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Cold Dark Night; Warm Cozy Mount

The frigid breeze of the northern frontier whipped at Var'Rex's hair with the strength needed to peel back his hood and expose his ears. This could have bothered the canine-cervine hybrid as the bite of the frozen air felt like daggers in his flesh, but he had lived his entire life in this region and he had long since grown to adapt to the surroundings; he wasn't the type to whine or complain about a cold breeze and some idle snowflakes. Since he was trudging with his mount across an open field with hills and trees on every side, he knew that pulling his hood back up would be a waste of time as the wind would peel it back again and again. Better to just deal with it.

He gave a gentle pat to his mount - a felkin he called Mjingar - from on the saddle, letting him know that it wasn't yet time to turn and go back to the village. They were on a quest to hunt and trap some game both for furs and for meat, and they wouldn't go back until they had made it past the pass, where they would be setting some traps. This was a region that they hadn't gone to often, so they weren't entirely familiar with the landscape but that didn't stop them from pushing forward.

Mjingar turned to look back at his rider with maw agape and tongue hanging out as his feet slid through the soft, knee-deep snow with ease, the felkin seemingly built and prepared for the coldest of weather. Despite not wearing boots of any kind, he was not affected by the snow and wind, as his fur layer was thick and warm enough to keep him insulated. This made him the perfect travel companion to Var'Rex, as it meant that his mount had the resilience and perseverance to keep up with him. It also helped that they had grown immeasurably close over the years and were a close-knit team of hunters.

Var'Rex reached into his side pouch and pulled out a bit of cold jerky to chew on. It was the only food they could keep while out on the hunts, as any vegetables or fruits would have long since frozen or have gone rotten from the summer season. Basically, the winter's sustenance consisted of breads, meats, and soups, with jerky being the best for long trips out of town due to how well it was cured and spiced in addition to how long it would last before going bad. Deer jerky tasted delicious, even though he was part deer himself and it made him feel almost cannibalistic; of course, there was a difference between feral deer and sentient deer, not to mention the wolf blood in him that drove him to eat meat.

"So, good season for fur trapping, isn't it?" He asked his mount in between bites of jerky, notebook in hand to check the map. Mjingar nodded and flicked his ear, clearly understanding what Var'Rex had to say. "Yeah, it's been quite the season, but lots of snow this year. I wonder if Chief Storm will promote me to leader of the Fur Trappers Guild. If I was in charge of that group, we'd catch twice the game we do now and we could actually use the coon meat instead of wasting it!"

There had been a bit of a power struggle in his village concerning the use and volume of furs and meat captured. The current leader of the Trappers Guild felt that the meat of rodents and raccoons was not worth the time taken to kill and skin them, so the meat went to waste while the furs were coveted. This went against everything that the natives of the region believed in, and was completely illogical given the harsh nature of the northern winters. Var'Rex theorized that the current leader only wasted the meat as an insult to the natives, since he was known to be hateful towards the native deer of the north. Var'Rex was part deer, so he not only represented the bond between their cultures but showed how both the deer and wolf kind had valuable things to add to the land.

Var'Rex wanted to be in a higher position of power to better bring both his parent cultures together, and to ensure that nothing went to waste. This was important, especially in the northern winters that could take the life from anyone if they were not careful. The northern winds could suck the life out of anyone who didn't respect the land, and one of the most disrespectful things that Var'Rex could think would be to kill and not make use of every scrap of meat and bone and pelt. This angered him, but he was not the type to let his emotions get the better of him. Instead he let frustration be fuel.

They came close to the edge of the field, near a thick bush that would lead up into the twin mountains and the pass that would take them to the other side. "So do you think we'll find anything of value today? Maybe a huge buck or a meaty rabbit!" He said as he pulled his hood back over his head, covering his ears and protecting them from the clawing branches of the trees. He knew that once they passed the tree line the wind wouldn't be quite as strong and it wouldn't be futile to keep his hood up.

Mjingar's ears perked up as he glanced around, eyes wide and nostrils flared to take in as much information as he could. It was clear he sensed something, and that meant that Var'Rex needed to listen. He panted openly and smiled, raising his eyebrows back towards the field behind them, showing the versatility of his facial expression.

"Where is it, point in the direction of our target." Var'Rex whispered as he lowered his body to his mount's back, carefully pulling out his Musket rifle from the saddlebags under his leg. Mjingar immediately turned his head with authority to point towards a huge buck atop one of the small hills in the field. Must have been following them as a scout for the herd or a protective father. Still, he was massive and the meat on his bones and the pelt on his back would be doubly valuable given the light spotted pattern that adorned him. As such, Var'Rex hopped off his mount and landed heavy in the snow that went up almost to his knees, keeping his body low to the ground with his rifle in hand. "Hide yourself, Mjingar. If the buck sees you or perceives you as a threat, it will bolt."

His mount did as commanded after leaning in from behind to lick and nuzzle at Var'Rex's shoulder and neck, understanding exactly what Var'Rex had told him. He lowered his chest to the ground just above the snow and crept into the bare, jagged forest to hide behind a patch of coniferous trees that still held their needles. Only the tip of his tail could be seen poking out for Var'Rex to see when he came back. He was useless in hunting deer and small game and he knew it, but he was incredibly valuable if a bear attacked or if a lone ulokar beast was seen trekking across the open plains. A gun would not take either of those down unless a bullet was perfectly aimed at their head, a shot that was near impossible to hit on an angry beast barrelling towards the hunter.

