Oak Tree Bend the aftermath

A lynx has left behind the remains of a deer. +5 Health

Arnaq was excited, her tail was whipping back and forth as she watched the little pups moving around. "Hi" She whispered to the pups as they all seemed to scramble around. The creamy white one called Mabel seemed to look right at her and she smiled before she was distracted by her father. The head butt was adorable and Arnaq laughed at the ordeal. 

Arnaq stood and took a step back watching the pups interact. She was sure she would have time later to play with them and get to know each of them as they grew. She was sure with her new rank promotion she was bound to babysit, which she looked forward to. She couldn't wait to play with them. Her tail was still moving quickly. 

She looked to Ice and Nalda, her eyes gleaming. "They are so adorable." She exclaimed as she looked back at the pups. Life would change in the pack. Pups came first, she would learn first hand what it was going to be like. She had never been around pups before so it would be a life changing ordeal for her but she was excited to see them grow and become individuals of their own. 

It seemed Mabel already had her part down, exploring and getting out, leading the other two. She might be a handful later on, Arnaq thought to herself as she watched the interactions of everyone gathered around the den site.

(This post was last modified: Jun 14, 2017, 07:24 PM by Arnaq.)

Corsair was still squinting when the first member of his pack family appeared. He fixed her with a narrow gaze that was broken by rapid blinking. For reasons unknown to him, a tear or two streamed from each eye as he struggled to cope with the brilliance of the outside world. He was accustomed to the gloomy dark and struggled to process the change in scenery mentally and physically, so his stunned gaze remained on Arnaq, though he hardly realised she was there, even as he began to adjust to the light.

By the time he could properly see her and note that she was not the same as mom, Serach had descended in front of them, and Corsair's vision lingered on the white-haired wolf. The one behind him, the one who came first, was a different sort of mom, an Other Mom as it were, and the real difference between his mom and any other female wolf, he would not comprehend for several weeks more. Even from here, he could tell she smelled different but similar to mom, and that was what made her Other Mom. Serach, on the other hand, smelled different entirely from mom, from his masculine musk to his individual aroma. He was not an Other Mom. He was different yet, and so Corsair would come to know him as something else, but not so clearly defined.

After all, his notice went far past things like coat colour and composition and body type. Corsair couldn't tell Aponi from Arnaq from Serach based on any of those things, for while he was capable of telling they were different, it seemed irrelevant to his young mind. They were all much larger than he. He would only develop the ability or desire to differentiate based on physical traits later on. Instead, he relied solely on scent to identify them, and currently, Real Mom smelled the best.

He noticed the arrival of the fourth, the Other-Other Mom, by smell alone. Serach remained in his way, but Corsair bobbed his head in an effort to see around his much larger father until he realised the futility of it and ventured into the space below Serach's belly instead in search of Other Mom and Other-Other Mom.

For clarification, Ayla has bumped into @Nalda

So many other smells and presences suddenly joined them, the likes of which she vaguely recognized but never this strongly. She blinked at each of them, her puppy blue gaze squinting hard to try and bring them into focus but it didn’t quite do the trick. The girl huffed, frustrated. She was a puppy, so she was naturally curious, but she was also very frightened of making her mother angry or disappointed. She looked up at the silver woman as if to say “Can I go?” but Corsair and Mabel were already well on their way and they weren’t getting in trouble! Certainly if those trouble makers were fine the silver one would be willing to give her some leeway?

 
She moved forward hesitantly, little legs wobbly and still uncertain of the terrain. She was so focused on keeping her legs beneath her that she didn’t notice the presence of one of the larger wolves until she bumped right into their leg. She flopped over, looking up in surprise at the silverish wolf above her. For a moment she thought she was her mother, but the scent was all wrong and the colors were different too. And her eyes! Ayla stared in fascination, her little tail giving a small wag behind her tiny frame. This was all so interesting!

(This post was last modified: Jun 16, 2017, 06:11 PM by Ayla.)

