Broken Timber Pines high noon

@Ember

Since his eyes had opened and the little smudge had discovered the land of the light, R was desperate to explore more. There was so much to see outside the walls of his mother’s cozy den. Would he ever be able to see all of it?

He hoped so – as much as he adored his mother, he did not want to be confined to their den. There was so much light, so many green things… he wanted to see what else the world had to offer! He needed to see it all; as pretty and amazing as his home was, he was already thinking about what was beyond it. Unfortunately he knew that it was going to be a long time before he would be able to wander away from the den area… he was still figuring out how to walk!

With a sloppy grin on his face, Arion scrambled out of his mother’s den to embrace the sunshine that drenched the clearing. The sudden warmth hit him like a wall, his grin only widening as he wriggled his toes in the dirt. His baby denim blues searched the clearing as a disappointed expression collapsed onto his face -- where was everyone?! Grumbling to himself, the pup shuffled forward a few steps before flopping onto the warm ground. He wanted to play; he wanted to explore; he wanted to do so much… and nobody was here. It seemed that the wolves of the Timbers were always too busy to play with him; however, there were two pups practically next door to him… As the realization settled in, the boy scrambled to his feet once more and began yipping excitedly to get someone’s attention. He was bored, and he did not like being bored – if it continued, R was worried he would end up disobeying his mother and leaving the den area.

Dirt.  There was so much dirt! After watching a bug flee into a hole in the ground beneath her paws, Ember had been trying to follow. The cream-coated pup had at first merely wanted to catch the bug so she could play with it, but as she scratched away layers of dirt, she began to wonder where it was going. Did the bug have a den? Was it trying to go back to its mother? Ember had to know! Dirt was flying behind her and forming a small pile as she continued to perfect her newfound digging skill.

A few minutes later, the pale child flopped exhausted into the groove she had dug. The bug was still deep in the earth. Maybe she would dig more later, Ember decided. But if she left, the bug could run away and then she'd never find it! She could watch the hole while she rested -- but that would be so boring! Ember uttered a whine of frustration. She was about to get up and go tackle her sister when the sound of yipping erupted through the bushes. Immediately forgetting Bracken and the bug, the month-old pup thrashed about unceremoniously until she found herself on her paws and started toward the sound.

Ember realized with pride as she ran that her ungainly paws were beginning to obey her better. Then she tripped and landed on her nose just as she arrived at the bushes. Springing back up and launching forward only got her soft fur tangled in the gnarly branches just past halfway through the bothersome plant. The yipping was so close but Ember found herself foiled in her approach. Frustrated again, the pup voiced a wail that was a few squeaks too many to be a howl and began furiously tearing at whatever vegetation she could reach. At least she wasn't bored.  No, now she was stuck! A squeak accompanied every attempt to flail as Ember began to hope more for rescue than escape.

He was quickly growing tired of yipping and barking – he just wanted to explore, or play! Something! Anything! The noises emitting from his maw quickly ceased as he paced the soft ground, his denim blues narrowed as he scoured the area for something to spark his interest. It did not take long for his wish to be granted – a peculiar noise captured his attention, causing his eyes to widen and his ears to swivel in its direction.

What was that? Perplexed, the pup crept forward, the sound increasing in volume as he neared the bushes. Funny … mother had never mentioned bush-creatures before… A grimace fell onto his maw once he ceased his clumsy steps, his little head lopsided as he studied the moving, talking bush. “Hihihihihi,” he called to the bush, hoping that the yipping leaves would respond to him. His chubby tail waved enthusiastically behind him as his plump bottom fell against the ground. Would the bush be able to tell him about the world outside the densite? What kind of bushy stories did it have to share? Impatient, the boy yipped at the leaves, demanding some sort of response. He didn’t know if it was a good idea, nor did he care. He just wanted answers.

There is a family of deer nearby. Hunt Opportunity

The yips of an unfamiliar voice filled the space between Ember's own calls, so she ceased all motion to listen. Branches obscured almost completely a dark form on the other side of the vegetation. It almost seemed...Yes, the yipping was coming from whatever that form was! She had to get to it before it went away! Thrashing around again got Ember no further than it did before, so she stopped and examined her captor more closely. One branch was particularly well snagged on her fur, so the tawny pup twisted around and bit down hard on it. With a sharp snap! Ember was free. She bolted forward to avoid getting caught in the bush's jaws again.

The vegetation cleared from before her paws sooner than she had anticipated. Suddenly, Ember was hurtling into the open. Something soft and dark cushioned her abrupt stop, and she released a squeal upon impact. Pushing herself back to her paws and shaking the leaves from her fur, the month-old girl looked down to see what she had just crashed into. Why, it looked like her sister! That is, if her sister was smaller and had recently rolled around in some particularly dark mud. It must be a new pup then. A new friend! Ember leapt backward to get off the inky stranger -- stumbling on the way -- and barked a greeting. "HI!"

As concerned as he was about the moving bush before him, Arion was fascinated by the strange, moving bush. It was making peculiar sounds, similar to the ones he made when he was in distress, but he paid them no attention. He just wanted to figure out what was going on, and whether this moving bush was actually some sort of animal. The world of smells was still new to him – R had not figured out how to distinguish scents, aside from his parents’, as they were always around.

