Bearclaw Valley don't let the ever rolling motion go and get you down
i will pry his bony fingers free
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#1
All Welcome 
AW. i won't be able to post tomorrow, so this is set for the 7th. maybe @Marten or @Nunataq if they stayed behind?

indra approached the den of xan's offspring slowly, her ears tilted forward and paw-steps light. clutched in her muzzle were two delicate doe's ears -- their cupped and fanning shape wrinkled by the distortion of decay. thin as they were, one could still see the papery veins dapple their soft surface, and the velveteen chestnut of their fur still held a crimson quality to it.

indra had her reasons for approaching now --  one such reason being a compelling sense of curiosity. she wondered if their dam had returned yet, or who had been appointed to watch over them in her place. bearclaw was not exactly brimming with maternal figures, and with blondine notably absent, who was left to pick up the pieces? she hardly knew any of the others, and somehow doubted any of them had been freshly appointed as pup-sitters.

as she came closer, no new tracks nor scents of their dam's return was evident. emboldened by her absence, indra pressed until she was just in front of the dirt threshold -- the very same threshold she had fretfully paced the day laurel had labored in that den. she did not pass under the arch of the den's mouth -- instead, she sat on her red haunches with her gaze fixed inward. if any life stirred in that abandoned den, perhaps she would witness it. if not, the two ears still held in her teeth would make fine chew-toys for laurel's children.
now the wren has gone to roost and the sky is turning gold,
and like the sky, my soul is also turning.
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 if his siblings had gone he was unaware-- it was his mother's presence, or lack thereof, that stirred concern in the childs chest. where was she? was she returning? the weather was warm but he was cold, and marten was hungry. he did not understand. he could not vocalize these thoughts, these concerns-- not intelligently. so marten merely whimpered in place, vision still hazy and footing still clumsy, as he waited his mothers return. 

except... this was not his mother.

"gawwaaw," came the baby-babble of nonsense as the young, pale pup tumbled forward. following it came whines and cries of confusion and fear. he knew this was not his mother-- but so who was this? his noises demanded an answer, though perhaps she wouldn't understand. maybe she would be taking him to his mother. perhaps that was it? it had to be it.
Jalapeño
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Nunataq did not have much recollection of what had transpired the previous night. Only that she had stepped out of the den with a purpose to follow her mother and somehow this had not worked out at all. Because soon she had fallen behind and a little while later she had entirely forgotten, why was she outside and what she was supposed to do. Toddlers rarely can give you a good answer to that last question.

She had, however, voiced her concern and discontent in the means that were available to her. The girl had whimpered and "eeped" for a long time to have someone save her and eventually, hungry and tired, she had crawled and hid herself among the leaves of the previous autumn and fallen asleep.

A puppy her age is not supposed to spend few hours let alone the whole night outside on her own. She was woken by Marten's voice (she had not gone far from the den after all) and lifted her head up to reply. Except no sound came, for she had cried her voice out last night, she was very, very cold at the moment and even this little attempt to draw attention to her was exhausting.

She rested her head on her outstretched forepaws and closed her eyes.

Nuna has hypothermia.
Kunujâk
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It was an awful feeling that hounded him, eager to drag the male down and revert him back to a previous variant of himself. He did not take kindly to the feeling, lingering at the mouth of the valley, the lands beyond his home calling to him—but their call was one he could, and would, not answer, for he despised the idea of leaving the valley unattended; it had sat empty for so long after his family fell apart, he would not allow a repeat of that. And so he stared, queer eyes trailing over the dips and curves of the world around him until his frustration grew too great and he was forced to tear himself away from it all, walking stiff-legged into the depths of his valley.

Alexander wad guided unknowingly towards his old whelping den, his legs acting on their own; he did not outright avoid the area, he simply felt lost now when he looked at it—at his children, too. But he did not alter his path, not even after realising where he was going. He continued forward, even sped up once he caught Indra’s scent; although he doubted that she would harm his children, there was still some stranger urge in his chest that forced him to get there as quickly as he was able, needing to look the puppies over.

Slowing, he looked to Indra first as he came upon the den, then glanced towards Marten before, finally, his gaze settled on his eldest daughter. Something didn’t seem quite right, but he could not piece together just what it was. For reasons unknown even to him, Alexander approached Nunataq and nudged her gently, urging her to get up and allow him to usher her back towards the den. In the process of doing so, he looked towards the fiery woman and asked, “Do you know how long she’s been out here?” Because he definitely did not.
I can give it all to you, will you take it all from me
If love is a joke, then use me ruthlessly
Threads are titled after lyrics from Block B's “Toy”
i will pry his bony fingers free
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the parcel of soft-furred ears tumbled from indra's mouth as a pup stirred from the depths of the den. her ears fell back in uncertainty as the cream thing stumbled towards her -- she was struck by how impossibly small and vulnerable the child was.

she made move to nudge him, but paused as she heard ferns rustle behind her. when she turned around she half expected the mother -- instead it was xan, hunched over the shuddering form of a second, quite sickly puppy.

indra felt a sinking feeling in her gut - what parent would leave their children behind like that? futher more -- what cruelty was it to take one, and leave the others implicitly behind?

perhaps it was that shared grief that softened the ice around her edges, though it was not enough to cut the bluntness of her answer. "i don't know. i'm not their mother." indra said ruthlessly, though realized thereafter coldness would not help their situation. "she left yesterday with one."

the cruel irony of this situation did not escape indra -- laurel's children, bastards without a father -- and these children, wretches without a mother. and standing between the strife of it all, the perpetrator: xan.
now the wren has gone to roost and the sky is turning gold,
and like the sky, my soul is also turning.
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wolves!! marten forgot all about mama for the moment. of course he didn't understand what had happened to poor nunataq-- how could he? but he recognized xan, his father, and though he didn't know indra, her scent was always on xan-- she smelled like home, like dad, and therefore he liked her. 

so he stumbled towards the fiery woman, little tail wiggling furiously, knocking him side to side as he waddled forward. he collapsed at her feet and rolled onto his back into a heap of wiggles and squeaks and yips. attention!! please!!!
Jalapeño
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#7
Nuna would have gladly stayed, where she was, if not the gentle and insistent push coming from her father, telling her to get up and move. Too tired to object much, she pushed herself up and clumbered on unsteady legs away from her sleeping spot. She did not get far, however, deciding that pressing herself against Xan's feet would be the right way to make clear that she was very cold and hungry and the he should do something about it.

You can PP Nuna from this point on and skip her in the next posts.
i will pry his bony fingers free
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#8
archiving to clean out my threadlog - hope the PP is ok

she had regretted the coldness in which she spoke immediately; her ears fell as she looked to the huddling girl at xan's feet, now motherless. they would have to be taken care of, and there was no one here other than laurel and indra close enough to xan to do so.

never for a second did indra resent the children for their sudden intrusion into her freedom -- and feeling overwhelmed by their abandonment, the redleaf was quick to gather the puppies and escort them from xan and the den to their new home, and new family.
now the wren has gone to roost and the sky is turning gold,
and like the sky, my soul is also turning.