Multicolored eyes shone with mischief and excitement, mismatched chrome and celestial glistening with youth. The little lady bore a healthy pelt of the lightest of creams, fur shining lightly under the sun with immaculate cleanliness that only a mother could manage. And boy, oh, boy, was she excited to get rid of that squeaky clean! Earth-touched paws pounded with excitement upon the roots of the mangroves, tangling and wrapping themselves around just about every root she encountered, small body and still slightly-awkward legs not yet used to maneuvering over the protrusion-laden land. Mother had told her not to cross the river, but it had gone unheard in her jubilant demeanor. Luckily, the young pup would probably be too distracted by the rest of the world to worry about the body of water, which thundered into the ocean with the amount of determination and force that drove her own paws, pregnant with recent rains and hopefully it would remain void of some clumsy children.



Aegira had been free of a single care in the world, her only recent concern being directed toward the odd hard things on her Mother's shoulders, all brown and red and icky, sometimes leaking what she'd been told was blood. But Mother had reassured her that she was okay and so the runt accepted that wholly. Mother never lied in the self-proclaimed Know-It-All's opinion.



She glanced back, hoping that her siblings were still following her, and also being wishful that they would be having similar (if not more) issues with the uneven ground as she was!

AEGIRA

Mother was sleepy, her presence pulsed like the ocean in dull shades of navy and indigo. She had nasty scabs, like the ones she got when she went exploring around the pricklier bushes, but they were bigger, deeper, and oozed when she licked them too long in an attempt to make her mother feel better. Ananke was new to worry, and so far it wasn't a feeling that she enjoyed. It made her sad to see her mother tired, and so she decided that she would let her rest without any interruption today. It was quite alright as well, she had two siblings to play with that she currently needed to find. They were allowed to leave the den to some extent, a little older and a tiny bit wiser every day, it wasn't an odd sight to see Jupiter's children marching around Ludicael like they owned it. It was their paradise, their world of shimmering lakes and rivers. It was enchanting, and what they had been born into - what their mother had managed to keep for them, for her wolves and for herself.

It was home, and Ananke loved it here. Even when she wandered she was content to stay within the borders, not crossing the river that she had been warned about. There were days of course, where she was curious about it. What was beyond it, how deep it was, what lived inside of it... yet as she stared, she turned away, more interested in finding her siblings than breaking rules. Later, she would find the courage and audacity to cross that river later - right now she was trailing after her smaller sister's scent, looking for any trace of the pup that she could find. Her nose was in no way experienced in tracking, but she stayed with Aegira every day - the only wolf that stood out more to her was Oberon and maybe her own mother if her scent wasn't a bit more spread out because of the borders she set. "Gira! Giiiira!" She yipped, her paws awkwardly stepping over, around and through the roots below her. Her paws were muddy and damp and she knew that she would be in for a good cleaning along with her siblings once she got back to their den and if their mother was awake. "Gira wait!" She huffed, knowing that the girl was close.

Eventually she caught sight of the girl's cream fur, and grinned. In the corners of her eyes were tiny patterns of zigs and zags and bright, something that she related to her sister and her sister alone. Laughing she tumbled forward until she was standing beside the other girl, her fluffy tail wagging quickly behind her. "It's time for an adventure Gira..." It was a statement, a fact, it was time to get out and explore the big wide world. Case closed. "Where is Obie?" She asked, her silvery eyes glancing about for her black and white brother. He was always late...

Quiet and reclusive, the young male had taken to wandering a lot once he was allowed to leave the den. He had yet to leave Ludicael territory, and felt no desire to do so. No, Ludicael was big enough to keep Oberon entertained for a while yet. Still, it was a little lonely, the youngster had to admit. He missed being around his siblings a lot of the time. But it was difficult for a pup to explain that sometimes he just had to get away from wolves and spend some time by himself. He barely understood it himself, so how could he make anyone else understand? Was there something wrong with him?

His mother had too much to worry about without him. Oberon was determined not to make her worry any more than she had to. Whatever had happened to her was something that he never wanted to let happen again. The oozy things, the nasty marks on her body, whatever they were, they wouldn't happen again. She might be 'fine,' but Oberon was still determined to protect her. Like his sister, his mother needed to be protected, and Oberon would do so.

It was by sheer luck that his nostrils picked up the scent of his two sisters. Oberon paused, flicking his ears as he considered. Would he approach them? Of course. They were some of the few wolves that he could spend a lot of time around. Others were a pretty big stretch. But these two, he could handle. He adored them. Bounding forward, Oberon broke into a run, a difficult thing for the pup to pull off with his awkward proportions, but he closed the distance between himself and his sisters swiftly, skidding to a stop as the words of Ana echoed in the air. 'Where's Obie?' She was asking for him.

"Here." Oberon spoke happily enough, a swift twitch of his tail in the air behind him a sign of how happy he was. It was rare for him to display such emotions, but at the sight of his sisters, he did so, ears pricked in their direction as he padded happily closer.

