Kaira found herself in Cryer's Ravine. This was her first time here! She had followed a shallow path down to get within it. Her eyes stared wildly at the scene before her, it was so BEAUTIFUL! She was almost overwhelmed by it, the wooded land was so pretty. It was like a sanctuary almost, and Kaira just needed to explore every part of it!! She eagerly ran over to the tries, sniffing around them and trying to squeeze her head under them. She wouldn't stop until she found one with a deep enough crevice that she could make a hideout! Then maybe on another day, she could force her Momma Sparrow or her siblings to help her make it! Although, if she had her siblings help her with it they'd know about it. And she wanted this to be secret, at least for a little while. Her head lowered as she continued to sniff around the tree's bases. "Talk"

He awfully liked this whole being let out of the den thing. There were so many things to see and do, it astounded him. Atoll lurked through the shadows of the densely forested ravine floor, creeping along as if he was hunting something but he wasn't quite sure what. Really, he was just copying what he saw the other adults doing as they went about their daily lives. This hidden land was very cool, plenty of places to hide and lurk. He made a mental note to find his own secret hiding place when he could. Skulking around the dirt and moss, his eyes lit up at the sight of something to really hunt! Kaira! Atoll breathed in deeply the earthy smell of the moss at the bottom of the ravine along with his sister's scent and crept up behind her, keeping quiet until he could launch himself at her for a surprise attack. "RAAAHHHH!" He yelled, hoping he'd give her a good fright.

The yelp that escaped Kaira as her brother tackled it quickly turned into laughter, even as she felt her heart pounding in her chest. She would glare at him playfully before launching herself back at him to try and tackle him to the ground. Before letting out an incredibly puppy-sounding growl, and aiming a nip at his ear. She would then back off and look around at the ravine around them, still in utter awe of it all. "Isn't this so cool! It's so pretty here!! I'm so excited to be out and about." She practically shouted as she turned around to run over to another tree and sniff around the bottom, once again too small for anything fun underneath. She grumbled to herself before turning to Atoll, she GUESSED she could share this with him. If he helped her that was. "You wanna have a fort?" She would say tilting her head at her brother. "I'll LET you help me make one if you pinkie promise not to tell anyone else! Unless agreed by BOTH of us!" The idea of having a secret hiding spot was incredibly exciting to the young girl. "Talk"

Success! She SCREAMED! Atoll wriggled playfully atop her, trying to pin her down in every which direction but losing all sense of focus. By the time he was beginning to tire, Kaira launched herself back at him and sent them both careening towards the ground. He made a very unceremonious squeak when she nipped his ear, wrinkling his nose and letting out a pathetic cry. "Hey," he whined, shaking his head back and forth to dislodge her from his ear, "that huuuurts!" Luckily she backed off, and he brushed himself off and stood up behind her. Atoll nodded as she admired their surroundings, turning his bicolored eyes back to the dense foliage. It was much quieter down here than he would have thought, but he could still here animals rustling in the undergrowth.

"It is pretty cool," he admitted, "but I bet there's cooler places. Probably." He strutted around the forest floor beside her, watching her put her nose to the ground and investigate. She could go ahead and get dirty and he'd sit by and wait. "Hummmm... a fort, huh?" He tried to act aloof, as if he hadn't been thinking the very same thing. "I guess we could make a fort, but I'm going to find decorations while you dig the tunnel once we find a spot - then it's a deal," Atoll offered, his sharp little eyes gleaming. Getting dirty wasn't exactly his prerogative.

