Well, he had to admit this year had been...somewhat eventful. Asides from his own personal life and disrupting the lives of those in former Winterfell, a great ice bridge had formed nearby. The black bear cloak he wore was secured and fastened against the wind that whipped and blew around him, crimson gaze narrowed as he gazed out at the new structure that stretched out over the water. He had half a mind to go and see what might be on the other side, but he also wasn't too keen on trying to cross on his own. While he had his companions with him nearly all the time, neither of them would be able to pull him to safety should an accident happen and he ended up slipping into the frigid waters of the North. He thought about sending Jasper to fly across and scout ahead, but the wind was so strong, he figured the birds wings wouldn't be strong enough and his feathers would probably freeze before long. It looked like the option would be to carefully walk across...but...what was on the other side? Was there even anything? How far did the bridge go? Would it be worth the trip? What if there was nothing but endless ice and wind, or even just ocean at the end of the bridge? He wasn't so sure he wanted to risk it alone...so instead, he stood on the shore as he debated on whether or not he wanted to try.

Hanako was too cold for words. Her teeth rattled so fierce in her skull that it made her headache, she was going nowhere fast and yet she kept pushing on in hopes of stumbling across shelter of some sort. Something, anything would be better than this. The Diplomat never seemed to learn her lesson, always venturing north when she really ought not to. She didn't even have itchy paws anymore, the pale of her pads felt as though they were frozen solid as she was shivering so hard her muscles seized and ached beneath her coat. And yet she ventured on, blind to time and space till she caught the scent of the salty brine of the ocean. She raised her lowered gaze, her eyes widening once she caught sight of the immense stretch of ice that laid out before her. Where did it go? And was she ready to find out? Common sense said no but her sense of adventure said yes!

She fumbled along, drawing closer to the bridge and eventually caught sight of the man with a blazing red coat. He seemed just as enamoured with the bridge as she was, though he was no doubt better prepared for the awful weather.

"Was this always here?" She yelled over the din of the wind.

Crimson eyes narrowed against the wind as he studied the ice. He had been standing there long enough that anyone else not accustomed to the Northern climate might have frozen in place, but not him. Plus, the black bear coat he wore added an extra layer of protection. He was about to start his descent to the bridge when he heard a sudden voice above the howl of the wind. "Was this always here?" He turned to find a smaller she-wolf with a mottled coat approaching. He studied her for a moment, the wind bringing him the scent of a pack he vaguely recognized. He shook his head to her question. "No, this is new." He replied, voice raised over the wind. He wasn't sure how new, but definitely something that had formed very recently. "I've lived in the North most of my life, and this is the first time I've seen this here. I do wonder where it goes..." He turned to look at her then, "What brings you here? You're not from these parts, I can tell," The North was a harsh place, especially during the winter and even moreso during this particular year. It had been colder this year than previous winters that he could remember. Had she just been exploring before the storms started? "Ignis"||"Blödhgarm"

Well that was troubling. Hanako was pretty sure bridges didn't just pop up out of nowhere and the fact that a local seemed bothered by it made the whole thing seem really serious. As if the blistering cold wasn't enough. She would have frowned if she hadn't feared her muscles wouldn't freeze struck in that expression, forever cursed to be a scowly koi like Hattori. The red stranger was quick to ask what brought her here, soon concluding that she was well and truly out of her element. And well yeah...it was obvious as all hell and she wasn't even closely dressed for the weather. Her bad.

"I like to wander a bit, keep slim and all that." She would have bounced on her paws as a show of how light and springing she was but brrr, it was a struggle to just not turn into a Hana-popsicle. But now that he mentioned it she too wondered where it led, whether there was treasure on the other side. "Do you think it's safe?" She wouldn't step out onto the ice unless he did, just in case.

"Talk" Walk "I like to wander a bit, keep slim and all that." A slightly amused half-grin showed for a moment before the wind whipped up a flurry of snow, forcing him to look the other way until it passed a few moments later. "Do you think it's safe?" He shrugged after shaking the snow off, crimson gaze finding her once again. "Don't know until we get on there. Though if there's one thing I've learned about the North, is to always be cautious. Especially with ice over water...you have to be careful with thin ice." From what he could tell, the sides of the ice bridge looked pretty thick, but he knew thinner patches could exist anywhere. But since it was over the northern ocean...that constantly moving water was likely keeping it pretty solid. "I think we might be fine if we decided to test our luck..." He mused aloud as he looked at her smaller, shivering form again. "If you're up for the task, I'll loan you my cloak. It turns out black bears are very warm."