The trees stand starkly in the winter morning like x-rays of their summer selves, only in reverse; black on white. They look so forlorn in the frigid early evening, with already the short winter daylight fading. The young Lord attempt to lean on the tree bark like he could in summer, but on these winter days it's icy and quickly soaks up the body heat from his shoulder leaving him as cold as those trees. He could not help but shiver and stamp his teacup pads, peering into the encroaching gloom, watching for the right jewellery, Mother jewellery.  But she id no where in sight. He kept hoping that if he will continue to gaze upon the horizon, over the packland territory, he will see them there, walking home and arguing but there was no sight of either og them. A sigh left the Lord small maw as he rested upon the bark, uncaring of the wetness of how his fur clung to his body. Speech

Cold. It was all he could feel, all he could think about as he tried to press himself into the warmth of his brothers and sisters. Inside the den, there were noises of sleep and dreams, but Tythe found it hard to wander off into slumber. He didn't know why. Maybe he'd never know. After a few more unsuccessful attempts, the boy sniffled and uncurled from the sleeping bodies. He wanted to whisper out to mom, to dad, even, but neither of them were in sight. His ears fell and he took a few wobbly, uncertain steps until he was peeking out from the den. Tythe wasn't one to go out by himself, but he didn't want to wake up his siblings. And besides, he wasn't alone. There was another pup, out a ways down near a wintry tree, his coat a stunning mix of hues. Tythe blinked, curious now, and sniffed the air. "Stranger..." he whispered to himself, remembering what his mother had taught him about strangers. You couldn't trust them. You couldn't trust anyone. But this was a pup? Surely he was safe. Besides, Tythe was bored and he wanted to play. Swallowing, he slowly started towards the other pup, his bashful nature keeping him behind bushes and trees until he was close enough. There, he would crouch behind a tree, peeking out and watching the other boy.

His petite body tensed as he feel the presence of another but there was no one in sight, was it? Wrong. He felt the gaze on him from behind and that is when his small regalia rotated toward the source only to find a slightly bigger individual, his magenta gaze locked on his pelt. Don't you know it is rude to stare? his brow arched in question like he saw Mother do many times before and how ould he not reproduce when he was a spitting image of her if it were not for Father ivory stripes. With  roll of his eyes he turned his gaze away from him and yet he could not notice the similarities the pup possessed to Aunt Leera. He has seen the dragon woman wound their den a few times this Winter and though she was not blood her and Mother seemed to possess a close enough connection to be called Sisters. Aunt Leera it was from that day on. He rotated his regalia towards the pup oncen again and dual coloured gaze locked onto the magenta one. He was still there? Pft. The petite Lord snorted as his excessively long tail wraped around his lithe bodice for warmth. You have something to say? he questioned in his high-piteched tone. Was this one like the others that made fun of his tail? He consciously wrapped it tigher around his bodice as his gaze could dug a hole in this boy. Speech

To Tythe's horror, he was discovered quickly. "Don't you know it's rude to stare?" It was? The boy yanked his head back behind the tree, heart racing. He curled his tail between his legs and tried to devise an escape route until the stranger pup prodded him again and Tythe had no other option but to step slowly out from his hiding place. He stopped and stared down at his paws. "...h-hello," he whispered, and only after a few moments would his magenta eyes flicker up and notice something familiar about the other boy. "Y-you're Flower's son." Flower, he knew her as, since that's what his mother had nick-named Nephthys. The exotic lady was around more often than not. He didn't know what else to say. He could feel heat in his cheeks and his tail still remained tucked beneath him. "I'm Tythe..."

His bi colored gaze narrowed on the boy that slowly began to close the distance between them. He did not seem the bullying type yet his tail remained wrapped around his torso so he won't trip on it like usual; after all, it was four times longer than normal tail but he was never embarrassed by it. Mother said it was a divine sign, just like his sister albinism and Banshee's patterns. They were all her little Demigods and even though he will never admit it, that thought of superiority penetrated his mind and pressed a switch, specially when he knew who his parents were, what they were capable alone and together. He was suspicious over the boy in front of him, why was he talking like that? He sniffled the air, his tiny nose leaned forward in order to get a good sniff of his scent. Flowery, with an undertone of wood, a tree he could not exactly place in his memory but his scent was registered within the chambers of the petite boy mind. Why do you talk like that? he gestures to him, pointing with his snout. Do you have polio? his eyebrow would arch in question once again but this time the mocking was evident in his voice. He felt more at ease for the moment, and his comfort could be visible by the way his tail unwraped from his torso and remained pliant of the ground surroundering both of their bodies in a circle. Speech

