Sex: FemaleThe mother had been taking her time in trying to finish what she needed to do for the pack, so that when she was done, there would be no question as to whether or not she would be able to spend time with her children or not. Recently, she had noticed that one of her pups, Silentium, had been quite slow when it came to learning from her other pups, as a healer, it concerned her to think that there would have been something wrong with his brain, but as the days progressed, it became increasingly obvious to her expertise: her son was deaf. Or well, he was half deaf. If her son had been completely unable to hear, he wouldn't have been able to talk at all, but he had been lucky, and Nina had to thank the heavens that he was alright.
She knew that blindness ran in her family, but not deafness. She could only assume that it had come from Hollow's side of the family. Sighing softly, the mother eventually made her way through her territory, making her way towards the second born of her most current litter. Her golden tail flicked behind her as she made her way towards where her child would be, and when she came into the sights of the dark boy, a light smile spread across her lips. He reminded her of Hollow, and though she missed him dearly, she knew that his children were the only thing that he would have left of them. It upset her but she knew it was what she had, and that she should be thankful. So, with hope, Nina called out her son's name so that he could know that she was there.
Silentium had found himself what was in his mind the perfect stick. It was thick enough that it wouldn't break in the first bite, but not so thick that he wouldn't eventually be able to break it either; it was perfect. It had quickly become his new hobby, finding and chewing on these sticks. Truthfully it wasn't the chewing thought that pleased him so much, it was the sound when it finally broke. They were almost always loud enough that he could hear them clearly and the sound was so definitive, it brought him great pride to be able to identify a sound without help. So he chewed and chewed and snapped and snapped, joyous each time that yes, he did hear it correctly and yes he knew what that sound was.
So here he was, chewing on the stick and concentrating so hard on the sound he knew it would make that he caught the sound of footsteps coming closer. Typically when he was at alert and concentrating he heard about the same amount as a wolf who was relaxing or at ease. When he was at ease well, he might as well be asleep for all that he heard. Still, today he was concentrating and he heard the sound of pawsteps before his mother even called out his name. After quickly using his nose to identify the approaching wolf as his mum, a necessary precaution Silentium always took the boy raced towards the sound.
Breaking through the underbrush he created quite the racket of snapping twigs and branches, something he took note of to try later. Crying out with joy as he did, "Mum! Mum!" It was one of the few words he had mastered, and when he called for her it would be almost impossible to know about his disability. That would come later when he attempted other words, ones he used less frequently, with the long drawn out syllables. Like a baby. He had come to hate the sound of his voice and so he rarely used it, and when he did it often surprised those around him. Greeting his mother joyfully he wove through her legs, their blonde pelts running together almost identical in colour.
She was pleased to see and hear her boy running towards her. Calling out to her was one thing that she knew he could do well, and enunciate clearly. However, other words that his siblings had already mastered seemed to be lost on him and Nina knew it would be difficult for him to be able to develop due to his hearing disability. Unfortunately, it would also effect the way he would be able to speak. She was glad that her son seemed to enjoy her company, and had no qualms with bending down to assure her affections when he was near. She hummed a familiar pitch of greeting to the young boy, something she had started quite awhile ago when she had figured out that he had a hearing problem. The vibrations that came from her throat were enough to communicate between them, and Nina was thankful for that.
Even though he had a disability, Silentium was still growing just as fast as the rest of his siblings, and she truly did hope that her boys were getting along. With her duties as leader back in full swing, she still tried to keep her single eye on her children, but most of the time, she never found them together. She looked down at her second born son in the litter and spoke gently to him, ever the patient saint, ”How are you, my dear?” She spoke the words slowly and clearly, trying her best to make sure her son would understand what she was saying to him. When he got older and began to learn more, he might have a better time communicating with others, but Nina knew she was going to have to be there for him along the way.
