Is this the price for exploring?

[Kasim]

Involved:
Haben- male wolf pup
Cottonpaws- female adol. wolf
Lexus- male wolf pup
Veen'ra- male adol. cougar
Silvan- male wolf

Ever since he had woken up today, Haben was just /full/ of energy that seemed to come from nowhere. He had woken up and took a long look at the valley and suddenly got the overwhelming urge to go check it out, but he knew he couldn't go by himself. So Haben and simply taken a seat near his siblings and started to really take in all the sights. What he was seeing was only making the pup more excited and he would occasionally look back at his siblings with a hopeful look on his face that one of them would wake up soon. He looked back out at the valley with his tongue lolling happily and his tail starting to wag. Happy puppy.

She's not far from the gathering spot, but still keeping a distance from everyone else. Why is Cotton away from everyone? She doesn't want anyone to see him like that, not crying. The female is curled up on one side behind a tree, sobbing, softly, depressed... She's been like that for some time now, she doesn't want to be with her family, she wants to be with her lad, she misses him so much, she fears the worst now.

Lexus whines quietly in his sleep and shuffles, rolling before he quickly raises enough to bring a foot up and scratch an inch on his side. Given his very sleepy brain though he promptly falls over to one side with a small yelp. That wakes him up at least and he scrambles up, no one saw that! Yaaaaawn and a sleepy look about.

Unfortunately for Lexus, Haben /did/ happen to see the whole ordeal. His attention had been drawn to Lexus when he started to whine in his sleep and he continued to watch his brother, hopeful that he might wake up soon so they could go and play. When Lexus falls over onto his side, Haben can't help but to grin and laugh at him. When it seems that Lexus is fully awake, Haben lets out a happy bark at him and bounds over towards him. "What was /that/ about?" he asks, grinning. His sobbing sister goes unnoticed for now.

There are voices behind the tree where she's hiding. She recognizes her brothers' voices, making her to try and stop crying, she manages to stop, but still she feels the tears wanting to come down from her eyes, sniffling a bit before remaining still, just listening to her brothers on the background.

Lexus shoots a pouty look at Haben for laughing at him before shaking himself properly awake, scratching away that itch more successfully and bounding round Haben, take a snap at the other pup's tail "Itch! Had to scratch it" he's yet to pick up on Cotton hiding in the area either, can't see her, can't hear her, can't smell anything through the puppy lump surrounding him.

Haben lets out a small yelp as Lexus aims a snap at his tail, and quickly pulls his rear away from the snapping jaws of his brother. Oh so it's a game he wants, is it? Well if it's a game Lexus wants, it's a game he'll get. Grinning at his brother, Haben lets out a small, playful growl and suddenly leaps up at his brother. That'll show him for snapping at /his/ tail!

First it's their voices, now she hears growling and that gives her the idea that they're playing, or going at each others' throats... As she is sure this is plan A, the girl slowly stands up, turning around so she can see the pup playing. She doesn't say anything, the girl merely stands there, looking at the pups from the tree.

Soon as Haben turns, Lexus starts to run, he had to learn sometime after all. As a result, it's only his back half which gets trapped under the other pup. His back legs easily collapse under the weight but with his front free, he's quickly wiggling back out again and heading full pelt away from the sleeping spot and towards the trees, not so far from Cotton.

Grrrrr, he got away! "Hey come back here!" Haben yells after his brother, a slight laugh behind his voice, and goes tearing after him. Can't have him going around thinking it's ok to snap at his tail now can we? Still, it's been a while since Haben last spent some fun time with Lexus so he enjoys the moment. Once he gets relatively close to his brother, Haben tries once again to tackle him, play-growling the whole way. He still doesn't notice Cotton behind the trees, being a little occupied at the moment.

As long as they don't see her, everything should be alright. The pups start coming to her direction, which gives her a good idea. The girl hides behind the tree again, low on her stomach and ready to pounce at the pups once they're close. It's just a matter of time, three, two.... one?

Lexus sadly doesn't miss Haben's next attempt and goes tumbling down in a heap as he's tackled. Soon as he comes to a stop he growls back at Haben and starts playfully nipping at him, not trying to hurt of course.

Yes! Success is sweet. When Haben comes out on top of his brother, he smiles down at him. "Hah, gotcha that time!" he says happily. He then goes to chew on one of Lexus' hears, trying his best to avoid the nipping. Ahhh, play time with a brother is fun.

