Tiny white toes clicked against the ice of a small frozen puddle the pup had found. He had seen his father walk on ice before...so why couldn't he. White lined ears pinned against Ryker's head as he gingerly stepped forward further on the ice puddle. Following that brave step came a cry of surprise as the pup slipped and immediately fell on his bum. A sigh escaped the pup's lips as he averted his aqua blue gaze to his surroundings. Where was he again...? Ryker remembered he had strayed away from his parents and siblings. The young pup knew that it was wrong as well. But temptation to see what else was out here had gotten the best of him.

With a small guilty whimper Ryker picked himself up and made his way back onto the snow. With a big brave breath he tried again. In a few tiny cautious steps the pup was standing on the ice.

"Aarashoo!(Harasho!)(Good!)" he said in the garbled Russian his father had started to teach him.

Ryker didn't know why his daddy spoke what he called Russian. Why not just normal English like mommy and brother and sister? The pup had also heard Uncle Cyril speak the Russian language too with his father. His tiny dark gray legs wobbled as he continued to stand on the ice. Could he manage to take a step and still stand?

His aqua blue eyes with their green fleck in each then turned back to the safety of the snow. No, don't be such a woos, he thought. Next he bravely brought his feet forward and managed to stand for a few seconds before slipping once more. As he lay there on the ice with his bum and tail in the air; Ryker thought about how he saw his father do this. Didn't his daddy dig his claws in the ice?

Tiny white lined ears perked up as Ryker unsheathed his tiny claws. As they scratched against the slippery ice he began to drag his feet.Soon enough the pup was walking on the ice!

"I did it! I did it!" he yelped in excitement as he stood on the ice.

The tiny male then made his way back to the snow and rolled around in it. As he giggled, Ryker still lay there and looked up at the sky. This was fun, he hoped he could stay here for a bit longer before being called back to the rest of his family. Surely his mother would scold him with sweet words which would make him feel guilty. And a disapproving yet concerned look from his father would be what else he would see.

But aside from that he knew he didn't have to worry for now. When Ryker was big and strong he wanted to be just like his daddy! After all, he was the one of his litter who looked most alike to their father. Maybe one day he would accomplish that; but the pup knew this rebellious attitude wouldn't last for long. It had already started to show as he became more serious which had made his father look at him with a gaze with what seemed like worry for some reason.

With a shrug Ryker looked at the clouds in the sky...maybe it would snow again.

She wasn't much of a wanderer - especially during the winter. She preferred to stay close to her family, curled into her brothers and sister's sides and nestled alongside her mother. Yet she got ancy, just as any pup did - felt the urge to stretch her growing limbs and explore the lands that she called home. It was why she snuck out of her den, leaving her dozing siblings behind. She would probably return before they woke up, but if she didn't she knew that one of her parents wouldn't be far behind.


Her oddly swirled eyes of yellow and blue flicked over the terrain, and then she was off - trailing after nothing in particular for no real reason at all. Unaware of danger, she fumbled over branches and leaves and patches of ice, getting back up after she fell without so much as a squeak. She had no intention of stopping either - until she heard the voice of another wolf. The girl blinked, turning toward the sound before changing her direction to follow it to the source. The voice was younger, like hers - and she was excited to be able to meet another pup. "What did you do?" She asked when she was finally close enough to the other to see him. He was black and grey with bright blue eyes and a pretty shape under his eyes that reminded her of the sky.


"What's your name?" She asked, curious about him, curious about everything. She had quite a few questions to ask him even though she had only been in his presence around half a minute or so. "Do you live in 'Halla too?"

White lined ears perked up as Ryker heard a voice. The boy focused his aqua blue and green gaze towards the wolf that had spoken. He sat upright and got a good look at the girl. She looked kinda cool with all of those swirls, almost as cool as his sister! She then asked what he did and his name and more questions. ?Wow you?re pretty!? the boy said not caring what she thought about his sudden outburst. ?And I was trying to walk on the ice like my papa can. And I did it!? he said as he puffed out his chest and wagged his tiny gray tipped tail. ?My name?s Ryker, Ryker Tsarev. And yea, I live in Valahalladder(Valhalla) too. What?s your name?? he asked with a tilt of his head to the right. The boy wondered if his brother or sister had met any other wolves their age. Maybe Ryker was the first one of the three of them to actually meet another pup! Oh how jealous they would be; but Papa said to not brag. As Ryker seemed to go aloof he tried to think about the few lessons his father had started to teach him. Don?t brag..right? Thennnn?be respectful towards everyone?right? Then don?t eat the yellow snow?yea that was right. The boy sat back down on his haunches as he tried to keep himself still. The boy just wanted to pounce on the pup before him and play like he did with his siblings. With a friendly smile he scratched an itch on his maw with his white-toed paws. As he set his paw back down the small male wagged his gray tipped tail some more. As his aqua blue gaze with a green fleck in each eye settled back on the pup before him, he tilted his head again. She had a really interesting color. She wasn't a black wolf. Of course the only wolves the boy had been in contact with had been black. His mama's fur was black, his papa's fur was black, his brother's fur was black, and even his sister's fur was black! Were there wolves with different colors? Of course the boy knew he shouldn't judge, so he didn't. But in fact Ryker though her fur was rather pretty. Looking at his own pelt the pup noted the x's along his back, just like papa's. then he remembered the star on his face from his reflection in the ice, just like mama's. And his legs were like papa's but his toes were like mama's. But the tail tip was his! As the boy stared at his swaying tail he turned around to try to snap at it. Of course he didn't reach it and ended up doing a circle as he eventually sat in the snow staring at it once more. With a sigh the pup looked back up at the other pup with a smile waiting for her reply. Speech,