Northstar Vale You'll Need a Little Pair of Feet

He could only watch in horror as his alarmed calls went unanswered by mother, and the ginormous stranger moved towards little Sumi as she taste-tested her muddied fur before crying out in disgust. A small spark of protectiveness flared in his chest, a feeling akin to when he had found the perfect teat and needed to defend it at all costs, but this time it was for his sister. He surged forward, though had no idea what to actually do when he got to Sumi's side. So, instead, the boy watched on cautiously, heart hammering in his chest, as the giant cleared the muck from his sister's fur.

Oh.

Maybe the man wasn't so bad after all. Haruki looked from him, to Sumi, to the discarded mud, then back again. Then he turned to Hotaru to see what she made of this, only to find her staring up at the stranger with the same look of amazement. Emboldened, Haruki then sucked in a breath and bravely plodded towards Takeshi, making his way to one of his big paws to warily sniff at it.