So there they are, that was the BOO! Time Cotton was expecting, but before she gets a chance to leap and scare her brothers, she remembers what happened last time with Haze, she doesn't want to scar them for life, so better try something new. Instead of scaring the pups out of their paws, the girl just chuckles, resting on her belly as she reaches a paw to bat a pebble to her brother's direction.

Lexus wriggles about to try and get away from his brother "Get off me!" still growling and nipping playfully between words until the pebble lands and his ears perk towards it. He stares at it from under Haben "Did that stone just move?..."

"Never!" is Haben's cheery reply. If Lexus wants him to get off then he's got to make him get off! Haben holds true to his words, that is until the pebble lands near them and Haben stops whatever he's doing to look at it. "I-I /think/ so..." the pup answers, a little uncertain. He gets off of his brother and walks over to the pebble in question to sniff at it. Seems like an ordinary pebble. Giving Lexus a confused look, he asks, "Can pebbles move by themselves?" This one sure seemed to have...

Well that IS amusing, a pebble that moves. Impressive. Cotton holds a chuckle, just shaking herself as he brothers are actually wondering if it's live or not. She slowly gets closer to them, silent, as slow as she can, ready to scare the pup once they dare to touch the pebble, that if they actually get to that part.

Lexus rolls onto his paws and joins his brother in sniffing at the pebble "Maybe it's dead?..Do they jump once then die?" he asks the other pup before going to give the pebble a nudge with his paw.

Haben looks over at this brother as he joins him in looking at the mysterious pebble. "I don't... think so," he replies, leaning down to sniff at the pebble again. Were pebbles actually alive for a few seconds then just die? But then wouldn't that mean that they're standing on dead things all the time? That certainly is an ominous thought. As Lexus moves his paw to prod the pebble, Haben looks up at him with shock written on his face. "Careful! It might try to get you!" What was Lexus /thinking/?!

Careful indeed, just as Lexus address to give the pebble a nudge, Cotton gets closer to him. Time is precious, it's not the pebble that startles the pup this time, "Gotcha!" Cotton cries out as she pulls Lexus with her paws the moment he touches the pebble, quickly ticking the pup with her paws, "Meany pebble will eat you!" She laughs the words as she assaults Lex with tickles and licks.

Yipe! Panic! Lexus squirms for his life, wriggling about and snapping at the elder wolf's paws before he finally spots who it is and stares dumbly for a moment. Its a few seconds before his tail starts up and he playfully growls before lunging forwards at Cotton and trying to gnaw on her cheek, though with no real force. Teach her to surprise him!

Haben lets out a loud, surprised yelp when his brother is suddenly snatched from next to him. He jumps back a bit, but after quickly regaining himself, he rears himself up to try to protect his brother from whatever monster snatched him. But, wait a minute... that's not a big monster, it's... Cotton?!?! Haben lets out a huge sigh of relief when he sees that Lexus isn't in any real danger and starts to walk towards the group. "Cotton that /scared/ me!" he says, a small chuckle behind his voice. For now, he waits for his big sister to be done with his brother so that he can get full attention from her once she's done.

Lexus keeps gnawing for a minute but fails until the onslaught of licks and backs off laughing "Teach us what? When pebbles jump and you poke them they bring scary big wolves out of nowhere?" he grins, slowly moving to be lying down and flopped out panting, happy but quite out of breathe too.

Well, he /was/ going to wait for things to die down, but all the licking, growling, and laughing make Haben quickly forget his plan and instead starts to trot towards his brother and older sister. He nuzzles against Cotton's maw and licks it for a few moments, his tail wagging happily behind him. Then, at his brother's words, something becomes very clear to Haben. Looking up at Cotton with a mixture of shock and disbelief, he says, "Wait a sec... was that /you/ who threw the pebble at us Cotton?"

So much love, the pups are great. And to thinks that a few months ago, she was really worried about taking care for them. But now, she knows she can smile and play with them without worrying that they might break or worse. Cotton stops, hanging her head close to Lex and nuzzling him lightly, "That'll teach you not to get away from the group." She tells him softly, tilting her back to where everyone else is, "Try not to get too far from the other, k?" Cotton finally turns her head to her other brother, licking him too and nosing that dirty face of his, she'll have to get them cleaned again, "Pebbles don't move by themselves."

Lexus continues to stay flopped and panting though his ears droop a little at the last thing Cotton says "They don't? But that would have been so cool" he whines, most unhappy to discover stones aren't alive "How are we going to see everything when the group's asleep too?" quickly over his brief scare Lexus apparently knows no fear.

