Well, this sucked. Fireside was disbanding, and while Ares didn't like the idea, he supposed he'd have to suck it up and deal with it. Tyrian seemed happy though, and he couldn't fault his uncle for feeling that way. After all, what was life without happiness, right? He huffed as he dug out a dry spot at the base of a tree. He didn't want to freeze his ass off on the cold ground, so he had grabbed some furs from his den in fireside and spread them out on the ground. He dropped heavily on them before taking a bottle of booze from his pack, and well...bottoms up!

"Speech"

Life had taken her on many different paths and several drastic turns. None of which she really expected, but that was the fun part, right? Maybe for most, anyway. Not so much for her. She was old now and getting on in years. She could feel it in her bones and the graying of her fur. She wasn't as spry as she used to be anymore, so things had become a bit more difficult these days. Still, she pushed on until she couldn't anymore.

She arrived at the Orchard, somewhere she hadn't been to in years, but with the tail end of winter still clinging to the lands, she knew there were fruits that she might be able to scavenge to keep her going until spring. She shuffled around the undergrowth, looking for any fruit that might have survived the winter and lay frozen beneath the ice. As she scraped away a few layers of snow, she paused when she scented the familiar smell of smoke. Lifting her head, she spotted a plume of smoke over the trees nearby, and of course, she was going to investigate. Maybe whoever it was would let her settle by the fire to warm her bones.

It took her only a minute or two to find them, and it turned out to be a pretty handsome male that was tending to a fire. Well, lucky her, eh? She approached him. "Mind if I warm up by the fire?" She asked, lashes batting over bi-colored eyes as she sat down anyway.

After a swig or two of his drink, he decided to build a fire to keep warm. Winter was almost over, but it was still cold. A fire would do him well. He could stay warm, and maybe roast some fruit if he found any worth eating. And just in case he didn't find any edible fruit, he had some meat stashed in the makeshift pack that he could cook up. He threw together a pile of wood and pulled out the flint he had brought with him. Once he started that, it only took a few minutes for the fire to start going. Grabbing another, long stick, he started poking around the fire until he was satisfied enough with it.

Before he could sit down, however, someone had shown up. He looked up to find a pretty small but pretty old she-wolf. Though even with the graying of her fur, she still looked...pretty. She asked him if she could warm herself up at his fire, but even before he could say anything she had already taken a seat. "Knock yourself out, pretty lady," He quipped as he sat back down. "You want a drink, too? Food? I'm about to roast up some meat." He took another drink before tossing a slab of meat on the fire. "Names Ares, you got a name?"

He offered her food, drink, and his name. "Sure, I'll have some," She replied, bi-colored gaze watching him throw some meat on the fire as she reached for the booze. She knew better than to take a sniff of whatever she decided to drink. The first time she had done that, it somehow tasted worse than it probably should've. So once she took it, she took a couple of big gulps - face twisting with disgust as she set it down. "That is strong! What is it?" She questioned, licking her lips. It didn't taste like anything she had before, but whatever it was, it went down hard but the aftertaste had the lingering taste of...berries? "Oh, and my name is Kairi. Thanks for the drink."

He watched her out of the corner of his eye as she took a drink. The twisting of her face when she tasted his concoction was amusing, and he couldn't help the grin that showed. She asked what it was, so he sat up and grinned at her. "Strong it is, thanks for the compliment! It's moonshine. Berry moonshine. I made it myself." He was proud of what he'd made. It was one of his better creations. Though he planned on trying more flavors once the snow let up and the fruits started ripening again. Now that he was among the pirates, he was sure he'd have more of an appreciative customer base. "Where ya from? You look like you've been around a pretty long time. But I don't think I've ever seen you around before." He asked, flipping over the meat to cook the other side.

"Berry moonshine huh? It...is pretty good..." She admitted. At least, once she got past the initial taste, anyway. "Where ya from? You look like you've been around a pretty long time. But I don't think I've ever seen you around before." She looked up at him for a moment before returning her gaze to the fire. "I used to be in a pack called Lirim some years ago. It's been gone for a while, not sure what happened to it. I left shortly after my father died. Been wandering around ever since, and I came back to Boreas a few months ago. So...yeah, I guess you could say I've been around." She had many pleasant memories of her old life. But they were overshadowed more by all that she'd lost.

