Noctisardor Bypass Meanwhile your life

@Grub & @Beetle & @Slug when they get a player can pop in too! I think you all haz eyeballs now. Others welcome to show up too if they dare. :P

The bad thing about dens and pups was that she was already starting to feel claustrophobic about the whole thing. The good thing about it was it was shelter from the sun, and things had been pretty toasty out the last few days. On the other hand, it also meant if Arbiter left for a few moments to get a drink or chow down on something that had brought to her, there was no danger of the pups freezing or something.

She'd been outside in the noontime sun because Spook had brought a particularly scrawny jackrabbit that he'd caught (or maybe just found). Not the biggest meal or whatever, but it was something, she supposed, and he still seemed to be trying to go above and beyond to impress her, but Arbiter was a tough cookie. Licking her lips clean of what remained of her meal, she turned and ducked back into the den, laying back down next to the trio before looking them over. First one to wiggle was going to get a bath.

Her dream had been a pleasant one, one of her siblings was there but she could not remember what she were doing. Her pale sister was quiet and ghostly, they way she normally was but what were they doing? Oh, what did it matter?

Unfortunately for this little girl, she was the first to move. A loud yawn-like sound came from her lips and she could not help but give a big puppy stretch as she blinked. Wait, she blinked. Movement halted as she realised there was something in front of her, something only her lose recognized because this being had never been in her dreams. She blinked a few more times to try and remove the bleary image but it only got sharper. Was, was that her mother?

A sharper than normal squeak came from her lungs as watched the being get closer. Bath time!

Gentle jostling roused Grub from sleep. She stirred slightly, lids slowly parting. Her eyes had opened a few days back, though her vision remained fuzzy at best. She peered around the den now, trying and failing to focus on the various dim objects. Some of them moved, which of course snagged her attention. There were noises too, though Grub only barely registered them; her ear canals wouldn't open properly for some days yet.

She wasn't hungry, so it was tempting to close her eyes again and drift back to sleep. Instead, Grub rolled onto her belly and let her chin sink to her paws as she silently observed the blurry goings-on inside the den.

But okay, the more they stopped acting like, well, grubs, and more like wolves the more tolerable being here was. So Beetle's eyes being open was a step in the right direction -- it was one of those things where a small fragment of a normal person could be seen through the exterior she'd carefully crafted. She licked the girl clean of the dirt that had picked up on her pelt, Arbiter wasn't delicate about it, she was definitely part of the "kids need a good scrubbing" club instead of the "peaceful flower happy bathtime" one. After, she paused to examine her work, then leaned in to nuzzle the tiny girl, watching her reactions as her senses had started to come alive. Step one of... how many? Again, she thought it'd be nice to get above ground again.

Once she had assured herself of Beetle's progression she turned her attention to the next daughter to stir. Grub, however, definitely showed the dirt more -- the danger of a white pelt -- so she was a prime target number two. However, this time Arbiter moved in the reverse order, using her chance to nuzzle her to also shift her a bit to get a better approach. Then it was the licking. Just like with Beetle, she'd get runt through the spin cycle until Arbiter was sure that she was fine for.. A while at least.

in the draw of bathtime, the odds were expressly in slug's favor. he was a deep sleeper and he stayed sleeping even as his sisters awoke one by one. they were the first victims of their mother's scrubbing while he continued to doze. the jostling of his sisters' bathtime stirs him awake. he's groggy and initially grumpy. he lets out a noise of protest, stretching and kneading for a moment, suckling for a few minutes to sate the tiny rumbles in his stomach. slowly, his eyes peek open, in a swirl of blurring shapes and shadows that he didn't understand. he makes a startled noise, detached from the nipple and blinks owlishly again as he peers around with a heavy head, unaware that he was the next in line for a bath.

This was not a pleasant, 'let's sit in the sun and have a nice bonding time' type bath. No, this was a bath that could only be described as a 'get the last but of dirt from behind your ears' scrub down. This made the monochrome girl let out a rather loud sound of squeaks and pitiful growing sounds,  it was obvious she did not enjoy the rough treatment. How dare the treat me like a mere mortal. When she was nuzzled and prodded she patted at her mother with tiny paws, trying to wiggle away from the rough treatment. Little gurgling growls could easily be heard as the one called mother finally moved onto her ghostly sister. 

Well that was unpleasant.

Nothing particularly important happened for a few moments before the largest shape in the den suddenly loomed closer, soon obscuring Grub's view entirely. There came the familiar sensation of being snatched by the scruff and lifted. The pup went pliant and made no protest, blinking slowly at the slight motion blur.

Next thing she knew, she was settled back on the ground and maneuvered into place by that big, gloomy shadow. There was a flash of pink and white, accompanied by the likewise familiar pass and press of a damp, warm tongue. Grub let out a single and nearly inaudible grunt, then shut her eyes and gave herself over to these ablutions.

We can wrap. :D

And yes, Slug was next! Couldn't leave one of the trio out, they were to all get the same fair treatment in the name of equality. This wasn't the time to play favorites when there was so much time for them to grow and sort such things out themselves. No, that would be the fun for a later time. 

She was curious what they would be like months down long down the line. When they weren't just mostly blind squeaky things. Strong wolves that contributed to the pack, she was sure. Would  Beetle still be this loud? Would Grub continue to go with the flow? And Slug? It was something to contemplate while being trapped here below ground.

Once done she looked them over a final time, a touch of her nose softly to each, before lowering her comparatively large head tucking herself around them. She was here to protect, to teach, but days had to pass before there would be answers would arise. It was just a matter of time.