Wolf RPG - Country roads, take me home.

Would love a @Portia thread, but all welcome to anyone allowed in the den. :)

Over a week had past since the arrival of Drageda's newest litter, and Dacio's short life had ticked by in a timeless blur. He'd been an easy-going, content child unless a sister clambered over him or he was dislodged from a teat, but mostly he simply slept. Tucked up close to his dam's chest, warm and cooing happily as hunger began to rouse him from his latest nap, the ashen youngster lifted his little head to part his jaws and accomodate the mighty yawn that drew his lips back to reveal his toothless maw.

This time, something strange occurred: light broke through his tiny eyelids, and the boy mewled his surprise. At once, Dacio scrunched his features and squeezed his eyes shut to avoid the burn of his irises, but it did not go away. Opening them once more, he peered through the haze and shuffled toward his main source of comfort in search of milk flow to ease his stress.

baby baby baby baby baby

ah! could it be?

the typical squeaks and sighs from the puppies were suddenly different as dacio let loose a noise that resembled shock. portia, shocked as well, looked down at her babies with pricked ears. baby green eyes looked up and around the den, and dacio soon began to wiggle towards him. a wide smile swept across portia's sharp features, and she leaned down to nuzzle her child closer to her side.

"aaah, good morning," she cooed to him, licking the top of his head lovingly, "what do you see, baby?" everything, surely, and of course he was not old enough to be able to vocalize what he saw, but portia knew to talk to her children.

Portia reacted, arching over her babes to investigate the source of her only son's complaining. The boy felt himself bumped closer to her side, a gesture that flooded his tiny body with what he knew to be relief, and he was swift to set about suckling greedily from the nearest source of his mother's milk.

He drank deep, the comfort of fullness and the security of his dam's closeness easing the initial fear that accompanied discovery of his newest sense, and Dacio's cries softened considerably. Cooing, the peppered pup lifted his head to peer up into the fuzzy features of his most beloved parent, awkwardly blinking his uncoordinated stormy blue eyes in attempt to better focus on her.

[Image: aKoGG3w.gif]

A voice spoke to him and although his ears could not yet make sense of her words, Portia's was a tone he'd been familiar with since the womb. He uttered a soft "mrrr," in response, and wiggled his tiny tail in acknowledgement.

even to his unceremonious blinking, portia cooed. "so handsome," she said softly, ears perking at the soft little noises he made, "and so well-spoken." not really, but to portia everything her children did was simply magical. her own tail tapped against the whelping den softly, her other two babies suckling quietly as dacio looked up at her with those precious puppy eyes. what a perfect life she lived. sirio had failed, perhaps, but dalia was such a beautiful slyph, and she had three perfect angels at her side now-- and she hadn't thought of her eldest son(not truly) in months. he was merely no longer part of her life.

"your mother loves you," she told her son, bending her head to extend her nose to her greyscale baby.

He could not make out the contours of her face, which remained a black and white blur to him. Was she supposed to look that way? Dacio mewled softly, confused, though intrigue brightened his features as his mother lowered her crown to his level.

She bumped her nose to his brow and the boy leaned into the gesture, though not intentionally. There had to be more to see, and Dacio moved his over-sized head to thrust his little blunt snout among the fur of his dam's jaw. Up close, he could better make out the pale tresses there, and he cooed softly to her in his delight.

he thrust himself towards her, nosing and mewling and doing all the precious puppy things that portia loved so much. she took this opportunity to give him a kiss on the top of his head, humming a sweet song softly to him as she began to groom at his fur gently.

"what do you see, baby?" she repeated at the end of her song, knowing still he would not answer, "do you see your mother? do you see your sisters?" had he looked at them yet? had he been too mesmerized by her? portia did not know, that's why she asked.

She kissed his brow, to which he babbled contently. His tiny white-tipped tail wiggled excitedly at his chubby sterling rump, sweeping across the den floor as he maintained focus on Portia's affections. The caution that cam with his new eyes had dissipated in an instant, and Dacio allowed his mother to groom his downy fur without complaint.

No sense came from the piebald healer's mumbled words, which her son heard only as muffled tone. He simply gawked up at her, wide-eyed but visibly happy, and mustered an enthusiastic "arooo! in response.

i am SO fuckin sorry-- should we wrap up?

she kissed him again, her nose pressing to his soft little head. she cooed gently to him, sweet and soft with nothing but love for the little greyscale pup. "i love you-- you're mother loves you," she murmured. a few times over, just in case.

I'll fade here. :D

He basked in her endless affection, new eyes closing over to better savour the closeness. His mother crooned to him and Dacio, lulled by the familiar rumble of her voice, found himself unable to stay awake.

The littlest Goufa parted his tiny jaws in a wide yawn before he snuggled in close, burrowing his dark muzzle among the feathery patchwork of his dam's pelt to breathe deep the soothing scent of her fur.