Fall. It was rather strange, this fall. The wolf hadn't seen, well, more so FELT, a fall get so cold so quickly. Usually the Onset of fall was pleasant. But there had already been a day or two where he thought if it got much colder, it might snow again. It was puzzling, perplexing, and Rude. Spring and Fall were the Wolf's favorite two seasons. They were comfortable, not too hot nor too cold to live and frolic about in reckless abandon. This part of the land didn't feel so bad though. Felt warm. Also curious. The brown furred, yellow eyed wolf made it's way at a light trot, a rather large salmon clutched between his jaws from the fishing he'd done earlier on his way here.

He could have sworn earlier that he'd caught wind of a pack scent during his splashing about that had given him a moment of pause too. Probably a scout, there was a pack on either side of him. He knew he needed to be careful of the as this wasn't his homeland. All the best intentions in the world meant nothing to them. At least that was the assumption he would operate off of until he had a chance to learn more about them. This place was still an alien world, and he wanted to inhabit it and make friends, so for now, Caution was the side on which he would air regarding the packs.

It was a gorgeous place, to be sure. One could be swayed by it's beauty, so he understood why wolves would choose to carve out their lives here. But he also wondered if it was plagued by some of the coexistence issues he was familiar with from his homeland. Well... Land of Origin. This was his homeland now, he thought as he pushed through the brush and was pulled out of his stray running thoughts to behold one of the strange half circled scale shaped pools of water, steam rolling up from it in the cool air invitingly. A Hot Spring! Padding up curiously, he looked down into it. He'd heard of them, and had always been told not to drink from them, but otherwise they were MOSTLY harmless. Setting his fish down, it was too big so he was hoping to happen along someone worth sharing it with, and peer down into the water with a perfectly calm, quizzical expression.

Suddenly, without warning, the wolf sprang up with his front legs, tucking them to his chest as his paws hug out in that somewhat adorable way, as he lowered himself onto his haunches, and jumped, diving head first into the pool's central, deepest part. It took him a moment to touch the bottom with one of his front paws, before paddling his way up closer to the bank where he could stand, breaching the water with that calmly curious expression still mounted on his face, rising up on his feet as the water came half way up his legs. He looked around briefly as held a mouthful of the strange, bitter tasting water in his maw, the steam now rising up from off of him as the warmth soaked through his fur and down into his flesh. It felt very nice for sure. Then after a moment of memorizing this taste, he smoothly lowered his head, ears perked up and eyes looking off into the woods quizically, and opened his maw, letting it run out before licking his lips. Surely he'd happen upon company soon.

she'd never seen the likes of this before.

the water was heated and warm against her paw pads when she dipped them in. there was no strange sulfuric scent like some associated with hot springs. it was almost romantic - almost being the key word. she had no one to share this discovery with, no special man or woman to entertain her and her them. Bee was a hopeless romantic at heart; she couldn't help but feel this was a wasted opportunity of some kind. but she stored the location of the springs in her mind. maybe she'd get use out of it another time.

the large, half-moon pools glistened. spared the frost that seemed to be covering the rest of Boreas. winter was almost here, and she had no plan. the thought was both sad and wonderful. ahead of her, as she rounded a corner, there seemed to be another here. a young man was hunched over the waters, but his back was to her. she didn't know what he was doing. "oh, hello there" she chirped in her friendly manner as she neared him. maybe she could join him... she wasn't doing anything in particular.

"Speech"
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Paramore - Misery Business (Thoreau Trap Remix)

The woman's voice fell upon his ears, causing one to turn back towards her, followed by his head as he changed his paw positioning until he was facing her, his body at a somewhat angle, the warm waters still coming up his legs half way, his soaked fur clinging to his body in rows of spikes the way wet fur did, as it dripped from his chest and chin and tail. As he saw her, his body sort of reacted on it's own.

He rose to his full height, head coming up as his ears stood. Not in a commanding or aggressive way, more so just an, alert, way. His coat was a simple one, and he wasn't the largest brute in the world, no. But... There was a certain Pedigree to Dot. He was a very pure wolf. His shoulders were broad and the muscles in his front upper legs were nicely defined, his chest was deep, housing powerful lungs, and leading to a slime stomach. He was primed in youth, and the steam from the warm spring water rolled off of him gently as he stood, framed in a backdrop of light fog and steam coming from the pool itself in the soft overcast light of morning, those two yellow eyes almost glowing with life.