"Alright, time to get me some game. I'm hungry and could use some meat to fill my belly." Said Var'Rex as he peeled his hood back to once again expose his ears. Though the bite of the cold proved to be quite unpleasant for him, the added benefit of his hybrid ears ensured he could hear the sound of any other deer in the region if they were close enough, and kept him alert to protect himself from attack. At this point, all he could hear was the light howl of the wind and the occasional snapping of twigs as his mount found comfort nuzzled under the lowest branches of the nearby trees.

All the while, the buck remained standing tall atop the hill just over one hundred meters away, staring him down as if he was daring Var'Rex to make a move. A light blanket of snow could be seen on his back as the wind kept blowing it between them.

He raised his musket rifle to aim while kneeling in the snow, keeping it at eye level as he lined up his shot and pulled back the hammer, breaths slowing pace in order to keep him stable and sturdy. In order to get the most out of the pelt, he would have to land a hit on the neck or head; if he hit the flank it would put a gaping, bloody hole right in the middle of what would have made a great blanket or shirt. Such a hard shot would be difficult at such a range, but with patience and dedication he knew he could hit his target as long as the wind kept steady and he was able to keep himself calm. A shiver or wheeze would ruin his aim, which could either lose him the target or ruin the pelt.

Of course, the weather didn't cooperate. The moment he started to pull the trigger, a sudden gust of wind picked up, blowing thick snowflakes into his face while howling in his ears, cutting off his senses from picking up anything that might help him. Not a problem as far as he was concerned, he only needed to adjust to the new wind speed and angle, and he could calculate the trajectory of his bullet. He grabbed at the hammer and returned it to place before re-cocking it while the buck remained in place, not moving from his spot on the hill looking directly at the hunter. A north frontier showdown.

Var'Rex took in a long, deep breath before slowly exhaling to keep steady, a light cloud of mist and fog billowing up from his maw as he pulled the trigger in the process. With an audible bang, the rifle fired, shooting a bullet clear across the plains to bury itself directly in the deer's neck just below the chin. The buck went to leap as the sound startled him, but fell in a heap a moment later, as the bullet must have pierced his spine and severed the nerves there. Even from afar and through the light drapery of snowfall, the ruby red spatter of blood could be seen on the snow, spurting up from the wound.

He stood up and exhaled deeply, his breath forming a cloud before him that billowed up around his ears to accent the pink and purple of the evening sky. The faintest smile pulled at his lips while the barrel of his gun was still smoking as he surveyed the land and the situation, internally figuring out how to get the carcass back home. The field was surrounded by woods and mountains on all sides, so he had no way of knowing what the weather was like for proper planning, so he called to his mount to take the next steps. "Mjingar, it's over. You can come out." A moment later, a rustling was heard as Mjingar pulled himself out from under the coniferous trees, eager to join him. The mount leapt through the snow with maw agape and tail swishing out behind him, happy as a pup. Seeing this made Var'Rex's tail wag happily as his well earned pride swelled up deep within his chest, forcing his smile to broaden.

The two of them stood tall in the open field, trudging shoulder to shoulder through the snow as Var'Rex refilled his weapon, pounding the powder and gently putting the musket rifle back where it belonged while also ensuring that the bullet remained in the barrel. This way, he was always ready for another round if game exposed itself to him. Furthermore, he was also prepared to keep hunting and keep collecting; they already possessed a few pelts that were in Mjingar's saddlebags, so they had a good haul, but that wasn't enough. Mjingar leaned around and offered a long, loving lick to Var'Rex's cheek, kissing him there before nibbling at his ears while using his eyebrows and ears to guide his rider back home after getting this buck.

At this point, they could have turned tail and went back home now that they had the target, but they had to push forth and find more pelts, bring more game home, and show their value to the chief. As such, they would pick up their kill and make their way up the hills to the pass where they could set traps for their next trip in the wilds of the great wintry north, their work never completely finished. On the opposite side of the pass, they could trap and come back the following day if they so desired, so that was their next goal, assuming the weather held.

They made it to the buck together and Mjingar flopped down onto his belly while panting with an open maw, waiting for Var'Rex to toss the carcass over his side. "Good stuff, thanks." Var'Rex approved as he grabbed the buck by the horns and slung it over his back. The air was cold enough that the blood was already starting to crystallize around the entry point of the wound, leaving only thick, cool blood to gently ooze out of the wound. To his surprise, there was no exit wound which meant that the bullet was still lodged in the creature's neck. This almost made him feel sad for the deer, as he must have felt every last beat of his heart as the blood drained from the gaping wound in his throat and neck.

But Var'Rex couldn't allow himself to feel too sorry for the buck, as the meat would feed him and his mount for days and the hide would clothe a child for the winter. He did not die in vain. While silently speaking a prayer for the recently departed, Var'Rex tossed the carcass over Mjingar's haunches before giving his ride a gentle slap to get him back up to all fours, which he did followed by shaking off of the snow.

