Black Morass frostbite

AW! maybe someone from Tindome? :D (Chelsie & Kris, I left it open whether the boys followed him or not so y'all can decide on your own if you will join this or not)

@Euron, @Ramsay and Cicero had travelled on after he had found a scrawny piece of cached rabbit at Broken Antler Fen. They had to get by with whatever small food they gathered, but it wasn't easy. Cicero had scratched his nails and toes open until they bled to get the cached food and ever since then he had felt his toes getting colder and colder. His fur wasn't near enough to keep him warm and he had been shaking uncontrollably for the last couple of days. When they rested he made sure they would help each other stay warm by sharing body heat, but Cicero pressed the boys on, knowing their best chances at survival were finding a pack — finding Burke — as soon as possible. West, they just kept heading west, even though Cicero had no idea where Burke had gone and how far. It was beginning to feel hopeless, for he hadn't caught a whiff of Burke's scent and was beginning to wonder if this journey was a fool's errand.

With clattering teeth Cicero said, "We should look if we can find some mice. Call if you catch a scent." He then went on his way, leaving if open for the boys to either follow him or stay together and look elsewhere. He'd looked for a dryer place than the morass but the strath to the north was walled off so they were forced to take this route. Cicero stuck to the dryer paths in between the dreary mushy morass, feeling oddly nostalgic and reminded of home while he walked on numb, unfeeling paws that were slowly being captured by frostbite.

tags for ref! me:

the storm has passed, leaving a thick, glossy layer of snow on the ground and an anxious itch in delight's paws. jomyo's leaving for her trip -- if she hasn't already left -- setting into motion a series of events he's been anticipating but still doesn't know how to plan for or what to expect. either way he suspects their days in the forest are limited now. but until his ambar's return the androgyne doesn't know what to do with himself; he tells @Kota and @Queenie he's stepping out for a bit and retraces his familiar path into the sweep. when he gets to the sweep he finds the restless itch in him does not abate and, feeling bold, squeezes into the hideaway just east. delight has never made to explore further than the sweep -- at first because there'd been an active claim here when tindómë was first settled, and then because he didn't want to be out of reach should he be needed at home. 

whoever held claim here has long since gone, taking whatever history they might have shared here with them. such a strange path wolves weave across the earth, he thinks, feeling sentimental, and allows himself a small scoff at his expense. focus on the now, delight, the winding twists of this river as it leads him towards a darkened cliff. ugh, he's not crazy about this place, he decides. it's damp and cold and high up -- oh. the morwinyon pauses, wondering if he'd be able to make out king elk's forest below if he looked from the edge, and, chasing that impulse, begins to move across the mud with delicate, fussy footfalls. of course he has no idea where he's actually going, and his journey is ultimately interrupted by the scent of another -- here? in this gross place?

curiously he casts about for the stranger, feeling a bit silly as he calls out, "hello?" his voice breaking the silence that'd followed him all day.

Euron was a decent mouser, but Ramsay was nothing of the sort. He was a strong tracker, but tracking was only useful when you had the skills to take down the prey, and he was short on both practice and interest. So when instructed to search for mice, Ramsay put his nose to work for a short while, but the recent snowstorm had done more than just hinder their progress and drive the temperature down to freezing levels. Any trace of recent prey was trapped beneath the snow. He could make out the smell, faintly, but couldn't follow it, and eventually he gave up.

He found Cicero's path instead, and stepped along in his father's narrow prints as best he could at a choppy pace to avoid the softer earth around it. Euron, for the time being, was left behind; if anyone would find a mouse after a snowstorm, it was his fox-faced brother. He ignored a pang in his heart as his mind wandered to Maegi, and then he didn't have to consciously think about it more, for he had caught up to the injured Cicero, and a completely unfamiliar wolf nearby. Up until now, they hadn't really encountered anyone, and the sight of someone new made his hackles prickle uncomfortably.

Ramsay was hardly capable of protecting Cicero from any fully grown wolf—even half a year from now he wouldn't stand a chance against a mature canine—even a slight thing like Delight. Even so, he sought to close the distance in case it came to that.

