Mother was disappearing for longer periods of time which meant Orionis had more opportunities to stretch his stumpy little legs. He was always cautious, as he knew there were scary things beyond the den. His vision was getting better, day by day, as the blurry shapes became more defined. There were lots of tall shapes surrounding the hidden den… trees? Was that what they were called? A small frown pulled at the corners of his mouth as he shuffled forward, his little snout pointed to the sky as he observed the tall, sinewy trees. The orb in the sky was less bright today; easier on his navy irises. It was more cloudy than it had been, which worried the boy. He did not know why, but it felt wrong. Uncomfortable. It did not, however, deter him from exploring.

He did not go far. A few tail lengths away from the mouth of the den, his pudgy body bouncing around the clearing as he chased a leaf. An unfamiliar sound caught him by surprise as he collapsed against the ground, his paws stretched out beneath him as he turned to look behind him. Four fuzzy creatures had been following him, their strange, splayed feet stamping excitedly against the ground. He blinked curiously, his soft features tightening as his head twisted from side to side. They seemed okay… small, like him… not at all threatening. He collected himself and shuffled backward, causing the four ducklings to follow him with excited chirps escaping their oddly shaped muzzles. A smile broke across his inky maw as he spun around and began marching around the clearing once more, causing the ducklings to spring into action and follow dutifully behind him.

A gleeful smile sprawled across his dark features as he pranced around the little clearing with his fuzzy friends following close behind him. He didn’t know where they had come from, nor did he care. They weren’t scary and didn’t appear to be a threat to him, which made them the perfect playmates. The boy hadn’t realized, until now, how lonely he had been. Sure, he had momma, but he didn’t have any siblings to pester. And momma had to take care of him, which meant she needed to leave to find food and make sure the bad things stayed away. The ebony youth was comfortable being on his own, and usually spent most of his time hanging around the mouth of the den, but today he had friends! Today was a good day, and he couldn’t wait to tell his momma about the fuzzy creatures.

But the thought caused his steps to falter and nearly sent the boy face-first into the soft ground. Would momma get mad at him for leaving the den and making friends? He hadn’t gone far… he was literally right outside… surely momma wouldn’t get mad at him for that… He gave his head a little shake and continued his march with he ducklings in tow, and remained blissfully unaware of the orange eyes watching him from a distance…

The ebony boy was in absolute bliss stomping around with his troop of ducklings when he heard a strange voice call out through the trees. The only thing familiar about it was that it spoke his name. Orionis. That was him—but who else knew him other than momma?! He’d only been exposed to the inky Baranski during his short life (as he did remember the trio of wolves that helped his mother evade coyotes on the day of his birth). Nobody knew his name but momma.

He shrunk away from the voice, his ears folding against his crown as he stumbled backward. His denim blues landed on an unfamiliar (big, scary) tawny blob. The voice, while foreign to the boy, sounded nice. But he was not sure. Momma told him to stay clear of strangers and keep to the den. Orionis always tried to be a good boy and listen to momma… would she get mad at him for attracting a stranger to the den? What if… what if they had to leave?! Was it all his fault?

He swallowed, his little body trembling as he suctioned himself to the ground. Friends. That was a good word, but the boy wasn’t sure what the big blob was talking about.