OOC: I'm in the process of having his name changed to Sunder so that will be why some things don't add up lol

A little under halfway between Scaled Island and the mainland Sunder realized the mistake he'd made. The gravity of it hit him quicker. He had underestimated the toll the icy water would take on his already weak legs. In a panic he'd tried to turn back but his efforts were in vain; the undertow was too much for him. It seemed, however,that his fate was not to drown in the sea. For the second time he was miraculously spared a watery grave; his head somehow breaking the surface just often enough to sustain him.

Too weak to haul himself to shore, Sunder had no choice but to let himself be slowly pushed from the water by the waves when he finally made land. He lay sprawled out on the black sand as though spit up by a great beast. Sunder promised himself to get up after a quick breather, but no matter how long he lay there it didn't feel long enough. Minutes slipped by, possibly an hour, without him budging an inch more. Were it not for his relentless shivering he could have been mistaken for a corpse. He was just...so...tired.

Exploring as always, Iolaire happened upon a long stretch of black sand. The waves from the ocean beat upon that sand, sending spray flying into the air. The small, dark wolf kept well clear of that. Salt made ones coat rather disgusting. It was an interesting place though and she wondered just what treasures she might find here.

The treasure that she did find was far from what she was expecting. Initially. she'd almost walked right on by the starving pup, believing him to be some bit of debris washed up from the sea. It was only when she saw his ribcage rise and fall that she stopped in her tracks. Black ears flicked forward and the woman shifted seamlessly into the mode of care taker.

Padding to the dogs side, she looked him over with green and gold eyes. Her voice was soft as she gave instruction. "Can you move? We need to get you away from the water and get you warm." Pushing her nose beneath him, Iolaire leaned her weight against the soaking wet creature. She would get him up and walk him far from the waters edge. There, she would proceed to assess him for injuries.

Thinking they might be warmer if they were held close, Sunder tried to draw his legs in. They didn't move even when he put every ounce of strength he had into moving them. The dog was left panting from the effort and the next wave that rushed in filled his mouth with water and sand. He gagged  but was too weak to clear the grit from his airway. It filled the dry crevices of his mouth and stuck to the back of his throat. Sunder attempted to retch again and then, empty of air, drew in involuntary. The end result was that after a violent fit, sand bubbled out of his nose. He writhed on the ground blind and in pain until fighting was too much for him. Somehow more exhausted now, there was nothing he could do besides accept that the pain wasn't going away.

A woman's voice reached his ears but he didn't have the strength to turn towards her. He couldn't make sense of her words and was startled when he felt her touch.  Still blinded by the salt Sunder opened bleary eyes and tried to look at the woman, but couldn't make out more than a vague dark shape. Though he didn't understand what she was saying he understood what she was trying to do. Sunder tried to rise. He wanted to help her help him, and he really, really didn't want to be a burden, but his efforts were in vain. Even after getting his legs under him they refused to support his weight. He would rise partially only to fall suddenly.

He was forced to admit defeat and so sank back onto the sand. "No, no," he croaked weakly, his tongue thick and useless in his mouth. "No, no...I canna..." The salt had cleared somewhat from his eyes and though they were swollen from the seawater Sunder could now see just well enough to make out Iolaire's eyes. He gazed up at her sadly, trying to convey how sorry he was for being unable to help.

The pup was a right mess. There were lacerations on his hairless body.  His bones showed through dark skin. He was utterly exhausted and,  if he stayed where he was much longer,  she had no doubt that he would die of exposure. 

Her attempt to get him on his paws failed.  He was simply too weak. The dog protested a bit,  his tone apologetic. Iolaire offered soothing words. It wasn't his fault,  afterall. Raising a slender muzzle to the sky, Io called for Ila, her reindeer companion.  Runts, the pair of them,  but Ila had the cart. That was exactly what they needed. 

While she waited for the ungulate to make her way down the beach,  she would work on moving the dog. "I'm sorry, " She said before moving to take the fleshy scruff between her teeth.  Planting her paws in the sand. Iolaire pulled, sliding the dark male across the darker earth.  As she worked,  a wave caught her full in the face.  Releasing her patient,  Io coughed and sputtered. How had he managed to keep from drowning with so little strength? 

Again the tiny healer took the man's scruff between her teeth.  She pulled harder, fighting to outrun the next wave.  And she did. Once out of reach of the  icy water,  Iolaire released his flesh.  The woman,  damp herself now,  wrapped her body around the dogs. She would give him as much body heat as possible before Ila arrived with the cart that would carry him to safety.

