Dragoncrest Cliffs Every word you sing, you wrote them for me.

Tagging for visibility, but all family are welcome to join. Would love some unrelated pack-mates, though!   :)

Sunlight broke through the canopy, dappling the rocks and forest floor beyond the family's den. Having gained permission to play beyond their hollow under supervision, Dacio was happy to branch away from @Sequoia and @Opalia to stalk and pounce on these rogue beams of light. A little hunter in the making, it would seem.

At almost four weeks of age, the ashen youngster's charcoal ears now stood erect atop his tufted head. His hearing and sight had improved vastly over the weeks, and he had developed a taste for the meaty slop that the adults sometimes brought home. Dacio was growing fast, taking shape and learning every day and, most importantly, was loving life.

"Arf!" Dacio barked, confused, at a boulder that previously displayed a pale dappling of morning sunlight which, comically, had been projected onto the back of the boy's head as he stepped into its path. He narrowed his stormy eyes, reaching out to tentatively bump his snout to the warm stone. 

Bat trailed behind her mother, making no effort to stifle the periodic yawn as she ignored their surroundings. She didn't even know where Wildfire was leading her, just that her mother had insisted she come along. She was actually paying so little attention that when they reached their destination and the Feisripa halted, the Goufa bumped right into her mother's slender hind leg.

"Oof," Bat said even as a little voice nearby chirped, "Arf!" Curious despite herself, Bat peeked around her dam's leg and saw what appeared to be a miniature wolf, although possibly a fat squirrel. She had never seen a pup that size (she did not recollect herself or her siblings being so tiny). "Do we eat it?"

As one beam of light evaded him, Dacio opted to turn his focus on another. He looked over a peppered shoulder in search of the dapples in shade of nearby trees, but instead his stormy gaze found the figure of a wolf he'd never seen before. Charcoal ears stood comical atop his over-sized fuzzy head for a moment before they folded back, uncertain. 

He made to exchange a glance with his baby-sitter, @Dalia, to be sure all was safe before blinking up at the sleek crimson wolfess who'd come to visit. More curiously, a sharp-featured youngster peeked from behind the adult's limbs to eye him, and Dacio stared back with wide-eyed wonder. His interaction with other children beyond his own litter-mates was lacking, as he struggled between wanting to initiate play and the fear of being bested by a child significantly larger and stronger. Unsure if or how to approach the dark youngster, he opted to remain in place like a rabbit in the headlights see if she would come to him.

"What?" Wildfire blurted (trying not to laugh at the unexpected question), "no! That's Dacio. He's a Goufa too. Go on, go say 'hello.'" When she leaned down to nudge Bat, the puppy blinked a few times and stepped forward. She wasn't a particularly outgoing or precocious child, yet she wasn't shy either. And some things were worth a little bit of energy, like making a new friend.

"You so smol," Bat observed as she approached him, tail waving gently. "Hi, Dacio." The name came out sounding mostly correct. She glanced at Wildfire, who smiled and nodded approvingly. Turning back to the tinier Goufa, she added, "I'm Bat."

He observed the exchange between the russet adult and her cub, blinking dumbly between them as they spoke. Their words were jargon to him, but he listened with great intrigue and noticeably perked when the Feisripa suggested that her daughter introduce herself. "Hello" was a word he was familiar with, and it was a pleasant one that usually meant someone was happy to see him. His little black tail swished to life, sweeping the air at his rump as he fixed Bat with a bold grin, and stepped carefully toward her to help close the distance between them.

"Ba!" he tried to say her name, and giggled joyfully at what he felt was success. He moved in closer to her then, reaching up to poke the tip of his snout to Bat's chin as he welcomed himself to sniff at her fur. "Ba-tuh!"

She smiled when he reacted positively to her introduction, moving closer and bumping his little snoot against her chin. He made a few attempts at her name, none of which was precisely correct, although Bat simply said, "Close 'nough," as her own tail waved.

After sniffing at one another for a moment, Bat took a step backward so she could better see Dacio. "Are you a brofer?" she asked him.

Wildfire gingerly stepped forward and settled down astride the two pups even as she murmured, "Not exactly. He's more of a cousin. Hi there, baby boy." The Feisripa touched her own smudged snout to Dacio's little rib cage, snuffling him.

The larger puppy moved in to greet him, her nose tracing the tips of his downy fur as she sniffed at him. Dacio's rear wiggled happily, out of his control, as he whined with the anticipation of making a few friend out with the bores that were his litter-mates.

Bat pulled away from him then, stepping backward to look down at him, and his big blue eyes blinked up at her. She asked him a question that resulted in the curious can't of his darkened muzzle, the word "brofer" prompting recognition to further brighten his features. He was someone's brother, he knew, more specifically that of Sequoia and Opalia! The crimson adult interrupted then, speaking first to her child before addressing Dacio himself, which stirred his fuzzy tail once more.

