(Minor PP of Nao allowed by Virgil)

Mojito wasn't sure he was ready for this. Who said he couldn't just keep them all inside all to himself and Nao? Well he knew that wasn't an option. Seven puppies was a lot to handle and they were officially getting too eager for freedom. But well... Maybe he was also just a little afraid of how the world out there would treat them. He'd made the mistake of not preparing Satira for the cruelty of wolves and he wasn't about to make it again. Still it wasn't exactly a discussion any parent wanted to have, breaking it to their children that sometimes others would look at them and only see hate. Mojito sighed. How did he even begin going about saying it in a way they'd understand at this age? Things to mull over as Mojito laid with the seven sleeping bundles, watching the light of morning start to stream through the mouth of their den. Nao's lithe form sliding into that sun drenched space and Mojito couldn't help but smile. "Time then?" Mojito sighed looking down at the sleeping children, their children. The two men set about gently rousing and herding the puppies. "You've all got a big day today!" Mojito said, trying to keep the sadness at seeing how old his children were already from his voice."Your Otou-san and I have a surprise!" Mojito grinned up at Nao, already the word was feeling less awkward on his tongue, a way to differentiate himself and Nao for this children. Mojito didn't care to raise them as Kleins honestly and cared much more that they not be cut off from Nao's culture. Leading the way towards the mouth of the den Mojito gestured to the world beyond, just outside lay breakfast, Nao had brought back enough for the whole family! "Now, remember to mind your manners when meeting new wolves okay? Sometimes they might be mean to you and you do not have to stay if they are but you do have to give them a chance to be nice first!" Lesson no. 1 of being a wolf-dog: Aggression out of the gate usually leads only to more aggression. He'd never tell his children to take any abuse from anyone but he also knew that they'd sometimes meet others who'd take any excuse. Don't give them one! Was he being overbearing? Mojito glanced at Nao for reassurance before taking a deep breath and letting them loose: "Go explore! Have fun! We'll be here having breakfast, come back to snag a bite or two. Stay where we can see you and stay away from the falls, if you can smell the water you're too close!" Gods he was being overbearing again! Mojito needed to go lay down and start eating before he decided to call the whole thing off an herd them all back inside! Mojito & Nao

Art by MarkLix

Ume’s first excursion from the den is a slow one. his feet are still wobbly and new, and when he goes too fast they trip, and when he stops too fast they stumble, and altogether the whole thing requires way too much thought on his end. as such he is likely one of the last of his siblings to properly exit the den, and when his eyes finally turn to the sky he shields back and blinks furiously against the light. ow…ow…okay, the longer he keeps his eyes closed the less it hurts. should he just keep his eyes closed for the rest of his life? how do other wolves get anything done? “bright.” he whispers the word to himself, testing it out on his tongue, letting the shape of it form in his mind.

his voice is faint and raspy from disuse, a whisp of a thing that is snatched away on a breeze the moment he speaks it. tentatively, he peaks open one eye, only to slam it shut when the light pierced it once more. hmm…maybe if he’s more assertive. “too bright. go away.”

our home is outer space

black skies and endless seas

If there was anything Harumi had been waiting for, it had been this. And not very patiently, either- had it not been for the watchful eyes of their parents, they likely would have made their way out of the den a few days ago, long before any of them were truly ready.

It's only through luck- and Harumi succesfully having played themself into an exhausted lump of brown fur the night before- that they're not awake before either of their parents, demanding to do out. As it was, the nudge just pulls a grumble from them as they blink up at their Papa, blearily, jaws opening in some complaint at being woken up- and closing just as uickly as they realize just what he's saying. They're on their paws as quickly as possible, stumbling with the spped at which they had gotten up, before they're turning on a still-lying sibling and attempting to sink their tetth into an ear or paw or tail and tug. "Up." They demand, regardless of if they're able to or not and tail wagging with the force of a thousand suns. "Up!"

Anything their Papa had said about not being aggressive had, in their excitement, completely went in one ear and out the other.

They at least don't bully their siblings for long before they give up and bound after their Papa and brother, tail wagging just as much as it had been- until they skid to a complete stop, blinking at how bright everything is. It hurts, and they don't like it. Flopping on the ground, excitement evaporated and eyes squinted shut, they join in their brother's complaints, words directed to their Papa.

"Too bright. Make it go away, Papa. Make it."

