Of every wolf who made their rounds at the rendezvous, there were two besides her mother and father who stoked Merrit with particular curiosity. The first was a large and sterling boy about as quiet as Merrit himself, and the second neared their densite now, a swarthy girl he might have mistaken for his mother if he judged by appearance alone. In earlier days he had known these two important, but it was only recently that he had titles to give them. Brother and sister, his siblings, like Keen and Arlette were also to him.

Merrit had taken residence beneath the fresh growth of a low-lying bush, hoping to escape the heat, but he watched from the shadows as his sister went for the den. While her muzzle did not tip to him, her summons were unquestionable, and he lifted from his cool patch of earth and uncurled in a long and languid stretch. There was no rush to his movement; the boy took his time to ease the stiffness from his legs one by one before he neared her from behind, forgetting as always to announce his approach with any noise but the slightest grace of his paws against the earth. He focused more on Steph herself, and he craned his neck to peer over her shoulder with the slightest part of his mouth, trying to see whatever prize she held pinned beneath her paw.

Merrit jumped at her sudden movement and stared back wide-eyed, but he settled quickly when Steph met him with a grin. He found himself returning her warmth with a thin smile of his own, but his attention quickly stole back to the frail creature pinned beneath her paws.

He had seen the creatures before, of course, scuttling about in the heights of the trees, and chattering away in a language he couldn't understand. Once or twice he had tried to sneak up on them with the wish to study them closer, but they always tore away, even before he could pose a threat.

But now - he could see the creature so clearly. The bold stripes along the length of its sides, the strange form of its skeletal paws, the glisten of light against its eyes. They stared out unblinking, transfixed, though its body drummed with the rapid pulse of breath.

He felt something stir inside him, a strange tremor pity as he hovered over the creature with the crane of his neck. He could still hear the whisp of breath, and he wasn't sure what to do with that. He turned to his sister, uncomfortable with the conflict. "How?" While the boy engaged in the occasional tussle when his sisters wanted to play, he more often found himself on the fringes, hidden by some shrub or fern, or scuffling in the dirt. Watching. Discovering. That didn't seem an option here - but he would do what Steph wanted, like he did what Keen and Arlette wanted, because at the end of things he simply wanted to hang out with his sister.

He was surprised by her movement, but he didn't run off, thankfully. She hadn't meant to scare him, but after a moment, he seemed to know that, and even gave her a small smile. He turned his attention to the chipmunk at her paws, and she could see his mind racing. She knew the pups could see all the animals around the forest, but probably hadn't gotten this close to one before. Most of them ran off too quickly.

He was curious, she could tell, and her tail thumped the ground at his gentle question. Just like you would a stick, really, she responded. She stood and released the creature from her grasp. It, of course, attempted to bolt, but with a broken leg, it wasn't quicker than Steph. She grabbed it with a paw, and then with her jaws and flicked it up into the air. Her ears perked and her tail wagged as it thudded the ground in front of Merrit. Steph gestured with her for him to try it. 

Her younger brother had lurched forward, and Steph thought that he was going to grab the chipmunk, as she had. But, when he shook his head and frown, Steph mirrored the expression. What's wrong? she asked, worried.

Being a hunter, Steph didn't usually stop to think about how they would be feeling about being a meal, and so she wasn't sure why Merrit had suddenly reversed himself.

Merrit was obviously upset, and Steph was obviously confused as to why. She racked her brain to try and think of a reason, but it wasn't until her younger brother spoke that she began to understand. Her gaze went from him to the stunned chipmunk, and she frowned. She didn't like to upset, and so she stood and gently picked up the chipmunk in her jaws. For a moment, she disappeared behind a shrub before reappearing, without the chipmunk.

She sat down beside Merrit, and tried to explain the rules of the wild. Merrit, she began softly. I know it's hard to see them suffer, and I'm sorry about that, she said genuinely. But, in order to survive, you have to know how to hunt. And the only way to learn is by doing it. It isn't safe for you to hunt anything big, which is why I brought you the chipmunk, she explained. She paused a moment before asking softly, Do you understand?

She frowned when he refused to meet her gaze as she settled next to him. She had obviously upset him, and though that had no been her intent, her heart broke because of it. He nodded at her explanation, but she didn't feel forgiven for the actions that had cause him to become upset.

After a few moments, though, he tried to move on, and she grabbed on to the chance. Sure, she said quickly. She thought a moment before she came up with an idea. How about I teach you to swim? she suggested. It would help when the river flooded, and if he ever wanted to learn to fish, though she wouldn't mention the hunting part.

She nodded quickly, Yup! Swimming! It's where you go into water, and move your legs around to get through it, she explained. It's really better in summer when it's hot because the water is cool. Since the temps were still warm, she didn't think the water would be too cold. Her tail wagged when he agreed. Okay, let's go!

She turned and headed toward the wider part of the river than ran through Easthollow. When they came to the bank, she paused when her paws hit the water. The ground gradually gets deeper and deeper the closer you get to the middle of the river, she began. The water is slow right now since it hasn't rained, so you should be alright. I'll be downriver of you the whole time, so in case anything happens, I'll catch you, she promised, looking to make sure he was alright.

She waded into the water until it was halfway up her legs and turned to Merrit. Go as far as you can walk, and then when your paws don't touch the ground anymore, you keep moving your legs back and forth, kinda like you're walking, but you're walking through water instead of on the ground. I'll show you. She had to go a little further in before she could swim, and she made a couple laps before going back to Merrit. She didn't bother to shake the water off of her fur, since she'd be going right back in anyways. Her tail wagged, Wanna try?