Black Morass Hakuna Matata

@Carlotta these two need their daughter/mother bonding time <3

Again, the self proclaimed queen was off wandering without a worry in the world, marking sporadically just for her own dominant pleasure. It gave her family a trail right to her if something were to happen, or if she was needed, and also a flag for herself to remember where to go. She'd left behind her worries of safety and food and home to have time to relax, though as she passed through the cedars Giana wondered if she should have called to one of her children. Her mate, even, might have come exploring with her; many were stressed though, and perhaps bringing someone would have burned her striving for peace? Carlotta, perhaps, would have been a good choice. The ivory female liked to think her daughter and she were close, and took pride in the fact that Lottie inherited her fur coloring and her tendency to wander off alone. Her other siblings were slightly chaotic, but it was something that their mother absolutely reveled in. They provided not just entertainment, but FUN! Often would the rust-frosted female find herself caught up in her children's plots and games, if not for her own amusement but also to keep herself as happy as possible. Cranky as she tended to be, Giana was dead set on not being a bitter old woman. She wanted to do all she COULD do in her short span of life, and spending time with her kids was far from a crime.
Wandering through the cedars, the snowy queen found a break in the mountain she walked along. Surely she might have been able to pick her way up it, but a fall would mean death and it wasn't something even this arrogant female was willing to test. This opening provided yet another place to explore, and without hesitation did she enter Black Morass. Mud sucked at her paws, but it was to be scrambled over later: Gia stopped only long enough to leave a scent spray before moving on.

Carlotta slowly left everyone behind as she padded lightly through the dense, bare trees, following nothing but her nose. She had been overturning every log, rock and dead leaf in the hopes of finding some bit of green that hadn't disappeared with the rest, but was unsuccessful. Huffing with disappointment and frustration, Carlotta raised her head for the first time since leaving her family, to take a look around. The silly girl hadn't even been on guard for danger, not giving her saftey a second thought before gluing her eyes to the ground and giving her senses over to the search. 
Luckily she came across nothing threatening, and now found herself staring at a wall of rock. There appeared to be an opening leading through to a separate area, one boasting puddles of thick mud and, suprise! More naked shrubbery, trees bare of their leaves.

 Along the way she had picked up her mother's scent in the air and it seemed to get heavier, the closer Carlotta got to the mountain. It was no suprise to her that another member of her family should be around, given their tendency to wander and Lotti decided to enter the stone opening after her mother. Stepping into the cool ooze on the other side, the girl smiled and mushed her toes further into the mess, taking a moment to be a child. 
After all, she was still quite young and had had little time for fun. Splashing as she went, Carlotta made her way to the other side of the mud and jumped onto dry land, laughing all the while. If father could she her now, he would probably scold her. She remembered the reason for her trek to this swampy area and shook the mud from her pelt, taking a quick look around for her mother. Spotting the ivory female up ahead, Carlotta broke into a run and yelled to her kin. "Mum! Wait for me!" 

Well, shit. Guess I'm magic or somethin' now. Giana laughed in her head, picking up her daughters scent. She wasn't all that surprised at Lotties presence, but it pleased her nonetheless. As her familiar tone called out behind the snowy woman, Giana stopped and turned her face over her shoulder. A smile spread across her jaws, warm and excited, and also reflected in her sharp gaze as she swept it across the land. 
       "Come on then Lottie, catch up!"
She teased back to her daughter before prancing off the way she'd been going. What was her daughter doing all the way out here? If she'd been looking for her, the pale girl would have already said something. Had she followed the queen's marks, or was it just luck that brought them together? As her daughter approached, she couldn't help but speed up with a laugh. No agression or dominance came from her actions, just a playful demeanor and some friendly yips bacck her offsprings direction.

Carlotta grinned when her Mother called out and then sped up, encouraging her Daughter to give chase. The young ginger wolf pushed herself harder, pumping her limbs as fast as she could to cover the distance between them. It felt good to run, to stretch her muscles like this. Her siblings and cousin hadn't felt like playing much and since the herds had disappeared the hunt was limited to small critters that required very little chase. 
The brown landscape past by in a blur as Carlotta neared the figure of her mother, and she cleared debris with ease as she approached it. The small wolf was built for speed and stamina, and could run like this for long distances. To play with mother like this was great fun, and she fought hard to catch up. 
They should maybe have been more cautious on this new land, more wary of danger, or perhaps been spending their time trying to hunt. But the Ferretti were not known for their fearfulness or worrying. There would be plenty of time to find food and if they ran into trouble, they would simply call their kin.

