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+--- Thread: Sun Mote Copse Bill Barilko disappeared that summer (/showthread.php?tid=41647)
Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - RIP Bronco - May 24, 2020
set for May 21th or so, before his trip :)
When Bronco arrived to drop off a half-dead hare that morning, he was greeted by his mother, overtired as always, and the kids who likely saw him as their daily food delivery guy and occasional babysitter. But between hunting and patrolling, with the pups still so young, he hadn't spent as much time with them in their infancy as he would've liked. There had to be some trade-off, though, given the fact that the Sergeant-at-Arms had to take a few months off her regular duties to take care of the kids, and so, Bronco had stepped up his game. While he could've lounged with his Mom, stepfather and siblings and been there for every moment of their infancy, he'd known that the best thing he could do for them was keep them safe and fed. Now, though, his Mom called him aside and gave him a kiss on the bridge of his nose, before she sized him up. "You're almost taller than me," She said, and he laughed, lifting his muzzle up so that he could look down at her. "I -am- taller'n you, Ma," He boasted, but leaned forward to give her a playful nudge. "Right. Well why don't you lighten my load an- OUCH- Stoppit! a bit and take one of these off my hands for a bit?" She asked, gesturing toward the kids- and shaking her paw which had just been bitten. "Oh, uh, sure! Which, uhmmm?" He asked- and Niamh gestured toward the twins. He balked; he had no idea which one was which. So he just chose a name. "@Alyx! Heya, pretty girl! Less'go for a walk, huh?" He asked, dipping down into a playbow- and simply hoping that the one that'd answer to Alyx would follow him away.
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - Alyx - May 30, 2020
The one who answered to Alyx changed on a daily basis. Real Alyx was so often called Quetzal, and vice versa, that it was kind of a miracle she knew her own name at all. Bronco's arrival sent a stir of excitement through the pups, resulting in RealAlyx barreling right over her mother's paw and tripping into the ground. Having established by now that she was no lover of filth, she sought to correct the offending paw for making her chest dirty by turning around and giving it a hard nip, which was the cause of Niamh's exclamation.
There, dumb foot, thought Alyx. That'll show you. She scraped her hind feet on the dirt in the direction of her mother's creamy toes, her particular sign for screw you, which of course, she only knew as a feeling and not an actual expletive at this point. She seated herself on prim haunches to smooth the fur on her chest and pick at the bits of dust and dirt nestled there, only for her oversized ears to flare dramatically when Bronco called her name.
Hi hi Bo'co!she yipped as she scampered after him, dirt-smudged chest forgotten as her tail windmilled just above her tiny hips.
Whew goin'? Goin' Meek's?
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - RIP Bronco - May 31, 2020
Though puppies tended to be clumsy and still learning to develop their co-ordination, the sign that Alyx made did not go unnoticed by either Bronco or Niamh. Bronco's mouth fell open into a huge smile, but any laughter or praise that might've followed was silenced immediately by a steely look from his mother that said do NOT encourage her without even having to be complimented with the Ptero to convey her feelings. He clamped his mouth shut and smiled at his little sister. Oh the things he could teach her, once they were out of Niamh's sight...
"I need your help for somethin'," He said, hoping that might interest her. "I, uh," Now- what was he supposed to say that might get her interested? He knew his siblings loved Meerkat, and he could always go along with that suggestion and hunt down their brindled sister, but he thought they might save that for later. Right now, he wanted some time just with this sibling. Of course, that meant figuring out what she liked, rather than just sharing his interests with her, but he figured he could start with one activity and see how she took to it, and move on to another if for some reason she wasn't having fun.
"Well; we have business to do. Important business," He said; he wanted her to feel important, of course. "There's a whooooole buncha frogs livin' in the creek," He said, "An' too many frogs is never a good thing. D'you think you could help me hunt some of 'em down?" He asked. "It might get kinda muddy..." He said, as an enticing forewarning.
