Walk | "Talk" | think

All of their little fluff balls had grown all too fast. She wished they could stay so small and cute and sweet and innocent forever, but they were quickly getting far too big and energetic to keep contained to the den for much longer. She had deferred to Resin’s opinion for when they should first be introduced to the world, but once her lover had said they were ready Tamsyn wouldn’t disagree. It wasn’t like they were going to go out into the world unsupervised or unprotected. She knew without a doubt that everyone in their pack would be looking out for them and Resin had done a good job creating a bit of a barrier for them to play in as well.

Pushing past her own nervousness, she sat at the entrance to the den with an excited smile on her face. ”Okay, little ones! Gather around!” she called, waiting till all of them were lined up in front of her. It was early in the morning simply because they all knew what day it was and keeping them asleep with this kind of excitement had been impossible. She knew Resin was just right outside, waiting to catch any wayward pups if they tried to dart off. ”Now, remember the rules - stay within the rocks unless you have someone older with you and be very, very careful around the water if you get close to the edge. If you have any questions your mom and I will be by the den…. Okay, are you ready?!”

Despite the fact that watching them get big so fast hurt her heart, she was still just as excited as they were about seeing the outside world with them. She couldn’t wait to see how they reacted to the world. She pulled back the heavy fur that hung over the doorway, opening it up for them to run out into the early fall sunlight. ”Have fun, darlings!”

The day was finally here! After what felt like an eternity trapped inside the quickly cramping den with his brothers and sisters, they were finally getting to see the outside world! Artorias shifted his weight anxiously back and forth on his paws, practically bounding in place. The den had gotten so boring, and he was ready to take on whatever was past that door. Amber eyes burned with a vivacious fire that yearned for adventure, a wide, toothy smile on the young pup's face. "Mama, c'mooooooon!" he whined when Tamsyn continued to stall, reminding them of the rules set in place. Sure, sure, we know the rules! Just let us gooooooo! Artorias complained internally. He turned his glance back to his younger siblings, looking between all of the fuzzy nugget wolves. He felt confident going out into the wide open world with his family at his side. Nothing could stand in their way, not so long as he was looking after them!

Finally, Tamsyn pulled the fur back, flooding the den with brilliant rays of sunlight. Wincing his eyes against the light, Artorias gave an excited bark and bound forward, little feet carrying him in leaps as he approached the threshold and all but hurled himself out into the world. This was it! He was going to explore and play and sniff things and bite things and... Fresh air washed over him like cool water, and the brightness dulled away to reveal a massive expanse in all directions. Artorias skidded to a halt just outside the door, slack-jawed and wide-eyed as he gazed over everything around them. Everything was so... so big, so vast...! Trees were everywhere! The sounds of the nearby waterfalls rumbled in a tranquil white noise in the background while birds flying overhead sang their sweet melodies. The sunlight warmed his fur, and the autumn breeze cooled him down at the same time. His nose twitched, sniffing the air and nearly overwhelming his senses as he did. Everything had a unique scent, and there were thousands of different things to smell!

A sudden pang of nervousness hit the pup as he took in just how much there was, but he held his ground. He was the big brother; he had to set the example to his siblings. Turning back to make sure they had followed him out okay, Artorias smiled and ran out to observe the rocks that had been set up around the den, marking their absolute boundaries. There wasn't too much within the rocks that was terribly interesting, but beyond... that was a different story. Artorias wanted to explore that! The everything beyond that made up Boreas and beyond! Taking another deep swallow of sweet, clean air, Artorias turned and pranced back to Tamsyn. "Mama, I wanna go beyond the rocks. You're someone older, do you count?" he asked, giving his best wide puppy dog eyes to try and persuade his sentimental mother.

"Speech" — Thoughts

Rudyard sat down when Tam started talking, and he stayed in a sit until the word ‘rules’ came out, how was he supposed to focus on the boring talk when the den exit was right there.  His eyes had fidgeted between mom and then squatting low he tried to creep to the fur without being noticed.  He could just slide out while mom talked, right? He just imagined the talk going on and on and things they already knew. It didn’t take as long as Rudy had imagined, by the time he was trying to push his nose under the fur there was mom going to open it.  She got his most innocent, tail wagging grin along with a happy yip and bounce, charging right out with Arty.  When Art stopped Rudy bounded right past him, tail flagging high.   Rudyard stopped when he found where a small stream of water lazily flowed along, separated from the main streams of water that would flow down as the main part of the falls.  Rudy watched a small leaf that was floating along, turning slowly in circles by wind and water.  The grey and white pup tapped the water with a paw, eyes following the motion of the leaf before letting out a challenging pup yip, “Gotcha!” He hopped into the water finding it deep enough that it covered a lot of his legs, but never touched his belly.  It only took two strides before he snapped up the leaf like a pro.   His ears picked up Art asking to leave the rocks with mom, leaf in mouth and ears pricked up high he waited for her answer.   "Rudyard"