Haben is a little put out when Cotton says that pebbles don't move by themselves. That /would/ be pretty cool if they could though. When Cotton mentions wandering off from the others, all the energy that Haben had before Lexus woke up suddenly returns to him, as well as his wanting for adventure. Even if that wasn't Cotton's intention... oh well. "Awww but Cotton, just /look/ over there!" he says, nodding towards the valley. There are so many things that little Haben wants to check out and it's driving him crazy with anticipation. Then he suddenly gets and idea. Looking back up at his big sister, his tail starting to wag faster, he asks, "How 'bout if you come with us to make sure we don't get into trouble? Would that be ok?" He leans down and nudges Lexus' shoulder with his nose, looking for some support.

Go to the lake doesn't sound like a bad idea at all. She'd love to take them there, like no one ever did with her. You know, the whole 'stay home till you're older' thing, that sucked. And she is sure that the pups are feeling the same way right now. The girl sighs, shaking her head and nuzzling them again, starting with Haben then to Lex since he's closer, "I can't guys... I'm sorry, but rules are rules." She says sadly, it's clear on her face that she doesn't want to say no. But rules are rules.

Lexus folds his ears back and assumes the soppy puppy look, whining a little up at Cotton "Pleeeeease? We'll be really good and stay with you! Mum won't even notice, we can get back before she finds out" how long can it take to explore the world after all?

Oh come /on/!! Who cares about the rules! Haben just wants to go explore new things rather than just be in the same spots every day. He's starting to get a little bored anyways. He mimics his brother and puts and equally soppy look on his face, whimpering a little bit. "Yeah, we wont tell Mommy about it. C'mon Cotton, please?" And if she still says no... well then Haben will most likely just go explore it another time, parents or not. He's tired of just looking at the valley, he wants to go check it out /now/.

It's not that simple, but the pups don't seem to understand that. Cotton, hesitant, looks behind... Mom will eat her if she finds out, but there's something that screams to her 'GO!’ It's probably the way she spent all the time there, she really wants the pups to have a chance to have fun. Cotton stands up, taking a deep breath and nodding, "Three rules. You will do EVERYTHING I tell you to do. Two, you will stay with me AT ALL times, that means not wandering, not even a two feet away from me. And three, NO telling anyone, not mom, not dad, no one. Not even Sierra, Trey or Liam. Is that clear?" The girl waits to see what they have to say.

Lexus stands quickly, tail wagging like crazy, all sign of soppiness is gone in an instant "Yeah! We'll stick with you, won't tell anyone! Let's go!" bouncing happily on his paws and very excited to be going.

Haben practically jumps out of his skin as Cotton agrees. Finally!!!!! His tail starts to wag a mile a minute behind him and he nuzzles against his sister's forepaw for a minute. "I promise! I won't tell /anyone/, not even the log!" Because, who knows, it might talk back to someone else. XDDD

This is so darn wrong, Cotton knows it. But ok, she already said yes. Cotton sighs, nodding one last time before she starts walking away, she'll go to the lake with them, and she knows they will be REALLY tired once they get there. But ok, they asked for it, "Ok, like I said, both of you, marking below me." The pups walking below her belly, slow, but safe.

Lexus bounds happily up to Cotton but pauses, looking to Haben and waiting for him to go first before he will tuck himself in under Cotton and wait for big sis to get moving "Where we gonna go?"

Haben gives a reassuring nod to his brother before he quickly makes his way under Cotton. He wonders slightly exactly /why/ Lexus waited for him, but he just shrugs it off. It's not important. Haben gives his brother a small lick on the nose once he joins him, then looks up to try to look at Cotton. No need to repeat what Lexus asked, so he just stays silent for now.

Pristine Lake

She's scared, she's worries, she can't stop looking around all the time, wondering if someone is looking at them or not. But ok, for the time being, they're all ok. Cotton continues her way, slowly pacing, making sure they don't fall behind, "Almost there..." She says softly as she stops before going out to the open. There's nothing, no one... Or at least that's what she thinks.

Haben keeps true to his word and doesn't wander a foot away from Cotton... though he's tempted to. All these new smells to smell and things to see, it's a little overwhelming to be coming all at once. Still, Haben is the /last/ one to be complaining about it. He can't wait till he gets older and be able to explore all of this on his own and not have to stick so close to someone. "This is so cool!" he says, more to his surroundings than to anyone in particular. "Cotton where are we going?" he asks again, realizing that he didn't get his answer last time.

