Smooth and silky

As she had entered her yearling stage, Ember's young body had begun to transform out of that cute chubby puppy phase and into her awkward teen stage of life. Most of her puppy fat had started to melt away as she became more physically active, the Carpathian girl now at just about her adult height that had her standing just shy of her mother's height and a far cry from her sire's dire stature. She was becoming more lithe, with lean muscle and long, lanky legs that she was still growing into. But most notably of all was her tail. Ember's tail had developed out like her mother's and older sister's, growing the long strands of silky fur that cascaded from her rump like a veritable waterfall of inky black fur. Though it was far from its full plumage yet and would continue to grow fuller as she became an adult, it was a stark contrast to all of her littermates' tails, leaving her with this lesson to learn alone. Thankfully, her wonderful mother had taken the initiative to help her prepare for this lifelong trait she'd have to learn how to manage.

Briar had summoned Ember to her chambers for their first lesson on a calm, rainy day, and the girl was quick to respond. She trotted down the hall and into the bedroom she and her siblings had all shared with their parents for the first year of their lives. It still felt strange having her own room now, but it was also cool in a way, like she was beginning to get her own independence and was growing up. Briar had already laid out some brushes, conditioners and oils in front of the fireplace for their lesson, so Ember hurried over, gave her mother a kiss on the cheek, then settled in to begin their lesson, bright eyed and unfortunately quite a bit bushy tailed. Her long fur had clearly been dragging on the castle floor, and there were even a few errant leaves leftover from the gardens stuck in there too. They were going to have their work cut out for them today.

The lesson began with learning how to brush and smooth out her tail fur. That made sense, since everything else that followed would need her fur as malleable and manageable as possible. "Okay! Is there a special kind of brush I should use for this, or are any of them good?" Ember asked, looking down at the assortment of brushes her mother owned. Would she need to start her own collection of hairbrushes now too? After selecting the one her mother suggested, Ember began to go through the motions of brushing out her tail fur, removing the leaves and debris from her fur and getting it all smooth and straight. Every so often she would encounter a tangle in the new fur, but it was easily removed under her mother's directions to brush and apply oil as needed. By the end of it, her tail fur was a smooth, straight wave of midnight black fur from base to end. Setting the brush aside, Ember grinned proudly and turned back to her mother. "I think that's pretty good! What's the next step, Mom?"

WC: 539
Total: 854 / 1500

"Ember Carpathius"