Tythe blinked at the other pup, staring in quiet awe at the two-toned gaze that fell upon him. Only when the other boy commented about his speech did his eyes fall away and back to his paws again. He didn't know why he stammered a bit. None of his brothers did. It was another thing about him that set him apart, and it didn't help that the other boy had pointed it out. Tythe swallowed before answering. "I'm sorry. Mom says I'll grow out of it," he said, trying not to stammer. A fluffy thing fell onto the ground out of the corner of his eye -- the boy's tail? How was it so long? Or was Tythe's just short? He glanced up. "Wow. You have a long tail. Is that why you're so mean?" He meant it in the most genuine way. Tythe thought the other's tail was unique, but in a good way, not in the same way that he was unique. Tythe's way of unique was bad.

He meant to take it back; honest, he did, from the moment he saw these magenta orbslowering to his paws. That was the moment the petite Lord learnt a valuable lessing, once words came out of his maw he could not put them back in and a wave of regret slowly crashed onto his heart. Why would he be sorry ? It was not his fault, maybe he was just burn like that. Just like he was. It was all soon forgotten when the ashen boy mentioned his tail. His bi colored gazed narrowed on him and a brow rose in suspicion. He always had a complex regarding his tail, no matter what Mother said, none of his other siblings possessed a tail like them. Why did he had to have it? Let Banshee have it. Or Recluse for all he cared. But no, he had to have it, from all the litter he had to be the only one that won the genetic fucking lottery. But it was not all bad, at least now, he was almost a mirror to Mother more so than just his pigmentation. My sisters like to bully me about it. his voice was low, unsure, as she averted his eyes. They keep biting it. he shifted his weight as his teacup paws pressed onto the soft blanket of snow. Within a moment the boy returned his gaze upon the other pup, But you think it's cool right? there was a glow within his eyes, a sparkle of hope as he waited for the reply. Speech

He watched the other pup, and when he admitted that his sisters bullied him for his tail Tythe felt regret having mentioned it. He knew what it felt like to have something about yourself picked out and laughed on, and he never intended on hurting the boy's feelings. Tythe kept his eyes trained on the boy's. "Yeah. I wish I had a tail like yours." He offered a tiny, bashful smile before dropping his gaze to his grey paws again. "Sometimes my brothers laugh at me, too." His sisters were... kinder. Being the runt came at a hefty price. Especially when your siblings liked to spend their time wrestling.

The young Lord felt a smile spread upon his boyish features as the other pup mentioned he would like to have a tail like him. Yeah, it's pretty cool. he snickered, mostly for himself however he did felt a light sense of warm pride rising inside of his chest and it was visible since the tip of his tail started to lash and wag like it had its own soul. You can touch it if you want. he felt a blush spread across his cheeks and yet it was not visible due to his silk tendrils of hair threads that covered the area. It was the first time someone complimented his tail other than himself and his parents that is. There were still some that seen him as an abnormality, as a freak, but to Hell with em, right? Mordecai! the boy suddenly blurted out of nowhere, rather loudly My name. he continued as soon as he realized he had no context and of course he forgot to introduce himself. Damn, Mother will sure he dissapointed after all the mannerism and etiquette lesson she provided them. That was rule number one and he completely forgot about it. Speech

Tythe, feeling a degree more comfortable, lowered carefully into a sit where he would then study the other boy's anomaly. At the suggestion, he slowly reached out a tiny paw and touched the end of the tail, where the fur was long and silky. It reminded Tythe of Flower's fur, which was just as finely silken, glistening brown and long. It was peculiar but all the same lovely. "Muh... M-Mordecai..." Tythe tried, pink eyes lifting to find the other boy's. He'd forgotten about being conscious about his stuttering, and shook his head. "What do you like to do?" Games were always fun, he guessed. The other pups played games, and while there were a few games Tythe didn't particularly like, he could try some with his new friend. Was Mordecai a friend? His mother said friends were very, very hard to come by. The real kinds, at least. She'd told him that in all her seasons she'd only found one of them.

