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 Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2015 11:08 pm
 So long in the temperate zones, and A'ka was beginning to feel smothered. Childhood memories were slipping through his fingers like rainwater, and more and more he felt like he was being closed in. Winter came, a cold, icy season that he had only ever heard of, never actually experienced, and covered the land in thick snowdrifts that almost burned to the touch. He'd been living in such lands for five winters now--five whole winters!--and each one he'd spent curled up in a ball, almost unable to move but for shivering, shivering, shivering, quaking like a great earthquake, unable to stop himself. He felt miserable, and he got sick--he'd only just recently gotten over a cough, and that had been part of his decision. And, admittedly, it had been the reason why he had put it off for so long, until the mild but excruciatingly dry summer of that wretched land was upon them.
The other reasons had been...various. They called it a "concrete jungle," but it was no jungle by any stretch of the imagination. It was made of glass and steel and concrete, all hard, angled substances. They were as cold as ice in winter and as hot as fire in summer. And there was hardly any life--mere blades of grass, that puffy yellow flower known as a dandelion, maybe a tree here and there, and all of the sounds were artificial, and...well, to put it succinctly: A'ka was born and raised in a jungle. But circumstance had forced him to move into a city, and he hated--hated--hated cities. The cities of his homeland, those he'd loved, but these "modern" ones, oh, how he hated them. He was desperately, almost literally, homesick, and this last, harsh winter had cemented it for him: he needed to go home. Not to his actual home--that was a death sentence, and besides, he was forbidden to go there--but to somewhere else warm and tropical and full of trees, where it rained every day, or practically every day, and he could breathe in warm, moist air and let it take his thoughts to a happier, sunnier place.
He left his crown behind in his burrow, but he kept his armband. He also left behind Astra, and that was...complicated for him. Astra was nice. She was very nice! He liked her! And he wasn't leaving her forever. Just...for a week or two, while he reconnected with the tropics. He'd come back to her after this little vacation. He left a note behind, too, with the barista at her favorite cafe. She was nice. He didn't want her to get worried.
The other thing he'd had to leave behind was his fear of flying. He didn't like flying. He'd never liked flying, and he'd only reluctantly tried a bit of it. This would be his first journey by air--he'd decided to visit an island, and the last thing he wanted was an expensive boat ride or worse, an airplane ride. His inexperience with flying cost him, though, and it was already a week and a half before he finally landed in a clearing in the forest there.
For the first time in five years, he felt like he was...home. He looked up at the bright light filtering through the leaves and listened to the sound of birds in the distance.
He started to weep.
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2015 4:01 pm
 About twenty feet off the ground Caribbean Sunrise (known largely are Carib or Car, to avoid the six syllable mouthful that was his whole name) lounged in a hammock strung between two palm trees, the perfect picture of laziness. He had picked a lovely spot, close enough to the ocean that he could smell the tang of salt water mixed with the floral greenness of the forest, yet far enough in the forest that there was no tourist would stumble upon him with their prying, overeager curiosity or shrill packs of children. The trees and undergrowth were thick but hardly a challenge to travel through, yet just sparse enough that wide beams of sunlight shone through the foliage, heating the ground and releasing humidity and the rich scent of the tropics in the air. He had angled his hammock just so, so that he got just the right amount of shade and sunlight. He could probably have taken a picture and sold it to be stuck on a travel brochure for tourists.
Lean body stretched out across the woven cords, limp with relaxation and lit up here and there with bits of sunlight, Carib reflected that it had been worth the effort to put his hammock so high up. The air flow was much better, there were less insects, and he didn't want to worry about any animals roaming around on the ground beneath him. Of course most of the dangerous wildlife lurked in the waters that surrounded the island, but there were still a few here and there than trundled about on land.
He'd been up quite late last night, well until the sun had colored the eastern horizon with creamy pinks and pale blue and orange. He smiled to himself, and mentally resolved to return to that club again some time in the future. Especially if that handsome bartender was working! Carib snuggled into a more comfortable position and adjusted his pillow, letting his eyes drift shut so he could take a much needed nap.