"Alright, let's make it to the pass and we'll set some traps for rabbits and coons. We can set up camp there and make a meal of this deer after I'm done harvesting the hide." Var'Rex explained, but Mjingar cocked his head to the side in disapproval, eyes narrowing and eyes going back on his skull as he glanced back towards the village. Var'Rex had to explain. "We can't go home yet, not until morning. Dusk is upon us and we can't possibly make it back before nightfall; best to make it to the pass and set some traps, we can set up camp and leave first thing in the morning." He was being insistent.

Mjingar huffed as his eye twitched, his body repeatedly jerking and aiming his snout back to the village. It was clear he didn't approve of Var'Rex's decision to go forward, but their history together told both Mjingar and Var'Rex that there was no way that one would abandon the other. As such, Mjingar rolled his eyes and growled, kicking at the snow before getting down to his belly to allow Var'Rex to hop up on his back. He craned his neck around so that he got a good look at his rider, eyes narrowed to make his disapproval clear, topped off by a tongue-out raspberry.

The hunter bowed in respect to Mjingar. "Sorry my friend, you and I both know we can't make it back in time, this is the best option for both of us. I promise." He hopped up and grabbed the saddle, pointing towards the treeline. "Let's go, less than an hour to the pass."

Like an obedient steed, Mjingar dutifully trekked his way towards the trees at the edge of the field, head down and tail up high to ensure it didn't drag in the snow as his every step hopped just above the snow's surface. Var'Rex popped another bit of jerky in his maw to chew on while he got out his notepad to document the plan, the time of day, and the haul thus far. This kept him busy for the half hour between the beginning of the trek and the moment he realized he may have made a mistake in pressing onward and up the base of the mountain to the pass.

As the two of them made their way up the foothills of the mountain through the dense yet dead vegetation of the forest, the sky grew dark and the wind picked up to pelt them both with snow. This didn't immediately alert Var'Rex given the time of day and year, so he didn't even bother looking up until he heard the crack of thunder. Shocked, he glanced up from his note pad to look ahead of them on the path to see that a black cloud was slipping between the mountains before them with a wall of swirling snow pressing on towards them. He growled a curse under his breath as he silently started to weigh out the options for his next move, knowing he had to think fast.

He now knew why Mjingar was so eager to go in the other direction, as his felkin ears must have heard the rumblings of a storm on the other side of the mountains long before either could have seen it, and thus urged Var'Rex to turn back to the other direction. Though it was true that it was foolish to go forth, thus increasing the distance between the team of hunters and their home village, every little calculation Var'Rex worked out in his head made it clear that they were stuck no matter what they did. Had they turned tail and ran home at full speed, they still would have been caught in the oncoming snowstorm with nowhere to hide and nowhere to make shelter, which meant that there was a better chance of comfort and warmth in the pass where they could set up camp and at least survive the night.

Var'Rex was not the type to worry, he wasn't scared of his life ending and he wasn't panicking about getting caught in a blizzard. These sorts of things happened, and it was one of the many risks and pratfalls of hunting on the northern frontier; his many years of trapping in this region mixed with the hybrid parentage of his wolven father and cervine mother gave him all the tools he needed to live and prosper even in the most daunting of situations.

"Onward, Mjingar. We must make it to the pass if we are to protect ourselves from the storm." He pointed up the path, right up into the oncoming wall of blizzard that was rolling over the mountains and forest towards them. There was a moment's hesitation accented by a whimper from Mjingar, who clearly still felt that the proper course of action was to turn and try to outrun the path of the storm, but both knew they were not going to make it home or erect shelter before being swallowed by the squall.

He pulled his coat in tight against his chest and unfolded the hood to cover his head, yanking at the strings so that only his snout could be seen out the fur-lined garment. His lips were quickly growing numb as the wind picked up and pelted him with a thin layer of snow all over his chest, the sheer power of it nearly knocking him off his mount. The only option he had was to grab a hold of his mount and press his chest down to the saddle, minimizing the amount of his body exposed to the quickly increasing winds and decreasing temperatures. Things seemed to be taking a turn for the worse to the point where both rider and mount were being exposed to potentially lethal chill.

It seemed the moment he took precautions, the wall of blizzard hit them and nearly knocked them both over into the quickly rising snow banks on either side of the trail. Mere minutes had passed of resisting the winds and forcefully denying the weather its toll before they started to notice nearly a whole centimetre of snow had built up on the both of them. This was not good for Var'Rex, as the wind and cold had brought him to shiver, but Mjingar didn't seem to be bothered by it one bi. Though it was clear the mount was not happy with going forth into the mountains when he knew they should have headed back to the village, the cold and snow itself wasn't doing much to phase him aside from the deeper snow he had to trek through and the somewhat higher steps he took rather than pounce.

Another half hour of silent progress was made before they finally made it to the pass only to realize too late that they had definitely made a huge mistake, one beyond correction. The shape of the mountains didn't do anything to protect them from the wind and snow but only amplified the effects of the blizzard as its entire strength was bottle-necked between the peaks. It was this point that made Var'Rex realize that the two of them might genuinely be in trouble beyond just a chilly inconvenience or a long night of cuddling up close. In truth, he was kind of looking forward to covering himself in blankets and other garments while Mjingar partially laid on him, squishing him up against his belly.