A smile spread across the boy features as the other attempted to pronounce his name. It was not that had but due to his speech inpediment he had a mild troubler with it. He did say he had polio but now the stuttering did nothing but entertain him. A low chuckle erupted from his petite maw before he fell silent the moment he felt the delicate touch on his tail. It was ticklish but it did not feel bad and he was almost sure he was not going to bite it like his siblings. It's soft, isn't it? high pitch tones came forth as he helf his crown high, proud of his appearances and fur texture. I like the way you talk. he offered with a grin before his auditory system registered the boy question, twitching ever so sightly. Exploring and play pretend it's always fun. he shifted hi weight in order to sit on his haunches and mimick the other. He felt comfortable with his new companion; it was rare to met those his age and was lucky enough for another litter to be born after his own. If this was the start of a beautiful friendship, the boy did not know but he was comfortable enough in Tythe presence to let him touch his tail and that meant something. Let's play together. the boy was resembling an opera backstage: me, me, me, me, me. He leaned his crown towards the boy, nudging him with his nose in order to encourage his statement and as he did so the boys scent filled his nostrils and he could swear he smelled like home. Speech

So the other boy liked to explore and play pretend. Tythe liked to do those things, too, and so a little grin spead on his black lips. Most of the time, Tythe just expolored and played make believe by himself, and it was always fun, but he guessed playing with someone else would be a lot more fun. He was glad that Mordecai didn't like to fight and wrestle; it was a refreshing change from his littermates. "Okay," he answered, much shorter tail beginning to sway gently behind him. Tythe gazed around, taking in his surroundings. "Maybe we can pretend we are big wolves, like our moms and dads. They act different than us and I don't know why. It's dumb and boring." He frowned, but he knew that Mordecai wasn't dumb. Or boring. No, not at all.

He could not help but smile at the other pups comment. Yes, they parents seemed to always run off somewhere but they always took responsability for them; when Mother had to leave Father always remained behind and vice versa. They seemed to exchange their roles. We will get to be adults for a change. he barked, his tail wagging and lashing around them, creating a wave. Who do you want to be, Tythe? he rose a eyebrow in question before he turned his attention towards his left, watching nothing in particular. Who does he want to be? He could be Mother or Father or even a Leader, though if he were to be honest he never wished to rule nor be ruled, he never understood why the adults discussed politics in the way they did and why they all wanted to be the Top Dog. He even witnessed his parents argue onece or twice, they seemed to hold passion for one another yet again he has not seed too many couples in this pack therefore he did not know if that was abnormal or not. Speech

Tythe paused, tilting his petite head so that his ears flopped over. What did he want to be? He knew that in games of make believe, he could turn into anything he wanted, but what did he want? He mulled over this for a moment, blinking at the ground. "Maybe a healer! What about you, Mordecai?" Tythe asked, quiet excitement creeping into his voice. Mother had told him that there were no healers in the pack, so maybe he could become one when he was old enough. Tythe nosed around the earth, poking at leaves and snow. He pretended to be searching for medical herbs, immersing himself in his new role in thier little game. "Are you sick, 'Cai? Do you have any broken bones?" Because as a healer, it was his job to fix all of that.

OOC: phone post, bare with me lol

That eas the milliin dollar question, was it not? He was too small to be a worrior or a hunter, that was for sure and due to his prior discussion with their pack Leader the young Lord now knew what his parents ranks were. Father was the mighty Taskmaster, a rank that provided respect and power within the pack; after all why would it had master in it if it was not so. The young pup tilted his own regalia towards his right, pondering for a moment. No, that was not it. He was borm with dominance and superiority as his birth right, walking the Earth and look down at others but he was not meant for muscles nor did he had any desire for them. No, that will not do.

Mother. Now Mother was an officer, it seems; cunning and intelligent, or at least that is what the Leader said. That he could do easily and perhaps one day he can walk into her paw prints and follow such path. ”I shall be an Intelligence Officer.” came the boyish tones of the pup as he rose to hiss full heigh which was smaller than the other and he could not say that did not bother him at least a little bit.

He ran in circles around the pup, one paw in front of the other as his elongated tail flew behind him like a sunset. He circles a few times before he trip on his own accord and put a paw to his forehead. ”Help!” his voice was louder in false theatrics, ”Healer Tythe, help. I think I broke my leg.”

