Bearclaw Valley don't let it shake your steady thread cutting hand

@Nunataq & @Marten -- though laurel's puppies are welcome! tags in thread are for visibility

in the days following their discovery of the puppies being abandoned, indra was at a crossroads. she could not -- she would not -- sacrifice these puppies to the same fate she and laurel had experienced. that reason alone made her possessive of them, made her resolve to ignore them softer -- and with each passing day her steeliness disintegrated until she regarded the two babes as something almost like family.

she wanted so much for laurel's babies to grow without pain or suffering --and she still wanted them to never know the defeating, crushing force of paranoia or loneliness gripping them -- but somehow, that want was extended to nunataq and marten. somehow, the brood that was not laurel's and not her own was afforded the same want, the same ironclad resolution that they would never feel unwanted.

delicately, indra stirred from the den she had crafted for them -- like laurel, she often set up a great show of rejecting @Xan any time he came close to laurel's brood -- but, for the departed woman's, indra did allow an occasional visit. she would often stonily observe as he went about his business, receding to laurel's den until he was done.

as far as indra saw it, she would have little to gain from denying nunataq and marten their father. indra was neither their mother, nor an aunt -- she was only a supplicant. even @Tadec, who visited often and whose presence indra dearly enjoyed -- even tadec was not their blood.

painfully indra looked upon the two of them before she got up. without much of a word she left the den, sitting in the sunlight right outside where the trio of them slept.

Now in the ripe age of almost two months (!!!) Nunataq worked hard to expand her horizons daily. The pull to the outside world got stronger every day and, when she was not playing and fighting with the rest of the crew, or biting on Marten's ears (because - boy - they were such wonderful chew-toys for her irritated gums), she was out and about the little clearing around the dens. And - though her exploration missions were not a nuisance now - soon she would be prone to disappear the moment you looked away from her.

But not at this age and not today.

She woke up just as Indra (to her names were irrelevant, but if asked for a description of her new caretaker, it would go along the lines of - big, fluffy, red food-sack-and-warm) left the den, and without much regard to Marten's morning nap, she climbed and tumbled over him and scrambled towards the den entrance. There she stood, regarding the world proudly for a while, then caught sight of the russet she-wolf and went straight to attack, whichever body part was available to the little crocodile. Recently Nuna had received a nice set of razor-sharp shark teeth and had a very strong inclination to bite and hold onto stuff. Regretably - this stuff was someone's limbs or tail and very rarely an inanimate object.

she basked in the gentle glow of morning light, thankful for the brief reprieve the soft sunlight had to offer. tension she was not aware she was holding onto seemed to slowly liquidate, and as she breathed the clear, sunny air, indra was aware of a strange feeling: hope. tentative and as diminutive as a fresh sprouted tendril -- but there all the same.

a rustle behind her announced her morning meditation was about to be interrupted: indra stiffened, her slim ear cast back as she caught the telltale signs of imminent puppy onslaught. she remained still - as if blissfully unaware - and then once nunataq's tiny teeth fell upon her, she whirled around and sent a nudge the puppy's way, attempting to push her back enough to present a playbow.

Though Nuna's target had appeared to be so calm and still, and unsuspecting, girl's attack did not work out. Indra was quick to react, turn and gently push the puppy away. "Hrumph," she said, falling back on her bum and looking up at the big wolf, not feeling entirely satisfied with the outcome of her plan. But all was left in the past and forgotten, when the she-wolf got almost in the same level as her (except her head was so hu-u-u-uge to Nuna's), and the girl took this as an invitation to pounce again - this time aiming at the she-wolf's muzzle.

indra peered at the puppy playfully, her haunches swaying as if to say playfight me. nunataq's advances seemed to pause for a second; indra watched her with her jaws closing solemnly -- up until the tawny girl rose and charged for her caretaker's face.

despite the lack of force in nunataq's pounce, indra fell with an exaggerated motion -- a loud oof pressed from her lips. she collapsed onto her side, her cheek pressed into the dirt as she jawsparred gently with the ferocious little cub.

Usually, when Nunataq attacked someone ten times her size (an exaggeration, perhaps, but from her perspective all adults were super big), she was the one to constantly lose and be rolled in the dirt. The only ones she could consistently topple over were either the younger pups or Marten occasionally. Therefore, when Indra fell backwards, the little cub paused, staring at the adult in surprise. Then a proud expression set in her features - do you see, what I did? - she seemed to say and did not hesitate to continue her assault. The little fighter attacked Indra's ears and at one point attempted to climb over her face, adding both jaws and claws to the spar, until she grew tired, slid to the ground and began to groom her caretaker's cheek diligently.

Took some liberties in the "jawspar" (my new favorite word). PM, if you wish something changed.

it's all good! thanks for being patient with me with my superlong wait

nunataq was a worthy adversary -- for a puppy anyway. indra grinned to herself to witness such tenacity in such a young being. there was not much in the world she imagined would dare get in nunataq's way -- and as she grew older, indra imagined the willful cub would simply see to it no obstacles were ever left unsurmounted.

still on the ground, the redleaf's mouth opened as she growled playfully in nunataq's direction. her ears were under assault next and she shifted her head away, attempting to nudge with her nose to influence nunataq's sharp teeth elsewhere -- preferably on skin that was not so sensitive. after a while it appeared her charge's fighting spirit had been slightly subdued -- enjoying the grooming, indra affectionately returned the favor by softly licking the girl's dark little forehead.

While grooming someone else was quite a pleasant and calming thing, Nuna was not so eager to be washed herself. She took pride in being covered in dust, mud, pieces of twigs, leaves or whatever she had encountered that day and, whenever evening bath took place, she made her attitude known, by frowning and pouting expressively. But while Laurel was voice of reason and discipline to her and Nuna had no shame in abusing Indra's calm and kind-hearted demeanor often, she was not entirely unfeeling towards her primary caretaker. Therefore she endured her grooming strokes, retaliating with a bunch of hefty licks over Indra's muzzle. With this done, she sighed deeply, nestled up against her and prepared for an hour long nap.

You can fade it out in the next post and we can have a new thread.

thank you for the thread!

the little spitfire might not have enjoyed the initial bath, but indra felt a kinship growing in the offspring that were not her own. they would never be her own, but she could be their surrogate, their rock -- the way she and laurel had been each others' rocks. indra's grooming soon became absent-minded as she thought of their future, of their past, and of the little lives they guarded -- someday, maybe things would change.. but for now, indra groomed the firebrand with careful teeth, and after a perfunctory completion of said bath, fell asleep alongside the spirited little cub.