Bearclaw Valley mini explorer

For anyone Chev hasn't met •w•

Every day that had passed, he seemed more and more worried about his family. Where was Peridot and Baldur? Where was papa? Where was his mother. When he had first come he had thought this was the changed Blackfeather Woods. But the more he studied it, the less he still thought so. It was light, way to much. His father always came to him daily, but now he never seen him.

He sat out in the exit of the den, looking out at the field quietly. Quiet was not supposed to be his style. He was silent because he was sad. He loved this place, really he did, but he didn't feel whole without his family beside him. He turned around to examine the resting family. They all seemed to be sleeping.

Suddenly he had an amazing idea. He could go looking for his family right now! This was the perfect chance since everyone was sleeping. He stood up and silently marched away and into the clearing.

His tale was spinning like crazy as he ventured farther. This was so exciting! His first time out by himself!


In a couple of minutes he was met with a lake. He waddled up to it and looked down at himself. His fur was not like the others it was a light creamy color. His snout was a darker color. On the bottom of his chin was a tiny bit of fur that drooped down. Little did he know when he grew older it would look like a beard, not that any wolf knew what that was. His eyes were light blue, and on the top was slowly changing silver. He smiled down at himself, "Leo! Leo!" He was one cool looking wolf if he did say so himself.

The man had made a point to stick closer to the den his family was staying in, more to watch over his children than anything else. He'd noticed when a small pup was brought in, but hadn't questioned it. He knew how Scarlett always seemed to find those lost or looking for a home, and he also knew she never had a problem with taking them in. Her decision to do so was probably influenced, too, by the size of the child. He wondered who he was, where he'd come from, and probably would have known had he visited his previous pack more often. Sadly, though, he hadn't visited them in quite some time, which reminded that he would eventually need to. There were things he wasn't currently sure of, however, and so he made no plans to leave anytime soon. Still, he knew he would need to someday, just someday farther into the future.

Kove had been laying a little ways off, watching the entrance of the den in the shade of some bushes. It was not to hide, but to keep himself cool. His coat was still thicker than most due to his lineage, and he'd noticed his son, at least, had inherited the same genes. He hoped the boy was keeping cool, just as he was. When the Inuit's copper gaze caught sight of something—or, rather, someone—peeking out from the den's entrance, he was quick to stand up. At first, he thought it might be Desna, as he'd only seen the dark muzzle, but was soon relieved to find it was not his hefty daughter. Still, a child was a child, and this one happened to be younger than his own. He started towards the boy, following him to the lake he'd found. His steps were quiet, still, and the mark of the brotherhood stood proud against his pale coat. It needed a touch-up, he knew, but he would need to wait to have that done.

The elder's ears perked when he heard the boy saying something. It was a name, and he believed it belonged to him, since no one else was there and he was looking at his reflection. "Don't get too close," the ghost said as he closed the distance between them, coming up and sitting down beside the smaller's form. The man suspected the boy could not swim, and didn't want to risk him falling in. Kove would save him without a second thought, there was no denying that, but that wasn't the point. "Is your name 'Leo', little one?" The taller's head turned to glance down at the whelp, wanting to make sure his assumption was correct.

He had not noticed the bigger wolf until he heard a voice in the back of him. His sandy head turned around to discover the voice. It was a lighter wolf, like his step-brother, but more bigger. At first, the youngster thought it had been Peridot, but it was the scent of the male. When the pale wolf sat next to him, Leo jumped up and let his his tiny paws rest on his side. He didn't understand a word the other was saying, so he just stared up, blinking in awe.

He didn't understand anything until he heard 'Leo'. His tail started wagging and he chirped out, "Leooo!"

Kove's body kept still when the child jumped up, only his head moving to follow his motions as he leaned against the man. He was curious about what the smaller was doing, and about him in general. He had to remind himself that the younger probably could not yet understand him, or much of what he said, anyways. It was like back when Meldresi's young were still small, and he'd first started to interact with them. He'd tried to speak to them as if they were older than what they were, and would need to continuously remind himself that only a small fraction of what he'd say could be understood. After his own children had been born, the reminder had started to stick in his head better, but he still slipped up every now and again—such as he'd just done when approaching the boy.

Still, the Inuit found his question to have been answered, more or less, when the child repeated the name. Leo. It had a nice ring to it, though he had no idea what it meant. It was a name he'd never heard before, but it also wasn't overly strange. It lead him to believe Scarlett had come up with it, which presented a big question—what was the kid's true name? Kove gave a shake of his head, clearing his mind of any lingering thoughts. It did not matter who the child was before becoming Leo, what mattered was that he was there in the valley, and it seemed like he would be staying. "I wonder how you got out..." The words were meant for himself, as he didn't expect the boy to fully understand what had been said. It seemed someone was almost always guarding the den from either the inside, or closely on the outside, so it was surprising to see the child had managed to get away.

