With most attempts at exploration thwarted, it only made Marianna Lagina more determined to burst free from her jail cell and meet the world head on. She was agog with enthusiasm for life, and no amount of being returned to her mother's den would extinguish her bright spark. At the moment, she sought to take advantage of her brothers' distraction to slip out of the mouth of their tiny cave – they were good for many things, such as keeping her warm or making a nice pillow – but at the moment, they were louder than the young puppy cared for. Only this morning her ears had begun to stand up properly, and all at once the world seemed so much left muffled.

Distancing herself from Draven and Kino, the young cub waddled away from the soft nest their mother provided. This time, she chose to veer in a different direction. Her nose was twitching wildly, developing more by the day, and each scent proved to be an exciting new realization. Some were enticing, some were ugly, but they all deemed to be smelt, and she was eager to follow them and find the source. Today, something sweetly caught her attention, and the chunky lass toddled away from the den without a second thought. With no adult looming overhead to stop her, the young wolf picked her way over rocks and around boulders as she stumbled forward, singularly focused on following her nose. It wasn't an accurate science, not yet, but it was an adventure she wanted to partake in all the same.

Gent had just re-entered the territory, having returned from scouting the farther lying perimeter to ensure that nothing nor no one was encroaching upon their territory. As things were, they seemed to be completely isolated for miles all around, and that suited the man just fine. He had come upon a river while undergoing this task, and had found a handful of oddly colored pebbles, some vibrant reds, blues, and greens while others were nearly translucent. Carrying them on his tongue, his first priority was to visit Minka and the pups. While he'd been gone only a day and a half, he'd missed the children terribly and they were the first thing he wanted to see now that he had returned.



As he approached the vicinity, the wind brought to him tell-tale signs that something wasn't right; Ari wasn't where she was supposed to be. Instead, her fresh puppy scent was a bit of a ways away from their earthly shelter, and on the move. Gent's paced increased sharply as he veered off his intended course with the aim of intercepting the little girl.



When he found her, his rushed steps slowed down into cautious stalking, intending to remain unseen as he watched her determinedly wander. Pride tickled his chest as he noticed that her gait, while still wobbly, was a little more stable than the last time he'd seen her just days before. Still he marveled at how quickly they learned and developed. After a moment of pure awe of her valiant venturing, he turned his eyes skyward and then all about them as he became very alert to any signs of predators. He wanted to allow her to continue, to see where she could go and let her learn more of the world. However, the longer they walked, the more he realized he needed to be cautious of; he counted all the different types of animals that might try to snatch her up, the plant life she could get into, the different ways she could hurt herself. Anxiety built up within him until he couldn't take it anymore, and gave up his cover to step in front of the child.



"Where do you think you're going?" he spoke through the minute rocks in his mouth as he effectively blocked her path.

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So fascinated was the russet pup by the barrage of smells and sounds, she hadn't noticed the scent of a packmate permeating the air nearby. Her young mind was whirling with all the possibilities when a shadow suddenly strode in front of her, stopping the pup dead in her tracks. Blinking, Ari gazed upwards – perhaps such a large, menacing creature might have scared another wolf, but the child recognized the dark beast as one that often visited herself and her family among the den. Even when her vision was still fuzzy, his dark pelt distinguished him from other family members, but Minka's daughter had no need to fear. This male had never ushered anything but safety from the outside world.

Her stumpy tail wagged behind her as she tumbled forward, brushing up against one of Gent's tall legs as she sat upon a front paw. Puppy blue eyes sparkled with delight, her little ears wobbling as she crooned happily. He sounded funny today! Not only was he less muffled than he was only a day or two ago, her ears still folded against her skull, but the rocks changed the pitch and tone (though she had no idea he was using his jaws to carry anything).

Instead, Marianna only made a chirping sound before getting back to her feet, toddling underneath the guardian's sturdy frame as she continued her wayward journey through the territory of Round Stone Crest. "Kreeeee!" she babbled happily, wiggly body still wagging as she plodded onwards, clearly expecting Gent to either allow this behavior or accompany her upon her quest.

