Nomads Pass Highway Star

Minor pp for @Aponi, let me know if ya want it changed; I can promise Thorpe won't/doesn't crush her or anything of the sort. <3

One by one the wolves of Nomads Pass heeded their Queen's summons. After Nebet, Asta, and Taima - to whom he chuffed approvingly once she paid him her respect - the second Aquila princess appeared in addition to Sagacity and their ward, Mercy. Like Naira had suggested Crowe did not show up and the monarch began to declare why she had asked the pack to gather here by her birthing den. Having stealthily spied on @Rais and eavesdropped on two occasions when he and @Datura had had some "bonding" time, Mapplethorpe assumed the duo had gone off on their own agenda. While it seemed Taima was still anxious without her prince as a sort of social crutch, the mottled Advisor was rather glad that the two were finally starting to find their places among the adult ranks of the family.

A trace of a smile appeared on the Advisor's face as he looked from face to face, watching them as they absorbed Naira's words and what exactly she had found and planned. When she stopped and allowed the silence to come rushing over the gathering, he looked over to her, meeting her gaze. At present, he had nothing else to add. Any mention of Rhysis, Adonis, and Valiant at this time was definitely something he did not want to get into; and, as it stood, each and every member who had promptly shown up seemed to be serving their pack quite well by his standards. Perhaps next time when they met and the cubs were old enough to fully comprehend the concept of rules, he would find something to commend or make note of. As for Crowe, he had already made up his mind in meeting him at the border or as close to it as he possibly could if Naira was not already thinking of it.

He nodded, granting her his permission to lead on. A communal den was beneficial, he kept telling himself and, at least, she had mentioned to him before that there were smaller caverns within the network of caves. It had occurred to him that he might miss his lifeless tree, but something else made a point that if Naira's words were true (and he was certain they were) he could wander over to it in the night if the new sleeping quarters proved to be too stuffy or cold for him.

Upon seeing his nod, Naira stood up, clutched Nova in her jowls and began to ascend further up into the mountainous terrain. Though he dared to even think of suggesting that one of Naira's handmaids carry Aponi, Mapplethorpe immediately cast the idea away. Once he was up on all four feet, he took one fluid move over to Naira's other daughter and gently lifted her up, her torso snug between his ivory teeth. He was quick to fall into step at his sovereign's flank and was taken by surprise that within a matter of minutes they were already there. As Naira moved into the cave, Mapplethorpe placed Aponi down beside her sister and gently swept his nose and lips over them both in hopes that they would stay put until everyone else made it inside to check things out. His Queen might have gone ahead and scoped the area ahead of time, but he would not allow anyone fully inside until he made sure it was safe. For some time he stood still with his tail held out apprehensively, ears fully open as though he were anticipating the arrival of something from the darkest crevices of the cave.

Once certain that the rest of the pack would wait outside, he made his way in.

From what he could see the light that filtered down from a worn crack in the stone ceiling above provided enough light so that Mercy and the girls could see. He made a quick circle from one end to the other, craning his neck from side to side as his nose discovered that the place had been seemingly unoccupied by any large predator for some time. Scent trails left by marmots and other small rodents littered the floor and he began to harbor hopes in which the youngsters would have the opportunity to practice their hunting and tracking skills inside until the prey found out that their home had been invaded. Letting out a sharp sigh to dislodge the scents from his nostrils he came back to the entrance and stood at Naira's side.

His golden eyes looked over the pack once more and genuinely smiled with a firm dip of his head and a wag of his tail. Go on, he wordlessly barked to them. We're all home now...

pro nunc meum et tuum

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(This post was last modified: Jun 17, 2013, 04:14 AM by Mapplethorpe.)

The group gathered together seemed to be different every time a meeting was called. Not that it mattered a great deal to Sagacity, who had faith only in Naira and Mapplethorpe and perhaps now in Asta, should the woman continue to be as helpful and decent as she was. Her yellow gaze swept across the new females and found herself immediately wondering if they would stay or if they too would filter through the crack and leave the pack one day or another. It was impossible to tell thus far, but she didn't get her hopes up. Sagacity had never been much of an optimist when it came to putting faith in others.

