He was already growing to be a curious yet stable child, keeping his eyes peeled on his surroundings and raising mischief and so it goes. As a child, it was almost his duty to keep his parents on his toes. The young child’s eyes opened wide, looking around with a certain curiosity like he did every day as he rose from his stead onto his paws, his tail wagging vigorously behind him. His eyes swerved as he set his mind on one little area that morning: the exit to the den. He quickly found himself bounding out into the bright light caused by the rising sun.
He winced slightly at the sudden change in frequency of the light, his eyes narrowing slightly as he found himself turning to face away from the sun. He had a wide grin on his face, looking around for something to do as he took in the sights around him, analyzing the sounds of the birds chirping in the autumn as they headed south for the winter and the scents of others mixing and mingling together. It might have been a sensory overload, but he couldn’t actually tell. All he knew was that he liked it, and he was glad to be outside. The mostly grey, bronzed, and ivory male wondered if anyone else was out in the early morning as the sun barely touched the horizon to rise.
Starling was always awake early in the morning, working hard to achieve his tasks and learn all he can. Today was no exception, except today he didn't wander away from the packlands. Today he was gathering homegrown plants, particularly Horsetail. It was essential to wound mending, and it grew right on the door step of a mercenary pack. Fitting. He trotted along the rocks, a tender smile on his face when he paused. Blue eyes were slightly wider as he spotted one of his youngest siblings. Wasn't it...yesterday that Starling was helping his mom give birth to the little guy? Now he was out of the den? Odd, Starling remembered sticking around the den far longer, but it had also been winter and he hadn't been curious. It wasn't untill spring did the curiousity of the world bloom inside of him, and mostly about plants, however.
With a grin he'd trott towards his younger brother. "Tordo." He'd say in his soft voice, stepping close to the child. Starling had visited his mother a lot with the children, but he wouldn't be sad if Tordo didn't recognize or remember him. Children's memories were fickle. "D-did mom s-say you could l-leave the den?" He asked, a playful smirk on his lips as he lowered himself to face his brother more head on. Tordo was one of the mischevious pups, he knew that. Just like his big brother Shrike.
There were so many noises that Tordo’s head bobbled around trying to pinpoint on in particular, his maw partially opened in amazement… until he heard a voice. He recognized the name, Tordo, because that was what everyone called him. It was just like when they called his siblings: Quail and Sandpiper. His ears perked up, his tail stiffening as he froze, thinking that maybe if he didn’t move, whoever the stranger was would not be able to see her. Then the man spoke again, and Tordo’s expression softened, his tail moving into a soft wag with a certain childish expression on his features.
Tor shook his head, identifying terms like ‘our mom’ which allowed the boy to calm himself down and note that this man was in fact a brother. “Nuh, I sneaked out!” The boy declared in his high pitched puppy voice, a certain measure of satisfaction with himself as he spoke. Curiosity as to who this stranger was bubbled inside him, though he withheld the ever so important question from the stranger. He seemed familiar, and that might have been the only thing keeping him from running back to his mom.
