Redhawk Caldera Toto, I've got a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore

I power played your toon a little bit; I hope that's okay! :}

The pups had reached yet another milestone: although they had been sampling meat since their second week of life, their parents were now starting to wean them. In a matter of weeks, they would be full-time carnivores. Along with more protein in their diet came more energy and activity. They rarely remained within the confines of the whelping den these days. They spent most of their time in the little dooryard, though sometimes they followed Peregrine or Fox a few meters beyond that. Within a week or two, they would begin straying much further, albeit with adult supervision. The family would come to abandon the den right around the same time that the three cubs were fully weaned, at their eight-week mark.

Their language skills were developing rapidly as well. By now, all three of them could babble in their strange alien language. Of course, none of the adults could really follow (not for lack of trying!), though the three of them seemed to have no trouble understanding one another. They were three peas in a pod. They had their spats now and then and some measure of sibling rivalry was normal even for the closest brothers and sisters. Only time would tell if they would remain close or drift from one another in time.

This week, Wildfire was a big fan of her sister in particular. Although @Raven was younger, she was already bigger than her litter mate. Besides, neither one of them knew anything about age. Wildfire found herself looking up to Raven, fascinated with her darker sibling. She followed her wherever she went and complained if they were separated for too long. Whether they were playing, sleeping or eating, Wildfire wanted to be right next to Raven at all times.

Presently, the two of them had strayed a few feet beyond the patch of grass in front of the den. Peregrine was stretched out nearby, though he'd fallen asleep when a soft, fuzzy Nightjar had slipped under his arm, forming the perfect pillow. The girls were a bit too young to be willfully disobedient, though Wildfire kept inching away from the little dooryard. This was mostly due to the fact that she was collecting sticks and rocks. The more she added to the pile, the further she had to go back out to fetch some more. Considering how quickly she was accumulating these objects, it wouldn't be long before she began straying from view of the den, though only if Raven accompanied her.