If there was anyone who could, it would be him, right?

this is not enough,

this is not enough

love, dante

Tsuki wasn't necessarily a deep sleeper but like most kids her age if she'd run herself into exhaustion the night before she could be hard to wake. Besides dreaming was nice! It was like getting to be in the stories she loved so much! In fact she was enjoying her dream right now, seconds away from getting to lift her veil and see the prince that'd rescued her from the dragon-rabbit (hey dreams didn't always make sense) when suddenly she felt it's sharp fangs digging into her tail and started dragging her away. And then she wasn't dreaming anymore but she could still feel her tail being yanked on. "Ow!" Tsuki whines, still trying to shake off the fog of sleep and she tries to kick off whichever of her siblings has her tail in their grasp as her other senses finally start to wake up. Craning her neck Tsuki was finally able to identify the culprit: Harumi! Honestly it was a total toss up for which of her siblings would chose to pull on her ears and tail, as the smallest of the bunch she was the easiest target. Still she shot the most scathing glare she could at her siblings, which is to say not scathing at all, and started to pick herself up once they'd bounced after their fathers. Bouncing right- Outside! That was all it took to shake the last dregs of sleep from Tsuki's body as she practically jumped to her paws and raced after her family. Like her siblings she blinked against the bright light of the sun, though unlike her siblings she seemed to adjust to it faster than them. "S'not so bad if ya blink a lot!" Tsuki tried to help her siblings. Sure it would still take some getting use to but damn if she was gonna let something like her watering eyes stop her. They. Were. Outside! And she wasn't about to wait for anyone else to adjust either, bouncing off after the first thing that grabbed her attention, a butterfly lazily fluttering by. "Speech"

Art by Fewtish

Hanataro

"Little flower pup"

She was flying, the clouds easily swooping past her as she went. It was so fun feeling the wind move through her fur. But then she heard something, one of her dads was calling out. Hanataro’s eyes sleepily opened the sun shining through the den. Before she knew it her rambunctious siblings were wiggling about practically bursting from the den but she was slow. Lifting her head as she shook her flopped ear marked by the black and white. It was outside time! She was excited but fighting off sleep it took her a moment to raise herself and give a stretch hearing the end of what daddy mo told them. She tilted her head and meagerly followed behind her siblings into the outside world.

Hanataro at first didn’t say anything softly she turned her face towards the sun and closed her eyes basking in the warmth of it. She imagined a thousand tiny birds fluttering about around them welcoming them into the world. Everything was just so bright and new, and already she felt kind of awkward and wrong. Opening her eyes she sat down deciding to settle with humming. Not all too bad either maybe her siblings would be impressed?

The little ones had been rambunctious from the moment their eyes opened, and it took a great deal of energy to keep them contained within the den as they grew. Ears unsealing, but so many of those ears did not perk up like a wolf pup's were meant to. There was a hint of glee in the back of his mind whenever he saw his little ones (and they were certainly his, regardless of the impossibility of it) running about with bent ears bobbing to and fro. Of course he knew of his lover's concerns, had been let in on the travesty of his childhood. It angered Nao in a way he couldn't dare act on, but he found himself exceedingly wary of others now. The night before had been full of chaos, to the point that once the brats had finally tired themselves out in a pile of twitching limbs and gentle snores, he pulled Mojito aside. It was time, it had to be. The longer they fought the passage of time, and worried about the cruelty of the world beyond their den, the higher the risk of a pup slipping past their careful watch. Better to have some measure of control while they still could, right? Which meant that neither of the parents slept a wink the whole night. He could hear the uneven breaths of his beloved, the soft stirrings as he moved restlessly during the small hours of the night. He heard every one, because he was equally anxious, equally awake. The first inklings of dawn were all he needed to see, a hint of warm grey through the entrance to their den. With a soft kiss upon Mojito's brow, he'd promised a nice breakfast and taken off. This nervous energy needed an outlet, he couldn't let anyone see that he was worried. He needed to remain strong and stoic, for the sake of his children. So off he went, a shade slipping through the pre-dawn undergrowth as he sought out a meal to bring to the family on this big day. By the time Nao hauled the fawn home, the sun had finally emerged from beyond the horizon. The day was fully upon them, and the shadows were growing shorter by the minute. No time to waste. He slipped into the den with practiced ease, and met the mournful, bittersweet expression of his beloved with a soft smile of his own. "Indeed, love." he affirmed, and joined the effort to rouse the little ones. He relied more on Mojito for parenting guidance than he would have preferred, but the man had a child already, and that was useful experience to lean upon. So he followed his lover's lead in these matters. By the time the children, all seven of them, had begun to clamber out of their heap, he couldn't be bothered with nerves. There was too much going on, and he had to mind the little bodies that were scampering out into the sunlight for the first time. The consensus from the first few that tumbled free of the earth was that the sun was too bright. He snickered softly, eyes crinkling at the corners as mint green gaze fondly traced the arc of their paths through the clearing. The strained nature of Mojito's voice as he warned them to be wary of strangers, and to mind their manners, and to avoid the water, and to eat breakfast soon- it only made him love the man more. Concerned only with the safety and wellbeing of their children. "They'll have to learn to swim eventually, won't they?" he teased quietly as he settled down beside the smaller man. Breakfast was a quiet ordeal, he couldn't spare much thought to conversation while he kept a careful eye on the children. Ears tipped back nervously each time he noticed someone stumble, or they strayed too far from the den for his liking. "Do not stare at the sky, you'll go blind." he chided eventually, as he noticed the pups spending a bit too long focused on the sun's rays. As the day went on, it would only get brighter. Better to keep them from developing that habit in the first place. Though his voice was not as harsh as it would have been with an adult, Nao was still getting used to softening his edges for the children. Sometimes he scolded them too much, or spoke without care. He cringed at his own mistakes each time, worried he would irreparably damage their developing minds. Nao & Mojito