"speech"

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She stuck her chest out pridefully as she got ahold of her brother, sticking her tongue out playfully. Before watching him nodding along aggressively as he spoke. When he agreed, with terms of course. "THATS OKAY!! I don't mind getting messy!!!" she squealed delightfully, before turning her back on her brother and bolting off through the foliage. Now, they needed to find a tree that would have enough room under it for BOTH of them. She snuck around each one, sniffing around them as she tried to find a good tree. Building a fort would be much like building a den, although usually, wolves found ones that were already dug out. Kaira was more than happy to start from scratch. She came to a halt as she found an incredibly large tree in a small clearing. She thought it was perfect! But she stood in front letting out a small bark to get Atoll's attention if he hadn't been following behind her. "Maybe this one?" She tilted her head, "I think it would even be able to fit us under it when we get older too!!" She said aloud whether or not her brother was listening. "Talk"

Atoll's tag wagged furiously as she agreed to do the heavy lifting. Ahh, that was more like it! There was nothing like getting what you thought was the better end of a bargain. He followed along after Kaira as she went sniffling across the bottom of the ravine, noting how steep and the drop off was to get down to the paths they now crossed. Atoll had carefully shimmed down, but he could imagine someone not paying attention could have a pretty bad fall to the bottom. The boy leered up at the ledge that looked down into the ravine, trying to memorize the drop off to avoid a similar fate.

He pulled up beside Kaira when she pointed out the tree, standing back a little ways and inspecting it from ever angle. "Hmmm... yeah, that looks like a good one! Okay, you get to work, muscle," he said, tail flagging high as he turned towards the greenery all around them. "And I'll make sure it looks perfect on the inside once you're done." Now this was a plan he could get behind.

"speech"

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Kaira knew she would be doing most of the work, but she didn't mind! Her brother would probably be better at decorating it than she would have been anyway. She gets to digging out the space under the tree, making a passageway in the back of it, hidden from other's view. It would be big enough for a wolf her Momma Sparrow's size to get into if they knew where to look. She worked hard to dig out the space beneath the tree, making sure to leave enough dirt on the sides to support the tree. However, if she added some branches as supports she could make it even bigger.. She headed out the entrance shaking off the dirt collecting in her coat, grabbing a few stray branches as she ran back into the fort she was building. Digging out holes for each branch, shoving them deep within the earth, and then letting just enough branch stick out of the ground to brace against the roof. She did this 5 more times, repeating the same process, dig, place, shake, cover. To make sure it would stay sturdy enough. Kaira would then carve out the walls just a little more, making an area that would work as shelves. Maybe eventually she could get Momma Sparrow to bring her clay! Or she could do it herself too, she wasn't sure yet. But after she was finished with the shelves. She nosed out all the dirt that had pilled by the entrance and tried to make it seem as unsuspicious as possible. She then stood in front of the tree and let out a few more soft barks, calling for Atoll to come back. "Talk"

While Kaira did the grunt work, Atoll whistled to himself and made his way deeper into the ravine. He had a few ideas of what might spruce up the place, but he wasn't quite sure if it would work. There were all kinds of thick vegetation and vines, so as he went he trimmed off a few thicker vines here and there until he had a good stockpile of something that might be useful. A good hideout had to be secret, and a good secret was hidden... With a happy little chirp, Atoll spied some especially large leaves. They were sturdy and very, very big. He set around chewing them off at the base of the plant until he had about four huge leaves set aside, and he piled the tangle of vines on the largest leaf.

That was about when Kaira yipped and summoned him back, so he dutifully began to drag his pile back to the original clearing. Once he arrived, he set it aside and trotted eagerly up to her and then past her into the area she'd dug out. It was more spacious than he'd thought on the inside, which was a pleasant surprise. Atoll peered around and pretended to check the branches she'd installed for sturdiness, but he didn't really quite know what he was doing. Definitely more an "impressions" guy. After he had a thorough look around, he scrambled out. "Nice job, Kai. I got this all together - I think if we can weave them in with the vines and attach them to the top of the opening... somehow - " He gestured with a paw to the top of the entrance she'd carved out, "It would make a nice secret door." He headed back to his pile and selected a few large leaves, punching holes in strategic places to weave the pliable vines through them. "You can help! But I gotta be the one to hang it, it needs an artist's eye," Atoll said dramatically.