Today was the day that they were letting the brood out of the den and into the outside world. Perhaps Tamsyn was a little nervous, but Resin was not. She'd thoroughly explained the repercussions for their actions if they broke the rules set in place. She was definitely the disciplinarian of the pair and they knew it despite their young age. They would learn young that rules were expected to be followed. Of that, she was sure. As Tam led them out of the den, Resin lay to the side of the pathway that led to the den entrance, her big body curled so that she could see the pups enter the world. Despite her stern ways, she did care for them. If she didn't, she wouldn't be stern, right? Artorias was the first to eject himself into the world. The view from their den was a spectacular one and she could see the awe on his features. A low chuckle left the woman and she sent a smile to her lover. This was the beginning of the next step in their adventure. Mobile troublemakers. Rudyard was out of the gate second and instantly made a beeline for the water. Resin's golden eye watched him as he dove in to catch a leaf. Low, growling tones crossed the distance from where the woman lay. "Rudyard. What did we say about the water?" She reiterated for him. "Stay away from it unless an adult is right beside you." Thankfully she knew that section of river was shallow, especially with the warmth of summer just having passed. That didn't excuse him from his mistake, however. "Speech"

"Bowen" The russet and white girl would have been lying if she'd said she wasn't nervous. Today was a really big day. She'd caught glimpses of the outside world as her mothers moved through the doorway and knew that it was much, much larger than she was. As far as puppies went, Bowen was pretty small. All of her siblings were larger. Every creature that she'd met so far was larger. It was a bit intimidating, but she wouldn't let it stop her. Bowen was determined. As their mother opened the door and let them out into the world, Art went first. He had been born first, so he thought of himself as the oldest, but if they were all born on the same day, how could he be older? The russet youngling went to take a tentative step out of the door when Rudyard rushed past, almost knocking her over. The girl gave an indignant growl, vibrant green eyes watching him go. How rude! As promised, the world was very large. The sights were incredible and the smells, mmmm. Bowen closed her eyes and simply inhaled the fresh, sweet air. Once her lungs were full, she exhaled slowly, a breathy sound of joy pulling forth. Now that she'd taking that calming breath, the girl looked about. Birds sang, the river babbled, her brother got yelled at. While the rest of her siblings went and explored, Bowen chose to go and curl in the hollow between her mom's forelegs. She pressed her rump against Resin's chest and simply chose to observe until she became comfortable with her new surroundings.

It wasn’t like Daphne was slower than her siblings, and she certainly wasn’t shy, but already she was aware of her sizable paws and her ability to accidentally cause hurt to the others in her litter without ever meaning to. Any little yelp in the small den had cut her to her core, and so while the others charged forward she sat, mismatched eyes blinking slowly, adjusting to the idea of being out there, past the bright screen that marked the edge of their world to this point. With a final nudge from her mother, she finally breathed in a last deep breath of familiar air from inside the den, and stepped out into the sun, her tail waving apprehensively at her back, not the last, but not jostling to make an exit either.

She froze with her back legs still in the shade of the the entrance and looked up, and up, and up, following the towering trunks of the trees skyward, almost tipping clean over and rolling back into the den. She caught herself at the last moment, an ear turning towards her big mother with a delighted grin. Resin might have been scolding Rudy but that hardly mattered to the girl who imitated the sound at a much higher pitch, baring teeth at her brother in warning, he had been told...

As interesting as the outside was, it wasn’t nearly as interesting as the larger woman was. Daphne closed the distance at a clumsy gambol, hoping to scramble onto Resin’s back to better take aim at an ear with needle like teeth. She could be the queen of mummy mountain, if nobody tried to stop her.

"speech".

have a little faith in me

Waiting to be let out into the world was as nerve wracking as it was exciting. She was so excited to see all of the plants and animals and nature that she had only seen in peeks through the den's entrance or heard about in stories from her mothers. There was so much out there to explore, but she desperately didn't want to break any of the rules that had been set for them and she was so worried that she might accidentally break one! The last thing she wanted was to have Mom mad at her for any reason. Plus it just sounded kind of dangerous out there... Why would there be so many rules if there wasn't dangers to avoid? But, her sibling's excitement was contagious and as they all started charging outside she followed suit.

