Pre-meeting, post-babymaking. Sorry that this will probably be poopy.

Dawn was rising over the Emerald Valley, painting ground in shades of oranges and pinks and faint blues. The snow was just beginning to thin out as winter made way for spring, but the ground was still coated in white. The rest of the pack was probably sleeping, but the Centurion was wide awake, making her way to another den in the hopes of imparting some wisdom on the rapidly growing princess. "Restless" could not begin to describe the state Natalya had been in lately. She was fueled by both excitement and resentment, her mind constantly replaying the same thoughts. It was only in recovering from Hermes's death that she began to realize no one had come to her. Some, like the pups and her young mentee, she did not wholly blame. Hani was likely traumatized by the event, but she would come when she was ready. It was the absence of the rest of the family that concerned her, namely the seldom-seen Empress. Thankfully the sable vix had something to keep her from getting too lost in her anger. The prospect of new life growing within her kept her hopes high and her spirits higher. Every time she began to dwell on the negatives, the thought of children drowned them out. Yet, Natalya had yet to share the news with anyone but her already-aware mate. Keeping her secret was only energizing her more, and she needed a place to focus that energy. Today she had chosen to teach a lesson in blindness, the thing she knew best. She only hoped the young princess was awake already, because she wasn't interested in visiting with anyone else. Walk "Talk" Think

The girl could tell the changing in the times of day, if not only because of the activity of the girds. Though winter would seemingly swallow them up, the few winter birds that were left would still arouse the young princess. She was used to finding herself awake before the rest of her family, it was a nice time to listen. She enjoyed the subtle sounds of their breathing, and knowing they were so close. Since she had been separated from them during the illness she couldn't get enough of their warm bodies. She would lazily find herself laying within the den when a disturbance from the outside would cause her to stir. Slate ears would swivel curiously at the sound of foot steps, her aunt from the sound of the gait. Excitement would thrive within her as she picked her way free of the den. She always slept on the outside, in case she needed to leave the den for any reason during the night. Her siblings had learned quick that she could not see limbs and tails and often stepped on them on the way out. "Aunt Nat?" She would whisper softly as her form slipped from the den, her ears searching around for sound of her while her head swiveled around. Walk "Talk" Think

Natalya didn't have to wait long for the princess to come strolling out of her den. She had been moving more confidently as of late, having had the opportunity to get to know the lay of the land while her siblings were suffering that unfortunate plague. It made the older female proud that she had grown so much from the day they met, when she was so certain that she was unfit to be their future queen. "Good morning Gaia," she greeted softly, rising to her feet and stepping toward the sound of the girl's voice. "I'm surprised that you're up so early, but I'm also very impressed that you heard me from inside. Your hearing is getting to be very sharp." Walk "Talk" Think

She really wished to see more of her aunt, she always presented her with such valuable information. The older woman had spent much more time being sightless than Gaia had, and she would take the additional knowledge greedily. "Good morning Gaia," the young girl would hear the woman rise from the earth, her own form would swivel to face toward her direction, "I'm surprised that you're up so early, but I'm also very impressed that you heard me from inside. Your hearing is getting to be very sharp." She would smile shyly, the compliment not going unnoticed. "The birds, I usually wake up with them" She would start, moving forward to nuzzle her aunt awkwardly. It was a hard task when you couldn't see the recipient of your affection. "I like listening. It's almost better than being able to see." Still there was that slight bit of hesitance, and the dream of being gifted with sight. She knew not of her cousin's demise, or how her aunt and uncle were faring. "Did you come to find me?"






talk, think

if i haven't replied to you in a while, remind me [here]

As her niece greeted her with affection, Nat returned the favor with a nuzzle to the top of the girl's head. She was so lively still, unaffected by the plague and blissfully unaware of the torment some of her family members were enduring. Nat wanted to keep it that way, for it would do the girl no good to suffer along with the rest of them just yet. Not to mention how much the Centurion was sure she would enjoy her company today. Natalya hadn't exactly shown up with a lesson plan. She was intending to wing it, but when she realized how sharp the girl's hearing had gotten an idea came to mind. When she was much younger, she had learned how inherently blind creatures and creatures of the night found their way about. It was something she practiced for years, until she was sure she could do it well, then gravitated away from. It had been multiple seasons since the blind she-wolf had used the technique, as she preferred to hone her sense of feeling now, but she was sure that she needed to brush up on it as much as she needed to pass it on. "I did indeed come to find you, Gaia. I want to teach you something knew about your sense of hearing. A way to use it to find out where other wolves and objects are located simply by a click of your tongue." She smiled, feeling excitement bubble within her at the prospect of this lesson. "Only if you are interested, of course." Walk "Talk" Think

ooc;; the inspiration for this lesson - http://www.mensjournal.com/magazine/the-bl...to-see-20120504

Gaia had been rather lonely as of late, with the family abustle with the plague she ahd been pushed to the side. She couldn't help those that were sick, most of the time she was just in the way. She had certainly enjoyed returning to them, but that independence that she'd had to endure was now quite tempting to the girl. She had slowly learned to catch things to feed herself. Most of the food that was caught had been given to her siblings. Now though, the attention from her aunt was pleasing. Gaia had not yet found the tactic Natalya was preparing to teach her. Though she used something similar, she'd never made the sound herself but she had noticed the echoes of other sounds bounce off different objects. "I did indeed come to find you, Gaia. I want to teach you something new about your sense of hearing. A way to use it to find out where other wolves and objects are located simply by a click of your tongue." Gaia's curiosity would become engrossed in her aunt's words. "Only if you are interested, of course." The corner's of the ashen girl's lips would turn up excitedly. "Of course aunt Nat! That's seems so easy!" She struggled with gettling along almost every day of her life, such an easy solution seemed impossible. | GAIA OLYMPUS |

Gaia's enthusiasm excited her immediately and she couldn't help the grin that formed. Natalya was more than happy to share anything she could with the princess that would be the future of their family. The girl would be a fantastic matriarch one day and having a part in that would be an honor. "Before we begin, Gaia, it is important that you know not to rely completely on this tactic. You have to work at perfecting use of your other senses, such as feeling and smell, but this one will likely be the most helpful. You will be able to identify what an object is by the sound of its echo eventually."



The sable woman rose to her feet and backed a good distance away from Gaia's front before sitting again. "If you are ready to begin, face me and click your tongue like this," she said, demonstrating the sound, "then tell me how far away I am based on only what you hear. Tell me when the sound bounces off of me and returns to you."