They had done it before, but the weather was never quite this bad. A cold night could be remedied by rubbing against a felkin belly, but only when the wind wasn't too bad and there wasn't a quickly growing layer of snow blanketing the land. The blizzard complicated things.

He took a quick gander around to see if the pass itself had been previously set up for camp, hoping that previous trappers had used this region as a nice stopping point on their travels. There should have been a cave or shelter of some sort to get out of the weather, but he found nothing. Instead, he got stuck in thigh-deep snow as a strong wind nearly knocked him off balance and a blast of lightning split the sky in half followed by a crack of thunder. A slight contortion of guilt and failure started to build up in his chest as he came to realize with more and more clarity that he may have been in more trouble than he'd anticipated.

His mount stepped up to him and nuzzled gently, cradling Var'Rex's arm up on his snout as he curled his neck and pulled his rider up into a neck-snuggle. The warmth of his breath may have been powerful and comforting, but it quickly disappeared into the wind as the howling blizzard consumed it.

"Alright, Mjingar, if you could dig a hole for me real quick, I'd love to see what we can do about making a fire. There's gotta be a way to keep warm in this." Var'Rex said, patting his mount's head while clutching his coat to his chest and his hood around his head. The words came out slowly as his lips grew even more numb than before. This was the one time he deeply hoped Mjingar didn't lick him.

In response, Mjingar leaned into him and pressed his snout to Var'Rex's chest, slowly exhaling his warm breath to have the resulting steam billow up around his rider's chin. In that brief moment, Var'Rex felt the comfort and warmth of his home, his lips regaining some of their sensitivity and dexterity enough to speak clearly. Though he enjoyed the sudden burst of heat, he didn't have the mindset to realize what his mount was doing to offer warmth to him, he only saw his partner as one trying to be affectionate in the face of distress, comforting his rider.

"Thanks hun. Come on, though, let's dig and find a place to build a pit, if we carve out some space in a snow bank and create a chimney, we should be able to create a flame that doesn't melt the snow." He immediately got down and started scooping out big heaps of snow for about a minute before Mjingar reluctantly followed suit, using his huge paws to create a divot in the side of a snow bank. He looked like a young dog, pushing huge piles of snow and eventually dirt between hind legs.

Upon seeing Mjingar reach the dirt of the ground, Var'Rex darted off to a nearby tree to grab some twigs and sticks for kindling as well as a few thicker branches for the fire. There wasn't much there for him to build with, but it would be enough to create a flame that would last for at least a few hours; he had no idea how long the blizzard would last, but if he could get the fire started the rest would be easy and he could keep feeding it dried sticks and twigs overnight. He was a survival expert, he knew his strengths and weaknesses, as well as what steps would trip him up the most.

Once his job was complete, Mjingar stood tall next to the makeshift fire pit deep in the hole in the snow. He was trying his best to use his body to block some of the wind and it certainly helped, but the ferocity of the blizzard was too much even for him to resist.

"Thanks, Mjingar. That helps." Var'Rex assured his mount. After laying down the kindling and sticks in a pyramid pattern, he reached into his pocket and grabbed a few key elements such as some special kindling paper and two pieces of flint on some metal as well as a small vial of flammable fluid. He crumpled the kindling paper up between some twigs and squirted some of the fluid onto it before cupping one hand around the side of the pile and squeezing the flint device, which scraped the two halves of stone together to create sparks that were supposed to ignite the fluid, but nothing happened.

The wind roared around them through the pass as Var'Rex tried his best to light that fire, even going so far as to toss some gunpowder on the pile in desperation. Mjingar laid down curled up around the pit to form a half crescent to protect the fire from he snow, but it didn't help much thanks to the shape of the rock around them facilitating cyclones of snow coming from every angle.

Try and try he did, tossing more gas and scrunching up more kindling paper in the hopes that the flame would ignite and they could sit around the campfire. Without any caves or logs or boulders to hide behind, the wind was proving to be too much to overcome for the both of them. Had they been able to at least start the flame, the meter or so of snow that was around them would not have been a problem, and they could even cook some of the rodents they'd captured already on this trip to fill their bellies! Problem was, without that fire they had only bitter cold to comfort them and a heavy reminder of a buck's corpse that was likely going to freeze solid before they harvested its hide or meat.

After nearly half an hour of steady tries attempting all sorts of different methods to get a flame started, Var'Rex took in a deep breath and fell back into the snowbank, using it as a chair as he stared to the black clouds above them. "Well, I'm out of ideas for now, Mjingar. I suppose this is where you and I part ways. Might be time for you to head back to the village; I'll write a memo so people know what happened here between us."

His mount scooted around the outer rim of the hole they had dug to nuzzle up under his arm, warm breath still tickling at Var'Rex's chest and face. This once again comforted the hunter, but it didn't mean much beyond empty affection. That wouldn't do anything to protect them from the cold.

He gave Mjingar a gentle pet between the ears, scratching and rubbing. "Thanks buddy, but there's really not a whole lot you can do to help me. The cold is taking over, the snow isn't deep enough to carve out a cave that could protect us, there's no shelter here, and there's nowhere to go." He stood straight up and closed his eyes, breathing deeply as his heart sped up and the wind chilled him to the core. "I've lived many years on these lands, so I guess it just might be my time, unless the weather lightens up within the hour." He and his mount both stared each other down, twinkles in their eyes.

