Noctisardor Bypass does my memory linger and flood the room for you?

guardián’s hard-work guarantee hadn’t been abandoned yet. since joining, his days consisted largely of small hunts (unsuccessful) and sparring with bushes (uneventful), neither of which might have meant much from onlookers, but were very important to him.

this morning, the one and only time he did catch something — a chipmunk, maybe? — it was deposited outside of @Arbiter’s presumed den as a thank you for her generosity. then, he made his way toward the rendezvous to seek out a different afternoon pastime.

Her parents didn't seem to mind if she and the other pups loitered around the mouth of the den, peeking outside every now and again. The other two might have attempted escape, yet Grub was happy to park in the threshold and simply observe the world outdoors. Even just sitting there, she exercised all five senses.

The air smelled like rain today, its cool fingers soughing through Grub's pale fur. She tipped her tiny snout into the breeze, her mouth watering at the smell of meat. She watched in silence as a stranger drifted closer to the den, dropped a small kill, then disembarked again.

At first curious about the carcass, Grub moved forward to sniff at it. But her eyes fixed on the stranger's backside and some instinctive impulse took over her small body. She crouched and began stalking through the grass after him.

if someone were to ask, guardián would say that he didn’t know he was being followed because he hadn’t eaten yet, and his senses were a little off. normally, he might have been more perceptive, and certainly never silly enough to lie down while an enemy lurked nearby.

of course, that’s exactly what he did. guard decided that he would enjoy the sunlight for a while before continuing with his duties, inadvertently leaving himself vulnerable to the forces at work.

No one snatched her back to the den, though Grub didn't think about that or how she might've incidentally lured her parents into a false sense of security with all her prior fence-sitting. All her concentration poured into the hunt as she stalked her prey. He moved much more quickly, so it took every ounce of her energy just to keep up enough not to lose sight of him.

Then he stepped and dropped to the ground. Grub paused too, crouching even lower now, eyeing him through the blades of grass. For long moments, she didn't move, instead resorting to her usual habit of observing. But this time there was a purpose. She didn't realize it consciously, though Grub was waiting for just the right moment...

It came and she struck, lifting onto her toes and launching at her quarry's tail with nary a sound.

okay, yeah. there was something going on.

subtle movement behind him caught his attention. guardián opened one eye and swiveled its respective ear, though he remained lying down, convinced that this was nothing to be worried about. he didn’t think to turn around and investigate until it was too late, and there was a baby trying to maul him.

oh! guard laughed, trying to move away, watch the teeth! this must have been one of arbiter’s kids, right? if that were the case, then he knew he ought to be careful.

When one of her little paws pinned his tail, allowing her to then grasp it in her jaws, Grub felt a surge of triumph. She clamped down without thinking, though the stranger's shout made her freeze. Her eyes lifted to his amused expression and her own tail twitched once as if to say, I might be trying to kill and eat you but I swear I'm friendly.

Her instincts compelled her to remain latched and even worry the tail for a moment. Then, satisfied with her target practice at least, she spat it on the ground and backpedaled a few steps to get a better look at the stranger. He was larger than Grub, though not quite as large as the adults.

Her brother and sister often attempted to speak and, certainly, her parents talked around and even to her all the time. But she didn't make a sound. She just stood there and stared, a faint smile on her face and her tail idly twitching hither and thither.

there wasn’t much that guard could do aside from standing and staring until she decided to let go. when she did, he quickly whisked his tail away, just in case she got any more funny ideas.

you’re pretty funny, guardián said, do you like to play? he lowered himself into a preemptive playbow, similar to how he had with arwen, then rolled lazily onto his back to say come and get me!

