Dead Empress Backwater hopeless fountain kingdom

Archer! 10/1/2021, Mid-Afternoon, near the pack den

what i really need now is a double shot of crown

Vayko was finally starting to feel like himself again. He was relieved. It was easier to walk and he could even run… it had been a long time coming, and he was just glad that things had finally healed right. He would never battle a turtle again, between the pain of a broken paw and the plague that had swept through the pack after his bite… he had, for once, learned his lesson. He was near the pack den, a rabbit clamped firmly in his jaws that he was taking for one of the pups. He looked after them like his own, just as he would any Valle wolf… but in his mind, they were truly his nieces and nephews. Technically, they were his second cousins, but that was a lot of technicalities.

Things were settling well, and soon he would no doubt bring up taking back his leadership role to Viorel, but for now he was content to finish his mend. Soon winter would be upon them, and with it they would truly be tested. They would find out whether or not Viorel had bitten off more than he could chew by becoming a father by two different females… he could take a few more days, maybe a week or two, before he took his helm back. For now he could simply focus on hunting and making sure everyone was well fed for the start of the temperature change.

Archer was wandering again. He was spending more and more time away from @Eros which was... interesting. Archer enjoyed spending time with his brother, and yet he enjoyed having his own freedom to do what he wanted. Eros was so excited about everything, and the youngest Valle couldn't help but encourage his schemes.

Today, the scent of meat hit his nose. He stopped and sniffed again, trying to determine what it was. He still hadn't gotten it down yet. Fish, he knew. But fish had a very distinct smell.

This smell was accompanied by another wolf's, and Archer decided to investigate. He wanted to get to know the other members of his family the best he could, especially after his embarrassment with forgetting his own sister's name in favor of her rather unflattering nickname.

Archer sidled toward the pack den, where the smell was coming from, and saw the lighter form of one of his uncles. Or, who he knew as his uncle. His name was sort of like his Da's... right? Vvvvv.... he would think of it. "Uncle," Archer said, going for solemn but the word coming out a little more excited than intended. Sometimes that happened, where Archer tried to be grown-up but failed. But that was okay. He'd get the hang of it.

[size=x-small]Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.

what i really need now is a double shot of crown

Vayko had been intent to find a child, but it appeared that one simply found him instead. He was not upset about it, in face relieved. It was less effort required on his part. The rabbit found it’s way to the ground and he offered his nephew a toothy grin. “Archer.” He greeted back. He had heard the excitement and he was glad the younger generation was happy to see him. He knew others could be quite off-put by his demeanor, and many in the older generation saw him differently… still, there would be time to dwell on that in a bit.

“Are you hungry?” He asked, nudging the rabbit forward towards him in order to offer it up. They would all begin training, learning how to hunt bigger prey and figure out where their niches fell within the pack and he was looking forward to guiding them along that path. He tried to take a step back, these were not his children after all… but he would jump in where he could. "What are you up to?" He asked, mildly conspiratorially.

Archer had been distracted from the food by the discovery of his uncle, whose name he was still puzzling over. Vvvvvv... Vayyyy.....?

But his tummy rumbled and his mouth watered, and he greedily fell forward onto the rabbit, ripping into with with the savage ferocity only a puppy learning their manners could have. He peered up Uncle Vayko - Vayko! That was it! - with a tendon connection his mouth to the dead rabbit. "Thayg bou," he said, finally remembering to be polite. He needed to be better about that. It would be easier to make friends, gain loyalties, create a network. He didn't fully comprehend that concept, but he knew he needed more friends if he was going to be able to keep an eye on Eros even when he wasn't there.

He almost missed Uncle Vayko's question in his enthusiasm at having a rabbit all to himself, but his ears twitched and he peeked up at him. "'m learnin- learning. I'm learning," he said, swallowing so he could enunciate better. He was slipping up less and less these days, but that was no reason to relax. "I want to know the territory."

Archer spent most of his time exploring, after all. He wanted to know everything he could about his home, and what better way to learn than to do?

[size=x-small]Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.

what i really need now is a double shot of crown

The boy didn’t hesitate to dig in which caused a hint of amusement on his features. It was quite funny, watching pups dig in… and then the attempt at a thank you spoken through the meat that was being consumed. “You’re welcome, Archer.” He answered back, still rather formal but then again, he never really knew how to act around children… just as his mannerisms often upset adults. He imagined children were even more sensitive and wanted to avoid Vana or Clover coming to him in a fit for upsetting their children… or worse, Vi getting on a high horse about it… not that he thought his cousin would do that, but he always prepared for the worst.

He explained that he was learning and Vayko’s head tilted to the side, trying to figure out what precisely he was looking to learn… and then he clarified. He wanted to know the territory. A toothy grin spread across his features and he suddenly became eager. “If you’d like, I can walk the territory with you, even show you all of my favorite hiding spots.” He knew the kids didn’t know him the best, but there was no reason he couldn’t change that now. “It’ll be safer to go closer to the border too, with me there.”

