Broken Antler Fen Oh, it don't work like it should, raised by the wolves

In a rare moment when the wind was tamer, if only slightly, Liri found herself wandering amongst the trees of Broken Antler Fen. Food was not an issue with the amount of animals that had simply frozen to death or else had starved. They came in all shapes in sizes, tiny field mice she found in hollows of trees; the small rodents depressingly preserved in their sleep. Some victims were as large as mule deer, or the ram Aeronwyn had dragged in. 

Liri was more worried about the cold. She was not adverse to snuggling up to her den partner, if a bit stiff about doing so, despite the fact that she spent much of her nights blinking through the darkness at the mud walls and tree trunks of her home. The hours she did manage to catch when she fell asleep were filled with unsettling dreams.

There was not much to be done, food was stored and there was no short supply of it. Patrolling seemed like more of a concern these days, an old friend to her now. Liri took up the task, plodding through the snow with a soft tread, chocolate eyes scanning the distance for threats. It was quiet and she enjoyed the job. 

The clouds that brewed overhead carried with them the promise of something else to come. Thick and a deep purple, the winds that did blow bustled them busily along the sky. They were in no short demand, the whole sky was blotted out by the heavy clouds filled with the scent of rain.

As he patrolled, Nico allowed his thoughts to swallow him up. He had been thinking a lot recently, about everything and nothing in particular. He just thought - it helped to distract him from everything else. Usually, the soldier's day consisted of sleeping, eating, patrolling, hunting, thinking, then repeating. Occasionally, when he came in contact with another pack wolf, he would have a small conversation, smile a bit, act friendly, then move on and continue with his little routine. There wasn't much to do alone, he realised with a wry smile, glancing around with an air of a tired veteran, which in a way, he was.

No sane wolf would be out in this cold, so he wasn't too worried, but Nico still kept an eye out knowing that desperate creatures were not sane creatures, and when wolves grew desperate, they would resort to extreme measures. He was here to ensure that even if they resorted to extreme measures, they would not bother the wolves of Broken Antler Fern. It was a quiet job, allowing him to wallow in his foreboding thoughts and lonliness, but he enjoyed it all the same. 

The soldier was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't notice the figure approaching from the distance.

Liri had been under the, perhaps stupid, assumption that none would be out in this weather save for herself. Thus it was with a pang of dread and regret in her chest that she spotted the distant figure ahead. 

The arctic femme could have turned and left but that would risk the chance of being noticed. Perhaps this figure in the distance had already seen her and would think Liri rude for such an act. She was not fond of confrontation, especially these days, and this was what led her to chuff out a greeting as she approached him.

The male she advanced towards was one of Burke's, though Liri had never spoken to him. She had no idea what his name was nor anything about him but it would be a good idea to keep an eye on all wolves she associated with. There was no telling what kind they were, perhaps they were as evil as her rapist or her captors. 

He carried himself like Aeronwyn, as if he were seasoned in violence and adroit at doling it out. He bore scars, but none such as prominent as either pale woman. His coat was a pale grey and he, like so many others, was much taller than Liri.

"Hello," her voice was soft, peering up at him subtly every now and again. 

He saw her soon, but pretended not to notice her. If she wished to leave, he would give her the chance to do so, partly because he, himself, wished to be left alone on this current occasion. However, the figure who he soon identified to be a female, let out a soft chuff of greeting and Nico, after sighing inaudibly, greeted her with a dip of his head and a small, soft smile. He towered over awkwardly, having been gifted, or perhaps, cursed with particularly long legs, and so he subtly lowered himself, not wanting to make their conversation awkward with her having to look up at him all the time.

"Greetings," Nico replied with another smile. "You shouldn't be out here in this weather," he told her cautiously, aware that his words may be taken as patronising, rather than caring. "What's your name? I'm Nico."

He did not seem to be rather pleased about her approaching him. For a moment, a surge of nerves and anger flooded her system, mostly thanks to the tiny voice's sudden fear that he would snap at her.

Liri seemed to hold her breath for a moment, ears dropping just a bit in wariness. She relaxed when he smiled and began to speak. 

Liri blinked at him, wondering silently why he should care where she was. They were not friends. They did not talk before this meeting. 

"It's not so bad. Windy maybe," Liri glanced away at the heavy clouds. 

"I'm Liri," she introduced herself with a small smile. 

Nico glanced up at the sky, a wry smile shadowing his lips as he turned his brilliant green gaze back on his current companion, an amused look glittering in his eyes. "For now, maybe," he said softly, in his lilting accent, "but it might get worse. It'll probably get worse, if it follows the weather patterns of the weeks before." He looked up again, and mentally nodded to himself. Yes, they would probably end up getting worse.

"Nicolas," the soldier introduced himself with a polite bow. "Although everyone calls me Nico. Pleasure to meet you, Liri," Nico flashed her one of his notoriously charming smiles and dipped his head respectfully once more.

Liri's eyes followed Nico's skywards to the heavy purple clouds. They were like ugly bruises waiting to tarnish the land with their thick and unhealthy deluge. Without a doubt, the weather was bound to get worse; how much worse, Liri couldn't say.

"Mmm," Liri hummed in agreement. She was at a loss of what else there was to say about the weather. It was not the best of weather and that was that. 

"The same to you," she responded almost automatically. How long had it been since she had call to use pleasantries or make small talk?

"You're one of Burke's," Liri stated idly, if not bluntly. There was not much to say about the wolf before her. He was gray, his name was Nico, and he had come with Burke's pack. Beyond that, Liri had no idea what to make of him.

Although Nico had been the one to start the small talk, he found himself growing quickly tired of such matters. Still, he admitted that he was the one who began this idle chat about weather, and so endeavoured to change the subject himself. However, it appeared that Liri didn't seem that fond of small talk as well, and it wasn't long before she started talking about something else. A nostalgic smile touched and shadowed his lips at her words, and the soldier simply nodded.

"Yes," Nico answered simply. "I was, I guess, for a while at least. Aeronwyn helped me out - have you met her yet?" he cocked his head, licking his lips in a subconscious motion and turned his bright green eyes on her.

Liri could sense that she was boring him with meaningless chit chat yet she couldn't find a polite way to walk away. Before she could think of one, Nico was asking about Aeronwyn. 

Liri tried to remember if she had noticed Aeronwyn and Nico being friends or perhaps more. She could conjugate no such memories but that didn't mean anything. She'd been half starved and definitely not sane when she reached Burke.

She nodded mutely. "Aeronywn is nice. She doesn't speak much." It went without saying that Aeronwyn's quiet personality was the main reason Liri liked her.