BEEN CHASIN' DREAMS Slowly, the child was beginning to grow. The trips further from home didn't take so much out of her. Today, the young wolf was searching for something fun to do. Close to home, there was a cave system. Darya had mentioned that Sathanus had taken her there one day. So, now it was time to investigate. Oversized paws carried the child into the dark cavern. It was different from the den, it didn't get narrower further back, but widened. It was really weird. The cave had teeth! Bounding closer to the shiny cone rising from the ground, the pale pup craned her neck to look up at the descending fang that hung from the ceiling. How weird was that? Yapping puppy barks erupted from her measly jaws, daring the big cave to try and eat her. She wasn't scared of a big dumb cave! No sir! "speech" BUT I NEVER SLEPT

With eyes and ears peeled for "danger" Jupiter marched through the cave. This place was brand spankin' new to him and he loved it so far. He was carrying a stick in his mouth and every once in awhile he banged it against the cave wall just to listen to the echo. It was his beatin' stick. If anything bad came after him he would beat it...with the stick. Stepping closer to the wall at his left, Jupiter held the stick out so that it dragged against the stone as he walked. The scratching, skidding sound it made ricocheted down the corridor and came back to him in the form of dozens of claws scrapping against the stone. It sounded like something big and bad was headed his way and he loved it. Jupiter was in the middle of a daydream about getting eaten by a clawed monster when a chorus of barks assaulted his ears. His eyes grew wide. It sounded like dozens of critters were just around the bend! Welp, he had to check it out. What kind of adventurer would he be if he didn't? And he did have his beatin' stick if things went south. He rounded to corner fully expecting something cool and scary...and was disappointed to see a pup. Well, poo. "Hey you! You scared me! Aw, I was hoping you were a monster."

BEEN CHASIN' DREAMS There was someone else here! The youth whirled about to face the offender, features fixed in a stern scowl. Oh, it was another kid! Yay! The scowl melted away. This was the weirdest pup. Like, the very weirdest. The young child was unaware that wolves came in blue, nor in swirly blue. Confusion quickly became an obvious blight upon her features. Oooh, he had a nice stick. Tail rising to wag excitedly behind her, the child took a few steps forward. He was smaller than her, and looked like Darya did. Round and stocky. "Hey you! You scared me! Aw, I was hoping you were a monster." he announced, looking cross with her. Thin banner fell still. It took a second to understand what he had said. Longer yet to make the words come out in a way that wasn't stupid. "Sorry." The pup replied after a moment, taking another step forward. She craned her head to look back up at the massive spires of stone overhead. "Cave have teeth, wanted make sure it not eat." A soft growl emanated from her chest. English was a hard language, and a lot of the time her pronunciations were impossible for da to understand. He always asked her to repeat herself. "Like your.." What was the word for it? The stick was in plain view, and she helplessly pointed at it. "тройник." Maybe he understood, unlike her older siblings. "speech" BUT I NEVER SLEPT

Jupiter simply stared back at the other kid gaped at him. He quirked a brow at her, unsure of the reason behind her confusion. This was his first experience with confusion inspired by his appearance; as far as he knew, he was normal and she, as plain white as she was, was the weird one. Not that he was going to judge. She could be white if she wanted. Didn't bother him any. Her words, on the other hands... Those he was going to judge. Jupiter cocked his head in confusion. He wasn't sure what exactly she meant. The way she talked kinda reminded him of that other girl...come to think of it, that girl was mostly white too. Maybe they were related. It was a fair assumption in his mind; how many mostly white wolves could there possibly be out there? "Um..." he stalled for time, his gaze following the girl's upwards as he tried to figure out what she was saying. She wanted to make sure it wasn't going to eat her? His gaze came down from the ceiling just in time to see her point at his stick. He shifted it around in his mouth so it was easier to speak. "Like...my stick?" Jupiter still wasn't quite sure what she was trying to say. What did not getting eaten by a cave have to do with his beatin' stick? "Jupiter" "Amadeus" "You"

