Casey laughed in return, his smile lighting up his face. When she passed the ball to him he swatted it between his paws, thoroughly enjoying the fact that someone wanted to play with him. He nosed it then threw the ball into the air with his snout, leaping up with a twist to catch it. He came back down with a smile on his pointed snout and a sparkle in his shining eyes. He dropped the ball and swatted it back to the fae. He liked her!

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(ahh sorry I thought I already replied x_x)

Juniper watched Casey in awe, the ball went flying through the air and then came bouncing back to her. Like the brute had done she picked it up with her maw, and tossed it into the air. It landed on her head with a little thunk, she laughed and swatted it with a paw, pouncing on it again. She stood up and shook the snow out of her fur, passing him the ball gently "I'm going to go get a drink" she said, padding in the direction of the lake. She paused for a moment, turning around to face him "you coming?" She said cheerily.

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Casey smiled and laughed as the ball thunked her on the head. When she invited him to get a drink he nodded his head happily. How could he refuse? "Oh, of course!" he yipped. "I can hunt to try and find breakfast for tomorrow!" He practically bounced, his thick brush carried high. His nose plastered to the ground as he walked made for a comical sight as he navigated his way around boulders and tree roots without picking up his head. "What's you tale Juniper?" He asked when he lost a mouse. He sat down and looked at her, they had reached the pond.

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Juniper smiled, bounding along beside him in the freshly fallen snow "sounds good" she called over her shoulder. Her feet skidded on ice and she came to an abrupt stop, laughing she stood and padded over to the river bank. She used a paw to smash through the thin layer of ice that rested on the surface. Placing her mouth in the icy rivulet, she took large gulps of frigid water, letting the straying drops trickle down her maw. She watched as Casey bounded around the rocks, hot on the trail of a mouse. When he came pack empty pawed she simply smiled, and then answered his question. "My tale? I don't have much of one, I was born in a forest many miles from here, but my father was killed by humans when I was young. My mother decided to take us here, as it is slightly more remote, my brother took to the mountains a few months ago. As for my mother, I haven't seen her in a while, although I believe she went back to my birth forest. What about you?"

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Casey listened intently as she told her tale then lay down and began to tell his when she had finished. "I was born far from here, my mother wasn't supposed to have me, she didn't want me as her mate was abusive. So she an away and hid from him. We were okay for the first couple of weeks, we managed to scrape a living off the forest and I grew up pretty well. Then one day my mother and I were outside when her old mate appeared and killed her. He went for me but I got away. I was barely weaned so I almost starved to death. Until a wolf found me. She was about to kill me, then she saw how young I was. Her name was Lupa and she brought me home and raised me with her four other pups. Lie was good then, the pack kept us well fed. Then Lupa died and they turned on me. I just barely escaped. So I wandered the forest for along time and now here I am." He finished and pretended to look at something on his paw to hide the hot tears he felt in his eyes.

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Juniper dipped her head as he spoke, she had brought up a sensitive matter, she leaned forward and touched her maw to his shoulder. "I'm sorry," she said, sympathy washing over her, at first she had thought her story was bad. She felt like asking if his father was still out to get him, but of course, that would make everything worse. It pained her to see such a happy fox grieving, after everything Casey had done for her he didn't deserve to be suffering. She sat down beside him, her eyes tracing the silhouettes of birds as they fluttered across the sky. She watched the stream icy stream next to her and suddenly had an idea. She picked up a stone from the bank, grabbing it between her teeth she threw her head back and launched the stone towards the river. It landed on the ice with a satisfying plonk, and disappeared, a second later the cracked, and gave way into the water below. Juniper laughed, that was good fun, she picked up another stone and rolled it slowly in Casey's direction.

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Casey forced a smile as she expressed her sympathy. "It's okay, it just made me stronger." When Juniper picked up the stone and made a game of it Casey stood up happily and panted a smile, even in the cold. "Smart vixen!" He barked. He happily grabbed the stone she rolled to him and clenched it in his needle point teeth. Then he reared back and chucked it. It didn't go much further than Juniper's but it went somewhere. He watched with delight as it broke the thin ice and sunk to the bottom. "That's fun Juniper!" He exclaimed. His black muzzle reached for another rock but he couldn't pick it up. A smaller one would have to do.

