Dragoncrest Cliffs Continuity

Pepper had been under the impression that pearls were for the young wolves. They were largely something he still did not understand, admittedly, but most packs had rituals like this one. If anything, they could provide entertainment--especially for the younger wolves, and give them a sense of belonging. 

A sense of belonging like he felt when Chacal motioned for him and his mate to retrieve their oysters. He returned the motion with a smile before pulling to his paws with some difficulty. He collected three of the salty creatures in his maw, then returned. He hadn't been picky with his selection, figuring each one had the same chance of containing a pearl as any other. 

Before coming here, he had no idea what a pearl was. And the revelation that they formed inside of these creatures--which, also surprising to find out that shells could be alive--was a strange one. He'd learned quite a lot about the sea in these past months. 

Things like how to open an oyster, which would be helpful now. He took the first one. It was a large oyster with a color similar to his coat.

After some gnawing with no luck, he glanced at the other two, wondering if he should give up and opt for one of them with a hope that it would be easier to open, but his perseverance was rewarded when the damn thing finally gave and his tooth slipped between either shell. With a paw, he pried it all the way open. A large, dark lump filled out the now-exposed meat (which he fully intended on eating), and after a bit of squeezing with his paw, out rolled a large, shiny black pearl, which he quickly placed a paw over to keep from rolling away. 

It was quite pretty, and as he stared at it, his old tail gave its best few wags. He imagined if Phobos were a pearl, he'd look something like the one beneath his paw.