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - Alyx - June 08, 2020
Bronco needed her help with something? Oh, boy, that sounded official and important, which her older brother confirmed moments later. Alyx was rapt as she pranced along beside him, taking three or four steps for every sweeping one of his. Already she was developing a defined personality, and there were two absolutes already in place:
1. She hated dirt.
2. She loved feeling important.
Imp den bees nest?she clumsily repeated, tripping over a rock in the process and stumbling. She whirled around to pin it with the full force of her electric blue eyes, sucking in a breath and yelling,
NO, BOCK!Another scrape of her paws and then she scampered back to Bronco's side just in time to hear his all-important mission.
The tyke froze on the spot.
M... muddy?she repeated, blinking slowly. Two parts of Alyx warred inside her: the part that wanted to be special and important and recognized, and the part that couldn't stand even a speck of filth. There were exceptions, of course: she was a klutzy child, so falling down was still a common occurrence for her. She was also getting to the age where pounding on her siblings was a fun pastime and, determined to be the most important among them, Alyx was quite vigorous when it came to play-fighting. But the dust generated by those activities was easily removed, and she was already becoming a compulsive little groomer.
But... mud?
Noooo,she wailed, fixing Bronco with a pleading look that she hoped would communicate all her despair about mud.
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - RIP Bronco - June 09, 2020
"Very important business," Bronco confirmed, pleased that he'd interested her. He hated the idea of being a deadbeat older brother that didn't know what his sisters even liked. And he thought that maybe she'd have fun, splashing about in the swampy, muddy shallows of the marsh- but he was distracted from that idea first when she tripped. Suddenly, she whirled, stradling the impudent rock that had tripped her, and gave it a stern scolding befor bounding brightly back to his side. Well. That was interesting.
Okay, so maybe his little sister was a pocket-sized badass. He could work with that.
But his bold little sister wilted visibly at the mention of mud so he hastened to change his plans, and keep his sister from giving up on him. "Oh! Nuhnuhnuhno, nah, y'know, we really don't have to- no mud, okay? No mud. Frogs aren't even important, what was I thinking- stupid Bronco," He blurted in a rush, hasty to regain his sister's interest in doing something with him. His eyes trailed back to the rock she'd hollered at earlier. So maybe she had a bit of rage in her. Best to channel that into something productive at a young age, right?
At least he'd learned one thing- this sister hated mud. At least maybe he could use that knowledge to maybe be able to tell her apart from her sister...As long as Quetzal didn't also hate mud...He also doubted that his mother would be happy if he just splashed mud on the both of them to see which one reacted worse, in order to tell them apart.
"You wanna patrol with me?" He asked. He knew he couldn't bring her too close to the borders- that wasn't safe for her yet- but they could patrol within the pack, right? "Only the bravest wolves can be guardians. D'you think you're brave?" He asked, puffing his chest out- as though to demonstrate what 'brave' looked like.
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - Alyx - June 13, 2020
While Bronco stumbled over himself to change his plans, Alyx stood rooted to the spot with her entire face drawn into absolute dismay that he wanted to make her muck around in the mud. Her lower lip wobbled along with his repetitions. It wasn't until he changed his mind and decided frogs weren't important that she brightened up, giggling and brashly parroting,
stoo bud Bonco. Fogs no imp den.
What was a frog, even? We'll never know.
She lurched back into an eager walk, swaying her thin tail now that she knew they wouldn't be going to any muddy places. How could he even think she'd like something like that? Alyx was a lady, thank you very much! He suggested another activity, a collection of words that she didn't understand at all, but that didn't stop her from vigorously nodding along.
Ya'm bave,she chirped, before tweaking her lips into a thoughtful squiggle and asking,
whasbave?
