Oak Tree Bend knock me off my feet

For @Arnaq
May 20th, Sunny 60F/15C

What Can I Do? I'd Do Anything For Her

Within the coming days Aponi would become much more active in pack life than she had been the last few weeks. Since the pups had been born she had been emerging from the den only to relieve herself, stretch her legs and drink from the stream before returning to the birthing den. It was a quiet routine and Serach was their most frequent company though other members dropped by to bring small meals and protect the den as well. One of their more frequent gifters was Arnaq; something that had not gone unnoticed to the silver queen.

As the three children became more mobile the mother knew that soon they would begin playing outside of the den and the pack would have their official introduction. The Donata reasoned that tomorrow would be as good of day as any as long as her mate was prepared for it, no sense keeping the pups cooped up in the den now that they were bigger and stronger. So early in the afternoon she had ushered out of the earthen entrance way and pressed her nose silently into the ear of her mate and set off to find the pack's lowest.

Arnaq had done more than enough to prove herself at this point and it was time that she joined the rankings of the rest of the pack.

Arnaq had woken before the sun graced the skies with it's presence. It seemed to her that she managed to find better prey during sunrise than most other times of the day. Prey coming out of their burrows or dens slumberous apparent in every motion. She trotted over to the stream and took her morning drink, making sure to not wake anyone. She looked over her pack mates and her ears could hear the tiny sounds of the newest members in their den with their mother. It would be breakfast soon, she should hurry.

Arnaq jumped across the small stream and headed out, her nose to the ground as her eyes scanned back and forth. She didn't want to hunt any where close but if a meal presented itself, she wouldn't turn it down. Her eyes landed on a hare, she licked her maw and crouched towards the ground. It was lost in it's grooming, not realizing that it was being stalked. She nearly crawled with in distance. She had learned that forest ground was harder to hunt in then tundra, yet easier in other ways. It took her several attempts to learn how to stealth through this foliage and even still she messed up more times than she could count but that wouldn't deter her from the task at hand. 

Arnaq watched the hare, looked around the area, nothing seemed to notice her as she blended into their surroundings. She licked her maw again, her front paw twitching, her hind legs coiled up under her waiting for the right moment. It the next breath she took, she sprang to life and chased the hare only a matter of a few strides before landing her kill. She laid on it for a moment. It was dead just from the blow of her jaw, but she wanted to catch her breath. Looking around the area the birds had gone, shouting their alarms. She was fine with that, she already had her prey. 

She sniffed the hare, if she wasn't mistaken, this hare had the smell of milk on her. She turned the dead prey over and looked at it. "OH! That would be perfect!" She exclaimed loudly. She picked the hare up in her mouth and begin to follow the scent trail. This one had babies and she would bet they were going to be a delicate taste for the alpha mother. She spent several minutes looking for this place, finally she found it and buried her nose in to the hole. She could smell them. Oh how she wanted to taste one herself, but she wouldn't do that. It would be a grand gift indeed, at least in her mind. 

She dropped the hare off to the side and began digging through the hole in the ground. It wasn't deep to be honest, but it was far enough that she had to dig out several times. The babies, there were so many of them. She wondered how she would carry them all. She killed several in each bite and some got away. They weren't exactly newborns. She let them run, something else would catch them. She had six prey now to carry. She picked up the babies first and stuffed them into her cheeks and picked the hare up last. To anyone, it would look like the young wolf had stuffed her cheeks like a squirrel, with parts of her prey dangling from several places.

Arnaq was proud of herself. She had never made this kind of find before. She was excited to get back. The wolf had yet to realize she had been gone nearly all morning. To her it would be worth the prize, she didn't know how the others would feel though. She had never been gone this long before on her own, not since she joined. She had to readjust her jaw several times along the way as the mother hare kept slipping. She knew it was worth the trouble. Finally making it back to the stream, she hesitated, she didn't want to drop the meal in the water, slowly she wadded through the water and back to the other side.

She saw Aponi out of the den and she lowered herself to the ground, dropping her catches in front of her, first the mother hare, than the six babies, all fell out one by one, she used her nose to push them forward to her Alpha. She kept nothing for herself, she could find something later, she knew the mother needed the food and she was excited and proud of herself for catching such a prize, her ears were perked towards the she-wolf as her tail and butt wagged back and forth. She was clearly excited to show off the catches that she made for Aponi.

What Can I Do? I'd Do Anything For Her

To be perfectly honest Aponi was not sure what she was expecting Arnaq to be doing when she found her but it certainly wasn't what she saw. A wolf with cheeks puffed out like a comical chipmunk with an odd foot hanging out of her mouth and a hare haphazardly stuffed in there as well. Weeks of being within the confines of the birthing den must be driving her mad and nothing could stop the laugh that broke the silence. The Donata managed to control herself to an unflattering snort of amusement as the prey dropped unceremoniously to the muddy earth in between the two women.

Composing herself as much as possible, a lack of sleep and very little entertainment as of late made this situation seem even more hysterical that normal, Aponi offered her a grin. "Well Arnaq, I've never seen one wolf carry so many rabbits before. So thank you, not only for these but for all of your catches the last few weeks." The silver woman was not somebody that would often be described as warm or affectionate, outside of perhaps her relationship with her pups and mate so this was about as lovey-dovey as it got. A praise for a job well done and a thanks for working well within the pack.

Glancing down towards the pile of hare on the ground another snort worked its way out of Aponi's nose before she could get a handle on it. Clearing her throat the alpha did her best to rid the image of the chipmunk-wolf out of her head so she could hold this meeting appropriately. "You have done such a good job since you've joined us that I would like to formally promote you from our lowest to a normal ranking yearling position." This at least the Donata managed to get through without any laughter.

