The arctic north of Hidden Kingdom is a vast land of white snow as far as one could see. Some days may be harsh, but the arctic tundra shares its moments of beauty. The small boat finally reached its destination, the protective covering folded off. The two occupants stepped out. Once they were on land, the covering folded back up and sunk under the water. Lovely checked the signal device Kawkee gave them for the boat, but Chlora walked forward. She let a few snowflakes fall onto her open palm, letting them melt in her hand. With a slow breath, a small puff of steam came out from her mouth. "So…this is cold" she spoke. "I always wondered how this would feel."
"Well, let us be thankful that the weather is currently calm" Lovely commented as she walked back. "The last thing we want to do is to get caught in a snowstorm." She shivered slightly, "And humans can hardly survive those. I would hate to see you get in one."
They walked ahead slowly but steadily. A few minutes passed and the sky started to turn white. The wind picked up, the snowfall increased. Lovely covered herself as much as she could to try and pick up body heat. Chlora was doing the same, her petals covering her entire body. However the color from them seemed to fade. "W-Where are w-we?"
The human looked up, soon seeing a large mountain. "I think we may be near the mountains. Obviously we walked farther than we thought. We should pro-" Suddenly Lovely started to giggle, but then started to laugh. "S-Stop tickling me Chlora!"
"That's not me" she spoke, "I-I can b-barely move a v-vine."
With a last swing, something came out of Lovely's dress. At first it was covered in snow, but with a few shakes it was Chusi. She started to shiver immediately. "CHUSI?!" Lovely gasped loudly.
Sadly that shouted echoed through the mountains. The snow at the top began to fall down the base. An avalanche was occurring. Everyone saw it, however Chusi and Lovely seemed frozen in fear. Chlora pushed them out of the way before some snow fell onto her. The force of action caused the human to start running with the snake in hand. Surprisingly she was faster than the disaster, but she couldn't for long. On one side of the mountain was a cave, their only means of protection. With a last jump, the two made it to the cave. Unfortunately the snow covered the entrance up.
As both were relieved with the escape, Lovely's hair started to grow and twitch. She turned her angry gaze to Chusi, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?! I TOLD YOU TO STAY PUT!"
The gaze and actions were indeed scary, Chusi did indeed experience fear. However she knew that Lovely was truly her friend and only cared for her safety. "I-I couldn't l-let you g-go alone" she spoke. "I-I just w-wanted to know you w-were safe."
Lovely, although furious, still understood. Chusi was saved by her, so she probably felt the need to do some form of recovery to show her how she feels. Her hair sunk back into its regular length and position. The human gently grabbed the snake and hugged her close. They both looked to the snow blocked entrance, "We can only hope that Chlora made it and will find us." She sat on the ground, keeping Chusi close to her body. Chusi did the same, only Lovely was only trying to protect her. She wished she could help her out more somehow.
A few hours passed, the cave's temperature dropped fast. Both Chusi and Lovely were experiencing it. They were so cold that they could not stay awake. Things seemed pretty dim. Then, a peak of light shown in. The wall of snow broke down and soon entered a being. It was a human dressed like a dog. Pulled behind him was a large sled. He ran to them and sniffed, "Freezing…bad…" He gently set both of them into the sled, covered them with a blanket, and then went back to his harness. However his ears twitched and turned to the ceiling. His eyes glimmered at what he saw, a large icicle. With a quick series of jumps, he made his way up and snatched the icicle right off. Wagging his tail and after licking his newly found treat a few licks, he reattached his harness and ran off. Lovely's vision was blurred at that, all she saw was snow. It wasn't until she saw blobs of color when her eyes finally failed her.
Lovely's eyes opened after a few muffled mumbles. It took a bit of time to focus, but her vision soon cleared up. She was inside a home, more importantly warm. She was wrapped in several blankets. As she got up, a familiar face stepped in. It was Chlora, but her body went through some changes. Her arms, main stem, and body were covered with small, seemingly invisible hair-like strands, her hands blossomed some purple flower petals with some stimuli. Her normally red flower petals on her waist were now purple. Her skin color seemed to lighten as well. The human looked surprised, "Chlora…?" She simply smiled and nodded. As she approached Lovely stood up more. "How…what happened to you?"
"I am one with Mother Nature and all of her floral children" she spoke. "It seems that I have relatives in the Arctic that I have now awakened. I am no longer bothered by the cold, I am now sturdier."
Lovely laughed at how mystical she sounded. However her expression changed, "Chusi…where is she?"
A small hiss sounded inside her blankets. As the human looked down, she was tickled in the face by a tongue. Chusi slithered out and poked her head out. She looked rather sad though, "Lovely…I'm sorry about what I did."
Lovely stroked the back of her neck and hood gently, trying not to agitate her bruises. "Chusi, I am glad to have a friend like you." The snake princess smiled as she was stroked. A few humans entered in warm clothing, one woman and one man. The woman handed Lovely a fuzzy jacket and a fur satchel. As she put the coat on Chusi slithered into the bag. She poked her head out a tiny bit and smiled. The rest of them could not help but to smile.
"Thank goodness you two are alright" said the woman. "You were lucky that he found you whenever you did."
"Well we thank you for rescuing us." Lovely and Chusi bowed to them.
Chlora giggled, "They were not the ones who found and saved you."
"Then…who did?" asked the snake.
"Come outside, I can guarantee that he'll like you." The plant girl made her way out along with the two humans. Lovely slung the bag over her shoulder as she walked out. The village she was in seemed to have a lake. Several small igloos decorated the landscape near it. A bit of laughter caught their attention. A couple of human children, dressed in warm clothing, ran around laughing and screaming in glee. A larger creature chased them, what looked like to be a dog. Lovely saw the human in him, and how he acted like a dog. The human children were tossing around what looked like a piece of ice.
