Whitebark Stream now it’s quarter to three

@Kiyoshi or @Kaori mayhaps?

A seed of curiosity had been planted in Toshi’s heart ever since he stepped out of the whelping den. With every passing day and every trip he took, that curiosity was fed. He always went to sleep wondering what else was out there. What could he find tomorrow? It’s a cycle.

Today, like most days, the pup stuck close to winding stream. He usually did not tread to far from where Momma rested, but today was different. That urge to discover new things took over. Toshi wasn’t disappointed with what he found.

The boy pranced closer to the stream with a smile on his face. He stared out at the path of boulders that but through the water. It was a link between worlds; one he knew and one just waiting to be discovered.

Oh he just had to cross! Toshi carefully observed the distance between the hank and the first rock. There wasn’t much of a gap. He flung one of his legs out and onto the rock, then slowly outstretched the other. Alright, halfway there. Toshi catapulted his back legs off of the edge so he wasn’t left hanging. Ok! Now he just had to do that a dozen more times.

Toshi’s curious stints had not gone by without Kiyoshi noticing them. Off and on, the slate puppy would watch his darker brother seek the new things in their limited world and return pleased. It had been a rather pleasant cycle, marked by little drama.
 
On that day in particular, Kiyoshi caught sight of the darker pup who had been beelining it toward the trickling stream with an eager intensity in his blue eyes. Without questioning whether or not it was okay for him to go too, the boy followed behind Toshi at a few paces back. The brothers did not wander too far from where their mother would like for them to have stayed. There seemed to have been a small dip in the stream where a series of boulders led from one side to the other. This appeared to have been Toshi’s mark.
 
Kiyoshi watched for several moments as his dark sibling worked his way across the rock before calling out in a stern voice, “Toshi going fall.” His tone was plain, as though he were speaking only a fact.

Kiyoshi voice came as a shock. The whelp was unaware he was being followed up until now. Though he didn’t mind his brother’s company, he wasn’t very happy with his pessimistic attitude.

Toshi looked over his shoulder. He couldn’t face turn to face his brother, cause then he probably would fall. That wasn’t gonna happen today.

Nuh-uh! He looked up and shook his head. Watch!

Alright, time to do it again. Like before, there wasn’t much distance between himself and the second rock. This should be a piece of cake! Toshi puffed out his chest and took a deep breath. There was a competitive rush inside him that hadn’t been there before. He wanted to prove Kiyoshi wrong.

1... 2... 3... Leap!

That was a big mistake. Big big mistake. Toshi didn’t make the graceful landing he anticipated. His paws slipped out from underneath him and he ended toppling into the stream. Thank god he was still at the shallow end because this could’ve ended up 10x worse.

When Toshi stood up he was knee-deep in the water. That and his paw hurt. But he wasn’t concerned about that right now. He needed to get up on that rock.

Don’t look! he cried, as if that’d erase the slip-up from Kiyoshi’s memory. The pup limped over to the rock and wiggled his way to the top. Hehehe. I deed it! He turned to his brother with a wide grin.

See? Piece of cake.

The spirited boy did not seem to falter at Kiyoshi’s spoken doubts. Instead of returning to the bank where he would be safe, Toshi had opted to prove his sibling wrong via a demonstration of skill. The stoic young pup watched from his place in the dirt. His expression was unshifted.
 
Toshi tumbled into the waters with his attempt to cross onto the next steppingstone. He shouted a request for Kiyoshi to not watch. The young Draconid had already witnessed the fumble of his brother’s paws. His coat was still speckled with the touch of water from the stream.
 
“Toshi wet butt,” Kiyoshi deadpanned to his brother, motioning with a gesture of his nose. The other boy had still made it to his goal. If the end result was all that mattered, the failed attempt could have easily been crossed from the list. The rules had not been established before Toshi had tried to cross, however.

Kiyoshi didn’t seem impressed with his accomplishment, much to his disappointment. No “oohs” or “aahs”, just an obvious statement. Toshi was quick to negate it. No! He let out a dramatic huff as his bottom lip jutted forward. He even closed his eyes and stuck his nose in the air just to show how upset he was. No wet butt.

Toshi looked down at his brother with a mischievous grin. Come on Yoshi! he challenged, You do it!

The dramatics did little to sway Kiyoshi. The stone-faced puppy continued to peer at his brother, eyes narrowing at the jutting of his lower lip and the pout that had settled onto his features. No matter how pitiful he made his expression, Toshi would still have a soaked rear. The fumbling of his puppy paws against the wet stone could not be reversed.
 
The challenge, however, seemed to light a fire in Kiyoshi’s gaze. The burly young wolf plodded toward the trickling stream and peered at the steppingstones with an impassive face. “Kiyoshi,” the pup reminded his brother. Yoshi was not his name and Toshi had grown well enough that the full moniker should have been easy enough.
 
