Redhawk Caldera Smells like teen spirit
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All Welcome 
I need to get him a playlist too XD

Mom was being boring today and da was playing with the girls, so Bluejay took the opportunity to sneak off and head towards the lake.  He was hoping to find @Sorana hanging out there... she'd seemed down lately, and he'd taken it upon himself to fix that by dragging her into playing at a potentially annoying frequency.

She wasn't there!  So he'd have to track her down then... a good old game of hide and seek.  Jay grinned, then began to snuffle around.  There was no trail to pick up, obviously, but that didn't deter him from pretending.   He followed this "trail" on a winding path through the open fields at the heart of the territory.  Eventually he'd get bored of the game and call out, but for now, that was totally cheating.

tag is for reference! Thread for @Bronco
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Have you heard the Malia J version of this song? It’s pretty cool :)

In light of his decision to pursue the trade of puppy sitter, Bronco figured he should spend a bit more time with each of the Brechelient kids, one-on-one. He knew from experience that they would outgrow him pretty quick, and they were already independent enough that he was more entertainment and a food source than a babysitter. 

But entertain, he could. When he spotted  the younger, slightly darker version of Eljay walking through the meadows he decided to have a bit of fun with the kid. He’d found rabbit tracks not so long ago- and thought this might be the perfect time to bring the kid along for a bit of an adventure. 

”Hey Jay!” he called out, as he approached. ”You wanna go huntin’ with me today? I think I saw some jackalope tracks back that way.”
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Bluejay startled at Bronco's initial yell, then turned and grinned with his tail now flagged completely up.  Eljay was his dad but Bronco was a cool, adult male who wasn't and was therefore somehow even more easily idolized.  Parents had to love and mentor you - but getting Bronco's attention was like getting the attention of a busy older brother.

A jackalope!  Sweet!  Yeah!!!  Jay bounded towards him.  He had no clue what a jackalope was, but no way that was going to stop him!  If they were going on a hunt then he was totally down and ready to clown.

@Aiden caught a mouse yesterday.  A jackalope's way cooler than a mouse.  He wasn't actually sure of that statement, but he said it with confidence and hoped he was right.  It sounded right!

There wasn't much competition between he and Aiden, in reality.  Bluejay had been just as thrilled as his brother about his catch. But how cool would it be, to come back and show him the jackalope he caught with Bronco!?  Super cool - that's how.
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The bait was take with no additional questions; he felt a bit guilty that Jay immediately accepted that hunting jackalopes was as possible a thing as hunting rabbits or mice- but it was too late now. He liked an eager pupil, and Jay would learn something about hunting in the process, so what did it matter that their intended prey didn’t exist?

”Oh yeah, they’re way cooler,” He confirmed. ”They’re super rare- I’ve only ever seen one once, but somethin’ tells me you an’ I are gonna find one today.” He winked.
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Aiden happened to be sneaking behind, trying to eavesdrop on the conversation. It proved to be super difficult, though, and practically impossible to eavesdrop while also staying out of reach, smell and sound. He could only hear words every now and then. He heard his own name somewhere in there, which further made Aiden curious about what was going on. Then as Bronco invited Jay to go on some kind of hunt for something rare, Aiden could no longer contain himself and he burst out of the brush he'd been hiding in a ways back and trotted up to the pair of them.

What's rare? I'm comin'! he announced, tail waving as he looked from Jay to Bronco.
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Aww, Aideeennn!!  It was gonna be a surprise!!  Jay complained as his brother barreled onto the scene, but he grinned and reared back as well to bat playfully at him with his forepaws.  It would have been cool to do a hunt just with Bronco but it was also totally cool to do a hunt with all of them.  He was still gonna be the one to catch the jackalope though!

We're gonna hunt a jackalope.  They're super cool and rare and dangerous, but we're hex-perts.  So it's gonna be awesome.  He bounced away from Aiden, then hopped eagerly towards Bronco.  Time to go!
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Good- now he had two of them! And fortunately, Jay was willing to share what might otherwise have been some one-on-one attention with his brother- the trademark kindness of the family blossomed in the next generation of kids. 

