now that they were allowed outside of Mama's den, Siobhan couldn't be happier. abandoning her brothers and sisters in favor of exploring, she also knew not to go too far. too far was way too far. too dangerous, even. she didn't want Mama and Papa to get worried if she was absent. "weeee!" the autumn's coldness lost on the child as she darted from the den, squealing with glee. soon it'd be 'snow' and 'snow' was a new thing she hadn't experienced yet. at least, that's what everyone was talking (worried) about. the snow. the winter. same thing, really. sliding the last few steps, the pup tumbled headfirst into the grass surrounding Papa and Mama's den. or rather, all their den. there was Paddy, Lachlan, Lili... Aryn of course. sometimes it felt too big for her to be inside. turning back to the mouth of the den, she saw the sleeping forms of her siblings and mother. this was her first time outside without any of them, and she was keen to explore Lirim without them trailing her. she loved them very much, but sometimes she had to do things by herself! but was it really by herself? turning at Papa's scent, she'd burst out in an excited yip. "Papa's here!" Siobhan announced, her little tail wagging behind her as he came into view.

Torin hated to leave his family so early in the morning but the pack wouldn't wait. So he tried to leave early enough to do a full patrol, while still making sure he wasn't half-assing it, with time to return to the den before the kids and Derecho woke up for the day. He desperately wanted to be there while they learned, while they were developing. He didn't want to miss a single thing. Not that he always managed to be there of course. He knew sooner than later he'd need to also start Lili's training, though he was unsure yet how to proceed with that without making his other children feel left out or like their sister was special compared to them... he was desperate to keep them from feeling like they weren't as good... he never wanted them to go through what he had. He pushed all these thoughts out of his mind however when he approached the den and a rustling told him something small was heading his way. A smile lit up the man's features when one of his girls pushed out into view. "Sio's here!" He responded, immediately stooping to nose at his daughter's tiny cheek. "How's my little bean this morning?" He asked, very much aware that she appeared to be alone. Seemed it wasn't just Lachlan and Lili he had to worry about. Talk Think

"yep! I'm here, here, here!" Siobhan yipped, bouncing around his body in a wide circle. grinning sweetly from ear to ear, she'd stop when she got to the front of her father. crouching down with her rear in the air, she'd wag her tail excitingly. he didn't seem to have anything for her or her siblings this time, but she was just happy to see him. Papa worked hard for the pack. he made sure they all had a cozy den with lots of food. "uhhh" she responded to his question, tilting her head up at him "all the others... they sleeping! I'm bored." it was as if a lightbulb had gone off suddenly. her pink-purple eyes widened as she sat up straighter. "oooh, can you play with me?" Aryn and Lili would be so jealous she got to play with Papa alone! without waiting for Torin to accept or deny, she'd bounce once. "yes! play! please?" she may end up bored enough to wander far away from the den, after all. Siobhan was a good girl. she only went a few steps away from the watchful eyes of her Mama. close enough to run back if someone bad came up to her. close enough to sound the alarm if something happened. she wasn't going to be told off in Torin's Big Scary Voice.

Torin chuckled, a low rumbling sound as he watched his daughter bounce around him. It had taken him more time than Derecho to tell his twins apart, but there could be no denying which was which now, though the girls look identical they certainly didn't act identically. Siobhan considered his question and the man laughed again, he couldn't blame her for being bored and maybe he should have scolded her for leaving the den alone but the girl's enthusiasm softened him. His daughter immediately started clamoring for his attention and Torin smiled wider. "Alright, but let's go find a good place to play first." Truth was he was worried the girl's excited outbursts might wake the rest of his family and while he'd love playtime with all his kids he also wanted to let them sleep as much as their growing bodies needed. Using his forepaw he gently nudged Siobhan back in the direction of the den. He'd walk slowly past it, grinning down at his daughter and making an exaggerated shushing as they passed where their family was napping. It was more to leave a clear scent signal for Derecho that their daughter was with him for when she awoke. Then passing the den he veered closer to the valley, wanting to keep his small girl away from the water still. He'd gently try to herd her towards an open part of the territory, spinning around to smile down at her, he lowered himself, stomach fur brushing the ground as he crouched. "What do you want to play?" He asked, he could think of any number of things they could do but he was curious to see what she would come up with herself. Talk Think

"ooh, okay!" quiet time then. Siobhan raised a paw to nudge at her mouth, signalling she was closing it until she was farther away. bouncing after Papa as he lead her farther than she'd ever been, the girl's eyes were wide as she tried to take in everything at once. a breathless 'wow' escaped her lips as she craned her neck skyward only to shoot it down quickly as her father crouched before her. she mimicked his position, albeit a bit wobbly in her new pup body. "Ummm... leap!" she burst out randomly, eyes wide and clearly thinking of a good game. "I wanna see if I can leap over you, Papa! then you can leap over me!" easily, she thought without saying it. he was so much bigger than she was. but that was obvious to everyone. in Siobhan's mind, she was trying to practice hunting. whatever the terrain gave her, she'd leap over it and proceed to chase the prey regardless! "then again, and again and again!" she'd beam brightly to her father. "we can do it three times!" so not forever but enough times until she got bored "then you can pick a game, okay?" cause her Papa was smart - smartest in the whole world! he'd pick a fun game.

