**Backdated to when Unagi and company were in Ashen**

The young pup and her family had been camping out in Ashen for a bit and Unagi has really been enjoying it. There are a lot of wolves that look like her and the girl finds herself enjoying their company. Today, she has decided to practice her fighting skills by attempting sneak up on a rather fat, lazy frog. Her prey sits by the water’s edge, croaking its heart out while a small, rather round, black and white shape noisily crawls through the grass. Mismatched eyes are fixed on the creature as she wiggles through the ticklish blades, trying really hard not to giggle at the feeling.

Finally, she is within striking distance. Muscles tense as Unagi readies to leap up and onto her target. The seconds tick by and excitement builds until she suddenly bounds out of her hiding spot. Shouting a war cry (which her father had taught her is very important), she leaps toward the fat frog. Short legs propel her round body through the air as she continues to loudly shout, a mighty battle happening in her mind. Unfortunately, the girl is neither a trained fighter nor really good at guessing trajectories and she lands far short of the creature.

A frown wobbles her lips as she lays on her belly, legs splayed out while the frog looks at her, croaks its disdain and hops into the water. Sighing, Unagi gathers her legs under her and stands, wishing she knew more about… well everything.


"Hattori-Klein Unagi"

Venom found it unsurprising that her young grand pups were enjoying the lake far above the rest of the territories. What was there not to like about the water anyway? There were frogs to chase, water to play in, fish to watch. Much of the pack lingered here as well, so they were always well looked after. If Venom had to say so herself, Ashen’s new lands were the perfect place to raise some puppies.

Movement caught her eye, this time young Unagi, which made her smile knowing her name meant freshwater eel, was stalking something in the tall grasses by the lake. Venom couldn’t miss the sound of bullfrogs croaking so she could only assume that was the creature under scrutiny.

The Empress quietly watched her granddaughter, not expecting the child to catch the large frog, which she honestly preferred. The frogs were a good defense against the mass of bugs that lived in and around the pond. As she predicted, the girl leapt, and missed her target. Ever the dutiful grandmother, Venom refrained from showing any type of smile or amusement at her failure, instead she approached slowly and with her head tilted curiously.

"That old bullfrog really got the best of you, huh?” She asked as she lowered her haunches into the grass beside the girl.

"Venom & Maverick"

Unagi lays on the shore of the lake, pouting into the dirt at the stupid frog that got away. A voice pulls the rotund pup’s attention up to find that her grandmother is walking toward her. She easily springs up to her paws, moving to twine around Venom’s leg in an affectionate greeting that is not all that different from a cat’s. With a sad huff, she plants herself between the monochrome leaders’ paws, leaning back to take some pressure off her big belly. While her siblings all seemed to have the cute ‘puppy pudgy’, the black and white girl titters dangerously on the edge between ‘cute’ and ‘obese’. Yet, even with the added weight, the girl is determined to be a great fighter… like her father.

As she sits between Venom’s paws, she tilts her head back to look up at her grandmother while the girl’s lips pull down into a frown, her bottom jutting out and beginning to wobble. With a sigh, she admits, “I almost had it! I just…” A paw lifts to wave at the lake beyond them as if to show she lost to the frog because of the water. Head falls back down so she can turn her black and pink gaze out over the water. Suddenly, a brilliant idea strikes the girl right between her eyes and her head snaps back so fast, that it causes a wave of dizzy to rush through her head. Blinking away the spots that suddenly appear in her eyes, the pup excitedly says, “Grammie! You’re an amazing warrior! Daddy says so! Can you teach me to be on too?”

All the hopes of the child rest in the question since she holds the woman in high respect. Venom isn’t just a warrior but an Empress to boot. In Unagi’s mind that means she has to be pretty badass… right?


"Hattori-Klein Unagi"

The girl looked far too upset about missing an opportunity like the one she had been presented with. The way she pouted and sulked for the moment before Venom’s voice reached her reminded her far too much of when Kuroki was young. She retained many of her father’s traits. The round little girl swiftly found her paws and bound over to her grandmother, offering an unabashed affectionate greeting as she lamented her disappointment.

"Worry not, young one. There are much better small things to snack on than a slimy bullfrog.” Venom assured her, but Unagi swiftly forgot about her failure as her features lit up and she beamed up at the empress. "Amazing, huh?” She chuckled as the girl asked her for lessons.

"Well, the first lesson is to know that you will always be learning your whole life. Being a great warrior takes practice and determination. You’ll have to work on the first, but you have plenty of the second.” She said with a grin as she ruffled the fur on the girl’s head with a white gloved paw.

"Venom & Maverick"

Sometimes the black and white girl feels a little out of place in Ashen with the way all the wolves here carry themselves like the royalty they obviously are. Then there is her, the pup who prefers to spend her days tumbling in the mud and chasing down the bullfrogs that croak their songs for the world. Where her tall grandmother is the very figure of grace and dignity, the rather small, rather round puppy seems to be the exact opposite of all that. Still, the love that Unagi has for Venom is deep and profound and the girl is forever thankful that the older wolf does not chastise her for being… well her.

The pout transforms as she looks up to Venom, her grandmother assuring her that there are better things to eat than bullfrogs. A grin tugs the corners of her lips up while her tail happily thumps the ground and she goes on to mention how amazing a fighter her grandmother is. The woman chuckles which has the pup’s grin growing, happiness sparkling in her black and pink eyes. As Venom offers her next words, the pup nods along sagely as if she understands. Truthfully, learning isn’t her favorite thing to do in the world but, if it means learning from wolves like Venom and others like her, then Unagi is willing to sit still and listen.

Venom cracks a grin, ruffling the fur on top of her head with one white glove paw and Unagi cannot stop the sharp set of giggles that follow the action. Leaning back on her haunches, the girl attempts to capture the large paw with her own as she asks, “Are you still learning, Grammie? Who taught how to fight? Was it hard?” Questions flow quickly from the girl even as she moves the woman’s captured paw toward her mouth, only growing quiet when she suddenly begins to nom on the older woman’s toes with her puppy sharp teeth. Eyes sparkle with joy as she looks up at Venom and continues to nibble on the older woman’s toes.


"Hattori-Klein Unagi"

Trying to correct the behavior that came natural to such a young girl would have been entirely counter productive. She was a young huntress, a pup, who was only just realizing her potential and her place in the world. Venom much preferred to dissuade her actions in other ways that led to much more positive outcomes. Especially since she loved her so much, she couldn’t bring herself to be hard on the girl. The Empress adored her children, but her grandchildren were in another category altogether.

As Venom hoped Unagi’s attention was swiftly pulled away from the frog. However difficult pups could be in a classroom setting, the Empress had always been a much bigger fan of paws on learning. She ruffled the fur of her head as Unagi asked her first question, was her grandmother in fact still learning?

"Of course I’m still learning,” She assured her, hopefully giving the girl hope for her own future. "There is always room to improve and room to learn.” The girl went on, asking about who it had been that trained her and how hard the ordeal had been. "Sirius Fatalis was my first mentor, I think you might be meeting him soon.” She chuckled again. "Sometimes learning is hard, but if you keep an open mind and forgive yourself for mistakes you will do much better.”

"Venom & Maverick"