Winter's Apex
Winter's Apex
By
DireWolf
Ch1: Shatter The Cold Snap
Apex scurried through the lodge's large, wood framed doors, dropping his bags at his sides and standing shivering in the entryway. With snowflakes still clinging to the top of his red muzzle, he shook his fluffy, black-tipped tail back and forth to expunge any residual flakes of snow. Holding his arms tightly around his heavy blue coat, his ears flickered back and forth, trying to shake off the cold winter weather. His bright green, half-opened eyes scanned the lobby; after a few quick blinks they had thawed enough for him to begin taking in his surroundings.
The lodge's woodsy and naturalistic aesthetic was predominating despite its modern features. The walls, paneled entirely in wood, featured large, elongated mirrors hung on the right side of the hallway. The mirrors gave the room the feel of one twice its size and served to supplement the halls soft light. Recessed lighting fixtures spanned the length of the walls on either side, as well as in the center of each section of foot-deep vaulted ceiling down the hallway. On the left, a sturdy table and chair set constructed from thick pine and green satin stood halfway down the hall with a bright, abstract painting hung above it. Past the table and chairs, Apex viewed the long, decorated counter of the front desk. A female husky, garbed in the hotel's pine-green and white employee shirt, looked up at Apex's entrance with a curious and welcoming expression.
Quite the contrast from your average hotel. Apex ran a shaky paw along the knotted pine of the door frame next to him, still shivering slightly from the cold_._
Had the lodge been located anywhere else, it would have felt more artificial than warm, as though industrious teams of Pottery Barn employees had been called in to produce the desired effect. Here, however, in these snow-covered mountains it felt like home.
The sound of Orion's voice from behind the fox cut through his ruminations.
"I didn't come all the way to Colorado to sleep in a doorway. Are you going to move or am I going to have to carry you the front desk?"
Apex turned and noticed he was blocking the tiger's path, who in turn was preventing his other two friends from escaping the weather's icy cold embrace.
"Sorry about that," muttered Apex.
Slightly embarrassed, he picked up his bags and walked briskly with his companions to the front desk where the waving, husky clerk cheerfully greeted them.
"Welcome to the White Pine Lodge, home of the whitest slopes in Breckenridge. Do you guys have a reservation?" The perky and rather attractive husky smiled warmly as she looked to Apex for a reply. Her green eyes and long, blond hair shimmered in the desk's soft light.
"Oh, yeah." Apex returned her smile. "It should be under Davenport. Apex Davenport."
"What about the weather?" Both the clerk and Apex turned their attention at Dante's question. "I hope it's not going to be this miserable the whole time." The lynx's face held a perturbed and questioning look, awaiting the Husky's response as he shook and brushed the snow from his fur and coat.
"Yeah, it's really cold out there," added Relic. The jackal, being rather on the thin side, was still noticeably shaking from their short time in the frigid outdoors. Apex was hardly surprised to see that the weather had been enough of a concern for his usually rather reserved friend to chime in.
The cute husky, clearly not shaken in the least by Dante's blunt question, was quick with her reply. "As it happens you guys are really lucky. Tonight is the tail end of this cold front, and it's been through here for the past week and a half. It's been making the roads around here pretty treacherous. By tomorrow afternoon, though, the wind should clear up. We might even see some sunny skies for a change." She ends with a satisfied and somewhat coquettish look about her; even taking a moment to run a paw through her blond hair as she looked to Dante for further questions. Apex smirked as he looked from the husky to Dante and saw him grin while looking a bit flustered.
"Oh, well, cool. That should be perfect then," the words stumbling a bit as the lynx's gaze met hers.
"Well," said the husky, regaining Apex's attention before continuing. "Everything here seems in order. How many room keys do you need?"
"You better give us four of them. Better safe than locked out, you know," replied Apex, only too late realizing the embarrassing folly of his words. The husky, however, merely smiled back politely.
"Alright then." She bent down and dug around for something underneath the desk, returning with four bright blue pass cards. She ran each through what looked to be something akin to a credit card machine as she typed on the desk's computer. "Okay, you're in room 17. Just take this main corridor," she pointed opposite of where they had entered. "Take your first left and it should be about halfway down that hall." Flashing them another congenial smile, she handed the four cards to Apex who in turn distributed them amongst the rest of his party. With luggage in paw, they filed out of the lobby and toward their room.
As their entourage moved out of the lobby and through the adjacent hallway, Apex turned to look into the lodge's spacious lounge as they walked past. He received only a quick glimpse of its interior and the few individuals residing there before his attention was diverted.
