Hushed Willows fweaky

Kavos had spent a majority of the night tossing and turning within the den, never really finding the most opportune time to settle his mind and drift off the sleep. Since gaining his sight and and hearing, the palest child of the Keep had spent quite some time exploring his surroundings and broadening his horizons. Though he was more tolerable of his other two siblings, Kavos did what he could to keep to himself.

Keeping to his nature, Kavos pulled himself away from the family den and into the night. The willows were blanketed in a gentle wash of moonlight. Despite this, it was still difficult to see under their canopy. Pressing forward without a sound, Kavos began to make his away further from the den, not too alarmed by the fact that he was alone, in the dark, in the middle of the night.

Perhaps his better judgement should have kicked in, but, at the moment, it was nowhere to be found.

<3

Another day gone, another nighttime stroll.  Day in, day out.  Banner didn't mind the monotony of it - not yet, anyway - especially when things had been quiet around Marauder's Keep.  Her steady pace faltered at that thought.  Quiet.  Their ranks had thinned out again only to be boosted by the Ostrega kids coming of age at an opportune time.  At least now the adults and pups weren't at even numbers.  She shook her head and kept moving forward.

Her brows furrowed, eyes narrowing at the sight of a small white child wandering around in the moonlight.  The Alpha shot a sharp look in the direction of Amara's den.  What the hell was that woman thinking letting her son wander off like this?  With a frustrated huff she decided that particular mystery could be solved later.  Banner hadn't found the time to actually speak with the former Rosings wolf, as Stark had brought her on with little fanfare.  The circumstances of the Keep's newest pack members were none of her business at the time.  Now apparently with the desire to move about and explore, the three pups were free-range and clearly their mother could not contain them.

Unimpressed as she was, the short lady trotted over to the young pup and growled gently.  She meant it to be a comforting gesture, something soft, but her experience around kids was.. er..  lacking.  Hey there, she cooed.  Banner grimaced, realizing she had no idea which name belonged to which child.  ..  you.  Christ.

<3 <3!!!

 

A growl had caused the wayward child to pause, his ears cupping and his head turning in the Alpha’s direction. She was upon him quickly, slipping from the shadows to stand before him. He, in turn, blinked up to her as he examined her carefully. He had never seen this lady before and so, just like all strangers, Kavos felt the need to stare her down until she talked to him more.

And, thankfully, that happened.

Attention was given, in form of a greeting, and listened on silently, staring. It was only as she mentioned him that he offered his reply. “Kavoos,” he corrected plainly, knowing that the words “you” and “kavos” somehow went together. Was his name You Kavos? Kavos You? Regardless, he knew it was those words in which drew his attention most.

Surprisingly she struggled to remain still while the pale child inspected her.  He had a serious face for such a small thing and it made her gulp audibly.  Banner realized that she felt more nervous in the company of this pup than she did with a wolf like Warbone stalking at her side.  And that.. that was..

.. something.

Bucking up mentally, she bent her head down in an attempt to level with Amara's son.  He spoke, his small voice offering what she assumed was a name.  The Alpha knew one of the pups had a name starting with a K.  There was also an E and.. hell.  That other one.  The name he stated sounded a bit too long.  Unsure as she was, Banner didn't want to offend him and so she nodded.  Hey there, K, she repeated with a soft smile on her face.  Out by yourself tonight?  Her knowledge of puppy development was sparse at best, so the chances of him understanding her were slim.  Still, it didn't hurt to try.

The softening of her features caused the child to crane his head slightly so that he could better look her directly in the eyes. Kavos was not the best at socialization and he felt that staring into the other’s soul was the best first impression that he could give. He continued to do just this even after she asked a question of him as he did not understand the conversation starter that she had offered.

Er..

Banner's expression faltered.  He was just.. just staring at her.  Like he could see through her - no, like he could see deep down into the center of her soul.  A shiver ran down her spine as one word reverberated in her mind: creepy.  Not knowing what else to do, the dark brown female circled right around him until they were facing each other and then unceremoniosly dropped to the ground.  She took a second to adjust her legs this way and that but didn't take her eyes off of Amara's pale son.  Right, she said softly as if to reassure herself of this meeting with the young boy.

From her partially comfortable laying position, she raised one paw several inches off the ground before lowering it back gently.  Did want to scare the kid, after all.  Though he didn't seem particularly bothereed by her.  I'm Banner, she offered in her low voice.

His starting was met with his favorite reaction: a sense of uncomfort. A sensation of happiness radiated through his being as he sensed this and despite it all, he did not allow such emotions to break his stoic surface. Instead, he continued to watch on as she circled him, staying seated as his eyes did most of the work in his observation. He wasn’t sure just what to make of this dark-furred wolf-- on he would come to know as his Alpha in the coming months-- but regardless he was curious enough to stick around.

He stood as she laid and cleaned the distance between them until they stood nose-to-nose. In this moment, his eyes locked to hers and his tail tipped gently from side-to-side.

“Banna,” he offered after she spoke, mimicking her lowered tone.

