SOMETIMES IN MY TEARS I DROWN but i never let it get me down It was late, later than he usually returned home - but probably not late at all for his siblings. The boy sat quietly by the edge of the lake, his head dipped down to lap rather haphazardly at the water. He wasn't thirsty at all, but there was something familiar and routine about coming here to drink. The sun was kissing the horizon, threatening to engulf it totally in a matter of minutes. Soon enough night vision would kick in, and the boy would have to resort to drastic measures to find his way home. Granted, he hadn't gotten lost as much as normal lately, but navigating at night was anything but easy. He would tilt his head up to the heavens, letting loose a howl that mirrored his father's - though dwarfed in volume - hoping for some company on the soon-to-be moonlit night. {Table coded by Lu}

The night was the ideal time for the young Quintus Nero Adravendi-Mathias. Although the boy was not particularly shy, he also found himself hanging by himself most of the time -- which he was not at all opposed to. But he mostly enjoyed his ability to roam freely, to creep about and surprise unsuspecting packmates. As he grew older, he was finding himself a bit less behaved than the child of the King and Queen ought to be, but ... whatever. It brought entertainment to his life.

And so it was not surprising that he responded quickly to his brother's call, grinning mischievously as the sound filled the crisp night air. Large paws carried him forth, slipping between obstacles as he headed toward his introverted brother's voice. As he neared, he would quiet his pace, slipping into a more child-like position. Rump in the air, chest against the ground, as he crept forward with great intent. When he was near enough to see him, Quintus suddenly leapt forward, seeking to snag Cassius' tail between his jaws, letting out a muffled "Boo!" Between a mouthful of fur he would shout, a laugh falling from his lips. A harmless prank, but one he knew would likely frighten his shy brother.

SOMETIMES IN MY TEARS I DROWN but i never let it get me down He didn't really know who to expect - if anyone. It was likely that most were in their dens, comfortable, warm, sleeping. His mother would be wondering where he was, and it would probably be best to be getting back home, but something kept the boy here. He didn't want to go home just yet, not to mention he honestly wasn't that great at finding his way home. His body would tense only half a second before his brother's jaws clamped shut on his tail. The smaller Adravendi-Mathias boy would yowl and yelp, making a chorus of godawful sounds before whirling around as far as he could and growling resentfully at his kin. "QUIN!" he would chirp in a high-pitched note of surprise. Leave it to Quintus to scare the living daylights out of him. His body curled toward the right in a U shape, the child would bat at Quintus's with his right front paw, aiming claws to catch into the folds of his brother's scrunched muzzle. If he didn't let go he'd get a nose full of claws as an incentive. {Table coded by Lu}

Quintus could not help but laugh, a rather innocent sort of cackle that left his parted jowls with glee. It was all innocent -- just as innocence as when his sister would play-wrestle, albeit he knew Cassius was much more easily frightened. But in all truthfulness, he would never in his wildest dreams hurt any of his siblings. He was more of a pacifist than anything else, though found it greatly amusing to startle and surprise others.

But he did not hold on to his brother's tail for long, for a second later he felt his brother's claws on his snout. "Geeze!" He growled, letting go and moving to stand beside him. His light sea-green gaze shifted then, glancing down to the lake ... realizing that he probably shouldn't tried to scare him so close to the lake. What if his brother had drowned? The water was getting pretty cold... He wrinkled his nose. Oops. But nearly a moment later Cassius lifted a paw to smack him on the nose. "Sorry bro," he said with a snort, though leaned to settle down on his belly beside him. "Didn't mean to scarce you half to death."

He felt his claws snag his brother's fur and immediately retracted. Half of him hadn't even expected him to reach his brother, much less make contact with the exact are he'd been aiming for. Perhaps he wasn't half bad at fighting after all. Ha, that was a laughable thought. Quintus buckled down beside him, resting comfortably on his belly as if he hadn't just been slapped by his younger nearly-dwarf brother. Of course, he was as calm and collected as ever. Cassius would curl his front paws beneath him and lay down beside his rusty brother, calming now that he knew he wasn't in immediate danger. "S-sure you d-didn't," he muttered under his breath just loud enough for Quintus to hear if he were truly listening. "Everyb-body else alseep?" he would question with genuine interest. It wasn't like it was that late, but darkness marked night time, and night time meant sleeping for the children of Seracia. Two-tone gaze upon his bi-colored face shifted toward his larger brother, realizing this was the first time in a while they'd been alone together.

"speech"

Even though he could be a bit of an ass at times, Quintus was truly a harmless boy -- especially regarding his family. Slight moments of irritation were to be expected among siblings, especially brothers. But his annoyance at his brother's claws on his face disappeared almost as quickly as it bubbled up in his chest, and he settled happily alongside his smallest sibling.

'S-sure you d-didn't,' Cassius mumbled softly, and he would chuckle lightly. His brother was timid and shy, and had trouble speaking at times -- Quintus had only teased him about his stuttering once before realizing it was something that Cassius felt insecure about. Because, come on, he didn't really want to upset Cassius. Just tease him occasionally.

"Yeah, they're all sleeping," he said, his eyes briefly drifting from the lake to the direction of their family den, which had been expanded as they were growing larger. "Seems like mom and dad are getting stressed out about whatever were talking about at the meeting.." He wished he understood it all better, but his initial disinterest in the 'adult talk' had left him in the dark.