Other wolves were a tricky thing these days; Cicero was wary that they might mean harm, but at the same time he needed them to see if anyone had seen the wolf he was looking for. The voice caught him off-guard as he had not expected to find any other wolves in this dreary place. Cicero's head erected and hackles pricked, and he glanced back at Ramsay to indicate him to stand still for a moment.

"Hello," called Cicero and he followed the origin of the voice on limping cold feet, his body relaxing into a more neutral stance for he knew it to be the biggest odds for survival (if it came to a fight, he knew that he would not live regardless, but maybe he could at least help the boy get away). "Do you live somewhere here?" He had never been this far west so Cicero knew very little of these lands. The ridge that held the Moonspear was the farthest he had been that he remembered, perhaps only slightly over it but never this far. If there was a wolf who lived nearby then maybe they'd seen Burke pass at some point, or knew where he lived. It was a long shot, but worth a try.

unlike most of wolfkind in the teekons, delight's never had to learn to be suspicious. tindómë's relative isolation has kept them from much of the interpack drama plaguing the rest of the lands, and even if he did know cicero's history, well, he probably wouldn't care much beyond it being a pretty neat story.

what the hell is up with that kid though

the morwinyon stares for a beat before schooling his expression back into it's usual disinterested moue and nods, pointing with his nose in the direction he thinks tindómë probably is. "not here-here," he explains, "there's a forest west of here. my pack. how long have you been traveling?" now that he's not distracted by the weird little mutant child, the pair of them do look to be in rough shape, and delight's seen some wolves in rough shape. he frowns -- surely they hadn't been out in the middle of the blizzard that just came by? well, maybe he can talk them into coming back with him and resting. or at least getting out of this mud, blech.

Ramsay stopped in his tracks when Cicero's mismatched eyes met him, but he did his best to crane his short neck and see the strange wolf just beyond his father's shoulders. He leaned forward on the tips of his toes, eyes alight with curiosity, but it was dulled by his hunger, exhaustion and the lingering effects of war. He licked at his lips and nose briefly, then turned in place to peer around them. It was still just swamp. Did this wolf come from here, or from elsewhere, like Argent had? Like Indra?

"Hi," he called out incautiously in a voice that was cold and fettered by his upbringing and his experiences. If there was hope that Ramsay could still be converted into a functional, warm-blooded creature as Indra had hoped, it was fast dwindling. Nonetheless, he retained all of his curiosity about wolves from elsewhere, so he had no issues with greeting Delight, even if there was little emotional value in it these days.

He waited with bated breath to hear if the wolf had a home nearby. He was on the lookout for Burke still, but perhaps it would be better to find a place where they could rest first. They could regain their strength, and perhaps these wolves would know about Burke too. Ramsay came over and extended a short greeting to the other wolf, though it held little warmth in it.

Cicero's head canted as he asked, tone neutral though face knitted into a pleading frown, "Can Cicero — can I... and my two sons rest at your pack? We are travellers but the storm and road has weakened us." Judging by Cicero's appearance — still many wounds littered his face and body, and many had clotted blood upon them still, the less severe ones that Maegi had not got to clean — it was not just storm and cold that bothered them, but he did not speak of it. It would be evident enough that they needed shelter and food.

oh elk the weird child speaks to him. and in a creepy dead tone, too. "..hi," he returns uncertainly, glad when the adult (his dad?) starts speaking again and he can focus on him. the way he speaks is weird, though delight can't exactly put a finger on it, and he decides to chalk it up to the cold. cold does funny things when you're stuck in it for ages. more importantly: "yes," the morwinyon answers immediately, pleased he doesn't have to find a way to not-awkwardly invite him. 

"we have, uh, healers that can help with your injuries," delight adds, attempting for delicacy. he can't help but wonder what they got themselves in to -- and hope it's not something that'll follow them (really, though, he's not the type to turn down someone in need, even as stunted as he is.) wait, though, two sons? the androgyne scans the area. "is..your other son nearby?" he tries, taking a step forward, "i can lead you back now, if you're ready."

