You're the only North Star I would follow this far...
"I can talk the talk"
And walk the walk
But I'm always in deep thought.

The stallion did not know what it was about the icy wasteland that fascinated him so, but he had wound up here again after wandering aimlessly. His mind was a whirl of confusing desires. He still wanted to confront his sire, but at the same time, he wanted to be with Artemis. He could no longer deny it- he'd fallen for the snowy barbarian. perhaps it was just a crush at the moment, for he did not know how she felt for him, but he could not help the pep in his step that existed as he walked.

The land around him was flat, the snow beneath his large hooves crunched with the weight of the stag that passed, the hooves churning up prints in his wake. The cold reached deep into his thin coat, but it made him feel frisky, and the chill crisped energy into his legs. He brought himself to a springy, extended trot. Eventually, he felt his hooves clip sharply as they struck ice and he realized he was travelling over a lake that had remained frozen solid far beyond the reaches of Frostfall.

He slowed down to come to a standstill and glanced up through the strands of his thick forelock at the moon, pale and thin as a claw scratch in the sky. He shivered, but whether that was due to the cold, or to the feeling of dread that suddenly washed over him, he did not know. Looking away from the sky, he continued onward. This time, he kept his head lowered, sniffing at the ice to detect the faint scent of water. Where it graced him, he stopped and changed his course. The scent of water meant thin ice.

CRACK! The ice at his rear hooves gave way with the sound of cannon fire, and splintery lines appeared around his front hooves. Flattening his ears to his skull, he broke into a gallop, his hooves crashing through thin ice as he passed. What kind of miscalculation had he made?! The splintering ice raced him cracking and breaking apart around him. He knew he could not stop or risk falling to the dark depths of the icy churning abyss beneath him. With sheer panic rising in his mind, he willed his legs to strike still faster and lengthened himself out as fast as he could go. Water splashed onto his feathers where his hooves sank through, spurring him on, even when his chest began to heave with the effort to keep running.

Suddenly, the sound of his strides was muffled into thuds and he slowed. The ice was thicker here and muffled by a layer of snow. He stood, his sides heaving, sweat covering his shoulders and foam crusted in the cold between his back legs. He let out a deep sigh of relief and tried to calm the hammering of his heart. The chilly air stabbed his lungs and dried his throat, but he could not stop gulping it down. Colder than ever, mist swirling around his face from the thick, shallow breaths he took, he glanced around to gather his bearings.

He wasn't paying much attention to the scents that the wind brought to him, otherwise he would have startled at the sudden appearance of her scent. As it was, when he calmed, he took notice of a couple shapes in the distance. They were too far to gather any distinctive details for him to tell who they were, but he knew that they were in danger - his patch of snow was safe, but they weren't.

Cautiously, he stepped onto the clinking ice and found that it was solid. Sighing in relief, he moved carefully towards them and as he closed the distance, his eyes widened. Artemis was standing midst a thick web of splintered ice, that was ready to give way any second. A second horse was with her and as he felt himself stunned into a stand-still he felt a ripple of rage that had nothing to do with the danger and everything to do with how the stallion stepped closer to Artemis.

He shook his head and let out a loud nicker to get their attention. "Artemis!" He walked closer, as close as he could, but when his left front hoof was greeted with cracks, he backed up a few steps. This close, he could tell Artemis was petrified. he'd seen this expression gleam across her expression before and his heart ached. he had not wanted her to ever feel fear again. "Artemis listen to me! It's Tharos, you remember Tharos, right?"

He snorted, hoping that he could reach into her frozen, terrified state. In the meantime, he only had eyes for her. His only thought was for her safety. That stranger could drown for all he cared. Maybe a cold shower would do you good. He would think that, if he were paying attention to anything other than getting Artemis through this and to safety.

829
@[Artemis], played by sei
@[Voodoo], played by nevada
This was a lot longer than I thought it would be o-o;