It was said that they would be joining together in a communal den. To this Sagacity's ears flicked forward; she liked the idea of having more eyes around to mind the children, though she once again sent her gaze to each of the new members. She was, naturally, protective of her son and would much rather get to know the new females rather than simply assume they'd be kind with her baby boy. Naira seemed to have enough faith in them, and Sagacity's trust in her queen gave her courage. She nodded to her alpha female and met Asta's eyes, giving only the two females in the pack she knew a small smile.

She lowered her head and licked Mercy's scruff, smoothing the fur down and preparing him for the voyage. Her savage teeth were kind and gentle with her son's fur and skin as she picked him up and began to carry him. As she moved past Asta she waved her tail gently, allowing the feathers of it to swipe gently at the female's side as a friendly gesture, inviting her to walk up the mountain with her toward the communal den. She knew that Mercy recognized and trusted Asta and this meant as much to Sagacity as simply trusting her herself. She followed the alpha pair to where the new communal den would be.

The open space, lit by a small beam of light, would do quite well for a safe play zone for the pups. This was what Sagacity noticed first. She settled Mercy down on the ground and fixed the fur at his nape with a loving stroke of her tongue. Mapplethorpe encouraged the girls to explore so she too lowered her head to Mercy's cheek and uttered a soft chuff, nodding toward the girls and the security of the den where they could tussle and play.

Avatars by Arla!

ooc. So I'm super excited to be playing Aponi, but bear with me as I adjust to playing a puppy :)

Aponi Aquila As the skinny ones showed up Aponi snapped her jaws shut, though her tongue still lolled out the side of her now closed mouth limply. Her eyes were now adjusting and she opened them fully, displaying the puppy blue that they held, she watched intently as they approached her mother and how they greeted her. So when her sister finally showed up she expected Nova to do the same to herself, ruffling her coat she puffed out her tiny chest and stuck her muzzle high in the hair, her tail raised. She growled the smallest of growls at her sisters strange wobble, Ma no do that, we no do that. She gave her sister a strong poke with her snout, trying to silently get her to stop, the small girl had already learned that the one they should be copy catting was their mother. When a small boy arrived she was distracted from her sister, and her bubble of attention stretched to include him as well. Curiosity was shown on her muzzle as she sniffed the air, but finding that he didn't smell of her mom like her sister did she wrinkled her nose. Giving him a glare that showed that she had no time for him she turned away, tail up, looking back to her mom at the sound of her voice, though most of the words she didn't understand. She felt the jaws gently clasp her and she wriggled around, squirming to be placed upon the ground, tiny grunts of exertion escaping her. She wanted to be carried by Ma and no one but Ma, but even more than wanting to be with her mother, she wanted to run. Finally she hung limp within the male's jaws, though she emitted a series of high pitched squeaks expressing her displeasure at being carried. When her paws reached stone once more she wasted no time in trying to fly as fast as possible, though she was easily stopped by her mother's legs. Distracted again from running she nuzzled her mother's legs squeaking happily as if she hadn't seen her mother in years, "MA! Ma Ma Ma Ma." It was between her mother's legs that she saw Mapplethorpe disappear into the darkness and she felt sadness fill her. Though he may not realize it his voice had grown familiar to the girl from his talks with her mother outside the den, and his smell familiar from how it would linger on her mother. She had no sense of time, and once anyone left her vision they were in all meanings of the word gone to her until they came back. When she could see him once more she was filled with happiness and trying to express this she tried to call out his name. She had heard her mother call him something, it was a long word and frustration covered her expression as she tried to pronounce such a large word, "M.....M.....Ma......Map.....Ap....." The words were stutters before finally she shouted out, "PA!" And she was content with her own version of his name, unknowing that it could be misunderstood as something else. Aponi ran between his legs and looked up from between them, proudly declaring once more, "Pa," as if she was a mother naming a child. When nudged forward she was distracted once more and took off full tilt into the cavern without looking back.

So sorry for my late addition here; I was traveling and I've been exhausted the past few days. But here I am! Better late than never?