Cottonpaws keeps looking around, making sure no one else is there... If dad suddenly appears, she will be so worried now. Dad takes things lightly, but this time, he strictly said NO going away from home. The girl sighs, tilting her head to the lake's direction then nosing Haben, "See that? That's as far as you will guys go in some time." Anything past the lake was strictly forbidden, the end of the territory, where... Her brother was found.

Lexus pokes his head round Haben to look towards the lake "Wow...it's huge! And shiny too!" sun shining off it, really impressed the pup. Their big sister is clearly really cool. Now he really wants to run off and look at it though.

Oooh! Are those wolves down there? Veen has been following the female and the pups that gladly follow her. How can he do that without giving away his position? It's easy, cougars are smart and look things from above, ha! The cougar is on the branches above, that's why Cotton can't see him. But uhm... As soon as the female stops, things just change. Crack! Is the first sound that can be heard, the branch he was standing on just broke, sending the cat down to the ground, gravity tends to do that. Then comes his THUD! As the feline hits the ground on one side, so it's a lie that all cats land on their feet. A mixed gasp and oof is heard later, the feline just landed less than a yard away from Cotton and the pups, quickly trying to stand up.

When Cotton noses him and points out at the lake, Haben can only stare at it in complete awe. He's at a lost for words and can only nod along at his brothers words. He wants to go check it out and is about to ask Cotton if he can before a loud crashing noise catches the pup's attention. Looking behind him for the source, Haben notices a large... /something/ in the middle of it. What is /that/? Sniffsniff. Well it isn't anything or anyone he's smelled before and that puts Haben a bit on edge. He moves a bit closer to his brother and continues to stare at the strange animal, staying silent.

Everything is fun and games until someone appears out of nowhere and startles you. The girl spins around, baring her teeth at the cougar, snarling... Great, something like this HAD to happen, "Stay behind me..." She growls softly at her brothers, eyes fixed on the feline, she's really afraid now. Ears perked up compared to her tail that hides between her hindlegs.

Lexus yipes and swings his head quickly to the direction of all the noise, sniffing at it and growing curious. He looks up to Cotton when she speaks and after a glance back down to the bushes and a long pause, he backs up, going to stop behind Cotton and just poke his head round her to see what's happening.

Perfect timing. If only he had fallen down once the wolves were closer to the lake, but right now, Veen is in danger as much as the wolves are. Once he's on his paws, the cougar snarls back, pacing backwards as his tail flicks to the sides, muscles tense and ready to attack, or defend, whatever happens first, "You shouldn't be 'ere..." The feline declares with a harsh tone on his voice.

They shouldn't be here? What's that supposed to mean? Wasn't this /their/ family's land? If that was the case then it was this strange animal that shouldn't be here... right? As Lexus starts to back up, Haben follows him but is hesitant at first. He doesn't like to have to take a backseat on things. He would rather help or try to do something, but not just sit there and do nothing. Still, he knows that he'd only be getting in the way, and so Haben follows after his brother and pokes his head out to see what the cougar does next.

That's just wrong, "This is our home!" Cotton growls fiercely at the cat, taking a few steps back once she knows the pups are doing the same, "You're the one who shouldn't be here!" Maybe the first time her brothers have seen her like that, but she's really mad right now. No cat invades her home and declares it as its own, especially not in front of a member of Viridian. She wants to tell her brothers to make a run for it, but... What's the point if the feline will listen?

Lexus whimpers quietly, he doesn't like the scary cat and Cotton's being scary too now, he backs up a little more. This doesn't seem like play time anymore and he's not sure he even knows what's going on.

But the pups wanted to come to the lake didn't they!? The feline, now that there's distance between him and the dogs, lifts his head, maybe arrogant stance now, "I meant it because of them." The cougar looks at the pup, curious as why they are near the lake. Unless she's the mother... He's heard of the pack that lies deeper into the forest, but he's not so sure, "It's not safe for them." The cougar turns his head from the dogs, pacing to the water now, no longer growling, but still wary of the others.

Haben tries to shoot a look of confidence back at the large cat, but fails pretty badly. He's not liking how this is sounding. The strange animal is making weird assumptions and Cotton is /yelling/ and /growling/ at it. It's not the most fun place for Haben to be right now. At Lexus' whimper, Haben immediately tries to comfort him by moving closer to him and giving him a small lick across the nose. Big brother is here for you, don't worry.

