Where his family were often in and out of the den now, Sorrel still liked to remain safely inside. He had no idea how many wolves were in Ludicael, though he'd decided it was far more than he wanted to face. Even his Destruction family members were more than enough for him and he hadn't even met half of them! No, the timid boy would rather remain on his own than dare face the world outside.
He would be lying though if he said he wasn't a little tempted to explore, recently having discovered a little of the world of healing, he was quite intrigued to learn more about the plants and what they could do. Though he knew he was allowed to leave the boy still wished to avoid any trouble, he would need his mother or his cousin Novel to show him these things. So for now at least inside he would remain, mis-matched eyes watching the opening of the den for a sign of someone returning.
Excitement! It filled the boy as he wandered back to the den, mis-matched eyes shining happily as he ran back towards the den. It was hard on that first day to get him to venture out of the den but once he realized the world wasn't as bad as he thought, at least size wise, it was hard to keep the boy cooped up within, even when the weather was bad. He didn't even really want to sleep, often exploring and finding random things to entertain himself. Bugs, feathers, sticks... it was all fun! Even just chasing after prey animals, not that he had caught any yet, was proving to be a great joy.
But though it was fun to explore he felt there was something... missing. F?licien was sitting there that day in the grove pondering what it could be when it hit him. He was all by himself and had no one to share these wonderful experiences with. Cerise was off somewhere but... he was pretty sure that Sorrel would still be back in the den. His brother... a special brother that it was like looking at his reflection in the water when he saw him. It was beyond neat, really. And F?li would return to the den, bursting in with tail wagging.
"Sorrrrrrrrreeeeeeeel!" The puppy would bounce before his brother, tail butt wagging in the air as he dropped his front half. "You just have to come out and see some of this stuff! I'll show you some of the best spots ever!" He would tap his brother's paw, bursting with enthusiasm to go out and determined to bring Sorrel with him.
"Speech"
F?li and Cerise often came back with talks of exciting places they had seen that day. Sorrel's interest would grow a little as neither were scolded by their parents, perhaps he would venture out with them, but each time the option presented itself, he would back out for some reason or another. Perhaps, unlike many pups the boy was very conscious of his size and vulnerability, though of course it was mostly down to who he might meet.
"Sorrrrrrrrreeeeeeeel!" The voice, cheerier and louder than his own though certainly still so similar to his own was unmistakeably that of his brother. Sure enough his twin would soon come bounding excitably into the den whilst Sorrel simply stared blankly at the boy. "You just have to come out and see some of this stuff! I'll show you some of the best spots ever!" It was certainly tricky to ignore his brother at the best of times, but as the pawing began it became impossible.
He was still very much wary of the world outside, would have much preferred their mother or even father to be there to accompany them but clearly F?li simply wanted someone to see this stuff. He could certainly understand that feeling of loneliness, of missing the family but he really didn't get this desire for adventure that his brother had. "Can't we just stay here?"
Stay here? F?licien would lower his ears for a moment at the question, a frown upon his face. Sorrel was almost always at the den. He would calm down some, sitting down as he looked at his brother, looking at him with his bi-colored eyes as he began to speak again.
?Why do you want to stay inside all the time?? The question wasn?t asked in anger, nor accusingly. There was however sadness... And worry. Their mother and father didn?t mind that he and Cerise went out... Neither had gotten scolded for it. The pup lowered his ears some, taking on a more serious demeanor as he pressed on.
?Are you worried...?? F?li would ask. The first time they were to go out of the den he had been scared... Worried about what would happen because of how small he was in comparison to the outside world. The boy would set his paw on his Sorrel?s own, trying to give him a reassuring look. ?If you are... You know you can tell me. I?ll listen.?
"Speech"
?Why do you want to stay inside all the time?? From the change of his expression and question, Sorrel got the impression that staying inside wasn't really what F?li wished to do, though it still didn't change his mind on the matter. It was safer, nicer inside with no one to bother him. "I just do." He responded, there was no other way to put it really. If his mother wasn't with him, he was far happier staying put in the den.
?Are you worried...? If you are... You know you can tell me. I?ll listen.? Well yes he was a little worried, but he really didn't want to talk about it, not even with F?li. There wasn't anything that his twin could really say to help him out at all, the world beyond the den was scary and there wasn't a thing that could be done to fix that.
