Redhawk Caldera Olive garden

A few days later, the Redleaf-DiSarinno family had settled well into their new home. The pups definitely appreciated the wide, open spaces and kept themselves busy exploring every inch of the rendezvous site. They had only been here a few days, though Nightjar, Wildfire and Raven had already become familiar with the boundaries. All five of them felt freer out here in the open wilderness.

Peregrine would have said life was on an upswing, if not for the caldera's recent tragedy. Presently, he stood at the edge of the clearing, partially hidden by tangled scrub. The sun had risen just moments ago and the rendezvous site was still rather shadowy. He could make out the outlines of his slumbering family. But his mind was not on them just now. He thought of Jaws and frowned.

In a serendipitous turn of events, a soft peep called his attention to one of the branches overhead. There was a small jay perched there. Wolf and bird exchanged a long, silent look, then the former took wing and disappeared into the lightening sky toward the east. Had that been Jaws's jay...? Peregrine's right ear twisted backward, jade eyes following its silhouette until it turned into a speck and vanished.

I'm hoping for a @Raven, maybe? But anyone's welcome! :)

Daddythread! :D

Raven had worn herself out with all the running and exploring she had done in the past few days since the family had moved to their new rendezvous site.  Each day, she set off in a different direction and had already discovered so many interesting things.  In a small, sparse stand of trees, she'd found a rotted piece of log which, when rolled over (with great effort, as it was just big enough to be too heavy for her to move easily), revealed a fascinating assortment of bugs, worms, and beetles writhing and crawling in the moist dirt beneath.  Another cool find had been a very tiny stream of rainwater runoff which, when she laid her body down across it, would pool up and eventually run around each side of her to trickle past her and resume its course.  It was ticklish and felt funny.  She'd already found lots of interesting rocks and sticks she'd have to show Wildfire later, and she'd come across a few interesting flowers and mosses she hadn't seen before too.

Needless to say, she'd been so busy that when she slept, she was all but a corpse.  She was out, snoring like a little buzzsaw on her soft bed of grass, when a sudden and jarring kick from a dreaming Wildfire jolted her awake.  Noticing the soft light of dawn and the absence of her father, she sat up and looked around, yawning.  She spotted Peregrine standing a short distance away, watching something intently.  The little blackbird stepped around her sleeping siblings and toddled toward her dad, stopping when she stood beside him.  "Hi, Da-dee," she greeted him adoringly, tail waving behind her.

He admittedly zoned out after that, eyes still fastened on the general spot where the jay had disappeared as he reflected back on Jaws's brief life at the caldera. The Alpha would truly miss the snaggle-toothed hybrid quite a lot. He had really grown on Peregrine during his time here. He sighed softly without realizing it, then started when a small voice spoke, interrupting his melancholic trance.

"Hey, baby girl," Peregrine said softly, smiling at Raven, thankful for the interruption, really. "Do you know what they say about early birds, Rave? They say they get the worm. Do you wanna dig for worms with me?" While Wildfire was showing a penchant for Naturalism, her sister seemed to have similar interests. He hoped she would accept his offer, as he'd found a perfect patch of rich, earthy soil nearby that would make an amazing digging patch. And he might have been four years old but he was still a canine, so Peregrine found great satisfaction in a good dig.

While she wasn't the alpha pair's boldest pup, Raven was still just as insatiably curious and mischievous as any other youngster might be.  If there was one thing she definitely loved, it was getting rough and dirty.  Anything she could throw herself into -- be it mud, puddles, wet grass, you name it -- was a good idea as far as she was concerned.  So when Dad asked if she'd like to dig for worms, she shook her head in a vigorous yes! at the opportunity to get good and dirty.  Besides, worms were gross and cool.  Who wouldn't want to dig some up and mess with them?

Bugs, worms, dirt, gross things...It was entirely possible that Raven was a boy in disguise...

She bounded forward a few steps before stopping to see if her dad was coming.  Tail waving, she grinned and declared, "I'ma wanna put worms on yer head!", followed by copious amounts of giggling.

Hey, since this has been sitting for a month, I'm going to drop it off in the archives. If you want to revive and continue, just say the word! :)

Not only did Raven want to dig for worms, she wanted to put them on his head. Peregrine laughed genuinely at her childish exuberance and innovation, then bobbed his own head. "That sounds like fun. Let's do it." Whatever melancholy he felt over Jaws's untimely death momentarily faded to the back of his mind as he grinned at his youngest puppy, then motioned for her to follow like his little shadow.

They arrived at his destination in less than two minutes. "I'm not sure what happened here," he mused aloud. Why wasn't there grass growing here? "Maybe there was a carcass here that took its time decomposing..." he continued thinking out loud before shaking his head and meeting Raven's gaze. "Have at it, Rave."

He didn't doubt she would dig right in (literally!). Peregrine positioned himself near one corner of the patch of earth and began running his own paws through the soil. It felt so thick and cool, sifting between his toes. Peregrine made a noise of satisfaction low in his throat. After a slow start, he soon began to dig more vigorously, even swinging around so that all the dirt he pulled from the earth he playfully flung over his daughter's back.

Raven got her chance for revenge a while later, when she indeed unearthed some worms. Rather than plop them on Peregrine's head, she flicked them in his face. He couldn't tell if she was more grossed or fascinated when he slurped one just like a spaghetti noodle. Their playtime culminated with Peregrine catching a second one in his teeth, holding it there and chasing his squealing daughter with it as she fled back toward the main clearing.