Torin was watching, so Siobhan felt better about this. leaving her siblings behind, she walked a few paces forward and looked around. there were so many adults here, so many new faces and new scents... she was a bit overwhelmed. she asked Papa to go socialize with the other people and he approved, on the condition he'd watch and intervene if something happened. her little paws carried her forward, her body moving and weaving around the other wolves. pink eyes blinked rapidly as she stared up at the strangers, a feeling of uncomfortable excitement in her belly. this was her first-ever time outside. Papa and Mama wanted them all here. they were watching their kids socialize and making bonds. it was a fun little outing, Papa said to them all. he carried each one across the water to the island with Mama in tow. "u-um!" Siobhan gasped, her fur still wet from the water. she tried to gauge reaction from a passing stranger but they ignored her and went on their way. she huffed, her coat sticking out like a porcupine at her irritation. "boo..." walking away from the crowd, she'd sit on the sidelines and watch. settling down amongst the foliage, she'd eye the adults. waiting for someone to approach her wasn't her style, but Siobhan felt uncharacteristically shy around people she didn't know.

I'll tough it out, I won't give in

Curiosity lured Álarr to a creek that Afi had found. They'd fished a bit at the lake and now the cat insisted he try at a little pool that branched off the creek. Well, it sounded good to him so he'd give it a shot. The cat stayed close, keeping an eye open to make sure he didn't slip to far into the water. Álarr waded out to his belly then sprang after a fish. In moments he was soaked through. Returning to shore he started shaking out his coat when he noticed a girl not far off in the foilage. He cocked his head at her.  "Hey there!  Whatcha doin'?" Maybe she'd found some neat bugs or something in the brush but bugs weren't as filling as fish.

it was some time before she heard the voice. a bit disappointed nobody wanted to talk to her, Siobhan sat in her little sulking position for a bit longer. she could see there were pups here, but everyone was with someone else. she wanted to meet others outside of her pack, to expand her horizons... make some friendships. she and her siblings were the only pups in Lirim, and it felt a bit lonely sometimes. so when the voice suddenly revealed itself, she'd perk her ears forward, looking around and up at the pup who approached her. "nuh-nothing!" she's squeak, flustered at being found sulking. rising to all fours, she noticed that the other pup's pelt was wet. Siobhan failed to notice him fishing but she'd seen only adults paw at the water. not jump in. when she fished with Mister Dragon, she also did this. never did she think to jump into the water! "who you?" the girl asked, eyeing his colorful markings. her little tail wagged back and forth. "I'm Siobhan!" she'd add with a beaming smile. "my Papa is alpha of Lirim." she said this in a proud manner, not one to openly brag about things. her purple gaze strayed to where she knew her father was watching before shooting back to the boy. "are you fishin'?"

I'll tough it out, I won't give in

Álarr giggled when the girl squeaked in surprise. She introduced herself as Siobhan and he quickly responded with his own name. "My name is Álarr! The grumpy cat is Afi." Hearing his name the cat sauntered over to the pair of pups and dipped his head in greeting before moving over to a patch of sun and promptly flopping down on his side for a cat nap. "You're dad's an alpha? That's cool! My older brother is alpha of Legion. What's Lirim like?"

He shrugged at her question. "I was but I think I'm ready for a break. The water's a bit cold." He wandered over to where he'd left his leather pack and grabbed it to drag it back over toward Siobhan. Quickly opening it he pulled out a small bundle wrapped in a scrap of deer hide. Opening it revealed some dried marshmallow. Afi had been teaching him how to make tisane's for a sore throat and with it being fall he thought it would be good to get more practice in.

she eyed the cat for a moment, wondering how these other pups could get companions. even Lili didn't have a companion yet, and her sister was the strongest she knew! was there some trick to taming them? or did they follow them out of loyalty? "nice to meet you both!" her thoughtful frown turned into a bright smile almost immediately. Alarr would ask what her pack was like, causing her head to tilt to the side with thought. "its okay. I have lots of siblings, but nobody else to play with." it was a bit sad. nobody else was having pups so she only got to play with her siblings. but they were nice and they were supportive; Paddy even came along with her to catch fireflies. as Alarr left to grab something, her attention focused on the water. the fish were still swimming on despite the many hunters who had cleaned them out. she wondered how many fish there were in the world. "oooh, what's that?" she asked the other pup as he opened his bundle. she'd never seen a mushroom before.

I'll tough it out, I won't give in

Álarr nodded. "I can understand that. I mostly play with my siblings and then I have a… uhh…" Honestly half the time he considered Sparrow to be a sibling but she was technically a cousin or something. "I think my cousin. She hangs out with us anyway." Álarr moved the dried marshmallow to one end of the hide. It was pretty much the whole plant with a few pieces of leaves and petals here and there. He glanced up at Siobhan's question and grinned. "This is marsh mallow. It's a plant that healers can use to help wolves with sore throats and colds. I'm learning to be a healer. What about you?" He reached out and started mashing the dried plant into a powder. The idea was to break it down into little pieces that could then be soaked in water to create a healthful drink.

Alarr seemed to have about the same kind of family she did. Siobhan gave a nod, instead focusing entirely on the plant as it was revealed. "marsh...mallow..." she'd pronounce, scrunching her face. she never did want to be a healer, too freaked out she'd be apprenticed to that grumpy guy Holland if she did express interest. the boy had more of a grasp on his interests though. "I just wanna help" she'd admit shyly, having no formal training because she was too young and no real interests. things changed when she grew up, and the girl wasn't one to think too much on it. what happened, happened. she didn't really have a lot of goals besides playing and having fun. "I like hunting though." she'd think back on Mister Dragon and catching fish at the festival. "whose your mentor then?" Siobhan asked Alarr. where they here at the festival?

I'll tough it out, I won't give in

Álarr continued working the dried plant into smaller and smaller pieces that he could store in a jar until he needed to mix it with hot water to get the best result. He thought about working in some cat mint as well but he didn't have any dried so instead he focused on the marsh mallow. He looked up at the girl. "Hunting is a great way to help. I love to eat! I'm just not the best at hunting so I'm glad there are wolves who are good hunters in our pack." Sweeping the marsh mallow back into the jar he carefully set the plug back on top of it and used his paw to push the stopper back in. There, a marsh mallow tisane ready to go! "I learn from whoever will teach me but mostly Afi teaches me." He gestured to the pallas cat laying in the sun. "That's Afi there. Brynhildr help me too, but I don't know where she went. I hope to learn from my aunt to. What about you? Do you have a mentor?"

Siobhan would listen until she was called away. the festival was drawing to a close and she had to get back to Papa and Mama. the last of the fireflies were dying out too, causing the world around them to go black. "naw, I'm too little" she'd say to Alarr with a wide carefree grin. she had entered the world a season ago, and her parents didn't seem to want her to make her puphood one of constant training. they wanted her and her siblings to join themselves. Lili had more responsibility cause she was something called a hair. whatever that was. when Papa called out to his children, she'd turn on the spot with wide eyes. "oop! I gotta go now, but it was nice meetin' you!" with that, she dashed off toward where the alpha waited. /EXIT