Redtail Rise XXXIX

set whenever! <3

one pup slept.

the other, @Saturdays Sunrise, was awake. augur had been charged with staying at the den today, which he took to gladly, folding his massive frame just outside the den.

he lay his chin over his forepaws, but he was watching both of them, pale grey ears lifted in interest at their growing experiences.

saturday often did not like the fact that her sister would prefer to roll over and sleep most times rather than do anything with her. many attempts were often made to rouse her sister, with taps of her paws and a poke of her nose to see if she'd be willing to do anything for the day. but most times, her sister would end up crying and tattling to mom, which would leave Saturday sulking after her (silent) scolding from New Snow.

she has learned her lesson, at least. with a huff, the girl leaves her sister in peace after her first failed attempt to get her on her feet. thankfully, New Snow had made arrangements for Saturday's father to visit, so there was someone for her to at least spend time with.

the girl was getting better at walking, minus the few times her limbs snagged on one another and would cause a tumble or two. but she had managed to walk the few paces to get closer to Augur with a string of babbles heard along the way. if her father didn't stop her, Saturday would do her best to settle and push her own little mitts against his, the size difference is comedically comparable to a boulder and a jelly bean.

he too thought the other girl was rather sleepy, and so kept her close as she grew.

he gave the little grayling a lick to the back of her miniscule head, rumbling in low notes to her the name of her sibling, her mother, her father, her brother.

the girl spoke in strings of words. he held his paw still, marveling at the disparity in sizes, and he growled the same to her, ending in a croon punctuated by a thump of his tail.

Dad was huge. that was established by the time Saturday eventually had come to be engulfed by Augur's shadow. his low notes and tail thump would not go unnoticed, thankfully, as Saturday did her best to mimic Augur after she leaned into his touch for the moment he offered it.

with her own little mumbling growl and high-velocity tail that gave heavy hints of her intent, Saturday comes up like a shark from beneath the waves and lands a nibble on Augur's toe! out of concern that New Snow would somehow know the girl was getting overly rambunctious, Saturday avoids biting all the way down. Thankfully, this would mean for Augur that her new teeth coming in wouldn't press his knuckle in a vice-like grip. 

now it was time to see if Dad could play!

augur pushed his great shoulders and large head inside the den, forming a sort of plug for the mouth itself. this way she would be safe, and he could engage her little nips for play.

he growled a low tone of interest, allowing her to test her tiny teeth on his paw, then nudged her with his wide muzzle, intending to gently bowl her over.

it was no wonder that mother referred to her husband silently as mountain boulder. Saturday would come to flip with ease, giggling about as her legs come to splay out before her, though her front paws would attempt to reach Augur's nose if it was close enough. and another tiny growl comes from her unfurled lips, tail thumping against the ground.

now she comes to get herself to her feet, a lot quicker and more stable this time around. her playtime with the caru proved to help Saturday become a bit more aware of herself on the ground, and she found herself to be stumbling less and less the more she moved.

so here she was, stomping around and jumping side to side in a play bow, paws tapping the dirt beneath her in a rhymic sway to see just how far dad was willing to work to keep his daughter entertained. and when she thought he was too slow, a rumbly bark (albeit high pitched and poorly attempted) comes to his ears in an attempt to poke him to make the first move, if he dared that is!

augur tossed his head and mouthed the air, teeth clacking.

a playing rumble vibrated the air around saturday's sunrise.

so little she was, and yet she had the fearlessness of her parental line.

when she moved swiftly, he pretended to be slower.

now his gigantic paw reached to return the tap!

it is fuel to the fire of her courage (which would eventually get a healthy pruning later).

with her attention being... a work in progress to say the least, Sunrise would come to eventually spearhead her finally plan of attack. and so she would come to back up a few steps, stamping at the ground and making her rebellious own clacking of teeth, and now come to charge augur head on as if she were a brazen buck!

it would have looked cooler if she didn't trip during the first quarter of her run, but she did manage to save her run through some swift footwork. her aim was for his plush chest, uncoordinated limbs moving her in a line that is anything but straight towards her target.

prepare for impact!

she attacked like an antlered animal, and her father was greatly amused.

he rumbled a low sound as his daughter began her run, ears lifting to ensure she had not hurt herself with the fall.

but on she came!

her little head struck him just over the heart.

augur pretended to yelp and fell to one side, pawing at her tiny face for mercy!

the mighty crowned beast falls, slain by none other than his own kin!

victorious gurgles of laughter and a high pitched war cry echo from her chambers, the shining knight now sees that she is being begged to stop her rain of attack. and so the girl heeds, not wanting to cause any more harm to her dear father and now comes to see wherever his face landed.

and without the use of teeth, she covers his face in tiny butterfly kisses from her itty-bitty tongue. her tail continues to wag madly behind her, and a tiny paw comes to press against his cheek fondly while garnering her closer to him.

he wrapped her in a giant paw and covered her small face with kisses.

the hunting-girls, the pair of beautiful children borne by new snow; they soothed augur and reinforced his ties to the rise.

even with all that had happened, even with his reticence, this was his home.

augur rose, meaning to urge her into a run.