Nova Peak a man alone

attn: @Raider @Riley (& Rowdy) @Riot

Their eyes had opened for the world to see, and yet they saw very little. They could make out large shapes, the occasional bright light, but they would never see with the clarity that their parents did. Still, they were drawn to the mouth of the den—one of the only visuals that they could lock onto—and their hearing had already begun to compensate for what their eyes lacked.

Presently, they were trundling toward the bright light, keen on the newness of it (although it had always been there). "Out there" seemed so much more intriguing than "in here."

I know I’m a thread hog, so this can be a cameo if anybody else joins! :)

Raider took a deep breath. Then another. And another.

Ever since the invasion, she’d felt terribly vulnerable. It reminded her of the time she and Riley had both been injured, making them painfully aware of the precariousness of their situation. Although they had backup now, Dragonspine was still small, small enough that the Alpha pair was forced to choose between defending the den and the territory at large.

The choice was obvious, she mused as she watched Ruckus trundle toward the den’s entrance. But it didn’t make it easy. As her child moved nearer to all the dangers the outside world presented, the fur along Raider’s spine prickled uneasily.

Part of her wished to slow down time, so she could savor these early days with her brood. Another part wished to speed up time, so the pups weren’t so small and vulnerable. Then they could join their parents to guard the borders, among other things.

She exhaled, gliding smoothly to block the doorway.

They were blissfully unaware of the invasion that could have threatened their life. When the light was quickly shadowed by a large, blurry shape, Ruckus stopped, sat, and pouted for a moment. They were determined to get past the blockades that were their parents and make their way into the world out there. Still small and a bit wobbly, they began to try and scale the mountain that was their mother. Tiny paws scratched and scrambled, attempting to summit Raider's spine so that they might meet that glorious light outside their world.

Much like Raider, Riley couldn’t get the invasion out of his mind. It wasn’t as if there had been a devastating fall out — but it spoke to how vulnerable their lives were.

He moved silently across the den as Raider blocked the entrance. Lately, his hip had been bothering him — he noticed it wasn’t healing as well as he was used to. Lately, he even felt occasional bouts of fatigue. Perhaps he was growing old and this — among with many other things — pointed to a gradual senescence Riley had no control over.

He watched one puppy — Ruckus by the red tufts along his back — try to scale Mount Mom. He grinned to himself - he wouldn’t mind scaling Mom himself later. Inching close, Riley noticed that Ruckus’ eyes had opened. The milk blue of Ruckus’ gaze was unfocused - something Riley incorrectly characterized as normal for fresh puppy eyes.

He sighed, noticing the other two were asleep. Other than his sore hip and general tiredness, things at Dragonspine weren’t too bad. Look at those little eyes, Riley hush-whispered as to not wake the other two.

Her eyes rested on Ruckus’s face, watching the different expressions drifting across it: first, a pout; then a thoughtful moue; and, finally, a fierce determination. Raider’s lips pulled into a smile as the puppy promptly attempted to scale the slope of her back.

You don’t have to live up to your name, you know, she scolded playfully, bending to tickle their ribs with her nose.

Riley’s remark and looming shadow made her glance up at him. This angle gave her a great view of his chin, which made her want to thrust her head into the space between it and his chest. Of course, she couldn’t risk toppling poor Ruckus.

Beady little eyes, she agreed, turning her attention back to their child.

The voices of Riley and Raider gave them pause, and they momentarily accepted defeat from the mountain that was their mother. Their gaze moved back and forth as each of their parents talked (more at them than to them). Raider's nose touched their ribs, and they helplessly batted away the gesture with their own little paws.