Serach was transfixed, a smile permanently etched on his face and his gaze secured to the three small wolves at Aponi's feet. He could empathize with their wide-eyed wonder at the world, for he felt the same looking at them. As the rest of the pack came together, he spared them each a glance and a smile in turn although he was quick to turn his attention back to his son and daughters.

His curiosity was rewarded too, as the oldest of the girls, Mabel, came barreling towards him with all the confidence in the world. But rather than merely touch her small, wet nose to his, he was greeted with a bowed head that cared not for the presence of his muzzle or his own forehead. Before he could pull away, their foreheads coming together. It was really only a dull thud for Serach, and he winced more from the unexpectedness of it rather than pain, but he could not help but look up at Aponi and silently ask, "What the hell?" His smile never wavered, though, and as Mabel yipped at him in greeting - apparently the shock of her collision had not hurt her too badly - Serach crooned back at her and nudged her ears with his nose and offered her a lick to the head. "Hello Mabel," he told her, but was cut short by the movement of yet another wiggly puppy getting into an adventure.

Seemingly unbothered by Mabel and her antics, Corsair had also wandered close to Serach, although he was not particularly intent on Serach itself. Instead, the young Donata was trying to look behind him, but before Serach could step out of the way, Corsair took the path of least resistance and walked beneath his father's legs. Laughing, Serach's tail wagged happily above his back. It was such a simple thing, truly, but it brought up memories that Serach had forgotten he had. For most of his life, Ice had only been a blur of white fur standing over himself and Sceral, and now here he was doing the same. He looked to his father briefly, wondering if the older man had similar memories.

Bending down again, he peered around his own leg to look at Corsair in amusement, before shifting and stepping over him so he would have a clear path to the others. "Go get em," he encouraged before looking back down at Mabel and playfully batting at her with one of his forepaws.

"Don't go shouting out loud that you're claiming the crown" Aponi’s response brought a wolfish grin to the young woman’s lips, the image of her aunt as a rowdy, silvery pup flashing through her mind. Then time came for introductions, and she dutifully followed the mother’s gaze as each pup was named, though she had a feeling she would forget again soon enough, until they were old enough to talk for themselves, there was little point in keeping track anyway. The yearling continued her childish display, greeting the pups again in a high pitched voice and practically bouncing on the spot. Her question made Nalda roll her eyes as soon as she turned away, a sig escaping her nostrils with a low snort. But she supposed it was good, the girl being so excited; she would probably take on pupsitting duty happily, as was her place, and perhaps the cousin could go free. The children were a spirited bunch, immediately setting out to explore their new world, each in their own way. Mabel, the palest one, managed to make Nalda smirk again as she greeted her father with resounding head-butt, before continuing one, seemingly unabashed. The boy was one an adventure too, taking advantage of Serach’s diverted attention to set out between his legs, heading towards the rest of the group. As unimpressed as she was by the whole display, the girl admired her cousins’ adventurousness; They might grow interesting one day… A sudden bump at her leg drew the youth’s attention from the other two pups, golden eyes turning down on the third, who had managed to slip away unnoticed. Her blurry, sky blue eyes stared up at Nalda, a rather dopy expression on the small face. Feeling suddenly unsure, the slate and russet wolfess glanced around, then, seeing that everyone else seemed preoccupied, she slowly lowered her muzzle to the little tan creature. She’d never been around pups before and knew nothing about how to deal with them. Mildly panicked, she glanced around again, then returned her attention to the girl; Which one was this again..? She tried to smile kindly, waving her batty ears. “Uh… hi,” she said, softly, reaching to touch her nose against the pup’s; “Y’ uuh… Better g’back t’you mum.” Gently she pushed at the little one’s side, trying to turn her around and nudge her back to her parents. She wanted to get rid of the scrawny thing as quick as possible, and yet as she worked, the tip of her tail wagged softly. Word Count: 411 Thoughts "Speech"

Khalliysgraphy @DA

Because of work, my activity will fluctuate every other week. For more information and OOC preferrences check out my profile

This will be the last round! your wolf is free to stay or leave as they choose, but I will fade out with Mabel. Now post order @Serach @Ice @Arnaq @Nalda @Corsair @Ayla

The whole thing was turning out rather comical really. Mabel had taken off and headbutted Serach square in the forehead, causing the father to meet Aponi's blue gaze with questions on his muzzle. Corsair was stumbling between the legs of the adults and even Ayla who had so far been the most timid was... where did Ayla go? Unpanicked given how many adults surrounded them the mother looked lazily around in search of the small russet and tawny child who could not have gotten that far.

