Ophie knew she was treading on thin ice, that if her mother caught wind of her current condition she'd be in big big trouble. It wasn't as though she wanted to be bad or that she got a kick out of getting on her mother's nerves she just...felt most comfortable when covered in muck and mud. It had started simply as a bit of fun, a means of passing time but somehow, somewhere down the line it had spiralled out of control and now she was unbathable: the stinkiest Fatalis around. Not really a title to be proud of, to be honest. She wasn't sure why and despite all of her budding insecurities she wasn't the sort to think too much about things that made her unsure, nervous. Out of sight, out of mind, right? Besides, despite the clumps of drying mud and strings of seaweed that draped over her form she didn't smell that bad. She had a bath.....three days ago, was it? Maybe longer, she wasn't keeping count.

Slinking along, Ophie kept low and quiet as she hurried through the plains and moved east, making her way towards Mort's tree house.  She hadn't asked if she could use it too but...surely he wouldn't say no, right? Out of all of her older siblings he was by far the most laid back, always ready and eager to play and smile as though he actually liked hanging out with her! With a wiggle of her mucky bum and a press of her kitty claws, Ophie prepared to climb.

The winged boy hadn't spent much time in his tree house of late. It had been a place of his childhood, and he had fond memories of climbing its barky exterior and lounging on the coats inside. He had depressed memories of it too, of hiding out inside on the days when his relationship with Azure had been at its worst. He was passing by the tree now, smirking at ths overhanging branches as they brushed across the border, and remembered the feeling of rebellion, of crossing without really crossing.

As he passed, he caught the scent of mud and sea with a bare hint of girl. He paused, and his grin grew. He knew that strange mix of wolf and muck scent. That was one of his little sisters. She gave their mother as much of a headache with dirty paws as he did. He looked up at the branches, and found the dirty girl freshly landed on the lowest rung. He wiggled his bum, and with a running start he leaped up to join her. Almost knocking her out of the tree with a flailing wing as he settled his balance.

Scrambling from one branch to the other, Ophie's attempt at climbing was going pretty dang well. That was at least until she felt the branch beneath her paws bow and bend, as though suddenly over encumbered by a great weight. She let out an alarmed eeep as she dug her claws in deep and stuck out her tail in a straight line, hoping to improve her already wobbly sense of balance. What was happening? Was the earth shaking? Or the sky falling? Panicked thoughts rushed through her mind and she scolded her former self for even thinking that this was a good idea, doubt and worries grabbed a hold and all she wanted was to go back home. Even if he meant she'd be made to take a bath, anything would be better than this

A grey blur whizzed at her from the corner of her eye and like a startled cat, Ophie leapt right into the air, back arched and fur standing on end.  Foolishly she should have reached up from the branch overhead, but instead she simply donked her head and for a second lost the ability to form any reasonable thoughts. Head empty, just Ophie things.

And then she was falling, falling and falling and Ophie squeezed her eyes shut as she braced for the impact. This was going to hurt.

Oops! The leaping bird-wolf didn’t just-about anything, he really was knocking his sister from the tree. Luckily for her, the fight training their father had beaten into him from adolescence kicked in. With a surprising pose for a wolf that barely bothered with rudimentary things such as ‘balance’ he managed to lean forward, and nip the back of her neck with his fangs. This meant he was suddenly top-heavy, and he flared his wings and tail behind him, flailing for balance for a moment.

When he found it, he reeled in his little sister, and plonked her on the branch beside him, sheltering her gently with a wing so she wouldn’t be likely to fall again any time soon. “Oph! I’m sorry, are you okay?”

And then she was scooped out of the air by the scruff of her neck and with a mighty haul her paws once again landed on the branch of the tree. She let out a long rush of air through her nose as her eyes fluttered open, only to snap wide at the sight of her brother. Whaaa? When did he get here? She'd been certain that the fall was a result of her own clumsiness but his apology suggested that she'd misread the situation, again. As always. The blankness of her expression vanished in the blink of an eye as a wide and beaming smile lit up her pretty, but muddy features. Oh so she was so very happy to see him! Any and all worries she had vanished as she twirled around to press her face into the fluff of his chest, her other older siblings tended to keep her at arms length but not Mortis. Never him.

Happy and safe beneath the comfort of his wing her head popped out to speak.

"I'm fine!" Even better now that he was here. "I'm climbing, gonna get to the top!" She puffed up her chest, as though that was a thing to be proud of, she hoped Mortis would think so at least. Seeing as he was up here too...well it only seemed natural to ask him to tag along, right? She bounced, the branch bobbing beneath their weight once again. "You'll come too, won't you?"

