Charred Ash Draw The search ends here

For @Lana, @Cannon, and @Suka

The children were growing more and more restless by the day, the small sqirming bodies against her chest finally settling enough that the mother felt secure in rising to leave the den to relieve herself. The children had been growing well, the darker pair perhaps better than their dusty brother but not all wolves could be as large as their parents. A parting nudge was given to each small crown before she left the birthing den, already counting down the days until they could join the rest of the pack. She hadn't planned on the birthing den housing so many large bodies.

She paused to stretch at the front of the den, finally stretching her limbs for the first time today. She hadn't moved far away, just far enough to keep the little clearing clean before returning to the den, but instead of returning to the shaded confines she sprawled out in the sun. From the sudden cold snap to this unseasonable heat, they were all looking a bit on the fluffier side so she took this rare moment to drag her teeth through the worst of the clumps on her ribs. Glittering fur drifting away like snowflakes on the breeze. Her good ear turned towards the den, picking up on the sound of movement within. Well it was about time they left the den anyway.

honey, you should see me

Suka Tainn

Their world was one of darkness, sometimes warm, sometimes cold, always dark, until about a week ago when eyes had finally parted revealing the curtain of ever changing light and two other shapes that moved about around him, their familiar squeaks and grunts comforting, the feel of their bodies familiar from time immemorable. They were him, and he was them, there had never been any other way. The big blurs came and went too, with their warmth and milk and familiar soothing tones, always with a nudge and a lick to knock the boys shaky legs out from beneath him. But not today.

He had felt the big warm one leave, but she was never gone for long, so as soon as her shadow passed by the blinding light he was up with a determined huff. He wanted to see where she was going and why. A short grumble was offered to his siblings, a this is our chance as he slowly inched closer and closer to the outside world. He wasn't the biggest of the three, but he was the fastest, and unless one of the darks knocked him down he was going into the out there. He was sure there was more to life than this dark hole in the ground.

the battle gun

Cannon Tainn

Sleep was something the young Tainn had already found he'd been good at, thus it was a hobby he quite frequently came back to. Today was no exception, or so he thought. The small bundle of fur had just barely managed to close his eyes before one of his bunkmate's began some sort of hubbub. Cracking his teensy blue eyes back open, the pup began to analyze the situation further. The one that looked different was farther away than usual, how preposterous! It had always been so close to him in the past! What on earth was going on?

Deciding quite suddenly that he wanted in on whatever shenanigans were about to take place, the little guy quickly scrambled up, trying his best to move his shaky stubs-for-legs closer to the culprit of all this madness. The thing, who he'd eventually learn to address as his 'brother', spieled out some sort of offensive noise toward his general direction, and he instinctively mimicked something similar to give back in return. Could this be the first of many arguments to come?

Wow, walking sure was hard! How was the strange looking one managing so well on his own? Cannon then remembered that there were actually /three of them usually, and briefly wondered where the other one went. Would she be tagging along too?

Dangerzone

Lana Tainn

Lana squeaked her disapproval as the big one left, making a raucous, and letting the early morning chill filter in. Still-blue eyes cracked open, searching for the other squirmers to snuggle with. They never left, not like the big ones who moved about at their leisure, and disrupted her naps. The cub had to blink a few times before she found what she was looking for. Two shapes, dark against the light filtering in from the entrance, stood only a few steps in front of her. Pleased, the girl moved towards them, scrambling on wobbly legs to their warmth.

She had expected to close the distance between them easily, but something was off. The two shapes seemed to be moving away from her. They'd never done that before. Tiny eyes narrowed, and she picked up her step, trying desperately to reach them. Each step was harder than the last, her very round tummy swaying this way and that, nearly pushing her off balance with every swing. How dare they not be there to keep her warm! A tiny growl fell from her throat, and the distance between the three closed. The bigger one was slow, so she'd have to grab him first. Launching herself forward, her little jaws attempted to clamp onto it's mass.

honey, you should see me

Suka Tainn

There were noises behind him but that wasn't what held his attention right now. The light was getting closer with each step he took and as a paw slid through the light he paused to blink. In the dark they all looked the same but out here... his fur was much lighter than he ever could have imagined. His momentary confusion resulted in a few more blinks before his newly upturned ears caught the noise behind him, the bigger one tackling the biggest from behind. The noise alone was enough to make him smile, rough and tumble he might not have been built for but that didn't mean he was willing to be left out.