So now buried within the thick fur of his mother's throat with the vibrations moving all through his body the blonde pup grinned brightly, humming back with enthusiasm. His mother always treated him the same as his brothers,though she had often made time just to spend with him which allowed him to feel a special bond, a familial tie that he felt he lacked with his brothers. Plopping his rump down upon the earth Silentium focused his emerald eyes reverently upon his mother, his tail thumping rapidly against the ground behind him. It took him a moment to realize that she had asked a question that needed a response rather than just a greeting and for a second he frowned trying to make sense of the jumbled words. Then he grinned brightly as he found a proper response, "Guh-ood Mum!" the boy wasn't embarrassed of his voice when the only person who could hear was his mum, and he was the most vocal when she was around.
The mother watched her son with pride and happiness as he took his time in deciding how he was going to answer her question. He truly was a bright boy despite his slight disability and Nina knew that in the end he would grow to be just as strong as his brothers. When he responded, she was not surprised by the lack of articulation of his words, it was one of the problems with his deafness, but he was a hard worker and much determined like his father and so Nina let him learn on his own. She tipped her head slightly, her response light and happy, ”Good, my darling.” She tilted her head slightly to the side and slide her paw above the ground slightly, a sign asking if he wanted to play.
Just because he couldn't hear, didn't mean he wasn't playful, and Nina knew that his siblings would often exclude him. Either because they did not want to hurt him or childhood bullying, but she knew that her children had kind hearts, even if they did often exclude their brother. Her chest rumbled in a growl that was quite playful, lowering herself down onto her hunches in front of him. The mother wanted him to have a memorable, happy childhood something that would be highly different from her former litter, none of which had remained in the Woodlands with her. To add onto that, they had lost their brother, and it had been a devastating experience for both of them, considering how young they had been. She would not make the same mistake with this litter. She would be prepared.
Perhaps it was a blessing that the boy had been born with his disability rather than having it come later in his life. The half silence was all that he knew and because of that he wasn't truly unhappy or realizing what he was missing. Sure, he knew his brothers could talk better than him and seemed to hear things before him but he didn't really understand why, he didn't feel broken. Though he was sensitive about the difference he wasn't depressed or defeated, if anything it made him more determined, more focused than his brothers were.
So much of Silentium's life was spent in solitude, trying to teach himself new skills that he rarely played, even though he would like to. Sometimes he would seek out @Iopah and ask to play the hare game, which had quickly became his favourite, even occasionally @Koda. The pup had a distrust of males ingrained in him, a result of not having a true male figure in his life, but the pale brute seemed okay.
Though that being said, Slentium would never turn down an opportunity to play, especially if it was with his Mum. Shrieking with glee the blonde pup leapt to his paws, batting at his mother's raised appendage before jumping back a few inches. Letting out his own return growl he slunk forward as Koda had taught him when they chased the rabbits, his whole body lowered to the ground. Suddenly he darted to his mother's side and head butted into her soft fur with a grunt, falling backwards the boy laughed, he had caught her!
She loved her boy dearly and as she watched him take on an all too familiar position, it was obvious who the boy had been spending time with. Her ex-lover, Koda, seemed to have spent some time with Silentium. Even though she would have preferred it have been someone else that her child had bonded with, it was something. The Hervok had noticed that Silentium did not take well to other males and it was good that he was at least spending time with someone. Lost in her thoughts, she hardly noticed that her son had gone on the offense, and due to his accomplishment of catching her off guard, the mother gave a fake moan of pain and collapsed against the ground, her voice calling out, "Oh goodness! You got me good!" She giggled, much like a child, her single emerald eye looking towards her second son of her second liter. He was such a good boy and Nina knew that in the end, when he grew older, he would accomplish great things. However, now was not a time for such thoughts. Her boy wanted to play. She pawed at him lightly, enjoying the game that they were playing together. She wished that they could stay young forever, that way she knew she wouldn't have to worry so much. But as a mother she knew...she would always be worried. None the less, that would not discourage her now as she spent time with her son. She hoped that he was having as much fun as she was, perhaps even more due to his child-like innocence. One thing Nina wished for, was for her other two sons to look out for their brother more and help him learn skills that needed to be learned. But the Hervok also knew the best way to do that was through trail and error. |
Dawnthieves.de - Table by PuppyThief |