Art by MarkLix

It took very little effort to wake the tiny silver child, who had been ready to leave the den about as soon as she realized there was an outside to explore. So with only the most gentle insistence from her Otou-san, she was on her feet. This spared her from Harumi's teeth, and earned her first dibs on the sunlight. Which was her right, by all accounts. So she sped off as fast as her little paws would let her, ignoring the sleepy trundling pace her siblings had set. No, all cylinders were being fired and she was on the move. Waiting for no one, and needing no instruction, she charged up the dirt tunnel and out into the open air. Which was chilly! Her whole body trembled with excitement, though she hardly made a sound. By the time a few other pups had made their way out into the fresh air, she was already on the move again. Examining the path of a line of ants as they ventured out of the grass and onto a patch of dirt still damp with morning dew. Some of the shiny black insects were carrying tiny chunks of leaf, some had seeds, while others were marching on empty-handed. The way their little bodies glinted in the sunlight was so fascinating. The sunlight! Almost immediately, she found herself craning her neck to stare up at the sky, growing bluer and bluer by the second. Just like a few of the other children, the mercury girl announced "Ow, bright!" but could not tear her attention from the heavens. Fluffy white clouds scuttled by overhead, begging for her gaze. At least, until her Otou-san mentioned that she would go blind if she kept this up. A soft squeak was all she could muster before she dropped her gaze away from the sky, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment. Oh no! After a moment, she dared to peek one eye open. And there was the big wide world before her, still visible. So she wasn't blind yet! There was still more time to stare at the sky, but not while her fathers were watching. Picking herself up, the wee girl shook out her pelt to rid herself of dust and debris. Plodding over to where her two fathers were picking at their breakfast, she stopped to stare into the glassy eyes of the little fawn. There were so many more details to notice in the daylight, like the crust of blood in its nose, or the way she could still make out the shifting colours of its clouded iris. "Can I hunt with you now, Otou-san?" she asked, mismatched eyes round and baleful as she peered up at him. Perhaps only slightly playing up how cute and small she was, in case that would win him over.

Shochu had been in a deep sleep, dreaming of the tasty food that Outou-san brought back to the den. He loved eating, but more than just stuffing his face he enjoyed savoring what he ate. It was good for them AND it tasted good. And maybe one day he’d be able to go get food with his Outou-san too. His tail wiggled in his dreams, a blissful smile on his lips. He was so happy, and had been doing his best to avoid getting in trouble while they were still kept in the den. But every time his Papa or Outou-san left he yearned to follow. What was it like outside? He would feel a paw nudge him awake, and slowly the boy began to stir. It took several long moments to blink open his eyes with a yawn, and when he looked around he realized that he and Osamu were still in the den when everyone else was outside! Oh no.

The first order of business was to move to his brother’s side and gently give him a second nudge. “Come on, Osamu, the others have gone outside!” His voice was excited, and unable to bring himself to wait for his brother he scurried out the entrance of the den.

The world around him was bright, vivid, beautiful, and Shochu stood there for a long moment with his mouth agape. Where would he even begin with what everything was? The stuff under his paw was soft, green, and there were big, tall brown things with green things on them towering up towards a really high blue ceiling with white stuff moving in them. He stepped forward in awe. “What is all this stuff…?” His tail wagged behind him as he looked around for his family. They were exploring, experiencing the world, and… breakfast was here!

The boy moved over to the fawn, wasting no time in tearing some meat off from himself and slowly chewing. Mmm, he closed his eyes, wiggling happily. So good!

"Speech," 'Thoughts.'