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She laughed, delighted that she was able to cheer him up. She blushed at his praise "I used to play it sometimes when I was younger, although it's a lot more fun with someone else."I have an idea!" She exclaimed, pawing at the rock that Casey had found. She bent down and began to roll it with her maw when it reached the river bank she gave it one final shove. The somewhat round rock was a blur as it tumbled down the small hill. It reached the ice, skidded across it for a few seconds before the ice shattered like a cobweb and the stone sunk below the sapphire surface.

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Casey dropped the rock from his jaws when Juniper spoke to reply. "I think every game is more fun with company!" A cold wind blew and ruffled the thick red fur on Casey's scruff, causing him to shiver. He watched intently as she rolled the stone and yipped in delight when it disappeared. The red fox rushed to pick up another stone, then drop it. Giving it a mighty shove he called out, "Bombs away!" and watched it thud its way down the hill. It slid out on the ice, then the frozen water cracked and the rock fell through with a satisfying plop!

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Juniper giggled "I think so too" she said, her bright tail streaming out behind her in the cold wind. It had been a long time since she had last played this came, she was only a cub back then. She and her brother had spent long hours by the river tossing stones without a care in the world. She cocked her head to one side, wondering for a moment if any of those stones were still there... She doubted it. Her thoughts were interupted by a loud growl from her stomach, she laughed quietly and stood, eyes searching for prey. Although they had only eaten a few hours ago she was hungry again. This was probably due to the fact that she hardly ever ate well, a proper, satisfying meal was rare. She spotted a small mouse darting from cover to cover, her Amber eyes watched it for what seemed like an eternity. She pounced without a moments hesitation, landing on the critter, when her first strike didn't kill it she tried again; succeeding.

(Sorry this is so late, I'm currently really busy and struggling to get on)

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(That's perfectly fine, things are a little hectic for me too)

Casey's rich dark eyes met Juniper's for a fleeting moment and in that moment all was well in the world. His black tipped ears flipped back and forth as the forest slowly died for the winter. But Casey wasn't sad, he knew it would just come back to life again, kits would be born, and prey would be abundant. The thought of it made his mouth water. When He heard a squeak and saw Juniper kill a mouse his stomach growled quietly. He dropped down and began to stalk, listening for any sign of life. If he didn't catch anything he could always just get the meat he had buried at his den.

A pink tongue curled over glistening fangs as dry leaves crunched underfoot. His thick brush collecting leaves as he went. Nose to to the ground and ears alert as he hunted, careful not to stray too far from Juniper. Nothing. He gave a growl of disappointment before returning to the water's edge and dipping black paws into the cold liquid.

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She smiled, lost in his eyes for a brief moment when he turned away she shook herself out of her daze. She buried the mouse under a pile of leaves beside the river bank, their any devious scavengers would have to get through her first. When Casey dipped his ebony paws into the water she watched contently as ripples surged away from him. They soon reached the ice and dissolved, leaving the water calm again. The still mass sapphire reflected the sky above, and out of the corner of her eye, Juniper could see dark clouds rolling in. She turned to the brute, they still had lots of time before anything happened, but she wondered if he had seen them.

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Casey pulled his dark paws from the water and a small shiver ran down his spine from the cold. He then tucked his paws neatly under his small frame, wrapped his tail around his red pelt and extended a pink tongue to drink. Thirst slaked he would eye the sky, mentally noting and mapping the approaching clouds. It smelled like snow but it was a ways away, it could turn rain or sleet. The latter deadly if one was caught without shelter in this kind of cold and the former a slow and silent killer. He straightened up to his full, unimpressive height and smiled gently. "We should start making our back to the den before the weather starts." We, that word made him beam inside and out. 'We' meant that he was no longer an 'I' but a 'we.' He was no longer alone.

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She smiled brightly, glad that he was willing to share his den with her. "Good plan," she said, standing up and grabbing the mouse in her maw. She knew he already had food back at his den, but the more the merrier, plus, if this rain turned into snow they could be trapped for days. She cast her golden gaze to the sky a final time, the swirling mass of blue and grey reflecting in her ample eyes. "Let's go... Partner" she yipped, flicking him gently with her tail before zipping off into the bushes. She smiled, although that atmosphere was heavy with moisture, the chilling wind ruffled her mane in a free-spirited way.

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The red fox practically yelped with delight at her answer. "Alright, this way!" He trotted ahead a few paces, then waited for the striking Juniper to follow. The boiling sky was reflecting eyes so beautiful one could get lost for days, this was Juniper, the only fox that had bothered t talk to him. At her comment he jumped for joy, a smile painted on his narrow snout.

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