There was little he could do besides lay there and shiver lightly. Everything hurt. Literally everything. Sunder had never been somewhere so cold so the stinging, biting pain he felt all over was a new experience. He'd never been so cold; he imagined this must have been what fire felt like. The dog was so cold, in fact, that he welcomed the waves that washed over him. For a brief moment they felt warm against his freezing skin and he could almost forgive them for their repeated drowning attempts.

The woman grabbed him by the scruff and hauled him bodily from the waves. He did his best to help, trying to coordinate his kicks with her tugs, but in the end he didn't know how much good it did. The dragging left him exhausted all over again. Every movement seemed to drag him down to a new energy low. He'd start to feel resigned at rock bottom only to learn there was another layer of misery below.

She wrapped her small frame around his and enveloped him in damp heat. It radiated from her wet coat but seemed to sink uselessly into his skin. He was just too cold; it would take ages for it to make a difference he could feel beyond the surface. But it was something and he was grateful. "T-t-tak-t-nk..." he stuttered, trying to thank her for her kindness. The words wouldn't come out right and he was afraid of biting his tongue. His shivering seemed to be getting worse - which was a sign he was getting better, but he didn't know that - and the violent shakes were starting to alarm him. Death felt like a very real possibility.

It didn't take long for the plucky little reindeer to make her way down the beach, prancing with each step as she did so. The little cart was still hooked to her and jostled around in her wake. The runty ungulate gave a little bleat, letting hr companion know that she was on her way. Io couldn't help but smirk. Ila was an odd little thing, but she liked her.

Curling her body as tightly against the dog as she could, she listened as he tried to speak. "No, no. Save your strength. There will be time for talk when I get you warmed up." Ila stopped beside her, a look of curiosity on her face. Some non-wolves were capable of speech. Ila was not. Iolaire was already decent at interpreting the caribou's looks. "He's hurt. Cold. We need to get him off of the damn sand and get him warm."

Extracting herself from the hairless hound, Io unhooked the harness that held Ila to the cart. "I'll need you to help me lift him." The deer nodded and ambled over to the dog. Together they would be able to deposit him in the cart and that's exactly what they did. Ila scooped him atop her antlers while Iolaire pulled from within the cart itself. Soon they had him off of the wet sand. Thankfully, Iolaire had the large ox pelt that Sirius had prepared for her as she often took it when traveling. She wrapped the dog within it, careful to not let any of his flesh be exposed save a gap up top where he might breathe. She offered encouraging words. "You'll be warm in no time in there."

The next issue of business was a fire. Hooking Ila back to the cart, the going was a little rougher now that there was weight and they were rolling through sand, but they soon made it to the far end of the beach where sparse grass and rock began to take over. Placing her pack upon the cart, Iolaire rushed ahead to gather wood for a fire. Once that was done and the dog was warmed, she would begin to deal with his injuries.

It seemed he'd been taken in by an angel. Who else but a spirit of the heavens would look so tenderly after a stranger? And who, while he was mentally enthusing over strange blessings, would keep such a strange animal in their company? Sunder had never smelled such a beast. The longer he stayed out of the water the better his eyes were getting and though they were swollen from the salt exposure he could now make out large detail. He saw enough to know that the animal the woman had called to his side was the sort he'd never laid eyes on before.

He was lifted into a wheeled contraption and wrapped in a warm skin. The journey from sand to cart was bumpy but Sunder was far too grateful to complain. If he hadn't been so overwhelmed with shivering he very well might have cried from relief.

"You'll be warm in no time in there." He blinked at her uncomprehendingly, trying to break the vaguely familiar words apart into understandable chunks. It was strange how his ear could pick up on the similarities to the speech he was used to hearing but detect little meaning in the woman's words. "Whaddat?" he asked, peering from out from under the hide. "Lotta wata my ears, I tink," he added sheepishly, trying to find a polite way to explain his lack of understanding.

As Ila pulled, Iolaire pushed. The sooner they could get from the sands, the better. Once they were on the break between sand and grass, Io motioned for the caribou to stop. This would be the place for now. There were some taller rocks that would provide a wind barrier. She could build a substantial fire that would radiate off of said rocks. With a nod, she unhooked Ila and went to check on her patient. The dog had said something, but she hadn't entirely understood. Wata in ears, she got. She would be surprised if he didn't have water in his ears.

Leaving his side, the tiny woman set about finding firewood. She collected a decent enough pile and pulled some cattail fluff from her pack. Placing the kindling, she struck sparks with flint and steel. Several minutes after she had begun, there was a small fire roaring. Once she settled the waterlogged man beside it, she would go and fetch more wood.

