It had been a little while now since the death of his uncle. That wasn't to say that things weren't still a bit off; his father had become distant, despondent even. @Nathaniel wasn't his usual brave and noble self either. Truth be told, Cernan had never considered himself to be incredibly close with the big silver man, but then again the walking puff of tawny fur was incredibly close to very few. He still felt the loss regardless, for Anthem had been there since their birth. He'd only very vague memories if any at all from back then, but he remembered Anthem. Anthem had been a nice wolf, and though Cernan had not seen it, he'd died. In truth the prince had not even seen the body, but the fact that his uncle had fallen down like prey and would never ever get up again was horrifying. Worst of all, was that it could happen to others as well. 

It wasn't as if he'd not been told that before, but now it was truly real. The knowledge only made him cling tighter to his sister's side. By now these thoughts had simmered down, but the reality of death would stick with him forever. The frigid winter air filled his nose and the boy blinked awake. Immediately he felt the lack and stood; @Neha wasn't in the den with him. The chubby pup padded clumsily toward the snowy entrance; eyes still a bit cloudy with sleep. His balance wasn't awake yet, but at least he didn't step on anybody. Cernan's blonde head popped out of the darkness, swiveling once before he saw the tracks. A quick sniff revealed that she wasn't far; perhaps getting a drink at the lake or the creek or something. Why did the princess always have to wake up before him anyway? With potential crisis averted the pup sighed. 



Still, maybe he ought to go check on her or something. Maybe they could play in the snow together. The lake child took a few steps out into the frozen flakes and shivered. He'd get used to it in a moment or two but winter was no fun in the morning. Then in his peripherals a swarthy form contrasted itself against the snow. Golden eyes shifted curiously her way, before he realized that this must have been the new kid. Suddenly they lowered, glancing away into the trees. She was much older than him; a near adult and hardly a kid by any standard – even if he was decently close to her height by now at seven months. Still, she'd most definitely already seen him, and if they shy pup tried to pretend he hadn't it would just get even more awkward. He looked back, keeping his eyes slightly away from hers in both respectful submission and timidness. 




The child wagged his fluffy tail a couple times with a brief greeting nod. "Hey," he managed shortly, daring to flick his pools up just once to gauge her reaction. It wasn't the most eloquent of greetings by any stretch and Cernan knew it. But that knowledge did nothing but make him feel more awkward. There was no escape, it seemed. 

Well, at least she didn't mind him being weird. Cernan watched as her plume-like tail replied in kind, and the gesture at least sort of helped ease his nerves. A single ear flicked up to take in her salutation. Pleasant enough. He had heard her name from his parents the night before, but hearing it from the girl's mouth herself was still a nice confirmation. He stood there a few seconds after the ebony youth had stopped speaking; before it suddenly hit the boy that he ought to answer her. Cernan lifted his head a little, flicking the tip of his tail against his hock. Talking to strangers was hard. 


"Cernan," he answered curtly, gazing up at her now and then. What are you, mute? his mind taunted. He could do this, she wasn't so scary. He was a prince, wasn't it about time he started to learn to talk to his pack? "Uhh," he stumbled, golden eyes flickering. After all, he couldn't just walk off and leave the conversation there could he? That was a little rude. He could catch up with Neha in a few minutes. And to be honest, he was curious about this new person. What if they had stories to tell, like Mama and Papa? 


Deciding that this was the line of talking he ought to do, Cernan moved a few strides closer. If they were going to have a conversation, it probably ought not be long distance. Finally the shy boy came to rest on his haunches in the snow, a question fluttering from his mouth as he did so. "Where ya from?" His youthful tone was filled with genuine curiosity, even if he was still nervous. 

He wasn't expecting the brief flicker of discomfort that surfaced in the yearling's eyes. Confusion dashed briefly across his face, along with another childish dose of curiosity. What was wrong? His wondering thoughts had to come to rest though; for the girl in question was already speaking. His fuzzy ears tipped forward; catching each of her utterances neatly, even if one in particular stood out. Yellowstone? Immediately the young boy questioned if this place really did have yellow rocks. Maybe he'd seen one once? Or maybe it had really been more orange in color; but either way rocks were usually not yellow, and that much was interesting. 



When she described the land it set his gears turning again. The only other places the lad had seen beyond his home were nothing like it at all; but then again, he probably hadn't ever wandered far enough to find them. With a bitter yet endearing internal huff, he supposed that @Neha surely would find the place one of these days. Once his new comapny's voice wore off he felt the urge rise again. He needed to ask; and the pup had little experience dealing with others pain in relation to their past. He knew some liked to talk about it and others didn't, but as far as not prying well, he was still a tad young to really hold back. 


His mouth pounced on the opportunity. "...Why'd you leave?" He asked, voice and expression soaked in wonder. He could never imagine wanting to leave this place; but strangers always seemed to have one reason or another. Maybe this one would be extra interesting. 

“Well I didn't really want to leave...” That much he guessed, but the age at which she said she had to do so made his yellow eyes get even bigger. He was too young to leave home! He couldn't even catch anything bigger than a bunny, how did she survive for so long? Then the story really began and the young boy was enraptured. It sounded a bit like something Neha would have done, especially when she was younger. The tale began to rise in drama and the pup's tawny ears drifted back. A monster? His brows lifted with worry, but the fear didn't stop there. 



It ate everything. His mind's eye couldn't conjure up anything scarier than a giant orange swan, or maybe a bear. Or a swan-bear. The Vuesain prince had never really been told about a fire, much less witnessed one. They were not common occurrence. Was this monster something that could attack his home too? The youth's tail wound tightly; protectively against his feet. No no no that would be terrible. What if it got to his family and made them fall down like Anthem, never to get up. Cernan's gaze dropped away to stare at the scene in his mind. It began to bristle the hairs on his neck, but they flattened as he heard her tone crumbling. The chubby pup looked up once more, catching sight of the moisture by her eyes. She was crying. 


Suddenly at a loss for what to do, his ears airplaned out to the sides and he glanced around nervously. He hadn't meant to make her cry. "Ah... I-I'm..." He tried to apologize, but something was already changing in her expression. Through the tears she was trying to smile at him, saying something about how it was okay because she was here now. But was this place safe from that monster she'd spoken of? Could ma and pa and Nate fight it off like they did the boar? He wasn't sure, and the uncertainty did not sit well. He wanted to go talk to them, to ask them about this thing, and he probably would later. 


Instead of doing anything sympathetic or helpful the quiet boy looked down. It was eating at him, the new fear forcing his goldenrod eyes back up toward hers. "Do you... do you think it could come here?" The youngest child's voice rose in pitch. She did say her home looked like his... What would he even do if everyone disappeared?