”Sure, you join in with us- we’ll be the dream dudes team!” He said with a laugh. ”C’mon. The tracks are just up there on that kinda ledge- I’ll show ya, and brief you two about the tricks and techniques of hunting jackalope,” he said, before he began to bound up the slope toward where he’d last spotted rabbit footprints- and had altered them only slightly, for this very purpose, as though creating a treasure hunt.
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Aiden grinned as Jay batted at him and proclaimed that now the surprise was ruined. He would rather have a cool adventure over a surprise any day! Aiden pawed back at Jay, but was quickly distracted by the explanation of the hunt. They were going to look for something cool and dangerous. Nice! Wooow! Count me in! said Aiden. Bronco got some extra cool points for taking the boys on something dangerous, in Aiden's book, because his boring parents wouldn't have allowed it. It frankly did sound like it was gonna be awesome. Aiden'd never heard of jackalopes before, but they sounded pretty cool. And dangerous. And like hunting them was gonna be awesome.

Cool! Aiden exclaimed when Bronco said he would brief them once they found the tracks. Aiden excitedly bounded up the slope towards the prints as fast as he could while shouting at Jay, Catch me if you can, slowpoke! Once up on the ledge, Aiden didn't immediately see the prints, but he started to sniff around immediately with his gaze trained to the ground, eager to find the prints before his brother.
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HEYYYYY, wait UP!!  Jay charged awkwardly after his brother up the slope.  He was totally gonna get it first!!  This was his hunt, no way he could let Aiden catch the cool thing this time!

In the rush, he forgot that they didn't actually know where they were looking yet.  He had bounded a ways past Aiden before he realized his brother had stopped and was searching around for signs.  He won the race!  But... what was he doing?

It took a few moments for it to sink in, and Bronco could probably see it happen in his expression.  Oh!  Tracks!!!  Jay immediately began looking around at the ground around his paws.  Did jackalope tracks look like paws or did they look like something cooler!?
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oh frick! My bad- sorry I got so behind on this one!

Aiden and Jay were welcome company, and he was glad he’d caught two kids for this little excursion. Tracking was an important lesson to learn- but he thought he could add an element of fun by adding in a little bit of cryptid knowledge. 

There was a warren nearby, a thicket with many rabbits who travelled the same routes while foraging. They knew the twists and turns of the route, and left behind narrow, but worn paths in the grass. The boys raced forward, and past the little rabbit path, but began investigating the area, which pleased him. 

”See this?” Bronck said, lifting a paw to show them the little divet in the grass. ”That’s a jackalope trail. It leads to their burrow. Their tracks…” he said, sniffing around a bit himself, until he found a place where the path had been worn to bare ground- revealing  the trademark shape of rabbit feet. Regular, clawed forefeet, smaller than a wolf’s, and long imprints from the hind legs. ”Looks like rabbit, eh? But if you look along the side of the path,” he gestured.

Along either side of the path were places where the grass had been torn out. A couple thin branches had been snapped as well. This was something Bronco had manicured carefully himself- but it was a believable enough setup. ”Jackalopes have antlers.” He said. ”They catch sometimes on grass or branches. ” he advised them. ”Wanna go see if we can track ‘em to their warren and scare one out?”
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Jay came zooming past and Aiden couldn't help but wonder if he had found the actual trail? Aiden couldn't find anything yet, excitedly looking around rather than using his nose. Besides, he didn't know precisely what he was looking for, really. He looked sideways to his brother, but it turned out neither of them were on the right track when Bronco told them to look elsewhere.

Aiden came dashing back and looked at the path that Bronco was pointing out. This? It's just rabbits! Aiden said incredulously. Bronco then explained that along the side of the path there were different tracks. Aiden was still suspicious — he wasn't a little kid you could feed stories and expect him to be gullible! — but when he meticulously inspected the side of the path, he realised that it must be true. Ooooh. Well, that checked out, then. Aiden turned his full attention back to Bronco, back on track with the jackalope hunting, and nodded fervently when Bronco suggested hunting one out.
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Jay shook his head when Aiden insisted they were rabbits.  Bronco would know!! And rabbits  were totally different and not nearly as cool, duh.

