Thicket of Secrets gonna run across the waves

@Duckweed - The Calling by the Rigs

Gonna rise from the grave when I roll that stone
Let the light burn the things I've known
Scream from the mountain that the child's come home
Hear the calling

Normally, Cináed was really good at following the rules and he didn’t wander off without an adult with him, all of the stuff he knew he should be doing… he figured his parents had their hands full enough with his sisters that they didn’t need him adding more trouble to the mix… This was the exception. He needed to see what was beyond the thicket that his curiosity had started to outgrow in the past few months. He felt he’d actively learned all there was to learn within the safe canopies of home, which was what had him directly and deliberately heading for the borders or the pack territory.

He was also trying to avoid all of the adults so none of them would stop him and usher him back to the den. He was almost a year old now! Well, not really, but in his own mind, he most definitely was. He could handle himself just fine out there and they needed to trust that he wouldn’t go too far; just enough to see what lingered around his home. The swarthy young pup took those steps, reaching the scent marker that marked his land from the dangerous lands outside, the ones filled with loner wolves causing trouble and other packs… it was dangerous, that was a conclusion that Cin had pulled from the stories.

But he was an Athesila, and he wasn’t scared!

Winter was hard for so many reasons. It was easily his least favourite season. Not only did his pelt fail to bulk up as much as everybody else's, leaving him almost constantly shivering, this was made worse by his occupation of choice. Standing elbow-deep in some freezing cold stream was unpleasant enough, but fishing was so hard. The fact that the fish were slower was utterly cancelled out by the fact that he was slower, too, so it was exactly the same as normal just at half-speed. It was just a little sad to watch, let alone be a part of.

Fortunately, his own personal strategy still worked, and even though his catches were much less impressive than in the summer, Duck still made an effort to contribute to the pack's caches. This was the first winter he'd spent with the Woodlands, and, if he was honest with himself, it sucked significantly less than his previous two. At least if he decided it was too cold to venture out until the sun had been up for a few hours, nobody judged him here, and if he wanted to just stay in the territory and check the borders and not hunt one bit, that was okay, too. Being useful felt... nice. And he actually felt useful. His net worth was in the positive! Go team!

He was about to practice one of his other primary functions: being the sucker who happened to come across one of the kids when they were doing something they knew they shouldn't. Normally it was @Flair at fault, but this time... "Sh-shinae?" the pale boy call-mumbled through the hanging fish in his mouth, spotting the dark boy definitely going the wrong way across the borders. Thinking that he hadn't been loud enough (and wondering where the hell his parents were, why was he being allowed this close to the outside world?!) Duck tossed his head to re-arrange his grip of the fish and tried again, this time with more success and volume. "Cinaed!"

(This post was last modified: Dec 06, 2016, 10:35 AM by Duckweed.)

There is a family of deer nearby. Hunt Opportunity

Restless feet in the wintertime could be dangerous, but the cold flakes that crunched beneath his feet, the ones that fell from the sky, had only furthered his ambitions to learn more about what else was out there. Were there other wolves? Well, of course there were other wolves, but were there a lot of them? Was everything as dark as the canopy of their home or were there locations that were wide open to the sun much like the small clearing the dense thicket near the den..? The one with the giant flat rocks that his mama liked to lay on when she got the time?

He was across the border already, already working to disappear in the distance, unaware at first of the man’s presence, nor his call to him… until he heard Duck’s voice echo across and reach his ears, freezing in place and standing there for a few seconds much like a deer caught in headlights. He blinked a few times, an innocent smile trying to play across his features as he looked over his shoulder, his cerulean gaze finding that of the lanky ghost who had a fish in his mouth. “I… ah… Hai Duckweed!” He greeted awkwardly as he turned on his haunches, facing back towards home.

“I was just… er… followin’ a rabbit scent was all… gotta practice to be the best!” What he really should have been practicing was his lying skills, because frankly they sucked and it wasn’t hard to figure out he was sneaking away to get into “trouble”. He really didn’t see what the big deal was! He wasn’t going far and he certainly wasn’t going to get lost or anything! He just wanted to look around, and then he’d be back safe and sound!

