Ash had given Thorn the map the two of them had made so that he could go, and show mom and dad.  Then dad could take it to the altar as a decoration for the feast.  Ash had thought the map was actually good enough as a decoration at the feast and that sure seemed a pretty big deal in Thorn's mind!  It was a big sheet, showing the castle, starlight plains, and the wildberry grove.  

Thorn didn’t want to crumple it so despite the paper being big the boy had put the paper over his back, a corner of it was over his head, and had cautiously bit the very edge as lightly as he could.  He had found a slow trot that would work to keep the paper in place with only occasionally stopping to shift his weight.  He had to be very conscious of his every stride, keeping his balance just right to make the paper not slide.  The boy's focus was so intent on keeping the paper on well that he had trotted too far down the hallway at one point and had to turn about.

Eventually, he made it up to the steps that would go back to their room.  Hmm, what if dad wasn’t in there anyway? Cautiously letting go of the paper the boy stood stock still as he let out his best howl to tell dad he was going to the room and he had something to show him!  Grabbing the map again he headed up the stairs, trotting ever so carefully down the hall hoping dad was there or wouldn’t take to long.  Thorn wanted to see what dad thought of his map!  Would mom be there?  Would she like it also?  Tail wagging the proud kid made his way back to the room that had been the only world he’d known until a few days ago.  Now he felt he had an idea of just how huge the world might be.  He needed to know more.

Ash had made trees for the berry grove, a line for the lake in the starlit plains along with stems of flowers and some grass blades and little black stars.  She had also made all the lines to show the borders between each location.  Thorn had added in circles flor the towers.  They were circle'sh at least and none were the same size.  He had made squares for where he imagined his family's room to be, the courtyard and the great hall.  The great hall included a smaller square with a lot of red squiggles to show flames.  Beyond the castle were a lot of blue lines to try and show the ocean.

"Thorn Carpathius"

The call of any of his children would always be answered immediately by their attentive and alert sire. Artorias heard the distinct voice of his eldest calling through the castle from where he was cleaning up his dojo and the eager father set aside the broom in his jaws to trot briskly down familiar castle halls up to the family's shared bedroom suite. Whatever his child had wanted his attention for, he sounded enthusiastic about it to say the least! He found Thorn at the end of the corridor, just outside their open bedroom door, practically smothered up in a large piece of parchment. A warm smile spread its way across Artorias' lips as he approached his blue-furred son, lowering his head to greet the boy with an affectionate nuzzle to his crown, being ever careful to not damage whatever it was Thorn was holding.

"How is my little blue fireball doing today? Staying out of trouble?" Artorias asked with a playful smirk to his son. Curious amber eyes lifted to look over the paper Thorn was carrying, not really able to make out what was on it with it being half rolled over a puppy's back. "What've you got there, Thorn? Something you made?"

"Artorias" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

Thorn was certainly excited by the map.  It was the first thing he had ever made, admittedly with help but it was still partially his work.  Thorn raised his own head, tilting it back for the nuzzle, the map slid a bit but considering he was about to take it off that hardly mattered now.

“Nope!” Thorn cheerily responded, assuring he hadn’t found any trouble. “Aunty Ash showed me how to make a map.  She said it might be a good decoration for the statue.”  Their map was cool enough to be useful on a statue, however that would work.  It marked it as more special.

Thorn shifted his shoulders a bit, leaning his body over until the map fell on the floor. Thorn used his paws to try and flatten parts, using his whole body on one end, laying down to smooth out all the edges that seemed determined to curve up.  Finally, when they seemed to concede defeat and limit the curve to the smallest of edges the boy stood back up.

“See? Its all of our land.  Aunty Ash did the plains and the grove.  She made all the pretty trees and the river and, these are stars here in the black.” Thorn was happy to share the credit and compliment his aunt’s work that seemed so amazing. “I made the inside of the castle castle though, and helped with the ocean waves.” Thorn pointed at the haphazardly drawn circles, “these are the castle tops,” then pointing to the squares, “that one’s our room, there’s the courtyard, and here’s the great hall.  I even drew in the fireplace.”

The boy looked up at his dad, hoping he liked it as much as Thorn did.  Aunty Ash had approved of it and complimented his work after all.  “Aunty Ash also said we could go out to the plains some time at night together to see the stars.  I can go out at night if I’m with her, right?” Bedtime was all well and good and Thorn could see stars from their window but apparently stars seen in the plains were better than the window.  It also just sounded neat to go out with his aunt to do something else together.

"Thorn Carpathius"

Artorias couldn't keep back the light laugh his cheery son brought out from him, the boy's puppyish antics too damn adorable to not be entertained by. When Thorn explained what he had with him, the proud sire raised a brow to his child. "Oh did she?" Another chuckle from the dire man. "Well, let's take a look!" As Thorn slid out from beneath the rolled up parchment and tried to use his entire chubby body to flatten it out, Art offered his son a paw by stepping down on the opposite end, and together their combined weights helped smooth out the delicate paper. He looked over the drawings on the parchment, truly impressed by the amount of work Thorn had put into making the map. The little details like the waves in the ocean and the stars over the plains really sold it.

Thorn explained that he wanted to offer the map to the statue that had appeared in the God's Garden, the Aegis nodding his head in acknowledgement. "I think that's a grand idea," he replied with a toothy smile. Fire-kissed eyes followed Thorn's paws as he pointed out all the details and what they had drawn, all while Artorias watched on with a proud, fatherly smile. "So I see!" he remarked with a nod while Thorn showed the grand hearth he'd drawn himself. "Foarte bună treabă, Thorn! You've put a lot of effort into making this, and I'm sure the statue will like it."

His son then made mention of Ash offering to take him out to the plains at night to see the stars. To this, Artorias raised a brow, a silent question of "Oh did she?". Thorn sought permission to go out and stargaze, turning big golden eyes up to him with a look that melted the alpha's heart. He made a show of mulling it over, hemming and hawing while he considered Thorn's request. "Hmmm, I don't know, Thorn... Can I trust you to behave for Aunt Ash?" he asked, though it was entirely rhetorical. He just wanted to see what his little troublemaker son would say to try to sway his favor. A slow smile crept over the new father's lips, and with a laugh, he lifted a large paw to ruffle his eldest son's fluffy forehead again. "Okay okay, you can go see the stars with Auntie Ash. But only if you promise to be on your best behavior, and you aren't to stay out too late." Thorn and Dusk reminded him the most of himself when he was a pup, always yearning to get out and explore the world, see all the sights, do all the things. It was a love and wanderlust he hoped they fostered forever.

"Artorias" | "Carpathian"