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - RIP Bronco - June 19, 2020
Oh gosh, she was too cute to handle. Bronco smiled gleefully at his sister's words, enamoured with her puppy speech. Had he sounded that adorable when he'd been that young? Probably not- he'd had a bad attitude when he'd been her age, and had screamed the majority of his feelings in rage. Her question surprised him, though, and he chuckled softly. Now he had to come up with an answer- and while he wasn't sure exactly how to explain bravery, he'd be damned if he didn't at least answer with conviction.
"Bravery is important," He began, before realizing his redundancy. Come on Bronco, use your words. "It means-" Gosh, was he really the one to be giving this speech? Him? The one who was questioning his own ability to be a guardian, and who felt like fainting whenever he inflicted pain? "Well, it's complicated," He said, before he realized he should just make this as easy as possible. Simplify his feelings, so he could teach her better. "It's a feeling, sort of. It's...Protecting your family and friends from danger, and not being too afraid to...Stick up for what's right." He said. "C'mere. -This-" He said, beginning to add ptero to his speech as he took a step back from her. He squared up his stance, curled his tail over his back and lifted his muzzle, tipping his ears forward and ultimately striking as noble a pose as he could manage. -this is what brave looks like- He said, holding the pose for a moment before he relaxed. -Can you show me that?-
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - Alyx - June 20, 2020
Brave, it seemed, was an abstract concept, and Alyx's brain wasn't ready to fully comprehend those sorts of things. It wasn't the same as happy or sad. It wasn't an emotion to be felt like those simple ones she felt on a regular basis, but rather, a coping mechanism for less pleasant emotions. Bronco described it as not being afraid. But being afraid was natural and easy. Being brave was a choice, and was immensely difficult. Until she actually had to be brave someday, she would struggle to understand what he meant by it.
What she could understand was his stance.
Oh otay,said Alyx, puffing out her own chest and stretching herself up onto her tippy toes. She would come to view this stance as the sign for bravery despite its similarity to a dominance display—which was less exaggerated, of course, and involved eye contact and sometimes growling.
Buh howzit potec?Just standing like that wasn't really doing anything, was it? Maybe it was. Maybe it was generating a force field around them and she just couldn't see it.
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - RIP Bronco - June 20, 2020
It was hard to maintain his composure when he watched with pride as his little sister struck a pose, lifting her noble little muzzle up and trying to stand as tall as possible. It wouldn't be long before she didn't have to try to stand tall- within months, he knew, she would be tall enough that she wouldn't have to be on her tip-toes, if she inherited their mother's legginess. But he did his best, and when she asked a question, he smiled.
"Close your eyes for a minute," He said. He reached forward to tip her chin up a bit, hoping to gently lift the tip of her muzzle by touching her chin with his nose and softly raising it an angle or two. "Take in a deep breath...An' think of everyone you love. Your Neema, your Dad, Towma, Quetzal, Prim, Meerk, Me," He said, listing off her immediate family for starters. This was starting off as a sort of meditative project- but Bronco wasn't great at guiding meditation. "Now...Imagine a mud monster- a biiiiig muddy mud monster- an' it wants to MUD everyone." He said. "Being brave means standing up to the mud monster- and protecting your family...Despite how much you hate mud." He said.
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - Alyx - June 20, 2020
Oooh, a game of pretend! Alyx loved playing pretend and readily complied with Bronco's request, giggling when his nose tapped the tender spot under her chin. Sometimes, she would pretend that the trees and the rocks around the den were her friends from all over the world. She'd tell them all about the flowers and bugs she'd discovered that day. In return, they'd tell her all about fields and lakes and forests she could never imagine, except it was all generated by her imagination.
Oh! Her mind was wandering. She refocused on what her brother was saying, nodding along as he rattled off various relatives. Ammy, check. Daddy, check. Towma, check. Q, Rosie and Meerkat, check. Bronco, check. He'd forgotten Nellie, Figment, and Fennec, and she almost opened her mouth to smartly remind him, but then he brought into her imagination her worst fear and she grimaced.
No,she said simply.
