This had been the longest trip Vanta had ever taken, and while her young paws were sore with the strain of the trip, she wanted nothing more than to explore this new open land where apparently her big sister now lived. To make things even better, big sister had recently had puppies! They would be similar in age to Vanta and her littermates, a perfect coincidence that would surely encourage lasting bonds for the pups' futures. Or rivalries, either was fine with Vanta. Kite had a rival and she seemed to be flourishing, perhaps it was the missing ingredient in Vanta's growth too.

The castle had a downside, one she did not expect to find. Windows. Sunlight streamed in and bathed most rooms with a comforting warmth and light, though the dispersed rays were admittedly softer on her crystalline eyes then broad daylight outdoors could ever be. When necessary she could peel back her lids to squint forward into the dim lighting, though the castle did not provide enough darkness to eliminate the discomfort of it entirely. The worst part was how tempted she always was to open her eyes regardless of the pain it caused - the castle was just so new in every way that every sight was a wonder and every room offering an experience all it's own. Eventually Vanta became annoyed with her pressing instinct to see and settled on somewhat copying Kite's coping mechanism... though in the absence of a proper blindfold, the pup decided a full blanket would have to do.

And so Vanta walked, shrouded nose to tail in a rectangular fur pelt, slinking through the halls and peeking at only what she could see between her paws beneath the blanket. Until she'd inevitably run into another, or have someone run into her.

"Vanta"

While her siblings and parents were out and about doing their own thing, Bramble had taken to wandering the castle hallways by herself. Though most of her siblings spent their time getting into some sort of mischief here or there, Bramble tried to seek out others to talk to. Even though investigating and exploring the different areas of the castle were exciting, she found it even more exciting to follow others around and ask them questions. There were so many things to learn about! Plus, so many wolves lived in the castle, she wasn't sure she'd met them all yet!

With her nose to the floor, both ears swiveling this way and that, she found herself rather preoccupied with following the different scents. Eyes lifting every so often to make sure she wasn't going to run into anything, she began sniffing out a new scent she wasn't quite familiar with. It was a girl, she thought, mixed with the scent of fur, but it wasn't fur that belonged to the girl and the girl didn't belong to the castle. No, her scent was like her grandma Zee's scent... right? Bramble's brow furrowed as she picked up her pace, nose sniffing more aggressively, as she sought out the mystery scent.

So distracted in her investigation and still rather clumsy on her too-big paws, she didn't see the approaching figure coming toward her. She was so close to the scent that she couldn't stop now! Eager to find out who it was, Bramble looked up just in time to see the cloaked fur figure with dazzling eyes peeking out from between her paws. Putting on the brakes as quickly as she could with her sharp claws digging into the stone, the pup nearly toppled over in her attempt to avoid barreling into the stranger.

"Oh! Hi!" She squeaked, wiggling herself back into a better posture as she gathered herself. "I'm Bramble Carpathius!" Her tail swung excitedly behind her as she leaned down in a bow with her chin touching the floor to try and get a better look at who was beneath the fur. Surely the fur she was looking at wasn't attached to the figure she saw looking out from beneath it... right?

Bramble Carpathius

Vanta moved forward at a snails pace, careful not to bump into any walls or doorways (or worse yet, fireplaces) as she slid through the halls beneath her borrowed pelt. She figured she was doing a very good job of being stealthy when suddenly paws appeared before her, their nails out and scrabbling on the floor and very nearly smushing her in the process. Vanta dropped to her belly, throwing her paws over her muzzle to await the inevitable crash of another pup's body falling upon her own, but it never came. Peeking her eye out from beneath the pelt, she squinted up at the stranger as she introduced herself.

A Carpathius? That meant this pup was more than a friend, she was family. Which wasn't all that surprising considering how many family members wandered and lived in these halls. "Hi!" She peeped back, pushing her face further out from the pelt and shutting her eyes a sliver more to spare them the glare of light. "I'm Vanta Fatalis! Do you know where it's darker, so seeing doesn't hurt so bad?" Surely this pup would know the castle way better than she did, perhaps the two could find some hideaway room with interesting things to explore that wasn't so bright and angry.

"Vanta"

Her face contorts as she realizes she probably scared the other pup. Lips turn downward as her ears also fall back. Trying to right herself so that she isn't so close to the other girl's personal space, Bramble regrets moving so carelessly through the hallways. What if she had hurt the other pup? On the verge of apologizing, her eyes stay focused on the bundle of pelt in front of her when the pup peeks out with almost closed eyes. Was something wrong? Did one of her claws manage to scratch her? Bramble wasn't sure, her limbs still felt so clumsy!

Worried, she let out a sigh of relief when the pup introduced herself as Vanta and sounded as if she was happy to meet her. Letting her tail uncurl from between her legs and wag back and forth quickly, Bramble glanced around the hallway. "Somewhere darker?" Bramble thought for a moment before an idea came to mind. "The library isn't too far and it's usually pretty dark!" Her voice is eager as she gives one lingering look at Vanta, still curious why the girl was squinting so much before turning around. "It's this way! I can show you!" The girl's squeaky voice echoes in the halls as she glances over her shoulder every few seconds to make sure Vanta doesn't get left behind as she starts to lead the way to the library.

Bramble Carpathius

The other pup did seem to know where they could go that was darker, and with enthusiasm offered to lead the way. Vanta shuffled forward after Bramble excitedly, squinting through the hallway after the brownish blurry blob of pup until they began to approach a new and darker room. As she walked, Vanta chattered happily on. "I know it's a little weird, sorry, I just have bad eyes. They eat all the light that's around and it hurts." It was something she was well used to, and no sadness was present in her voice as she explained her disability, rounding the corner toward the darker library and allowing her eyes to peek open slightly further.

"My sister's got it too. And my brother has a crystally foot." Disabilities were as natural to Vanta as mutations were to others of her family - did any of these puppies have them? "Are any of your brothers or sisters crystally too?" Maybe it ran in the family.

"Vanta"

Bramble was excited to have a new friend. She saw nothing weird about the request for something darker. Even if Vanta chattered on about how her eyes ate up the light, Bramble's only reaction was a quick flick of the ear. Her brow would scrunch for a moment as her brain processed the idea of your eyes literally eating away at the light before she would soon forget about Vanta even mentioning it. "I'm sorry it hurts!" She would chirp back in response as her tail gave a few friendly wags. As they continued on their slow-paced journey to the library, Bramble thought about Vanta's siblings and her own. "I think I met your brother! Crux, right?" Bramble asks, simply curious as she steals a glance toward the hidden Vanta. "Does it hurt him too?" She asks as her lips turn down into a frown. If Vanta and her sister couldn't see and Crux had a crystally paw, it must be painful to walk! "Nope, none of us have any crystals. I've never seen anyone with crystals until you guys came to visit,"[/co.lor] the pup says, feeling sad that maybe she was missing out, but then she remembered! [color=#4F483E]"I have really sharp claws though! Look!" Bramble quickly raises her right front paw and extends the cat-like claws. "Cool isn't it!" She says before stopping in front of the library doors.