Vigils Keep everything goes around like a boomerang

// @Ellery - set Sept 25th, one day before this thread.

Ayti adored pups. Growing up in his first year, he hadn't had playmates of any sort. But after his time with the gypsies and later on with Hearthwood-slash-Driftwood, he'd had a lot of experience as a pup-sitter. He hadn't ever wanted any of his own up until recently - his heart ached like he missed someone that wasn't even there at all. Or who actually might exist, that he was neglecting to find.

He needed some puppy playtime.

"El?" he called, padding through their territory. He wondered if anyone had even spent time with the girl at all recently, with her mother being sick and all that. "Ellery? You around here, kid?"

she smiles like a georgia summer

Ellery spent most of her time with either Elias, Nineva, or tracing the various canyons and passageways that they had within their territory. She was a simple girl who didn’t need to be entertained all the time and kept mostly to herself, though she wasn’t necessarily antisocial either. She was more than willing to hang out with her packmates, and once in a blue moon she would accompany them on some sort of task. It was a life she was accustomed to, being surrounded by adults.

The latter activity was what took up her time that day. She suspected she might know the different passageways better than some of the adults. She even managed to find a few hidden caves tucked away into corners and crevices where she sometimes took naps. As she was walking, a voice echoed and bounced among the stone walls surrounding her. Fluffy, cream colored auds perked as she recognized her name and the voice it had been called from. She was quick to follow it, zipping through the stone canyons and dipping into a tunnel before popping up not far from the position of her packmate. “Yes?” she inquired, her response short and to the point like her mother. But, it was far from curt. A small smile adorned her lips and her tail swayed in a friendly fashion behind her frame, persian blue gaze narrowed curiously on the man.

she laughs like the sound of thunder

Fortunately for him, Aytigin didn't have to wait long for a response. The pup was quick to come up and to-the-point with her words, but she was friendly. A mature little princess - Aytigin supposed she'd be like her mother as she grew up. Hazel eyes lit up in excitement and he crouched down a bit so he'd be more on her level, eager to play and entertain the pup. It'd been over a year since he had been able to do so, after all, and pup-sitting was his forte.

"It's been kinda dull around here lately," he said conspiratorially. "I was wondering if you might want to do something to pass the time. Adventure. Scuffle. Hide-n-seek. Anything you want," the older wolf offered, ears flicking and tail still wagging. As much as she acted like a little adult, Ellery was still a pup, and pups needed something more than the monotony of everyday life.

And so did Ayti.

she smiles like a georgia summer

Aytigan bent down to her height and a part of her was irked. She hated being treated like a child. But, she reminded herself calmly that he was just trying to be nice. He was trying to reach out to her, and she appreciated it. After all, her pack was also her family and she cared deeply about them.

He mentioned that it had been pretty dull as of late and she couldn’t deny him there. They hadn’t had much excitement since the weirdo wolves had tried to encroach on their territory. He listed a series of activities that they could do, and one in particular caught her attention. Scuffling. She’d watched her uncle and some of the Queensguard participate in scuffles for practice amongst themselves, and even Nineva had taught her some basics so that she could defend herself. It had been fun, and she was always excited to do more in order to help herself and the pack.

“Wanna scuffle? Maybe you could teach me some things,” she replied with an excited wag of her thick tail. It had grown colder in the Lore, something she was quickly finding she adored. The girl had a naturally thick pelt from her arctic heritage, and now that her winter pelt was coming in she was turning into a veritable puffball.

she laughs like the sound of thunder

// Guardian dem 1/3 - Ayti is sparring with Ellery, post 5/12

If a scuffle was what the princess wanted, then a scuffle was what the princess was gonna get. A smile crossed the man's lips as he tensed his body, trying to read her next move before he even really offered himself up as a practice dummy. Ellery wasn't nearly as big or strong as he was, but she was gonna be a big girl. Both her parents were freaking massive - most wolves in this pack were, as a matter of fact.

"Alright," he said calmly, tail swishing from side to side. "Let me see what you know already and I'll tell you what you can improve on." The older wolf laughed slightly. "But I'm not an expert, okay? I've only been in a coupla real fights. And I got my ass beat too. But that doesn't mean I don't know what I'm doing."

(This post was last modified: Oct 04, 2018, 02:23 AM by Aytigin.)

Guardian dem 1/3. Ellery is sparring with Aytigan. Post 6/12

she smiles like a georgia summer

Ellery could tell when something in his body language changed. She could tell he was going to abide by her request before the words even left his mouth. He was watching her, assessing her, and the girl always liked to rise to the challenge. He explained that he’d been in a couple of fights, and lost them. This made her snort, though her gaze remained playful. She couldn’t judge, really. After all, she didn’t have any fighting experience at all.

