Mom had told them that they were in charge of taking care of the new... things. Sota had called them alpacas. There were about fifteen of them. Now Bowen like all creatures big and small, but these things were different. One of them, a big fawn colored female, was very rude. Bowen had gone into the big enclosed field to talk to the creatures and the female alpaca had not only chased her, but it had spit at her. There was a big glob of foul smelling green stuff on her cream and caramel pelt. Bowen had ducked outside of the fence in a hurry. She made her way to the small stream close to the castle and began washing the stink from her fur. What was mom thinking? How were they supposed to handle something like that? Besides, didn't they just eat grass? What were they even supposed to do with them? When she'd asked her mom, Resin had said that it was their job to get the alpacas used to wolves, to make sure that they were feeding, had enough water and were safe. Okay... they could make sure the alpacas were safe, but who was going to make sure that she was safe from them?! "Speech"

When he'd heard all of the commotion from Resin and Sota herding the foul-smelling alpacas towards the castle, the blue-furred boy had quickly hurried outside to see what was going on. He'd watched with trepidation while his mother and pack mates corralled and fenced in the ugly-looking beasts into a makeshift paddock, the stench of them hitting his highly sensitive nose even from where he was sitting. He had watched while the adults made sure none of the skittish bleating creatures could escape before leaving them to their own devices. Mom had explained that they were alpacas and being used as livestock, though for what purpose, Artorias had no idea. Well, there was only one way to find out, he supposed...

Artorias had been heading over to the paddock when he noticed the russet fur of his little sister prancing around the fence, obviously checking it out for herself. He was about to head over when one of the larger females began chasing Bowen around the enclosure, spitting at the wolf pup. Artorias rushed over, unable to make it in time before Bowen darted out from under the fence and out of his line of sight, skidding to a halt with as vicious a snarl as he could muster to the bitchy alpaca, muzzle scrunched back to bare sharp little teeth and fangs. The prey animal made a disgruntled sound, but otherwise backed off, still sizing up the small predator. Artorias snapped his jaws in reply; nobody tried to hurt his sister! The other alpacas moved away from the boy to the opposite end of the fence. A wolf was still a wolf to them, after all, no matter how small, and even though Resin had instructed the pups to get them used to their presence, he wasn't about to let them get away with terrorizing Bowen.

Satisfied with the alpacas current indifference towards them, Art turned to follow after Bowen's scent trail, able to follow easy with the stench of camelid spit clinging to her. He found her down by the stream that ran near the castle, cleaning herself up. He couldn't say he blamed her, those beasts smelled something foul... "I scared it back, if it makes you feel any better. Wasn't gonna let it get you like that," he called out to his sister as he approached the bank of the stream, plopping back on his haunches to wait for her while she cleaned herself. A roguish smirk spread across his face. "They're not very nice, huh? Kinda useless too. And smelly, definitely smelly." He was hoping something he was saying would distract Bowen and make her giggle, anything to take an edge off of the fright the rancorous alpaca had given her.

"Speech" | Thoughts | "Corbin"

She hadn't thought that anyone had seen the debacle with the alpaca, but Artorias surely had. The small wolf tucked her ears as her brother pulled up behind her while she was still washing. They were nearing nine months of age now and the girl was getting a little more vain. She didn't want to be stinky and dirty. Or at least she didn't want anyone to see her being stinky and dirty. Turning her head, she smiled at her big blue brother. "It'll be okay once they get used to us." Her speech was less childish than it had once been. She was turning into a little lady more and more every day. "Mom thinks we can somehow take their fur and do things with it. We can eat them too if we want, but she wants to use them for trade." Who would want alpacas, she didn't know. She'd been told that other packs kept creatures, so why shouldn't they? Having thoroughly washed, Bowen's side was now soaking wet. She grimaced. It was cold today and the damp fur made her feel that cold all the more. Taking a few steps away from Artorias, she gave her coat a shake, getting rid of as much excess water as possible. Her fur stood out in spikes, but whatever. It would dry and flatten eventually. Canting her head, she flashed an emerald eye at her brother. "What are you doing today? Come to inspect our new pets too?" Maybe with two of them together, it would be less likely for them to pick on Bowen. She had an idea though. "I took some dried apples from Luta's stores." No, she hadn't asked for them. She had wanted them, so she took them. "I was going to feed some to the alpacas to make them like me. Want to come?" "Speech"

From the way Bowen's ears folded back to her head, he knew she hadn't expected anyone to see her debacle with the alpacas, and Artorias almost instantly felt bad for bringing it up. He knew his sister was taking greater care in her appearances the older she got, as all the pups had begun to grow into their personalities and roles. Himself, he had gotten to the point where every other day seemed to require an adjustment to his leather armor to fit his growing and changing body. The puppy fat had begun to melt away to reveal defined youthful muscles from his dedicated months of training under Resin's guidance, and although he was just starting to age into the lanky phase of adolescence, it was becoming clear what the outcome of his growth would be.

Artorias rolled his eyes with a sarcastic laugh when Bowen mentioned how their mother wanted to use their fur for crafts or trade. Sure, that would be a great idea if they could get the animals still enough to shear. Besides, who would want fur that reeked like that? Maybe send it to wolves they didn't like as an insult gift or something. "If Mom wants to eat them, she can take the first bite. I'm not putting my nose any closer to them than I have to," he remarked, but deep down knew that for all his complaining he would still obey his mother's directions. She wanted them to care for the smelly beasts, and so he would. But he wouldn't be happy about it.

Taking a moment, he readjusted his shoulder coverings while she finished up her bath. He followed Bowen's movements when she returned to the bank and shook her fur off, raising a paw to shield himself from any errant spray that flung from his little sister. He did his best not to snicker at the way her fur spiked out in damp clumps, but couldn't resist the small smirk that clung to his lips. "Well, I was doing my normal training until Mom told me to check on the weird curly-haired things. But now that I saw what they're like, I dunno if I really want to anymore." He chuckled, meeting Bo's deep verdant eyes with the living fire of his amber ones. She asked if he wanted to try feeding some dried apples to the alpacas to earn their friendship, and while he knew nothing about animal husbandry, he doubted the effectiveness of her plan. But if Bo was going back to face the alpacas, he wasn't going to let her do it alone. "Sure! If nothing else, I'll give 'em a good whack if they try getting brave again," he said and patted the grip of his wooden sword with a paw to emphasize his point, a confident, crooked grin on his face.

Artorias waited until Bowen had collected herself and began the trip back to follow close by her side. Although they were safe in their home and it was just a stroll down to the paddock with his sister, Art was still a warrior and she was a young lady for him to escort. Besides, it almost felt like they were heading off into battle with what he knew was waiting up ahead. Bowen had to be protected from the long necked terrors at all costs. She and Gwyn were the most vulnerable out of the seven of them, and needed to be guarded as such. Artorias didn't mind, of course. This was what he lived for! "If they start getting feisty, you run and I'll make sure they don't chase after you again," he instructed her. He didn't mind if he got dirty; it was part and parcel with his training and lifestyle. But he would make sure the alpacas would not get another chance to scare Bo.

"Speech" | Thoughts | "Corbin"