baby’s first sand

the boy’s voice interrupts their inner turmoil, drawing their attention to a winged child - and is that a bear?! - where a flurry of questions are immediately directed their way, seemingly without a single pause for breath. how does he not pass out? when the boy finally quiets, Araneae just stares for a moment, giving a single, slow blink.

and then they emit an amused, disbelieving snort. ”i’m not your cousin, silly! and i don’t live on the beach.” they scrunch up their face in disgust and glare down at their feet again. “who would want to?”

they blink a second time, and only one set of ‘eyes’ move, the second remaining completely still. “i don’t have extra eyes, either - though wouldn’t that be cool! but i was named for them.” puffing out their chest, araneae flashes sharp puppy teeth in an impish grin. “i’m Spider.”

something Wylan’d said crosses their mind, and a tiny frown crinkles their brow. ”and i don’t think i smell weird…maybe you’re only used to scenting men and women?” momentarily self conscious, they turn their head to bury their nose in their shoulder fur, sniffing tentatively. suddenly, a breeze picks up and blows a handful of sand in their face. spitting irritably, they lift a paw and brush the granules from their chest. “hey, Feathers, do you know how to get rid of this stuff?”

"Speech"