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Antlers are extensions of an animal’s skull found in members of the deer family. They are a single structure composed of bone, cartilage, fibrous tissue, skin, nerves, and blood vessels. They are generally found only on males, with the exception of reindeer or caribou and are shed and regrown each year and function primarily as weapons or a display of strength.
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“Crap… this sucks.”
Brother Winter–the God of snow, ice and the cold months as his name obviously implied–a playful and mischievous deity who was known for his secretiveness, yet feared for his authority over the frigid lands to the north that made life hard and arduous for its residents; was currently hunched over a semi frozen stream, and was dealing with the yearly shedding of his antlers now that spring was due to come around.
If Brother Winter could guess the time, he'd say it'd be around midnight, the night's cool winds that would’ve sent chills down anyone else's spine did not seem to bother the youthful appearing immortal.
Trying to find a good secluded spot far away from any civilization was easy, he was sure no one lived anywhere around here for miles and miles. The thing is though, he really liked the way his antlers made him look, and he didn't want to seem helpless; a Lord of the Winter in such a vulnerable spot wasn't exactly an ideal thing, so to him, choosing to hide himself as far away as he could for now seemed like the best course of action.
However, the thing that Winter would say griped him the most, was his once snowy white hair he had was now streaked with red and pink spots of blood that was too dripping down his face. Even the shirt and scraggly coat he wore had both been chucked aside in the snow behind him, staining it with his blood would be an even bigger inconvenience to clean out without a good soap he’d have to “borrow”, so avoiding it all together was the best choice.
Sometimes they’d both fall off in one go and that'd be the end of it; but this time it was only small chips that flaked off unevenly, being envious of yourself was a feeling he'd rarely ever had, but he missed the years they'd co-operate with him and just fall off in one go. He tried scraping them off on rocks and trees; pulling them on as hard as he could was painful at first, but it was just an annoyance now at this point.
Winter didn't know if any beings' domains dabbled in luck, but it seemed that they weren't very fond of him this time around.
His hands were rubbed raw and inflamed by now, “Get… off… me!” Winter tried one last big tug at them before giving up and falling back into the snow, he grumbled and whined childishly, mumbling empty threats aimed at no one in particular; to anyone else it probably would’ve looked like a sopping wet cat having a tantrum.
Winter sat back up and put his hands in the air as if to calm himself down, if that was even possible by this point. “Okay,” placing both hands on his right antler, he held onto it as hard as his sore hands would let him, “The quicker they're off, the quicker they’ll grow back… probably.” With a scrunched face and clenched teeth, he pulled as hard as he could. Snap. Winter blinked and looked down at the antler in his hands, it was covered in blood and gross excess skin, but at long last it was off. “Finally!” Flinging it out of sight behind himself aimlessly was sufficient enough, ‘Now onto the next one.’
However, even with a firm grip on the other antler, it didn't budge. At all. “Come onnnnuhh…” Winter's tried pulling as hard as he could, but his hands were scratched and tender, so with a huff he let himself fall back into the snow, sighing loudly for additional dramatic effect. As long as no one finds him up here, waiting until it falls off naturally seems better.
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Luck didn’t seem to be on Wolf’s side either, he’d spent the entire night stalking around the dense forest beside his village, heading further and further in to find something small he could sink his teeth into. Around this time of the year more animals would be coming out of hibernation or surfacing from their burrows due to the snow melting and flooding their burrows; forcing them to come out into the open, so he was hoping that he’d have a small advantage on his hunt.
Unfortunately, this hunt seemed to be all for naught, it had been hours and he’d turned up with nothing, not even a mouse. Wolf’s hand had been gripped around his bow the entire time with an arrow drawn and ready to be shot at any unsuspecting animal, but if he held this position with his hands any longer he knew they’d begin to cramp, even his calves were starting to burn a bit from the exertion, the further north he travelled away from the mainland, the deeper the snow was becoming around his ankles. But he knew there was a small stream around here that he could take a drink from and relax by.