Guilt washed over Cinaed's body as though a bucket of it had been dumped over him. Duck's mouth pursed as much as it could with a cold dead fish stuffed in it, his tongue slick with saliva and fish blood clicking quietly in that awful patronising way that adults tended to.

It still freaked him out to be reminded that he was now on this side of the child-parent relationship.

At least Cinaed had the decency to know he was overstepping his bounds; @Flair would have been far more shameless about it. Cinaed and @Enia were a little easier to handle, far less exhausting. Truly, if the dark boy had chosen to ignore Duck and just speed on regardless, what could the lanky runt have done about it? Cinaed was less than half his age and already stood taller than Duck ever had or would ever be, but he was tired of feeling angry and short-changed about that.

The excuse was pretty flimsy, and Duck 'uh huh'd through the fish in his mouth, clearly unconvinced. But was wanting to go explore beyond his normal bounds really such a big deal? Cinaed was young, but he didn't really look it anymore... where was the logic in allowing Duckweed, the runt, to free roam when the bulky and tall Cinaed could not? Duck considered the kid for a bit, then snorted to himself. Twitching his head in the direction of the dens, the fish dangling limply, his tail gave a few sympathetic wags and he said (mostly coherently): "h-help me p-p-put this away, th-then we can go t-t-track it t-to, together."

It was evident that the man did not believe him, and he let his head hang in a small display of shame – whether it was shame for breaking the rules or shame for getting caught, he wasn’t entirely sure… perhaps it was a small hint of both. He didn’t know why everyone was so insistent that he stay within a certain area – they kept saying it was dangerous, but what was dangerous was what he wanted to know. He wasn’t going to go looking for trouble, after all! Sure, he wasn’t the best at hunting, and he didn’t really know how to fight, but really how much trouble could he get into a couple leaps away from home?

He wasn’t going to go and get in trouble or pick a fight and he doubted any other wolf would honestly attack him unless Cináed attacked first. Duckweed seemed understanding, or at the very least, he hadn’t been mad at what Cináed had done, instead he told him to come back, and then they could go out together. His tail wagged fiercely at the very words, a grin growing on his muzzle. “Really? Ya mean it?” He asked as he started to bound back, not questioning the man’s words. Family didn’t lie to each other, right? Besides, adult supervision meant he would have someone with him, so his parents definitely wouldn’t worry if they found out he’d gone off of the territory to explore around… and then he could come back, and maybe tell them about it – but only if they asked. Other than that, he liked to keep his ventures to himself.

His nose crinkled lightly at the scent of fish as he got closer. It tasted good, but it always smelled so weird to him. How could an animal possibly live in the water. He liked water as much as the next wolf, but definitely not enough to live in it.

The way that Cinaed lit up at his suggestion made his heart hurt. It was the smallest of kindnesses, almost the least effort he could have offered, and it made the boy so obviously happy. The love that Aideen and Miccah demonstrated for their children on a daily basis made him ache with longing and regret. He saw his mother in it, in the boundless love, but all Duck could think about was his father.

Cinaed's tail wagged at a joyous pace, his delight clear on his face, and all it had taken was a pinch of patience and a few words. Was that really so hard?

Duckweed wasn't naive, though. He knew this his father's cruelty had been far worse than a simple lack of effort, because seeing how easy it was to be kind just made him so, so angry.

"Yah, 'f c-course," he mumbled through the fish, unable to keep the corners of his mouth from tugging upwards as Cinaed bounced back towards him, unafraid, unhesitant, totally trusting. So easy. Aware of the young Athesila's opinion on fish smell, Duck jerked his head playfully at Cinaed as he came close to make the fish's body flap in his face, a light chuckle in his chest at the tease. So easy. Turning back on the path he had been on originally, he motioned with his snout for the lad to follow, the simple act of 'adult-ness' coming more naturally now. It would have been hard to act like a real authoritative figure around the trio if he had joined the pack now, but having watched them grow up, grow from tiny little things to wolves taller than himself... it was easier to maintain perspective. To see them as the young, inexperienced, impressionable children that they really were despite their appearance. To understand how they saw him, as an adult in their lives, someone dependable and trustworthy, maybe even fun - and oh, how he cherished each one of them for it.

