Blacktail Deer Plateau O' death

Shale was examining a small hole in the ice in the catfish pond--what had happened to cause such a perfect circle?--when the cry from afar set off alarm bells in his mind. Abandoning his idle task, he trotted swiftly to the source of what had almost certainly been Sunny's voice, calling for his father. It was such a plaintive cry that Shale took it upon himself to answer, though he had not been the intended recipient of the message.

It was the father in him, the persona that hadn't died when his children had. He had forever been changed by the birth of his pups.

Sunny was lying on the ground, looking remarkably pitiful. His breathing was wet and thick, his eyes closed. Shale padded over to him, nudging his cheek with his muzzle (hindsight would later inform him getting so close to the boy's saliva was a mistake). "Hey, hey, kiddo, what's wrong?" the man asked softly, gently, lowering himself down to Shale's level and giving him the warmth of his pelt. "Shhh, it's okay. Are you not feeling well?"

Sickness was rolling through the plateau like a terrible storm; some, like Aditya, had been brought to death's door because of it, and others had gotten by with hardly a sniffle. Sunny looked to be in the former category, which worried him. He was a braw, strong wolf, but so was Aditya, and the fever had nearly taken his life.

Tipping his muzzle back, he let loose an additional howl for @Pema, should she be nearby. She would be better equipped to deal with the illness, and would know what herbs to bring Sunny.

 

tags partly for reference. @Grayday can hop in whenever! <3