Heartleaf Creek Don't Judge Me

The Valle woman thought her nephew would one day become a gifted healer. She was happy for him that he'd found the thing he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Archer was a sweet boy and in her opinion his choice of specializations was perfect for him.

The opportunity to spend some more time with her nephew arose and Sharlee couldn't pass it up. He was exploring and knowing that sometimes pups didn't want the adults around she pointed out that it might help her to sleep. She hoped that might help talk him into letting her come. His next words were and acceptance of her offer though he made the trip sound boring. Sharlee shrugged.

"Sometimes just wandering is the best way to find things you aren't expecting," she said with a smile. The she nudged his cheek, "How about we go this way?" She asked indicating a direction behind her with her nose.

Archer Valle

If Archer was worried his aimless plans were going to be too boring for his Aunt Shar, he was quickly assured they weren't, even if that wasn't exact thing she was trying for. He shrugged. "I'm not looking for anything," he mumbled. He didn't exactly lie a lot, and she hadn't asked, so he didn't know why he was even trying. He quickly agreed to go the direction she'd indicated, heading off that way and glancing behind him to make sure she was following.

"Have you been this way before?" he asked. "Is there anything cool?" He may have come out here with a purpose but if Aunt Shar could show him cool hideaways like Uncle Vayko had, then that was alright in his book.

Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.

Sharlee was sure that she and Archer were going to have fun exploring. Even if they didn't have a set destination in mind. "Thats quite alright, we might find something better than if we were looking for something specific." Not having anything definite in mind left them open to all the possibilities. They might spot something really unique since they wouldn't be solely focused on one thing.

She'd indicated a direction for them to go for their explorations. "I have but it's been a little while." He then asked if there was anything cool, "Well there is a little cave but I haven't been inside. We could go explore that see what's inside?" She suggested. Sharlee knew that sometimes caves held great secrets that a little exploring would uncover.

Archer Valle

Archer nodded as Aunt Shar explained it was okay to not be looking for anything in particular. He wasn't sure why just wandering might mean finding something more interesting than if they were, because quests were fun, but he went with it. She was probably right; she'd been on a lot more adventures than he had.

Then she was indicating a direction to explore and he followed, listening to her every word. He perked up when he heard mention of a cave. "Caves are cool," he said. "Uncle Vayko once showed me a hiding spot that was kind of like a cave, only not really." He was careful not to share exactly what this hiding spot looked like or where it was; he still wanted to be able to use it, and Uncle Vayko had trusted him. He couldn't share with anyone else.

Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.

Sharlee was rather excited to hand out with her nephew and go exploring with him. It wasn't something she'd gotten the chance to do much of before. Sne hoped that this wouldn't be a one time thing cause she really did love all of her nephew's and neices. At first she didn't have a particular direction in mind. Like most times when she went out to explore she just picked a direction and went. She had no idea if they woukd find anything but for her that's not really what it was about.

"Yes they are," she agreed about caves, "we'll have to look closely though. Sometimes they are hidden very well." Archer also talked about a place that her brother had found. "Vayko's pretty good at that. You became full going to that hiding spot. I wouldn't want to see something bad happened to you Archer." Caves might he cool but they could be dangerous too. [/b]"Any guesses on what we might find?"[/b]

Archer Valle

Archer nodded at Sharlee's warning. He hadn't been in any really deep caves, but he knew they could be troublesome. "It's not very big," he said, "but I promise to be careful." He usually tried to be careful anyway; his brother was enough of a trouble magnet without the younger of the two also getting himself into sticky situations for no reason.

He thought ahead to this cave they were going to be exploring soon and puzzled. "Maybe we'll find a secret lake," he said. "Maybe there will be giant fish that taste better than anything else and we can bring some home to surprise Ma and Da and make Eros jealous." That would really be something. It might not be another kid randomly wandering the wilds, but it would be a fun story and he could brag about spending time with their aunt, just the two of them.

Mud brothers, indeed.

Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.

When Archer promised that he would be careful while exploring caves Sharlee believed him. She'd never thought Archer was the one to worry about. It was always Eros that was the one who found himself in dangerous situations. Archer followed his brother into the danger she hoped in some attempt to stop him but she wasn't exactly sure on that.

She smiled as Archer imagined the things that they could find while exploring the cave. "That would be pretty amazing. Especially if the fish tasted better than the ones we used to catch in the ocean. Has your father ever told you about our old home?" She asked curiously. It wasn't something she'd thought about until now but maybe jt was something Vi had thought to tell his children about.

Archer Valle

Archer cantered happily next to his aunt, mind swimming with all the amazing things they might be able to find that would make his brother jealous. He knew Eros didn't really like fish all that much, even though the older boy tried to hide it. Maybe a fish wouldn't be the best option then. Maybe they could find some cool new rock, or a secret tunnel, or-

Aunt Shar was talking again, and mentioned the ocean. Archer's ears pricked as he looked up at her. "A bit," he said, "but will you tell me more?" he always liked hearing stories about the estuary his da had lived at before he and Eros were born. He wondered what it would have been like to grow up there, and sometimes he found himself missing a home he'd never known.

Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.

It was up in the air what they might find as they explored the cave. Sharlee didn't have any real hopes besides having fun. She was happy to have this time with Archer, get to know yet nephew a little better. She wanted to know them all well. They were her family too after all. She hadn't had a chance to really share much about herself with them either.

She supposed that was part of the reason she'd brought up the Estuary. As it turned out Vi had shared some stuff about home with the his children. "I was just think I should tell you about the fish. That was the hardest part you know. When we came here was getting used to how the fish tasted. Since we lived once the ocean was had fish all of the time and they had a much different taste than the fish here," she explained. Then Sharlee got curious, [b)"What has you dad told you of our old home? Maybe I can fill in some of the blanks." [/b]

Archer Valle

His da had spoken of his childhood home in passing, though he'd always spoken fondly of the water and the fish. His ears pricked at the mention of their taste. "Da said something about saltwater once," he admitted. "I don't know what that means. It made the fish taste different? I like fish." He also knew his littermated did not like fish and he was both endlessly amused and frustrated by it. How could he not like fish?

Archer thought for a moment. "He said the water went as far as you could see, and you had to be careful because sometimes the water could take you away."

Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.