Sun Mote Copse did gyre and gimble in the wabe

They were already growing out of their neonate stage, transitioning toward their socialization phase in another week, give or take a day or two. Sugar and her siblings might not be ready to meet the world just yet, though bits and pieces of the outside continued to find their way into the confines of the den. That included regular visits by family and friends and, very recently, what appeared to be a more prolonged stay by @Eljay, a wolf the littlest youth often mistook for her father, and his two charges, the familiar @Weejay and the markedly less familiar @Elfie.

If the den seemed a little crowded, she didn't notice, as she was much too busy familiarizing herself with these long-term visitors and all the sights, smells and sounds they brought into the Blackthorn home. Oftentimes, she attempted to engage her older cousins in play, though today it was her father's lookalike that captured her attention. No matter how many times she pounced his paw or swatted at his tail, he did not respond. This only served to rile up the energetic puppy, who was about to champ down on his nose when a big gray paw swept her away from her poor victim.

Sugar grunted and squirmed, big black eyes squinting up at @Finley's face before she sank her newly emerged milk teeth into her mother's ankle.

Title from "Jabberwocky" by Lewis Carroll.

Knock knock.  Colt stopped by every so often too, though his own kids kept him hopping.  Between bringing gifts for @Niamh, pacing the borders of what was now his claim, and checking in on everyone, he was working up quite a daily schedule.

Today was Finwood visit time to make sure his latest batch of nieces and nephews were up to snuff.  He'd babysat a time or two, sure, but couldn't be too careful with a mom like Fin ;).  (JK even Colt knows you are second best mom, Niamh being first because he likes his parts as is thanks).

How're the pipsqueaks? he asked, shoving his head in but nothing else.  He had food in the form of a big fat beaver, but he'd left that outside.  It was a little crowded to go in all the way, so this visit wouldn't be long unless Finley decided she needed a break (or someone in this thread decided for her).

Avery didn't mind the new additions to their den. She was still free to eat, sleep, and squirm about as she pleased, and even had the benefit of learning from Elfie and Weejay as social role models. Of course, given the option, she would happily choose to gnaw on or wrestle with her own littermates, but that was to be expected.

She hadn't been paying much attention to Sugar's latest antics, until a large figure loomed in the doorway. Accompanying this silhouette was a new smell; she couldn't identify it, but it was the beaver that Colt had deposited just outside the den. She began to make her way towards him, nose uplifted and wriggling with curiosity.

Finley shook her off as if she was nothing but a pesky burdock. Before Sugar Glider could retaliate or otherwise think of what to do next, a distraction presented itself in the form of a head floating in the doorway. The youngster blinked up at it with black eyes, familiarity registering faintly, then spotted Avery moving toward the wolf who seemed all head and no body.

It wasn't competition that compelled her forward, simply intrigue. The smaller puppy wanted to investigate too. As she tottered closer to the looming head, she drew in the scent of freshly slain beaver, though she didn't know it for that. She slowed and tipped back her wee striped head, nose wriggling and nostrils flaring as she drank in the scent.

Meanwhile, her beady black eyes pinned on her uncle's chin and she proclaimed, "Eeks!"

At his invasion, his sister just shot him a look, and Colt chuckled.  That bad, huh?  He couldn't believe they'd managed four.  Colt was extremely glad Niamh had only had two, and that everyone seemed happy and healthy after across the board.

Two of them wriggled forward to greet him and he settled back on his haunches to slide down, letting them closer to investigate.  If you like that beaver, there's more where that came from.  He turned and snagged a piece of the tail, one big enough that they could chew on it without any danger.  Here.  He dropped it for investigation right between the ones he'd internally dubbed "noisy" and "nosey", though the former he'd learn might rightfully belong to another.

Avery looked at Sugar as her sister drew alongside her, intent to do some investigating as well. "Eeks," said Sugar, and so it only made sense for Avery to mimic her. "Eeks!" she insisted, although she wasn't looking up at Colt's chin like Sugar was. She was still watching that furry lump at her uncle's feet that smelled so good.

She was rewarded when Colt lowered himself to the ground and then moved a bit of the mysterious object closer to her. She peered at it tentatively for a moment, nose still working in overdrive as the scent filled her nostrils. And then, not because she had been given any instructions, but simply because it seemed like the right thing to do, she carefully fitted her mouth around the beaver's tail and began to gnaw, her eyes going wide in response to the taste and feel.

