Time seemed to be flying by. It seemed one moment her body's girth had been distended as she carried the little ones that belonged to she and Steel, and the next moment she had brought them into the world. They'd been squirming, helpless little bundles, needing her so. Now it seemed they never stopped moving, and growing - and it almost seemed that they were outgrowing their need for her. It all seemed much too fast, too soon, but there was nothing she could do to stop it or turn back time, or even hit pause for just moment. It was already time to leave the den, and today she and her love would show the cooped up pups around their home, to make sure they explored safely and didn't get into too much trouble. The pups were still snoozing for the time being, but she knew they'd be up in a heartbeat when they realized their parents were stirring and preparing to leave the den. Quietly, she turned to Steel, taking a deep breath before she whispered, "Are you ready?" she asked, wondering if he was just as nervous as she was, "They're old enough to go outside, right? It.. it won't be too much for us to handle, do you think?" Her ears flicked, hoping this would all turn out well. It was all nerve-wracking, but she knew the pups were getting restless and she couldn't keep them den-bound forever. So, exiting the den with the littles eager to get out, Esarosa stretched her legs, preparing for what she assumed might be a rather exhausting outing with the three pups. She and Steel were outnumbered, and each pup seemed to have a little bit of fire to them in their own ways. She glanced to her mate, a gleeful but somewhat nervous smile crossing her maw, and then she looked to the pups. "Alright everyone," she chirped, emerald orbs scanning over each child in turn, "We're going out to explore, but you have to stay where me and daddy can see you. If you hear us calling to you, you turn around and come right back! For goodness sakes, keep close to us, but if you somehow get lost, yell for us, as loud as you can. And do not approach anyone or anything without one of us with you!" She paused, taking a breath as she looked over each pup. Did they understand her? She meant business, and she didn't want any of them taking off or getting into trouble. And gods forbid should they come across danger, she would become a raging, frothing ball of fury and teeth. But she just hoped it wouldn't come to that. This was her first time ever being responsible for little ones; who knew, maybe they were still too young to think about going off on their own. She couldn't help but to be overly worried and prepare them for the potential dangers out there - sure, they were on their own territory, but there was always the possibility for danger, other animals, invasions and the like. Okay, maybe her mind was just running wild with fear, but she couldn't help it! She glanced to Steel once more, wondering if the man had anything to add before they really set off. OOC: Feel free to post in whatever order works, just have fun with this one! "Speak" "Listen" Think

Everything seemed to happen rather quickly, for Jade. One day she was born, and it felt as though nothing had existed before her; the world had only begun on the day she had entered it, for all she knew. It didn't take them long before they grew restless of the small life they had inside their den, which seemed to be growing smaller each and every day. The word 'outside' was enough to grab even the most scatter-brained pup's attention. Jade knew what outside was because they'd been told not to go there many times. But today they were finally allowed to? The small girl let out an equally tiny squeal of unabashed excitement. Her tiny legs carried her closer to her mother, eager to go to this place they called the outside. Her tail wagged so hard behind her that her entire body quivered with pure excitement.  There were some rules though, which sounded fine - they had to stay near mom and dad - and she thought that sounded pretty good, since they hadn't ever been to this outside place and it sounded a bit scary too. The girl nodded enthusiastically. Stay in their sight, yell if they got lost, and don't go up to anyone they didn't know. Sounded easy enough. Mom sounded super serious about it, so she figured it was important.. but it was hard to not sprint to the outside! It looked so fun out there! She nearly whimpered with excitement as she waited for her dad to speak, warily poking her head from the den's entrance - everything in the outside looked so big and bright, she couldn't wait to explore it! Walk, "Talk" Think

Though they'd discussed this day for awhile, it still came more quickly than he could've anticipated. Slowly their little balls of fluff became actual pups - their eyes opened, they began to walk upright, and speak. His heart couldn't be more full of joy. Steel, the wolf that had hardly been able to stand anyone's company once, was a father now. And he loved every second of it. He watched as the children roused from sleep, rolling and flopping against the dirt. It was a cool day, but a lovely one nonetheless - and they knew they couldn't keep them inside forever, no matter how hard they tried, or for how long they put it off. It was time, and he knew. It didn't stop the nervousness from creeping into his belly, like a thousand restless butterflies swarming around frantically. 'Are you ready?' Esarosa would ask, and Steel would turn to eye her. She was almost perfectly recovered from the birth now, and beautiful as ever. The man grinned at her, nodding hesitantly. "Not really," he admitted quietly, though with a soft laugh. "But I'm as ready as I'll ever be, I think." It was nerve-wracking to know they'd be outside, wandering around, within eyesight but still more on their own as they had ever been. Luckily there wasn't much to get into here in the forest; he thought back to the brief time he'd lived in that pack by the sea, though he was young then, he figured being near the ocean was more dangerous. Pups could easily go for a swim and get caught in the waves, whereas in the forest there was much less trouble to get into. "They'll be fine, my love," he murmured, half to reassure himself, and half to reassure her. He leaned toward her, nuzzling into the fur of her neck lightly before pulling back and eyeing the pups. He was slightly on-edge as they led the children to the den's entrance, and Esarosa explained everything. Stay close, come when called, yell if they needed them or got lost. They couldn't get too lost but that didn't stop him from feeling anxious still at their first taste of freedom. He eyed Esarosa as she looked at him, but said nothing - she was good at words, unlike him, and she'd said it all perfectly. "Have fun," he'd add as a final note, knowing they would do just that - have fun. They were too young to think about the dangers that lay out there and for now, he was happy to let them bask in their innocent and blissfulness, watching as Jade started to head outside, seeming as wary as he and his mate both felt.

As soon as the boy could open his eyes, he was observant and watchful of his parents and his siblings whenever they were up and about around the den. He seemed to sleep less than the rest, though it was simply because he was reluctant to close his eyes when there was a whole world left out there ready for him to understand. He found himself curious when his parents left, often sitting at the mouth of the den just behind the light that would expose him, his eyes wide and following the birds as they traversed the sky above them. They were so fascinating from a far, though he couldn't quite make out what they might look like up close.. he could not wait to discover how they did!

Today was no different than any other, Cobalt was already awake though calmly laying beside his sisters in silence. He watched with bright blue eyes as his parents stirred and got ready to greet the day, though they hesitated leaving and that is what caught his interest the most. Something was going on, and he was eager to find out what. The youth got onto his feet and looked to Jade who'd let out an excited yip, causing him to become infected with a bit of the excitability from what was happening- a grin spread across the handsome boy's lips as he looked up to his parents and walked through the ray of light that had always been seen as a sort of barrier. It felt odd, as if he'd broken some rule even though he knew mother and father had just given them permission.

At first, the light stung his eyes and caused him to squint.. though he kept walking and slowly they adjusted. The first thing the boy would seek to look at was the sky, searching for any birds on this autumn day. He didn't see any, but what he noticed was the clouds and the rustling branches of the pines as they shivered in the wake of the wind. His grin didn't fade a bit and he looked over to his parents to see if they were still following. He heeded his mother's warning, stay in sight! He would make sure he didn't wander, though his curious mind was back on his surroundings as the boy quickly trotted through the dry autumn grass and felt it tickle his legs and saturate them as his fur stole the morning dew.