"Who…is that?" asked Chusi as she peered from her bag.
"That's Howahkan, the Dog Prince" replied the human man. "He's been helping some of the villages out at times, bless the kid's heart."
"But…he's a human" Lovely spoke.
The two other humans nodded. "We know, but we cannot say anything" the woman responded. "You see, Dog King was human as well. However he was lost from his true kind and raised by dogs. He was reunited with his brother in times of old. The original Dog King died from High Roller's forces. His brother took on the responsibility and became the new Dog King. He, however, is still saddened by his loss. Howahkan is his son, but the king does not know of his comings and goings."
"So he would never know if he's missing or not." Lovely looked out at the Dog Prince. He looked happy despite what is life is like. Speaking of the prince, Lovely was too deep in thought to see that he was running to her. A quick pounce broke her free of her thoughts, and the licks in her face woke her up even more. "Good! Good!" he grabbed the icicle he had and ran back.
The human woman helped her up with a smile, "He says that he's happy to see you. He doesn't know human very well either."
"I bet he and Sea Salt would be good friends" Chusi spoke.
The kids and Howahkan continued to play. It brought a smile to return to her face. She wished she could join them in their play. Soon a human tagged the Dog Prince; the group immediately ran from them. He wagged his tail and chased after them. They ran along the shore of the lake. A Howahkan heard a few cracks, his ears twitching in response. However, he was too late to react. The ice around him broke off from shore. The Dog Prince ran to the edge of the piece but soon saw it was too far for the jump. The children backed away, afraid of them getting the same fate. The human adults stepped closer, being more aware of the danger.
Chlora's vines extended and reached out. A small dip in the water caused them to turn dark. She retracted them, "I-I cannot r-reach him" she spoke in a cold manner. "The w-water is t-too cold!"
"He's getting too far out…" the woman spoke in sadness. "There's nothing we can do."
Lovely looked out to him. Howahkan looked very distressed; she could have sworn she saw tears. He mouthed the word "Help" despite the icicle in it. Very slowly, she took the bag off. She handed it to the woman, "Here."
The woman looked up at her in confusion. Chusi poked her head out. "Lovely?" she asked with confusion. "What are you doing?"
"Saving a life" she continued to speak.
"He's in the middle of the lake" the woman spoke, "And he's keep fl-"
"I don't care" she interrupted as she continued to strip into her normal clothing. "I may not know much about his dad. But I do know this… Knowing that you can't do anything to save your child is the most horrible feeling."
"But you will die if you go after him!" the woman spoke. "You must be crazy to go into the icy water!"
"I am…And I'll risk my life to save him." Lovely ran and dove into the water. She popped up on the surface, stroking her arms to swim closer to the Dog Prince. No matter how cold she felt, the urge made her continue on. Howahkan's eyes were filled with fear as tears streamed down her face, but he looked at Lovely with complete confusion and shock. The woman slowly dragged herself onto the ice flow, grabbed the Dog Prince, and started to swim back. The cold water was having a great effect on her body, her motions were slowing down. The distance between the ice flow and the mainland seemed to be longer with each passing stroke. But Lovely eventually made it, and grabbed hold of the icy shore. The humans helped Howahkan onto shore. However before they could help her, Lovely's hand slipped off. Chusi poked her body out and looked in shock. The woman frowns at the two royal animals, "I'm sorry…"
"NO LOVELY!" Chusi cried. Suddenly a gray blur darted between the two animals. The Snake Princess looked up in confusion, "Venom?"
The python in question was indeed swimming through the icy water. He was born and raised in the swamps; he knew how to swim fast. With one last dive, Lovely was soon in his coils. He swam back and literally jumped back onto shore. He passed out, but not before looking at the human first. She smiled, "Thank…you…" The two passed out, humans gathering around them.
Lovely's eyes opened hazily again. Her face was barraged by a series of licks before she could actually focus. "Good! Good!" The woman was greeted by the smiling face of the Dog Prince. Howahkan licked her a few times before hopping down. The hybrid found herself underneath lots of blankets, like before. A turn of her head caused her to giggle.
Venom was covered in blankets with a thermometer in his mouth and a ice bag on his head. He sneezed before shivering again. Chusi was next to him, wrapped slightly. "Venom, what you did was very brave" she spoke. "No one of the reptile kind would have done what you did."
He smiled even in his shivering state. "W-Well…s-she's important t-to you. I-I saw y-you go with h-her…and I-I wanted to m-make sure y-you were safe…" He was gently kissed on the cheek, Venom's skin turned red. The thermometer suddenly burst.
Chlora entered the room, "I have the boat set up. We can return home."
Howahkan stood up to Lovely's bed, "Good?"
She assumed he was asking about leaving. "I'm sorry little guy. But we're part of a big team" she spoke. "We help everyone that needs help. And I do not think we can stay longer."
The Dog Prince's tail wagged, much to Lovely's surprise and confusion. He barked in happiness and panted with his tongue out. Chusi smiled, "He said he wants to come."
The hybrid looked at the young human, but he simply put the icicle back in his mouth and began to chew it. Lovely smiled at the cute gesture. She petted his head, causing him to look up and focus. "You want to come along?" Howahkan pounced on her with a barrage of licks. Lovely laughed as she fought back, "Okay, okay! You're in!"
HOWAHKAN 059
Chlora grabbed the little prince, "Okay little guy, let's go." Howahkan only barked before grabbing his icicle. She walked to Lovely, "What's wrong?"
"I would hate for him to realize what he really is…" she spoke. "But thankfully that will not happen for a long time."