Wolf breathed deeply, taking in the below-freezing air, he listened intently to the crunch of the snow below his feet as he trudged through the forest, it made him think what Brother Winter was doing right now, he wondered how he felt now that it was starting to get warmer – almost anything reminded Wolf of Winter – the colour of the snow he was treading on was the exact same shade as his fluffy hair, the colour of the trunks of the trees around him were the same shade as his coat under his billowing cloak, the starry night sky… there was no correlation, it was just so beautiful it reminded him of him.
Wolf paused, realising how much of a deviant he felt by thinking of Winter in such ways. “Pull yourself together!” He smacked his face with both hands and rested them on his cheeks, he tried squishing his face to empty his mind of those thoughts, even if it didn’t work, but just the idea of him made him flustered! Sighing, he continued trudging through the snowy forest, but he simply couldn't remove Winter from his mind-
Wait.
Stopping in his tracks, he sniffed the air again; a distinct scent of iron engulfed his nasal cavity, he sniffed the air again just to be sure, ‘A wounded animal maybe?’ The smell of it wasn’t anything he recognised, usually there was only elk or owls this far up north, it was distinctly foreign. Nor did it seem to be anything decaying either, it smelt fresh. Wolf lowered his centre of gravity to improve his body's balance a bit more, a trick he was taught by some hunters was to bend the knees and land on the ground with the back of your heels.
Which proved to be a little more difficult than usual due to all the snow, it had reached up to his mid thigh the closer and closer he got to the smell, it didn't help that he’d been trudging up a hill for the past half hour.
The scent of sweet copper was only getting stronger, and it seemed his suspicions about it being from a wounded animal were right, further up the hill he spotted a line of blood headed straight towards the source of the savoury scent. But what intrigued him the most was the lack of any prints in the snow, like whatever had left behind the trail could seemingly walk atop the snow without sinking.
Wolf gripped the bow firmly with his left hand and drew the arrow with his right, whatever it was, it was undoubtedly behind a small row of shrubbery that led to a clearing surrounding the stream.
Wolf breathed out slowly and crouched behind a row of bushes a few feet in height, just high enough so he wouldn’t get spotted — he didn’t like taking lives; big or small, weak or strong, but he’d hate to see that burden placed onto anyone else — with haste Wolf rose from the bush and swiftly took aim towards the target — but instead of it being an animal, it was young… boy? Motionless in the snow.
He was certain no settlements had been made this far north, so what was someone doing so far out here? Bewildered and concerned by the state of him, Wolf slowly stepped over the greenery and trudged closer; making sure to place his arrow back in his quiver and his bow around his torso.
It was hard to see in the dark, but his body appeared to be a little bit thin, but fine otherwise, however, his head appeared to be in pretty bad shape, the snow all around him was stained with his blood, and his face was drenched in it too, ‘Is he even alive?’ Wolf walked closer to check if the stranger was hopefully just sleeping, but upon closer inspection, he took note of some unusual features, they seemed to have blue skin… white hair… and… antlers?!
“Winter?!” Wolf cried out with a hint of confusion, and a large amount of concern.
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He’d been sound asleep for about half an hour by now, relaxing in the snow had a pretty lethargic effect on Winter – especially with the whistling breeze that blew through the trees surrounding the clearing, not to mention the stream nearby. It was only until he heard a reminiscent pair of crunchy foot falls in the snow, the sound awoke him slowly but he’d quickly brush it off; preparing to fall right back asleep after; passively assuming it was an elk or maybe a random bird that would soon fly away into the night sky. But what he didn’t expect was that the person responsible for the sound was Wolf of all people.
“Winter?!”
Brother Winter had never awoken that quick before, his eyes were still blurry but he could recognise that figure anywhere. He shrieked in an embarrassingly high pitch – not Winter's proudest moment – and scrambled to find his coat which he quickly snatched off the ground, and wrapped it around his head. Rising quickly from the ground, Winter did his best to orient himself and wave at Wolf, “Heyyyy…” He blurted, trying to sound as casual as possible.
Wolf had never been more confused in this moment than ever before in his life.
