The Sunspire Let me teach you

Hope it is okay I implied you were already there, @Cicero. To SS wolves; Harmless teaching on how to be a spy. xD

Burke didn't know when he got himself on pup duty but he seemed to be more surrounded by them than ever before. At first he encountered Damien and, boy, did he need to learn some manners. Burke took the little black pup on an adventure to the borders. After that while having some fun with Tanith Cicero seemed to walk in on them. In turn he had to carry the pup back to his home. And today he was on another mission to teach Meldresi's young. Somehow he wasn't entirely annoyed with it.

Burke wasn't a very fast wolf with his large build. He moved like a tank, strong but slow. This was great for Cicero who's legs hadn't reached adulthood yet. The last time Burke saw Cicero he had carried him back home, now he was doing the opposite. "Are you ready?," he asked, looking to the cub while he was walking out of the inner heart of their territory.

totally fine!

Today was Cicero's first time out of Blackfeather Woods. He was excited to explore different territories but, most of all, to learn a bit more about spying on other packs. He remembered vaguely that he had once been taken on a trip of spying on plants and deer and other things by the scarred white wolf that used to linger outside their den when they were smaller.

"Sees-roh go shhhh," Cicero told Burke, the wolf who was going to take him on his first trip outside of Blackfeather Woods, while they crossed the borders. Cicero was not quite as advanced in speaking as his siblings were; he just didn't seem to care as much about it. Only time would tell if the black and white patchwork boy would catch up or if he would always remain a little... special.

<3

Burke nudged him in a kind matter. The tank of the male could be kind if he wanted to. Taking Cicero out for the first time showed how much trust Meldresi had in him. He would do everything to get the youngster safely on Black Feather lands. The male seemed placed with Cicero's answer. It wasn't as developed as Damien's but since they weren't his pups Burke wasn't really worrying about that. "Alright." The large male walked out into the light. The dark forest started to thin and make way for a wide open field with green grass.

Burke hoped that Cicero would be too distracted. "Okay tell me which way the wind is coming from." Burke took this task very seriously, that is how he saw this. A task. "When spying you have to make sure the one you are spy doesn't smell you. It is also a good tip for hunting. Make sure the wind doesn't tell the one you wanted to spy that you are there," Burke tried to simplify his words but it was though on him. He would need to make the child understand after all.

haha poor burke <3

Cicero allowed himself to be nudged and guided by Burke, while he padded through the forest. However, once the forest gave way for the open fields, Cicero's jaw dropped and he stood and stared, admiring the openness and the light. He squinted his eyes when he stepped into the light, since Cicero had grown up in the darkness and was not used to so much sunlight. There were patches and clearings of it in the Woods, but never this much all in one place. He didn't know whether to be taken aback by it or fascinated.

Burke asked him some questions, but Cicero was completely distracted by the great outdoors and barely registered the questions. Something about the wind. He wasn't used to so much wind, either! "Wind!" Cicero yipped excitedly, and his little tail wagged as he galloped out into the open fields while the wind blew through his fur and the sunlight warmed it. "Eeheeheeheehee!" Cicero loudly giggled while he galloped away from Burke at full speed. He wasn't trying to get away from his guardian; he was just excited and temporarily forgot he had a guardian, was all. After going out into the fields, Cicero flopped down in the grass. The ground was still cold, but spring was on its way. Cicero excitedly looked at the bright sky and yipped, "Heehee colours!" He'd completely forgotten what he was here for in the first place. Something with being sneaky, or whatev's.

I know right xD

Burke grunted lowly when the pup just dashed off into the light. The grey male casually walked after Cicero. He wasn't worried that he would run away. He didn't seem like that type of kid. He would be amazed too if you only knew darkness. Burke found Cicero by scent and nudged him back to his feet to then grab him by his scruff and carry him for a small bit so the pup would focus. The last time he carried Cicero he actually became more calm, which was the mood Burke wanted the pup in. He reached a small hill and stopped placing the little man down. The wind was blowing straight at their fronts. "Where is the wind coming from?," he asked once again.