He grinned down at the younger wolf, the markings across her eye a coloured reflection of his own. He laughed as she buried her face in his coat. He didn’t even notice the mud, he had spent enough time in his life muddy, wet, or sandy. Though he had to admit, cleaning it out of his feathers had often been a daunting chore.

He wrapped one wing about her in a hug, pulling her tight to his chest as the rest of him concentrated on keeping balanced. His claws were extended, and dug deep into the branch below them. His tail and second wing flared for an added touch of balance.

It was good to see another of his siblings taking an interest in climbing. He would have to teach her the art of ambushing unsuspecting pack members from height. “Have you been in this tree before, have you seen the tree house?” he asked. It had been a while since he was here last, so he was yet to catch her scent in his old haunt.

Ophie shook head, smearing her muzzle against the fluff of Mortis' chest. She'd been eyeing it from afar for quite some time but hadn't yet worked up the nerve to climb it just yet. Sometimes she felt a little silly, if there was something she wanted to do why didn't she just go ahead and do it? That's what her siblings did. But Ophie sometimes-quite often actually- felt as though something was holding her back, like an invisible tether that yanked her back to earth every time she tried to soar. Mortis with his big and pretty wings didn't seem to have that problem though, she was really dang jealous, not that she held it against him. It just meant she had to do more and be better, right? Surely.

"Nope!"  She admitted, pulling away to paw at the bark that lined the tree trunk. Her claws left little scritch marks in their wake, like little needles compared to Mortis' scythe like nails. "I don't...know where to go from here. I can't reach."

And to prove her point she reared up on her hind legs and attempted to swat at the branch above, though she didn't hold that pose for long. she didn't wanna run the risk of losing her balance again. Falling was scary stuff. And then she paused, as though suddenly remembering something. She trusted Mortis but...it was a risk she couldn't let slide by.

"You won't tell mum I'm here, will you?"

The oversized pup grinned and placed his paw over the tiny scratch marks left behind by his little sister. His paw swallowed them whole, another reminder of the whopping size distance between them. It made him feel... protective, and puffed-up proud of his little sister. Over-protective was a familiar state for him when it came to this litter. He had been a part of raising them, baby sitting them any time his mum and dad needed a break. He had been a jungle gym for them their whole lives, and he would die for the tiny munchkins.

Mortis lowered his head, placing it under her rump. "Sit back and ill give you a lift up" he offered. Sometimes it was useful to be the tall wolf around. At her question, his eyes widened and he tried to lock gazes with her. "Never." He promised "Not if you don't want me to." She wasn't his kid, she was her sister, and her trust was just as precious as her safety. He would hide her from their parents if she asked. Even if it meant facing Sirius' scary wrath. She might not know it yet, but Mortis would always have her back.

Folding herself back onto her haunches, Ophie was more than happy to let Mortis scoop her up into the higher branches of the tree, where the little house was now easily within reach. She clambered aside, her grey tail thunking against the wood as her tongue lolled out the side of her mouth in a laid back, easy smile. Ophie was always and would always be at her happiest amongst friends and family. She trusted Mortis with all her heart, knowing full well that he'd always have her back if she asked it of him. In the grand scheme of things being a little muddy wasn't a big deal, but he'd be there when it counted, even as a little pup she knew that.

Stretching out on the planks of wood, Ophie left little grooves in her wake as she extended her front limbs as far as they would allow. She liked it up here, hidden away from the world but somehow present, like birds nestled in their little nests. And then her brows furrowed, at this age she was full of questions.

"Do you think my sisters and brother like me?" She asked, her voice quieter than intended. "We don't play much anymore."

He lifted the little stinky wolf up until she could reach the higher branch, and waited patiently while she scrambled off his nose. Once she was clear of the his landing zone, he hoped up, skipping a few steps to simply reach that higher branch and pull himself up. His height aided him, but his balance in the tree was also exquisite. Trees had been his playground growing up.

As he moved cautiously onto the tree house, she would pepper little questions at him. He flopped down nearby the small wolf, and stretched his wings out, so one hovered gently above her. His long limbs stretched outwards. These days, he took up most of the space in this tree house. “Of course they like you. You guys… all of you, are just at a point in your lives when your testing boundaries and learning things. Theres so much to learn, but you guys are siblings, they’ll come back to you.” He hoped he wasn’t a liar. All of his first litter it seemed had left him now. Indigo was all the way in Auster, and Asla spent most of her time there. Azure had been extra grumpy and scarce of late. Just little old Mort, here in the Armada, trucking along.