A soft sound, foreign to the natural noises of the forest, intruded on his semi-conscious mind. Carib frowned and tried to ignore it, grasping for the soothing darkness of sleep, but the sound was insistent. It was like wind, an air sound, but short and choppy, like unsteady breaths. Little rustlings too, like something big was moving nearby. An animal? Well it was possible. Maybe a herd of deer was in that little nearby clearing, and some had wandered this way to snuffle about for delicacies hidden on the ground. He was high in the trees and unmoving, so they wouldn't know he was here and thus avoid him. The more he thought about it the more convinced it was something of that nature, though it didn't ease the irritation he felt at having his nap interrupted.
"Do you mind," he asked in a loud, carrying voice that would hopefully startle off the pesky wildlife. "Some of us are trying to nap here."
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2015 8:23 pm
Another's voice interrupted his happy sorrow, and it took him longer than usual to identify the meaning of the words. When he realized they had been delivered in the harsh language common to this world, he felt the illusion crash in on him. He was not home. He was on an island, far away from home, surrounded by brine and wealthy mainlanders on vacation, and somewhere nearby there was a noodle telling him to be quiet. Of all the--how dare he? How dare he intrude on A'ka like that, rudely rip him from the first bit of comfort he'd had in a long time, puncture his homesickness and be so, so...so rude to him?!
Resolve replaced regret and A'ka pushed himself to his feet. He looked around; there was no one standing there, but the voice had come from above. Someone up in the trees--climbing them? It did not appear so. But there was a hammock up there. For one wild moment, A'ka considered an angry, huffy flight up to the hammock to spill the rude...person...out of his hammock, but common sense--and his wings--disagreed. Common sense dictated that this would be even ruder, and his wings were too exhausted from a week and a half of ungainly flight to allow such flagrant abuse.
Besides, there was a better way to deal with it--one that appealed to his reawakened sense of self. On cat-like paws, the panther slunk and slithered over to the stranger's tree and, with wings held tight in and tail twitching, be began to climb it, claws out and gripping into the bark. As he climbed, he scented the air--his foe had no wings. Good. He would have no way to fly away from his retribution. And he smelled of ethanol in the recent past. Drunk would be even easier to fight.
He said not a word as he reached the level of the hammock, but merely glanced over the edge, ears twitching and red eyes glaring.
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2015 9:07 pm
Carib hadn't waited to see what effect his words would have before he leaned back with a small sigh. He was more focused on resuming a comfortable position, ignoring the little nagging in his brain that told him something wasn't quite right. He dismissed that feeling as the result of irritation and not enough sleep. He made sure to drink plenty of water when he first got home to counter the dehydrating effects of the alcohol he'd consumed. He hadn't eaten anything, but since he'd grazed on appetizers all night he wasn't really hungry anyway. No, sleep was what his body wanted now. Perhaps it would have been more prudent to remain in his apartment, but Carib loved the sun and had a cat-like tendency to fall asleep in whatever patch of it he could find.
Finally comfortable again, Carib closed his eyes and tried to smooth the frown from his features, focusing on relaxing his muscles. The forest was silent again, except for the rustle of wind and chatter of birds. Silent...
Carib's ocean-colored eyes drifted open again and he frowned lightly, the little nagging feeling in his brain finally resolving into what was bothering him. It had been silent. He hadn't heard any crashing through undergrowth or stomping of feet like one would expect from an animal startled into fleeing. Yet the sounds had clearly stopped. Could he have been wrong, and it was just the wind after all. He didn't think so, and now it was annoying him.
With a disgruntled sigh Carib pushed his pillow away and turned his face to look at the forest floor beneath his hammock, wondering if he could spot an explanation. Clearly his mind wasn't going to let him sleep in peace until he had something plausible to present. Why did a nap have to be so much work?
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2015 9:27 pm
The stranger had clearly not heard the tiny scratching sounds of claws digging into bark, nor the soft sound of pieces of that bark falling to hit the sparse undergrowth below. That was sloppy. A'ka was a hunter first and foremost, and only a fool would not have heard such an obvious sound of an approaching predator. Clearly the one in the hammock was a fool, entirely and utterly. He slept while danger was clearly creeping up on him! He knew that islands were full of naive creatures who never understood danger, but surely they were not that naive!
Well, this one clearly was. A'ka watched the brilliantly-colored noodle roll over to glare at the forest floor--on the opposite side of the hammock from the bright eyed jungle cat. He was lucky that A'ka was not truly hunting him--just watching him, waiting for his next move. Waiting for him to turn around. While he came to the realization that what he sought was staring at the back of his head, A'ka had time to assess the stranger. He was what those back at his...new home...called a "normal" noodle--plain, with no horns, no wings, and an ordinary-sized tail. By which they meant entirely too thick, as if their creator had not known when to stop. Tails were even getting thicker lately--this one was comparatively small by those standards!