Then, without warning, Mjingar got to all fours and bit down lightly on his rider's glove, pulling it off and spitting it into the snow before sucking on the exposed paw.

"H-hey, what are you d-doing?" Var'Rex chattered with a shivering lower jaw.

Mjingar sucked a little bit harder, tugging gently and wrapping his lips around his rider's elbow with his throat squeezing and gaping against his touch. Before Var'Rex could say a word, the mount leaned in and eased his entire head forward so that his lips were wrapped around Var's shoulder, arm swallowed so deep that the gentle bulge of his fist could be seen pressing out against the fur of his throat. He looked his rider directly in the eyes and huffed, warm breath blasting into Var'Rex's face.

Var'Rex waved his fingers in his mount's throat, balling his hand up into a fist and spreading his digits out to caress the soft and hot mounds of flesh that enveloped him. Though it felt a bit awkward to be in such a position, he couldn't deny just how incredibly warm it was inside Mjingar. The comfort of said warmth made him chuckle and smile, slowly shaking his head. "Well I guess that makes sense. If I've got to go, I might as well be food for you. No sense wasting my body as a deercicle in the snow."

But Mjingar wasn't convinced, and that wasn't what he had in mind. The felkin shook his head - with Var'Rex's hand still deep in his gullet - then patted his belly. He leaned in and used his snout to prod at Var's cheek, then lifted up one of his front legs to expose his big gut.

"Yes, I know, you want to eat me. I bet I would taste good, wouldn't I? I know what deer meat is like, But yeah, I mean, I don't want my time on this world to end, but I can't imagine giving myself to anyone else." He stroked at his mount's cheek, smiling and nuzzling snouts only to have Mjingar sigh heavily and pull away, dragging his tongue along Var'Rex's arm before spitting him out.

Thus began an interesting pantomime between the two. Var'Rex knew that Mjingar was intelligent but lacked the ability to speak in the traditional sense, so every action and every intention was masked as cute animal behaviour. However, given the fact that the howling winds and cold were starting to take over and Var'Rex's mind was turning into a block of ice, he seemed a bit more open to the idea of his mount trying to tell him something important.

Mjingar glanced around and huffed deeply, stepping lightly in the snow towards the bottleneck of the pass. He opened his maw wide and bit down on nothing, pretending to gulp up whatever it was. He raised his head, bobbed his neck, and belched before patting his belly that seemed to be pushed out to look as big as he could make it. He then trotted past Var'Rex down the incline of the base of the hills, then paused and wagged his tail, much the same way he did when he first saw Var'Rex in the morning, There, at the edge of the tree line, he belched again and made it look like he was spitting up something followed by his gut shrinking and him getting in pounce position.

The pantomime wasn't clear enough, but Var'Rex pretended like it was. "Yeah, makes sense. I guess you'd...go back to the village without me?" He shrugged and shivered, the slime on his exposed paw starting to crystallize again, cold of the blizzard proving to be quite intense.

Again, Mjingar shook his head and sighed heavily, tongue lolling out and thick plumes of steam billowing up off it as well as out the corners of his maw. This time, he came up, slurped up Var's arm again to the shoulder, and then tugged gently like a dog with a length of rope.

Var'Rex went along with him, trudging through the snow while enjoying the warmth of the inside of his mount up until they once again made it to the treeline. There, Mjingar spat him out and sat back on his haunches with mouth agape and tail swishing under the snow, proud of what he'd done. Still, Var didn't quite get it. "Look, I'm sorry bud, but I don't understand what it is you're trying to tell me. Just go ahead and swallow me up, I can enjoy a few moments of warmth before I pass out, and you can head back to the village. Just let me write in my journal so people know not to come looking for me." He leaned forward and flipped up the flap on one of the saddlebags to pull out his notebook and pencil, but immediately dropped it due to how numb and cold his fingers were.

That's when Mjingar excitedly hopped back and locked eyes with Var'Rex, happily nodding and smiling and waggling his haunches. When Var went to pick up his notepad, Mjingar slapped it out of his hand and leaned in, nuzzling up against Var'Rex's chest, using his lips to pull and tug at the belts and sash that held the stock of bullets and knives and other tools.

"H-hey, what are you doing, there? I don't think getting naked in this situation is a good idea." He protested, trying his best to push off his persistent partner, but was unable to successfully deter Mjingar's eager maw. Eventually, he gave up and flopped back in the growing hill of snow, letting Mjingar have his way with him. Only then did he realize what his mount was doing, aiming for all the belts and tools of his. Though it was clear from the beginning, his mind wasn't exactly operating at full capacity so it took him a few moments; one he was on the same page as his partner, he fumbled around at his waist with his numb fingers to try his best hand at undoing the belts there. This proved difficult, but with the encouragement from a few enthusiastic licks from Mjingar, he was able to overcome the cold and peel each and every one of his belts off.

"Yeah, I guess it makes sense. Don't need gunpowder or bullets weighing your belly down with me, do ya?" He continued about taking off his coat and boots as well, folding them up and putting them in a pile next to him so he was wearing only long johns and a thin undershirt. He wasn't nude, but the thickest clothes meant to keep him warm were discarded in the snow; he didn't feel right taking off any more than that, fearing that if he had only his thin, fine coat of fur to protect himself from the cold of the blizzard, he might freeze solid before he got a chance to feel the warmth of the inside of Mjingar.