Giana waited for Carlotta to come pretty close before really kicking her butt into gear, leaping ahead another few feet. There was no destination, no worries, just to run and make merry. Kicking up her heels a bit in excitement, the white queen couldnt help a giggle. This might not be the rough and tumble play she preferred, but it was their own way of bonding and that was equally as pleasing. Like the ginger and cream female, Gia was not in the least worried for their safety. She was confident in her own skills to prewarn, and if those weren't working well then she was still a hell of a fighter.

Carlotta had definitely inherited a competitive streak from the Ferretti bloodline, and as Giana stopped and then took off again before her daughter could reach her, Carlotta growled. It was all in fun of course, but the young wolf could help herself. No matter how hard she ran, there was no getting close. She may have been fast, but was obviously no match for her mother. 
Noticing her mother was busy having fun and trying to stay ahead, the girl quickly changed her course, slim figure darting behind a fair sized boulder. If she curled herself tight enough, she could fit her whole form behind the grey stone. 

She may not be able to get close to Giana, but a game of hide-and-seek was always fun too. The femme fondly remembered one day, when playing back home with her siblings and Remmy, Carlotta had hid herself away so well nobody could find the whelp. She had fallen asleep under a bush of skunk weed, leading to a pack wide search which ended in Lotti stumbling from her hiding spot completely clueless of the panic she had caused. Giggling softly,  Carlotta waited for her mother to notice her absence.

It was the lack of sound that drew the queen to look over her shoulder and slow, halting and looking around in confusion. Lottie HAD followed her, right? Of course, she'd felt the pounding of her daughters paws in the earth behind her, watched her heading this way. Where had she gone? A few stones and boulders littered the landscape, and she put the peices together pretty quickly. Was this a game, or was her daughter just trying to scare her? Either way, Gia was obviously supposed to go looking.
And so she did. Stalking over to the closest rock on swift paws, one not far from Carlotta, she crouched and tried to scent for her daughter. Yes, there it was: faint, but there. She peeked her purple-blue eyes around, glancing in every direction for her similar-looking spawn, and made another silent sprint for the next rock.

One more post each after your reply, and we can archive it if you want!

Carlotta stiffled a laugh as she spied her mother closing in, trying the boulder ahead of her daughter. Perhaps the younger wolf could make it to the other side of her stone hiding spot, as Giana checked behind. Then Lotti could circle from the back of her mother and jump her from the rear. Delicately and slowly, Carlotta lowered herself to crouch above the ground and began her silent retreat. She kept her ears turned outward in the hopes of detecting the other females arrival. Tensed and waiting to the right for her chance, the cream wolf had no choice but to rely on her sense of hearing and smell. The thrill of hunting her mother burned in her gut and throat, her excitement almost overwhelming. True, Carlotta may have been considered grownup by default but there was a child not far beneath her usual mature exterior. The chance to play and temporarily forget her troubles did wonders in relieving the stress that had burdened those young shoulders. 

Carlotta heard the shift of rocky soil as her mother made for the boulder behind which she hid and had to bite her tongue against a threatening giggle. If she gave herself away now, there would be no sneaking up on Giana and her fun would be spoiled. It was tempting to peek around the side so the wolf could determine the exact location of her "prey" but knew if she did, she would be seen. There was no choice but to wait till she could hear the steps of her mother before moving around.

Scenting her daughter close, the woman didn't slow, but pounced around the rock where the ginger girl had been just seconds ago. Not seeing her, however, brought the white queen to a halt, pressing up against the stone again. With another careful sniff, she confirmed Carlotta HAD been here. Obviously, she'd heard her coming and left, but where'd she gone? In her hesitation, she'd neglected to look behind her, and didn't see her daughter where she'd been just a couple seconds ago. 
Giana peeked her own head around the corner, but luck was on Lotties side: she couldn't see the girl at all.