This one was as bright as a macaw, with a sunny patch on his back and tasteful white swirls and spots along his body. He was...presentable. Very much so. And it was only slowly, with instincts unknown, that A'ka brought attention to himself by lightly touching his paw against the back of the well-looking stranger's head.
Moments like this, A'ka was very keenly aware of his body. His...relationship with Asta had forced him to take better care of his wings, though a flight over the ocean had ruined what grooming they had attained, now appearing unsightly tousled. His eyes were redder than usual from tears--an even more unseemly way to look. He assumed a calm, blank expression on his face and waited for the rude but brightly-colored stranger to turn around.
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2015 9:54 pm
While Carib's instincts had to war with his desire for a nap in order to make themselves heard, his reactions suffered no such handicap. He knew there was someone behind him before they even touched him. Even with the sunlight hitting his hammock being patchy, it was still plenty to create a shadow and he happened to be looking down at it right as he saw the new shape loom over him and felt a coolness that came with blocked sunlight.
His muscles tensed and bunched, but he could not whirl around face enough to face the interloper in time to save him a poke to the back of his head. "The hell-!," came the startled statement bursting from his lips. His movements weren't as quick as he would have liked them to be, but unless he wanted to fall twenty feet and hope he hit something cushy it was better to keep his movements deliberate over speedy.
When Carib got his body positioned in a less prone posture he found himself scowling into a pair of eyes so crimson they could put to shame the hibiscus flowers that were found all over the island. He blinked, and more of the stranger's body came into resolve. He had dark fur spotted with gold, and blended with the shadows quite nicely. Carib wasn't sure if the stranger was huge, or if that was just his impression from all the bits and pieces he could see. He was quite a handsome stranger, with the startlingly bright eyes and equally, if not more so against the darkness of his fur, startling bits of color on his back. To have made it so silently up the tree just confirmed that he was likely in amazing condition.
But Carib was tired and startled and in no mood to let a handsome face charm him out of his sulks. "What is your problem? And if you say "You're it" I swear I'm pushing you out of that tree." Not his most coherent complaint, but his wits were still catching up to his pounding heart.
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2015 10:18 pm
The stranger's movements were not quick, but they were careful--prudent for a wingless noodle twenty feet above the ground. He seemed very angry as he shouted at A'ka, but A'ka was still too busy assessing him to be startled or angry in return. If anything, the stranger's belly reinforced the illusion, although it did make him look like a peculiarly lethargic hummingbird. A'ka could not help but smile at the mental image that provoked--a fat, lazy bird no bigger than a pawpad dozing on a branch, screaming insults at a hunting panther. It was too amusing an image to resist the smile.
Smiling felt good. It had been a long time since he'd been able to have a smile without regret in it. The sun was shining. The air around him smelled green and moist, and the birds in the distance had the gay voices of tropic birds. His smile began to turn into a laugh and his twitching tail, at long last, stilled. "I! I do not know what you mean by being it. I do not think you are it. I merely came up here to say that I thought it was rude of you to yell at me.
"But now that I am up here, I don't think I am angry at you anymore." He felt a twitching at his shoulders that he quickly stilled. For one thing, it made them ache even more. But keeping close against his back was a battle his wings could no longer fight, and limply they tumbled over his shoulders. A'ka staunchly ignored them. As long as they weren't still complaining at him, he was quite content to ignore his wings. Let them fall and fumble. He had claws, and he had legs, and they could carry him up into the treetops! "I am having too much fun and enjoyable-ness to be angry at anyone right now." He pulled himself up, allowing his claws to make new holds on the bark, up and up the tree until he was above the other noodle. His tail twitched in the hummingbird-fox's face.
"Thank you," he added. "For being so rude."jinxgirl5 Well, that went somewhere I didn't expect. O.o
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2015 10:39 pm
Carib watched the male through narrowed eyes as first he smiled, then laughed, then gave an explanation. He didn't interrupt the stranger, though he did snort at one point when he mentioned something about being rude and yelling. One mystery solved. He continued to watch the male as he climbed further into the tree. It hurt his neck to keep watching the other, so he gave up and flopped (carefully) back into his hammock. He wasn't careless; the other showed no signs of hostility that he could tell, but he knew some personalities could turn moods on a dime. He made sure his limbs were positioned so that he could move quickly even in the hammock if he had to defend himself.