Grub knew the word "play," especially when paired with a demonstration. She shook her head at him, then stilled when the sight of the older pup bowing before her began tickling her predatory instincts all over again. Suddenly, her small body went rigid, her tail thrust out like a poker. With no other warning whatsoever, she sprang, throwing the entirety of her body weight (which wasn't much) at his face.

she didn’t make him wait for long before pouncing forward. instead of aiming to grab a paw, or maybe his flank (obviously too easy), the spunky little legionnaire went straight for guardián’s face.. and landed the hit.

he closed his eyes, if only by reflex, and turned his head upward to keep the more vulnerable parts out of reach. guard already had his fair share of scuff marks; getting a few more for the sake of good playtime didn’t really bother him that much.

to keep their game going, he used a free paw to swipe at her, hoping to knock her a bit off balance.

She made impact and scrabbled as if trying to find purchase against the uneven planes of his face. Between this and his playful swipe, she went tumbling backward, landing on her left hip with a quiet oof sound. Grub sat there a few beats, considering attacking again, but was suddenly distracted when something buzzed in her ear.

Grub rapidly shook her head, which got rid of the noise directly in her ear. But a moment later, she felt something grazing her neck, barely discernible. Before she could possibly consider reaching up a hind leg to scratch at the tickle, there came a stinging sensation. It startled her so badly that she abruptly darted to her feet and made a beeline (ironic...) back toward the den.

Feel free to follow and/or intercept. :D

there was something bothering his playmate that neither of them could see. guard stood upright to examine the situation, but by the time he’d found a good angle, grub was speeding her way back toward the den.

he followed her for as long as he could, which was until they neared the actual entrance. arbiter had been very clear: he could not go inside under any circumstances, so if grub was ready to go home, then they’d just have to pick this up some other day.

guardián waited to see what had happened, and she wanted to do about it before making any assumptions.

Her eyes cast about for any sign of @Arbiter or @Kaertok, even @Beetle or @Slug. Hopefully one of them could help with this inexplicable pain in her neck. As she neared the den's mouth and prepared to dive inside, she found herself digging her heels into the grassy dirt instead and stopping just outside it.

She panted noiselessly, turning her head when she heard footfalls behind her. Grub's playmate had followed her home. She stared at him as the initial panic subsided and the stinging sensation ceased. It still hurt, though she felt calmer now. Huffing, she turned to fully face the older puppy again, staring even more pointedly at him as if he might be able to explain what the hell had just happened to her.

Oops. Who ordered an overprotective sister?

A yawn escaped the lazy child as she lounged hot far from their home, she did jotnknownqhere her red accented red brother nor did she care at the moment but her ghostly sister she had seen.
The girl had not seen what transpired between the two but the confusion and look for her was evidence enough for her. Dark ears pinned against her skull as she changing gaze landed on a larger, older child. Who was this amd why was the ghost looking for her?

A childish growl escaped her throat as she rose. Her tail waving like an agitated flag just as she reached her sister's side, the girl named beetle rubbed her side against her smaller sibling and looked over her to make sure she was not harmed.l before pointing her gaze at the one that had made her run. He was lucky there was nothing noticable wrong or she might have jumped him, "why you chasin'?" she spoke in speech that was obviously from a developing child but the question was there. Maybe there was a threat in her voice, maybe she was being overly protective.

if anything, guardián certainly wasn’t intimidated by the other little pup. what could she do to him, aside from maybe nipping his butt? rather, his main concern was with arbiter, and what she might do if she overheard him ridiculing either of her daughters.

not that ridicule was in the plan, but you get the point; guard had to play along. sorry, he said, ears flanking either side of his head, we were playing. then something spooked grub, and next thing you know, he’s being interrogated by a newborn.

you okay? he asked, this time directly to his playmate. what was wrong?

Beetle appeared, her tail stiff as a poker as she growled at Grub's playmate. She began to shake her head, a paw reaching out to gently nudge her sister's shoulder. It's okay. I'm okay. Her eyes flicked to the older pup as he apologized and asked if she was all right. Grub nodded. The pain was almost gone.

