There was a chill in the air, and Meadow was pretty sure that was a good thing. This morning her breath had even fogged up the windows in their room enough for her to draw with her nose-- that was cool. Really, the child was looking forward to winter. Maybe they'd even get snow! She'd seen pictures of the snow drawn in the books within the library, and she could only hope that they'd get to see it soon. How exciting would that be? Excited, and even more than that. More than excited? Yeah! When you're this little, though, big feelings are... well, they're big. Meadow had managed to overwhelm herself already with all the thoughts and excitement in her head. The small girl was doing her best to steady herself, to calm herself down, but it was hard. It was even harder when there were so many other people around all the time. There was only one place the child knew she'd feel better: the library. Hiding away among the bookshelves, she needed to be busy. Busy would keep her from getting overwhelmed by the feelings that were too big. Right. Carefully, she pulled a large, heavy book down from one of the shelves that was just barely taller than she was. It was filled with pictures of the winter and the snow, and she'd been trying to teach herself how to read it. It seemed to talk about the weather and the different patterns it took. Yes, this was a good book for rationalizing all the things that were coming soon. Nearly straight away, Meadow found herself engrossed in her book. This would be a good way to spend the afternoon. "Speech"

Unlike her very quiet cousin, Bramble's head took an opposite direction. Whenever she felt overwhelmed, she talked. Man did this pup like to talk. A babbling brook of words would tumble from her lips. She would talk to her companions if she didn't have anyone to talk to. There was so much going on in the world. The lights, the sounds, the noises, the change of the weather, the different wolves to meet, the everything! Gosh, her brain just would. Not. Shut. Up! Truly at times, her brain would hurt. It made her want to clench her teeth and cover her ears. When she woke up today, that's how it felt. All of her siblings were bundled up, chattering away. Since all of them, minus Kea, had pretty much gotten themselves into trouble, they had all been holed up inside the castle to live out their punishment days. While Bramble loved her siblings, more than she had words to explain it, she couldn't think when they were all talking. It felt so... confusing and painful. So slipped away to her safe space. With Berry and Bristle in tow, Bramble slunk off to the library. Lately, she had taken to wandering around the dusty book-filled room where it was quiet and dark. The curtains were still drawn and a fire crackled in the fireplace. Typically, whenever she was here, usually in the dead of night (a girl couldn't sleep, ok?) no one else was. Being alone, surrounded by words and dust bunnies, Bramble could sort out her brain and feel at peace. But today was different. She could scent someone who had recently entered. Curious to who else wanted to be in such a forgotten place, Bramble made her way down the aisle. Only a few minutes would pass when she spied one of her cousins nose-deep in a really large book. "Meadow?" Her voice was a loud whisper as she approached. Berry, the fisher, leaped up onto her shoulder while Bristle, her raven, settled atop the bookcases. She was allowed to wander the castle without supervision as long as Bristle reported to her father every few hours - he really meant it when he said she wasn't allowed to leave the approved territories. "What book you got?" She asked as she lowered herself closer to the carpeted floor in an attempt to appear smaller. Like most of her siblings, she was very large and already felt as if she towered over others. "Can I join you?" Bramble asked, still loud whispering as she stared at Meadow with a friendly smile.

Well, there is something Meadow understands. The pain in the brain, the ache that came with all of the strangeness in her system and the dysfunction that lived here. Meadow knows it, and she knows it well. Sometimes it wells up inside her, the urge to say something. The urge to chime in, the urge to speak when spoken to... so why doesn't she? It's like the words want to burst forth from her chest instead of her mouth. The voice was something she'd never learned to use, something that didn't work quite right. Something about Meadow didn't work quite right... didn't work quite like it did for everyone else. Though Fern did everything she could to make Meadow feel like that was okay, she also knows that there's something off in her system. Something... yeah. Something is off.

Curiously, she wasn't alone today. Meadow heard her name on someone else's lips. Her head lifted, gaze shooting around the room. The flap of wings, too, draws her attention. From no noise to too much noise, but... but maybe she was better off not being on her own. It's then that she spots Bramble, and her gaze softens. Becomes more comfortable. She manages a smile for a moment, tipping the book up to show her cousin the cover. The girl towered, nearly overwhelmingly so, but soon came down to the same level Meadow was laying. Better.

Can I join you? the question came. Meadow gave a soft nod, pushing the book forward and scooting closer to share the view with Bramble. Excitedly, she flipped back a handful of pages to show her companion. Upon the page, there was painted a rather exciting sort of scene. It showed a castle not all-together unlike the one they lived in, cloaked in snow. A cheerful scene, with the soft glow of candles in the windows, and snow coated trees surrounding them. Already, the girl was dreaming of playing in the soft drifts, and enjoying the winter wonderland that would hopefully arrive soon.
"Speech"

Bramble was more than excited when Meadow came to settle in close to her. Feeling the warmth of her cousin beside her was comforting as the book slid over before both of them. Her eyes would widen with eagerness as the page was flipped to a snowy scenery. While Meadow was void of words, Bramble could fill the room for the both of them. It didn't even bother her that Meadow didn't talk. "That castle kind of looks like ours," she mentions quietly as Berry peeks over her shoulder at the book. "Do you think it'll snow here? I haven't seen snow yet. Have you seen snow?" Bramble asked, her voice inquisitive as she looks up from the book's tender pages to Meadow's soft gaze. A smile graces her lips as she doesn't wait for a response. While Bramble was typically a chaotic mess with a short attention span, she was empathetic and often noticed what made others uncomfortable. "I would like to play in the snow," the pup added as she admired the beautiful picture. Bramble Carpathius