Arnaq smiled up at the She-Wolf and sat on her haunches. "You are welcome. I am glad they help." She had a grin on her face as the Alpha tried not laugh anymore at what she had just did. She most of been comical to say the least, she herself would of most likely laughed as well if she had seen the sight of what she was doing. She had tried hard though to be better than she was in the past, she wasn't going to fail now. She didn't want to be turned away for not doing her part after all it was the She-Wolf in front of her that welcomed Arnaq into the fold to begin with and she wasn't about to disappoint the proud mother standing in front of her.

"Really?" She looked up at her with bright eyes, a gleam in those yellow orbs of hers. She was going to be a regular pack member! She had worked so hard she couldn't believe this was happening. Her tail began to wag as did the rest of her haunches. She dipped her head and showed the respect due to the Alpha mother. "Thank you! Thank you so much! I won't let you down Aponi! I promise" She wasn't sure what to say, other than grovel at her paws and thank her even more. She was sure though that the Alpha was tired. She looked it. She still had pups in the den and Arnaq needed to get more food. They were growing and seemed to be taking a toll on Aponi.


"Thank you for putting faith in me and allowing me the chance to be apart of your pack." She smiled as she looked up again. Making sure to keep herself lower still in posture to the white wolf with blue eyes. She didn't want to come off as cross by any means especially after what she just did for her. 

so sorry for the wait on this!

Arnaq did not seem even slightly bothered by the unattractive snorting that Aponi had graced her with, that was a step in the right direction. The mother mentally tucked the picture away within the confines of her mind so that she might accurately describe it to Serach later that evening. It was more than likely that the silver wolf would laugh just as hard repeating the story as she just had now witnessing it. 

But this was not the business at hand, and certainly not the reason Aponi had for taking time away from the children and seeking Arnaq out. The yearling's eyes visibly lit up at the news and once again the mother was reminded of a young pup as the subordinate thanked her. What had her upbringing been like? Had she been so sheltered that she was learning about pack life for the first time only now? It was possible, Leotie had been much the same way from the alpha's observations. 

Nodding her head as acknowledgement to the subordinates gratitude Aponi did not say anything for a moment. This was not her area of expertise, relationships and thanks and friendships but she was making an effort to be as personable as she good. Realizing that she had let the silence stretch out for perhaps a moment too long to be comfortable the queen looked back to the prey on the ground, "Perhaps we should bring one of these for the children to play with, yes?" They were far from eating meat but ti was good to stimulate them with new scents and textures all the same.

A young deer has been separated from the rest of its herd. Hunt Opportunity

I am so sorry it has taken me so long to respond. Life has been crazy busy.

Arnaq watched Aponi her head slightly tilted to the left and her left ear flopping down. She waited for the Alpha to say something else or to dismiss her. She wasn't quite sure what to say and therefore the silence seemed to drag on for a few moments. It started to make her feel a bit awkward and she shifted slightly. 

She wondered what the she-wolf was thinking about, she hoped that she hadn't done something wrong with her over excitement. Though Aponi didn't seem to think so at least from what the yearling could read from her body language. After those long moments of silence, Aponi spoke and Arnaq lifted her head up right and her tail began to wag excitedly. 

"Oh yes, I think they would love to play with them." She recalled herself how much she enjoyed playing with the dead prey her parents would bring home. Then she also remembered how sometimes they were still alive and she would be able to chase them and play with them to a degree. Learning how to hunt to some degree, though she always seemed to falter in some way and the prey was killed by her sister or mother. 

She was proud of herself now, happy that she could at least accomplish this task. Something her father didn't think she would ever be good at. He may have never voiced it but she could tell from his actions that he disapproved of the way her mother had raised the wolf. Arnaq shook her mind from the past and looked at the Alpha bowing her head. "If there is nothing else, there are other things that still need attention." She said politely. 

The Aquilas Don’t Attend Parties Thrown By Outsiders

Aponi had never been a particularly vocal wolf, unless she was giving out a tongue lashing to someone who had wronged her. This did not bother some wolves, the ones who like her preferred to let their body language talk. But, others like Arnaq found these stretches of silences during their interactions slightly awkward, not that the silver queen minded. Watching others squirm a little was always amusing, a harmless way of harnessing the cold rage she once used to set loose at the smallest of inconveniences. Aponi had certainly grown up in all those years since she had been a small child tormenting her sister and everybody else in her path.

Smiling at the pride obvious in Arnaq’s face at being assigned a task the Donata stooped and grabbed a couple of the small rabbits in her jaws. Instead of stuffing them in her cheeks they dangled down by a foot each, swaying as the wolf moved. Gesturing with her head, silent again though this time because her mouth was occupied, she began to walk back towards the birthing den. While she had been unsure if Arnaq would fit in among the wolves of the Bend, so excited and youthful, she had been pleasantly surprised to find her helpful and eager to please. Her joy might rub Nalda some members’ fur the wrong way but the queen did not mind it.

If nothing else Arnaq’s sunny disposition made for a great pup sitter which was a job that fell mainly to the yearlings anyways. As they neared where the children were supposed to be playing inside the den the blue eyes instinctively swept the area, making sure nothing was amiss. Pleased with the lack of activity the mother placed the small rabbits upon the ground. ”I would invite them out to play, but even Serach has only seen them within the den.” Aponi might be cold at times, but she wasn’t obtuse enough to know that was a moment that would be special to the father.