Totoka River faience

dethroned.
what had been a matter of royal convention had gone horribly wrong — she was to marry him for legitimacy, not the other way 'round. and ramesses had never forgotten the way his sister had gloated behind her paint and her guards, plucking him from the heart of their dynasty with a tap of her small paws.
the hotlands had no queen, and yet she ruled alone. in state. in defiance. on the betraying, delusional word of their father, who had meant to set her after him as heir instead of ramesses, his firstborn. 
now the rightful pharaoh shook and swore in the snow, his body unmade for anything that was not the dry heat of the lotus-land. to see his breath was to spot ba etching from his own nostrils.
ramesses bellowed as he finally sank to his haunches, defeated by the roar of the weather he did not understand. but in his heart burned the spirit of the living gods, and in the distance, the curves of an island caught his lapis attention.

And from the island came Huā, the empress who still held her own throne. These days felt like the calm before the storm, the days in which she could 'relax', if you could call her regular duties relaxing, before missions would be executed. As she came upon the shore Huā shook out her furs, partially wet from the knees down, and the winter chill seeped into her bones. She shivered, wishing suddenly she was back in her den among the trees, far from the wide open shore, as much as she loved it in the summer. But it was out here that some unfamiliar sound caught her attention- and she swiveled her head, towards where the snow lay, and he too- but the distance from him and his pale golden touched furs only made him blend in as a spot of yellow snow, which she ignored. If only she had seen the gleam of his ocean gaze. Hello, is someone there? She called out loudly over the blowing winds, squinting again as air rushed into her eyes.

ramesses both wished to give up his life and not; the cold cut into his bones, seeming to climb into his throat and the shell-maze of his ears.
he breathed in — once, twice — and when he returned to himself, ramesses could hear a feminine voice summoning through the white gloom.
he did not answer; innately wary given the circumstances of his birth, pharaoh instead lifted himself to lurch icily in that direction, perhaps materialising before the caller some moments later.
even with the snow clouding them both, he could see that she was beautiful, but it only darkened ramesses' proud heart further, and so he said nothing, unable to cease the pathetic trembling of his taller frame.

“Do you dare me?”

“Yeah, man!”

“Double dog dare me?”

“Fuck yeah, do it!”

“Triple dog dare me?”

That time, Yolo didn’t answer with his words, he simply shoved Yeet forward. Cackling, he let himself be pushed and maintained the momentum, his fleet feet carrying him easily across the fallen snow.

The wind picked up and pressed him sideways, yet Yeet didn’t let that deter him. Lowering his head into the frigid gale, he continued frolicking in the direction of the two wolves.

When he came within earshot of them, he paused, his paws crunching lightly in the snow right before he shouted, “Do the Harlem Shake!” and breaking into an absolutely ridiculous dance.

Something materialized whence there had been nothing, shaking like the wind, lurching like a zombie in the cold. She caught a glimpse of his gaze- upon her, and like a precious gem- and she began to move his way steadily, curious. The empress was nearing him when a voice shouted, with a word she did not know, and she twisted her head to glance at a small reddish creature not too far away, moving about wildly. Dancing was something she knew about, usually practiced by those lower class women who would entertain the nobles, but this was nothing like the smooth rhythms of home, and quite foreign indeed. She squinted, Um, She murmured, and without taking her gaze from the freak, made her way over to the pale boy. She halted beside him, and finally took her gaze from the dancing fox, wondering if the cold was beginning to make her hallucinate. Um, hi, are you- are you okay? Huā breathed, trying not to get distracted.

ramesses let out his breath into the whirling snow, worry blooming in his again to its form and to watch it disappear. the woman had begun to speak, and the exiled heard something in it. their attention was split by the small dancing form; it earned a hard look from ramesses, and then he disregarded the dodging shabti for the small figure.
was he okay? all right? he felt as if the cold were beginning to rob him of all sense. "for now i have breath, but if i remain here, i shall not." deepened voice cut through the snowfall, and ramesses considered that she wore the perfume of salt.

