Oak Tree Bend the aftermath

May 21
Light Drizzle, 60F/16C
This is a mandatory pack meeting, the pack is being formally introduced to the pups and this signals their first journey outside of the den.
@Serach @Ice @Lena @Nalda @Arnaq @Corsair @Ayla

Aponi had both been looking forward to and dreading that this day was on the horizon. Until now it had been just her and the children in the den with the occasional snout greeting from her mate. There had been no interruptions  and she had been able to watch them grow, but she was also exhausted. The mother's need to stretch her legs and not go stir crazy warred with her instinct to keep the pups safe and also her own greed. The pups had been all her own, with a little bit of Serach and now they would belong to the whole pack.

But this could wait no longer, the three of them had open eyes and were mobile enough to be trying to escape the den alone when they thought their mother wasn't looking. So Aponi emerged out of the den and into the drizzle of the morning and lifted her muzzle to the sky and called for the others. It was time that they met the legacy of Oak Tree Bend. Once her voice ceased it's song the mother dipped her muzzle into the den and ushered out the pups, for the first time their eyes would see the outside and their paws would touch the outdoor ground.

This was their first step into the rest of their lives.

 

Corsair was more than content to spend the rest of his life in the den sleeping, worrying Aponi's stomach for food, and wrestling with his sisters. It was a pretty awesome life. He was developing rapidly, with new experiences being a daily occurrence. He was settling well into life. What more could he ever want?

Little did Corsair know, there was far more to life than sleeping and wrestling with Mabel and Ayla in their mother's shadow. He'd made a few halfhearted attempts to break out of the den, usually on the heels of Mabel, but he was more interested in what was right in front of him than what was out there. Still, the outside world was an enigma that was growing more and more interesting by the day, so when Aponi dipped out of the den and he heard—actually heard, albeit quietly—her howl, he wasted no time scrambling toward her feet.

And, as any young pup his age was prone to doing, he tossed back his head and uttered a tiny squeal of awooo of his own. It hardly qualified as a howl, but it was an attempt to mimic Aponi's noise, a deep-seated instinct that welled in his breast when the muffled static sound of her summons reached his small ears. Content with his effort, Corsair turned around as if to return to the darker corner of the den, but then Aponi's muzzle was alongside him, and then he was herded out into the sunlight. He screwed his eyes into a tight squint and yipped his protest as he was thrust out under the sudden glare of day.

(This post was last modified: May 23, 2017, 12:43 AM by Corsair.)

Ayla was, much like her brother, content to do their thing in the safety of their den. There she had food, she had her siblings, and she had momma! She didn’t know anything else in her life and even if she did have a gentle curiosity for that strange light that seemed to emanate from the front of the den she had given up on attempting to fight her way out of it. Disapproving huffs and nudges from her mother had been enough to get the girl into submission on the subject. Obviously momma didn’t want them going out, and momma always had a good reason for everything! So, while Corsair and Mabel tried to sneak about the little red spot stuck to her guns and stayed back.

Yet, today was different. She’d heard her mother utter a cry into the air, her head shooting up and droopy ears raising as much as they could be allowed. Her bright puppy blues blinked in wonder at the sound, jumping as Corsair joined in with a strange screech of his own. She looked at him like he’d grown two heads, watching as he headed toward the entrance. The Oak girl sat back to watch smugly as, surely, he would receive a good bat from the silver paw of their mother. But it didn’t come and his body was suddenly swallowed by the light. Her little heartbeat picked up, eyes widening as she scrambled to her paws. She stumbled to the entrance, stopping as she was blinded. Her muffled hearing was suddenly assaulted with so many sounds, her nose with so many smells, and her eyes with a brightness she’d never encountered before. Momma’s nose nudged her forward and the overwhelmed youngest’s tail tucked against her belly. She fell forward with a startled yip, cowering against the ground as she tried to get her bearings. What was all this?

Her siblings may have been content enough to live their whole lives within the earthen walls of the den; warm and comforted and very routine. Mabel however was perhaps cut from a different cloth than them, a silk more similar to her own mother's wandering paws and ambitious but reckless spirit. Already in the last three weeks the child had tried to lead multiple revolts in the way of trapezing up the slope towards the brighter opening that her mother frequented to and fro from. Corsair was typically hot on her heels while Ayla hung back for moments longer before trying to catch up, just long enough to catch their momma's attention and have them all brought back down.

So when the silver muzzle ushered them all towards the bright hole and then out into the grey drizzle it was safe to say that Mabel was over the moon. Corsair tried to turn back after his howl but the female pup was already attempting to push her luck and wander off towards a small puddle that was forming a few feet away. This was short-lived however as suddenly her feet swung into the air and away from the muddy earth before being plopped back beside her siblings. The cream child looked up to her mother with a whimpered growl of frustration and accusation, what was that for?