The stranger responded in kind. Ramsay's tail stirred, but his expression was unchanging apart from a faint glimmer in his indigo gaze, something more akin to amusement than joy. The older wolf was unsure. The older wolf was afraid of him, he imagined, and that made his teeth peek out between his lips in an unnerving little smile. Unsettling mannerism aside, he was but a dwarf, and was harmless enough.

Cicero and the stranger spoke, and Ramsay zoned out, thinking instead of the hawk and the wolf with the chain who had witnessed him. These thoughts had lingered in his brain since the incident, but were tempered by other interests, like their actual journey and search for Cicero's mentor. Only when Delight mentioned the other son did Ramsay's ears perk and his focus sharpened. He turned a quick little quarter circle and issued two short barks, a call for Euron, and he felt a sharp pang in his chest when he remembered that Maegi wasn't with them.

With that pang of emotion came a surge of the same base animal instinct that had driven him to clutch at the hawk to begin with, and he unconsciously flexed the muscles in his thin stomach.

The unease of the stranger at the communication with his son did not go unnoticed, although Cicero paid it little attention. He was certain that Ramsay, like Euron, was able to hold his own in this regard. He listened as the stranger not only granted his request to rest in their pack, but offered someone to clean his wounds for him. Cicero smiled, a weary smile that showed he cared little for his own fate. Ramsay barked for @Euron and Cicero looked 'round hoping he had not wandered off to far so that they could depart soon. His body was weary, and he needed to rest, if he wanted to continue the journey.

"We can leave as soon as Euron comes. Thank you," he offered, though the words did not carry much emotion or actual gratitude. Instead the coldness with which he usually spoke, a voice seemingly void of emotion. "Does a wolf named Burke pass here? Grey, no tail." While they waited he may as well get to the gist of why he had come here, what they were looking for. Who he needed to find so he knew that his children were in good hands.

From his clenched teeth dangled a mouse by its tail. He had caught it early on, a fortuitous encounter, but had not returned to his family's side right away. Rather, he had at length framed the dead mouse between his forepaws and stared down at its lifeless form. The kill had been so clean. The mouse appeared to be asleep without a hair out of place. Not at all like his first kill where he had grotesquely maimed the rodent.

Euron could have stayed there longer, admiring his work and the stillness of death. But instead he arrived back... hardly remembering gathering his kill and bringing it here. It was when Ramsay called for him that he seemed to wake and become more aware of his surroundings and of... himself.

"Hm?" Euron hummed in question as he stole quietly to his brother's side, casting a weary and disinterested look at the stranger as Cicero inquired about a wolf named Burke.

delight does his best to ignore (or at least politely refuse to acknowledge) the creepy kid. it seems kinda rude to act weirded out about an injured guy's son, and hey, just because he's never seen something that looked like that doesn't mean it's not... perfectly... normal. or something. more importantly he's glad to get them all out of this weather, not really noticing the stranger's (cicero? he's not sure if that had been a name or just some reference he didn't get) expression or what it implied. in the murky darkness it is, after all, hard to make out the finer details of their injuries and expressions. 

"sure," he says, only to wince when burke's name comes up. what are the odds? he'd known burke had an extensive past, but... delight lowers his gaze. "burke was a part of our pack," the morwinyon answers, his voice softening a little. "he, um. passed away recently." as he speaks, he lifts his gaze to scan for the second child, feeling more urgently than before the need to get them to tindómë -- and sure enough, a child comes trotting in. thankfully normal-child shaped.

they can talk more about burke on the way, delight decides, and takes a few steps forward, and says "we're this way." he pauses and waits for them to follow him before beginning the journey back to tindómë as quickly as possible.

Ramsay leaned over on steady legs to tell Euron in a whisper, "Going with him," as he gestured to Delight with a complete lack of subtlety. Words were passed between Cicero and Delight regarding someone named Burke. He didn't care much about that, but Ramsay fell in line nonetheless when the Morwinyon bid them to follow. Maybe Burke was the mentor that Cicero had told them about. If he was dead, then they'd come out here for nothing. At least they'd get to rest before going home, he thought.

"Did you kill him?" the dwarf asked of Delight, for he had never seen or heard of a wolf dying from anything but another wolf's teeth, limited as his exposure was to old age, and had to assume that was what had happened.