"speech"

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Kaira grinned as he spoke of making a secret door. Now, he was right up her alley. This would be the coolest fort ever!! "I'm happy to help!!" She watched as he punched holes through a few of them before doing the same, making sure to mark the same places he had. She was much more gentle with this handy work than she had been with the digging. Digging could be fixed and patched up, not so much a leaf. She continued to put holes through every single one and then once she finished her bundle, she began to push the vine through each hole. Being careful not to push too hard, ensuring it will still be on there very well. After she believed she was done, she smiled up at her brother. "I think I did it? Might not be as clean as yours but I think it should still get the job done!" she barked out, moving to hand him her bundle. "Talk"

Atoll grinned as Kaira assisted him in his work. Yes, this fort would be the very coolest fort ever. They worked side-by-side, as quiet and dutiful as two pups could be. It seemed that they could absolutely behave when they had a goal to towards together. He pictured the door in his head as he went - a sturdy stick woven through the tops of the vines once they linked the leaves together, something that you could walk through and would close up again behind you once you entered the fort. In his head it looked more "secret" than it likely would in reality, but he had a child's excitement about it and wouldn't stop until he saw his idea realized.

"Ohh, yes! That's very good!" He exclaimed, taking the bundle from her and laying it next to his own. "Okay, now I need to find the perfect stick..." Atoll said, more to himself than Kaira, and trundled back to the periphery of the clearing to find one. After some searching, he located a sturdy and relatively straight stick that was long enough to connect to each side of the entrance Kaira had excavated. He brought the stick back to the leaves and carefully hung them upon it by winding it between the vines that linked the leaves together. When he held it aloft as he brought it towards the entrance of the fort, it draped like a curtain. "Okay, now we gotta clean the inside then we can hang it!" He announced, scampering back into the fort to pack down any loose dirt and carry out any small debris that had been left behind, like loose rocks or ugly exposed roots. Yep, this place was going to the very COOLEST FORT THERE EVER WAS.

"speech"

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Kaira watched as her brother searched around for a stick, sitting her butt down as she admired their handiwork. Waiting for him to call for her again, ready to assist in any way he wanted her to. She watched Atoll as he managed to set everything up, and the grin that spread across her face proved she was just as excited and enthralled as he was. And then he was telling her to clean and so she was right up beside him. Pressing dirt down, moving larger rocks that she thought her slightly smaller brother may struggle with, and tearing out anything he pointed out to be unpleasant or unsightly even if she didn't really see it as a bother. And then after they were done, she sat in the circle they had carved out with an overjoyed smile before turning to her brother. "What next!!" She questioned, decorating was his forte after all. He got to decide what they did with the now pristine (or at least as pristine as a dirt den could be) fort! She knew that they would need some sort of cushions or beds, and maybe some sort of table for Kaira's future journals she was gonna bother her mom about getting for her! Kaira Imperialis-Klein

They worked together side-by-side to clean out the inside of the fort until it was as shining and clean as dirt could be. Atoll grinned, even though he was smudged and dirty - ugh! He could clean up later, though, once they were really all done. He admired the space they'd cleaned, the floor packed down to an even level and the walls looking more like walls than freshly turned over soil. It did still smell like dirt in there, though. He'd have to figure out how to fix that.

"Next we hang the door!" He announced, scooting out of the fort and towards the entrance. Atoll stood on his hind legs and used the sharp end of a broken stick to bore a hole in the tree bark. It was useless, breaking off immediately as he started. He wrinkled his nose in frustration and stood back to inspect the space more clearly. There were two notches on either side of the entrance that his curtain/door might rest in, but they were a bit uneven. He hemmed and hawed over it for a minute before finally giving up, picking up the large branch that held the curtain of leaves and resting one end of it in the lower notch on the right hand side. "Could you do that other side, Kai?" Atoll gestured towards the left hand side, where there was a tight space inside of a knot in the tree that the curtain "rod" could be inserted into. He couldn't quite reach it on his own.

"I'm gonna find some stuff for the inside, it smells like dirt in there," he said, which should be obvious, but he still felt worth mentioning. Atoll crept along the base of the ravine, looking for some fresh flowers to stow inside.

"speech"

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