Day broke in solitude, golden statue trembling reluctantly to life beneath the only source of warmth Frostfall had to offer. Tired azures blinked open, little flakes of snow clinging to pale lashes and melting with each leisurely shuttering of his eyes. A yawn broke across his mouth, and wings surged up and out in an attempt at regaining warmth and inspiring further consciousness. Grunting softly, he strode out across the snow, tired limbs aching and heart heavy. He was still coated in grime and dried saltwater, sand traveling all the way up to his belly. Kaj had held true to his promise to escort Ilios and Areli to the Throat, and it had been a long journey that had ended up with very little time actually spent in the desert biome of the Dragon's Throat.

Nonetheless, he was disgusting, and with a soft groan he worked his body forward towards the ever-present roaring of water he could hear all around him. Though thin, treacherous ice had coated quite a few of their waterfalls, some had been spared. With tired limbs and crusty, bleary eyes, the Czar stumbled unattractively towards the nearest water source he could find so he could wash his disgusting body. The water stared cheerily back up at him when he finally stumbled to its shores, and Kaj grumbled nonsensical Dutch right back at it. Sighing and steeling up his nerves, the Czar plunged in, choking on a rather unmanly shriek at the horrific cold that immediately stabbed into his senses. Teeth chattering he forced himself deeper, the rushing water cleansing him rather quickly.

When he could take the icy hands groping at him no longer, the golden boy rushed to the end of the waterfall, wings wide to catch himself as he threw himself off the edge and into the air. It was horrible, a freezing sensation, but at least he was clean and he'd had the foresight not to get his wings wet. Shivering and chattering, he coasted in easy circles, eyes roaming tiredly over the land below. His heart stops in his chest when a hauntingly familiar painted form meets his eyes, standing facing one of the distant waterfalls. It couldn't be. Kaj knew only small snippets of what had happened to Quilyan, only because he had been on the same mission as the painted stag - trying to find Rue. Had someone found him at last? Kaj had wanted to find him immediately, tell him the good news and be the one to invite him back to their new home. But with the invasion, and trying to keep the Falls from sinking, and allies and negotiations...it simply hadn't been possible. But he'd given the word to Ktulu to have her scouts look out for the prince on their patrols. Had they succeeded?

With excitement and brotherly love flooding into his chest, he spiraled into a tight loop and swept down to the landmass Quilyan was standing on. A trumpet of wordless delight arced past his teeth, and he landed heavily, uncaring when his knees twinged unhappily at the roughness. "Quilyan!" he called, eyes bright and lips stretched into a vibrant smile as he raced towards the other winged male. Skidding to a stop mere strides from the boy, he proffered his golden muzzle expectantly. "You've returned! Did one of the Conscripts find you? I told Ktulu to transfer the message to look for you on patrols," it blabbered out of his mouth quickly, feeling as if a burden he'd been carrying for so long was gone with his brother there at last. "It's so good to see you, brother," he breathed at last, wonderment in his azures as he gazed upon the prince, as if trying to memorize his every spot and hair.

OOC here