Secret Woodlands sleeping on the floor

BCUZ UNITAS NEEDS MOAR THREADS and to meet wolvesssszzzzz

As he grew older the ball of black fur began to lean out and develop a defined physique. He still maintained his soft, chubby puppy appearance, but he was actually beginning to look like a real wolf as the days passed. While he grew, so did his desire to explore. Unitas wanted to venture further away from his den, but he frequently worried that his mother would scold him for wandering too far. Regardless, the Hervok child escaped the cool, damp air of the den to explore his immediate surroundings. The warmth of the outside world hit him like a wall; summer had settled into Relic Lore, and although it wasn’t completely unbearable, it was still hot and often uncomfortable (especially for the black-furred child).

His body stretched into the warmth of the sun, his spine curling at the comfort it offered – similar to that of his mother’s body – before he stumbled forward. A lazy, lop-sided smile had fallen across his stunted maw as he padded forward, his chubby body swaying as his baby blues absorbed his surroundings. Just as his body was changing, so were his eyes. They had begun their transition from puppy periwinkle to a peculiar shade of teal (a reminder of his absent father). Along with his physical features, his personality was changing as well. His desire to play and explore was overwhelming, and Unitas frequently found himself exploring the outside of the den without the company of his siblings.

With his nose pressed to the ground, the boy began wandering about the area, his tail wagging non-stop behind his wriggling body. He was desperate for company – he wanted someone to talk to, someone to have an adventure with, but he wasn’t sure if his brothers would be willing. Although a bit of a troublemaker, Tas didn’t feel up to waking up his siblings; he knew that they wouldn’t appreciate a wakeup call from their older brother. But who else was there to play with? Unitas had not met many members of the Woodlands pack, but was eager to meet the wolves that looked up to his mother. As he raised his head to examine the territory a soft whine fell from his throat – he was lonely, and bored. A bad combination.

@Unitas

The cicada's sang a fitful lullaby and Iopah drifted in and out of sleep. It was nearly mid-day and even without the buzz of the heat bugs it was't close to quiet. Hammering woodpeckers, strident screams of local jays. The scrambling of red squirrels: running along wide tree trunks, hanging from the narrow limber branches, and in the dry debris littering the forest. It was constant, and it was too hot to race after every one. Her eyes opened to glare at them, threatening death, but they only flicked their tails and raced up a tree to chitter angrily at her. In brief periods of sleep her limbs twitched erratically, dreaming of chasing those same squirrels.

Somewhere to the left a jay screamed. Iopah listened to the singular voice screech at an intruder, entertaining a momentary flicker of exasperation. Even after two years they hadn't adjusted to the presence of wolves in the thicket. Stubborn things. In the backdrop of the ruckus was a whine. A puppy whine. She rose sleepily to her feet and yawned widely, pink tongue curling up to touch the roof of her mouth. A rusty blur shot up a nearby as she started to trot. Her tail flipped up in it's direction as she passed the squirrel.

It didn't take long to find him. As she approached the black pup her gold eyes lifted suspiciously to the sky, searching for whatever else could make a pup cry. Finding nothing her head dropped down to Unitas. Inhaling his familiar scent and letting her dark whiskers dance across his body as she reassured herself he was unharmed. She stretched deeply, something she hadn't done before coming to find him. Leaned back, scuffing her chest on the ground and letting her pale forelegs reach out in front of her.

Her head cocked as she looked down at him, only one thing she could do. She couldn't sleep and he clearly didn't want to. "Come along little owl, let's find something to explore." She lead him into the thicket slowly, her eyes on the young pup more than the surroundings.

Sorry for the wait! <3

There were so many new scents flooding his system, causing the shadow prince to feel overwhelmed as he stumbled around the area. The ground was littered with the scents of many different wolves, as well as creatures that Unitas did not know the names of. These wolves were strangers for now, but eventually {hopefully} he would get the chance to meet all of them. He didn’t know how he was supposed to remember so many names! Was his head even big enough to hold that kind of information?

Eventually the plump Hervok prince plopped his bottom against the ground as he chewed feverishly on a stick he had found. While his favourites things to chew on were his brothers, Unitas was particularly fond of sticks. There were so many of them, so when he completely destroyed one another was always available. They were perfect! Feeling very satisfied with his find, Tas tightened his grip on the stick as his needle-like puppy teeth gnawed away. As the stick dwindled down to nothing he became bored with it, and with the idea of finding another one. He could chew a stick any day; he wanted to explore! Spitting out the stick, Unitas flopped down against the ground as another whine fell from his lips. Perhaps waking up his brothers wasn’t such a bad idea after all…

Just as he was about to retreat back to the den a familiar scent, fresh and fast approaching, distracted him. She approached him, her pale maw hovering over his body as she inspected him. “Iooooo!” He chirped excitedly, happy to see the pale female. Her voice caught his attention, causing his mouth to drop into a small ‘o’ shape and his head to tilt. “Exsplore?!” His body vibrated at the word – Iopah had really meant what she had said! He followed her with frantic movements, his small body swaying back and forth as he tried to keep up with her. “Where we go?” He asked, voice slightly softer this time although still brimming with excitement.

He was her literal shadow, dark and wolf-like trailing after her. His edges were softened with puppy fur, but there was no mistaking the resemblance to Iopah's lean frame. Already his limbs were lengthening, giving a hint of the gangly, awkward period that was to come. With Iopah's every smooth and measured step, Unitas bounded and scrambled forward. She quickly realized even her slow pace was too fast for his still-growing legs.

She stopped and waited for him totter up to her, exhibiting a patience she gave to no one else. The forest continued around her, the jays screaming and the squirrels gawking at the two wolves, but Iopah had eyes for Unitas only. She blinked softly as he reached her. "We're going to the spring." She said 'the spring', but to her knowledge only she'd ever been there. It was transient, last year it dried up before the end of summer.

Taking care to match her pace with the pup's, she ambled along again. There was nowhere she needed to be. It was clear Unitas was enjoying the outing, but Iopah also cherished time spent with the youngster. With the other adult wolves she was the pragmatic and driven Second. Opinionated and respected, but not well understood. Koda was the exception to that rule, but she couldn't understand why she thought of him now, looking down at the pup at her feet. She pressed her dark nose to his dark fur, centering her thoughts once again. "It's very special and we'll have to be careful when we get there." A squirrel raced across the path, and Iopah followed it's movement closely as it dashed away. "What other animals have you seen Unitas?"