When Colt moved to sprawl on the den's floor, Sugar's mouth opened in an "o" of surprise. There was a body attached to the head after all. He plucked something up and set it between the two sisters. Avery immediately seized the object in her little maw. Sugar did stretch out her neck to sniff at it with her tiny nose, though her attention soon turned back to her uncle.

"Eeks, eeks!" she parroted herself, suddenly bounding forward to pin his nearer paw.

Nosey immediately took the bait, so half a win.  Colt put out a paw and tried to slide it, wondering how well the kid would be able to hold on.  They were still pretty small, so probably not superbly so.

Noisy did not, but continued to squeak in his face.  Y'know kid, I can't understand a damn thing you are sayin, he said with a grin, ignoring any looks Finley threw his way.  Then she caught his paw.

Quick for a tyke.  He did the same thing for her... pulling away gently, seeing what kind of a fight she put up to keep her prize.

Avery nommed busily for a few seconds, exploring the new sensations. Things grew more complicated, though, when Colt began to shuffle the tail away from her. She let go long enough to gasp, and then pounced forward to plant her little paws on it with a miniature growl.

Providing he didn't move the object again too quickly, she resumed her chewing, watching from the corner of her eye as her sister started to play with Colt's other foot.

She managed to grasp it between her own tiny mitts, her blunt muzzle descending to apply her sharp little milk teeth. When Colt pulled it back slightly, she growled through the flesh and fur in her mouth, its high pitch making it sound more like a rumbling squeak than anything particularly ferocious.

There was something knobby pushing at her small pink nose and Sugar tried to wriggle it, to no avail. The motion tickled the sensitive olfactory tissues, prompting a sudden sneeze. She let go of Colt's foot as a second, then a third, assailed her. A fourth threatened, her face scrunching in preparation, only to fade without ever making an appearance.

Sugar was left blinking and wiggling her sniffer. She could feel something dangling from her nostril and instinctively bent her head and lifted a paw simultaneously to swipe at it. A thick rope of snot extended between nose and toe, momentarily fascinating the youngster.

moving him into the bg, don't wait up! Feel free to close this out <3 gotta get my threads in order w reduced list now

feel free to power play colt if you want though!

Kids and snot.  Some wolves might have been disgusted, but Colt just shook his head and laughed.  Got a dangler, he said, moving his now damp paw to boop the pup lightly on her head.

Gently he nudged her, wanting to see if she too would go check out the toy he brought.  Not that he minded being a chew toy... but better to get her used to the things she should be chewin on first.

Avery just kept on gnawin', tilting her head to the left, then to the right in order to really get at the beaver tail with her back teeth. While her mouth was busy, her eyes stayed focused on Colt and Sugar Glider, watching intently. She flinched each time Sugar sneezed, but it didn't stop her chewing.

Not even the string of snot dripping from her sister's nose brought her pause. She only offered a little huff that was probably supposed to be laughter, and continued working her jaws around the chew toy.

Momentarily oblivious to the others, Sugar just kept staring at the rope of greenish yellow goo extending from face to foot. When Colt brushed her head, she ducked instinctively, then remembered herself and looked up at him. Simultaneously, her paw dropped back to the den floor and the rope broke. What remained of it swung to the packed earth beside her milky white toes and stuck. The pup bent down and licked it up, goop and dirt and all.

With her boogers taken care of and Colt melting into the background, Sugar's attention turned to Avery and the beaver's tail. Perhaps another pup might have felt competitive about it, though as far as she could see, there was plenty enough for both of them. Toddling over to the side opposite her sister, Sugar crouched down and put her new milk teeth to the rough leather flesh. She took to it like any canine takes to rawhide, murmuring happily at how good it felt on her aching gums.

It wasn't long before Sugar had gnawed herself into a drooling stupor, beetle black eyes slowly drifting closed. Even after she fell asleep, her jaw kept working, as the hunk of beaver's tail became less of a chew toy and more of a pacifier.

Avery was pleased when her sister finally joined her, and gladly shared her chew toy. Her happiness was expressed by the wrinkling of the corners of her eyes -- if her mouth hadn't been so full, she would've been smiling, but she didn't want to stop gnawing for even a second.

After a while, Sugar Glider fell asleep with the beaver tail in her mouth. Avery, too, was growing tired, and she finally relinquished her grasp on the item with a yawn. She stood just long enough to turn in three tight circles, then curled up next to her sister and their prize.