Larkcall Lowlands there's an open sky and a reason why

He didn't not know what to think of the remarkable sight. The boy was enthralled by the strange phenomenon, his eyes wide as he walked along the inside of the circle, his nose twitching as he consumed the foreign smells. Antler Ring? A frown creased his features as he turned to his father, his ears pressed forward: "An'ler?" The meaning of the word was lost to him. He approached the ring of fallen antlers hesitatiantly, his neck craned as he tried to get a better look at the structure. It appeared to put together with extrarestrial strength, for Cyril doubted that a wolf could have done this.

How bizarre.

His brows tightened as his father spoke once more, announcing that he did not know the reason behind it's existence. He frowned, disappointed, and turned away from the ebony Kael, his attention refocusing on the bleached antlers. He padded forward, his oversized paws moving slowly as he sidled up next to the inside of the ring, his nose hovering inches above the closest antler. Below the layers of wolves and prey there was a strange smell; one that he had not encountered before. His nostrils flared, trying to identify what it was, but nothing.

"Is weird," he responded after his considered his father's question, his tail swaying gently behind him. "Nea'o, but weird."

There was a strange air to the ring that made Cyril feel uncomfortable, but it was captivated by the place. He could not wait to come here again and explore even more…


(done on phone sorry if there's any errors ♡)

At Cyril's questioning reply, Wraith stood and padded over to the ring. He lifted a paw, hovering it over one of the antlers. "Yes. This is an antler. All of these are. They sit on the heads of our prey. Deer and caribou and moose." He snorted as Cyril gave his bewildered approval. It was only suitable that the boy feel confused by it all. It was a mystery to all in the Lowlands aside from those who placed the ring in the first place. The black male had a vision of caribou all intertwining their antlers as they shed them, but it seemed too implausible to be a true explanation.

While Cyril sniffed around, Wraith frowned. For an outing together, this one wasn't the most exciting. Strange and mysterious, but there wasn't much in the way for a pup to do around here. He lay again at the center, content to let the boy have some time to look around and get his nose accustomed to the foreign scents. Meanwhile, the male's golden gaze scanned the surrounding lowlands. Only after determining there was nothing of interest did he look back at his son.

"Do you wish to stay longer or are you ready to head back home?"

How did prey wear these?! They looked heavy! They also looked painful—little Cyril certainly did not want to come face-to-face with a set of antlers atop a deer or a caribou. Yikes! He shuddered at the thought, his brows narrowing even more as he pranced forward, his nostrils flaring as he sniffed at the entwined bone. “Bu’ no prey? An’ler fall?” He asked, his denim gaze still fixated on the strange sight rather than turning to his ebony father. It didn’t make sense. How did all of these antlers end up here, tangled into each other, to create a perfect circle? He snorted, frustrated with the lack of reason. It seemed impossible. If the creatures had gotten twisted into each other where was the rest of their bodies?! Surely there would be some evidence of the beasties left behind…

While his father was not convinced that this was a worthy adventures Cyril was absolutely enthralled by the peculiar phenomenon. He continued sniffing at the circle, bouncing around as the array of different scents captivated him. With a wide grin he finally turned to the dark shape of his father, his tail wagging gently behind him as the older, large Kael spoke. Home?! He frowned; so soon? Padding up to his father the boy pounced at one of Wraith’s outstretched forepaws, his rump wiggling behind him as he lowered himself into a playful bow. “Mo’ ‘venture p’ease!” He hummed excitedly, his head tipping to the side as he prayed his father would comply with his request. 

 

Wraith shrugged at his son's questions. "Caribou do shed their antlers," he taught. "And the next year, they grow back larger. But I find it hard to believe an entire herd became caught together and shed at the same time like this. One of life's mysteries, I suppose." He wished he had better answers for @Cyril but truly, there were none.

Still, it didn't seem to matter one way or another to the boy, for he was just as enamored with exploring without knowing the answer. Perhaps it made it all the more special for him to have the opportunity to learn of something even his father did not know. He watched on quietly while the pup sniffed about. The boy was quick to frown at the mention of returning home. Wraith grinned. That was the response he'd expected, for it was one he would have given as well.

