Dead Empress Backwater Fresh air, anyone?

For @Asmund but open to DEB puppies if interested.

some fairy tales are more than true

Sage was pulled from her slumber by the thick smell that crept into her nostrils and polluted her airways. At first, she sneezed, batting her watery eyes. Then coughed. A screen hung in the air, clouding her vision. Was it night? Was it a day? She coughed again. The yearling began to blindly step one paw in front of the other. Her body trembled and radiated anxious energy. Her tongue slipped between her front teeth several times over, ears pinned back. Her tail was limp between her pale legs as she carefully meandered about.

The wolf broke free of the screen, finding an area where the smoke lifted above the trees. What was it? Why was their home full of it? She watched nervously. She didn't know whether to call out or not, but the greeting of the morning sun sent a wave of relief over her."She speaks" She walks She thinks

Note for me: Khalon is about 8 weeks old here

from charming to alarming in seconds

The child had been sleeping peacefully within the pack den where they had been moved a few weeks ago. He was turning out to be quite a lazy child, more likely to be found napping than roughhousing with his siblings. Tawny paws twitched as he dreamed of walking on a cloud, way up in the sky, jumping from spot to spot and looking way down below at everyone else. It was a good dream, and he was annoyed when he suddenly jolted awake at the sound of a cough nearby.

Blinking his eyes open, his small mouth popped into a surprised o when realized his dream was coming true and the clouds were down here! But, they didn’t smell very good and they made his eyes stings a little. But, that seemed like a small price to pay if it meant he got to play in the clouds like he had been doing in his dream. Rushing out of the den he looked around excitedly to see if anyone else was around before his eyes settled on Sage.

Confidently running up to her, Khalon barked excitedly and demanded, ”The cloudses, why are they here!?” Surely she would know! The adults always seem to know everything, even more than him.

Asmund had learned quickly that his habit of staying low was especially efficient when there was smoke to be avoided. It smelled of danger and put his hair on end, and he was beginning to notice that on the worst days it was a bit harder to breathe even while underground. He was stressed, deeply concerned, but as far as he knew, the adults had not yet addressed it. Perhaps this was just... something that happened? @Viorel would gather them if he needed to, right? @Clover would know if they were in danger.

Still, he was scared.

The wind had picked up, gracing their clearings with fresher air, and Asmund had been taking advantage of this to get in some lungfuls as well as appreciate the warmth of sun upon his fur. Then he heard others approach, someone coughing followed by the careless strides of one of the children. In a blink he was gone, back into cover. Az watched them though, green eyes barely perceivable through the murk of shadow and brush.

some fairy tales are more than true

Sage startled at the bark, jumping and turning to look at the child with her tail tucked. Oh it was that little snot-ball again. She grumbled under her breath,  wanting to groan at his mere existence. The sneezing wonder was staring right up at her expectantly. She peered down, pondering how to answer him. "They're not clouds" She spoke hesitantly in a soft voice, wagging her tail and forcing a smile. She didn't want to scare him, no matter how annoying he was. "I'm not sure, to be honest." The yearling knew her answer would likely be disappointing to the child, but she had nothing else for him. She herself was clueless.

"She speaks" She walks She thinks

Dead Empress Backwater

from charming to alarming in seconds

Khalon did not understand what was around them if it wasn’t a cloud. It looked just like a cloud did, and sure it smelled but he had no way of knowing what a cloud would or would not have smelled like. He squinted for a moment, thinking over what she had said, that this was not a cloud and she wasn’t sure what it was. It took him a while to process this before he looked back up at her and demanded, ,”not cloud then what?” She might not know why it was here but she surely had to know what it was!

There was a rustling nearby and the tawny boy’s head whipped to the side, changing eyes searching out for the source. Asmund was so well hidden that he came up empty, and had to shake off the odd sensation that he would later pair with being watched. He looked back up at Sage with inquisitive eyes. He was just learning how everything worked, and so far this was a much more pleasant experience than hanging out with his rough and tumble siblings. No one had bitten him so far. He wrinkled his nose after a minute, ”It stinky.” Maybe he was glad it wasn’t a cloud, that would mean they stunk too.

some fairy tales are more than true

Sage sighed at the demanding tone he used, shaking her head. She wished she had a real answer for the child, but at last, she didn't. "Khalon, I don't know." Her voice was stern, firm enough to show she wasn't here to argue with him about it. The she-wolf was drawn to the movement as well. Her head swiveled about sharply, hackles rising at the uneasy feeling that they weren't alone. "Someone there?" She asked while taking a step out in front of the pup protectively. She didn't like him, but that didn't mean she didn't care.