Torin suppressed a chuckle as he watched his daughter take his warning to be quite to heart. But as soon as they were away from the den the girl was her usual exuberant self. He chuckled as she lowered to his level and he'd go for a quick kiss on her tiny head, nudging her cheeks with his nose as he resisted the urge to simply scoop her up and smother her in affection. He listened attentively to Sio's game suggestion, nodding. "Alright, but I don't think I've played that one before so you need to go first so I can learn the rules." He said, even though she'd already suggested as much. Torin had an idea what his daughter was suggesting but wanted to be sure and he'd see quickly enough by watching her. Talk Think

he wanted her to go first? she could. she totally could. she'd make sure Papa knew the rules really good. "okay, Papa! watch me!" Siobhan stuck her tongue out of her mouth with an 'hmm' expression on her face. she walked around her Papa's side trying to judge the distance that she'd have to jump before running to the back of him. "leap! like a frog!" she burst out, running and flinging her small body into the air. she was much smaller than her father, so she only succeeded in landing square on his butt. she madly scrambled, trying to get a hold but slid off him because she didn't want to dig her claws into his rear. Siobhan didn't want to hurt her Papa. landing on her butt against the earth, she pressed her lips together firmly. the girl looked crestfallen for a moment before running back to the front. "well, you'll do better than me" she told her father brightly, leaning down against the earth so he could (walk) leap over her. "c'mon, try!" oblivious to the fact that Torin could easily do this without straining himself.

Torin watched as his daughter circled him, seeming to size him up and he chuckled again. He briefly wondered if he'd ever looked so serious about a game when he'd been her age, surely he'd looked serious normally but he couldn't recall if he'd ever taken play quite so seriously. He pressed himself as close to the ground as he could, willing himself to be shorter than he was. Not that'd it help much. Siobhan leaped at him, and he felt her small form hit his rump, scramble and then her weight dropped off him. Torin was instantly lifting his torso to peer back at his daughter and make sure she was alright. Disappointed maybe but totally fine as he could tell. Sio got back up and seemed to already be over her failed first try. She appeared in front of him too and pushed herself into the ground. Torin nodded, rising to his paws. He shook the dirt from his coat for a moment then moved a little away from his daughter to give himself room for a running start, or well a mock running start. He loped towards his daughter, the same easy lope he used when his children played tag or chased him. Enough so it would likely seem he was putting in effort but wasn't a real run, so he'd be playing at their level. Then he stopped almost right in front of his daughter, bunching his muscles in an exaggerated shape of the lead up to a jump, Torin easily placed his front paws past his daughter, but as he pulled himself forward he gently bumped his hind paws into the girl. "Oh!" He feigned surprise and then started as controlled a fall as he could, landing on his leftside, away from Sio so he wasn't on top of her. "When did you get so big?" He asked, extracting his limbs and rolling onto his stomach to face his daughter again. Talk Think

Siobhan couldn't contain her giggling when her father made ready to jump. this only escalated as he bumped against her little body and made his obvious (but not to her small mind) feint. once he was fully over her and on the other side, she sprang to all fours and raced to him. "yay! you did it, Papa!" the girl cheered for him before he said she was 'getting big'. but she didn't seem to think 'big' was 'tall'. she felt herself gasp, checking her side to see if she had gotten fat like he said. no! she couldn't be fat! how would she get a nice boy like her Mama had if she was fat? her innocent vanity displayed openly. "I'm not fat, Papa!" she protested with horror, finding she had not gotten wider. nudging her father, she fake growled. "Imma get you for that!" wiggling herself to the ground, she leaped right at his front. her paws out, she wanted to hook them into the scruff of his neck and try to pin him to the ground. their game is forgotten, she'd want to play fight now.