His mount stepped back and closed up his maw, breathing heavily and licking his lips with his haunches deep in the snow, steam from his nostrils disappearing into the winds. He leaned in and pulled off Var's other glove, then took both of his hands in his gullet and tugged gently, wrapping his lips around his rider's arms right up to the elbow.

Var'Rex took in a long deep breath as he tried his best to mentally block out the cold that was seeping in through the undergarments and his fur, getting one last loving look in his mount's eyes before bowing and submitting himself to the felkin's hungry maw. The warmth inside was pleasant, encompassing, and gave him a feeling of comfort that he hadn't felt since leaving the village the day before. He was at peace, and knew that he would help his mount out in his quest home, which was what was most important at that time. The inside of Mjingar seemed warm beyond expectation, which only further encouraged Var'Rex to lean in, hands together so he could dive down that soft, warm gullet.

There was a brisk moment wherein Var'Rex questioned his acceptance of the situation with little regard for his own safety, but he knew that there was little hope for him. He knew that his mount would take care of him, and he knew that he was out of ideas. He couldn't start a fire, he couldn't find or make shelter, and he was much too far from anywhere he considered to be safe, so he couldn't think of a way to get himself out of this situation. The blizzard was a freak occurrence, something that couldn't have been predicted or prepared for, and he had foolishly pushed forward instead of turning back. Mjingar knew, he could hear or smell or feel the oncoming squall, but Var'Rex was confident to the point of foolishness and now they were both stuck in the cold with no way of getting home unfrozen.

And now, he felt like his entire body had gone numb not just due to the temperature, but the overwhelming sense of dread. He felt cold in heart and in flesh, and the only parts of him that felt comfortable were his paws, both gooey and slimy and squeezed tight by the constricting throat muscles of Mjingar's hungry gullet. In fact, after the cold of the blizzard, he felt like his hands were almost burning, but he knew that was just how the body adjusted to extreme changes of temperature; he would need to endure a moment of stinging burn before his body would return to the comfort of warmth.

He took in what he thought to be his one final breath as another crack of lightning burst in the sky, illuminating them both through the thick snowfall to illuminate Mjingar's quivering maw flesh. Var'Rex paused a moment before leaning in, wiggling back and forth to slip his hands in deeper and press his snout to his mount's, giving Mjingar a bit of a kiss on the nose before nestling his chin upon the felkin's lower jaw.

Despite his chilled mindset and the sluggish nature of his thought process, it was that very moment when he managed to piece together everything that Mjingar was saying to him. His memories were swirling around, dicing together dozens of different points in their collective history as his brain started to shut down similar to the final moments before sleep. In that brisk, semi-lucid state, his mind whizzed past a memory of a time when Mjingar had been sent out to catch live prey for skinning and eating only to come back with a belly full of raccoons and rabbits all hopping and jumping around in his belly, all alive. To this day - the day he thought might be his last - Var'Rex had no idea how that had happened or what it meant, but he didn't question it.

Now, as he was silently and peacefully submitting himself to be a meal to his mount, it all made sense to him. Mjingar wasn't hungry, he was trying to do his best to care for his rider and carry him home the best way he knew how. As a Felkin, he was particularly resistant to the cold, with his thick pelt working as insulation for his belly and the rest of his insides. His fur was thick, his skin was thicker, and while he wasn't immune to the cold, he was far more resistant to it than Var'Rex, something he kept trying to show by sucking on his hands and exhaling his hot breath all over his rider.

Mjingar didn't plan on consuming Var'Rex for sustenance, as he was well fed and did not need the nutrients, but he wanted to carry his rider back to the village inside him, where it was warm and cozy, away from the frigid blizzard that raged outside. In his belly, Var'Rex would be able to curl up and enjoy the warmth without a care in the world, or at least that was what his numbed mind theorized.

Regardless, there wasn't much Var'Rex could do at this point. Mjingar seemed to have a plan, and whether that was to enjoy Var'Rex as a meal or carry him in his belly back home, Var was more than happy to go along with it. No matter what happened, he trusted his mount and partner as he had for many years and that wasn't going to end until the day he died, be that this day or a day decades later.

With his renewed acceptance of what his mount was doing, Var'Rex leaned in closer, standing up tall and pushing against the ground with his arms extended deep into Mjingar's gullet, his head slipping just inside the maw so that the felkin's teeth closed around the back of his skull and under his teeth. He couldn't see Mjingar's expression, but he could tell through the gentleness of his mount that he was doing all he could be be careful and compassionate. He wasn't biting down, he wasn't pushing forward, he wasn't forcing his maw over his rider, and he wasn't grabbing or clawing at anything, he was only staying in place, occasionally gulping and easing forward with every eager movement of Var'Rex, showing that he cared deeply about his rider's comfort and ease of consumption.

Furthermore, his tongue slipped out from below Var'Rex's chin, slathering his neck and upper body with gooey felkin saliva. Amidst his slow, tender, and passionate licks, the jaw muscles could be felt relaxing as his maw opened up wide enough to swallow Var while still leaning forth, easing up.