"I just want to stay inside." He responded, still avoiding the question. "It's our own space, it's nicer here." It was of course a hint of how he felt, all those strangers, some that claimed to be family were roaming around the world outside. Sorrel didn't fancy meeting any of them. With his parents he could hide behind them, let them deal with this strangers, but alone sometimes there was simply no choice but to speak to them and he didn't want to. They made him feel nervous.
Sorrel was hardly given him a straight answer. F?licien would give a little sigh, looking at his brother with a soft gaze. He knew convincing Sorrel to come outside was going to be no easy matter... But he wanted his brother to be there with him. To see new things, to learn new things... Staying inside all the time couldn?t be good, could it? The pup shifting a bit, ears lowering as his twin continued to avoid the question. Then, the next thing he said, made the pup wonder.
F?licien would look to the mouth of the den as he started to speak again. ?It may be our own space... But... We are part of a pack. We need to interact with them... Even if they are strange at first. A lot of them are our family. It seems a little scary at first, meeting a wolf who is bigger... And trying to talk to them... But the wolves here aren?t bad... And soon enough we?re gonna grow big too. The pack, mom, and dad are going to help watch over us until then.?
F?li would look to his twin then, giving a little smile. ?The first day we were supposed to go out of the den... I was scared too... Scared of everything outside. Everything was big... And I was small. But... The more I explored... The more I realized that things weren?t as scary as I thought... And the wolves that seemed so strange and different... They weren?t so bad either.? He would wag his tail a little. ?So it might be nice here.. But how can you say its nicer when you haven?t seen everywhere else the pack lands have to offer??
"Speech"
Sorrel certainly hadn't been prepared for, nor did he particularly want a lecture from his brother about the world outside. He was perfectly happy inside away from it all. Their parents brought them food and if they all stayed here then they had pretty much everything Sorrel felt they needed, he only wished to venture outside with his mother. He cared little about learning new things, though of course truthfully he was lying to himself there but still the boy wouldn't release any worries that he had.
"Well maybe I don't want to be part of a pack, no one asked me. I don't care if we have more family we already have more than enough." The unsociable child really didn't understand why there had to be so many wolves in the world, especially so many that were related to them. The little family unit was more than enough for him, he loved them all and whilst he'd probably grow to feel a similar way about the rest of his family, right now the boy simply didn't care.
"I have been outside though, I just don't want to." Sorrel protested. He certainly hadn't explored as much as many pups his age had, though right now the strange child still didn't care. Whilst he was developing a slight interest in healing thanks to his cousin Novel, the main things Sorrel cared about in life were his parents and siblings so what was the point in exploring every strange and different thing in the lands when he was already happy enough without it?
Though his brother?s words weren?t spoken in a harsh manner they still hurt. F?licien would take a step back, ears lowering and frowning. Didn?t want to be in a pack? Didn?t care? But... Wolves that were family were supposed to stick together. Sure they didn?t know their extended family that well yet but... Surely they could come to meet them, right? But... It didn?t seem like Sorrel wanted to. As if he didn?t even want to be here. The male would lower his gaze, a sigh leaving his maw.
It seemed there was no convincing him... And now F?li?s good, excited mood had died. The other boy, without a word, would walk to the other side of the den and lay down, back turn on Sorrel. All he wanted to do was to have his brother share the same happiness he felt when he was exploring... To meet others and form more friendships. Should he feel bad about going out and trying to meet the rest of the pack? Should he just care about their immediate family too?
Tears formed in his eyes as F?licien curled into a little half ball, ears lowered as a soft, almost inaudible whimper left him.
"Speech"
Poor Sorrel was quite the awkward case. Too afraid to branch out beyond what he knew the boy certainly struggled in social situations. Even now as his own brother grew disappointed at this revelation Sorrel would have no idea how to react. F?li would crumple before his eyes, changing from that excited pup that had come bounding in with such joy and in less than a few minutes now he was becoming quite the pitiful state, even worse perhaps than the isolated Sorrel.
Mismatched eyes would simply watch in silence as F?li moved over to the other side of the den, now curling up in a rather lackluster manner as he turned his back on Sorrel. A soft whimper would leave the saddened pup and still Sorrel would gaze on for a moment, trying to assess the situation. "Why are you crying?" The question would sound, evident in his voice that he was truly clueless as to how much he had hurt his brother with his words. Though he may not have cared so much about Ludicael and other Destructions, Sorrel certainly cared for his twin and wouldn't ever intentionally harm him in any way.