She was the last to leave the den, right at Daphne's heels, and she lingered uncertainly near the entrance for a moment before she spotted a pile of leaves near the edge of the stones where a tree near by had begun to shed its leaves. She made a beeline for the leaves with a curious, happy grin and started carefully sifting through them to examine each one. She quickly realized that most of them were the same, but there was at least a few different colors to sort through. There was mostly brown and red ones, but there were a few green ones too! She happened to find one odd one out - an oak leave in the middle of a pile of maple leaves, and she gasped excitedly at her find. Picking it up gently between her teeth, she brought it back over to Resin with her tail wagging happily behind her.

"I fouf a weef!" she exclaimed, her words distorted and muffled by the leaf she was carrying. "If diff-ent fan t-e over weefs! Wha weef is t-is?"

Walk | "Talk" | think

Those little wild buddles of fuzz tumbled out into the wide open world and she watched them all go with a bitter sweet happiness in her heart. Her brave little blueberry of a boy ran out without hesitation with his brother shortly behind and then out went their sisters. She was excited to see how they reacted to the big world around them, but she also wished she could turn back time and keep them small and cute forever. She was pretty sure that no matter how big they got they would always be pups in her mind. Once everyone was out of the den, she slipped out behind them, her mint eyes scanning the area they had fenced off to see what they had all gotten into in the few moments they had been out of her sight.

Already she heard Resin's gruff voice scolding Rudyard for going for one of the little streams and she sighed with a shake of her head, a smile pulling at her lips. That boy was going to be the death of them. She walked away from the den's entrance to settle next to Resin, leaning over to give her lover a kiss on the cheek and a bright smile. The girls all seemed to gather around Resin with Bowen settling between the larger woman's chest, Daphne coming to climb all over her mom's back, and Gwynevere running up with the most adorable jumble of excited words she had ever heard. Tamsyn giggled at their daughters, her tail wagging happily behind her before lifting her gaze to double check on their sons.

Right at that moment Artorias trotted over to her with the request to go out beyond their set boundaries - pointing out that she was an older wolf that could go with him. A quick glance at Rudyard told her that the other, mischievous boy had heard the request and was just as interested in the idea. She hummed as she pondered the idea for a moment, giving Resin a look as if she was really thinking hard about the request even though she knew she couldn't say no to those big, amber eyes. "I guess," she replied, a grin pulling at her lips. She gave Resin another quick kiss before getting to her paws. Looking back to the girls all piled around Resin, she asked, "Do any of you girls want to go make a little trip with me and the boys?"

Amber eyes grew even wider with unconfined excitement when Tamsyn agreed to take them beyond the boundaries. Artorias gave short, happy yips as he bounced about in place. At first, he had been worried his mothers would shoot down the idea, especially since it was their first time outside the den and that was a pretty big ask. He glanced over to Rudy with a huge grin and a 'come on!' look on his face. He looked back over across the wide world surrounding them again with wonder and amazement, eager to get his paws out there and see it all! Turning back toward Tamsyn and—eww! His mothers were kissing again! Artorias crinkled his nose and turned away. Why did the adults like to kiss so much? Grown ups could be so gross sometimes! As he bounded around the edge of their designated play area, weaving in and out between the border now that he had permission to go outside the boundary while waiting for Mama and Rudy, his paws stepped on a small stick, snapping it with an audible crunch that made the black and blue boy freeze in place.

Paws quickly stumbling backwards until he had flopped back on his rump, Artorias stared down at the sticks, ears flicked backward to hide his embarrassment at getting spooked by a twig. Still, he eyed those sticks with curiosity and an innovative mind, pawing at a larger segment of the wood. He got back up, shaking his fluffy puppy fur, and picked up one of the pieces of stick in his jaws, carrying it around with him as he went back to patrolling the border of their play area. The outside world was exciting, but also unknown. With Mama with him and Rudy, he knew they'd be safe, but maybe he could help protect them by beating off any bad guys with his new stick weapon! As a puppy he knew he wouldn't be much of a threat—but an armed puppy...!

"Mama, look! I can protect you now!" Artorias called out to Tamsyn, showing of his new find with a few twists and shakes of his head to swing the stick like a bat, his little tail wagging rapidly behind him. "C'mon, let's go!" He bounced over to Resin where his sisters were, looking between the three of them one at a time. "Gwyn? Bo? Daphne? Don't you wanna go see the world?"

