Redhawk Caldera Scouting mission 101

Chapter 2

Day 10 of established existance.

Thorough work on filling up reserves. Upgrade from a stationary 15th century cannon with a danger of self-explode to a rolling-crawling tiny tank. Vomit-artillery still lacks precision. 

Situation: evolving.

Status: busy. 

End of update.

In a matter of a week and a bit more Ceridwen had grown almost twice in size and weight and had acquired a more canine-like form. Her proportions had evened out and therefore she was more mobile and less prone to falling on her back and unable to move. Therefore, when she was not snoring merrily under/on top/inside/between/next to/far away/wherever-else-it-was-possible in a puppy pile, when she was not eating greedily, she was shuffling around quite actively. On more than one occasion anyone, who was in charge of looking after the newborns, had to get up and bring that Flying Dutchman back to the shore. Quite early to make any precise predictions, but it was evident that Dwin would be that kid that you could never let out of your sight. 

Maia had grown used to lazy days spent within the den, surrounded by a heap of puppies that seemed to be constantly on the move (comparatively speaking). She would take occasional breaks and leave them to Eljay or one or her daughters, but for the most part, these initial weeks were constant. She did not mind.

She was napping, but a cheerful 'hello' at the den mouth had her snapping awake. Looking, she caught the shadow in the den and also caught Ceridwen making her little shuffling way towards freedom. Fortunately, that voice was easy to recognize. Bridget. Maia had actually forgotten that the other medic was back.

You can come in. Don't mind the escapees. Maia didn't know the woman well but she trusted her. Eljay had a good sense of character, and besides, who would hurt a puppy? Especially in Brecheliant. She'd trust any of their pack with them so long as she was here, and even otherwise at times.

cameo to bring in Bridget <3 can be skipped! I may ref her a bit through, but anyone else is welcome to join also ofc

Bridget smiled and stepped inside as Maia welcomed her in, and her smile turned into a small laugh when she saw what the wolf meant by 'escapees'. You've got a runner. Oh, you are adorable! She glanced at Maia for quick permission, then gently picked up the pup and set her down a little closer to her siblings. Just not far enough so she couldn't admire and play with her separately.

Since Eljay had spoken with her about them, she'd been meaning to come and see them and check if there was anything she could do. Maia's support system was a bit larger than Teya's, so she'd let it fall by the wayside a tidge. She was glad she'd finally found the time.

Alert! Alert! Air assault!!!

In terms of senses Dwin was still rather oblivious to the world around her, but she could already recognize, who was who in that little tiny universe of her. When an invisible force of unknown source picked her up (it felt all wrong!), she froze first and then let out a siren-like wailing sounds. In her mind they filled the room and rattled the den walls. In reality - it was more like squeaking a piglet would let out, if caught by surprise. She did not stop vocalizing even after being put down on the ground again. 

Bridget froze when Ceridwen started to wail and instantly looked at Maia, expecting the worst. She wasn't worried that she hurt the pup but different parents had different levels of tolerance for this. Fortunately Maia didn't seem too bothered, though she did reach for her.

Bridget set the pup down within range of her mother's comforting muzzle, then stepped back and lowered herself to a sphynx position. That is quite the set of lungs! It was probably good to get in the habit of editing her vocabulary around the kids, just for when they were older. Holy shit wasn't something she could imagine coming from either Maia or Eljay's mouths.

You're fine. Here, alrighty then. You figure me out first, alright? She laid her head down, ears forward, and stared at the puppy across the short gap between them. She'd let her explore her a bit and sort out for herself if Bridget was worth yelling over in the future. Little banshee, she thought fondly, and wondered what her parents would think of that nickname. Maybe she'd keep it to herself for now.

Home base.

Sensing mom's presence, Dwin's wailing went down from full-scale siren to few annoyed huffs and eventually to a sigh. She wiggled her paws a bit, attempted to roll on her belly, but managed the opposite. With a gentle push from Maia, she regained ground again. After a bit of contemplation on, what her next actions would be, she began crawling towards Bridget. Not conciously, of course. For the sake of moving around. Unavoidably she bumped right into the adult wolf's muzzle. 

A fort? Huh?

Bridget, unknowingly, held her breath slightly while the puppy once again came towards her. She realized it a moment later and smiled, then exhaled, likely blowing a slight puff right at Ceridwen. She was so cute!! So like Sorana and then so different in a lot of ways already. Where her 'Neice' was happy to trust anyone as long as mom was within sight, this puppy clearly had more discerning taste in company.

When her muzzle was bumped, Bridget let her tongue sneak out to give her a quick kiss on the cheek. Partially to see what she would do and partially because she just couldn't help herself.

Slobber-defence system activated!

Bridget's move confused Dwin's perception of, where people were located in her world. Milk-tank and Bath-torturer was behind her. There was a safe distance between them, so that it would take Maia two steps instead of one to grab her grubby infant and scrub and polish it up properly. Up until now Dwin had been certain that this particular activity was reserved to one party only. Now - it turned out that her whole conception of the world had been wrong. There were more of those Bath-turers!

Proper response loading...

While her tiny brain was seeking for a solution, Dwin remained, where she was, momentarily disconnected from the whole situation. 

Immediate retreat.

One bath a day was a one bath too many already. The girl did not want to go through it again, therefore she began to slowly scrabble backwards. 

Bridget didn't succeed in stifling her laughter at the pup's expression. She seemed completely scandalized. Not a fan, noted. Well, if she wasn't into that.... how could she possibly entice her to be friends? Bridget thought for a moment, then stood. Be right back.

It took her a few moments, but eventually she found what she was looking for - a rabbit's foot, nabbed from the remains of a kill nearby. That would do well enough!

She didn't close the gap completely with Maia on her return. Instead she sat nearby, hoping she'd catch the puppy's eye, as she tossed the toy and caught it lightly in her muzzle.

Unfortunately, the toy Bridget brought was too advanced for a 16Mbit RAM that Dwin was operating with (remember - she was still 10 days old). Not to mention that the light perception sensors were very weak at discerning any objects. Puppy's life was in a blur with light and dark and many shadows inbetween. In the darkness of the den sight as such did not play any particular role. 

She did briefly lift her head, as if trying to analyze the scent that wafted in her direction, but it may as well have been a completely random action. Having lost interest in the stranger completely, she shuffled around, deciding on the general direction of her movement. And then with the sound of - eee-uff, eee-uff, eee-uff - accompanying her every crawl she returned to Maia's side. 

Roomba had finished the job and parked. 

Mission accomplished. 

We can have a new thread! Dwin's mobile now!

perfect!!! I'll try and start one/tag, but feel free to also if I don't get to it quick enough! <3

The puppy didn't seem to compute, or wasn't interested, but that was no loss. While tossing the foot and catching it, Bridget found that it was actually a pretty nice workout for her own legs and balance. Sometimes she'd have to adjust sideways, sometimes she'd have to try and scuttle backwards, and after a few tosses she missed when she overshot and about fell over. Well, shit.

She'd been intending to toss the toy to Maia when she had given it a few tries, but instead she kept it and gave Maia a tip of her head. Maybe when they're a little older, she said with a laugh, then picked it up and flicked her tail farewell. She was absolutely taking this thing to the lake shore and seeing how many tosses she could get in a row. A new game and a new way to improve her balance? Sounded like a major win in her book!