Hays mud too much. Bye ammy, bye daddy, bye Towmee, bye Q, bye Rosie, bye Meeky an' bye B'onco. Mud mosser ated yous all.Alyx couldn't possibly stand up to a mud monster, not even for the sake of being cool and brave like her brother. It was practically her deepest and greatest fear. They were supposed to protect her from mud monsters, not the other way around!
No am bave, s'otay do, no mud mossers then,she concluded, nodding affirmatively as if this was somehow a good thing.
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - RIP Bronco - June 20, 2020
No?
Bronco's breath hitched and he pulled his head back in surprise, and the tip of his tail fell from where it'd been arched over his spine, lolling instead to one side to mirror the sudden tilt of his head. His sweet little sister admitted- point blank- that she would abandon her family- without any discernable amount of regret- should she be faced with a mud monster. And if she hadn't drawn from some sort of inner bravery to admit that, then at least it was a sign that she had conviction...And lots of it.
He ended up chuckling at how simple it seemed for her to allow her family to be devoured by whatever a mud monster was, and shook his head. "Oh, Alyx," He sighed, and reached out to touch his nose to her cheek affectionately. There was bravery in there- he knew it. "You're a coyote, you know that?" He commented blithely, nipping gently at one of her ears as he drew back, and dipped his front end down into a play bow. "A wily coyote," He said, and chuffed- hoping to entice her into a playfight with both banter and pose.
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - Alyx - June 20, 2020
Nope!she confirmed cheerfully. Bronco's assessment was about halfway correct. Alyx didn't realize that it took any bravery whatsoever to admit that she was a total coward who would totally throw her family to the metaphorical wolves if faced with a mud monster, because she didn't realize that if a monster really ate her family, they'd be permanently gone. They'd just come right back the very next day, just like Phox did that one time a mud monster ate him.
I's not a ceetee!she scoffed,
You's a weelee ceetee!What the hell was a coyote? Didn't matter, it was obviously an insult, and she wouldn't be caught dead being whatever that was.
You's big stinky weelee ceetee, B'onco! I's a pissess!Yes. Alyx the pissess. She mimicked his play bow, waving her wiry tail in the air jovially, only to sink into whatever game she was devising in her own head.
Ooooo noo!she squealed dramatically,
needs a big bave boy t'says me! Heeeelp!
Good thing there was a big, brave boy right there, nevermind that he was supposed to be the evil stinky coyote.
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - RIP Bronco - June 20, 2020
UGH. I can't even. <3
It was really hard to hold a tough-guy composure when faced by an adorable little sprite calling him a "weelee ceetee." He was already painfully aware that he struggled with the more serious aspects of being a guardian- but he was surprised by how ineffective he was at keeping a straight face when being insulted by his younger sister. He wanted to capture this moment, to bottle it up and keep it forever as though to ward off the inevitable growing pains Alyx would face as she grew up. That way, if she ever fell into a moment of doubt, he could simply show her how she looked through his eyes- and that he might use the memory himself as a reminder of the little pockets of unexpected joy that life could bring.
But...A princess? Now that caught him by surprise. At first, he wondered where she was getting this from. It couldn't be from their mother- who was very little like a princess, and more like the knight that Alyx was begging for. Perhaps the whole 'Princess' thing came from Phox...That seemed more likely. Most worrisome was the fact that she wanted to be saved by a big, brave guy. Oh no. This was trouble. Alyx was going to be big trouble as soon as she started attracting attention from boys her own age- and while there weren't presently any around, Bronco felt himself frown inwardly at the thought of his sweet little sister and her future string of boyfriends. This wouldn't do. No one would ever be good enough.
But right now, he had to figure out how to be both a stinky coyote- and a hero. He did his best to try and imagine the situation, trying to use whatever imagination he had left from his own childhood to come up with a creative solution. So he imagined the two characters separately- and did his best to create a very visible difference between the two.