Stepping forward, Wolf gently pulled off the coat from Winter's head, a doleful expression on his face, although internally he was trying his best not to laugh. “You don’t have to hide this stuff from me y’know,” Wolf puffed, he examined the damage to his head, smoothing his hand over his antler, he hummed in a tone of concern and worry. Wolf shifted his fringe aside as he tried wiping the now dried blood away.
“I know.” Winter whined, but he still sheepishly averted his gaze whilst he let Wolf continue to fret over him, he’d never seen Wolf so upset before, it left a guilty feeling in his gut he’d never felt before, and nor did he want to experience it again. But it felt nice knowing that someone cared.
“What are you doing alone all the way up here?” Wolf asked, Winter sometimes had a nasty habit of not telling him these kinds of things. Wolf’s love for him was unwavering, they’d spent countless hours hanging around each other, Wolf knew things about Winter he’d never let another soul know, and vice versa. Even if he was a little bit stupid sometimes. However, he’d never understand how someone so cold-to-the-touch could make him feel so warm, inside and out.
“Y’know how deer shed their antlers every year, specifically around like early spring–late winter..?”
“Aye,” Wolf responded, “Now that you mention it, I find a lot of broken off ones when I go out, I bring the ones I find back to the village. If they're fully intact at least. The villagers repurpose them into tools or handles I think… Why?”
Trying to scrub the dried blood off with just his thumb licked wet was tedious, nor did he want to poke Winter in the eye accidentally with his claws. Wolf was sure he had something somewhere on him that he could clean Winter up with; and he’d be right – grabbing a handkerchief from his pocket, he walked down to the stream to soak it thoroughly, before continuing with trying to clean him.
Winter held onto his lone antler, even now, no matter how hard he tried, damn thing still wouldn't budge. “Same thing happens to me, always has.”
Wolf raised an eyebrow, going back to the stream to rinse out the old blood. “Does it hurt?” He asked, ringing out the cloth before continuing to clean Winter.
“What do you think?” He’d remark sarcastically, rolling his eyes.
“I could head back to my village and leave you out here.” Wolf snarked, even if it was an empty threat.
Winter puffed, not fighting the grooming. They both sat there in the snow for a while, Wolf cleaning up the last few remnants of Winter's blood. It felt nice but he still couldn’t help but feel embarrassed. He’d never push Wolf away, but he came up here alone for a reason. He missed his other antler – and even though he was shirtless – without it, he hated feeling so exposed; especially around Wolf. Winter wondered if he felt like he burdened him sometimes, he’d eyed the bow and quiver full of unused arrows around Wolf’s back, he was supposed to be out hunting right? And because of him he’d probably come back empty handed.
“But to answer your question, sometimes they do. When it's time for them to shed, the feeling in them kinda fades, which makes the process pretty easy,” he’d explain, reminiscing on his last years shed, they complied easily, which couldn’t be said for his current situation. If only such luck remained. Winter sighed. “This year's shed clearly didn’t go to plan.” Wolf hummed in agreement, staying silent and focused on the conversation whilst he let Winter explain. He tended to do that a lot, overexplain things to justify his actions over things he couldn’t control, a habit he didn’t think Winter realised he did, a lot.
“But yeah… it's just a natural part of life, a part of the cycle of all living things–all that stuff,” Winter hooked a digit around a section of his damp hair and twirled it around his finger. “Don’t worry though, they’ll grow back big and strong, just you wait.” He did a goofy smile up at Wolf, who was just about done with wiping off the blood. He’d look down at Winter, seeing how soggy yet positive he still was, the only word he could think of to describe him was dopey.
It made him snicker, “I’ll be waiting then.” He pecked a little kiss on Winter's scrubby clean forehead, messing up his hair right after for good measure.
Wolf went to lay down in the snow, bringing his hands up and interlocking them behind his head, propping up his leg onto the other, letting Winter put back his shirt on and splay out on the ground beside him. It was silent, but not uncomfortable. Wolf listened intently to the wind billowing softly through the trees and the trickling stream passing through the clearing. ‘The stars seem to be extra bright tonight.’ Wolf thought, staring up at the clear sky, there were a few constellations he could recognise and a few that seemed to be new, at least to him. He hadn’t really had the time to just sit out under the stars anymore. Wolf breathed in and out, taking in the chilly air, and adjusted his position in the snow. He was chilling, but not relaxing.
