Wolf RPG

Pietro was restless in the den beside @Kendra. His limbs were growing, and though there was nothing definitively pained on his body that he could identify, the boy felt overly warm and highly uncomfortable. It was early still when he found that he could no longer lie there— but not so early that their father hadn't already taken his dutiful leave— and without rousing his sister, he departed: tired and grumpy. His mood did not improve as he walked along the trails of Blackfeather most familiar to him, taking in the various scents of prey, family, and spring.

The warming days were pleasant (not that Pietro noticed much of the evolving scenery) and the sounds of nature were growing. The sparse winter cawing of crows and ravens were now accompanied by the songs of insects, and local fauna as they emerged in the absence of freezing temperatures. He didn't pay attention to these things, but his troubled focus was stolen by something he hadn't encountered before— an anthill.

The random mound of dirt confused him. Who had buried something so poorly? Whomever the culprit was had never buried a bone properly before; such a noticeable pile as this was no suitable way to hide one's possessions. Thinking he might improve on the construction— make it flatter, less conspicuous— Pietro dug an oversized forepaw into the dirt. A second, two seconds beat by, and then the fury of the ants rose like the tide. They poured out of the opening he had created, and in his immediate confusion the boy watched as they marched on him.

At first there was only a mild tingle of discomfort, then his paw became littered with an angry army traveling up his leg, the sensation turned sharply to pain. He yelped, jumping back as the insects bit him in savage multitudes. Pietro shouted and growled repeatedly, switching between the two sounds as he tried vigorously to shake the creatures off.

Things seemed so much more empty now. So much more silent. Venus was nowhere to be found and that was the same case for Cyn. It left the man feeling a bit lonely. The days of hunting and patrolling seemed to drag on slowly. No one had crossed paths with him. The woods felt desolate and silent. But not for long.

 A sharp yelp cut the air like a knife. The male's legs moved quickly towards the sound.

 Upon his arrival, he was greeted with he sight of Burke's son. Beside him was a destroyed anthill with angered ants appearing from he dirt. Mikasi made his way to the boy's side. "You need 't wash 'em off in the water," he chuffed.

Rearing and thrashing, a proverbial bronco in his own right, Pietro became instantly aware of another's approach. His first thought was that Burke had come to rescue him— as was his inherit duty— but as he found the violet-cobalt eyes of another, his sudden disappoint fueled the fire of his fear. Mikasi he recalled scathingly, as this was not the wolf meant to assist in the defeat of his attackers. He looked around wildly, still flailing his pained forearm until his own beryl eyes (intensely wide with hysteria) turned on the male as his wise words finally reached the comprehensive part of his brain.

"Water?" he blanched. "Water!" he barked, turning in a complete circle as his thoughts scrambled to remember which way he should go, and then streaking west towards the nearest stream. The pain was forgotten in his panic-stricken mad-dash to salvation. The only thing that mattered was that he reach the water, and when he did, the relief was instantaneous.

He crashed into a ice-cold creek, drenching himself as he completely buried his forehalf into the water, only standing when it became pertinent to breathe. And even then he didn't leave the water. He couldn't see the defensive insects float away from within his fur, but he would later swear that he felt them lifting away like a unlocked shackle. His leg felt less heavy, and he thought himself cured. It would be another few minutes before he realized the skin irritation was far from over. He heaved a sigh, relieved... for now.

His eyes suddenly searched for Mikasi, having the presence of mind now to thank him.

Kendra was curious where her brother was now. Even though the girl liked to be underground and exploring, she also liked to be around her brother. The twin looked for her other half. Often it was not that hard to find him. It was his cries she heard first. The dark colored girl rushed forward when she saw him in the water. "Pietro!," she called out worriedly. Without second guessing she stepped into the cold creek next to him. Instantly she was reminded of when they were playing in the swamps and she became hypothermic from the cold frozen mud. She licked him, her teeth nipping at his neck telling him to get out form the water. "What happened?," she asked.

Kendra then realized Mikasi was there too, the one that had showed them how to hunt. Kendra had not been very enthused by hunting but she had to learn it eventually. Still she knew that Mikasi wasn't a bad guy. The girl kept her eyes on Mikasi, maybe he would explain to her what happened to her brother.

As the boy fled to find water, Mikasi was quick to follow. He didn't want to leave Pietro's side at the moment, especially when he was heading towards water.

 Kendra had beaten him to the punch. His eyes trailed from one sibling to the other. "He was messin' with ants," he answered. Mikasi walked closer to the two. "Alright, don't take too much time in there."

A combination of Kendra's physical goading, Mikasi's verbal advice, and the stark shivering that had began vibrating his entire body, made Pietro get up and stalk stiffly out of the water. The boy shook himself, trying to get rid of the excess water before it froze, but despite this he felt infinitely better with Kendra at his side. It took his mind from his incident and the cold, and he began to tentatively lick her face, trying to reassure her. Teeth chattering, he turned his slim face up towards their older packmate. "Th-th-th-th, thanks, Mi-Mi-Mikasssi."

He sat down then, craning his neck so that he could lick his popsicle legs. Through his plaster fur, he could feel the bumps of a multitude of ant bites there, and the longer he spent getting warm (with the assistance of his sister, possibly Mikasi), the more he began to realize how uncomfortable his legs truly felt. They itched! Soothing licks soon turned to gnawing teeth as he tried to relieve himself of the bites effects. "Errrgh," he growled, chewing harder and alternating from foreleg to foreleg as the discomfort escalated. He felt like he was being crawled on all over again.

Kendra stayed close to her brother as he came from the water. She was very keen on making him warm and started to try and lick him dry while staying close to him to provide the body heat he would probably need. She didn't want the same thing to happen with her brother as what had happened to her when she was smaller. It was no fun thing experience that is for sure.

Kendra watched with a cautious eye when her brother was starting to bite where he had been bit by the ants. She let out a soft whine. "Pietro," she spoke and nudged him, trying to stop him from biting his paws. "You are making it worse," she spoke slowly, feeling like if he would bit them open it could start to infect or something like that. "I can bring you to mom's keep and see if any plant works for itching skin?," she offered. Maybe keeping him from scratching would do the trick until she found a good plant.

Concern grew on his face at the child's shaky voice and biting. Oh god, had he messed up something. Mikasi was not the best when it came to these types of things. Luckily, Kendra was way better with plants than he was and offered to take him to their mom's keep. Mikasi had never met Meldresi, so he was uncertain were it may be located. "That's the best thing to do," he added.

 The only help he could do now was help share his body warmth. He went closer to the two in order to help keep Pietro warm.

Kendra looked at Mikasi and nodded to him. "That is alright. I will make sure my bother will feel better. Thank you for helping him Mikasi," she spoke to the brown male. She moved closer to her brother again and helped him to his feet. Not that he needed it but she liked to be the caring sister. The young male then made sure they would go to her mother's keep first, hopefully she would find something that would help against the itching. Had Cicero said something about what helped against the itching of a stinging nettle? She wasn't sure. Still she would have to figure that out, maybe the medical trade would be useful at least she could help heal her silly brother.

- end-