The Halfling and the Exile

Status
Not open for further replies.
A bit sleepy still, Isaac waited patiently for her to walk over and accepted the bottles given to him. The girl pup that seemed quite attached to him stayed, but he had to nudge back over one confused pup that had rushed to Niari with the others and guide him to the second bottle. Once they were both feeding happily he made sure the bottles were steady and ignored the little paws trying to pat at the bottles like they could press more milk out of their surrogate mother.

"Mm, not right now." He answered after a pause to think, watching the pups eating and looking them all over. It was almost easier to tell them apart by looking at their paws rather than their faces. One had little socks, another had one completely brown paw and then mottled for on the rest, and still another had mostly black spots on her lower legs. But their patterns and their faces made it easy enough to decipher who was who and he wanted to memorize them all so he wouldn't mistake them.

"When they're done eating, we can take a better look around and think of what we might need." His brow furrowed a bit in thought. "Maybe an axe, for firewood. Or more blankets. They'll need to keep warm while they're small." He and Niari would be enough for them, but he didn't want to say that they had to sleep in a pile for the forseeable future. Living with the alpha, she was probably used to having her own bed, or sleeping in a pile with family, not a stranger and five found pups.
 
"An axe would be useful," Niari agreed easily, nodding. "I don't think we'll have too much trouble keeping them warm, but spare blankets is a good idea anyway. I don't know where your other pack was, but here, it gets extremely cold soon. We're nearing the end of summer, these pups were born late. Keeping them inside all winter will be a challenge, but they could easily get lost in the snow otherwise.."

She fell silent then, looking down at the pups. Within the span of a couple days, she had attacked her brother, bitten a Werewolf for the sake of survival and sanity, moved to a different home, taken in five wolf pups, and started living with a member of the opposite sex who was not related. It was safe to say that all of the excitement was a bit overwhelming. Before the mess with the Halfling business, she had been fairly normal. Not one to make waves in the pack. Actually, she was the only female her age that hadn't been flirted with. She had a suspicion that the males were all too terrified of her mother to try.

And now she had five babies and still no mate. The gods had an odd sense of humor.
 
Isaac made a soft, acknowledging sound, readjusting the bottle so the pups could drink more easily and not just get gulps of air instead, which wasn't very good for their bellies. "Maybe we should get them leashes. . ." He didn't want them leash trained, but when they needed to go in winter it might be necessary. He lifted the bottles up a bit again, drifting into thought for a while, part of him wondering how much to tell her, part of him wanting to just tell it all.

"I came from the south." He said softly after a little while, his eyes on the pups but not really seeing them. "We only got snow in thin blankets. . ." Winter hadn't been so rough for them as it was for some, which he supposed was a challenge. He smiled faintly, though it wasn't quite a happy expression. "I didn't know how far I'd come before I hunted down a map."

He'd known killing his father would mean he had to leave, knew it would mean breaking his mother's heart in order to keep his pack safe. It should have made him Alpha by his own rite, but he'd let her make him leave, had taken his small bag and ran as far and fast as he could even while leaving a faint trail of blood behind almost the whole way. He almost hadn't made it to this place, despite the fact that his injuries wouldn't have killed him if he'd stayed put. If he hadn't finally collapsed at the river to rest, maybe he would never have been found.
 
"No leashes. We'll just.. have to be really careful."

Niari's mind wandered back to the first time she was allowed to truly experience the winter. The way the snow was whipped into tall drifts by the wind, the snowbanks that loomed up over her head, the feeling of sinking into a soft bed of ice whenever one decided to tunnel through the fluffy white goodness. They had built snowwolves that year. Her mother hadn't been pleased.. likely because they used some real deer blood to splatter all over the ground on the snowdeer they had made that was supposed to be dinner. She smiled at the memory, shaking her head. Silly children.

"Thin blankets is not.. an adequate description of what you're in for here. If we have a normal winter, the banks will be taller than your head before they start to melt. That's why every cabin has at least one shovel, though it's usually easier to shift and tunnel out unless we've had an ice storm. That's another reason why the vehicle idea was impractical.. we don't have a road," she explained, shrugging a little.

The pups in her lap finished their bottles, so she gently nudged them off her legs and rose to wash them out.
 
Isaac only gave a small humm in response at first, as lost in thought as he'd gotten. The first winter he'd remembered had been a joy. He and the other children in the pack had run out while the snow fell in light flakes, trying to catch them in their hands and on their tongues, running through the white cold in the grass to test out their paws in the frost. There had been a lot of sliding around and bumping into each other that winter, but they had enjoyed it. That had been years before things began to twist for the worst, and it was with an almost physical pain in his chest that he realized how much he missed it.