With a soft grunt, the pup jumped from the bank onto the nearest stone, wobbling only slightly. His eyes latched onto his sibling expectantly.

He had to admit, he didn't expect Kiyoshi have that competitive spunk, but he was up and ready to go as soon as the challenge was given. Toshi's tail spun rapidly behind him. Now that's the spirit!

His brother had way more luck jumping from land to rock. No hesitation, just went for it. Landed almost perfectly too. Hehhehheh, you deed it! But he could do it better.

Toshi turned away from his brother and started down the next rock. He backed up as far as he could, adjusted himself, and leaped forward. Unlike last time he didn't fail miserably.

The assumption that Kiyoshi wasn’t a competitive boy was a safe one. He had never shown signs of wishing to compete with those around him. The young pup had instead been instilled with the natural confidence of someone who simply knew what they were capable of. With age, this would turn into a dangerous thing, for he was also learning that the skills he did not practice would not be improved upon.
 
Regardless of his efforts, Toshi was ever the cheerleader. The bark of success from his sibling had pulled the sights of the pup upward to where he caught the darker-cloaked boy attempting to leap to his next mark. He succeeded on this, landing with a confident stance and a pleased expression. Kiyoshi simply hopped to the next stone so that he was closer.
 
“You did it, Toshi,” Kiyoshi remarked in an even tone. It lacked emotion, but this was simply the boy’s way. He was still pleased that his brother had accomplished his goal.

Wasn’t the most enthusiastic praise, but he’d gladly take it. He grinned and made an ’oh stop it’ motion with a paw.

He turned towards the other side of stream and squinted at the trees. Hmmm... What could possibly be out there? His mind was filled with all these fantastical possibilities, none of which he could properly explain.

Toshi looked back at his brother and asked, Watchu think’s out there?

The question seemed to be a natural one for their age. Kiyoshi peered out across the stretch of land and into the wilderness where his brother was speculating. The expression on his face did not shift or change as he turned his sights back to the darker boy.
 
“Trees, wolfs, bugs,” Kiyoshi answered his sibling. It only made sense that the rest of the world would be full of things that they were already familiar with. Surely, beyond the borders of the pack that they belonged to was an entire kingdom of places that were covered in shrubs and foliage that they had yet to explore. “We can go see,” Kiyoshi then prompted.

Trees and wolves? Awww, but they already see those everyday! The bug thing could be potentially interesting. Munster bugs... Toshi gasped. Imagine fighting a wolf-sizes beetle or something. That’d be so cool!

Yeah, yeah, yeah! Now Toshi was hooked on the monster bug concept. He leaped from rock to rock with some newfound confidence. He wanted to get to the other side as quick as he could.

Kiyoshi’s brow furrowed just slightly at the mention of monster bugs from his brother. The serious young pup had not said anything of the sort. It did seem as though this premise had fueled Toshi into leaping from rock to rock until he had crossed the creek and found footing on the other side. Kiyoshi watched his sibling with zero contemplation until it was his turn to cross. Each leap was done so with surprising confidence; it was as though he had no fear of falling or making a fool of himself.
 
“I do not think the bugs will be monsters, Toshi,” the burly young boy remarked as he landed with a soft huff beside his kin. The tone was not chiding in any way. Kiyoshi simply wanted his brother to understand what they were likely to see while on their adventure. Knowing that Toshi’s excitement was half of the experience, he waited for the other boy to lead the way.

Toshi watched  his brother leap from one rock to the other without fail. So cool! he thought. Maybe one day he’d be just as skillful as Kiyoshi.

You dun know that! They’ve never been on this side of the stream before. Who knew what creatures could be lurking around the corner? Toshi was eager to find out.

He sprung forward and hopped along an unmarked path. He kept his eyes peeled for any monster bugs, or anything interesting really. Nothing but trees and shrubs for as far as the eye can see. It’s all stuff they see daily. How disappointing.

Luckily their search would not be in vain. A strange looking bug clung onto a trunk and made this weird buzzing sound.

LOOOOOK!! Toshi pointed towards the tree. What’s that?

Kiyoshi nodded his head at his brother's initial statement. It was true, he did not know for certain what was beyond the waters they had just passed. Until that point, they had remained fairly sheltered and limited in their experience with the world. The uncertainty of it should have been a concerning thing for the young wold pup, but Kiyoshi seemed unphased by the events of their adventure thus far. He simply followed his brother, a dutiful looking thing. 

When the insect was discovered, Toshi took a good deal of interest in it. Kiyoshi's ears turned to his brother and he approached with a stern look of interest at the unfamiliar bug. When he came up alongside Toshi, the unknown creature seemed to buzz a melodic little chirp. Kiyoshi's head canted to the right. He turned to look to his brother, wondering what Toshi made of the noisy thing. It was not an unpleasant noise, he felt. "A bug that makes noise," he said softly. It was rather unique, and so he was drawn to it.