Golden Glade Vans

mother / sons bonding activity? @Tapat @Astik

jhala mostly slept outside nowadays. the air was still crisp, but it was warmer and more comfortable to curl up to. she still stole one of the dens that the old pack had made though, shoving astik and tapat inside for safety's sake. one early morning, she stood outside the den and barked. she assumed her children would be sleeping inside, and she wanted to wake them up. today was a day for learning. the boys were older now-- they could stand to learn a thing or two about something.

today? fighting.

Tapat was curled up in the den. He couldn't say goodbye to it yet. Even though the pup was past the five month mark he felt younger, more youthful. When his mother barked he slowly blinked his eyes open. The pale pup lifted his head and slowly his body followed. He stepped outside, looking sleepy. He sat down, looking groggily at his mother with a questionable glance. Though his wagging tail would tell her that he was happy to see her.

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Though it is strange …to not share a den with his mother (and perhaps his father?) he takes comfort from the only home he needs: Tapat. Golden Glade is not Larksong Grotto but Astik has long since adapted to the fact that wolves were home more than a territory was. Astik is a behemoth: something he has only recently began to realize. His concerns for the past few months were not on the growth he had experienced, nor how his pudge had begun to harden into impressive musculature. He only realizes it now because the den feels small to him even though it fits him and Tapat comfortably. Still, there is not much room to stretch and Astik rather thinks he would rather spend his nights out in the open. He is not small anymore. He is not helpless and though he tries to understand his mother’s insistence (and knows that her heart is, of course, in the right place) he wonders if he assures her that if anything or anyone wants to hurt Tapat that they would, first, have to get through the battering ram that the rook has become he has yet to. His mother’s bark stirs Astik from his sleep and he groggily follows his pallid brother from the den. For a moment he squints against the sunlight until his eyes adjust before his gaze settles upon his mother, curious as to why she has awoken them.

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now that the boys were older, she couldn't really just call them whatever she felt like. though she was surprisingly patient with tapat, she still used to mutter a light dumbass when he would bump his nose into something while sniffing, forget he'd run into it, and then bump into it again. technically, the boy would probably forget again within the minute-- but she didn't want to risk cursing directly at them. and even astik she couldn't call a fatass anymore, since he'd begun to harden into a more proper young man. she was proud of him, and even astik. they had made it so far and through so much.


"hey lil' geese," she barked when they both poked their groggy heads from the den. she stepped forward and gave them both loving kisses in an effort to wake them both up more. "i'm gonna teach you some sparring techniques today-- that okay with you guys?"

Tapat immensely cheered up by the greeting lick from his mother. He quickly sneaked a lick back at her. Tapat was all for loving kisses towards his mother. He was glad to have her around. He kind of wanted to snuggle up against her and her soft fur. Sometimes the 5 month old still tried to find some milk by her belly. It was just so wired in his brain that if he needed comfort it was there at her belly. He needed to realize it was long gone.

Tapat tipped his head at the word sparring. He instantly felt bad. Because usually when they tried to teach him something he couldn't even remember what they taught him. The pup looked uncomfortable and battered his eyes to the side at his brother. He felt a bit worse. His big brother, who was really also bigger, was turning into more of a handsome young man. Tapat was still small, skinny with fur sticking out in each direction. "Mom," he whined. He admired that she even wanted to try. He felt bad when he realized he forgot something.

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She calls them lil geese and comes forward to greet them both with kisses. Astik grumbles a bit, still half asleep as she gives him kisses after Tapat. “Moooom,” Astik complains but it is purely half-hearted. He does not mind his mother’s kisses but he has to play the part of angst ridden teenager if only to tease her. His ears lifted with unbidden interest when Jhala tells them she is going to teach them sparring techniques. Sparring! Astik’s tail wags behind him as he begins to prance, almost paw to paw in place. Yes! If he knows how to fight he’ll be able to better protect Tapat, watch out for him better. Tapat’s whine breaks Astik out of his revere and he looks to his pale brother with concern for a moment before he moves to bump his shoulder against the pallid boy’s own. It takes a second of sleep slowed brain for Astik to realize that Tapat wasn’t going to remember what Jhala showed them. He would probably be lucky if he remembered it for a few minutes at most, but Astik wanted Tapat to be able to protect himself, too. It was rare that Astik wasn’t his brother’s shadow because it was his purpose in life: to be bodyguard, to be his guide because he could not remember. He was the Rook and Tapat was the King. The rook frowned for a moment as his amber eyes moved over his pale brother in contemplation. “Don’t worry, Tapat,” Astik tells him. “I can show you everyday, if that what it takes.” Astik didn’t know much about the mind or the body but he hopes that even if Tapat’s mind didn’t remember that his muscles would and if he ever found himself in trouble he would be able to just know how to protect himself.