"That's creepy, you know," Carib said in conversational tones, as if it were perfectly normal for stranger to come crawling up trees to bother others. "You know who climbs up trees to poke at perfect strangers to tell them off for their manners? Stalkers. Or serial killers, or just crazy people." He tilted his head, peering at the male. "I've never seen you before, so if you're a stalker you must be a really good one. You don't act like a serial killer either, so that just leaves crazy. But crazy people don't know they're crazy," he added with a theatrical sigh, "so I guess it does me no good to point it out to you."
Carib twisted his face into a suffering expression, like one who has been heaped with many responsibilities, then gave a shrug that was every bit as theatrical as his sigh and actually smirked a little at the male above him. "And no need to thank me for rudeness. It's my specialty. Though I prefer to call it speaking my mind. As for being "it"," he added, "that's a game. The person who is "it" runs around chasing others, until they catch someone. The person they catch is then "it". The game is played mostly by children, but adults have been known to indulge in a game of tag from time to time." He lazily swatted at the tail being dangled in front of him, not at all offended, and lightly grazed the tip of it with his paw. "There, now you're it."Geyser Eelborn Well wherever it came from, it make me cackle XD
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2015 10:52 pm
Above the fronds, the sun was bright and warm, and poking his head carefully through them, he could see the brilliant sky above, marked by clouds in the distance. The pali rose above them, verdant and lush, reaching towards the sky. Sunrise was past, but he could wait until sunset to see the island bathed in fiery glow. The only thing to mar the moment was the sound of civilization in the distance--cars at some resort beach, their sounds--and their fumes--carried on the breeze, and the slick serpent of asphalt stretching in the distance towards the dark cliffs. No matter where he went, this world put its mark upon it.
He pulled his head down, receded a few inches, and considered the hummingbird's words. "A skilled stalker should never be seen until it is too late--or preferably not at all. I am a very good hunter. You would not have seen me if I had not 'booped' you in the head, I think." He continued to climb down until he was back at face level with the other noodle. "So yes, I am a stalker. I did not stalk you until you took attention for yourself, though, so if that is your fear..." He couldn't hold back the chuckle that bubbled up his throat. "You must be native to this island, or you would know that already, though. Do not fear--you are not my prey. Anymore, at least." That big, red belly was tempting him to, though. It was just such a nice target. He wanted to flop on top of it, and that was strange--for he had never had such a desire before.
It must have been the journey, and being tired, and the new environment. He was out of sorts, he told himself. Things were just crazy. "I see. Now that I am it, I chase you around and around and around until I catch you, and then you are it?" He tilted his head. "In my youth, you were also allowed to climb a tree to drop on them. Chasing was not very encouraged in such places. And none of us would run when we could jump." To demonstrate, he pushed himself from the tree he was currently on to the tree across the way, the one that held the other end of the hummingbird's hammock. He climbed back above the hammock and leaped back to the original tree. He was clumsy at clinging to them, he had to admit--it had been a very long time since he had done such a trick. But it felt good to do it again. Even if his thumping wings were distracting him.
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2015 11:14 pm
"That's why I'm up here. The only predators native to this island that can climb are of no significant danger to me," Carib explained. "Even the invasive species aren't troubling, as long as you're high up." He eyed the leaping stranger, noting the cat-like grace even if he did fumble. Well it was hard to climb palm trees, which had no branches to offer support. He frowned a little as his hammock bounced from the vibrations of the movement. "I suppose if I had known there was a giant bird-cat out here though, I'd have revised my opinion and tried for a nap closed to the beach."
He sighed softly. "Of course then I have to deal with sand and the possibility that a noisy family and their shrieking brats find me. If I don't get my beauty rest I might miss out on finding something cute to hook up with later tonight." He gave a short laugh. "Ah such is life. I suppose I will just have to up my charm then." He spared a brief moment of regret that he hadn't put a bit more effort into finding a partner last night, but no one had really tempted him. Perhaps he should try a bar tonight instead of a club. There was a nice beach-side one that had gotten great reviews.