Arnaq had been off looking for more small meals this morning when she heard the call. She lifted her maw in response. That was the right thing to do right? She hadn't actually ever been called by a howl before, but it sounded like Aponi was calling them. At least that was the sound she heard in her ears. As if the Alpha was standing right next to her, speaking in her ear. When she finished her own howl in response to the alpha, Arnaq took off at a run towards the den.

It took her several long moments before she finally came from the woods. She was huffing, she had ran so fast. She loved it, the wind racing through her fur even if it was raining and she couldn't keep the matted thing covering her from head to tail looking pristine. When she finally came to a halt she was in the clearing where the den was. She looked at the Alpha and down at her feet. The pups! She wagged her tail and lowered herself down. She wanted to come closer but she wasn't sure if she was allowed just yet. 

She whimpered at them, each having their own shade of fur. They were the cutest things she had ever seen and she wanted to play and meet them. Her tail started to wag on it's own accord as she scooted a bit closer, still not to close. She knew better than to get closer without being invited. After what seems like several moments of her crawling on the ground to sniff their scent she laid still. Her ears were perked up listening to them, her eyes focused on the round little bodies. She looked from them up to Aponi. "They are beautiful." She said as she laid there, waiting. 

This time last year, Serach had worn himself ragged running rounds between three birthing dens. He had not expected this year to be any worse than that, but he had been sorely mistaken because this time, these were his children he was so anxiously protecting which made the stakes so much higher in his mind. Perhaps to Aponi's annoyance, Serach had been an ever constant shadow outside the den, leaving only to hunt small game and scavenge the caches to bring back food for his mate. As the days turned into weeks since the birth of their children, Aponi had started to leave the den for short amounts of time, and Serach had found himself plopped outside the entrance, torn between peering inside to look at his progeny and looking outward towards the forest to snarl away any curious passerby's.

So when Aponi howled, summoning the pack to them, Serach was not far away. Smile on his face, he ran the now intimately familiar path towards the birthing den, his heart hammering as to what this event would mean, not only for the pack, but for him personally. Up until now, he had merely poked his head inside the den, but hadn't been allowed any closer. Did they even know who he was? Eyes glued to the small bundles of fur collected around Aponi's legs, he doubted it very much, but he was eagerly awaiting the opportunity to change that.

Prior to their birth, Serach would have strode up to take his place next to Aponi with confidence, but now he hesitated. She had brought them out of the den, and her howl had declared her intention, but even so, Serach was anxious. Arnaq was there, and it seemed equally hesitant. Torn between wanting to meet his children and protect them, even from somebody as innocent as Arnaq, he stood in place for just a few moments unsure of how to proceed. Aponi beckoned him closer, and so he went, his decision made. Careful to keep them firmly in his sights and not underfoot, he stepped up beside his mate, nuzzling her cheek. "They're beautiful, love. Just like their mother," he told her, echoing Arnaq's words as he grinned in unadulterated joy. Keeping note of how close Arnaq was getting, Serach half-stepped in front of Aponi in a silent warning that until Aponi said otherwise, the rest of them needed to keep their distance. Satisfied that Arnaq wasn't going to be a threat, he allowed himself a chance to meet his children too. Bending down, he lowered his head to look at them, his heart hammering rapidly. "Hello," he said, his voice quiet. I'm your father, and I love you more than I could ever say.

(This post was last modified: May 23, 2017, 03:42 AM by Serach. Edit Reason: Edited for shadow post! )

He wondered if he had been so anxious as a first time father—Serach hardly left the small clearing where the birthing den sat. The job of keeping the caches full fell to Ice and their sorely decimated pack. Tenebrae, Arion, Lila—all gone, though the latter only to explore. Ice couldn't fault her for it. Everyone needed some time and space to think and clear their head from time to time.

But keeping a lactating mother and an anxious father fed was hard work. Ice frequently grabbed Nalda, Arnaq, or Lena, and hauled them off to try and catch bigger prey. Usually, he had his sights set on smaller deer. They were easy enough to get down between two or three wolves, and small enough to carry most of it home to their caches. Still, Ice had lost a bit of weight that spring, his body more wiry, less bulky. It'd be good with some change.

Still, to the question at hand; had he been that anxious? Protective? Had he hardly left Corinna's birthing den? Had the birth of Aiyana, Rissa, and Torrel somehow dulled his first time father senses? He couldn't remember having been in protective overdrive. Serach hardly let anyone close. Serach hardly left. Not that Ice felt any need to poke his muzzle down at Aponi, and he had never tried to push Serach's limit, but he couldn't remember being glued to Corinna like that.

Maybe it was different because he was in love with Aponi. Maybe it was different because his head wasn't full of worry about someone else. Maybe he was just different from Ice in that regard. Ice shook his head to himself.

The howl cut through the wet early morning, a summons he couldn't ignore nor mistake. White ears were upright on his head, paws striking the dew-wet ground, the drizzle turning him a darker shade of gray. The pups were coming out! He felt too old to be super enthusiastic, a patience glacier instead, and selfishly he just wanted his son to get a bit more normal again. He was so.. on edge, ready to bite anyone. Ice didn't push it, but it bothered him. They needed to be more to keep everyone fed and safe in the long run.