There wasn't a singular doubt in the girl's mind that she was the leader of her litter--that she was the Sol of their small pack of youth just as her mother led Ludicael and just as she thought she would lead, too. Despite the fact that the whole thing may have been a figment of her imagination, she believed it with all of her heart and was never anything short of acting like it.



The latter end of her name was stretched and yelled in the familiar calling used by her beloved sister, Ananke. She turned fully to watch the dusty girl's approach, tail up as it wagged slightly, mouth ajar as her salmon tongue waved minutely from it. She giggled as the proclamation of an adventure was made and lifted her chin, drawing her posture up as tall as she could to try and match her height to her siblings. She'd always despised their larger size and being the runt of the litter, so she'd always tried to make up for that with her domineering personality without realizing it.



"Hah, it's always time for an adventure, sis!" She smiled boldly, shifting her weight as she squinted in the distance, also looking out for him. "Dunno where he-- Oh, there!" She saw him now through the mangroves, dark grey form advancing toward them. Aegira had watched him over the past week or so as his fur had slowly started to get darker. It was such an odd thing to see.



"Here? Well, finally! It took ya' long enough, Twinkletoes!" Her words were affectionate as she slipped the upper portion of her body downwards, rump waving in her air as she gave a playful growl. "We've got a fee for bein' late, y'know!" she declared, and without hesitation aimed to leap upon him and hopefully bowl the larger pup over. "Help me get'em, sis!"

AEGIRA

Her smaller sister was so confident, sometimes Ananke felt like she could snatch it out of the air. Bold and brave, her sister was so solid, while Ana and her brother were more fluid in personality. It was something that the pup awknowledged in her own strange way, but didn't think too much of because they were her siblings and this was how they were and would always be. They were her constant, the only thing that anchored her more was their mother. As Aegira looked for their brother, she watched her sister through curious silvery eyes, following her movements and standing beside her. Gira was the first to hear Oberon coming, and when she turned toward their monochrome sibling, Ana couldn't help but laugh.


Her laughter became a snicker as Gira called their brother twinkletoes. Ananke herself would have complained about her brother being late, and missing out because of it - but it seemed that this time around he would have rather impeccable timing. The girl glanced at him, smiling at the single word that he uttered in greeting. Excellent! Now that he was here the trailblazing could begin. She would not miss this opportunity to see more of the ever growing world. Getting to see it all with her siblings made her that much luckier.


Where luck didn't seem to be however, was on Oberon's side. Because as Aegira lowered into a playful fighting stance her sister grinned, lowering her head and yipping. "Down with Obie!" She barked, following suit and launching herself at her siblings. She might just end up knocking all three of them into the mud, but she and her sister didn't seem like the type to care much about it.

Amusement flickered in Oberon's lavender eyes at the nickname. Twinkletoes, hmm? He would come up with something suitable for her later. It would have to be just as creative, and a tinge insulting. Just enough that it would get her up in arms (paws?). Still, his tail wagged in greeting, a few quick flicks that he quickly stilled. It wouldn't do to get too excited, and the wags had escaped him. He would control it. But there seemed to have been no harm done.

It took him a moment to process what Aegira was saying, and by the time he had reacted, his sisters were flinging themselves at him. One of them hit him and Oberon stumbled, his paws sliding, though he managed to just stay on his paws, and then Ananke hit him and he was down and out for the count, hitting the ground like a puppet whose strings had been cut. A single "Oof!" escaped him as the breath fled his lungs, and then Oberon was leaping to his paws, taking a moment to get his bearings once more.

He crouched low to the ground, ears pinned against his skull as he examined Aegira. "You tried," The male put a hint of amusement into his words as he launched himself forward, aiming to collide with Aegira and knock her down, as she had just done to him. Of course, if she went down, he probably would too, and he had forgotten about Ananke temporarily. This would surely be interesting, at the very least, even if he did not achieve his goal.

Her expression remained surprisingly neutral as Ananke laughed a little at the nickname as she tried to figure out if the sibling meant it rudely. But then after a moment of reasoning, she decided that Ana was probably too nice for that! Aegira shrugged it off and wagged her scraggly little tail, holding her posture as tall as she could until the moment she lunged at her brother. Satisfaction flitted through her as her sibling mirrored her actions, proclaiming his downfall as she too lunged upon him.



As she landed upon him, she did her very best to try and force him down with what little weight and muscle mass she possessed in comparison to him, but luckily as Ananke came crashing down upon him, he fell. Confidence overwhelmed her and she let her guard down but in no time he had sprung back to his paws. She wrinkled her nose and backtracked, mimicking his movements as she pushed her lower body near the earth and her ears against her head. His dialogue reached her and she snickered.



"Tried? You went down, Twinkletoes! And you will aga--" Before she could finish, the dark-pelted sibling lunged at her and her words cut off abruptly. She reared up on her hind legs before he hit her, but when he did they collided at the chest, sending them both tumbling a few feet. She kicked at his stomach (being sure to not kick with her angle too far forward so she wouldn't hurt him) and tried to bite at his ear as they rolled. As soon as their momentum broke she would try her best to pull herself away from him, even though her balance would be crippled for the slightest of moments, and then would prepare herself should he try to attack again.

AEGIRA