They both ignored him.

“M’excuse,” Yeet said, stilling, “me! You’re supposed to do the dance with me!”

Rather than wait for a response, the cross fox darted nearer to the pair of wolves. If they didn’t want to pay him any attention, he would make himself impossible to ignore.

He planted his hindquarters at a safe distance, should the wolves try anything funny. At first, he simply sat there and stared at them, then an idea hit him.

Scooping one small paw in the snow, he used his other one to roll a snowball, which he threw with all his force at the whiter wolf while screaming, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HONEY!!!”

A low voice, finely accented, and assuring her of his state. For now. It is too cold out here. You could- She began, wanting to invite him somewhere safer, but she was interrupted by the creature, who told them they ought to dance. She, a mere dancer? Huā narrowed her gaze upon the fox, frowning. But she only found him with a paw raised, as he catapulted a snowball right towards the man- who was presently freezing, it seemed. It was all on him to dodge, because her instincts were a little too slow (and she didn't know him well enough to risk too much of her own comfort, though she'd never admit that selfishness.) But if it landed, she was bound to turn to Yeet in horror, What is wrong with you? Can you not see he is already hurt?! With companions she enjoyed games, but from a stranger, it was different.

her voice holding something sweet beneath its syllables, an accent ramesses did not think he could place. but in the next moment, his furrowed brow was directed over a glare that burned in the little upstart's direction as the ball of snow shattered against his shoulder.
it was the wolfess' soft tones that chafed his already diminished pride, and pharaoh's heart was hardened. he was not hurt, and despite the drained weakness of his figure, he would disallow the continued slights.
and so a snap of his teeth was the only word, and the captain's body surged forward. spoilt by seti, but not kept from the training exercises among the soldiers in the palace courtyard. and yet he was little match for the snow; blinded by it and made hateful, ramesses lunged at the creature.

The snowball hit its mark. And that definitely got a rise out of them! The she-wolf scolded him, while the target lunged in his direction.

“Hey, you ignored me first!” Yeet crowed as he darted out of reach with a flourish of his tail. “RUDE!!!”

He ran a few dozen yards before stopping and turning. He could continue heckling them, though he’d gotten a reaction. He’d satisfied his brother’s dare. And though he was a jackass, he wasn’t an asshole, ya feel? If that wolf was really hurt…

“GOOD LUCK, DON’T DIE!!!” Yeet bellowed before dashing out of sight.

The little fox tried to turn the accusation back on them, but it was only a second before the stranger was lunging for the flameball with a snap, who scampered off. Huā snorted at his exiting words, and then turned to the pale man. Hi, She breathed awkwardly, and smiled softly. I was going to say, that it is very cold out here. If you do not have somewhere to be warm, you can come to my island... She thought to offer if he had a home, she could escort him there, but she figured he could've gone home by himself if he wanted, by the speed with which he had snapped. Besides, he held no pack scent as far as she could tell. I can give you a meal for your energy.

his lazuli stare narrowed; ramesses would have snapped for the irritating creature again had not it soared away. panting, feeling the ice seem to coat the inside of his lungs, the pharaoh held himself back from rejecting the sea-woman's' soft suggestion.
a glance over her rounded shoulder into the whorling snow reminded ramesses he had few other choices. none, really. he must throw himself onto the mercy of she who had emerged from the storm, or wander into it himself — and be lost. her island. he wondered. "thank you. i accept," the man chose to say carefully. "perhaps i will stay until this cold wrath passes."

wrapping here if thats cool :D

He accepted, and she twitched an ear at his statement. You would be welcome to, She affirmed, and then came to his side, directing her muzzle forward in the direction of the island, whose way she knew only by direction- for the overcast weather obscured it from her gaze besides a distant foggy blur. Follow me, please, She requested, and would lead them towards Yuèlóng's bridge together.