It was Nalda's voice that alerted Aponi to the whereabouts of her wandering daughter. The sight of her niece so unsure and clearly slightly desperate caused a full laugh to work it's way out of the alpha wolf's lungs. Usually so composed and slightly cold to see the russet she wolf so out of place was almost funny enough that the mother wanted to leave them to it and see how things would resolve themselves. Almost. Instead she put Nalda out of her misery and closed the gap between herself and the pair in question, "Come on now Ayla, leave your cousin Nalda alone now." Nudging the child more pressingly than the younger woman had done before she waited until the pup followed her obediently.

His heart was full, and it was a wonderful feeling. It had been a long time since he had felt this happy and carefree, even if the pups' official meet the pack event was signaling the beginning of a whole other host of responsibilities he had yet to experience. At least, not with his own flesh and blood. But it made him smile easily, and as he continued to play with his oldest daughter, he could not help but feel grateful that things had turned out the way they had. Glancing around the group, he caught Nalda's nervous hesitation, but even that did not deter his joy. In time, he was sure they would all appreciate the trio of Donata pups for what they were - a sign that there were better times ahead for all of them. At least, Serach certainly hoped so.

Settling down on his stomach, he continued to bat his paws at Mabel, nuzzling her small muzzle with his own when given the opportunity. Already he could tell that she would be fiery, just like her mother, but his contentment extended even to the prospects of a future of chasing down his strong-headed daughter to keep her safe within the Bend's boundaries. Tail wagging happily behind him, he put thoughts of the future aside and focused on the present: keeping Mabel entertained with the playful headbutts of his nose and swatting of his paw.

Serach fade out.

The big one looked down at her, offering her a better view of those interesting eyes and her tail wagged harder. Noises came from their maw and her auds perked, puppy blue gaze widened in interest even though she didn’t understand anything they were saying. Wait, there was one word she was familiar with. Mom. Her brows knit together in confusion. Mom? This one wasn’t her mom, silly wolf. She only had one mom, the big more silver one who gave them warm tummies and a comfy place to sleep. Suddenly she was being nudged away and she let out a squeak, a frown dipping at the corner of her lips. Before she could turn back around real mom came and started moving her away too. She gave a sad look toward the other wolf before following where her mother bid her. She’d just wanted to explore like the others! But, if momma didn’t want her there then there had to be a good reason right? So she went without a fight and when they stopped the girl flopped down at her mother’s paws and watched her siblings play quietly, though not without a bit of a grudge pulling at her heartstrings.

Ayla Fade

Go get em, Serach encouraged his son, but Corsair hardly even glanced around at his pop's face before stumbling out from under his father's rear end. He blinked rapidly as he emerged from the shadows and attempted to focus his blurry vision on the Other Mom and Other Other Mom beyond his father. All at once it became far too overwhelming and the cub retreated timidly back into the darker space beneath Serach.

Soon enough he would be a lot more brave, but for now, he had been introduced to too many things at once. His brain was too busy processing all this new information for him to really focus it on anything else, so he did the next best thing: flopped down on his side beside Serach's leg hind leg and closed his eyes. He mentally told himself, as best he could in his puppy jargon and immature thought process, that it was only a brief rest. He would be up again in a few minutes, and he would be brave enough to approach them then. His heart would stop its rapid beating and he would calm down, and then he would greet his pack mates. Or so he told himself as best he could.

In spite of all of Corsair's convictions, however, he was fast asleep before he even knew what hit him, and remained that way long after the last pack mate had drifted away from the scene.