He crooned to Wildfire, who poked her snout against his side. Tongue poking between his lips, he arched toward her to plant a series of slobbery kisses on her scarlet brow.

"Oh," Bat said, not entirely sure she knew the difference. She watched as Wildfire settled on the ground and engaged the smaller pup. Perhaps another child might have felt jealous of her dam's attention, though Bat didn't mind in the least. She found him curious too.

"D'you wanna play?" she eventually inquired. She didn't feel particularly energetic today, though she should be able to manage with such a little playmate, right? "Cousin Dacio?" she added, peering at Wildfire to see if she'd gotten the term right. The Feisripa smiled at her, which Bat took as confirmation, and she easily returned it before looking to Dacio.

The adult fussed him, and Dacio was content to bask in the attention he received. His little tail continued to sweep the air at his rear and he crooned beneath her touch.

Bat's voice distracted the boy, who turturned his stormy blue eyes on the other cub with curiosity. She piped up in question and it was the word 'play' that captured his attention. Raven ears pricking attentively, his gaze widened with excitement that this particular puppy actually wanted to engage with him.

He tipped, turning from the russet wolfess to stumble over his large paws in Bat's direction. When facing her, he swept into a play-bow with his rump thrust skyward with his tail flagging. 

Dacio didn't bother with a verbal answer, though his body language left nothing to the imagination. Bat giggled, finding him rather adorable, even though they weren't so far apart in age. "You're cute!" she exclaimed to him, to which Wildfire murmured in agreement.

It was tempting to pounce him—it looked like it'd be pretty easy to overpower the tyke—but instead, the older Goufa held out one striped foreleg and tried to bait him with her paw.

His scruffy tail was thrust into the air, waving daringly over ashen haunches - unknowingly in a display of dominance that often provoked reaction from his sisters. He peered up at Bat, who looked over him and giggled, amused by the boy's demand for attention, and he grinned right back.

She dubbed him cute, then proceeded to reach out in his direction with a paw. Dacio rumbled a pitiful play growl as it bopped him directly on the snout and in a poor attempt to pounce his new play-mate, found himself stumbling to the side. He flopped in the grass, raising his own forelimb toward Bat to paw the air.

It worked. The littler puppy sprang for her paw, although he soon after lost his balance and toppled sideways. Bat found him more endearing than ever and chuckled even as she observed, "Wow, you clumsy!" Her over-sized ears twitched at a clicking sound and she glanced at her mother, lips pursing at Wildfire's mildly disapproving glance that clearly let her know, "That wasn't very nice."

"Oh," the Goufa said, turning back to Dacio and reaching out now to pat his shoulder, "Sorry, Dacio." She withdrew her paw and then slid forward so that her belly met the ground. "You can whump me good," Bat told him with a sheepish smile.

Her observation hardly offended him, as Dacio was unable to understand the meaning of the word "clumsy". Bat was probably right, though! Still finding his feet, the sterling Goufa was far from perfecting his motor skills. Instead of sulking at the other puppy's bold comment as one might expect, Dacio chose to join in with her amusement despite the lack of understanding.

His scruffy black tail wriggled happily among the grass he lay amongst as the other cub sank to his level, and he righted himself onto his belly as a dark paw gently patted his shoulder. Outstretching his charcoal-tipped forelimbs in an adorable attempt to reach his newest friend, Dacio cooed affectionately for her. He scooted across the ground, tongue poking between his lips to lick the air as he tried to deliver a slobbery kiss to whatever part of her he could reach.

I power-played a bit; tap me if that's not cool!

Bat liked Dacio's interpretation of a whump, which included stretching out in the grass and batting harmlessly at her before scooching closer to give her kisses. She giggled and squirmed a little, explaining, "It tickles!" in case he or Wildfire misconstrued her movements.

It seemed like no time had passed before Wildfire said, "We should probably get Dacio back to his mother so he can have a snack and a rest." She smiled at the little tyke, nudging him off in the right direction (and following along in case he needed the guidance to get back into the den). She then returned to Bat and nudged her in the opposite direction.

"Byeee, smol cousin Dacio!" Bat called over her shoulder before facing forward and plodding along toward home.

To have a companion of his own age that actually wanted to engage with him without turning into a Tasmanian devil was refreshing, and Dacio emitted a soft whine when Bat's mother suggested that the play date needed to end. Disappointment glimmered in his baby blue irises as he poured up at Wildfire, entirely unprepared to bid Bat goodbye so soon.

The adults had spoken, however, and Wildfire bumped little Dacio in the direction of ththe shelling burrow. His big sister moved in to scoop him against her slender forelimb, where he pressed his weight and contemplated bawling in objection.

He swallowed his tears, calling "byyyee," in a small, sad voice before settling to watch his newest friend's departure.