BEEN CHASIN' DREAMS The boy didn't get it. He looked completely dumbstruck, following her gestures blankly to and fro. She frowned, beginning to feel a little frustrated. Stupid English! Stupid, nonsense language! She huffed for a second, and watched him move the stick around in his mouth. A good stick, that was. Not too thin, and not all splintery. Where could he have gotten that? "Like...my stick?" He questioned awkwardly. She nodded vigorously. Now the name of it wouldn't be forgotten, she filed it away in her brain carefully. Well, as carefully as a child her age could. "Da." She affirmed, taking another step closer. Her tail started to wag again, just a little. "Nice.. stick." She told him with a big wide grin. "Where find? Want stick." The more she said it, the better she would remember. Mama had taught her that. The babe really did want a stick of her own, something to chew on and toss around. The den was very boring, only ratty old sleeping pelts to play with. Eventually they got torn up by their teeth, and there was nothing to play with. "speech" BUT I NEVER SLEPT

The girl nodded her head emphatically. Whew, good! So he got something right. He grinned triumphantly. Sure, he'd only gotten half of what she said right, but still! Half right was better than all wrong. "Nice stick." Aw, shucks! Her compliment caused him to drop the end of his stick to the cave floor and work it at the ground, his gaze following its movements shyly and for no other reason than that it gave him an excuse not to look at the girl. He was new to this whole complimenting thing, but he liked it. The longer he thought about it the warmer his chest got. After a few seconds his gaze shot back up and he grinned at her. Wordlessly he stepped closer and held the stick out. It had taken him quite some time to find it. As far as sticks went it was perfect. It was the right size, right weight and it fit between his teeth as if it had been made for the gap. "I found it outside my den. You can have it. It's a good beatin' stick. It'll keep the monsters off ya." After a tick it occurred to him that he didn't know the girl's name and she didn't know his. "Oh! My name's Jupiter by the way." "Jupiter" "Amadeus" "You"

BEEN CHASIN' DREAMS He dropped the end of the stick, and it scraped against the floor as he moved it to and fro. It made a weird sound, not as bad as claws on stone, but not as nice as fur on stone. The pale child followed his attention, watching it work against the floor. Was he mad that she liked the stick too? He looked back at her suddenly, their gazes meeting. He had blue eyes, but not like Dom. They were lighter, like a mix of mama's and Dom's. Pretty. He was smiling real big, and she couldn't help but match it. He held out the end of the stick. Oooh! Play time! She grabbed it eagerly in her mouth, teeth clamping down as gently as she could manage. No need to break the nice stick. Where could she possibly find another to match its awesomeness? "I found it outside my den. You can have it. It's a good beatin' stick. It'll keep the monsters off ya." Excitement bubbled in her chest, and burst from her with a squeal. Dancing like a fool (or like a shiba inu, if you want the visual), she dropped into a play bow. A stick all her own! Wait, no, that wasn't right. A thought occurred to her, pure genius if she wanted to admit it. Oh so delicately, she let it rest on the ground near her feet. "Share stick. I play one time, bring to you home, and then you play one time, bring to my home." She announced when her mouth was free. It was perfect! No one lost! "Oh! My name's Jupiter by the way." He said. What a neat name. A beaming smile claimed her features, eyes crinkled with the force of it. "Am Divo, mama says means marvel in English." She replied, standing again. Her tongue twisted in her mouth for a moment, and she decided to try the name out for herself. "Jup.. ter. Jupiter. Good name, pretty name." She affirmed with a sage nod. "speech" BUT I NEVER SLEPT

His grin grew wider as the girl gave a joyous little dance upon receiving his stick. Hm, turns out giving something away felt as good as getting a compliment. Who knew? He filed that information away for later use. His ears pricked forward as she suggested they take turns having the stick. Well, that was a great idea! There was one teeny tiny problem though. He had no idea where she lived. Unless she lived in this cave, in which case he felt really bad for her. While the cave was cool to explore, it was kinda damp and creepy. He wouldn't want to sleep in it. Jupiter nodded his head vigorously. "Yeah, that's a good idea! Do you live here?" Oh, she thought his name was pretty! That made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside. He couldn't help but grin back. She had a cool name too. Shyly, he said, "Divo's a pretty name too." "Jupiter" "Amadeus" "You"

BEEN CHASIN' DREAMS Oh good, he liked the idea too! Another dance of celebration took over her, and she was fair wriggling with glee. "Yeah, that's a good idea! Do you live here?" He asked, and she shook her head with a smile. "No, silly. Live over there," The child pivoted, and threw one gangly forelimb outwards, towards the mouth of the cave. Home wasn't far from here. "mama says.. Dream Cool?" That didn't sound right. What was the name of it? Oh dang, she couldn't remember. "You?" She ought to know, so that she could bring him the stick back later. "Divo's a pretty name too." Jupiter said in a quiet voice. She grinned at him, tail wagging like mad. "Come, go see that way." She said, grabbing their shared stick in her mouth and starting off towards the other end of the cavern. After all, she had come to see what was here. It would be even more fun with her new friend Jupiter. They could whack any monsters that they came across with the stick, and keep adventuring! "speech" BUT I NEVER SLEPT