Intelligence Officer. It sounded like Mordecai really knew what he was talking about; Tythe didn't know very much about ranks and he certainly didn't know what an Intelligence Officer was. "Wow... what is that?" Tythe grinned as the other boy stood to his full height. He watched with a sparkle in his hot pink eyes as the other child waltzed around. His tail started to wag more and he continued to search the snow for someting useful. His mother knew a little about herbs and had briefly mentioned certain ones to the kids, which is how he knew lavender was for sedation and ginger was for pain. When Mordecai falsely fell and broke his leg, Tythe's head shot up and he giggled before putting on a serious face. "Stay right there! Don't move or you could injure yourself even further!" He giggled again and found a patch of snow-crusted dried clover. He ripped it from the earth with his teeth and ran to kneel by Mordecai's side. "Here, you have to eat this! It will numb you while I see what's wrong." He dropped the clump of snowy clover at Mordecai's muzzle and moved to examine the broken leg. Tythe gasped. "Oh, no. This is bad. Very bad. I think I have no choice but to amputate!"

”The Leader told me it is someone very smart and vrry cunning.” he stated as a matter of fact, acting smug like he had all the answers with his criwn held hight. ”The Leader is your father, is it not?” he boiced his question allowed as he waltzed around the taller boy without a care in the world.

The pup had a briefly idea of ranks and whatnot though it was only due to his discussion with the Leader tha he found out the names though what really happened behind closed doors he knew nothing of. For all he knew Mother could even be a spy. A spy! What a delicious idea. A smile spread across his boyish features before he shook his crown and composed himself. ”It hurts so bad, Healer Tythe!” a falsseto of hoels and whines escaped the boy petite jaws as he minicked pain. Without complaining the young Lord ate the plant though it seemed ti have been a bad choice for within moments he choked and spitted at the bitter taste. ”Doctor this is terrible” he joined the pup giggling to his methods and as soon as he heard the word amputate his ears fell flat. ”Am-Amputate?!” he screamed as loud as his lungs allowed him as he squirmed. ”Isn’t there simething else you can do, Doctor? I am rather fond of my leg.” he giggled uncontrolably , ”I have a very important mission that was assigned by the High Lord himself!”

"You met my father?" Tythe asked gently, still leaned over the "broken" leg. He blinked at Mordecai, wondering why his father never told him about Flower's kids or that he'd spoken with them. Oh, well. There were a lot of things, Tythe realized, that his parents didn't tell him about. It was just something adults did. Mordecai asked if his dad was leader, and Tythe nodded bashfully. Returning to the game, Tythe put a paw on Mordecai's leg. "Oh, no, I'm afarid not, Officer. The High Lord himself can't even help you now!" Tythe screeched, puppy tones light and high-pitched as he raised his head with a little howl, to add to the drama. "Unless... you'd be willing to try a potion I created. It hasn't been tested yet, so I have no idea what might happen, but it might just save your leg, Officer!" Hm, where to find a potion... Tythe quickly shot up and nosed some snow until he created a little snowball. There, that could be the potion and all the other boy would have to do was munch the snowball and then he might be cured.

The young boy would nod quietly to the other pup question fore he did not want to break the game. With a grin well painted upon his boyish featured the pup would go back into his character, the ferocious Intelligence Office that Mother seemed to portray in the pack. When the small lad heard the words of the ashen boy his ears flicked in excitement before they laid flat on his crown Then I am doomed! he howled in theatrical agony, emphasizing his pain with the back of his paw placed over his forehead. He laid his crown on the cold snow, his pretend affect limb rigid as he remained belly up.  The moment the lad heard about a cure he perked, boldly raising his crown again as hisauditory system rotated towards the ashen boy. Salvation. he howled once again, leaning his regalia backwards, At last! joyous tones were emitted from the pup tiny maw, I will take everything you give me, Doctor. he offered as loud giggles escaped his throat, melodious and child like, the moment bi colored lenses locked onto the attempted snow ball. He did not complain nor gave another sound fore he immediately obeyed like the good little Officer he was. Plush, coral tongue unfolded as it took a few licks from the snowball. Doctor, he shifted his body weight, squirming on the ivory blanket of Winter, It's a miracle! he rose on all four limbs, stretching his pretend affected limb before he began to circle the boy once again at high speed. Speech