Ellery widened her stance instinctively, head lowering as she, too, assessed him. The first few times she’d done a spar she’d been led purely by instinct. But, now that she had some practice she was a little more steady on her feet. That didn’t mean she was amazing, but she felt like she did have the upper paw on someone her age.

After a moment, she wordlessly swept forward. No need for stupid war cries, they served no purpose. Her uncle had taught her that one. However, her mother had given her the tip to use her temporarily small size to her advantage. There was no way she could ram the massive man. She’d simply bounce off of him. But, she might be able to sweep him off his feet. The girl surged toward Aytigan, surging upward as if to strike at his face. Hopefully he would back up to dodge, at which point she would alter her path in order to shove herself between his legs to try and trip him.

she laughs like the sound of thunder

(This post was last modified: Oct 04, 2018, 02:17 AM by Ellery.)

// Guardian dem 2/3, post 7/12

Ayti planned on going kind of easy on her. After all, she was still really little and didn't have much experience on her side. It wouldn't be fair or right of him to go all-out on her. So he waited on her move first, and she went right for his face. And... well, he was a little caught off-guard. He fell into the trap easily, stepping backward and was immediately tripped up by her darting between his legs and knocking him off balance.

He barely managed to keep on his feet, hazel eyes alight with amusement. "Nice one!" he praised, narrowing his eyes and feinting right before darting in to the left, attempting to slam his flank against hers to bowl her over to the side. He certainly wasn't going to use his teeth or claws against any packmate, no matter of their age, but certainly never a child.

If he did manage to knock her down, he would lunge in to try and pin her. But he was never the quickest wolf.

Guardian dem 2/3 post 8/12

she smiles like a georgia summer

To her pleasure, her plan worked like a charm. She escaped from beneath him just in time to avoid being squashed beneath his massive frame. She immediately put up a defensive position once again, though a bright grin adorned her cheeks this time. She loved this. Ellery wasn’t necessarily a violent wolf. In fact, she knew that there were plenty of ways to resolve an issue without inciting violence. But, sometimes a good, firm push was needed and she was more than willing to be the one to give that push.

He praised her, then in the same breath lunged toward her. She saw the feign coming, but her reflexes weren’t quite fast enough just yet. His flank slammed into her and she crumbled to the ground with an ‘oof’. Then, he was on top of her and she knew that this was usually the end game position. But, she had one more move up her sleeve. She was careful to keep her forelegs open, and when his face got close enough she shot her paw forward to give him a solid bop on the nose. She knew from previous (accidental) experience that getting hit in the nose wasn’t fun. It was disorienting, especially for a wolf, and often times made one’s eyes water. Hopefully, with enough luck, she would land the punch and when he was distracted she’d roll out from his grasp.

she laughs like the sound of thunder

(This post was last modified: Oct 04, 2018, 03:19 AM by Ellery.)

// Guardian dem 3/3, post 9/12
Permission given to powerplay the Big Smush.

Ayti saw the paw punch coming, and moved his head just so the paw hit lightly. Still, he reacted in dramatic fashion and tossed his head back, pretending the blow had landed at full force. Then, with all his bulky weight, the massive wolf melted forward and groaned, fully intending to smush the pup beneath him and pin her in comical fashion.

"You've bested me!" he moaned despairingly, legs splayed out like a starfish and tail thumping the ground as he pinned the pup with simply the weight of his body. "Cruel fate! The teacher taken out by the student. Truly, you are a powerful beast."

Then, still crushing her beneath him but careful not to actually injure her, he flopped onto his side and let his tongue flop out in mock death.

(This post was last modified: Oct 04, 2018, 03:11 AM by Aytigin.)

Guardian dem 3/3 post 10/12

she smiles like a georgia summer

The Delaney man reeled back, but didn’t quite move the way she wanted him too. Actually, he moved in quite the opposite way. Falling forward rather than backward, he effectively squished the girl beneath his massive weigh. She squeaked, wriggling like a worm in an attempt to escape. He blathered on in dramatics, reminding her much of her father in a way that she couldn’t help but laugh.

As soon as he released her, she scrambled to her paws taking in big gulps of air. “Jeez, you trying to kill me?” she said with narrowed eyes. “And I didn’t win! You squished me. You won, fair and square,” she said with a pout. Though, her pout wasn’t because of her loss. Rather, it was because he was trying to sugarcoat it. She was a big girl, she could handle knowing she wasn’t the best in the world. “Just wait! I’m gonna be as big as you one day. We’ll see who does the squishing then,” she admonished with a swish of her tail.

she laughs like the sound of thunder