Perhaps she should make introductions, yet Grub was too young to know proper etiquette and, besides, she didn't know his name. There was also the fact that she hadn't uttered a single word in her life. Instead, she stretched there in front of the den, then plopped down on her belly beside the dead chipmunk to do what she did best: observe.

You two are welcome to continue and skip me, this ghost will just be creepin'. :)

this is just a cameo!

the ruckus draws pingasut's attention from the nearby blackberry bush he was practicing fighting on — if 'practicing fighting' could be considered aggressively attacking the branches, blossoms and fruit with swipes of his paws, lunges that left him with mouthfuls of leaves and berries which suffer the violent shake of his head and burst sweet upon his tongue. the ivory of his front paws is smeared with the bruise purple berryjuices. he draws his salmon pink tongue across his lips and picks up a plump berry fallen from the bush in his assault and swallows it in a quick bite, barely tasting it in his hurry to see what all the commotion was about.

he hears grub's voice and another youth's — a stranger's. pingasut arrives on the scene, crashing unceremoniously thru the underbrush to find his sister conversing with an older and bigger cub. something about a chase and playing. he sniffs at the air, and squints at the older child, unsure what to make of his sister's victim. he spots grub hanging back at the mouth of the den beside a dead chipmunk: a meal, or a friend? and makes a wide circle studying the strange cub before moving to stand in the background, ready to hop in if he's needed but not feeling invested enough to jump in the conversation.

Atuaserk's eyes showed agression even as her ghostly sister touches her shoulder to assure her that she was alright, if they were just playing games then why had her sister been running? Why was he asking if she was alright? The child looked over her ivory sibling, taking inventory before she nudged her back with a nuzzle to her neck.


Her tail remained in the air as she looked over the boy, tilting her head as she assessed him. "Play nice wif sis." She demanded before she moved closer, looking back at Grub. She had noticed her brother but did not motion to him or bring attention to him as she looked back at the taller boy. "Name?" well someone was being demanding.

guardián looked downward at this little girl, thoroughly surprised by how much attitude could be held in one little body. were he and his siblings like this when they were little? yeah, probably.

he would play into her games though, lowering his own tail after seeing hers rise. i’ll play nice, guard assured her with a firm nod, promise. hopefully, that would be enough to get the pup police off of his back.

she asked for his name, which he was happy to give. guardián. what’s your name?

omg, ignore the pompous child!

He lowered his tail when hers rose, a sign of submission that she would gladly take. He was bowing to her authority, acknowledging that she was the queen here and rightfully so! A smile finally weaseled it's way onto her face, her eyes showing more a superiority complex rather than the hostility that had burned in those changing eyes. He promised he would play nice, and she nodded as if this subject pleased his royal leader and let's face it. It totally did.

His name was given just as she commanded, okay this boy wasn't so bad if he knew how to obey. "Garden" she tried to mimic his name but it came out more as the type of place flowers grow rather than the guardian his name said he was. Oh well, she did not correct herself but gave him her rather easy to say name as he asked so nicely for. "Beetle." Yep, that's right, her name was after a bug.

wrap?

her pronunciation wasn’t perfect, but that was to be expected from a little kid. alright, beetle, guardián said with a nod, can you make sure your sister feels okay? he was still concerned, even if she’d already stopped showing signs of distress.

guardián would then leave the densite, determined to find some way to make himself useful for the day.

wrap <3

Her tail remained in a dominant position, a clear sign she was calling herself the alpha of this little encounter. She was pleased that he used her name but looked back at her ghostly sister when she was mentioned, she had touched her in a way that said she was fine and so that's what she was going to go with. Her gaze returned to the grey boy before her with a sharp nod, "she told me.. she's kay." How could she tell him that she understood her motions and touches as if she had actually spoken, no one would understand their connection. She shrugged, it could not be helped. 

she would move to her sister's side oonlce he left, dropping to the ground and almost smothering her with her body if she did not move out of the way.