His expression was neutral, just short of deadpan, excitement nor surprise nor fear filled his facade as he looked at her. He was comfortable in his skin, and he wore it on his sleeve. Finally, he'd close his eyes and bow his head gently, before returning it to it's previous position, letting his cool voice roll forth from it's maw. "Greetings, madam. Would you care to join me? I have a salmon I captured earlier that I'd be happy to share with you." As he spoke, that neutral expression of his would pull back slightly into a bit of a smile. Slight, but genuine.

It had been a long while since he'd been here, the last time was when he'd found his sister and that didn't exactly bode well for the return visit but the truth was Octave was curious to explore the potential properties of the hot springs, particularly on muscle relaxation. He understood that the springs were more than capable of relaxing muscles, but he was curious how he might be able to harness that ability or if it could be used for anything else. If he was being true about his motivation though he'd also have to admit he was simply looking to warm himself a bit, the cool of autumn had sunk in deep in the pack, the wind not blocked as it once had when the chill of the season hadn't allowed much of the thicket to grow back in.

Noko was snuggled into the fur along his back as he walked, hiding her face between his shoulder blades, and Octave couldn't help but wish he also had a scarf of warm fur to bury his face into. As he approached the pools he could make out the sound of chatter and Octave slowed, his ears twitching slightly, a sign of his anxiety starting to rise. But the mists rising off the pools obscured the wolves and he forced himself to breathe for a moment. He padded forwards warily, starting to slip into one of the pools when the mist cleared and suddenly Octave could see them, one man and a woman and he'd chosen to slip into their pool. So he froze, his forelimbs already in the water and his hindlegs still on dry land, his violet eyes wide as he stared straight ahead at the pair. Noko pulled herself up to peer over his head, her hands in the short fur on his skull.

Octave & Noko

And then another would appear. There was a light splash, a disruption of the water as Dot lifted one of his paws and set it back down, turning to face this newcomer. He was as attractive as the first, Dot found himself actually admiring the creature's appearance for a moment even if it didn't display on his carefully measured facade. This new person was male, and bigger that Dot. Maybe not taller, but he had more mass, more muscle, packed onto his body. Yet despite that there seemed to be a certain amount of unease to him, as well as that mass of red fur clung to his back.

After a moment of quiet, when the other did not speak, Dot took it upon himself to break the silence. Breathing in, he sat down on his rump, the laid down in it so that only his head remained above the surface. After a moment, he closed his eyes and completely submerged himself for the better part of thirty seconds, just enjoying the warmth that surrounded him. Then, he finally stood back up, breaching the surface and giving his head a shake but letting the warm water cling to the rest of his figure so he could steal warmth from it for a bit longer. Steam once again rolled of of him gently, coupled with the fog that rose off the water itself in the soft grey light of a rather overcast morning. "Alright then." He spoke aloud as he started padding through the water back to the bank where he'd set the particularly large salmon he'd caught earlier down at.

Then, getting up out of the water, he took a moment to plant his front legs and pull back, muscle rippling underneath his shoulders as his face contorted a bit, rump going high in the air. After he was finished with that stretch, he returned to his morning's catch. "I'm afraid it won't be much more than a snack with the three of us sharing, but come. Eat. It is a pleasure to meet the both of you. My name is Dot." His words were cool, calm, and falling from the lips of a very not threatening, neutral expression as he sat himself down.

the pools housed more than steam and water. was the salmon caught here or was it caught elsewhere? she had missed him catching it. the one that spoke to her offered food and Bee looked at the salmon before realizing she was almost drooling. it had been a few days since she had eaten a good meal and she beamed at him naively. "how kind of you to offer" for taking food from a stranger never occurred to her it might be tainted or poisoned. she moved fluidly toward the man before spotting an ivory shape. she'd twist her head to spot another man a few paces away.

"hello there, you two" he hadn't spoken yet, this new one but she was adamant about making friends. she had seen the creature above his head and wondered how nice it must be to have a friend always with you. traveling alone was often hard and bothersome. her eyes returned to the fish and to the first man who introduced himself as Dot. Bee wondered if there was some sort of reaction to catching fish here at the springs. like, um, was the water here different? did it make the fish extra yummy? the salmon looked fat enough but Dot said it would be hard to share. "my name is Willoughby." she chose to focus on that instead.

"Speech"
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note; its important to stick to a posting order, rook! ;D so it'd go; you, me then lolaf
you don't have to reply to each reply we make hehe