Lowering his head, he nudged the child in the direction away from the water a bit, still concerned about him falling in. "You shouldn't wander out alone, Leo," Kove pointed out, keeping a careful eye on the boy. He wondered, briefly, what had led the child to exit the den. Perhaps he wished to explore, or maybe he had another reason for doing so. The questions were left unasked, however, as he didn't think he'd get an answer either way.

He was nudged away from the river, which confused him. What was so bad about this liquid? Maybe it was more dangerous than he thought.

You shouldn't wander out alone, Leo.

 The only thing he understood was his name. "Leo!" he repeated for probably the millionth time. It may have been annoying to others, but he couldn't help it. He only understood eight words well. When he grew older he would learn more.

 He dropped into a playful crouch, tail spinning around. "Eega blegh!" he shouted, not saying anything in particular. He pounced onto one of the pale wolf's paw, and started chewing on it.

@Chevalier

As the name of the child, once again, fell from the boy's maw, Kove didn't pay it much mind. He gave a gentle shake of his head, as if he was silently dismissing the boy's constant repetition of his name. The name he was given as a substitute to his true name—a stand-in name, really. It made him curious about what his real name was, again, but given the age of the child, he doubted he'd be able to remember it, let alone pronounce it. If only he'd gone on another trip to Blackfeather recently, perhaps the poor whelp wouldn't be so far from his parents and siblings. Alas, the past could not be changed, though he did plan on making a trip to the Woods relatively soon. Maybe, while there, he would learn of the new mother's missing child, and be able to connect the pieces. For now, however, his attention was focused solely on the sand-coloured bundle in front of him.

With a curious gaze that harboured a humorous glint to it, Kove watched as the young knight fell into a playful crouch. When the child launched forward in order to attack his paw, the pale being had to force himself not to laugh. His milk teeth where not something to fear, especially since the child was only going after his paw—and with all the travelling he'd done in his lifetime, it came as no surprise that the boy's motions did not harm him. He'd marched over snow that was sharper than the tiny lion's teeth, but even still, he did not want to crush his fighting spirit. So, the Inuit let out a low yelp. The falsity of the sound was sure to be detected by any adults within earshot, as he hadn't attempted to make the sound convincing. Even so, he was certain it'd be enough to lead the child to believe it was authentic. To better sell the act, just in case, the pale being even pulled his paw away and set it back down an incredibly short distance away from Leo. "You got me good," he exclaimed, though his voice barely rose any higher than the tone he usually spoke with.

He was happy of the reaction he had gotten. He puffed up his chest, feeling powerful. He was certain he was going to be a warrior, the best one there was. At least later in life. For now this all the damage he could do: use paws as punching bags.

He jumped around the older male's paw, batting at it and chewing on it, all the while giggling with glee.

Kove kept a close eye on the child, observing his movements and the way he went about delivering his assault unto the elder’s paws. Every now and again he would chuckle, finding the boy's actions to be rather humorous. He certainly possessed plenty of energy. During one of the final few hits, the Inuit stood and then lowered himself into a play bow, tail fanning the air behind him. “C’mon, Leo,” he encouraged, offering up a grin to the boy. “Show me the best you’ve got.” The kid had potential, that was for sure, but he wanted to see just how far he would go. Would he take the opportunity that had been laid out right in front of him, or continue with his attack on the elder’s legs? The man waited patiently, watching the lion child to see what he planned on doing. Though the boy was not his own, he could not help but feel some sense of pride towards him. As crazy as he was, the kid possessed talent that, if molded correctly, could turn him into a great warrior someday. He could only hope that his actual son would assist the younger, and eventually fight alongside him, rather than torment him his whole life. Wishful thinking, really.

He went on attacking the bigger wolf's paws, finding this game rather fun. He loved to release all of his energy on things.

The youngster yipped excitedly as a Love went into a playing crouch. He took the opportunity to get the face. His little milk teeth latched onto an ear, tugging at it like any pup should.

December 21, 2015--Edit; Tacked an ending onto this.

A throaty chuckle exited the older wolf as the whelp continue his assault. He believed that, someday, the younger would be an excellent warrior, given how much effort he was currently putting into the little game of theirs. Even when the elder lowered himself down, the attacks did not cease. When he felt little teeth grip onto his ear, he gave a shake of his head to try and get the child to let go. The movement was not enough to make him fall, but more of a playful act. He wondered how Leo would react to such a move, too. There was various ways it could go. The child could tire and be done for the day, pout, or figure out a new way to leave his mark—metaphorically speaking, of course. Kove could not tell which of the options the boy would choose, as he’d never been an expert when it came to reading children. They were wild beings, after all, possessing different levels of, well, everything in comparison to adults.

For the next few minutes, the Inuit continued to play around with the boy, his chuckle ringing out once more every now and again. He'd always been fond of children and had no problem with spending the day teaching them, but he understood that once their energy burned out they, too, were out. He waited until the boy grew tired before returning him to the den in order to nap with the others. He liked Leo, even if the child was not his own, and could only hope that his true children might all accept him someday.