"Come now," she said as she neared the cart. With care, she worked on extracting him from the wheeled apparatus. "Warm." Single words since he'd seemed to have trouble before. She would leave him curled within the furs next to the fire. Ila, she sent out searching for wood which the caribou could carry back on her antlers.

Improvements were slow, steady and oh so painful as his frigid nerves awakened and warmed. It was not unlike the feeling he got in his paws when one fell asleep and he had to shake it awake; like thousands of fiery insects crawling around under his skin. But pain or not he couldn't help but be happy. Not only had he made it to the mainland but he'd made contact with a kind woman who was willing to help him without even knowing him. He was the luckiest dog alive. Of course he was happy.

His happiness showed. Sunder couldn't help but smile to himself in the pile of furs. He was alive. Tired, hungry and in pain, but alive and that was wonderful. "Come now," came the woman's voice. Still smiling he peeked out from under the furs at her and then rose shakily as she helped him from the cart. Though he was still terribly weak, the growing warmth in his legs made them a little easier to manage. They still behaved like unruly colts beneath him, but even on his own he could have flopped and flailed his way to the fire eventually. That didn't make him any less grateful for her help, though.

Once beside the fire he parroted Iolaire in a trilled accent. "Ah, warm." He wiggled a paw out from under the furs so he could point to himself and make a long overdue introduction. "Sunda."

A happy little face poked out at her as she prompted him from the back of the cart. He really was an adorable little thing. Iolaire had always had a fondness for dogs and the hairless pup was hammering that fact home. Once she had him settled upon the sand and wrapped up in her oxen fur near the fire, he began to speak. Obsidian ears flicked forward as he said that he was warm then gestured to himself with the word 'Sunda.' "Sunda?" Iolaire asked with a tilted head. That was obviously his name, but she wasn't sure she was saying it correctly. She motioned to herself in the same gesture. "Iolaire," she said. "Io." It was easier.

Shrugging out of her pack, the woman pushed the furs aside so that she might inspect the dogs injuries. There were cuts and abrasions around his wrists. Io frowned slightly. No doubt the salty water had kept them a little clean, but they needed to be addressed. Sifting through her pack, Io came out with a small shell full of a thick, fatty salve. She rubbed it gently onto the wounds before taking up soft strips of rabbit skin. The skins were wound about the dogs wrists and secured so that they wouldn't slip. The rest of his wounds were the same. Cuts and bruises. She addressed each, taking her time to make sure that she didn't miss anything. Her ministrations were gentle and she tried not to cause him any pain. Once satisfied that she had seen to the worst of them, she bundled him back up in the thick oxen pelt. "What were you doing out there?" She spoke slowly so that he could understand.

"Sunda," he confirmed brightly before lifting his chin and taking a stab at her name. The strength of the 'r' at the end was odd to him and it made her name all the more exotic. "Iolaire," he said, rolling the 'r' softly. It was a lovely name so he told her as much. "Lowvley." By now he could see her clearly. Had he not met the winged wolf on the island he would have been more shocked by her appearance. She had the same thick fur as Gavroche the coloring was just wildly different. In all honesty he was envious of her thick fur and would have taken it in literally any color.

He'd been too busy with shivering to check for wings so when Iolaire opened up his furs to check his injuries he scooted a little bit closer in preparation of a glance. When she was focused on his legs he casually peeked over her shoulder in search of wings. And he saw...none. Hm. Interesting, perhaps there were more canine species on this island and the first two he happened to meet were different. It made sense to him. When he'd still been at sea and drifting towards land Sunder had the chance to look at Boreas from afar. It was the biggest island he'd ever seen so it made sense to him that there might be lots of different canines on it. He was familiar with the kind of differences could span a chain of small islands so why not big ones on big islands?

The dog appreciated her name and repeated it with a rolled R. Iolaire gave a soft laugh of amusement. "Aye, Iolaire." She rolled her own R just to play along. He really was an interesting creature. Despite his injuries and his near death experience, he still possessed a sunny disposition. A rarity in the world these days.

Continuing her inspection, she noted the look that Sunder shot over her shoulder and glanced over it herself to see if there was either something on her back or something behind her. She saw neither. Looking back to the dog, the woman arched a brow in question, but simply shook her head and brushed it off. "Are you warm now or still cold?" The question was posed. If he was still cold. she'd slide beneath the furs with him to share her own body heat. If he was warm enough, she would stoke the fire and settle down nearby.