"See, so now it makes our scents carried that way." When he said 'that way' Burke turned his head to look over his shoulder behind them. "Well lets spy a pack, yes?,' he spoke then. "Forward little soldier. To the mountain range up ahead." Burke walked on, keeping an eye on one of meldresi's jewels.

When Burke found him, he picked Cicero up. Cicero looked around, making "oooh" sounds and gasping at all the amazing things he'd never seen before that were all around him. He didn't struggle, however, and remained calm for the duration of the carrying. When he was put down again, however, things completely changed.

"Wiiiiiind!" Cicero bellowed excitedly, and he let his tongue loll out of his mouth while the wind blew in his face. "This wind this!" Cicero concluded, and he looked at Burke to see if that was the right answer.

When Burke mentioned their scents were getting carried away, Cicero followed Burke's directions to behind them. He stared at the space behind the pair of wolves for some time, trying to find what it was that Burke pointed at, before looking at Burke and asking, "What?"

Then it was time to go on their spying mission. Cicero was excited, because he liked sneaking! "Shhhhhh toy shhhh!" Cicero directed Burke, and he crouched low to the ground and started to sneak, walking slowly, making himself small and making no noise — well, except for the pleased, quiet "eeheeheehee" because he couldn't contain just how exciting this whole trip was.

Cicero <3

Burke was definitely going to need a week vacation after this. Cicero wasn't as focussed as Damien. He was used to him. Once he put the pup down he was a mess of excitement again. Burke instantly corrected him in a parental matter that this excitement levels were not appreciated. His teeth pressing into the nape of Cicero's neck in a strict but painless manner. Just a warning. "Yes. The wind blows at us," he spoke. Burke wondered if the pup wasn't too young, and he was too technical already. "Because the wind blows at us. Our scent goes that way," he pointed out.

The large masked male watched the little one sneak next to him. Finally some quiet. And he did had the right technique instinctual. Burke walked further on. Picking Cicero up when they had to cross the river, he also picked him up when they had a bit of a climb to Sunspire lands. He didn't want to tire the pup out too much. When they had to climb a small bit, about a kilometer, he placed him down. This would be manageable for Cicero. He would have to focus on walking up the mountain, which would probably also be a bit foreign to him. That is when they reached Sunspire border. "Okay stop walking where you think the border is. You have to use you nose."

Cicero still did not grasp the concept of the wind blowing their scents away, but he lost interest in it when they commenced onto the sneaking bit of the journey. The nip did not do much to limit Cicero's excitement — not for more than a brief moment, anyway — because he did not understand fully what it was for. He knew he was being reprimanded, but not why. Only when they began their sneaking did he quiet down because he could focus on something other than his boundless excitement.

They moved for a while, and Burke picked Cicero up when they needed to cross a river. Burke told him to stop walking where the borders were. The concept of borders was still fairly new to Cicero, because he only really knew Blackfeather Woods territory. He cast Burke a questioning glance, but didn't ask, and instead just sniffed the air around him. He sneaked forward really quiet-like while he sniffed the air until something out of the ordinary popped up.

"Wolf here!" Cicero called out, perhaps a little too loudly, at Burke, when he smelled the scent of wolf growing stronger, just like at the edges of Blackfeather Woods (except this was from different wolves). Was this the 'borders' Burke was looking for?

Burke watched the pup explore, and even though he called out way too loudly they reached a border the male knew he had to act pleased to make the pup feel appreciated. The thing was... He never really showed those emotions. "Good job," he nodded courtly. "You did it," he spoke. That didn't sound very happy. He trotted up to the kid and gave a big emotionless lick over his cheek. "Well done," he spoke. Burke cringed himself. But it would do. "Alright. Normally that is the line where others say; Do not cross. Our land. But.. we as spies, don't listen to that rule alright?!," he explained.