She shivered a bit as a wind chill passed over them, sending embers flying up and around and seemingly threatening the fire. "What about you?"

He stoked the fire as he listened to her tale. Honestly, her life sounded pretty sucky. But Lirim did ring a bell for him. "Yeah I've heard of Lirim. I think it was taken by someone else. I don't know the details of it, but they moved over to where the volcano is. Tough luck, huh?" At least Fireside hadn't been taken. It was just moving on. "I was in a pack called Fireside not too long ago. But the family decided it was time to move on, so I joined up with my cousin Sparrow and her merry band of pirates!" He had yet to stake a den claim, but he wasn't sure he was ready for that just yet. A few more days...then he'd head over.

When the wind chill picked up, he patted the furs he was sitting on. "You're welcome to come sit next to me for more warmth," He said with a wink. He hadn't cuddled up with anyone in a while, and by the looks of it, neither had she. Though he didn't care one way or another. He took another drink of his moonshine before taking the meat off the fire and placing it on a stone. He cut the steak in half and offered her a piece. "Here, it's best to have something in your stomach while drinking this stuff. If you're not used to it, it'll hit ya pretty hard."

She listened as he talked about what had happened to her old pack. She felt the hackles on her neck raise a bit but quickly lay flat. She supposed she couldn't really be mad about it, could she? After all, Lirim had long died before she had even left. It was practically a ghost town at the time, so she supposed it was best someone else had taken over. He told her about his old pack then. "I've heard of Fireside. They were around a pretty long time," She didn't think apologies about it were in order though. He did say his family had decided it was time to move on, after all.

He offered her a place on the furs next to him, and for a brief moment, she almost declined but thought better of it. It was cold. And it had been quite some time since she had had any company. She got up and moved to sit next to him, taking his advice and eating the cooked meat he had offered while he ate his. "This is good," She murmured between bites. She couldn't remember the last time she had cooked food, but this was certainly hitting the spot. When she was done, she had another drink, and already she could feel the fuzzy warm feeling that alcohol often made her feel.

"So, Ares. Got any plans tonight? It's getting dark, mind if I stick around for the night?"

He nodded at her words about Fireside. They'd been around for as long as he could remember, and likely for much longer before that. He ate his portion of meat, too. Taking another drink of moonshine before sitting back with a full belly. He had been drinking a little more than she had, and he could feel the effects of it, too. When she asked if he had plans and if she could stick around, he shrugged. "No plans. I don't mind if you stay the night. Better than wandering around in the dark and sleeping in the dirt, right?" He stoked the fire again, and as the sun started going down, the pair of them got to talking about nothing in particular. The weather. Their old packs. The goings-on in the world now.

They drank and they talked, all the while getting a little closer with each drink until they were practically snuggled up all in the name of keeping warm. The moonshine was practically one, and so were they as they laughed and talked. He found himself wrapped up with her, the galaxy-clad male inhaling her sweet scent as she pressed into him, and he couldn't help but return the gesture. He leaned down and started gently kissing her neck. Her shoulder. Her back. And she did the same to his neck, sending shivers down his spine.

Darkness had come. And Ares was in for a wild night.

-fade-

He accepted her request to stick around for the night to which she was grateful. She really didn't want to go and have to find a last-minute place to sleep tonight. With the sun going down and her stomach full, the pair got to talking about different things and drinking the moonshine she had made. With her being smaller, it hit her pretty quick and eventually, she had cuddled up to him for warmth as they talked. She fit right into him, especially considering he was much bigger than she was. Before she knew it, the pair were cuddled up and kissing each other. It had been such a long while since she had been with anyone, but he was warm and nice and overall good company. She pressed into him, lightly nibbling along his neck and chest.

He nibbled along her own neck and back. Sending shivers down her spine and a feeling of desire. She wanted him, and when she got into position atop the furs he had laid out, he didn't disappoint.

-fade-