He shifted into a different position, stretching a little. "So, oh stalking bird-cat, what brings you to these parts? I assume it wasn't solely to stalk me."
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Posted: Thu May 07, 2015 12:12 pm
That made sense--these trees were difficult to climb, and most of the local fauna lived on the ground. Few if any predators would bother to climb into the trees. Perhaps the hummingbird was smarter than he had before thought. He had assumed that the tree-side retreat had been...what? Catching a breeze? Bathing in sunlight? Why had he assumed that the reason for the hammock had been idolatrous instead of pragmatic? Inwardly, A'ka frowned. He had miscalculated the stranger, and now it bothered him that he had. It was a strange feeling, but not an unknown one. He'd been experiencing it for far too long now.
"I underestimated you," he admitted softly. "I had assumed that your bed was chosen for comfort. Now I see that it is practical--assuming that such as I were not prowling the jungle below." He made a sound of disapproval--tch!--at the thought of lounging on the beach. "The beach would have been a poor choice. Too many screams and hulla' balu. Besides," he added, emboldened by the hummingbird's playfulness, "someone might have jumped on your stomach."
He had heard the phrase "beauty sleep" before, but he'd never fully understood it. Sleep made a person un-beautiful, mussed up. He decided not to ask, though--the sort of people who talked about it tended to get upset when it was disturbed. "I shall leave you to your sleep then, Hummingbird. We would not wish the ladies to be uncharmed this eve." With that, he prepared to climb down to the ground.
He didn't bother to answer that question. Why he was here. It really wasn't any of the hummingbird's business to know, and besides...it was too painful. A'ka didn't like talking about his past. It changed things. He hadn't even told Asta about it, and Asta was...someone special to him. He wasn't going to tell the hummingbird. It didn't matter, after all.
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Posted: Thu May 07, 2015 12:46 pm
Carib swung silently in his hammock. It wasn't worth mentioning that there was no way in hell he would have chosen to nap somewhere with brats loud and boisterous enough to jump on a stranger's stomach; he had far more common sense than that! He also decided not to correct the stranger's assumption that ladies were all he charmed. In fact, ladies made up a small percentage of his conquests. It wasn't really anything against them, but when they felt like they were slighted some had the capacity to go to extremes. Far too emotional and clingy were most women by far, at least for his tastes. He idly wondered if the stranger might agree. He had looks and an air of mystery that probably lured females in by the droves.
Carib also scented a mystery. The stranger hadn't at all been shy or reticent so far, and that Carib's inquiries as to the motives of the stranger were being ignored indicated he'd hit on something. Maybe a secret, maybe a touchy spot. It was worth keeping in mind, or at least an attempt to do so. There were a great many people in his life he had met all but once, after all.
"Oh, there's no real point now. Once beauty sleep is interrupted it's not that easy to reclaim," Carib responded, following with another artful sigh. "Besides, even if I tried to sleep now you'd be on my mind, for one reason or another. No telling what a big cat like you would do to a little bird like me." He kept his tone carefully neutral, curious to see what, if any, conclusions the stranger might draw from those words, but he couldn't help adding a sly wink.
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Posted: Mon May 11, 2015 11:26 pm
"If it is easy to reclaim, then it was not worth the hunt in the first place," A'ka replied with an easy shrug of his leg-shoulders. "That which is worthwhile is difficult to obtain--good food, dry shelter, all follow this." He had intended to climb down now, find a sunny spot somewhere, and...rest. He might, earlier, have tried to continue his lament, but he found now that his heart was not quite in it. It was an uncomfortable realization, for it implied that it had ever been his intent to wallow in self-pity, rather than mourn traditions that would never be again in his lifetime. Now that he had talked to the stranger--and remembered how to tease, and to jump, and to smile--he found himself in too good a mood to sulk.
The pain of his lost people had not gone away. It was still there, but...pushed gently to one side. The hummingbird's playfulness froze his legs in place, keeping him from completing his climb down the tree. It was not the only thing that froze him in place, however.
His cheeks burned, his face burned, his heart burned. He caught himself turning his head to one side, but too late to prevent the motion. Guiltily, he turned his face back towards the stranger. "Nothing to earn such a wink," he mumbled. He had wanted to put defiance into it, but...