Yeah!  He was stoked.  But which way?  He sniffed around at it, then stopped.  Probably that way, right?  His tail started to go and he bounded a few paces, then stopped.  He wanted to look like he knew what he was doing but was waiting for confirmation.
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Boy, had he ever planned this well- and they weren't even at the best bit yet!

True, they were following rabbit tracks toward a rabbit warren. And Aiden, after sniffing around, caught on to the trail, and Bronco nodded, gesturing for Jay to head that way as well. "Looks like that's the way, good job, Aido," He said. "When you can see their pawprints- like in mud, or snow, they look almost like canine footprints when they're running. They have claws, like us. Feline footprints- lynx, bobcat or cougar- they'll have rounder toepads, and they walk with their claws tucked in." He explained in a quiet voice as they moved along. He watched the boys to see that they stayed on track, but allowing them to meander about a bit- counting that eventually, one of them would stumble upon one of the surprises he'd planted. 

"When they're just lopping along, you can see- like here. You can see how big the hind feet are, and how their back legs leave a print behind." He said, gesturing to the long streaks that led up to the rabbit's pawprint. He continued forward, keeping an eye on the boys, watching for a reaction. 

Along the path- in four places- he'd hidden the spikes from young bucks that had already shed their antlers. Just the perfect size to look like they could have belonged to a jackalope. He lagged behind a bit, hoping the kids would find them first.
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The long description of what they would look like running was a bit much for Aiden, and he got visibly distracted throughout it. He nodded through all that Bronco said, though his expression was a bit vacant. Once Bronco moved again, Aiden followed, his gaze trailing along the prints and the strokes alongside them.

Because he was a bit distracted, Aiden didn't immediately find the spikes that Bronco had hidden. If his brother did not find them first, Aiden eventually would notice them and call out to rouse his brother, What's that! (But if Jay was faster, then he could totally find them first!)
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Undeterred by his lack of success in picking the path, Jay jogged along a little ahead of the other two, circling back when he got a little too far ahead and frequently checking out the nearby bushes for signs.  If they were smart and hard to catch then they’d have to get every clue they could catch.

Which worked out in his favor, when he found a set of spikes.  He did find his first, but he didn’t yell immediately, since first he had to check if they were sharp AND how good they were to chew.  When Aiden called out he poked his head up out of the brush, one of the tines hanging out of his teeth.

HE’H HOO!!!  That meant it was still this way!  

sorry about that! Feel free to pp this dummy along if you want them to hit whatever Bronco had staged next <3
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My baaad! Sorry for the wait!

They were getting closer and closer to the antler sheds he'd hidden along the path. No more than spikes from yearling bucks, but the perfect size for something that could have belonged to a rabbit-sized animal. He goaded them on, watching with mirth in his eyes as the boys practiced their tracking skills, while having fun all the time as well. That was the best way to get them to learn, he thought- make them have fun. 

When Jay found one, Bronco gasped. "Woah!! No way!" He bounded forward, urging Aiden along as well to get a closer look. "Duuuude you found a jackalope antler!!" He exclaimed. "But y'know, they usually have two so there should be another one...."
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gonna wrap this up!! But they’ll need a new one at some point!

Jay needed exactly 0 more prompting than “usually two” before he was scrambling to find the second one before Aiden did.  Because he kept forgetting the places he had already looked, and checking them again in a circle that never ended, Aiden would no doubt be victorious.  It was hard to be upset that they both would walk away with a cool prize!

Eee go-ha go ge ih!!  Jay exclaimed without bothering to drop the antler, making the words entirely unintelligible.  Then he took off in the direction of the “jackalope”... without knowing what that was.  So essentially he chose a direction blindly and ran, too enthusiastic to consider it might be wrong.  He’d sort it out after a few moments and rejoin his brother in the game, but right now he was gleefully bounding away, as focused as a toddler in a toy store.