He’d still have to find something to hunt down for the village… Wolf frowned, closing his eyes. ‘Not now.’ He thought, he just wanted to stay with Winter for the time being and let nothing else matter, even if it was only for a little while. He wanted to look over at Winter and see how he was doing, but Wolf hesitated, remembering how embarrassed he was without his other antler; how he scrambled to hide his asymmetrical appearance. So he continued to lay in the snow, resting his eyes. Simply enjoying the presence of Winter beside him.
Brother Winter on the other hand was thinking about the ending of winter and start of spring, it’d stay cold in his lands, but patches of snow would start melting back into the earth. He’d glance over at Wolf, not in a creepy way, although anyone watching would probably assume so. It was more of a look of appreciation, a look of admiration and curiosity. ‘Is he asleep?’ He wondered, being a God; Winter never needed rest in ways mortals did.
He’d use the opportunity to quietly scooch over and give him a small kiss back, a small peck on the cheek; before resting his head on Wolf’s stomach; a hand on his chest. He’d notice Wolf’s natural body heat, it was foreign; but still comforting, considering the source. Brother Winter obviously preferred the cold, frigid climate his land encompassed; he'd rarely had a chance to experience the heat and warmth of the lands of Sister Summer, or Mother Spring. But maybe this time he didn't mind the warmth, if it meant he could lay next to Wolf.
Wolf however, heard the rustle of moving snow, and soon felt a chilling tenderness spread onto his cheek and then torso. The culprit being Winter of course. It was sudden, but gladly welcomed, yet a stark contrast to the natural heat of his body; he’d lost count of the amount of times he’d been described as an oven by the villagers in his town, especially with the lack of wool attached to him.
But Wolf didn’t mind the cold Winter emitted, if it meant he could lay next to Winter.
Unintentionally, they both glanced at each other at the same time, then laughed loudly in an uncontrollable cackle. But being this close… Winter noticed Wolf's sharp and toothy grin, a sight he’d rarely seen. He knew how self-conscious the villagers made him because of his teeth, and he’d admit, meeting him for the first time he couldn’t help but consider the guy a bit eerie, but anyone with a brain should know not to judge someone by their looks. Winter remembered the word Wolf used to say how he felt had been ostracised. They’d even carelessly comment on his ear and eyes, calling them irregular. And his long nails, calling them dangerous.
Winter however, knew full well they were full of rubbish.
Irregular? Dangerous? They couldn’t be more wrong, the man smiling and laughing before him was anything but, he was handsome, sweet, and sincere.
It didn’t take long for Wolf to notice Winter’s glancing at his teeth, he’d quickly go to try and cover them with one of his paws, almost out of habit. But before he could, Winter gently grabbed the wrist of the arm Wolf had taken out from under his head, and cupped it against his cheek, kissing it softly. Wolf’s cheeks flushed, he wasn't exactly able to move from where he was laying down with Winter on his chest and his hand against his face, but he couldn’t help avoiding eye contact with him.
“Hey,” Winter whispered, cosying up to Wolf further. The heat from the hunter's body emanated strongly now that his face was mere centimetres away from him, Winter relished in taking a good look at Wolf’s striking red eyes and pretty face; he’d grin, now it was Wolf’s turn to be stuck in a discomposing spot. “I love you.”
Wolf blinked, looking back at Winter. He’d bite at the inside of his lip, trying his best not to smile but he couldn’t help it; even his tail started to betray him as it began to audibly swish about and wag in the fluffy snow. Winter laughed, relaxing his head into the crook of Wolf’s neck, it was rare for him to be all excitable, but Brother Winter was sure that if he persisted he’d explode.
Once Wolf finally settled, he’d cozy up to Winter, wrapping his arms around his lover as non-chalantly as he could muster. It was quiet, but with the combination of the stream, the whistle of the wind–they’d both look up from the snowy floor of the clearing, it seemed like the stars were extra bright that night.