How many days has it been...two or three? Yes...that was right. Only a few days ago had she been accepted into Fiori by Tiburtius' grandmother, Epiphron. She loved it here, and she had busied herself with making a little den along the outskirts of Lover's Mangrove. It was small, but quaint and beautiful once you stepped back to observe it. She even added little decorations of flowers and vines around it. But even with this new home, her heart churned for Tiburtius. She wished he were there...and maybe she could snuggle into that fluffy grey fur of his. They could even spar a bit...well, playfully, of course!
She just felt the undeniable need for his comfort. But...he was probably busy with all of this pack stuff. And he was getting older, too. She need to give him the space and time he needed. Breathing out gently, Arivae squeezed out of her little den and stretched her tiny legs, a quiet yawn leaving her maw. What would she do today? It was snowy and cold...but with her thick coat, it might not bother her as much to play in the white powder. Swiping her tongue over her maw, she moved forward and dipped her head into the nearest stream, lapping gently at the cool, clear water.
After, she sat there to think for a bit, before standing and leaping into a nearby pile of snow. It was cold...really cold. But it was fun, and she needed something to keep her happy and occupied. Arivae nosed her way into the cool powder and poked her head out the side, snow covering her nose and most of her face. Her innocent blue eyes became bright with joy, and she laughed aloud, shaking her head and continuing to play in the snow excitedly.
Tiburtius sighed as he lounged outside of the den he had slowly begun to move into near his mother's den. He and his brothers were all so large that it had begun to get crowded in there with both of his mothers, his adopted little sister, and whoever of his brothers decided to sleep there. It was admittedly hard to part with the den he had called home for quite a while now so he still snuck in there at night from time to time, but he knew he needed to start moving to his own den. That didn't mean he had to move far away from them though!
No matter how far he was it still felt awfully lonely. To top it off it was hard to keep himself away from Arivae. He was so afraid that he would start getting on her nerves that he tried his best to give her some space. He wanted to be more active in the pack or do something or spend time with his brothers... but none of those were really as appealing as seeing his friend. He kept telling himself that she needed space to settle in and meet other pack members and that kind of stuff.
No matter how much he told himself that though, he still felt himself rising to his paws and trotting toward the den she had made for herself. He just enjoyed her company too much to resist. He wasn't really expecting what he saw when he got there though. Tib heard her laugh first, the sound making his ears perk up, and then he spotted her tiny black form mostly buried in a pile of snow. He stopped and tilted his head to the side curiously, but her sheer joy made him grin. After a moment of consideration he bounded forward, his large paws and long legs making it so he crossed the distance in a few noisy strides. Then he leaped into the pile right next to Arivae... and sent all the snow flying in a flurry of snow flakes. He blinked and looked at the flakes as they drifted back down around them and saw that his massive size had basically destroyed the snow pile his friend had been playing in. His ears flicked back and his looked to her apologetically with a goofy grin.
Minutes after she had covered herself in the snow, she felt exposed. The snow that had been piled onto her back was now gone and she was completely open to the world. But how, and why? Alarmed, Arivae twisted around and stood to her feet, her blue eyes wide. At first she was near to letting out a yell. But when she looked closer, she was certain that this was Tiburtius.
Just when she had been thinking about him, too! What a coincidence! The young girl bounded forward and sprawled herself over his back, giggling hysterically. "You scared me!" She laughed, grasping his ear in her jaws and nibbling it playfully. Once she was satisfied with her nomming, she released his little ear and stared up at the small flakes of snow that drifted around them. "You also killed the pile of snow. What did it ever do to you, Tiburtius? Hmm?"