Var'Rex was starting to get even more cautious as he felt the throbbing walls of Mjingar's gullet close around and press tight to his snout, closing things up and smothering him. He had taken a long and deep breath, but that didn't stop him from feeling just the slightest hint of panic inside. This concern lasted no more than a few seconds, as he quickly came to realize that, as he tried to breathe, he could still do so. Mjingar's throat was constricting his maw shut, yet he could still breathe comfortably. This was not a thing he wished to question, so he smiled and nuzzled against the soft, gooey pillows.

As this happened, Mjingar's tongue kept pressing in waves against Var'Rex's chest, urging him in deeper without ever actually forcing him; it was clear that both wanted to the other to be comfortable and happy, but at the same time the chill was starting to get to both of them. The whipping wind was seeping through Var's fur coat and undergarments while it was at the same time biting at Mjingar's teeth and exposed maw flesh, made even worse by the moisture inside that could freeze solid.

With that in mind, Var'Rex squirmed and felt around ahead of him, eager to catch onto something that could help pull him up deeper into his mount's belly. Unfortunately, Mjingar was much larger than him with a pretty long neck, so even though Var's face was completely in his maw with his snout resting just beyond the jaws to pass through his gullet, his extended hands hadn't yet made it to the belly. The only way he could think to indicate that he was ready to disappear was to bring one leg forward to idly kick at his mount's front paws, as if he was trying to find a step to go higher.

Mjingar seemed to notice this, so he craned his neck up while keeping his maw facing down, the jaws lightly squeezing at his rider's upper body. His throat gulped and quivered against the steady massage of hands and elbows pressing out against the walls, which would have forced a gag if not for the fact that he was doing this for his rider. His gullet quavered and shuddered against the touch of Varrex's body, but didn't give in.

A powerful, rocking burst of wind blasted at the both of them with such ferocity that it forced Varrex to shiver uncontrollably, his body acting much like a buzzer against the soft walls of throat flesh that wrapped around him. Perhaps it was this sudden burst of chilliness and the shivering or perhaps it was just time, but Mjingar couldn't hold himself back any longer. Even he could feel the discomfort in his rider and he didn't want to make this last any longer.

He quickly bit down and lifted Varrex high above his head, tongue out to cradle his belly and the rest of his torso before spreading his jaws open as wide as they would go, relaxing his throat at the same time only to gulp intermittently.

Varrex was relieved at first to finally be hoisted up, but the moment he started cycling his legs in the air, he could feel the coldness of the snow and wind biting at his toes through his socks. While he was on the ground, the snowbank around them seemed to cover them from much of the wind, but up in the air where the currents were stronger and the blizzard was even more frigid, it seemed like daggers of ice were stabbing into his legs.

Part of him wanted to make this last as long as he could, to relish the sensation of having throat flesh caressing him all over and gently squeezing him in waves, but the rest of him was screaming for protection from the cold. Luckily, his arms were extended downward as Mjingar gaped his maw wide, allowing him to dive into his mount's belly with the help of gravity and an eager tongue cradling him between the legs to push him in farther.

One powerful gulp and a twist of the neck was all it took to get him down.

He felt his body sliding through Mjingar's throat hands and face sliding through the tight passage to emerge into a slightly more open cavern of loosely-hanging belly flesh. Within seconds, the intensity of the change in temperature stabbed at his body and gave him a momentary lapse of comfort wherein all he could feel was a light burn. The rest of his body slid in after him with ease, forcing his snout and arms to curl up in the fetal position while his feet and tail got gulped and squirted in after him. A deep rumbling could be heard all around him followed by a gurgle and a belch coming from afar. The walls collapsed around him, squeezing him into place for only a moment before loosening back up and spreading out, air inflating the stomach from outside.

Then, nothing. Nothing at all. The rumbling and the gurgling stopped, the air stopped inflating the fleshy cavern, and all that could be heard or felt was the steady throbbing of a beating heart pumping warm blood all around him. He felt the cradle of flesh beneath him stretching to accommodate his rump and back, but rather than constrict him or tighten around him, it conformed to the curve of his spine and the mounds of flesh between neck and head served as a pillow to him, allowing him to start to drift off.

All around him, the body heat of Mjingar's belly seeped into him, burning his toes and tingling in his thighs as he curled his digits and swished his tail in the gooey mess that enveloped him. He was giving a bit of a massage to the shaking walls around him, curling his toes and shifting his body to rub against every bit that he could until he found the perfect position, at least until he felt a full-bodied constriction squeeze at him then let him go.

It wasn't entirely clear to Varrex, but as he concentrated he could feel the slight shifts and subtle movements of Mjingar's torso around him amidst the sloshing of gut fluids and the grumbling of nearby organs and the beating of his heart. He had no way of knowing precisely what was happening, but Mjingar was already on the move and that gave him a certain sort of comfort that allowed him to pull his knees up to his chest, wrap his arms up under his legs, grab at his tail, and rest his side against the curved wall of his mount's belly.

He didn't sleep, but he had never felt so cozy in all his years. Though the sudden and intense change in temperature almost made him feel like sweating, he hadn't been that happy with the sensation of warmth as long as he could remember. Had he not been freezing moments before, such confines and humidity and restrictive space might have been oppressive, but in the wake of cold that cut so deep he could feel it in his bones, this was like a warm bed next to a fire. No, more like a warm bed sandwiched between a crackling fire and a window showing a howling blizzard.

