Sawtooth Spire I'm Not a Hero

Since you can now follow mama up to a mile... lets take a li'l baby fieldtrip! @Sitamat @Malrok @Pingasut @Atuaserk Set during the hunt!

The pack was off hunting, and Tonravik herself was restless. The sun was just beginning to set and Tonravik emerged from the whelping den, licking her chops and stretching wearily. Her routine of being free and doing as she would had all but ended with cubs in the picture... and she glanced at the mouth of the den. They would likely wake from their evening nap soon, which was fine. The alpha female had plans today with the cubs that she'd mentioned briefly to Iqniq. Now was as good a time as any to sate a spell of their wanderlust... though, they would not go too far.

Tonravik mapped out the paths they could take she already knew. They were not mountaineers, yet, but they would become it under her watch. Tonravik trotted forward some, and her gaze landed upon a wooded, snowy path that she was certain would exhaust and excite them both. In the meantime, until they woke, Tonravik relieved herself briefly and trotted to lap at the clear, white snow. The cooling days were even cooler up at this altitude... and already, her cubs were acclimated well to it. They still needed her warmth when it became particularly cold, but by the day their fur grew and soon they would not need to be so close. After relieving herself, the mother of four moved to the mouth of the den and whuffed inside of it.

He had awoken minutes before his mother came back, and was sitting on the den floor patiently staring out its entrance awaiting her return. His patience, however, would only last so long before he decided to take it upon himself to find something to do with his boredom. Fortunately, mother bear was just around the corner, and she whuffed to them. He bounded ahead immediately, tail wagging and body quivering with his excitement and happiness to see her. His gentle, affectionate tongue found her chin and lips as soon as he drew closer to her.

Sitamat wasn't taking well to this whole, less naps more play thing. He returned to the den after each outing (as short as they were) tired and grumpy, falling into a heap and succumbing to sleep almost as soon as his head hit the ground each time. He was a lazy pup, a trait that probably rubbed his mother and her stern attitude the wrong way. Whether he would grow out of it or not, only time would tell.

Her soft chuff at them from somewhere outside caused the youngest to reluctantly awaken and roll onto his side to face the entrance of the den. Already, Pingasut had raced outside, and Sitamat watched after his smaller brother with an almost pained expression. He rolled about on the ground for a few moments, stretching and yawning, in absolutely no rush to join the rest of his siblings.

What their mother had in store for them today, he did not know, but he was already against the idea. Unless it involved food. The thought thrust the boy into action, and he quickly struggled onto his feet, stumbling over himself as he bumbled outside, greeting Tonravik with an eager lick to the side of her mouth.

Woooo! Exploring time!!!

Atuaserk was enjoying the fact that they were no longer confined to the den. When he felt cooped up, he became a terrible nuisance; symptoms of this were chewed ears and paws, maybe some tails, puppies that were unhappy being knocked over, and probably some irate parents. Thankfully, here came another adventure to keep him from resorting to such methods. His mother chuffed and right after Pingasut, Ata was on his feet and out the den, barreling past his other brother.

He too, licked his mother's mouth but broke free of the puppy pile moments after to take a lap around their little clearing, chasing a small squirrel that had dared to close. It escaped up a tree however and left Ata to return to the she-beast's side, sneaking in to nip at her leg as an attention getter.

LMK IF THAT'S NOT OKAY @Malrok

The cubs each joined her, and her eyes sought @Malrok in the back corner, who seemed to be nosing something, or sniffing. Ah. Wait. As a cub licked at the side of her mouth, she wretched and brought forth their latest meal... and then her attentions returned to her pale cub. Whatever it was he looked at was a distraction to her... she bustled past the trio to make sure the thing he looked to was not life-threatening and after deciding it was not, she nosed him out the door, too. He could eat the lunch she had packed and then, they'd be on their way.

And once they did that, Tonravik took some steps beyond their typical threshold. This time, she looked back and lowered her head, summoning them with an inviting swish of her tail and a flippant swivel of the ear. It very much so said, I don't care if you come to me... which was invitation enough, as typically, she snarled at this spot to let them know she would very much care if they came to where she stood.

Instinct had compelled to lick at his mother's mouth, and instinct soon after dictated that he consume some of the meal she had provided as a result. He hesitated, worried that if he bent his head to eat that she would slip away and leave him, but when he seen that she waited, he took a few moments to neatly eat a small bit. Once finished, he pranced on the spot, eager to go, and was the first to take the invitation the swish of her tail offered. He bounded to her side, rubbing his body against her leg and looking up at her fondly.

Food! As Tonravik wretched and brought up their half of whatever she had eaten last, Sitamat visibly grew more energised. His chubby body almost vibrated and, when he was free to do so, gorged on the pile of regurgitated meat — his efforts the polar opposite of Pingasut's more civilised manners. After his fill, the boy watched as their mother strode to check on and then encourage Malrok outside of the den. He yipped at his pale-furred brother, tail wiggling. He wasn't feeling so tired anymore.

Tonravik then strode beyond the den site and Sitamat's pale blue eyes followed, worry suddenly stirring in their depths. The casual wave of her tail was an invitation, one Pingasut was quick to accept, though the youngest hesitated. Where were they going? Not wanting to be left behind, however, he strode after his siblings and their mother before they set off, his head tilting in curiousity.

Without hesitation, the boy followed at his mother's side. While he was hungry, his want to explore overpowered that. With their mother facilitating this adventure, the boy bounded next to her, bounding ahead of his brothers to help her lead this excursion along. He didn't think much about the fact that this was where she usually stopped them, instead confident in the fact that she was leading them to wherever they were going.

His tail wagged as his nose dropped to the ground, sniffing at whatever he walked over. "Whur?" He looked up at her, eyes curious for a moment before those baby blues looked ahead of the group excitedly once more.