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jhala was still learning about her sons disability. it was something of an inconvenience, sure, but it just made him seem younger to her. younger was okay, it made it seem like her babies hadn't grown up in the blink of an eye. regardless, she hoped that this would e subconscious. tapat surely wouldn't remember it, but maybe it would combine with his natural instinct and would show up should he ever need to defend himself. that was the goal jhala had in mind for tapat-- astik was another story.

her boys both whined when she kissed them, though tapat's were the same sweet whines he gave her when he was still a little baby-- and she could tell that astik still appreciated the affection. "you'll be okay, pat," she promised him with another gentle kiss, "astik's gotcha." and i've got you, she added to herself. her boys would be fine.

"we're gonna start with a ready position-- kay?" she began, immediately dropping down into what the boys would know as a play-bow. "copy me."

Tapat glanced to the side at his brother. Yet, he still looked worried. The pup was curious enough to learn but he was also a pleaser. And realizing that he would forget things later didn't make him feel great about himself. Luckily his brother was sweet about it though. He tried to smile when he got a comforting bump on his shoulder. It lifted his tail a bit. His mother comforted him too. With a deeply sucked in tug of air he gathered his confidence.

His mother spoke about a stance. He had no clue. He glanced at her and then at his brother. He copied it. He sank through his front legs, Tapat realized he did knew this. Forgetting all about training his tail wagged and with his playful bow he instantly jumped towards his bigger brother. The playful bow triggered his brain into playing mode. He wanted to land on top of Astik but his jumping was not that refined.

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Astik smirks as he watches his mother drop into a play bow. He does not think in a real fight they will be play bowing but this is just training, he reminds himself. In an effort to copy his mother turned mentor Astik’s front lowers to the ground while his butt wiggles in the air with a rising snicker in his throat. It is cut short by a burst of laughter and “Hey!” as Tapat jumps at him. His pale brother collides with him as gravity pulls him down from his jump and Astik’s balance is thrown off kilter. Still not used to the bulk and the weight of his body he wobbles like a jenga tower teetering unsteadily. The rook manages to keep himself from tumbling to the earth and bears his teeth at Tapat playfully. “Get in the play bow position, Pat.” Astik reprimands Tapat with clear affection. “Mom’s gonna show us how to defend ourselves.” He reminds his pallid brother gently, with a patience that far exceeds his age. Amber gaze slides back to his mother awaiting her instructions.

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tapat forgot-- again. it was a clear shift, like suddenly something just clicked and his state of mind was altered. it wasn't anything bad, of course, cute puppy forgetfulness, but it was a bit disappointing to the mama bear as her cub completely forgot what they were doing. "oh!" she exclaimed, though her voice was soft, "pat--" she didn't get to finish, as astik stumbled sideways (barely, the little brick wall) and then ushered tapat back into position. "got it, geese?" she asked, a small smile and a friendly wag of her tail. jhala was typically impatient, but with her pups she was getting better-- especially with tapat's condition.

"try again," she then urged, hoping he wouldn't forget as quickly this time.

Tapat realized he had done something wrong when his brother corrected him. The pale pup pushed himself off his big brother and glanced from Astik to his mother. Defend? Oh. He thought they were going to play. Why would they need to learn defense? Tapat moved back to his spot across from his brother, but when his mother encouraged him to try it again the young boy became confused.

Did he need to jump Astik again? The pale boy glanced at his mother. She did say try again right? The boy sank though his front paws and then tried to pounce on his bigger brother, making the same error he had done before. Though there wasn't much confidence in his jump seeing that he didn't want to fight his brother and because he wasn't sure it was right. He wanted to do it right so badly.