It was with a firm shake of his head that he came back to reality, and made himself get to his feet to help wash the empty bottles. "It will be an experience, then." He said, trying to picture the snow with somewhat wonder-filled eyes. "How does one tunnel through something so tall without the tunnel simply filling behind them?" That was something he truly couldn't picture. Wouldn't the weight of the snow simply bring it down on top of them. He didn't want the pups getting buried trying to follow them out.
 
Niari giggled and shook her head.

"It's like.. dirt. Tunneling through dirt. It's all packed and tight, so it doesn't move when you tunnel through it. You just have to pack it down as you go. Trust me. No pups will be squished in any of my tunnels, I promise," she assured him. She smiled and took the bottles from him, washing those as well before handing them back to him to dry while she drained the sink. Now that the pups were fed, they would likely want to romp outside. That may be a good thing, since it would give Isaac and herself a chance to grab some breakfast.

"Do you want to take the pups out? We can go hunt and get them out of the house. You can grab your stuff when we come back," she suggested.

[x.x so short, kill me]
 
Isaac tried to picture the physics of packed snow in his head, eyes raised heavenwards a bit as he considered the notion. It was impossible. He wouldn't be able to believe it without seeing it done, and somehow it felt nice knowing there were still things that he could learn here. He gave a faint, sheepish sort of smile when he realized she was trying to hand him a bottle and picked up a nearby towel to start drying.

"I think they would like a trip out," He said as he made sure as much of the water had been taken off the inside and outside of the bottle as he could reach. "Hunting might be a bit difficult, though. They aren't loud, but they don't exactly know how to be quiet yet. . . Still, the sooner they can start learning, the better." They would need extra help, he thought, learning to be wolves from he and Niari rather than the parents that had been stolen from them. "They'll have fun being outside. At least they stay close on their own when their this little." Herding five pups when they were big enough to run away wasn't going to be easy.

((Haha that's all right. Some of mine have been short too. I have a pizza-filled belly that makes my brain want to nap lol))
 
"Yes, the sooner the better. Even if we don't get anything, we can always come back and get whatever's cooking on the fire. It's not a problem."

Niari put the dried bottles away once Isaac was done with them, then she turned and started laughing. All five of the pups were sitting behind them in a little line, just staring at them with ears perked up. It was almost as though they knew that going outside had been part of the discussion. She walked by them carefully, whistling at them quietly to get them to follow as she went to the front door. Once it was slightly ajar so that it would be easier to open, she turned back to Isaac to make sure he was ready. Shifting so many times within such a short period was going to tire her out, she knew, but it was alright. She quickly shifted and shook her head, nudging the pups toward the open door with her nose.

Outside, there weren't many people around. Most were out hunting or wandering the forest, or inside their homes. A few were scattered around the clearing, doing various chores. Chopping firewood, shoveling the ash out of the fire pit in the center, repairing cracked roof tiles. Tomas was out there as well, practicing against a straw target with his longbow and wooden arrows. They were specifically made for killing Vampires. Niari watched him for a moment, her heart sinking as she saw he had painted fangs onto the target. Oh dear.
 
Isaac smiled when he turned to see what Niari was laughing at, the pups all looking at them curiously. It was probably the sound of water that attracted them, or a curiosity as to why their new parents were tall sometimes and other times not. They were babies still, though, and adaptable enough not to think much about it as older dogs and wolves might. They fumbled over each other to try and follow Niari when she went to the door, little ears perked up at the whistle she'd made as they learned new sounds and new sights. The way they learned so quickly was adorable and so important.

Shucking off the pants he had put on before, Isaac got down to his hands and knees and shifted as well, then trotted off after Niari and helped her get the pups down the one step that led up to the cabin, not wanting any of them to fall and flop to the ground. He managed, carefully, to close the door behind them by grabbing the handle with his teeth, and when that was done started to head off. He got a few steps ahead before realizing she wasn't following.

When he turned back, Isaac followed Niari's line of sight to find out what had stopped her, and whined softly at her when she saw it. He shook out his fur and nudged her gently back towards the trees, nosing the pups along with them to be sure they followed. Her brother wouldn't dare touch her, not with their mother so strongly against hurting her daughter, and Isaac was there to watch her back as well. It was okay. He wanted it to be okay for her, so she wouldn't have to worry.

The sooner they got to the trees, the sooner she could try to stop being sad.
 
Niari allowed herself to be nudged along, falling back a few steps as she stared at her brother. The concentration in his gaze, the hate that twisted his lips into such a frown.. Was this her doing? They were not in any active fights with the Vampires. All was peaceful, as it had been for a long time. Yet.. those were distinctly Vampiric fangs on that target. She whimpered quietly, finally pulling her eyes away from the sight and looking up at Isaac instead. He was waiting, as were the pups.

