Redhawk Caldera Back at base, bugs in the software

Shrike did not like this bug situation one bit. His ears twitched this way and that as he listened to their drone, and he continued snapping at the bugs as they bounced off his muzzle and shoulders. Every chance he got, he'd step on them if they came too close to his feet, though the insects were tough and didn't squish nearly as easily as other bugs, especially not under as light a paw as his was. His silvery gaze flashed from wolf to wolf, not recognizing a few of them, but softening when he saw the way the pups reacted to the bugs. Three of them didn't seem to like the bugs at all, though one with curious markings didn't seem to dislike them much, snapping at them when they came close to his face.

Little trooper. 

Of course, this fact led Shrike to reconsider this thought, when he remembered that one of the bugs had broken Peregrine's leg. The thought was changed to possible psychopath but he would keep that thought to himself until the boy gave more or less signs of being one or the other as he grew up. So when he was included in the group that would guard the pups as they made their way into the cavern- an experience which had apparently been bad the year prior- he decided to just keep an eye on Ferret from a distance. Unfortunately, he'd be the first pup that would need a mentor. Gannet seemed to be sticking to Finley while Peter and Whip had chosen their father as their shield- leaving Ferret in need of a guardian.

This could be tricky. 

Having had little to no experience with pups, Shrike was at a loss as he moved closer to Ferret, hoping the boy would simply move along. He seemed quite distracted by the bugs, though, so Shrike took a different approach. Snapping a crunchy bug out of the air, he then placed it on the ground before the boy, and after lifting a paw just above it, struck out at it gently, causing it to skitter a few feet ahead of the boy, in the direction Shrike wanted him to go. He cast the pup an encouraging glance, and intended to shadow the pup's every move, should he either chase after the grasshopper football, or run off chasing bugs.