The tears rolled down his cheeks as he tried, as best he could, to keep from crying loudly. But... It wasn?t as if Sorrel was blind. One ear would turn back to Sorrel at the question, body shaking some. By Sorrel?s voice he could tell his brother honestly didn?t understand what he had done. The boy would sniffle a little, not sure he could look at Sorrel right now. He knew his brother wouldn?t even intentionally hurt him... Just as he wouldn?t ever do anything to hurt Sorrel either.
?I... I?m worried I guess... And... Sad that you don?t seem to enjoy adventuring like I do. I know you love all of us a lot but... We have other family too that care about us... And even if we weren?t asked to be in Lucidael we?re still here. Mom and dad came here... And if they want to stay we have to stay too right now. We?re too young to make that sort of decision... And I don?t want others to think bad of you because you don?t want to leave the den... And...? The words just kept pouring from his mouth, little fears being expressed.
?I just want to share things with you... Experiences in the world... Because they make me happy and I want you to be happy to. It makes me sad that you?re here all the time... Like you might be missing out on things...? Finally F?licien would lift his head, ears lowering as a whine left him. ?We?re not gonna drift apart, are we?? He had always been close to his twin... But it seemed already their paths were pulling them in different directions. The poor boy, for one so young, already had a lot of fears and worries on his mind. Not that it helped with their mother being a bit more absent lately.
"Speech"
Sorrel stood there blankly, still rather clueless to the fact that he had been the one to bring this sadness to his brother. The soft cries continued and Sorrel watched on with mismatched eyes. He may not have fully understood but there was certainly a compassion within him that currently felt bad for his brother, his twin and mirror image it seemed in more ways than one. Looks weren't the only thing that faced opposite each other, it seemed that personality followed suit.
Where F?li was confident and bubbly, Sorrel was certainly withdrawn and timid. No matter what his family did it seemed that there was no way really of changing that fact or even getting some sort of balance between the two boys. F?li would explain his feelings, his concerns about Sorrel that honestly caused the boy himself no qualms. The den was safe and quiet, just the way he liked things, the world was too crowded and whether they were family or not, he didn't really care. All he wanted was his mother, father, brother and sister.
"I'm fine F?li." Sorrel responded matter-of-factly. He didn't need all the exploring and adventures nor new relationships to make him happy. Perhaps one day he'd open up a little, but for now the small boy was perfectly content with his life, even if he was a bit of a hermit. "No." He confirmed simply. His immediate family was certainly something he cared for and Sorrel didn't want to lose them, if F?li felt the same way, well neither had anything to worry about.
The pup would give a slight nod, moving now so that he was back on his paws. He still looked on the miserable side all the same. Sorrel was content with how his life was... He didn?t need other things to make him happy... And yet F?licien felt down about it. They were each other?s mirror image... Reflecting both the opposite type of thing physically and in personality. It wasn?t necessarily a bad thing... But... Still he worried about it sometimes.
He would lift his head, giving another nod as their bi-colored eyes met. ?Okay...? That, above all, was what he needed to hear. Even if they were different... As long as they stayed a close knit family that was what he cared about. Paws would carry him to Sorrel now, giving his twin a hug. ?I?m sorry...? He would pull back. ?...and no matter what... We?ll always be close then.? The simply confirmation Sorrel gave him had given him a bit of confidence. They didn?t need to be the same... It was okay that they liked different things and acted different.
Things would be okay... And they always would between the two.
Whilst Sorrel doubted he needed the rest of his family, there would always be an exception for his immediate one of his mother, father and siblings. He needed them, wanted them close and certainly didn't see that changing anytime soon. He had no worries about them growing apart and clearly didn't want that to happen either. He was glad when his twin calmed down and he took a step back to allow him the space to stand up out of the edge he'd pushed himself again.
"Yes." Sorrel confirmed once more as his brother moved in for a hug. As F?li stepped back again, he would lick the boy's muzzle briefly. As far as he was concerned there was nothing to be worried about and hopefully F?li would realise that now as well. Perhaps one day they'd explore together, but for now Sorrel simply wasn't ready for such adventure.