She gently nudged a few of them along, trotting slowly along the side as she guided them into the trees. Her tail and ears were low as her mind wandered back to the situation with Tomas, but she was still listening to ensure nothing dangerous approached them. So far, nothing. Just the music of the forest, which the pups seemed to be enjoying. They were running all around, their short legs making for some amusing results. More than once she found herself pulling somebody out of a hole by their tail.

There is a rabbit den a short distance from here. It would be easier than taking on a deer with them, she murmured softly into Isaac's mind, glancing at him for his opinion.
 
It was concerning, the way Niari lingered staring at her brother even though she must know it would only hurt her. There wasn't anything Isaac could do about it, though, besides hurry her along, so he busied himself keeping an eye on the pups. He kept counting them every few feet, wanting to be sure no one was falling behind. The girl pup that seemed so taken with him was following close behind him the whole way, something he knew because she kept trying to catch his tail when it moved with his walking. Occasionally he would feel her little paws or teeth catch him before she fell over with the usual clumsiness of pups.

Oh, what's the fun in raiding their den. He huffed as they walked, pawing at one of the pups that was getting a bit too far to the side for his liking. He heaved big mental sigh afterwards, though, because he knew they couldn't really go chasing after things with such tiny pups tagging along. The little ones wouldn't keep up. All right, all right. Den it is. It would do for breakfast. Maybe we'll just stay in for lunch and dinner. . . And let's stay far from the river.
 
Nairi huffed back at Isaac and rolled her eyes. Sure, cornering rabbits in a den wasn't exactly a fun time, but they couldn't do their normal definition of fun with the pups around. Come to think of it, they probably wouldn't be munching on anything larger than a fox for quite a while unless they took turns hunting. How did natural wolves normally do this? It seemed such a hassle! She knew the female normally stayed in the den, didn't they? Boring. That made her think, though. Where was the rest of the pack? Probably roaming the forest. There was a chance the pups could be integrated back with them, if they found the right one and eased them in.

The real issue was weaning them first. She doubted that a wolf would allow pups that were not hers to feed off of her. Then again, maybe. Wolves were caring. She pondered the thought, not overly fond of the idea of letting the pups go. However, she knew it would probably be best for them in the long run.. just not right now.

Come on.

She led the little fuzz party to the den, stopping several yards away and crouching down to teach the pups what to do. A few copied her, but the others were more interested in using the brief stop as an opportunity to wrestle.
 
Niari being irritated or annoyed with him at least meant she wasn't quite as focused on being sad anymore, so Isaac took it with a grain of salt and wagged his tail a bit, even. It was easy enough to find the rabbit den, following her and keeping his senses attuned to the sounds and smells of the little creatures.

How should we do this? He asked, settling down low to hide behind a bit of brush like she was, the pups playing nearby. I can sneak up and get them out, and you catch them as they run? It was an effective strategy, though he preferred at least giving his prey time to try and run. It didn't seem sporting this way. Still, he did accept that it was best for the pups and they needed something quick to eat or they would never have the chance. Maybe the pups would even take an interest in what they were doing, if not the meat itself for being too little to eat it.
 
Yes, do that. Hold on, I'll try and get them ready to at least.. try.. to catch one. There should be at least four in there.

Niari wiggled her way over to the pups and nudged them toward a bush to hide behind. She poked at them with her paws and nose until they were all crouched down and waiting, their little tails flicking back and forth almost faster than she could follow. They were clearly excited to be doing something new. She licked them affectionately, then looked over at Isaac and nodded.

This was going to be interesting.
 
Isaac laughed a little, mentally, even as he moved to give a wide circle around the opening of the den and crouch down near the back. There's no way they'll know how to catch anything. They're barely out of their own den. At most, they would probably get excited and trip.

When Niari was ready, he crept a bit closer, growling loud enough for the rabbits to hear, and hopped up once with just his front legs. He came down with his paws smacking hard against the earth to make a sound, like a fox hunting for mice in the snow, and gave one loud, sudden bark to frighten the creatures from their hole. They came darting out not long after, two in quick succession and then the others struggling a bit behind. As they seperated, he let Niari go after two and ran after one himself.

Meanwhile, the pups made little, squeaky yips and tried to follow after them, only succeeding in tripping over each other and falling after waddle-running as fast as their little legs could carry them. They didn't make it far, either from the two older wolves or from their fellow pups, for which Isaac was glad. Still, the image of them excitedly fumbling into each other was adorable.
 