"Banna."  Even though he'd come closer to her and still insisted on pinning her with that creepy stare, Banner couldn't help the way her face lit up when she heard his voice.  He'd been mimicking her voice, sure, but the way he repeated her name back and then wagged his tail just the smallest bit made her want to melt.  Yes, Banner! she exclaimed happily, realizing that this newfound sense of glee due to a puppy was a little.. strange.

For her.

You're a smart kid, K, she added, deciding to push past her thoughts about how adorable this damn kid was and just what that meant to her.  You're goin' places.  A pause.  Er.. not right now, in the middle of the night.. but.. when you're..  She cringed even before she'd stopped awkwardly trailing off.

.. older?

Banner’s reaction was one that he did not get all too often and as her tones lifted in way of her celebrations, Kavos’ tail wagging intensified. There was a funny feeling within him that flared at that moment-- perhaps one of the most positive feelings that he had felt thus far-- and he paused for a moment, despite his excitement. He glanced down at his chest, worried of the fuzzy feeling that overcame him. After the brief pause, he looked up to the adult with a sense of hunger flashing in his eyes.

He liked the odd feeling that he felt. It was almost as if the neglected child would do anything to her the sweet strumming of Banner’s praise once more. “Banna!” He repeated again after she felt silent from her soliloquy, his tail wagging once more as he eagerly looked into her eyes. If all went the plan he would get that fuzzy feeling back again.

When the kid lit up just as she had moments before, Banner felt her heart make that leap to finally melt.  Banner! she chirped excitedly.  Hopefully no other Marauders were around to witness the Alpha female communicating with a pup using only her name.  Ah, but she didn't really care.  Not yet.  If it was the only word Kavos understood, who was she to judge?

Those eager eyes of his seemed to pierce right through her.  Some strange feeling stirred within the dark chocolate lady, one she'd never experienced before.  Her own bright green gaze shifted back in the direction of Amara's den for just a second before she refocused on her delightful little company.  The new mother hadn't emerged once to check on her wayward child - strange.  Banner couldn't help bit think that she'd be a bit more cautious, more protective.  She blinked.  Was that.. was that what she felt?

Wonder what your mom's been up to.  Her voice was a quiet hum, the sound meant to be soothing as she voiced her thoughts aloud.  Good thing Banner's here, she added cheerfully.

He wanted to keep her attention for as long as he could, knowing that he wouldn’t feel what he was feeling once he and Banner parted ways. He had no intentions of returning to the family den once he felt that he wanted to. If he were forced to return to his siblings and Amara, Kavos wouldn’t go without putting up a fight.

But, he didn’t think of such things in that moment, and instead only thought of the Alpha before him.

“Banna!!” He cheered again in reply, acting as though they both were holding a conversation. She then spoke words that he fully didn’t understand and to this, he looked at her quickly with a sense of confusion that melted into displeasure. There was a nasty word in the mix that stuck out to the child like a sore thumb. He excitedness vanished instantly and he frowned deeply-- a complete 360 from how he had felt just seconds ago.

“No,” he said darkly, ignoring Banner’s chipper tone. “No Mom,” his tone was rigid, and was spoken as if he believed that were laying down the law.

His change in demeanor was as unexpected as it was alarming.  Banner's brows drew together instantly.  What..?  His sharp "no" was quickly clarified - no mom?  Once again her gaze was drawn to Amara's den.  The reaction displayed by Kavos left her feeling unsettled.  How much longer could she leave well enough alone when it came to this young family?  No mom, she repeated grimly.  It wasn't like the kid had a dad around, though.  His dismissal of his mother was one thing, but without another parent or guardian to look after him..

No mom, she repeated in a lighter tone.  Clearing her throat, Banner stood up and circled back around the kid until her body stood between him and the general direction his mother was in.  She swallowed audibly and looked down at him.  The topic of his mother was one she'd be sure not to bring up again.  Not yet.  Obviously this was a topic she needed to bring up with Stark, but she wondered if he'd think it was a big deal or not.  He had tons more experience with kids!  Banner? she asked, her head tilting.  If there was one way to get a smile back on his face, that might be the ticket!

“No Mom.”

In that moment Kavos felt as though a great weight had been lifted from him and he exhaled as if all the stress from that situation had quickly escaped him at Banner’s response. Feeling much lighter, and much more pleased in this interaction, the boy’s tail wagged.

“Banna!!” He replied with a smile. In that moment he picked himself up and then dropped himself to a bow, as if inviting the older wolf to play. He was usually not the most playful of pups, but, given how fond he was growing of the alpha he thought that perhaps she would like to play, too.

Success!  Kavos dropped to the ground in one of the most adorable play bows she'd ever seen.  Banner struggled to contain an uncharacteristic squeal and insead dropped her chest in kind.  The dark brown female's tail wagged a steady beat behind her as she watched him ready himself for play.

Had she ever played with a pup before?  Er, as an adult.  Banner scrunched up her nose and let out a playful huff at the same time.  Kavos seemed to draw his confidence from her positive reactions, so she supposed the whole thing would be an exercise in trial and error.