Crow

"Arkky? Arrrrrky...! Momma, Pappy?" Crow yipped out these names as he plundered along through fallen leaves and thin foliage that was starting to succumb to the shortening, cooler days. Autumn was soon approaching. "Mag?" Anyone...?! Maybe this wasn't such a good idea... The silvery youngster stopped and looked around himself again, but none of the trees looked familiar. Oh why did he have to get so brave and wonder this far from the den, and his little family? It seemed like a good idea at the time... but now, less than an hour into his adventure, he was hungry, lonely, and far less brave feeling than he'd been when he first set out.

Arcadia

"Boo!" she bellowed, pouncing from a bundle of twigs and leaves that had provided some suitable cover in the forest, as her brother-hunting mission came to its end. She flew from her hiding spot to try and tackle Crow, growling playfully as she zoomed through the air. She had made sure to stay down wind, as she had been taught by Kaiser and Sylar, and had managed to stay quiet and nimble as she followed her brother from the den on his little adventure. Her aim was to scare him, pin him down, and prove that she was braver, stronger, and smarter than her brothers. After all, girls are so much better than boys!

Crow

Crow was so engulfed by his worry at the sudden realization that he was lost that he failed to keep a watch on his surroundings. He wasn't even sure if he was still in his territory or not, and at the moment Arcadia pounced for him, the brother was staring uncertainly at a large cedar tree, trying to convince himself that it looked familiar. "YEEEAHHHH!!!" The second Arcadia jumped on him, Crow let loose a windy yelp and tried to bolt, but she was quicker, and had him tackled and pinned before he could figure out who was attacking him. "Wha-what...?!" As soon as it dawned on him that he wasn't being pulverized by a grizzly bear or some other dangerous woodland creature, his green eyes narrowed and he shoved his paws at Arcadia, trying to jostle her off of him, "Arky, you dung head! You scared me!"

Arcadia

With her brother successfully pinned, and a feeling of elation at completing her self-assigned mission, Arcadia's tail wagged furiously as she bared her small puppy teeth at her brother in mock-aggression. "Well that was the point!" she sighed exasperatedly, then aimed a mock snap at his paws as she leaped away from him and his jostling. "Anyway, you should have been 'more aware of your surroundings'," she chastised, in a voice that sounded remarkably similar to Kaiser's, putting on a solemn expression as she further teased her brother. "I can't help the fact your a wimp!"

"Why'd you leave the den anyway? Mom said to stay there until she got back from hunting?"

Crow & Starscream

Crow's green eyes narrowed and his silvery face contorted into a scowl as he swatted back furiously at his sister, "I am not a whimp! And I was watching my surroundings!" Once she had clambered off of him, the youngster rolled over onto his paws and gave his coat a quick, hefty shake to dislodge a few leaves that had gotten stuck to it. With his young pride a little bruised, he puffed out his chest and held his head high, as if posturing could make up for the fact that he'd just been ambushed and successfully tackled by his sister. "Hey, you left the den too, Arkky. Besides, I got bored of staying there. Say... you wanna see if-" His indignity at being pinned aside, Crow's urge to explore started to come back now that Arcadia was with him, but just as quickly as he began to speak about it, a snapping twig caught his attention. Wide-eyed, he scuttled towards his sister, "Did you hear that?"

The source of the snapped twig soon showed himself as Starscream. The grizzled wolf padded towards the pups and stopped a few feet from the duo, one ear perked up, and the other cocked back, "Where's your parents?" Star had met his little niece and nephew when they were first born, and he'd stopped by a few times here and there, but never long enough to really socialize with his bloodpack. "You two are awfully far from the den, aren't you?"

Sylar & Arcadia

Approaching the den, Sylar sensed something was amiss. The scents of two of her litter were faint compared with Magadan’s, and straight away she knew they were not there. Call it mother’s intuition. Had they simply left, even though she told them not to, or had something happened to them? She couldn’t smell any other scents, just the faint trails left by her son and daughter. “Magadan!” she barked, calling her son out to her as she dropped the two hare’s she had been carrying, and when her son had joined her, she set off quickly in the vague direction of Crow and Arcadia, her face set firmly in displeasure and her eyes full worry.

Meanwhile, Arcadia was listening intently to Crow, excited at the prospect of yet another adventure. However, when he suddenly stopped short, and they both heard the cracking of twigs, Arcadia went from bold and courageous, to frightened and ready to run for her life. Why had they left the den! She crowded with her brother, her eyes fixed where his were, on the place where the twig-cracking had come from. She was relieved when her uncle stepped from the trees, but still felt a bit awkward, considering she didn’t really know him. When he asked where their parents were, she looked sheepishly at Crow, before saying “Errr, well...we were exploring...” she said, as if trying to make some excuse as to why they were quite so far from the den.

The next thing Arcadia heard, however, was a growl rumbling through the forest. Sylar suddenly burst from the trees, her face full of anger and worry. Her fierce yellow eyes were fixed on Scream, momentarily not recognising him in her blind panic of fear and anger, and her fangs were bared at him. Within seconds, she quickly realised just who it was, and all aggression ceased, but she could not bring herself to smile. Instead, she shot an angry and disappointed look at her children, before turning to Starscream. “What do you want, Scream?” Her voice wasn’t unfriendly, but it wasn’t exactly pleasant either. Sylar was clearly not happy. “I’ll deal with you two in a moment.” she said frostily to her son and daughter, but allowed Magadan to do as he would, and any looked spared for him was pleasant. He, at least, had not disobeyed her.