Cyril's pounce and pleading gaze was met with amusement. "More adventure? I'm not sure how much adventure your old man has left in him!" the brute teased, rolling onto his back and squirming as if to relieve an itch. "What more do you want to do?" he asked, leaving the option up to the lad. Pretty soon, he'd be off on his own making decisions on his own adventures. No need not to start him off early making smart decisions.

“Car-eh-boooooo,” he repeated, a goofy grin tugging at his lips as he turned to his father, his rump wiggling excitedly behind him. It seemed weird that they would drop their antlers and grow new ones—why not just keep the old ones? How silly! No wonder they were prey; they weren’t very smart! Cyril nodded in agreement with his father. Despite their lack of intelligence it did not seem feasible that the caribou would get caught in each others antlers. Not this many. He frowned, frustrated by the lack of answers. It certainly was a mystery and he was determined to figure it out. Just not today.

At the older Kael’s words the boy immediately responded by sticking his tongue out and emitting a pffffffft! sound, a single brow arched high into his forehead. “Y’not too old!” He countered with another cheeky grin as he poked at his father’s revealed stomach, hoping that he could encourage him into another adventure. What more do you want to do? Everything! How could his father even ask him that?! The boy wanted to see as much as possible before his legs threatened to fall off. The lowlands stretched as far as the eye could see and he had barely explored any of it! From atop the monadnock he had seen a lot of the tundra, eyeing places for him to explore once his legs got bigger, but it was not the same as seeing it up close. “See Lo’ands,” he responded with a chirp, his eyes bright with excitement. “Go pawtol??” He wanted to do what his father usually did because it was an excuse to spend more one-on-one time with him.

Sorry for the wait, darling! Can end this and start another, continue with this one, or fade if you want with yours. Up to you! <3

"Glad you don't think so," he said with amusement as his son defended him in saying he wasn't too old for such adventures. While being Alpha wore on him more than he'd anticipated, spending time with his mate and son kept him young. Their interactions were so flawlessly effortless that he had nothing to complain about. The brute oofed as his son poked at his exposed belly and chuckled a laugh as he tossed a paw towards his face in play.

At Cyril's suggestion that they go patrolling together, Wraith rolled onto his side and considered it. He needed to patrol anyway. It was no trouble to have his son along for one aside from the fact that the going would be a little slower than usual. That in itself was a non-issue to the male. Having Cyril along gave him the chance to find a new appreciation for the things he saw daily. Pups were so unique in that aspect; each had different perceptions of the world and were actually excited to share them with others. As they got older, Wraith had found they shared less of their thoughts. Even Odin - a perfect example - didn't speak with him as openly as he had the year before. It was sad...

So he would take every opportunity he had to spend time with Cyril before he, too, became closed off in his own thoughts.

"Alright," the father agreed. "Show me what you know," he encouraged with a smile. "You lead!"

@Wraith I'm good with ending this one and starting a new one! :B If this works as a fade for you feel free to archive! <3

Cyril could have remained in the antler ring all day—if it was up to him. Each piece was distinctly unique and carried a different smell, only adding to the boy’s confusion and curiosity. However, he knew his father had much more important things to do than watch him ogle the strange formation. He could do so when he was not in the company of the older Kael. Really inspect the antlers and try to figure out how they had come to the lowlands, perfectly interlocked.

His ears twitched as he waited, impatiently, for the ebony male’s response. He wouldn’t object to taking a quick power nap either, for refuelling was not a bad idea, but Cyril worried that he wouldn’t be in the adventuring mood after they returned to the monadnock. Which was why he had to keep the adventure going—until his paws grew weary and his eyelids began to droop. And as long as his father wanted to, of course, for he wouldn’t be able to explore without him by his side.

At Wraith’s response the boy’s plume wagged frantically behind him, like a wriggling fish out of water. Show me what you know. You lead! Oh boy. Oooh boy, oh boy, oh boy. His father was actually trusting him to lead the way? He blinked, dumbfounded by the suggestion. The daze was quickly broken with an excited bark, his lips pulling back into a wide, goofy smile. “Mmmmkay!” He hummed as he marched toward the edge of the circle, his oversized paws clumsily reaching at the antlers to pull himself over. “Jus’ try ’n keep up!” He tossed over his shoulder as he marched into the lowlands, his nose hanging low to the ground as he moved. 

(This post was last modified: Sep 12, 2017, 12:23 AM by Cyril.)