-I'll save you, Princess Alyx!- He declared, straightening up and puffing out his chest. -Don't you dare touch her, you smelly beast!- He challenged, stepping between Alyx and- well, himself. Because a moment later, he hopped aside, sinking into a lowered pose with one eye squinted and his teeth bared in an ugly, toothy grin. As the coyote, he spoke in a sneering, weedy voice, dropping the use of ptero, which he figured was a language only befitting of a hero, not the villain. "I'll steal her if I want to! And take her back to my MUD-CASTLE! AAAAAA-HYAAA-HYAAA-HYAAA-HY**AAAA!" He did his best at imitating maniacal laughter, though it forced his voice to crack almost comedically. He cleared his throat- and hopped back to the hero's spot, where he paused only a moment to take in a breath of air before declaring -NEVER!-
-and commencing the battle, which began with him doing something of a dive-roll into the place where the evil coyote had once stood, and ended with him flailing around on the ground, kicking up a small cloud of dust. He snapped at the air and lashed out with all four feet, and emitting a variety of high pitched squeals (the coyote) and a few good growls for good measure to represent the hero. It was quite a spectacle- though an onlooker with any medical knowledge, not knowing the context, might have been highly concerned for his health and well-being.
The entire scuffle ended abruptly, though, with a high-pitched shriek as Bronco caught his own tail in his jaws. He bared his teeth, squinting at the discomfort he felt from being twisted into such a position, but bravely managed a bold smile. -got 'im!-
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - Alyx - July 07, 2020
It was better than Alyx could ever have hoped. Bronco probably felt ridiculous playing the part of hero and villain simultaneously—how difficult it must be to vanquish oneself!—but to his little sister, his acting meant the whole world. She could visually see both the villainous coyote and the brave hero as two separate entities, not just Bronco switching roles. When the time for the brawl came, she could see them both tussling, and she cheered the valiant knight on while jeering at the whimpering coyote. In the end, the brave hero won, as he should.
Bronco might not realize it, but he'd done a better job describing bravery in that imaginary display than he'd conveyed in his words. Bravery meant standing up to the bad guys and defending the good guys, or at least that was the simplified version of it. Regardless, she would remember it always.
Yaaaaaaaah!!!cheered Alyx when Bronco grabbed his own tail, and she continued on with a whooped,
gi'gon you ugly ceetee!
And because all fairytales ended with the princess kissing the knight, obviously, she rushed her big brother with a happily flailing tongue to kiss his cheeks and his chin.
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - RIP Bronco - July 07, 2020
Relief. Bronco was out of breath, but quite pleased with himself for having put on the show that Alyx had demanded, though part of him did hope this wouldn't necessarily be a regular occurrance...His shoulders and hips were a bit sore from flailing on the ground, so he might have to try and persuade Alyx to enjoy "Broncosaurus" more than the "hero and coyote" act. Huffing and puffing, he let go of his own tail and scampered off, bustling through a bush and out of sight for just a moment before he leapt back over it- returning as the hero, of course, to receive affection from his little sister.
He slid to the ground so that he could embrace her and laughed as she licked at his face and chin. He pulled her wriggling body close with a gentle gesture of his muzzle and nuzzled the spot between her shoulderblades affectionately. "That's what bravery is, Princess Alyx," He said, "An' I'll always be here to protect you."
RE: Bill Barilko disappeared that summer - Alyx - July 24, 2020
Wrap here? :D
She giggled heartily in Bronco's face and happily spent the next minute and a half showering him with kisses when he collapsed and embraced her.
Otay Bon'co,Alyx agreed, having come away from this playful lesson with a much better grasp on bravery. It probably wouldn't give her the guts to stand up to any mud monsters anytime soon, but at least she knew what it looked like to stand tall against an adversary. As far as knights went, Bronco was a pretty shining example.
Lessgo pat'ol?she suggested, pulling away with a rapidly beating tail. Now that she knew what it was to be brave, she was ready to see what being a guardian was all about.