Shadewood Bluer than a butterfly

AW! Maybe @Sivaak, @Yakona, @Daa'ka, @Cetseni ?

 
ts'okhun's tiny paws bounced eagerly against the earth as he ventured further from the warmth of his mother’s side. just a month old, yet there was an energy within him that urged him onward, full of wonder and the thrill of discovery. his legs were still clumsy, the muscles not yet fully developed, but that didn’t stop him from trying to leap onto rocks or pounce at the leaves that danced on the ground. his coat was thickening, still a little too soft for his tough world, but he didn’t mind.
his bright, curious eyes scanned his surroundings as he darted from one rock to another, his small form darting back and forth with boundless energy. the world seemed so big—larger than it had when he first opened his eyes. he wobbled with each jump, yet the excitement of movement and exploration was irresistible.
he stopped, snuffling at the earth for a moment before pushing forward again, his mouth opening to release a curious bark, though it came out more as a squeak than a full challenge. he darted back, then forward again, feeling his heart race as he tested the limits of his little body, unaware that the world around him was still vast and untouchable, but he was making his way, one step, one leap, one tumble at a time.

father had not yet come to retrieve c'ede', so he was still bundled with sleeping siblings. sleeping, not for long, when drawn by the sound of ts'okhun venturing from their mother and her responsive growl that thunders through his body.

c'ede' had no clue these were not his real siblings. he had no clue sivaak was not his real mother. they were born days apart—the size difference in them was not so startling.

he wouldn't question, though, not yet. he had no reason to. and he was too young to understand any explanation his father might give him. he didn't understand what half the words his father said to him even meant.

he takes off bounding after ts'okhun's fading presence not long after the boy left the den. growling, barking, inciting play. catching up finally and barreling into the other boy, teeth going to tugging at his ear and legs pushing as they begin to wrestle.

ts'okhun's small growl vibrates in his chest as c'ede' barrels into him, the force knocking them both to the ground. the young wolf wriggles beneath c'ede, his tiny legs kicking out playfully, trying to squirm free. he lets out a playful yip, sharp and quick, before rolling over and darting away, tail high and wagging excitedly.
his movements are quick and agile, his paws scrambling against the dirt as he circles around c'ede', ready for the next round. with a burst of energy, he leaps back into the fray, nipping at c'ede's ear with a sharp but gentle tug, teeth grazing the fur before quickly darting away again, urging the white boy to chase.
ts'okhun's body is light, and he uses it to his advantage, slipping under c'ede's weight and darting away with a mischievous glint in his eyes. his paws dig into the earth, propelling him forward as he waits for the next move, eager for the game to continue.

Mother’s thunder awakens the girl to a coldness where brothers once warmed. She gathers herself slowly, yawning, feigning utter disinterest in the play she was not invited to. But Cetseni is still asleep, and without a sister to badger red eyes follow the boys out to where they tumble along the bosk.

The kit leans into an exaggerated stretch before slinking into the green, hidden save for a black-tipped tail that cannot help but to banner high and mischievous. Milkteeth catches the dash of dark brother’s paw as he leaps, her little chest rumbling in fierce mimicry of her dam.

She is the last to stir, but the absence of sibling warmth ushers her to wake not soon after the rest have wandered. She rises to her front legs first, giving a shake of her head, and the other half follows not soon after, she gives a glance back and a wordless chuff to her mother before zipping away, fast as little legs would permit, finding her brothers, and better yet, her sister facing the other direction.

There is no moment of hesitation. It is like... a calling, something greater than both of them, wound into the twine of their souls; to annoy one's sibling... better yet to give them a scare..?

Irresistable.

Cetseni tumbles into the fray, seeking an ear, ideally her sisters but she mouthed blindly at the air, anybody could've been caught in the lunge.

c’ede’ crashes to the earth with ts’okhun beneath him, a growl rattling from his throat that sounds much fiercer in his head than it does aloud. milkteeth flash, tugging at fur, scrabbling with oversized paws—until ts’okhun squirms free and darts off again.

sh’owk’oon!! c’ede’ yaps, breathless, clumsy, flinging himself forward.

he chases, but not fast enough—his legs too long, body too loose, and ts’okhun always slipping just out of reach. then something moves. the grass shifts.

whuh—?

and then someone tackles him.

GAH—! he squeals, flailing, jaws snapping wildly with laughter.

ts’okhun had been running on air, paws barely brushing the dirt, a crooked streak of fur and laughter zigzagging through the green. c’ede’s paws thudded somewhere behind him—too big, too noisy—his brother always too loud to catch him. he liked being chased. liked the rush in his chest, the snap of breath in his nose, how the grass bent out of his way like it knew who was fastest.
he didn’t see yakona until her tiny teeth grazed his paw mid-leap—ACK!—and he twisted midair, crashed sideways with a grunt, but already he was laughing, squirming, trying to crawl under her belly, under the grass, anywhere to escape the avalanche of cetseni barreling in from the side.
no—NO! he yapped, tail wagging like a flag.
he was swallowed into the tumble, limbs everywhere, bodies wriggling, jaws nipping with no aim but joy. ts’okhun squealed as cetseni grabbed something—his tail?!?—and kicked at the ground, rolling with all the might of a mighty (tiny) warrior.
you nev’r cat' me 'gain! he declared, voice muffled by a mouthful of grass.

They tumble into a writhing mess of limbs and snarls, the girl felled first by sister then by her brothers’ kicking.

A gentler soul she may have been before the spill of sister’s blood, in the warming brace of a parent’s love. But Yakona was Sivaak’s daughter, a girl born to cold and ice, and the muradoii sought to punish her sister’s surprise attack with pinching teeth, not yet sharp enough to damage. Still, there is a harshness to her joy, a wild instinct, and when she has regained her footing she attempts to subdue all three pups; lording over them like the muradoii queen.