grew tired, as he did not want to overwork them, and would continue once he had rested enough. He kept to himself, avoiding interactions as much as possible to minimize unnecessary stops.

The boy was acting like he was in a hurry, but he was not. He never was.

Truthfully he was enjoying his travels; relishing in the new scenery despite how different—and foreign—it was from the coast he had known since birth. Home. Well, it was home. Now he was not even sure he knew how to make it back. Not that it mattered; he had no intention of returning to the coast no matter how much he loved it. There was always more to see. More to explore. And until his paws grew tired he would continue, heading in whatever direction his body gravitated in.

Sequoia hovered near the shore of the frozen lake, the fresh layer of snow pooling around his ankles. A soft frown traced his dark features as he debated testing his luck (and weight) on the frozen surface to explore one of the islands.

hi hi!

Maugrim found himself on a bit of a jaunt. It was nice to walk around now that his paw pads felt much less raw. The jaunt had definitely taken him farther than he had intended, through a whole other forest practically. He had to blame the snowstorm: in the middle of the afternoon it had just started falling, gotten him all turned around, and so he'd wandered much farther north than he'd first expected. When at last he realized he was at the shore of the lake that he had glimpsed from a distance on their trip across the north, his jaw dropped. Shit.

"Shit," he echoed out loud.

But he was here already, right? Might as well look around. Casually, with the practice of someone who knows absolutely nothing about gaining their bearings or survival, his eyes roved over the snow drifts and the frozen lakes ahead. It was a lake. Not much else stood out to him. In the distance there appeared to be small islands. That was it.

Oh, and there was a wolf? "Hey," he called out, stepping forward and realizing that the boy was standing close to the edge of the frosted surface. "Hey wait." Where Maugrim came from, water didn't freeze. This seemed like a very bad idea.

He remained where he was, hovering at the edge of the frozen lake, trying to determine if it was safe enough for him to cross. More snow had fallen over night, and the temperature had dropped considerably… but worth these islands worth the risk? He teetered back and forth for a moment, his sea-green gaze fixated on the prickly rocks in the distance.

Hey.

His ears twitched at the voice, unsure if it was just a whisper of the wind or if he had company. The gangly teen inhaled deeply as the voice called out a second time—Hey wait—and this time a scent accompanied the words. He turned, his expression narrowing with curiosity as a dark male approached. He looked concerned, but why? Sequoia frowned. Why wait? He asked, his head tilting gently to one side. Don’t you want to know what kinds of secrets are hidden on those islands?

A young Bull Elk has gotten separated from its herd. Hunt opportunity! +10 Health

so sorry for the wait!

The dark wolf seemed to pause and Maugrim picked up the pace, making several long jump steps to get through the think snow quicker. However, the land sloped a lot the closer it got to the lake: a bank. Maugrim slid awkwardly the last several feet until he was up close—but not to personal with the stranger.

He was a mere boy, it appeared. Couldn't be more than a yearling, just cutting his teeth on the world. And he was alone. A loner. Like Maugrim had been but no longer was. His face mask reminded Maugrim of a younger version of himself or Hrun.

The boy didn't seem to understand the gravity of trying to walk on water. There was a layer of snow over the water. Maugrim had no reason to believe it was frozen, but it was rather curious how there were no waves. No movement. Maugrim tilted his head in the opposite direction of his new companion. "Secrets?" What secrets would an island have? He stared dubiously down at the boy. "What secret is worth falling into the water? It's too cold to swim. Islands don't have secrets." This was lunacy.