He tilted his head. Dream Cool? He'd never heard of it. Granted, he didn't know the name of the place he called home either, so there was that. "Um..." Jupiter wracked his brain in the hopes that the name of his home would surface. He knew he'd heard it before. But what was it? "Well, I live on the side of a mountain out there." He gestured in the direction she'd just pointed. Obediently he followed Divo as she marched further into the cave. After a beat spent walking behind her, Jupiter sped up to walk beside the girl. That way if anything jumped out at them they could fight it together. Giddily, he said, "I hope we find monsters to fight!" "Jupiter" "Amadeus" "You"

BEEN CHASIN' DREAMS Jupiter didn't know where Dream cool was, but that was okay. In all honesty, she wasn't sure where it was, save for in relation to here. The path was clear in her mind, but she wasn't sure how to describe it. She just.. walked, and her paws knew how to get home. Her nose knew the way, too. In case she got lost. He pointed towards the cave mouth too, and said he lived on a side of a mountain. They both did! A delighted yip erupted from her jaws. "Me too! Me too!" She cried giddily. They lived close to one another! As they walked, Jupiter kept pace. Not like Da did, where it was obvious he was slowing down. They both walked at the same speed, and it was awesome! "I hope we find monsters to fight!" He barked, and she fed off his excitement. She bobbed her head vigorously in agreement, humming affirmatively. It took a moment or two to work the stick around in her mouth, until it sat right for her to talk. This would be a really lame adventure if Jupiter was the only one talking. "Find monster, I distract. You fight!" She said, brows crinkled into a serious expression. A tiny growl rumbled through her, ready for a battle. "Find treasure?" She questioned, turning her head awkwardly to look at him. The pale child didn't want to whack him with the stick, as he wasn't a monster. However, she wanted to look at him when she was talking. Mama said it was polite. "speech" BUT I NEVER SLEPT

Oh, she lived on the mountain too? They were neighbors! That meant he didn't have to walk so far to play with her later. Perfect! Jupiter's brow furrowed as Divo stated her plan. He was all for hunting monsters down and fighting them, but he'd brought the stick for the sole purpose of beating a monster with it. If she had the stick it didn't make sense for him to be fighting the monster, now did it? "Whoever has the stick fights the monsters, silly. That's what the stick is for!" As it swung towards him, Jupiter ducked out of the way of the stick just in case. The still was for beating monsters not little boys. He wasn't about to take his chances with it. Getting whacked upside the head might make fighting harder. Treasure? He tilted his head to the side in thought. He'd never thought about looking for treasure. Most of his time was spent hunting down and fighting monsters. Maybe it would be nice to go looking for treasure for once. Or, even better, looking for treasure while monster hunting. Maybe that's what she meant! "" "Jupiter" "Amadeus" "You"

BEEN CHASIN' DREAMS Jupiter didn't like the plan. His face was all scrunched up, like when Da heard her talking about going far away for adventure. She frowned back at him, unable to make her face do different things while also listening good. "Whoever has the stick fights the monsters, silly. That's what the stick is for!" Well, that wasn't going to work. Divo was not for fighting, not for real! Pretend fights, and wrestling with Darya, those were okay. Fighting monsters was not good. Very not good. Bad, that was the right word. "Take.. stiick." Not saying it every other word made it hard to remember how to say it right. Stick. The word was going to be important, she needed to keep it fresh in her mind. "You fight, I look for shineys." It was settled. He would hold the stick, in case monsters appeared. When they left, she would take the stick home for the night to show her family. Dom would be so jealous! Then, she would bring it back to Jupiter. How hard could it be to find a boy with so many colours in a place like this? She dropped the stick delicately onto the ground by her feet, and immediately forgot about the loss. What was that? It was weird. A weird thing. Scampering over, she growled at the weird thing. It looked like a stick, but also not. It looked like a lot of sticks, actually. "What be?" She called out, head swinging around in search of her friend. She had seen this before. Where? ooc. the thingie is a smallish ribcage with no perceived owner "speech" BUT I NEVER SLEPT