Niari reacted on instinct, darting after the first two rabbits out of the hole. One she killed instantly by clamping down around the throat, and the other, she accidentally tore off a hind leg. She munched on it, watching the injured rabbit thoughtfully. It was dying and trying to move, but it was slowed. That gave her an idea. She gently grabbed onto it and walked back over to the pups. The sight was so hilarious she nearly dropped the rabbit before she meant to. The poor dears were so excited that they could barely contain themselves.

She walked closer and set the rabbit down, watching it struggle to hop away. The pups rushed to it, batting at it with their paws like a toy. It would bleed to death on its own, giving them a sense of accomplishment. They had killed the bunny toy. Time for drinks all around. She snorted with laughter and went to grab the other rabbit, taking it over to Isaac to share while the pups tugged on the rabbit's ears playfully.

That could have been worse.
 
Isaac had mercy after catching the first rabbit he sought after and set it down to go after the last one. There was no need for it to live on in fear after having the others killed, or to be left alone until some other predator got it. It took a minute or two, but he managed to chase it down and brought it back to lay it with the other he'd killed, near enough to watch the pups.

All right, they've had their fun. He said, a bit of annoyance in his mental voice, and he walked over to snap the poor thing's neck as it tried uselessly to get away. You should have brought it to them dead. She was only prolonging the poor thing's suffering. Just because they were part animal didn't mean they had to be monsters. Hunting with any form of conscience was hard enough. Letting the pups unknowingly torment a terrified and slowly dying creature was too much.

He let the pups explore their 'first kill', going back to start in on one of the rabbits he'd brought back and planning to have Niari share the one the pup's were inspecting since their teeth wouldn't be able to get to anything but fur in the first place. He didn't want to waste any of what he'd already killed. That was supposed to be the law of their land, and he was sure it wasn't different here in this pack.
 
Dead? Niari tilted her head a fraction and stared at Isaac. Did he not understand that they had to learn how to kill properly? Sure, they were still young, but the more experience they got with killing things, the better. It wasn't as though they were werewolves. Their existence was purely survival and nothing else. Killing, eating, reproducing. The end.

She sighed quietly and watched the pups continue their play with the now-dead rabbit. He was angry. Perhaps he was right. She simply sat for a long moment, pondering. Torturing was not something that she enjoyed, yet she had gotten amusement out of the spectacle. Obviously that amusement was not universal, despite the pups having a grand time. Was it her Vampiric side? Maybe the constant desire for blood was translating into some evil thing that she could not fully grasp. Was she going to just go around tormenting helpless creatures now? The thought was terribly depressing.

She hesitated another moment, then got up and took the damaged rabbit from the pups. It was easy enough to tear into, and the pups all watched with open curiosity. Her appetite was mostly gone and she simply picked up the other rabbit to take back home, waiting for Isaac to finish with his before leading the pups back toward the cabins.
 
Isaac didn't like the long silence that followed, but what could he do about it? The pups were still too young to learn much. They weren't werewolves, couldn't be fed in human baby bodies that could take more solid foods sooner. They would have milk first, then instinctively begin to lick at his and Niari's muzzles for them to regurgitate food for them, and only after they had begun to eat a bit like that would they start to eat raw meat on their own and learn to hunt. There wasn't much they could do to speed the process, and winter coming would detour them even further from training. It would have to wait until the pups were older, and they would have to face the idea that the natural wolves would never be able to go back to living with a natural wolf pack.

When he was done eating, Isaac licked his muzzle clean as best he could and followed after, leaving whatever was left over for the birds and other scavengers. He followed Niari and pawed at the little ones as they followed eagerly along, full of energy but already beginning to flag a bit from their short adventure into the outside world. They were babies still, and would go through periods of immense energy with naps in between. While the pups slept, they could make that list and talk a while.
 
The walk back home was mostly quiet except for the occasional yips of the pups. It was easy to see that they were starting to get tired, but they still did their best to keep up. Once they had made it back to the cabin, Niari set the rabbit aside and lifted the pups up over the step one by one. They all waddled around the door, waiting eagerly as she got it open and let them all in. It was like a tiny flood of fur. They were all eager to go nuzzle in to the blankets and gnaw on the toys. Once all five were inside, Niari shifted and picked up the rabbit, setting it up to drain so it could be skinned later. It would likely become a stew.

She went inside and wandered to the living room, only to find that the pups had all flopped down and gone off to sleep without any help. So much for a cuddle pile. She had been looking forward to some snuggling with the fur-babies, but that was alright. Perhaps later. For now, she pulled some clothes on and got out a pencil. Now, where was that paper..? She hunted around her room but came up with nothing.

"I don't have paper for the list," she murmured as she came out, glancing at Isaac without meeting his gaze. She didn't want to know if he was still angry with her.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom
Back