The touch was a welcome one, the young puppy leaning into the adult's muzzle like the most natural thing in the world. Gent was as safe as Minka was, almost as permanent a fixture. He might not have been present in her world when she was deaf and blind, but her eyes and ears had opened – the only female in the litter was well away the shadow often lurked outside their den. Where the alpha female never had any issue with the guardian's presence, her daughter would find no reason to raise a fuss, either.

So when her fumbling steps were suddenly mirrored, it was not the terror of a shadow, but the safety and warmth of a well-loved blanket. Ari trundled forward bravely, absolutely taken with the world around her. Each color seemed like a new sensation, each smell tickled her nose with delight or disgust. She remained blissfully unaware when her shepherd began to herd her back towards the heart of their territory, happy to pad along between thick, strong legs.

And then, suddenly, there was something else. Gent had no way of knowing the little one had already taken up a fascination with rocks, but the little treasure was met with a croon of delight. "Gggggg!" Ah, but he was her hero! Her clumsy pace broke into an even more unwieldy trot. Marianna tripped over her paws once, not grown into the large pads, but it seemed not to phase her in the least. Scrambling upwards, she shook out her pelt as she happened upon the first stone, eagerly putting it in her mouth. Would the red pebble taste different than the ordinary, gray one she'd been chewing on earlier?

The smooth pebble, as far as Ari was concerned, was absolutely amazing. It was like nothing she'd ever experienced before – not only was it much smoother than her previous pebble, but it was red. And red, the young wolf was beginning to learn, was absolutely delectable. It was nothing like the other rock, nor the awful piece of grass. The taste was nothing like her mother's milk and, as delicious as that was, it paled in comparison to her newest discovery. So fascinated was she, the young female almost missed it when her guardian began to deposit more of the colored stones.

The green one went neglected, the puppy content with her first treasure, when the blue one caught her eye. Pausing, she allowed the first stone to fall from her mouth before getting to her feet. Marianna paddled over to the newest piece of gravel, leaning down to press it against her wet nose. Finding the shade of sky pleased, the cub gave it a few licks to assess before shifting her gaze back up to her friendly shadow.

"Ggggg!" she babble happily, a smile in her eyes as her entire body wriggled with the effort invested in wagging her stumpy tail. For a moment, she abandoned her prizes all together, trying to brush up against the male's legs. Unable to reach even his chest, the young Lagina tried to rear up on her hind legs that she might reach Gent's muzzle. Instead, she toppled backwards with a startled yelp, landing on her back. It took a few flails, but she eventually got her chunky body turned upright before she sat, covered in flecks of grass and dust as she stared up, wide-eyed.

The grooming was as soothing as it was familiar, luring the young child into a much more sleepy state that she was before. Half-lidded eyes did not notice her guardian's shadow shift, nor his nose move, so when she was shoved, Gent was met with a startled squeak. It was not fear in her sky blue eyes but pure shock, quickly taken over by joy and excitement when the game suddenly changed. The cold nose on her sensitive belly was met with squeals and gurgles, fat paws thumping against the bridge of the male's muzzle until she was given relief and released from the grips of laughter.

Slowly rolling back onto her belly, her little sides heaved as she caught her breath and glanced upwards towards the elder wolf. As if she read his mind, a large yawn rolled through her entire body, shuddering from the tip of her tail all the way down to the points of her ears. Jaw shutting with a tiny click, she returned to her feet much more slowly the second time. The spring was missing from her step. Marianna placed herself next to the black wolf, and before long, she'd sprawled back out across his large paw, equally as content to take a nap out in the open as she was back in her natal nest.

After all, her shadow was here. As long as Gent was here, she'd never know harm. The idea of sleeping against his leg did not so much as phase her – but it was uncomfortable. And it was this discomfort that slowly motivated the toddler to her feet one last time, and sent her lumbering for her den with a lazy gate and a noodly tail. Eventually, she'd get there, and then as the king predicted, it would be nap time.

Exit.