Free of the prison where he'd been holed up with his siblings while they grew big and strong, figured out how to arrange their legs in ways that could be approximated as "walking", it was time for the Klein progeny to wreak havoc. Sunset brought about the time where the pale devil was the most active, his champagne fluff easily preyed upon by the sun's rays. His siblings were getting ready for bed, and he was about to sneak out. Draped in a dark hued fur, so that the shadows would properly cling to his diminutive form, he slunk away from the cacophony of pups. Time to see the world without others interrupting. Crimson and clementine skies greeted the boy as he stepped out into the open air, breathing in deep to taste the scents that wafted up from the canyon. It had poured rain for days, and this was a brief period of stillness. The rocks were slick and slippery underfoot, but he didn't care. Perhaps the pungent aroma of petrichor fuelled his boldness, but off the pallid boy went. Fecklessly he wandered, traipsing towards the canyon floor. It was brimming with murky waters, but he trusted in himself that he only needed to get close. Not a swim nor a taste, only basking in the presence of it. The sounds of shuffling and muted conversation came from all around, many of his kin that formed the bulk of the pack's ranks were settling in for an evening meal and a night of rest. It made him feel at ease, that there were so many bodies nearby, yet none of them intruded upon his quiet time. He was surrounded by love and safety, and yet the evening was entirely his own. Which he was going to use for splashing in puddles and chasing bugs before it was fully dark. One such puddle stretched before him, and he was quick to jump straight in. All four paws outstretched, and all of his mother's careful grooming wasted. "Dagger Prince" pixels by squishyalpaca

Much of Ashen took after their Empress and took to the night hours to be most active. Of course, there were others in their ranks most active during the daylight hours so the pack was never taken unawares. As the evening began to draw close Venom was waking from her slumber, ready to begin her night’s work. She was blessedly undisturbed the day before so had a full sleep beneath her belt. The rain had lulled and kept her asleep, some of the best weather to doze to.

She pulled herself from Maverick’s strong arms, unwilling to wake him. He worked hard and slept even harder than she did. With a soft kiss to his forehead Venom made her retreat from the ravine and made her way towards the redwater rocks. With any luck she could gather up a niece or nephew to go on patrol with her. The borders were almost always quiet, and it was a good exercise for a young pup to experience while so young.

The rocks were slick with the rain, and just as her mind wondered about puppies playing in the waters her sunset eyes fell upon the pale form of a nephew diving into a red tinged puddle. She chuckled heartily as she approached, certain his mother would not approve. However, Venom was very much not his mother, and what good were aunts for but to encourage mischief for parents? "You’ve chosen quite a good puddle there.” She observed as she lowered herself to her haunches far enough away that he wasn’t going to splash her own fur.

"Venom"

Oblivious to the rest of the world, the young male busied himself with the different types of splashes he could make. He could jump as high as possible, and smack all four paws into the water as he landed, and that made a loud splash that sent water everywhere! Or, he could dig in the puddle super fast, and kick mud behind him! His favourite was smacking the water with his front paws, though. He could tap out a type of rhythm with his paws while he did, and that was way better than just making any kind of splash. The feminine voice that announced itself behind him was a shock, and for a moment he thought it was his mum, coming to put him back to bed. So when he spun around and found his aunty there, his wide eyes immediately blinked shut as a relieved sigh whooshed out of him. Just like that, all was well. He perked right back up, grinning broadly at his aunty. Quite a sight, no doubt, his ivory fur stained red with hoodoo mud and dripping with water. "Thanks aunty Venom!" he crowed, tail wagging with delight. "Splashing is fun when you don't have to share the puddles." he admitted, ears tipping back as he remembered his brawls with his siblings over the choice puddles near the den earlier in the day. "Are you doing Empress stuff now?" the boy asked with a tilt of his head, taking a moment to look over her shoulders for anyone else. Most importantly, there weren't any parents hiding behind her. So she must be up to Empress business, not "scolding nephews for sneaking out" business. "Dagger Prince" pixels by squishyalpaca

Venom barely held back an amused chuckle as the boy let out a huge sigh of relief. Likely happy to see her there instead of his mother. Not that Aliana was particularly strict or overbearing, but it was always so much better to see a laid back aunt than your mother. He perked up and gave her a huge grin, warming her heart as he beamed up at her. He thanked her, and mentioned not having to share, and she believed him. There were so many siblings to share with, having something to yourself like this was a true rarity. "Oh, I'm sure. I certainly won't be asking you to share with me either." she assured him with amusement.

The boy paused his splashing and looked up at her curiosly and asked about her current job. Though he hadn't quite found the eloquence of royalty Venom still gave him another soft smile. "If you count looking for nephews to bother, yes." She returned with a mischievous wag of her tail. "I was looking for someone to help me with a patrol..." Venom admitted almost wistfully as she tried to bait him into volunteering.