[Kasim]

Oh yeah, big brother is there, Cotton feels so safe right now, only that she wasn't the one nuzzles... But still, she feels safe when the cougar turns around, felines don't do that, they are mindless creatures who lust for blood and nothing more, no? "You're still in our lands, go away." She says softly, turning to see if the pups are alright, seems they're ok... Just as fast, her gaze meets the feline again, still jumpy.

That THING has a name! Maybe the pup whispered it, but Veen could still hear the words. Making him turn his head to face the pups, frowning, "That thing's has a name you moron..." Yeah, he's not nice at all when someone mistakes him for a thing, "We're cougars, cats... And my name is Kyriin." He doesn't turn away now. If he was leaving, thanks to the pup he wants to stay and teach them a lesson now.

The nudge from his brother causes Haben to worry less about the situation. It's good to know that at least someone here is still friendly. Haben gives his brother another small lick, then replies, "I don't think this thing even /knows/ Mommy. I hope it doesn't because, if it does, we'll be in so much trouble. Cotton to." The thought of getting Cotton in trouble because of what they did is probably the worst part to swallow for Haben. He and Lexus can only get into so much trouble but Cotton is a grownup and can get into far more trouble than them. Great, now he's feeling guilty. The cat's words cause Haben to look back over at him, slightly confused. What's a cougar? Personally, Haben doesn't really care about all this info. All he knows is that the cat is very scary looking and that's bad enough.

Hey! No one calls her brothers names and gets away with it! Cotton leaps at the cougar, biting at the air really since she doesn't dare to get closer to him, just as a warning for what he said to Haben. And as fast as she warned the feline, she paces back to her brothers, "Come on guys, let go home..." She says softly as she nuzzles them. If the cougar was retreating, then that means he doesn't want to eat them, the faster they get out here the better.

That female is crazy! Veen almost whimpers when he sees the dog leaping at his direction, a soft squeaky, "Yike!" escapes his throat... But since the female decides to be wise and go back with the pups, he is relaxed no. Head held high, glancing down at the group as they decide to run away. Since he knows that the wolves WILL not come back, he feels more relaxed now, "Cowards!" Ha, you don't meet wolves who run away from you everyday.

Yes, home sounds like a /very/ good idea right now. Haben returns his sister's nuzzling with some of his own and then falls into step next to her. He starts to walk back but the cougar's sudden calling them cowards makes Haben stop in his tracks and look around at the cat, glaring at him. He doesn't know what cowards mean but it didn't sound good, and he /wont/ let someone talk to his brother and sister like that! Looking right into the cougar's eyes, Haben calls back to him, "Stupid head!!" then looks up at Cotton, grinning. He knows he'll be in for it later but he couldn't let anyone talk to his family like that.

She doesn't waste any time, as Haben calls the cougar that way, Cotton lowers her head to hold both of them on her muzzle, her jaw hurts, but she's not leaving her brothers behind! She makes a run for it, as fast as her legs can, her left foreleg will start to burn again... Thanks Haben for hurting your sister.

Stupid head!? Veen snarls at the daring pup, rushing to their direction now. They were free to go, but now they made a mistake by calling him that way. Not as fast as he can, but the cougar is running back to the wolves.

Back at Viridian Valley

She never stopped, her veins are pumping battery acid now. Cotton keeps running until she recognizes this place as home, slowing down her pacing and flopping on the ground, letting the pups on the ground, panting heavily, tired....

Lexus stares about wide eyed until he's finally back on firm ground again and can regain his paws. He turns back to Cotton then, giving her a concerned sniff and going to lick her muzzle a couple of times "Are you alright Cotton?"

He knows he's still in for it. Once Cotton catches her breath, she will undoubtedly yell at him again for saying that bad word. He knows it's coming, but he has no regrets. He couldn't let anyone talk to his sister and brother like that... not while he's around. Even though he's about to get a yelling from her, Haben still feels worried when Cotton collapses hard onto the ground. He walks up next to Lexus and nuzzles against Cotton's muzzle, licking it at times. No need to say anything; Lexus already asked what had been on his mind.

Is she alright? Let’s see... She just ran like never before, a distance that could easily get her tired if walking, now, at full speed with an injured shoulder? Cotton lifts her head, growling at Haben, she's furious, "What is wrong with you!?" Suddenly she stopped panting, she has enough air in her lungs to yell at her brother, "You want to get us all killed? Haben, you ARE grounded, you put not only your life in danger, you risked MY life, your brother's life and the probably the rest of the pack's too!"