There was a look of pride in his gaze as Euron arrived with a mouse in tow. He made no efforts to gather it, instead figuring the boys could share it between them when they would arrive at this wolf's pack. Finally they started to move, and Cicero sighed contently as they did, glad to be on the move again. It ached him to move and his steps were slow and precise, but he felt that if he would allow himself to rest he might not get up again and he wished to make sure that the pups were safe, at least, somewhat.

It surprised Cicero to hear that Burke had been a part of this wolf's pack. The Burke he had known would never follow orders from a weaker wolf than himself, which in Cicero's eyes, this wolf certainly was. Yet he supposed age changed wolves, and so it had Burke. Perhaps the sting of betrayal was in part what had changed him, too, he thought idly. "Ah." It stung to hear that he had passed away, and left Cicero with a pit in his stomach for he was not sure how much longer he could hold on. This wolf seemed the type that would take in his children however, would not simply let them starve or kill them, so perhaps for now they should simply go with him and see what would happen next.

"Is Malice there, too?" asked Cicero, curious to find if she was still a part of Burke's life now. Their children, he wondered about, but he did not mention them for their names were unknown to him. At Ramsay's question Cicero snickered in amusement, though he already could guess the answer. Ramsay often reminded Cicero of Damien with these brusque manners. Still a little part of his brother with him, after all...

"Oh," he mumbled around the mouse, as Ramsay informed him they would be going with this stranger. Before he could offer his brother a bite of the rodent, Delight bid them to follow, and he fell in line as Ramsay did, toting the meager meal. His disinterest and weariness kept him from questioning or even thinking about the names that passed between Cicero and the stranger; not even his littermate's inquiry could rouse a response from him like it normally would have. He padded along almost absent-mindedly, with a faraway look that was cast to the snow just ahead of him.

wrap soon?

the other boy looks more like his father, delight absently notes as he walks with them. the two children seem world-weary, in need of tending to and a decent meal (he can at least arrange for those things). cicero seems in need of urgent medical care (he can arrange for that as well, though he doesn't know if it'll do much at this point). "how did you know him?" delight asks, unable to resist the curiosity. his reaction to the news of burke's death was not outwardly intense as far as the morwinyon can tell, but that doesn't mean much given his condition (and delight, being the type to keep his emotions hidden -- or try to, badly -- knows better than to assume what's on the surface is the only thing).

"yeah," delight answers quietly, "we were actually founded by burke's grandson, too." he talks to fill the weight of silence around them, how awkward he feels in this moment, unsure of what to do or the full shape of the situation. "my name is delight singing-sunlight," the androgyne thinks to add, glancing between all three of them, "i'm our leader. the pack is named tindómë." details, maybe frivolous, maybe important, but the little things are the things he uses to ground himself, his factsheets and trivia. 

he just hopes he can get them all back there quickly enough.

sorry for posting out of order - this is my last post in here, so i can wrap up cicero's threads. :)

Hmm, Malice. It had been long since he had seen her. He was asked how he knew Burke, and smiled lightly. "Burke used to lead the pack Cicero grew up in. He was a mentor of sorts." Like a father to Damien, who'd later betrayed him, but for Cicero he had never been truly like a father. Still, he was leading his own children to him now, so he must have been enough of one for Cicero to want to find him. It was such a shame that Burke could not pass on any of his knowledge to his children, now...

Burke's grandson.. Cicero could not help but wonder, as he did not think that the children he and Malice had reared could be old enough to have their own children in such a way, but he did not ask, for it did not matter in the grand scheme of things. Merely murmured a hmm-mm, and looked at Delight as he introduced himself. "Cicero Sheogorath Melonii," he introduced, leaving the boys to introduce themselves if they so wished. He didn't remember ever introducing himself with his full name, and thought it a bad sign that he was doing such a thing now. Almost like he knew what was drawing closer. It was a good thing Delight lead this pack called Tindome, for it meant the pups were likely safe there.

He moved on in silence from there on, not sure what he would do once they would reach Tindome but desperately clinging on to the last ounces of life he had left in him, for as long as he could manage...