"No that's- oh-" Torin started as his daughter protested, realizing she'd mistaken his intentions but already his daughter was leaping onto him. Her paws tiny little pressure points as she successfully managed to land on his neck. He squirmed under her small grasp, craning his neck as he pretended to thrash his head to try and reach her. Torin angled his shoulders slightly, tipping his body to his right as he tried to gently slide her off his back, it wouldn't do to submit without putting up a bit of a fight, but he wasn't about to buck her off like he might do a real threat, instead putting up a good show of struggling to throw her from his back. He didn't want to roll onto her either so he kept himself solidly in place. Talk Think

"got yooooooou!" Siobhan whooped as she collided with his body. oblivious to his pretending, she thought she had done well enough. Papa was strong so she must be strong too to get him! landing on his back, Torin would try to buck her off. the girl hooked her claws into his thick fur, squeeing with amusement and seriousness at the same time. moments like these were precious, and she would look fondly back on them as she grew up. no longer would she have to play with her Papa when she was grown; at least not like this. the girl finally - thankfully - did slide from his back onto the ground. she hit it with a dull 'thud' and an 'oof' left her body. but she had only landed on her rear and was unharmed. she looked a bit dazed for a split second before she jumped to her paws. she would like to say one day she'd surpass Papa and rule a pack too. but the thought of leaving her family - cause it was Lili who one day would rule over Lirim - was a sad thought. she just didn't have a deep ambition. "Papa" she said, trying to be serious for once. her round eyes looked up at her father "I don't wanna grow up." because growing up was scary and she wanted to play like this forever.

Hearing his daughter hit the ground Torin quickly glanced in her direction, checking to make sure he hadn't overestimated his own abilities, but she seemed fine and he quickly breathed a sigh of relief. The girl trotted over to him, her eyes round and wide and for a moment Torin could see his own reflection in her gaze. How did he look to her he wondered? Big and imposing? Scary? Did she respect him? Was his adoration more one-sided than he might hope? Was he being a good father? So many worries and doubts flooded his mind, it was like being a new alpha all over again but now he knew he couldn't let those worries hold him back. His children would only be young for so long and if he didn't act, didn't at least try to do the best he could for them he wouldn't ever get another chance. Then the girl spoke and he felt that familiar uncertainty again, he regarded his daughter, his expression softened as he contemplated the best way to allay her fears while being honest. Slowly Torin lifted himself to his haunches, he'd fish out a foreleg to gently try and pull his daughter into his stomach. "Sometimes I also wish you'd never grow up." He admitted, though he felt guilty doing so. Wasn't it his job as a parent to do everything in his power to help his children grow into competent, kind adults? "But much as we might wish otherwise we can't stop it from happening." He leaned down to gently nuzzle at his daughter's tiny head. "But I promise that you'll always be my little bean, your mother and I will always love you. And scary as it can be we're also excited to get to do all the things grownups get to do with you and your siblings." He wanted to promise her he'd always be there, that she didn't have anything to fear, but try as he might he couldn't risk lying to her so instead he tried to make growing up seem more exciting. "I know your mom can't wait to take you all on hunts, and I'm excited to get to teach you how to defend yourselves." Talk Think

Siobhan frowned a tiny little frown, her violet eyes troubled and furrowed. she didn't understand half of what Torin was saying, but she could blame that on the age gap. Papa was wise, she always knew, but in this instance she disagreed with him. though he said he didn't want them to grow-up, he was also looking forward to it. she wasn't. she felt scared and alone despite having lots of siblings to grow up together with. sometimes she also wanted to have friends outside of her family. sometimes family didn't understand. "I wanna grow up as tall as you, Papa" if she had to grow up, she'd rather be tall and graceful like him. her head tilted again, the frown trying to return to a smile. "but pretty, like Mama" okay, so... maybe growing up wouldn't be so bad. she would find a mate too, someone who loved her for her like Papa loved Mama. then she'd have pups too. beautiful and wonderful pups that looked up to her. maybe one day she'd lead a pack too. maybe not Lirim, that was Lili's job. "cause you aren't pretty" she scowled "boys can't be pretty. they handsome? right?" she didn't wait for Torin's confirmation though. bouncing to all fours, she returned to her usual cheerfulness. looking expectingly at her father, she waited to see what he'd do next before a stifled yawn pressed her lips apart. she was tired. maybe it was time to head back to the den?

Torin wasn't sure what he meant really reached his daughter but decided he wasn't sure it was worth it to try and make himself more clear. She was allowed to believe what she wanted after all and he knew that she was still young, unable to understand things she would later know. Her sweet voice reached him and the man looked at his daughter again. He grinned as he heard his daughter's wish. "I'd like that too." He said, though he wasn't sure she ever would. She was so tiny to him still that the idea of her growing to his own height was hard to imagine, but he tried to picture himself and his children all grown up, standing shoulder to shoulder and it caused a smile to rise to his lips. "We- Hey!" He protested lightly as Siobhan proclaimed he wasn't pretty. While he got what it was that his daughter was getting at but something about it made him want to protest her assertion. "I think boys can be pretty if they want to be." He said, realizing he really believed that as he said it out loud, though he'd never really questioned those dichotomies before. He rose to his paws to follow after his daughter, not failing to notice her yawn. "Why don't we go back to see if Mama's awake?" He suggested gently, nudging her back towards the den. He knew he had to also be getting to his duties and if Derecho was awake she could probably help their daughter be lulled into a bit more sleep. Much as he'd rather spend the whole day with her. Talk Think