The tiny pup was excited to get out and see grandmummy’s territory. She had been told that there were even other pups here! Older than her, but still! Plus, they were allowed to wander slightly farther since she guessed there were more wolves around? Delphi didn’t quite understand why that mattered, but she would take hold of the opportunity anyway. Hopping through the long grasses and fluffy reeds, she wandered with a smile on her lips. It was over cast today with a spring storm threatening to rumble. A slight wind had picked up and ruffled her coat. Very different than the valley she knew. This place was cool though! The lake was in the shape of a paw! And there were a ton of ducks and plants! Cool, right? Interested in exploring more of the lake, a purple flowered plant caught her attention. Splashing through the mud to get to the shoreline, Delphi reached up to pull on the long stalk. Pulling on it, the girl brings it closer to her nose to sniff it. Oh, that smelled nice! She then wondered what it tasted like. Ripping off a few petals, Delphi stuffs them in her mouth. Explore new land (wolf paw lake) & gather an herb (alfalfa) - 1/3

Having her grandchildren visit and exploring the Klein ancestral land was a blessing that she hadn’t realized that she needed. Seeing their innocent little faces fill with joy and wonder was different than watching her own children. Being a grandmother should have been expected but it was a different experience. And from Kuroki first no less. She couldn’t deny how proud she was of her son, and while she couldn’t say he had matured he had taken on the responsibility of fatherhood with unexpected grace.

Venom had made herself change her schedule so she could spend more time with the little ones while they were here. She was out that day, her relaxed pace through the tall grasses and reeds. Her attention caught by the young girl exploring. Venom coming upon her as the girl’s mouth chomped down on the alfalfa flower. "How does it taste?” She asked with a curious tilt of her head.

"Venom"

She was completely distracted by the chomp of the flower that she hadn’t heard the approach of her grandmother. Startling with a mouth full of petals, she turns to look up at her grandma with a flower filled smile. “Kinda sweet!” Delphi swallows before turning back to the stem she had pulled on. Picking another head of alfalfa, she holds it up to Venom. “You wanna try? It’s okay if you don’t,” her tail wags a few times as she waits a half second for an answer. “My sister, Aji, hates trying plants so I usually do!” Delphi’s tone is excited as she picks another alfalfa bud for her to chomp on. As she chews, she looks around at the lake. “This is a cool lake!” The pup comments as she finishes her snack. “Did ya know it’s in the shape of a paw!?” Of course Venom would know, but it’s not like Delphi knows that information. Her tail wags again as she picks up a paw and splashes it in the shallows. “I tasted it earlier. It’s pretty good water! I saw some ducks too!” She comments as she turns back to Venom and moves to stand close to her grandma’s ankles. “Is there any other cool places here?” She asks with her big doe-like eyes as she smiles big and wiggles like a worm with excitement.

Venom couldn’t help her girlish giggle as Delphi turned towards her with a petal filled grin and answered the question given. The Empress assumed that Oki and her mother had already warned her of the dangers of eating random plants without knowing what they were. Or she hoped they had. As sweet as the alfalfa was, if she decided to eat something poisonous the end could be incredibly swift. The over protective grandmother pushed the thought aside as the sweet child picked another of the little flowers and offered the bloom up to her for her own taste.

The Empress was not the biggest fan of greens and plants but for her sweet grandpuppy she couldn’t bring herself to refuse. "Oh, of course.” She insisted as the girl gave her an out if she desired, mentioning how her brother hated playing taste test. Venom leaned forward to nibble at the slightly sweet planty morsel. "Mmm…” She muttered as the girl’s attention was swiftly changed. Like most puppies, focusing on anything for very long was difficult.

"It is pretty cool isn’t it? Not many lakes are shaped like it is.” The girl went on to mentioned what she had seen and wondered if there were other places that were similarly interesting. "I might be biased but I think the whole territory is pretty cool.” Venom wasn’t sure she liked the way the word ‘cool’ fell from her lips but she entertained the girl. "The ravine has deep dark forests and intricate caves. You've already seen the lake, but what’s really interesting is the redwater rocks. There are impossible looking formations, secret caves, and hidden springs.”

"Venom"

One of Delphi’s favorite pastimes as of late had been exploring. While she enjoyed identifying new plants and taste testing them (she had been lucky so far), seeing new areas happened to be more entertaining. Not only did she get to see a variety of different environments, but also happened to meet a variety of new wolves along the way as well. And new animals, too! Like these ducks and those frogs that hopped and swam in the paw-shaped lake. Everything was super fascinating to her!  As she continued to munch on her alfalfa snack and gather a few more sprigs of it, she turned to stare wide-eyed at her grandmother. “Red water Rocks? Da mentioned those! He said that we definitely could not go there alone. Somethin’ about falling off cliffs,” the pup waves a paw as if falling to her death wasn’t a big deal or anything. “It sounds like you’ve been to a bunch of cool places though! How many places have you been to?” Delphi stares at Venom with the utmost fascination and focus. Her da had not told her that her grandma was THIS cool!

The sweet young girl was obviously interested and excited about exploring, one of the reasons that Venom knew she could not keep the little ones here with her forever. Their parents were migrants and explorers, and she didn’t expect any less from her grandpups. Hopefully though they would not forget her and would return for more visits as they grew older. Before they left she would do her best to make sure they knew that they would always be welcome in Ashen.

Delphi looked up at her with wide curious eyes as she mentioned the most dangerous of Ashen’s territories. The rocks were quite treacherous but the sights were worth the risk. Unless you were a sweet young pup like the girl before her. "I’ll take you if you want.” Venom offered with a wink before Dalphie went on to ask about all of the places that she had been before. "Many places, all of Ashen’s allies different territories and I have seen all of the islands in both Boreas and Auster.” She told her with a wink.

"Venom"

It did not take a lot to amaze the small pup. Her mouth fell agape as her grandmother offered to take her to the very much dangerous territory by the name of Redwater Rocks. As her gasp died on the blustery wind that wavered around the lake, Delphi began to practically bounce up and down. Trying to keep her excitement under control as she rocked on the balls of her paws, she nodded eagerly. “Oh yes, I would LOVE that!” Delphi squealed as she gasped once more. “ALL of the islands? How many are there? Are there a lot? I know Boreas and Auster are big, but like how big?” She was eager to know everything there was.

Venom would never tire of the innocent wonder and awe that puppies always seemed to exude. After all of her years that quality had long since worn away, and one thing Venom wished for her children, and even more so her grandchildren, would hold on to that quality for as long as possible. She knew that the events in life wouldn’t allow such a thing, but she hoped Kuroki would protect them for as long as possible.

Delphi tried her best to keep herself under control, but the excitement was a little too much. Venom grinned at the sweet child as she eagerly accepted her offer to go and see the redwater rocks together. "Then lets go,” She offered, gesturing with a white gloved paw. She answered the girl’s questions as they walked. "There are nine if you don’t count all of the islands that make up the archipelago that Ashen used to reside within.

"Venom"