the sky was the silver-grey of an early morning, shot through with a line of tangerine. never one for early mornings, Araneae squints into the distance and gives an enormous yawn. grumbling to themself, they roll over and tuck their nose under their paw, eyes fluttering closed as they attempt to sink back into the blissful oblivion of sleep. unfortunately, it quickly becomes apparent that they wouldn’t be returning to the peaceful anonymity of slumber. after several disappointing minutes spent tossing and turning, they get to their feet with a disgruntled huff and clamber out of the treehouse, climbing to the ground and shaking the remnants of sleep from their pelt. “speech”

Sometimes, being the smallest was great. Other times, not so much. She had burrowed beneath her siblings for some extra warmth, now the weather was turning, but instead of staying in her nice cozy body nook, the bigger wolves had flopped and thrashed around all night, squishing and jostling her from her sleep multiple times during the night. Bleary eyed and on the verge of bursting into tears, the girl finally squeezed her way free of the pile of pups and escaped the home at the base of the treehouse.

She thought to spend some time in her mothers garden, but already she couldn't tell marigolds from mushrooms through her blurry eyes, they even watered when she yawned, which is why she totally couldn't see the bigger kid she stumbled right into. “Swary!” She was quick to squeak out an apology, blinking her eyes rapidly to try and clear some of the sleep that still clung to her lids.

“Speech”

Araneae grumbles a complaint as they’re jostled forward, temper short after an early morning wake up. scowling, they turn twin pairs of bright eyes (one blinking, the other not) on the smaller girl, lips parting to give her a what for - but something gives them pause. it’s only…the girl is so little! and fluffy! hell, she was smaller than Araneae, and that was damn impressive. it was a fucking first, that’s for sure (thanks Ex-Mum for the vocab!) for a moment, Araneae tries to dredge up that initial annoyance…and finds themselves incapable of doing so. “it’s ok,” they sigh, mildly irritated with themselves. honestly, a pair of doe eyes and they go completely soft! “just…watch where you’re going next time. and get your head out of the clouds!” hey, they had to save some face, right? “speech”

For a moment, Whisper thought the sleep in her eyes had her seeing double, but then she realised it was just a marking on the other girls face. She wasn't giant like some of Whisp's siblings, even if she did seem a lot older to Whisper, maybe, if she wished really hard, she could be big like this dark kid too... but then she though about Fooj, and wasns't too worried. She was tiny, but she didn't seem to let it bother her.

Being distractable in the way of small children, she was pulled back to the matter at hand when the other girl told her to get her head out of the clouds. She tipped her head so far to the right she almost fell over, looking up at the sky and then around her, perplexed. “Bus no clouds?” She looked around a little worried. “Maybe Da or Baaas can reach em?” She looked around but couldn't see the larger wolves in sight. Not to worry. “Wan' play?” Whisper asked, her backside lifting off the ground and tail waving hopefully. “I was gonna look for fwowas but it can wait, or could race!?” Anyone could see the tiny pup stood a snowballs chance, but it was clear she wouldn't let that deter her.

“Speech”

okay, so clearly this girl was a few deer short of a herd. although it was rather unkind, Araneae couldn’t help but scoff at their companion’s confusion, eyes rolling skyward as though beseeching some divine intervention. “i didn’t mean, like, actual clouds,” they grouse, “it’s just an expression.” but at Bas’ name they perk up, ears twitching as they straighten in surprise. “you know Bas?” squinting, they eye the girl with newfound respect, running an appraising eye over her fluffy pelt. after all, if Bas associated with her, she couldn’t be that bad…right? “i know Bas,” they continue, voice lowering in a conspiratorial whisper. there’s a note of pride in their voice, a hint of boasting. “he’s teaching me how to hunt.” their enthusiasm is only buoyed as the girl suggests a race, excitement thrumming through them at the very thought. after the bruising their ego took in the battle with Kyanite, they were eager for a chance to re-establish their badassery - even if this was low hanging fruit. “sure! we can race!” their gaze darts around the area, until it lands on a rock about eight tail-lengths away. “how about…to that rock and back?” “speech”

Whisper's eyes fell on the rock her new friend had pointed out and she gave a determined nod, dragging her paw through the dust to determine when they would be 'back'. Her heart was racing a little at the thought of racing someone that was not her siblings, her short legs always seemed to leave her a little behind, but that never stopped her giving it her all. She danced from toe to toe as she began a countdown to the race start, giggling all the while. “Three, two... one... GO!” She was so excited in her countdown that she missed a beat after declaring go and her paws scrambled to catch up in the race around the rock. It wasn't far away, but it sure felt it now she was in a race!

“Speech”

Whisper vs Araneae for Race
Round 1/?
Age: under 6 months
Size: Toy size
Build: Heavy
Skills: Beginner Healer & Beginner Intellectual

Araneae braces themself, legs parting to plant themselves firmly, back bowing as they shift all the tension into their feet. they shoot the girl a mischievous grin as she counts down, practically trembling with excited anticipation - and on her shout of 'GO'! they take off at a dash, legs flying to devour the space between themselves and the rock. it takes a few paces for them to notice a lack of fluffy white fur, and they steal a quick glance over their shoulder, frowning as they watch the girl struggle to keep up. did they take off at the same time? the girl did know how races worked...right? shaking their head, they banish all thoughts from their mind and put every ounce of concentration into winning this race. not that they really need to, they suppose; their opponent isn't exactly...challenging. (was that too mean to think?) but it's the principle of the thing, really. Whisper vs Araneae for Race Round 1/2 Age: under 1 year Size: Extra-small Build: Light Skills: Novice Hunter & Intermediate Fighter “speech”