"This place is always the best!" exclaimed Orion. "It makes all the other places out here look like dirty Vegas whore houses in comparison. Every time I've been here they've always put on some sort of awesome something over break."
"Well I'm certainly glad to hear that," interjected Relic. "I hate it when places forget to have a something." Relic gives an impish grin as Orion swiveled around with a hint of disdain in his glare.
"Yeah, those places with shitty somethings just don't stack up," chimed in Dante sarcastically, not wanting to miss a chance to throw his oar in.
"Yeah whatever. You two'll see," retorted Orion.
The group arrived at the first hallway which was opposite both a stair case and long row of large plate-glass windows looking out over the snow fields. Pausing for a moment to read the room number sign mounted on the wall and glance out the large windows, they turned down the hallway.
"Did you see that?" enthusiastically inquired a giddy Dante after they turned the corner. "She was totally hitting on me, and damn was she hot. Did you see her?"
Dante looked anxiously to Apex for affirmation. Apex gave a laugh before replying. "You mean the husky at the counter? Yeah, I think I might have noticed her as she was standing right in front of me."
"Ha ha," returned Dante sarcastically. "She was gorgeous, and I'm going to do all I can to get with her while I'm here."
"Why bother?" cut in Orion.
"Huh?"
"Well, it was clear that she was hitting on me, so it's not like you'd have much of a chance anyway." Dante glanced over to see a sly expression emerging across Orion's visage.
"You wish. Too bad you're no match for all my sexiness. You saw she couldn't take her eyes off me."
Apex heard Relic let out an exasperated snicker and rolled his eyes as his friends competitive and playful natures collided in full force.
The clash of egos came to an end as Apex located their room and threatened to leave the quarreling pair locked out if they didn't desist with their squabbling. In short order he had door opened and stepped in. Holding the heavy door open, pass card in muzzle and back against the door, Apex let his bags drop heavily to the floor next to him as his friends piled in. As the door swung shut behind him, Apex sluggishly made his way past the bathroom and over to the second bed at the far side of the room. Throwing himself limply onto it, he laid back into the soft, cream colored sheets and let out a deep sigh as his fluffy tail and tired legs draped lifelessly over the end of the bed. Lying there, Apex stared upward. The blank ceiling met his gaze as everyone else began unpacking and generally settling in.
The room, he noticed, was very much like the rest of the hotel in as much as it resembled a log cabin. Surprisingly, despite the cold weather outside, the room was warm and comforting. The walls looked to be made from pine logs, as did the bed. The wooden floor was covered in ample quantities of rugs, accenting the decor nicely. The room was exceptionally well lit, though not a single bulb could be seen as Apex continued his cursory examination. All the lights were recessed; even the three lamps around the room were designed and positioned to prevent any harsh light reaching the eyes. The bathroom, or at least what he had noticed of it as he passed by, seemed to have a counter made of white and black-speckled marble with a floor of large tan and ash colored tiles.
Turning his muzzle away from the door, Apex observed Relic reclining in one of the large, comfortable looking chairs next to the room's wooden table and broad window. As he watched, Relic pulled a rather thick, black sketch book from his carry-on bag and returned to drawing in it, as he had for the majority of the flight. Apex turned back toward Orion and Dante who were resting on the other bed, an amused smile replacing his previously blank expression.
"So what about that stewardess on the plane? Wasn't that great?"
"Oh yeah," replied Dante, a wide grin spread across his face. "That was priceless. If it wasn't enough to see her spill orange juice on you," Dante turned to look to the now surly Orion. "The way you would spaz out and cover your head when she'd walk by had me crying I was laughing so hard."
"Me too," added a laughing Apex, covering his eyes with a paw at the thought. "That was so wrong though, you should have seen the way she would blush when you did that. She was mortified."
"Yeah, but it was really funny," laughed Orion at the thought. "Besides, seemed more than fair since I was the one covered in orange juice."
"Yeah, it was mean, but pretty funny stuff all the same." Apex turned back to catch Relic chuckling behind his sketch book despite his best efforts to hide it.
Relic's expression turned quickly from congenial to surprised as the sound of a knock came from their door. Apex turned, ears perked, only to have his gaze met by the equally confused looks from the silenced Orion and Dante.