"Speech" — Thoughts

Rudyard’s interest shifted from mom and Arty at Resin’s gruff tone, head, and neck lowering with ears back guilty. “I’m sorry,” the words humbly offered, seeming to mean it at least for that moment.  It only lasted for a moment as there was far too much going on to worry about trifling things like being in trouble.  He had said he was sorry right.  Rudy stepped out of the water with one paw, halted wondering if since he was already in the water if he had to get out.  Clearly, this spot was safe?  One could imagine it was a desire to behave that had him hop out, really thought it was happiness on hearing mom say yes to going out of the boundaries. Good job Arty! Rudy spotted Arty jumping at a stick and then picking it up in his mouth, ears pricking up and a mouth-opening grin as a notion came to him.  Rudy took his first few steps slow, watching Arty and as the pup turned away from him where Rudy figured he’d be out of sight he moved in closer.  The young pup was getting his first bit of practice on moving quietly.  Clearly, it would need work, but he didn’t need to get too close for his plan and Art seemed to have his mind on things besides watching for a playful sibling. The moment Art looked to his sisters Rudy charged in, a mock growl issued as he lowered his head to go for a slam between his brother’s shoulder and chest, biting at fur without worrying what part of the fur.  Obviously, his voice would be muffled through the fur in the mouth as he called out, “goo jof Arfty!” It was hard to talk through fur. "Rudyard"

Such an eclectic batch of children they had. Adventurous, boundary pushing, cautious, playful and sweet. She had already made her assessments of them and was curious to see whether or not they would turn out as expected. Iolaire had turned out vastly different than she'd imagined. It would be interesting to see if these children would do the same. Though they were not of her blood, she would be raising them. Both she and Tamsyn would help to shape their personalities.

Despite having only one eye, Resin was very observant. Ever watchful, she saw Artorias commence exploring. Rudyard acknowledged her reprimand, but only listened to it after his brother suggested that Tamsyn take them out of their boundaries. Resin felt that he was the one that would push her buttons the most.

Bowen came and nestled herself in the crook of Resins arms. The big woman snuffled the to of the white and caramel head. She could tell that the girl wasn't scared. She was cautious. Watchful. It was smart. A moment later, big paws worked their way up her body and little teeth soon bit into one ear. Resin faked a sound of pain. "Oof, you got me." Giving her body a shake, she tossed Daphne off of her only to scoop the girl close with one big paw. Gently but loudly, she nibbled the girls belly, intent on tickling her.

As the dark shadow of Tamsyn emerged from the den, Gwyn came running up with a leaf in her mouth. The garbled speech was pretty adorable even by Resins standards and she chuckled aloud. "You've found an oak leaf." Most of the trees were maples, but there were some old oaks on the periphery of the territory. "It blew a long way to be here for you."

Then Tam was giving her a kiss, which Resin returned quickly before her lover was pulled away by their children. As the pups decided who would go and who would stay, the scarred woman reflected on her current situation. This was her family. Though they were not of her blood, this was her family. The old warrior was content for the first time in a long time. Woe be to any that would try to harm what was hers.

A soft little giggle broke free as mom breathed on the top of her head. She was glad to have this place of safety where she might observe everything around her first. The outside world was a sensory overload and Bo simple needed a minute to register it all. Again that sweet breeze blew towards her and the small pup closed her green eyes, turning her face upward to meet it.

A gasp was pulled from her as her mom growled. She knew it was a playful growl, but she'd been lost in thought. A moment later Daph was on her back and Bowen giggled anew, ears perking as she peered out at her sister. It seemed that all of the sisters would pay attention to mom today. Gwyn came running up with a huge orange leaf in her mouth. Want. Bowen wanted it. After her mother informed them what kind of leaf it was, Bowen draped her little body over one thick grey leg. She tilted her head a bit, making her viridian gaze large and sweet. "Can I have that?" It would look great next to the shiny rock she'd found.

Momma was going to take the boys out with her, but Bowen wanted to stay here. She gave her head a shake and scooted back against her mom's chest. She wanted to keep watching the world from here. Just for now, at least.

The girl shrieked in delight as the body beneath her shook, giggles breaking free as she slid down Resin’s side, quickly finding herself captured. Her giggles grew to more happy shrieks as the large woman nibbled at her belly, legs flailing as she struggled to gain enough breath to ask her mother to stop. As it was, all she could manage was breathless gasps between her peals of laughter, only earning a reprieve when Gwyn proudly showed off her leaf. Mismatched eyes were slow to blink now that she was somewhat free, still slightly overwhelmed by the bigness of it all. The boys were charging past the the edge of the clearing and Daphne’s dark ears suddenly turned forward. Were they planning on leaving her behind?

She wriggled herself free of Resin’s paws and closed the distance to Rudy and Art. Daphne definitely did not plan on being left at the den. If they were going out, she was coming too!