A... communal den? Asta's ears twitched, a curious glint in her yellow eyes as she tried to comprehend all that might entail. She might see more of her packmates that way, right? Well, maybe not, considering her hunting habits. But she couldn't complain about that; outside of hunting she had pupsitting duties and she tended to enjoy that as well. She didn't anticipate having her own children any time soon, so in the time being the three little ones present in the pack now were "hers"... and in the interest of their protection and education, a communal den would be a very good thing.

With Naira to lead the way, Asta pulled herself to her paws, eager to follow. She was immediately seeking a travel-companion however and met Sagacity's eye as her head turned. Asta's smile mirrored the scout's. Given the manner in which she'd first met the silvered woman, Asta was particularly glad that she could get along so well with the beta now. She enjoyed the little boy-child as well as she did the girls, and the privilege of watching the child Sagacity seemed so protective of was a thrill.

Asta kept pace with Sagacity as they followed after their leaders. It wasn't a long distance (for Asta at least) before they were upon the cave system that would serve as their new center-of-business. Asta's head tilted, her eyes maintaining that curious aura as they darted around. Part of her was eager to explore. Another half of her, however, felt a little nervous at the very though of moving far underground. Still, what harm could there be in it? With a small smile on her muzzle as Mapplethorpe gestured to those gathered; she was eager to sate her curiosity and took the invitation eagerly.

♥ Allie

The Crowchild

It seemed no sooner than they arrived that he was being carried away again. Mercy frowned, but didn't struggle as his mother pulled him off his feet. The feeling of all four feet in the air was at least a familiar one, if not entirely comfortable. Thankfully their trek was short, and he was soon on the ground again with a comforting press of his mother's tongue and a chuff. Mercy's head twisted around as he looked up at his mother, bright eyes wide as he looked toward the girls.

His caretaker's permission was all he need to be on his feet. The noisy one - Aponi - was already darting into the cave. Paying little heed of the adults around him, Mercy let out a sharp puppy-yap as he darted after her, his mouth open in a wide grin as he passed Mapplethorpe and Asta. His tail wagged eagerly even as his steps slowed. Inside, he stopped to look around. It was big! It wasn't like the little space where he'd been staying before. Were they staying here? They were, weren't they? But such ideas were fleeting and quickly replaced as he settled his gaze on Aponi. He reached out with a forepaw and swatted it playfully toward her, smacking it on the ground as he fell into a play-bow.

Frick, just realized I might be the one holding this up. lawl. oops. Also, checked and double-checked with Sarah 'bout @Datura, so... yesss. <3

my sun and stars

silver & gold

the moon of my life

Having Mapplethorpe partially eased her nerves, even if he did little more than audibly acknowledge her presence. Taima shifted her eyes downward as Naira began to speak, willing herself to stay focused on her paws. Every so often she scented the air, waiting for Datura to return, anticipating the rhythm of his gait to reach her already strained ear drums. He had told her that he would return, that was for sure, and she was certain that she hadn't thought it up or imagined it. She had even seen @Rais come and collect him from her. Her brow furrowed in a timely fashion, her eyes narrowed just as Naira mentioned that she wanted to move the pack to a more communal setting.

When she fell silent, Taima glanced up as Mapplethorpe began to move. They were going to this place now?! Her breath caught in her chest and she held it until she stood up and began following the rest of the pack, falling into step behind Asta and Sagacity. Every so often as they traveled, she glanced over both of her shoulders, keeping an eye out for the golden prince. He didn't show.

Up at the mouth of the cavern, she paused as both her leaders came to a stop before Mapplethorpe stepped inside after instructing them to remain where they were. Her eyes would have gone to the three cubs that were brought up if it hadn't been for the Advisor's quick return and official signal that they were welcome to check out their new home. Her tail wagged and she held back as her superiors moved forward to investigate. Once the trio of cubs were ushered in, she made to step forward but was stopped upon seeing a flicker of gold from the corner of her eye.

The Lyall felt her face heat up beneath her eyes and she warmly greeted Datura with a simple touch of her nose to his before drawing away. She glanced up to him then to the dimly lit cave before her, careful to avoid Naira's gaze. Wordlessly taking a step forward and tearing herself from him and all the scents he carried in his coat, she smiled then gestured with a slight tilt of her head for him to follow in hopes of finding an isolated space the both of them could share away from the adults.