For that instant and what felt like hours after, everything was perfect.

What Varrex didn't know was that the coziness and comfort had actually coaxed him into a slumber, allowing him to drift off to sleep in his mount's belly. Mjingar had gulped him down, collected the corpses of the buck and the other creatures to sling over his shoulder, tucked Varrex's clothes in a saddlebag, and embarked on his quest to trek back to the village even in the raging storm.

While the trip to the pass may have taken them days, the delays were due to trapping, hunting, and stopping to make camp in the forested regions between the fields. Mjingar was on a mission and able to resist the pelting snow and powerful winds, so his trip took only a half day as his rider remained heavy in his belly, yet the storm kept baring down on them for the entire trip, having reached the village before they had.

Upon arriving back at the village, Mjingar was unsure of what to do next. The other villagers were not aware of his intelligence or his communication abilities, and certainly wouldn't allow him into their homes like Varrex had. The blizzard was pounding heavily at the many homes and businesses of the small hamlet, so he knew better than to just go knocking at the blacksmith's shop or the government building. No, the only place he could be safe during this ghastly weather was in the stables of the dairy farm alongside the cows.

Perhaps not the cleanest or most pleasant locale in the village, but the body heat of the cows and the sturdiness of the barn walls would keep the cold out and the warm in. Plus, there was a good chance no farmer would intrude upon them for when Varrex was brought back into the world via regurgitation.

The felkin nosed at the door until it swung open, catching it with his tail before it slammed against the barn wall. The cows groaned and mooed and scattered within the barn, at least until they saw that it was Mjingar - a presence they'd come to recognize over the years. He pulled the door closed even as the blizzard tried to defy him, eventually clicking it shut by yanking on the handle with his teeth. Then, just as he was about to find himself a clean area to spit Varrex back up, he collapsed in a heap, exhausted from the trip to the point he felt like he could sleep for a week.

The blizzard lasted a full day and a half, so one more day after Mjingar returned to the village, and in that period no farmers were able to come to the barn due to how much snow had fallen on the fields. Mjingar did manage to crawl his way up to the hayloft and shake off all of the gear that he'd brought with him, including the carcasses that had frozen solid and the tools that were in his saddle bags. The bulge of Varrex in his belly kept him from feeling hungry even though he was not being consumed or digested, which meant he was going to be especially hungry once his rider returned.

As the skies cleared and a gunshot was heard at dawn to wake the citizens of the village, Mjingar fluttered his eyes and stumbled to all fours, eyes blinking and tail drooping with every step. Before long, his mind recovered and he remembered it was time to cough up his rider.

Unlike the swallow, which took a while due to uncertainty and a lack of clarity of intent - Mjingar was able to force himself to belch and gag quickly, his abdominal muscles twitching in spasms and constricting around his meal, sloshing Varrex around inside.

Like Mjingar, Varrex had slept for the majority of the blizzard, too comfy and cozy to remain awake or particularly alert. As such, the sudden and intense attack from the belly walls jerked him from his slumber and made him press out with his hands, ready to fight off whatever it was that was attacking him. He quickly remembered that he was still alive in Mjingar's belly, and that thought pacified him to the point he once again relaxed and let whatever could happen to him proceed without resistance.

His form was shifted in place until his snout found his mount's esophagus, and from there he lurched and slide like a rocket through the tube of gullet flesh to be spit up in a pile of felkin spit and fluids, with bits of hay and straw clinging to his gooey fur and body. For a moment, he lacked the energy to move or even lift a finger; the return of the relatively cool air had once again enveloped him.

Mjingar growled in delight as he leaned in, nuzzling at Varrex and licking him all over to clean him, waiting for his rider to wake up. He could feel the beat of the heart deep within varrex, so he knew he was alive and well, which is why he happily lapped and cleaned at his partner with his tongue time and time again.

Then, the cervine-canine hybrid groaned and coughed, using one hand to prop himself up and get to all fours. Mjingar yipped and hopped around in between playful nuzzles and licks - delighted to have his rider back - until Varrex reached out to cradle his chin and hug him close.

"Thanks so much, for this." He said, only able to speak at a volume barely above a whisper. "Thanks for bringing me home, and having the strength of mind to think when my mind went numb."

His mount huffed and growled, tongue slipping out to lightly lick at Var's neck and cheeks in a playful kiss. The two remained in a deep, comforting embrace, until the farmer arrived that morning to care for his herd. That poor farmer had no idea what he was about to walk in on, yet Varrex and Mjingar were too relieved and overwhelmed with joy to care.

They had their warmth, they had each other, and they had quite a haul of pelts and meats; if nothing else, they were funded for another few weeks before they'd have to once again go out and set some traps. The life of a hunter in the northern frontier was never dull, especially not when they had a partner with which they shared such a deep and unwavering bond.

After that trip, they took a few days off to recover at Varrex's home, with the hybrid hunter spending much of it with his feet up in front of a crackling bonfire, pot of soup lightly boiling with veggies and the meats of the game he'd caught. Next to him on a nest made of a dozen pelts from a dozen different species lie Mjingar, the most loyal mount any hunter could hope to share a home.