Poison Path will you love me always?

After dawn; Partly Cloudy — Current Temperature: 48° F/9° C; their den.

<blockquote>Before the day when she had been invited outside, not once had Belladonna contemplated going out into the world beyond the den. That was not to say that it had not fascinated her, as it fascinated her today; the child had spent hours upon hours listening to the sounds on the wind, to the rain, to the creatures which lived out there, somewhere, making their faint cries in the night. Her world had been a mystical one, and yet she had never wanted to set foot into that land of wonderful noises.

Everything had changed on that day. Suddenly, the world was not simply something to be heard, but experienced in a whole new way. Her sense of security when inside the den was effortlessly carried over to the mouth of the den, then the patch of dirt outside it, and... onwards, indefinitely. That first time she had stood in the open air, she had felt like a tiny creature in a place too huge to fathom, but not once had she felt afraid. She was <i>meant</i> to be here.

From that day, she had looked forward to her brief moments of freedom with an insatiable passion. The only thing which truly sated her was the sound of rain, which caressed her to sleep.

<font style='margin-left:20px;'>It was not raining this morning, but, just from watching the early morning sunlight which danced at the entrance of their den, she knew it was cloudy. The promise of rain hung heavily, a terrible tease, and she sorely wanted to be out there when it started. She had not yet stood in the rain, and she wanted nothing else so strongly. Restlessly she wriggled about, a tiny paw stretching forwards to press on her mother's nose. Datura was not here today - he was with Ava, she thought, not that Belladonna minded his absence. She liked it when it was just her and her mother.

Wide awake, she stared at the huge, sleeping white face for a few moments longer, in a childish awe, before her impatience got to her. <i>It was going to rain!</i> With a giggled growl, she began to chew on Athena's bottom lip, her hind legs coming about to kick at the large white cheek.</font></blockquote>

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Her times with her daughter had always been magical. The way that Bella could make her smile every minute of every day was breathtaking. She was her princess and she will be a very doted on child. Her father loved as much as she did and she only hoped that her child knew that. Someday, Athena would tell the news to her adopted child that she is indeed adopted, but she only hoped that their relationship would be strong by then. She couldn't bear losing Belladonna or even Datura. She thought of him as her son as well, but she would allow Ava to have the pleasure of rearing him and adopting him. However, he too will be loved by her as much as she loved his sister. It was a package deal, of course, and she would never give up for anything.

This morning was different than most. The always present figure of Bella was restless and Datura was off with Ava today, most likely sleeping along side her beloved Second. She was not completely awake, but the stirrings of her daughter were getting louder. Her ear twitched as Belladonna scampered up off the den floor and away from her touch. She was now more aware and alert, but she would play the possum game for now. It had been a late night and she needed to catch up on her sleep. However, her lovely daughter would not allow that to happen today. No, today was a day for exploring and wake-up calls.

The baby teeth of the cub playfully dug into her ebony lip and she opened an eye to see the scene before her. She was just in time to see and feel the playful kick to the side of her cheek. She couldn't help but laugh at her rambunctious daughter. "Is that how you're going to treat your mother, now?" She teased, before the tiny cub could get out of reach, she swiped her paw towards the body of her daughter, pinning her against her body. She rolled onto her back and swung her daughter up to lay her on her chest before lightly grabbing a hold of her tiny tawny ear. Light, playful growls rumbled in her chest as she continued to play with her Bella.

|| Ash is welcome to make an appearance in any thread. ||

I'm so sorry for the lateness - if you like, we could have a simultaneous up-to-date one, if you like? Since it's still important that Athena, Bella and Tlarx have this thread I think :)

<blockquote>Despite her extreme youth, and the way in which that was supposed to render her greatly in tune with adults, Belladonna had never been able to read her mother nearly as well as she did the shadow of clouds. As such, it took her entirely by surprised when it turned out that the massive white lump she so loved had been awake <i>the whole time</i>, and her soft giggles erupted into a squeal of delight as her mother tugged her close.

She did not fight when she was rolled on top, too caught up with childish amusement, and squealed again as her ear was taken hostage - the indignity! Determined to get her own back (despite the fact that she started it) she tried to wrestle her ear free in order to launch a proper assault, aiming to gnaw uselessly but enthusiastically at her mother's throat - never let it be said her instincts ever failed her.</blockquote>

Yes, yes we shall.(: I might make another thread tonight for bella and datura <3

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v201/bluepups/AthenaTable.png);background-position:top center; background-repeat:no-repeat; padding-top: 200px;padding-bottom: 20px; padding-left: 15px; padding-right: 15px; text-align:justify;">The sweet bundle of joy squealed making her laugh once more (although it was quite hard with a mouthful of ear). Child play was never her forte, but with Bella it came naturally. Her chest rumbled with play growls as she lightly tugged on Bella’s ear. The nipping sensation at her throat from her daughter created another fit of laughter, echoing off the cave wall’s delightfully. Anyone outside the den could hear them, but Athena was only focused on Belladonna. The outside world didn’t matter, only Bella.

Once these play time sessions grew too old for young Bella, Athena won’t forget them. She just hoped Bella wouldn’t forget about them either. As she thought of this, she slowly let go of the tawny pup’s ear. Athena leaned back and looked at Bella, taking in as much as she could, locking away this memory. Her salmon tongue reached out towards Bella, lightly caressing her tawny face. The Leader leaned back once again, looking into Bella’s bright blue eyes, ”Always remember that I love you and don’t forget to remember me.”

|| Ash is welcome to make an appearance in any thread. ||

I'm going to be making a new one for you, so unless you want to continue, we could wrap this up :)

<blockquote>Had her hunting instincts been better developed, Bella may have realised that laughter was not quite what one aimed for when maiming a throat, but everything was in the spirit of play. Everything <i>was</i> play at her age. She giggled light-headedly through the fur in her mouth, jerking her head once to no avail before letting go and squealing her indigence at her ear being taken captive. She struggled for a few moments, but then her mother relaxed and let go.

Immediately curious by the change, Bella calmed and lifted her head to stare at the white face she loved so much, her forelegs flopping down either side of her mother's neck as she rested high on Athena's chest.

She was too young to really grasp the words, but she adored the voice anyway, and the sentiment of love was difficult to miss. <b>"Mmmmrrmmm,"</b> she mumbled in return, reaching her head forward to touch her tiny nose to her mother's. She could never forget, and she would always love.</blockquote>