Nova wasn't entirely sure what everyone was together for, but her tiny tail flailed back and forth regardless. When she was suddenly hoisted into the air in a gentle grip her voice yielded a surprised squeak, tail pausing until she realized it was her mother's jaws she was held between. Perhaps it would have been frightening to be dangling what seemed like miles above the ground in someone else's mouth, if it wasn't her own mamma carrying her.

Nova was almost disappointed to be set back down, and she looked around in wonder at why the fun ride had stopped. She didn't quite realize they had traveled any distance at all, and when looking into the inky darkness of the cave they'd come to she thought it was the same old place. It was similarly rocky and dark, except the smells were odd and foreign, not quite what she was used to.

Nova didn't really want to go into their funny smelling home just yet, and was content to sit in the sun at her mamma's feet. At least, until she saw Aponi shoot off into the darkness shouting something. Without quite thinking about it, Nova lurched to her paws and trundled after Aponi, mimicking her sister's shouts with a shrill "Appa! Appa!". Blue eyes hadn't the time to adjust to the darkness, and she smacked her nose into the advisor's ankles at break-neck puppy speeds. Knocked back onto her rear, she yelped. Nothing was broken, but her nose did smart a little bit. "Appapa," She whined, little black triangle ears folded back with her best sad puppy stare aimed right up at him. Maybe it was her fault she'd run into him, but it was his legs she'd run into.

Nobody was holding anything up except me. Very short one to wind it up. Go claim your LP!

This place belonged to her

• NAIRA AQUILA •

and she belonged to it

A smile fell on her muzzle as her golden son joined them, it’s brilliance only diminished a little by the absence of the silvery second, although perhaps he was simply stashing whatever they had caught in the cache. She would allow it to slide for now regardless. Her attention was quickly pulled toward her daughters when they both began their own racket and it was with a quite chuckle that she lowered her head to nudge Nova encouragingly around the legs of @Mapplethorpe and into the den beyond.

No objections had been raised and so she too made her way into the darkness beyond to explore some of the more secluded passageways at the rear of the den. Finding nothing out of order, she allowed herself to return to the main area and settled down to watch the children play amongst themselves.

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The Nomads began to step inside their new den but before the Advisor could follow after them the girls were at his feet. @Aponi tried her best to say his name, a word she had certainly heard when he and her mother had their talks near the old den, and he cupped his ears forward to attentively listen. "M.....M.....Ma......Map.....Ap....." It actually wasn't all that bad for a first attempt, he would have declared himself "Uncle Map" for all he cared (after all, "maps" as a word was not apart of his vocabulary or mental 'tool box' since they're primarily man-made). But then, she settled on a syllable that nearly hit its mark, "PA!"

Mapplethorpe had to raise a brow, curiosity getting the best of him before he realized with the second utterance of "Pa" that the "pull" in the middle of his name was not too far off from the sound she had made. Soon after Aponi had christened him with his new name, here came @Nova with her own rendition of, "Appa! Appa!" Her voice had taken him by surprise, Aponi, the last time he checked, had always been the louder of the two. He glanced about for her but he had practically missed her black coat in the darkness that lined the edges of the cavern. She bumped into him and immediately Mapplethorpe lifted his paw, gently patting it over her small back as she whine again with a more refined pronunciation of "Appapa." Even if he realized now that she could have been calling out for both Aponi'sand his new name all at once.

As @Mercy vied for Aponi's attention, the grizzled Advisor slowly leaned down to nudge the noisy girl towards the boy. With their new quarters established, there would be no use in trying to keep the princesses separate from him. They were merely curious and Mapplethorpe could only hope that the new place and setting would help the three in procuring the much needed social skills they would need later in life. With his eyes turned away, he felt @Naira brush up against him, gently edging Nova into his embrace. She pulled away and he watched briefly as she made her way towards the back of the underground space. He smiled tenderly to the girl before him, looking into her puppy blue eyes and the grimace starting to tug at the corners of her mouth. "Shhhh shhhh," he softly hushed her, pressing his large nose to her button-sized one. "It's all right. You're all right." He pressed his tongue over one of her dark ears.

"Appa's got you."

(EXIGO.)

pro nunc meum et tuum

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