...Well, he found he couldn't. His sister's words rang once more in his ears, and that curse, damned and damning, sapped his strength. The...ugh. The hummingbird was...pleasing to the eye. And his behavior was, he now realized, obviously flirtatious. He had been...flirting for a long time. Flirting was natural, the pursuit of a male--and A'ka had not been on its receiving end very often. He did not know how to react. He did not know how to react to that sort of, of invitation, and brazen it was, too!
"I should get going," he mumbled, but he could barely move his limbs to climb down.jinxgirl5 I will reply when I get back from camping next Sunday. <3
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Posted: Wed May 13, 2015 11:14 pm
Carib chuckled deep in his throat. For all the size and strength the stranger had on him, it seemed quite easy to spook him. Well, some people just weren't natural flirts, though he'd picked up on it quickly enough! Carib was quite good at flirting, part of quirk that made him love to tease people, and found it highly amusing to see what kinds of reactions he could get. The winged cat's reactions were quite delightful. If Carib were to hazard a guess he'd say the stranger had leanings towards his own sex; the flustered blush, the half-hearted protest, and the general air of uncertainty that hung around him. But such reactions weren't enough for him to feel certain about his guess. Sure, Tall-Dark-and-Handsome hadn't shown signs of revulsion, but Carib knew a few straight fellows who could and would flirt with other men in playful jest; knew even more men than that who had no problem with gay or bi men but didn't have a clue how to react when flirted with.
In short, he'd need more information before he could decide if he wanted to do more than flirt. Not that flirting wasn't fun in and of itself!
"I suppose if you must, since there's no way for me to otherwise keep you," Carib said, indulging in a slow, luxurious stretch before meeting the cat's eyes again. "It doesn't seem like you have anything pressing that needed doing though, and while you don't reek of tourism you don't sound like you're from here either. Since my rest is to be had another day, I could always give you a brief tour of the island. I know all of the best spots if you're looking to mingle and plenty of places with some privacy.
As for the wink..." Carib's voice trailed off suggestively, then he gave another of his throaty chuckles. "Well, there's plenty of ways to earn those. If you've ever frequented a night club you'd probably know. If you haven't, you should give it a try." He met the cat's bright red gaze as best he could when the other wasn't favoring him with direct eye contact, the hint of a suggestive smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "You might find you thoroughly enjoy it."
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Posted: Mon May 18, 2015 7:30 pm
And he was further pinned in place by that luxurious, practically sinful stretching. So wonderful, so tropical, so delightful, so...well, he should not be thinking about that sort of thing. Not with another male. He could not give him the satisfaction--it would be against every tradition of his tribe. As the last one, it was up to him to maintain the proper traditions, to act in a way deemed right and moral by his people. And that meant that he had to get as far as possible away from...temptation. Away from people like this hummingbird, who was clearly trying to lead him astray, with his bright red belly and his stretching and his winks, and his low, sultry voice, throaty and warm and melting.
But as much as he wanted to get away, yes, he wanted to get away, it was the right thing to do by his people, his elders, his family, his societal betters, he...could not. After all...he was a stranger to this land, was he not? And. He had to...explore this place. He was here on vacation, after all, and he knew nothing about it. He was a stranger to this island. He did not know the people, the private places, the public places...
"I would...like to be shown around. If it were not inconvenient to you." Then, feeling like he needed to show that he was all serious, all business, all straight, he added, "I was not aware that hunting could trigger a wink, Hummingbird."
Nightclubs--he'd heard of those in and around "the Shop" area. He only knew vaguely what they were. "Nightclubs are a place for dancing, I thought to believe? Where warriors throw out those improperly attired and too intoxicated for clean dancing?" He shook his head. "I do not dance. I do not think I would enjoy such a place."
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So long in the temperate zones, and A'ka was beginning to feel smothered. Childhood memories were slipping through his fingers like rainwater, and more and more he felt like he was being closed in. Winter came, a cold, icy season that he had only ever heard of, never actually experienced, and covered the land in thick snowdrifts that almost burned to the touch. He'd been living in such lands for five winters now--five whole winters!--and each one he'd spent curled up in a ball, almost unable to move but for shivering, shivering, shivering, quaking like a great earthquake, unable to stop himself. He felt miserable, and he got sick--he'd only just recently gotten over a cough, and that had been part of his decision. And, admittedly, it had been the reason why he had put it off for so long, until the mild but excruciatingly dry summer of that wretched land was upon them.