They didn't see Duckweed, runt and weakling, stammerer and coward. They saw something different, something stronger, something wiser. It was nothing more than a trick of perspective, he knew, but it made them the only three beings in the entire world not to see him as some degree of pitiable.

And it was so easy.

"We should t-tell your m-ma," he said, re-adjusting the fish so he could hold onto it just by the tail and talk pretty normally (for he was very experienced with carrying the things and had an awful lot of practice), "s-so, so she doesn't worry. Do you know w-whhh, where she is?"

(This post was last modified: Dec 07, 2016, 02:27 PM by Duckweed.)

Cináed in his youth saw Duckweed as nothing less than what he was: family. That was never going to change, the teachings of his parents striking home in his heart, his eyes focused intently as the fish went flopping in his face, a wide grin growing on his face as he crinkled his nose again and cringed a little. “Duck!” He exclaimed shortly before he started to laugh as he followed alongside the adult. Every wolf was different, were they not? Their differences were what had made them unique, even if Cin didn’t necessarily understand what the word ‘unique’ meant. He knew it was important.

He remained remotely silent, true to the nature he’d started to develop as his knowledge grew – not as many questions to ask, after all. We should tell your ma, so she doesn’t worry. Do you know where she is? He shook his head. “I dunno. She’s prolly wrangling Flair. Sometimes she likes to lay on a rock near the den, because the sun comes through the canopy.” He suggested though he didn’t feel completely confident that she’d be there with the snow on the ground, and most likely on the rock which would make it incredibly cold.

But, Duck was right… he should tell his mom. He was with an adult but she’d still worry if she didn’t know the 20,000,000 questions like “where are you going” and “when will you be back” and “what will you be doing?”.

Cinaed's easy laughter was like a shot of neat brandy on a cold night: warming, heartening, with just a kick to wake you up. Any reluctance that Duck might have been feeling was systematically being melted away by the cheerful young wolf, just like always, because how could a boy who had never known hardship - practically any kind, let alone great - possibly endear anything other than joy? The contrast between them would always be stark and the pale wolf hoped that the growing pup would never know what it felt like to be him. That he would always be this carefree, this happy.

And slowly, Duck was catching up to that level. One day.

That Cinaed didn't know where his mother was was no huge problem; Duck was familiar with most of @Aideen's common haunts, and if nothing else they could just howl an announcement. He felt a little anxious at the idea of declaring he was taking Cinaed out of the territory on their own - Duck was hardly going to be Miccah's protector of choice, was he - but they wouldn't mind, they'd allow it. The Woodlands was built on unity and support. Humming a thoughtful note, Duck's paws followed the familiar route back towards the cache, an ear flicked to the side (and up) to follow the swarthy child.

He still refused to call out Cinaed for the lie, and instead continued to play along with it. "So h-how good is your t-tracking nnnh, now?" Their lessons were frequent and growing in intensity, but few of them included Duck himself - the only skill he could reasonably share required water. If anything, Cinaed would probably school him.

Oh, it was going to be so fun! He followed Duck along, watching as he laid the fish in the catch… and then there was that question… he’d forgotten what he had originally said! What if he couldn’t find a trail!?! He offered a nervous smile to the question, shrugging at the ghost. “I… uh… I think it could use some work. I sometimes follow trails before realizing they aren’t trails at all!” It was such a bad excuse, but he hadn’t been the best at thinking on the fly. It was just one of those things that he didn’t do often enough… plus they could all see right through it because they’d all been puppies once.

“But with both of us, we’ll find all the food!” He was supposed to be motivating, right? There were a lot of things to remember, and he wanted to be like his parents when he grew up. He had to start small though… first he needed to actually grow up, and have his first birthday, then he could be the best guardian ever. Or maybe he’d learn a thing or two about plants from his mom? There were so many possibilities… but for now, his solution was hunting with Duck... which probably meant he should tell the truth before the man figured it out for himself, since Cin was blissfully unaware that he already knew. "I... er... can I tell you a secret?"