He wasn't the first, and from Nalda's absence, he hoped not the last, either. Second to last was good enough. Aponi stood in front of her birthing den, three tiny shadows beneath her. Serach bowed in front of them, and Arnaq laid on the ground a few feet away. Ice's ears swept forward, then tilted back, and he hunched his neck and lowered his head. At least no one had died yet.

He chuffed out a greeting before sitting down behind Arnaq, keeping his face politely interest so as to not spiral into the territory of overbearing. As a younger wolf, kids was what Indru had lured him home with, but now, the memories of Serach and Sceral's own first adventure into the world overlapped with the present. It was..uncomfortable. All he could think of was Triell, coming with those devastating news.

let the stars above shine in your soul

"Don't go shouting out loud that you're claiming the crown" Rain had kept the otherwise venturous girl within pack borders today, he desire to stay dry trumping her desire to move. At least within the shelter of Oak Tree Bend, she could keep to the narrow pathways between fresh-leafed trees, mostly avoiding the drizzle. Knowing better than to stay completely idle though, she walked a length of the border, and this was where the call reached her, pausing her steps. It seemed her decision to stay in had been well timed, as this was a summons she could not afford to miss, or surely both Aponi and Serach would have her tail. The thought made her smirk to herself even as she shook her shoulders in annoyance, turning to obey her alphas; There was something to be said for leaders who kept a tight rule, and Nalda certainly felt a lot better following these two than she had the flimsy leadership of the Pines. The call had originated from Aponi's birth den, a spot her niece had come to know well, so that she could give it a wide berth on her trips through the territory; Safe for the regular occasions when she would bring a meal and leave it outside or with Serach, who often stood watch. It was quite a distance from where she'd been patrolling though, and so she was one of the last to arrive, catching the tail end of Arnaq's little display from the shadows at the clearing's edge. Nalda snorted lowly to herself, rolling her eyes at the youth's ditzy behavior; I beg to differ… He gaze lingered on the pups as she stepped out to join the group, face carefully expressionless now. They were… pups. Little blobs of tan fur blinking against the light and cowering between their parents legs. In truth she found them rather ugly, though she would of course never admit it out loud. Pausing a length next to Ice's shoulder, the young woman looked up at her leaders, nodding a respectful greeting. Serach's words could be better excused, they were his children after all. And though Nalda didn't find the pups as adorable as the rest of the adults, she could appreciate what they meant to the pack, and what characters they might grow up to become; Especially that pale one..! Having to be held back from exploring the world all on her own. And suddenly the cousin found herself smiling, nodding again at the mother and father; "The'look strong, jus'like th'parents." Surely they would soon be a pawful to the whole pack. Word Count: 424 Thoughts "Speech"

Khalliysgraphy @DA

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@Serach @Nalda @Ice @Arnaq @Ayla @Corsair

Much to her surprise it was not Serach who arrived first upon her call but their newest member Arnaq. The yearling was certainly no threat to the children and had recently been promoted to a normal ranking member and had earned all the rights and responsibilities that came with it. However, Aponi was still disappointed that it was not their father who got the first full view of the pups on their journey outside of the den. She stayed far enough away that she was comfortable and so the silver mother greeted her with a smile and a wagged tail.

Aponi did not have much time to spare as she kept the trio from wandering away, although it was mostly Mable who seemed hell-bent on pushing the boundaries. And then just as she plopped the cream coloured child back onto the ground their father showed up. Gesturing Serach forward with a warm smile she watch as he addressed his children for the first time and was rewarded with a running head-butt from Mabel.

Unable to contain her joy a wide smile spread across the Donata's maw as she looked up to see that Ice and Nalda had joined them while she had been distracted. Laughing at her niece's comment she smirked, "Fate help us if they're anything like me when I was a child." Then raising her muzzle she made the official introductions, gesturing with her muzzle to each pup, < b>"Mabel, Ayla and Corsair." The pack already knew their names, but now they would know their faces.

 

Her frustrated growling and whimpering was completely ignored by her mother and so Mabel decided that she would try a completely new tactic. She would simply just go back to wondering towards the large wet looking thing that she didn't know the name of. The child had taken no more than a couple of steps toward this strange thing when she was distracted by the arrival of a stranger. Everyone smelled familiar to the pup who had spent the last few weeks living off her nose before her eyes and ears opened but she had never seen them before. They looked different than she had expected, they were all so different than Momma, didn't all adults look like Momma?

Mabel was about to change her direction and go towards Arnaq when a creamy face bent down and looked her dead in the eye. This scent was even more familiar than the others, and she even kind of recognized his light coloured fur from his head poking in to see them. And for his recognisability he was rewarded with a full on, eyes closed, muzzle dipped down head-butt.

THUNK

Shaking away the stars that briefly flashed through her vision Mabel yipped at him a verbal greeting, she liked being outside of their hole home!