She couldn't see anything and allowed herself to settle down when the child spoke again. She looked down at him and nodded, "That it does." She stood there thinking, questioning why it smelt and if it was dangerous or not. She did not know how to find answers to any of their questions. So she sat down, still eyeing the germball.

"She speaks" She walks She thinks

Dead Empress Backwater

He listened to them talk of the smoke, and shifted his weight to get a touch more comfortable. The whelps' eyes snapped onto him and every muscle within Asmund's body froze. He couldn't help but bare his fangs even as he remained unseen, vividly remembering @Tuwile's sudden grappling of his face. Hopefully, the small child kept his distance, or at least moved a lot more slowly.

'Someone there?'

Ah, whoops. Az squirmed internally. It wasn't polite to keep lurking when called out like that, and Sage herself had never given him any reason to mistrust her. Of course, she'd hadn't done anything to prove herself to him either... He swallowed, told himself to move, but it took minutes more before he could make his limbs obey.

With the softest of snuffling, the tip of his nose peeked out of the brush, testing the air for danger like a mole unearthing itself. Then he wriggled forward a little further, revealing his face and forepaws.

"Hi."

He spoke softly, not sure if either of them much wanted a greeting from him. Maybe it was just a wasted breath. Clearing his throat, Az added a little more confidently, "It's smoke."

from charming to alarming in seconds

Kahlon’s brow furrowed into a grumpy expression at the tone that Sage used to say she didn’t know. So she couldn’t answer his question and she was talking to him as if she was his mom. She wasn’t Ma, and so she couldn’t talk to him like she was telling him what to do, even if she wasn’t giving him an order. He was going to tell her to go kick rocks when she turned her attention to the sound and asked if someone was there.

Still just a child he was immediately distracted away from the annoyance he had felt just a moment ago. He looked closer at the bush but gave up quickly when Sage agreed that it was stinky. Pleased that he had been right he looked back at Sage and wagged his tail behind him. He was gazing up curiously at the stinky not clouds when Asmund appeared, just paws and a head sticking out from the bush beside them.

Khalon readjusted to look at the teen more closely. He couldn’t remember ever seeing him so close before, and even from afar it had only been fleeting glances. He didn’t even know his name and yet he already knew more than Sage. Glancing at the teenaged girl in a way as if to say why didn’t you know that? Then asked Asmund, ”what is a smoke?” He had never heard of that before.

some fairy tales are more than true

Sage frowned at the face Khalon was making at her, not sure what to make of it. Perhaps they shared a mutual dislike for one another. She wasn’t getting off on the right paw with these kids. Moments later though he was wagging his tail at her. She didn’t get it. Were pups just indecisive with their emotions towards others? Maybe she was boring to him.

A soft shuffling drew her back to the bushes, and she scowled at Asmund as he emerged. Sage shook her head with disapproval. Why was he lurking around and watching them? It was creepy! This guy just didn’t know how to get on her good side. Not that she thought he cared to be on anyone’s good side. Just like how she felt about the snot tots. She met his greeting with an apathetic, ”Hello”

At last, he caught her interest. The yearling’s overall body language shifted as her face softened, her inquisitive eyes lighting up. Asmund was quiet…and perhaps knowledgeable? A touch of curiosity sparked within the she-wolf. Before she could ask him about the smoke, Khalon was beating her to the mark. She turned to the other teenager with a soft smile. Her tail wagging in hopes he’d enlighten the pair on the mysterious grey air.

"She speaks" She walks She thinks

Dead Empress Backwater

Both sets of eyes were suddenly on him, expected and yet almost unbearable. Especially as Sage's mouth twisted at the sight of him. His ears cupped back tightly against his nape and fear passed brightly through his green eyes. He would've disappeared again then and there, but Khalon spoke and drew his attention long enough for the other yearling's demeanor to change. Still not so sure engaging had been a good idea, he had to fight to get his tongue and jaws working again.

"I-i-it, um, I-I-I th-think," he was just making a fool of himself now, what he had been taught chased from his mind by anxiety that just kept mounting. His cheeks burned with humiliation, and all at once it became too much. Asmund burst out of cover and ran as fast as he could away from them both. He would find one of his hiding dens and curl up with his self-loathing for the rest of the afternoon.

/Fade

(This post was last modified: Jan 14, 2024, 06:10 AM by Asmund.)