Slippery, Slithery, Sneaky Snake

Ricin rests in the shade of a large maple tree, eyelids slipping shut only for the pup to open them seconds later. In the noon day heat, the light pup finds the warmth lulling to sleep. Chade was close by, hunting for food while making sure to keep a close eye on the lighter pup. Apparently, Chade is still mad at him for being attacked by a grizzly bear. Ricin had tried, fervently, to explain that the bear had been a fluke, a one-time thing would never happen again. For some reason, his brother didn’t believe him and Ricin has been forced to stay extra close while Chade hunts. Eyes slide shut once more and the pup battles mightily to reopen them.

A yawn cracks his mouth open and Ricin decides to give up fighting the call of sleep. Moving his body to a more comfortable position, loose leaves rustling under him, Ricin pillows his head with his legs. Finally, able to fully relax, the pup starts to drift away on the currents of sleep. Just when Ricin is about to fall away into the land of dreams, a noise tickles his ears. Too tired to care, the pup tries to grasp at the fleeing tendrils of slumber. However, the noise persists, calling him back to the waking world inch by hard fought inch. Finally, when Ricin can no longer pretend to be resting, he huffs a sigh and opens his eyes, wondering if Chade has brought them food.

The last thing in the world Ricin expects to see is a large anaconda. But there it is, mouth hanging open as it unhinges its jaw, directly in front of him. Eyes widen as Ricin scrambles to his paws to stumble backward, shouting, “CHADE! Big snake! BIG! SNAKE!"

"Speech"