Suddenly the bush gave a final shake and a pale, tawny figure lunged out at him. Startled and unable to move, the little shadow remained where he was, which resulted in the creature colliding with him. He squealed and stumbled back, his denim blues wide as he focused his attention on the invader. Unsure of what to do, the boy remained where he was until his head stopped spinning and he was able to decipher what had ‘attacked’ him. Another puppy! He squealed once more, this time from excitement, as his tail (and his entire body) wriggled behind him. “Hi!!!” He chirped back in response as he studied the pale girl before him – who was she and was she going to be his friend? Arion hoped so – as much as he loved his parents, having friends his own age would be even better!

Oh, I'm so sorry!  I didn't even realize I didn't give Arion a chance to dodge Ember's tackle!  Thanks for going along with it anyway -- I'll try to be more mindful with my writing going forward.

At the stranger's repetition of her own chirp, Ember was certain they would be friends just like she was with Bracken. The dark pup in front of her was wriggling excitedly and she was so excited to meet him that she started wriggling too. What if she and Bracken and her new friend all came together to play? They could wrestle and chase and make up all sorts of games! By now her cream-colored tail was wagging back and forth at no modest rate. Nothing so exciting had ever happened in the whole history of Ember!

Then she froze. Ember always liked new things at first, but sometimes those new things turned out not to be any fun, so she wouldn't like them any more. Now, the pale pup wanted to be sure she would like this new thing. With a face of stone and features uncharacteristically still and steady, Ember took a step up to the inky pup and stretched out her nose to take a good sniff. She wasn't quite sure what she was supposed to be smelling for, but whatever it was, she decided she found it and immediately set about wriggling with as much violent excitement as before. With a playful Arf! Ember ducked into a bow. She held the pose for all of a second before leaping back up and reaching her right leg forward in an attempt to tap her new companion's head.

don't worry about it! <3 totally worked for me :)

Her off-the-wall energy mirrored his and he liked it – a lot. As much as he loved his mother and father, having someone to play with that was his age was much better. The little raven just hoped that his parents would allow him to play with the pale girl as much as he pleased… as long as the girl was okay with that, of course. He was unable to slow the speed of his wagging tail as he observed the little bird; his tongue was caught in his throat as the excitement of a new playmate overwhelmed him. Arion did not know what to say or do, he just knew he was super excited.

However, the girl’s frantic movements ceased briefly as her expression grew serious, puzzling the little raven. She stepped toward him, looking cautious as she studied him, causing the boy’s head to tilt. As the girl leaned forward to sniff him Ari did the same, his brows narrowed as he inhaled her scent, not knowing what else to do. Her somber attitude was quickly replaced with the previous excitement as she lowered her body into a bow. He wriggled once more, another excited yip! escaping him as his denim gaze widened. Her paw suddenly rose, causing his lips to fall into a soft ‘o’ shape as she ‘booped’ him on the forehead. A very manly giggle escaped him as he wriggled furiously at the gesture. “Who you?” The words fumbled off his tongue as he extended his own paw forward in an attempt to tap her forehead in playful retaliation.

A raven paw landed on Ember's forehead and she squealed at having been so viciously attacked. The cinnamon-cream girl started to very threateningly circle her opponent with an uncontrollable bounce in her gait and a tail that wouldn't stop wagging. She chanted the smudge's question back to him as she prepared her next attack. "Who you! Who you!" Ember decided she was a very skilled warrior, and she would go strait for a pin to defeat her foe before he could resist any further.

Having placed the raven's inky side squarely in front of her, Ember tensed up for the pounce. "Me Em-berrrrr!" she proclaimed as she careened toward her target. The princess was flying over the distance; all was going well, and her victim would hardly know what hit him! Just then, time slowed down as the assailant realized that she made a mistake -- she had launched too hard too late, and unless the shadow beneath her moved just right, she would skid over her opponent's shoulders and land in the dust on the other side of him! A frightened yip escaped the soaring form as she realized it was too late to reverse her attack.

The russet girl before him was filled with so much energy – just like him! He hoped that she would be a permanent playmate; he couldn’t help but think about all the mischief they could get into together…

Her high-pitched voice rang out once more as she mimicked him while bouncing around excitedly. If he had not been so young, the mimicry would have annoyed the little smudge – but, due to his lack of social interactions, Arion found it incredibly amusing. He was completely unaware to the female’s slightly aggressive stance until she pounced at her once more after announcing her name(?) – some sort of noise had screeched from her mouth prior to her ‘attack’, which R assumed was some sort of name. “Eeeeeem-burrrrr!” He screeched in return as she launched toward him, his denim blues widening as she closed in on him.

Instinctively ducking, the boy flattened his body against the ground, although he quickly realized that the girl had over-shot her aim. While unfortunate for the cinnamon-coloured girl, it worked to Arion’s benefit. Uttering his own battlecry the shadow prince lunged at the spot he hoped she would land, his forepaws stretched forward in an attempt to knock her off her paws before she could regain momentum. If his planned worked, it would be little Ember that would be pinned and Arion would be the victor!