Suka turned away from the light and shuffled back towards the tumbling blobs, jaws parting to unleash another squeak of disapproval. How dare they play without him! Without much mind for who his target might be, small jaws opened to reveal needle-like newly sprouted teeth before his head swung towards the writhing mass hoping to close on one sibling or the other. Even his most fearsome attempt at a growl resulted in little more than a squeaky mumble but he let the sound loose with little regard for how it might sound to others.

the battle gun

Cannon Tainn

The sudden jolt pain came with much shock, what on earth was going on?! Bewildered, the tubby Tainn quickly swung his head around to examine the cause of the unexpected problem. It was the normal looking one. Apparently it'd decided that Cannon would make a suitable meal, but why? With a growl, or rather what he could make of one, the small pup attempted to make it clear that this.. Display of events.. Wasn't really much appreciated. It was then that he'd experience yet another, very similar jarring blow. Only this time, the injury was inflicted upon his neck. Why.

With a rather unpleasantly loud 'yip', the young shadow latched onto his sister's flesh as some sort of stupid defense mechanism. Was she to blame for the horrible feeling in his neck? Well, perhaps not, but there weren't many options available now were there? As the horrible feeling persisted, so did he. Deeper and deeper, he'd let his teeth sink into the poor fae. The plan would be that he'd stop when she, or whatever it was, did. If she didn't like it, she'd figure out a way to end it, right?

(This post was last modified: Jun 02, 2017, 07:15 AM by Cannon.)

Dangerzone

Lana Tainn

Finding purchase, her small needle-like teeth dug down, unwilling to loosen their grip. Her dark head jerked back, attempting to pull the fat bundle of fur with it. Nobody was going to the outside today. Not when she was so cold, and tired! The dark mass writhed and growled it's displeasure, but Lana had no intentions of giving in. Not until they were snuggled up as far from the entrance's light as they could manage in the small enormous cavern that was their home.

She pulled, and pulled, intent on dragging his fat behind to her preferred sleeping spot, but he wouldn't budge. He was just too big! Irritation prickled up Lana's spine, alongside the tingle of a growl in her throat. It was then that she caught sight of the blurred form rushing back towards them. Thankful that he had come to his senses, the cub nearly let go of the fluff-ball she was holding. Nearly, because as the brown one clamped onto the biggest one, it dug it's own teeth into the side of her head.

Another series of growls erupted as she attempted to free herself from his grip, only to force him towards her much-more sensitive ear, where his teeth slammed down.

honey, you should see me

Suka Tainn

It seemed the boy had started a chorus, his own high pitched squeak echoed by the others. They writhed and wriggled, each tugging on whatever they had managed to grasp, all earlier attempts of escape forgotten in this new game of rough and tumble. So far he had managed to survive the foray relatively unscathed and something told him that perhaps that was the way he wanted it to stay. Releasing his hold on his brother he scooted back, bleary blue eyes watching the bigger ones to see how they might react to his absence.

Once again the light caught his attention, a large shadow moving just beyond sight seeming to beckon the boy on. lowering his head to rest between his shoulders in a determined display he pumped his stubby legs as fast as he could manage, tripping once, then twice as he drew closer and closer to the place he had stood just moments before. A determined bark squeak left his jaws as he powered forward, through the glittering curtain and into the light.

His charge was cut short then, as eyes squinted shut against the sudden change. He dared to crack his blue eyes open, blinking rapidly once, then twice, his small mouth hanging open as he tried to take in the world that greeted him.

There is a moose carcass that has been scavenged by coyotes nearby. +15 Health

the battle gun

Cannon Tainn

And then suddenly it all stopped. Cannon wasn't able to fully comprehend exactly what had just happened, but at the very least the pain subsided, leaving the biting only to him now. As he released his powerful grip, the Tainn pup lazily turned his head to evaluate what was going down in the rear-view. The one! The weird one! It was leaving again! He growled, then looked back at the similar looking one. Was she coming or not? Standing up on wobbly legs, the small boy rearranged his body so that it would be facing toward the strange light. Well, whatever her plan was, he was going. The weird one wouldn't have all the fun today, no sir-ee.

Cannon could easily notice the light begin to creep closer as he clumsily romped behind his youngest of kin. It sort of hurt! Why? Squinting his eyes, the small Tainn attempted to peer further into the strange source, but with underdeveloped vision such as his own, nothing seemed to be very distinguishable just yet. Flinging his head back toward the similar one, the pup let out a pathetic bark, almost as if to command her to join them. No more biting, just come on!

(This post was last modified: Jun 02, 2017, 10:40 AM by Cannon.)