Surely he was hungry though. Fetching some dried oxen meat from her pack, she placed a strip before the hairless pup. She also took a small strip for herself, because why not? If she was going to care for him, they might as well eat together too, right? Right.

Funny how with just a little time Sunder had all but forgotten how cold he'd been until very recently. Presently he was warm and cozy, and had an intriguing local taking care of him. Once the chill had left him he'd been able to focus on his current situation and how curious it was, and though he was still unwell his nature curiosity was no longer being suppressed by his circumstances. In a nutshell he felt safe enough to allow himself to be himself. Perhaps it was premature but he already trusted this woman and she seemed like she was going to make sure he was okay so why not take the opportunity to soak the scene in? Everything was new and different and yes, bizarre. He wanted to commit everything that was happening to memory so when he got home he could tell his story with confidence.

The lovely lady Iolaire asked him a question and after a moment of puzzling Sunder answered confidently, "Goo'dn warm." Though she'd worded the question strangely she'd definitely pitted the word 'warm' against the word 'cold' so he was certain she was asking him how he was doing. And considering how poorly he had been doing these last couple of weeks Sunder was finding this whole Iolaire, hoofed companion n' fireside situation to be downright heavenly.

He lit up when she gave him the dried meat. It was official; this woman was a miracle worker. Grinning broadly he dropped his head into an exuberant bow twice while enthusing, "Ah, tank ya, sissa Io, tank ya!" Sunder torn into the meat hungrily. It was unlike anything he'd ever eaten before and it tasted amazing, and that wasn't just his hunger talking. "Dat broke da mout," he said approvingly once he was done.

Good and warm, he stated. Io was glad. Her next step would have been to give him mead which would warm him from the inside. It wasn't good for healing, however. The dog ate the offered food with relish and his compliment brought a grin to the small wolf's features. He thanked her and Iolaire nodded. "You're quite welcome."

Night was claiming the land and the fire would soon be their only source of light. Ila had returned, her antlers holding a stack of crumbling wood from the land outside. The caribou placed the wood nearby and then went off on her way again. Io fed the fire with a bit of the wood and it ate hungrily, the flames growing brighter with the action.

Since they were so close to the sea, a chill wind blew in off of it. A little shudder went through the woman. She was small and thin and the breeze seemed as though it had bitten her. Without asking, the dam slid her small form inside the giant fur where Sunder was resting. She curled up next to him, glad of both the shared warmth and the joy of not having to sleep in the sand. "Should be okay by morning." Again, she spoke somewhat slowly so that his waterlogged ears might hear and understand.

He was warm and he had a full belly so the sudden downward drag on his eyelids wasn't entirely unexpected. Sunder'd had quite the ordeal and it was catching up to him. He didn't know how to properly thank Iolaire. More than anything else he was so overwhelmingly grateful for what she'd done, but the more tired he became the less able he felt in doing her thanks justice. He was losing focus and with it the ability to properly articulate his thoughts. Not that their ability to communicate with each other was stellar to begin with.

Sunder's eyes had drifted to sleepy slits when Iolaire slipped into the furs with him. Instantly he was wide awake and very aware of her presence. His skin prickled where her fur brushed it as she settled down. He tried his best to settle after she laid down but he was hyper aware of how close she was. Though she had been this close before, this time he wasn't half-drowned and had the presence of mind to be aware of the finer details of the situation. Iolaire was very different than the women he was used to being around, but thick, colorful or not, her scent was unmistakably feminine. Curling up with her was, to say the least, very nice.

He took a deep breath and willed himself to relax. Somehow this worked. "Should be okay by morning." Sunder got the gist of what she was saying. It was time to sleep, yeah? Perfectly fine with him; he would offer no protests. The dog was exhausted. "Ah ya," he said tiredly. "Gu'nigh, Io..."

-exit Sunny via sleep?-

Sunder seemed a little surprised that she would come so close to him and Iolaire raised a brow. What sort of pack did he come from? Casual touching was just something that the tiny fae had grown up doing. It never crossed her mind that it might make someone uncomfortable. Others had always done the same with her. Thankfully, the hairless pup settled and began to drift off to sleep. Curling up in a ball beneath the giant fur, Iolaire soon did the same. Sunder's soft, sleepy voice drifted to her and Io grinned. "Sweet sleep, Sunder," she replied in turn.

It didn't take Iolaire long to fall asleep. She always slept well when curled up near another body. Less to worry about when there was more than one of you. The heat of the fire, the warmth of the furs and the comfort of Sunder curled up beside her brought on deep, restful sleep. Something that the healer desperately needed.

-Exit-