Serpent Lake Bright stars and black roses

@Gotham

As the morning sun crept into the sky, the flame arose from his worn out den and sluggishly drug himself along a lakeside. His paws found the water's rocky edges, and he positioned himself so that he may drink the cool water to soothe his scratchy throat. It had been some time since the male had a decent meal, and his stomach groaned of hunger pains. 

The male sat firmly along the lake's border, all focus concentrated on the swift movement within the water. If he was fortunate enough perhaps a fish would swim near the water's edge and close enough for him to snag, though it seemed the odds were not in his favor. His tail flickered in annoyance as the fish kept to the center of the lake, and the famished male quickly gave up on any chance at a meal. He remained at the water's edge slowly drifting off and daydreaming about his past travels, completely oblivious to anyone or anything around him.

His feet felt like they were going to fall off any second and his throat burned like a blazing fire. darn it!, He thought. He didn't want to stop and rest, too eager to get as far as possible from his past. His trot turned into a stumble, eyeing for water to cool his feet and rest his pounding body. He was done for today, maybe for tomorrow too considering how tired he was. He had traveled all the way from The Bracken Woods, through the mountains in a matter of weeks. He had grown hungry, almost dying at one point, but he pulled through. And today was probably the last day of his journey through this new land, as his goal had been reached once reaching a lake.

He stumbled to the waterside, craving the cold water now in front of him. His vision had blurred as the icy water ran down his throat and he treasured every instant of his victory. He closed his eyes and fell to the ground, hitting the earth with his right shoulder. A smirk now on his muzzle, he knew he had made it. He opened his eyes again, the blurriness gone as he spotted another presence a fair distance away, sitting near the waterside. He wanted to ignore this new sight, but his stomach said otherwise. If this new being was friendly, they could catch something together. No-one knew who he was here so he didn't have to feel ashamed when presenting himself. He moved his head up, his muzzle in the direction of the new presence and let out a faint bark. He was too weak to walk now, but knew for sure he'd be as good as new once his weariness was gone. He let his muzzle hit the rocky surface again, too anemic to move towards this wolf.  

The male sat there, and let a calm peaceful state sweep over him. His eyes drifted closed as a chill went down his spine, making him involuntarily shiver. He was not a fan of the harsh winter season, and favored the summer sun far more than the icy winds. Winter brought death and illness, it took away the life of earth and concealed it under a blanket of white. Yet, despite his dislike for the harsh weather he believed there was a certain beauty to winter. It rid the world of the weak and old, so that a new, healthy generation may have a chance to blossom and grow. 

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted due to a bark from off in the distance. The hairs on the male's spine instantly stood up, and his eyes quickly shot open to search for what had caused the noise. When he spotted the silhouette of a wolf off in the distance he slighty relaxed but kept a cautious stance as the other's intentions were unknown. Assuming it was this stranger that had called to him, the male stood and walked over to the figure. He left a good distance between the two, and let out a friendly "hello" before lazily plopping himself on his rump, waiting to see why the stranger had called to him.

The sounds of footsteps neared, getting the young boy's body out of the physical shock state it was in now. He was kind of glad to have a presence so near, although he still wasn't sure if that was a good sign. Back at home he was forced to meet others, now he had a choice. Either ignore it, or embrace it. A soft bump was heard at the same time a voice hit his eardrums. It sounded like a male, and the wolf smelled like one too. The grey hunter smirked again, lifting his head up to look at the male in the process. It looked fox-like, blue piercing eyes and rather healthy for a lone wolf. Well, the boy assumed he was a loner since there was no scent of others clinging to his own. Perfect, was the only thing he thought.

Good,- He coughed, his lungs clearly saying; I hate you for walking so long. here, have the feeling like you're dying. His throat, even after drinking the numbing water, felt like it was burning. But he managed to make his now raspy voice understandable. -morning. He added. The boy took a moment to prepare for the pain that was to come with the next sounds he was going to make into words. Do you perhaps know the area around here?

A cold winter breeze shifted the male's thick furs into a tangled mess as the other spoke. It seemed the life of a loner had taken a toll on the stranger, or at least it appeared he was a rouge. Raspy voice, bad cough, and seemed is some physical pain as well. Quinn silently wondered to himself how much longer the other could last in the winter conditions, as it seemed he hadn't been doing well so far. The fiery male himself, had only recently left his birth pack and from self judgement had been doing decent on his own. Perhaps all of his previous journeys on his own had paid off in the long run. 

"Morning" he returned smoothly as he brought his tail to rest gently against his right hind leg. "I'm afraid not, quite new to these lands" he replied to the other's question as the corners of his mouth tugged down to form the beginning of a frown. The male was looking forward to exploring these new territories, though with the current conditions it seemed most adventures would have to wait. "I'm guessing you don't know much about this area either".

Maybe we could let them explore together and then stumble upon that pack and such? Also, sorry for short response, I'm kind of in a rush.

Gotham watched as the foxy male greeted him. well, at least he was polite, he thought.His body felt movable again, and he tried to raise himself up to a sitting position. After a few failed attempts, he got up, now on equal height as the red male. It said that it was new to these lands, something that wasn't very handy for Gotham since he had to find a pack as soon as possible. He knew he wouldn't survive for much longer in Winter, but he was going to give it all he got.

Indeed, I arrived here a few weeks ago. He revealed in his raspy voice, a smirk on his features. It's quite beautiful here, though. He said, glancing around at their surroundings. Winter seemed to make every landscape more beautiful. He returned his grey gaze back to the fox like creature, and hoped he wasn't going to feel bad about socializing with an other individual. My name's Gotham, pleased to meet you.

Sounds good to me! And your post was fine <3

The male watched as the stranger attempted to get to a sitting position, though his attempts often ended in failure. Just as the bright furred man opened his mouth to offer help. the stranger succeeded in getting himself up, though Quinn couldn't help but get a terrible feeling in the pit of his stomach that this could possibly be the last stop for the stranger. He couldn't just abandon the poor guy...

"Quinn" he return with a warm smile when the stranger introduced himself. "I'll be leaving for those mountains tomorrow morning." He turned to gaze upon the huge Sunspire mountains that he would soon hope to call home. He was clueless about the packs that roamed the summits, but instead was in search of a cave that could shelter him from the cold air. "Your welcome to join me" he offered and tilted his head, curious as to what the other would say.

Sorry for the late reply, I was on vacation and such. After we archive this thread, should we plan a thread with Quinn, @Aaron and Gotham?

Gotham was glad to hear the stranger's name, the first step of friendship in his eyes. And, of course, now he didn't have to reference to him as a foxy-like creature. His thoughts almost made him chuckle, though his lungs refused. All that came was a painful cough. Excuse me... He murmured out of politeness.

The information Quinn told was like honey for a sore throat. The mountains eh? Yeah, he could deal with that. This stranger was his only chance of surviving the Winter anyway, so what choice did he have? Dying here near the waters? hell no. That was not the way for him to go. So when the red fox offered for him to join, he didn't hesitate for even a second.

I would be honored to join you, Quinn. He replied, no coughs interrupting him for a change.Do you know exactly where you're going? Like, a pack of some sort?