Burke moved low to the ground and started sneaking into the territory of the Sunspire. The male kept a close eye on the pup. "Be very quiet," he whispered. "To that bush, crawl under it." It would be a little task and a hiding spot for the young one. Even though they were only a bit over the border, Cicero would need to learn the aspect of hiding for the one he was spying on. Burke hope the pup would get that. The large male stayed low to the ground and eventually laid next to the bush.

While he was praised for doing a good job, Cicero just nodded with a big smile on his face and waited for further information. He knew that others were not supposed to cross a border — or at least, he knew that others shouldn't cross Blackfeather Woods' borders — and apparently that applied to other packs too. However, as spies they weren't supposed to follow the rules, Burke informed him, so they could do as they pleased.

Burke told him to crawl under a bush while they snuck into the territory, and Cicero galloped over to the bush Burke pointed out. Halfway through, he realised that he was supposed to be sneaky and whispered, "Sees-roh shhh," though mostly to himself, and snuck on, keepin low to the ground and moving slowly. When he reached the bush, he crawled underneath it and waited. Since his attention span was not very large, the bush occasionally wiggled with puppyish giggles while Cicero awaited further instructions.

So cute!

Burke moved with him, frankly the pup wasn't very quiet, but that was why he was still a pup. "Okay onto the next hiding spot. Stay low." Burke figured they might steal one piece out of their caches as a reward for the little one. Burke wondered if they could find a cache. If not then he might feed the pup a rabbit on their way back. Burke moved on to the next spot, moving further away from the border and deeper into the heart of the sunspire. But then he realized they were only a kilometer into the heart of the SunSpire. Burke hushed Cicero often. "Can you smell food?," he asked, just curious if the younger nose could.

If not they might turn around soon, and leave without much trouble. "Otherwise lets find the border again. Turns out Sunspire has nothing to really spy on..," The large male spoke. It was the truth that this pack mostly kept away from all the pack wars and drama. At least Burke believed so. He stood protectively next to Cicero, looking around their territory if there was anything that fancied his interest.

Cicero followed Burke's directions, moving on to different spots only when Burke would tell him to. He wasn't very good at staying quiet in his hiding spots, but he tried and they didn't run into any other wolves, so there was no danger there. When Burke asked if he could smell food, Cicero looked at Burke's mouth. "No food," said Cicero. He didn't eat solid food yet, so he didn't really think about actually searching for meat; his food came from adults' mouths.

Burke then suggested they find the borders again. " 'Kay home," Cicero agreed, because he figured that Sunspire having nothing to spy on meant that they were going home. Cicero was rapidly growing tired from this outing, even though he was also still really exciting about being out and about. All this sneaking was tiring!

I forgot about that they weren't on solids yet xD Last post from me <3

Burke looked at Cicero and then realized the pup might not even be on solids. He was getting food for nothing then. Since Burke wasn't hungry he would turn around. Sunspire was chosen because it sounded like a good pack to spy on. Burke was right about that, they were so much on their own there was nothing to spy on. Burke agreed with Cicero to go home. They had to walk back too. The large male turned around, he didn't bother to sneak out of Sunspire lands. He would just walk. Burke kept his pale eyes on Cicero. Making sure he was following and not be getting too tired to walk.

Eventually, because it was way quicker, Burke grabbed the pup and carried him from the river all the way to Blackfeather territory. Well, at least Cicero had his first spying lesson. He placed the youngster by his home. "Good job," he spoke. "Make sure to rest, okay? Strong spies get their sleep." With that Burke went to his own den for some sleep too.

Cicero let Burke guide and carry him back home. Only around the open fields did Cicero get a little annoying, wanting to break free and play out in the fields, but once they were past there and back into Blackfeather Woods, he got easier. He remembered just how tired he was when they reached the den, and let out a long yawn while Burke said good-bye. "Bye-bye!" Cicero said and he waddled over to the den, where he curled up inside and fell asleep, dreaming of all the exciting things he'd learned today.