Duskfire Glacier Watch her when she's lighting up the night.

The clear night found Taki standing at the edge of meltwater lake, chest moving in and out quickly as she panted from exertion. She had been atop the summit that looked out over the glacier, and when she had looked her fill of the territory below, she ran back down the mountain, pushing herself to go as fast as she could. There was no real reason behind it other than working off energy and keeping her muscles strong. 

The night was cool enough that she could see her panting breaths as she looked out over the vast lake. She took a few steps forward until all four paws were submerged in the icy water; it was cold but not enough to deter her from going for a swim. Taki moved farther into the water until all was submerged but her head, and her feet no longer touched the sandy lake bed. She smiled and let out a sigh as the cold water soaked into her thick arctic coat making her skin tingle. The feeling might seem uncomfortable for some, but Taki had always loved it. She used to swim in the equally cold waters up north where they were from; it had become a way for her to clear her mind and think through anything that was troubling here. She had plenty on her mind lately. There was a lot of pressure and responsibility that came with being the second; not to mention her all too familiar self-doubt. So, to help better process everything, she let her mind drift as she continued to swim through the frigid water, the green and purple lights dancing in the sky occasionally catching her orange gaze from across the glacier.

It was silent that night, no rustling around the borders or alarming scents. Just the way he liked it. The cool air consumed him for the short fur he had been blessed with did no good to keep the warm in. Regardless he had lived in the north once before and he could handle this glacier.

He wasn't sure what he had been expecting when he had arrived at the water but this was not it. The water was too cold to his liking but it seemed one of the pale furred members was enjoying the swim. With ease he lounged onto the shore and watched them as they went about their motions.

Aleks had considered chuffing to announce his arrival but the last thing he wanted to do was startle them.

It seemed she was alone for a long time as she moved through the icy water. Every so often, Taki would cast her gaze towards the shore she had come from and found it empty, but when she chose to look this time, a dark form was lounging there and apparently watching her. She admittedly hadn't checked her surroundings for some time, enjoying the water too much to really care, so she wondered how long the wolf been there. She began to swim back to the shore and once she was close enough, she recognized the form to be Aleks. Taki continued to swim until her paws touched the lake bed again and started making her way to dry land. 

Once out of the water, she vigorously shook the excess water from her snowy coat, making sure to stand far enough away that she didn't sprinkle her packmate with any of the cold liquid. Once satisfied she had shaken as much water as she could from her fur, she walked a few steps closer to the dark male and asked, Aleks, why did you not let me know you were here? Taki very much understood the need to be alone, but he had clearly been watching her swim yet had not informed her of his presence.

I didn't want to startle you. He stated plainly. You were enjoying your swim, it felt wrong to disrupt it. He saw no flaw in his thinking. Perhaps it might have been seen as...creepy to lurk on the shore but that's not how he saw things. What if he had startled her and she panicked or forgot to keep kicking? He couldn't risk injuring one of their leaders.

Forgive me. He muttered softly with a respectful dip of his muzzle towards the earth.

She walked over and sat next to him, citrine gaze still fixed on his face. No need to be sorry. I was enjoying my swim, but I would have gotten out of the water sooner if I had known you were here, she replied before briefly pausing to draw her eyebrows together inquisitively and adding, How long have you been there? She didn't necessarily think it creepy if he had been watching her, mostly because his not wanting to startle her was sound reasoning, but she was still curious. 

She moved into a lying position next to him and looked out over the lake, recalling how good the cold water had felt on her thick coat. Even now, her damp fur was still icy cold as it lied against her skin, and she found she liked it very much. Looking back at the dark wolf at her side, she asked, Did you want to go for a swim? She wasn't sure if the water was too cold for him or not, but she wouldn't mind going back in if he wanted to.

Not very long. He admitted as he glanced from her back out to the waters. It wasn't like she had kept him waiting. Aleks had been fairly content to wait on the shore without rhyme or reason. He had only been trying out this whole being social thing more. Apparently he hadn't fully gotten the hang of it just yet.

His burnt orange gaze flickered back to Takiyok as she spoke, a faint smile tugged on his dark features. I'm afraid I'm perhaps a bit too short-furred to enjoy a swim in the waters. Perhaps in the day it would be nice. He mused aloud. He was not very active in the day but a swim didn't sound awful and it certainly was warmer when the sun was out, even on the glacier.

She looked him over as he explained that his coat was not warm enough to swim in the cold water, a nod and look of realization her only response. Taki often forgot other's were not as acclimated to frigid temperatures as she was. Next time, then, she said, a hint of a smile momentarily on shaping her lips. Her eyes lingered briefly on his face before moving back to the lake that stretched out before them. After a few minutes, she took to licking her still wet legs, grooming the water from the fur there. Like her other interactions with Aleks, she didn't feel the need to fill the silence between them with small talk or surface level questions. Instead, she continued to groom the water from the areas of her coat that she could reach while listening to the sounds of the glacier at night.