"What is that, like, room service or something?" asked Orion, looking to Apex still sprawled out on the bed. Giving a shrug as best he can from his position, Apex offers little in the way of an explanation. "You tell me, you're the one that's been here before." After returning the shrug, Orion hopped off the bed and opened the door. Everyone tried to adjust themselves to get a better view of the person at the door. Their curiosity deepened as none of them recognized the thin skunk with a vaguely apathetic expression who stood before Orion. Wearing light-blue and white winter wear, the skunk, with a 'Y' shaped white stripe running up his forehead and a large fluffy tail, gave a smile as Orion opened the door.
"Oh, hey, how's it going?" the skunk became more animated at Orion's presence. "I'm in the room just down the hall. I saw that you guys just got in and figured you probably hadn't heard about the party later, so I thought I'd say hi and pass the info along."
This new information seized Dante's attention. With ears perked he moved closer to listen more attentively. "What party?" inquired Dante.
The skunk peered past Orion, his tail holding its position despite the motion, to view Dante more clearly. "The lodge is putting on a free dinner for all the guests tonight about seven. After that there's supposed to be, like, a social in the main lounge."
"See? Free dinner, party in the lounge, this is what I was talking about." Orion flashed the room a smug, excited expression, emphatically trying to quash any remaining doubts they may have had about the lodge's superb quality.
"Yeah, so uh, see you there if you guys show." The skunk gave a smile and a small wave as he started to leave. Just before he departed, a thought struck him and he returned to the open portal. "Oh, and uh, by the way, I'm CP."
"Orion. This one's Dante, the one on the bed is Apex, and the quiet one in the corner back there is Relic." Each of them gave recognition at their name and exchanged succinct pleasantries with their new acquaintance.
"Cool, see ya all around." CP gave another meager wave before heading off down the hall. Closing the door, Orion continued his enthusiastic discussion with a now equally excited Dante.
"See, the people here are awesome. It's like you get to know everyone while you're here. I bet I'll run into some people from last year..." Orion's voice seemed to trail off as Apex turned back toward the window, too tired to pay attention to the giddy exclamations. His muzzle opened wide and his long tongue rolled out as he yawned and curled up on the bed, his heavy eyes closed and ears laying back.
"You guys can go do whatever you want," comments a thoroughly bushed Apex. "I'm going to try and rest at least a little if we're going to all that stuff later." Dismissing Orion's "wuss" comments, Apex made himself comfortable on the bed and let his thoughts wander aimlessly. His friends continued their conversation and various businesses, failing to disturb Apex despite their close proximity. Before long he found his breathing had slowed and his consciousness replaced by a peaceful slumber.
***
Waking in a bit of a stupor, Apex stirred and blinked several times, waiting for his vision to clear. He yawned and stretched as he turned to face the rest of the room. Inspecting it from where he lay, he became distinctly aware of its lack of companions.
That's strange. I wonder where they all went. They wouldn't have left without me. Apex sat up on the side of the bed, trying to figure out where everyone could be. As he sat there, scratching an ear and rolling the perplexing situation over in his head, the door opened. Looking up at the abrupt intrusion, expecting to see one of his cohorts, Apex was considerably surprised by the quite attractive vixen he found standing in their stead. Slender, with shimmering sanguine hair, the elegant vixen sported the hotel's green and white-topped uniform in at least one size too small for her busty frame. Tilting her head slightly and resting a paw on the door frame, she gave the still addled Apex a sultry look. As she spoke, Apex found himself lost in the enchanting and tranquil quality of her words.
"Good evening Mr. Davenport, I trust you are having a pleasant time here. The lodge is very pleased that you have chosen to stay with us and would like to take this opportunity to show it's... appreciation." She paused before the last word floated out. As she did so, she turned, with a sly, amused smile, to face the hallway. She extended her arm with paw open in a presenting fashion, and then walked slowly away in the same direction. In her place came a strikingly handsome, crimson colored wolf. As he casually sauntered in, it was as though Apex was privy to a singularly heightened awareness, allowing him a wholly undiminished view of the shirtless wolf's sturdy frame. The wolf's green eyes glimmered in the room's soft light as he flashed Apex a roughish grin. Sitting quiescently on the bed, Apex, still quite confounded, could do little more than let his muzzle hang slightly ajar. The crimson wolf, amused by Apex's befuddlement, leaned back against the door frame, striking a seductive pose. His firm body and well-groomed fur were unmistakable, and he blushed ever so slightly as he saw Apex taking notice. With paws hanging on the sides of his tight, blue, denim jeans, he tugged teasingly at them, dragging them slowly down his waist. Doing so, it became readily apparent that the wolf lacked any under apparel, and as a result the gentle, supple curves of his lower body were fast becoming exposed.
"Apex, come on, I'm ready to go."
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Next chapter : Lets get this party started!
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