Crow & Others

While his mother was out hunting, and his father and aunt Isias were canvasing the boarders of the territory, Magadan had been the only pup to stay put in the den as he'd been told to do. The blue-eyed youngster had found enough entertainment in a maple root that was sticking out of the wall of the earthen tunnel, and had spent the better half of the last ten minutes chewing on and tugging at it, trying to pull it out, with no success. He was so engrossed in this task that he'd never really noticed how Arcadia and Crow had wondered off, until his mom came rushing back, "Momma! Yum, rabbits again? Can I..." Mag's ears went back against his silver head, because just after he saw the rabbits that his mother was bringing back, he noticed the look she carried, and knew that there was trouble. Without a further word, he bolted after her, putting his shorter legs to good use to keep up with the she-wolf.

Being bored into with an unimpressed gaze from his uncle, Crow dropped his eyes and tucked his tail, "Uhh, we just... exploring, like Arkky said..." The silvery pup pawed at a loose rock on the ground, fervently wishing that his parents were here right now. Like Arcadia, he didn't know his uncle all that well, but he didn't exactly put of a friendly aura.

Starscream didn't have much time to question the pups before their mother caught on to their disappearing act and trailed after the scent, rocketing after them with a mother's urgency to protect her young ones. Scream angled his ears back when he was met with his sister's fury, and despite his penchant for trying to remain unruffled and unsubmitting to anyone, the grizzled brute wisely took several steps backwards. Waiting until Sylar had calmed before his ears swiveled up again and he spoke to her, "I'd like for you and your pack to join mine in a hunt. Nachi can watch the pups." While the adults were speaking, Crow really cowered down, bellying up to the ground and muttering dismally to his sister, "Aww, we're really in for it this time..."

Sylar & Arcadia

Arcadia's eyes widened in fright at her mother’s outburst, and just like Crow, she was straight down on the ground, laying flat on her belly, and when that frosty look passed over her and that lingering threat from Sylar, her head was soon on the ground too, ears back, and tail tucked under her, trying to appease her mother as best she could by being as small and submissive as possible. Her yellow eyes quickly glanced at Crow, and she whimpered an agreement with his words.

Sylar refused to look at either Crow or Arcadia, keeping her eyes fixed on either Scream or Magadan. She checked where her son was every few moments, rewarding him with attention for obeying her, while ignoring her other children for doing the opposite. Sylar's fierce yellow eyes took in her grizzled brother once before she answered, "If Nachi does not mind watching them with her new pups, then I don't see why not. Although I have half a mind to leave two of them here. I'm not sure I would want to bring them into your den. Nachi has enough on her plate without me leaving her with two disobedient pups." With her little speech more for the two cowering youngster than her brother, Sylar spoke again, this time with a more level voice and a little less bite, "Yes, we shall join you. Once Kaiser has finished marking the borders, I'll round everyone up. You're welcome to remain here and travel back home with us, or go on ahead and we'll meet you at Highmere." Then, she quickly added, with a small smile "Oh, and congratulations on your pups. I look forward to meeting them."

Starscream & Others

Magadan was just beaming right now at the praising looks he got from his mother for being the only pup to stay at the den site, and wagged his tail accordingly with delight. When Sylar wasn't looking, he even went so far as to stick his tongue out at his siblings who were being chastised, as a bit of sibling rivalry. Crow scrunched up his face and glowered back at his bigger brother, but he didn't dare let up from his submissive, tail-tucked posture while his mother's anger was simply radiating from her - his stomach was roiling with anxiety right now, and it didn't help that Magadan was rubbing it in.

"No, she won't mind. The den is in a secure area, no humans, no predators that we've had to worry about - it's entirely safe." Oddly, Sylar's brother sounded a little distracted when he responded dismissively to her concerns that it would be too much for Nachi to handle. The howl of a stranger caught his attention enough to turn his head, and a moment later, Kaiser's voice hit the air too, "I've already sent my pack out, I don't mind waiting here until your ready."

Sylar & Arcadia

Arcadia scowled at her brother, turning all that burning embarrasement at being told off by her mother into growing anger at her sibling. She desperately wanted to wipe that smirk off his face, just like Crow did, no doubt, but she didn't want to further anger the white she-wolf, so remained flat on the floor, her bright yellow eyes burning furiously against her silvery black coat.

Sylar acknowledged her brothers first words with a slight nod, because although she had made a point to raise her concerns with leaving Nachi babysitting her youngsters, as well as the female newly born pups, Sylar knew that her offspring would be safe in her brothers packland. The howl of a stranger, followed by Kaiser's prompted Sylar's ears to raise along with her brothers, and she knew she had better make an appearance at the borders. With the knowledge Scream would wait for her pack to be ready, Sylar nodded once again, then turned in the direction of Kaiser's howl. "Follow me," she said, turning first to Magadan, then to Crow and Arcadia. Whether Starscream also tagged along was his decision. Sylar then headed for Kaiser and the stranger at the borders.

Arcadia nervously let her ears prick forward, and began to follow her mother, but kept very submissive. Although she couldn't help but smile secretly at Crow, "You think we're off the hook?"