Uncle Vayko was quiet while Archer was eating, but that was okay with the pup. It allowed him to devour as much of the rabbit as he could before stepping back and hiccuping out a small burb. He gazed up at his uncle with a cocked head, considering him, and his eyes lit up at the chance to see some hiding spots.

"Okay!" he said, jumping to his feet. "I have a few hiding spots, but I'm getting too big for some of them." It wasn't really a problem, except that he then had to find new ones. It meant he was growing, and soon he'd be big and could do Big Things. If Uncle Vayko knew good hiding spots and could show him, that would save him a lot of work. Although, if he knew about the hiding spots, didn't that defeat the purpose?

But, Archer decided, he didn't mind if Uncle Vayko knew where he might hide. It was probably safer if at least one other wolf knew the secret places, anyway.

Besides, if Archer really needed to have somewhere to go where nobody could find him, he could always find another spot he didn't tell anyone about.

"Da's taken us past the borders," Archer said proudly, bouncing away from Uncle Vayko a few steps before glancing over his shoulder to make sure he was coming. "Margo was scared but I wasn't."

[size=x-small]Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.

what i really need now is a double shot of crown

A healthy appetite. He could observe that and found it also good. He couldn’t help but analyze his nieces and nephews for what they might offer in the future. They were blood, Valles, but some Valles were more useful than others and that was just how it stood. He seemed eager to explore the ins and outs of the territory as well. Vayko had found many hiding places within since he injured his paw, places he could tuck away from the eyesight of others for a little bit and be left to brood to his own thoughts… the mighty had fallen, but the mighty was rising again.

Viorel had already taken them passed the borders? He supposed the information shouldn’t surprise him. It made sense, at least to him. Margo was scared? He saved that information for later, figuring meeting the girl and seeing where her grit had disappeared to could be a to-do item for another day. “I bet you weren’t. You’re a Valle boy, that means you’re not scared of anything.” He wouldn’t hesitate to nurture that mindset, because it would make the boy more fierce in the long run.

“Just over the next bend, near the river, there’s a gap at the base of the roots of one of the trees. It’s barely big enough, but you can fit a wolf in there. It’ll hide you from eyesight and the river will dampen your scent too.” It was a nifty little hiding place if he did say so himself.

Archer loved his Da. He revered him. His da's opinion of him was the most important - followed closely by Ma and Eros, of course. But any other adult praise was still enough to have him preening, and Uncle Vayko's note on his bravery was enough to have him puffing out his chest again. "I'm not," he agreed. "Not even the eagles or the fish. Eros doesn't like fish," he added. "Da gave us fish and Eros said he liked it but he was lying. I could tell. I can always tell."

He skipped ahead as Uncle Vayko described where to find the first hiding spot. He'd hidden in the roots of trees before, but never this one by the river. He thought it might be damp, but the river, but he could see for himself when he got there. He'd never paid much mind to hiding his scent before; Archer was only just beginning to realize that might be important.

"Sometimes," he said as they went, "I like to hide behind trees and jump out and scare Eros." It was one of his favorite past-times, though it usually ended in a tussle of one sort or another. Eros didn't like getting startled as much as Archer liked doing it to him.

[size=x-small]Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.

what i really need now is a double shot of crown

He confirmed the thought, and while a little prideful, Vayko knew it was coming from a good place. He mentioned Eros lying and clicked his tongue. “A young boy shouldn’t lie about something like that… it might result in him being fed fish for the rest of his life.” He cautioned. Truth was important, to it’s own degree… the only time someone should lie is if they were using it to their advantage. Still, it was a skill he could pass onto the next generation with time. He doubted it was a skill his cousin would try and enforce.

They didn’t have to be big lies… just lies to keep the peace. “It’s not always the most comfortable… but we’re Valles. We’re used to the water. Where your Da and I come from, we practically lived in the water. I fished for days and was never afraid to get my fur wet… so your fur might get a little wet here, but sometimes that has it’s own advantages.” Water could destroy scent trails, and if done right it could enhance scents… it certainly helped when trying to hunt. He mentioned hiding behind trees and scaring Eros as well, and Vayko let out a soft chuckle. “I used to try and scare your Da all the time.”

Archer trotted happily ahead of his Uncle Vayko. He was pleased to have the exclusive attention of one of the adults, and even more so that he was being trusted with sacred hiding places. "I like fish," he said, then paused and glanced around before conspiratorially whispering, "I can eat Eros's; he eats too much anyway." he grinned. He loved his brother the way he was of course, and since Eros seemed determined to get into trouble he needed the weight to give him an advantage when his smarter younger brother was there.

Well, Archer thought he was the smart one, anyway.

He continued his merry way, ears flicking back to catch Uncle Vayko's continued conversation. He liked hearing about where his father came from. "Will you tell me more about where you came from?" he asked. "Da misses it. Why'd you come here?" He couldn't imagine leaving the Backwater.

[size=x-small]Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.