Lexus whimpers quietly and backs away from Cotton, it may not be him she's yelling at but she is yelling and he still doesn't like scary Cotton. He glances to Haben, rather worried about the pup and slightly concerned that Cotton may start snapping like the last time she was scary.

He knew it was coming... but not like that. He wasn't expecting the growling and the pure hate he could hear in her voice. And this coming from Cotton only made it worse for him. Haben whimpers loudly and backs away from Cotton as she starts to growl and yell at him, his ears plastered to his head and his tail tucked between his legs. She's so... scary. It's something Haben would've never though he'd describe his sister as, but she's more than scary now. He lowers himself as close to the ground as possible, wanting to get away from scary Cotton. "I-I-I'm sorry, it's j-just that I c-couldn’t l-l-let him t-t-talk to you g-guys l-like that," he says weakly, his whole body starting to tremble with fear.

So he did it for her? Cotton appreciates it, but it's not like Haben actually helped, he just complicated the situation... The female doesn't stop though, breathing heavily, from the run and the anger she's through, "We could have died Haben! Some---" Ok, the girl looks away from her brother, taking a deep breath to relax, but she's still furious, "Sometimes, it's better to just walk away with the insults. Being called a coward is nothing compared to losing your life."

Lexus tries to stay as still as possible, trying to not draw attention to himself but with Haben trembling and Cotton still scary making the other pup worse "Leave him alone!" he blurts out "...It's that things fault" quickly loosing confidence, his ears and indeed his body both sinking down "I-it was mean a-a-and scary" he gets a mini second wave of confidence "like you now! And, um..." it doesn't last long as he falls into silence again, very scared.

All the yelling and hate directed straight at him only makes Haben feel more scared and worse about himself. Did he really put everyone he loved in that much danger just by saying a small bad word? Could he really have caused the deaths of everyone he holds close to him? The sudden realization makes Haben feel worse than mad at himself and he suddenly bursts into tears. "I-I'm so s-sorry!! I d-d-didn't k-know that it w-w-would c-cause all that! I'm /s-so/ s-sorry Cotton!" He covers his face with his forelegs, unable to look at anyone. He can't even forgive /himself/ for what he did, and he wishes he could just die right here and now. His brother's helping words are heard by the sobbing pup, but don't do anything to stop the on flow of tears coming from him.

Great, now she's done it... Lex is right, she's being the enemy now, all because she's scared like them. Thoughts easily get mixed with her, Friti flashes on the back of her mind. Cotton sighs, looking down between the pups, "I'm sorry..." She softly says, reaching both paws to each of the pups, dragging them close to her chest and holding them both in a warm embrace, "It's my fault for taking you there... I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." She can feel tears on her eyes; she never imagined she'd yell at her brothers that way.

Lexus' ears re-perk as Cotton apologizes and he gets more confident again, fear passing slowly. He turns his attention back onto Haben, going to lick at his ears "Not your fault" he says with certainty. He doesn't put up a fight when Cotton brings them in, going to lick up at her muzzle too since she seems upset now too.

Haben starts to feel slightly better as Cotton seems change back to her nice side again, but he still can't look at anyone yet. Despite everybody else's words, Haben still places the responsibility squarely on his shoulders. After all, he provoked the cougar into running after them again. It's his fault it came after them. He caused it all and it could have /really/ hurt someone... or worse. When Cotton pulls him in close, Haben continues to cry into her chestfur and tries to bring as much of himself as in can into her. "It /is/ my fault!" he says, loud enough for everyone to hear him. How can they sit there and say that it wasn't when it clearly /was/ his fault?!

It's no one's fault... Or more likely, it's Haben's fault for saying that to the cougar, also Lexus' fault for wanting to go out so badly, Cotton for accepting and taking them to the lake, and the cougar's for scaring the fur out of them all. The girl stays there, close to her brothers, not saying anything.

Lexus commences licking Haben's ears again, trying to calm him down or something "Cat thing shouldn't of said stuff like that. It's pack mustn't have taught it well" he says before looking back up to Cotton "Is the pack really in danger?.."

The feeling of being so close to Cotton and his brother's comforting words and licking is starting to make Haben feel much better. He still feels guilty about causing all of this, but the comforting acts from his siblings make him feel less guilty and responsible for it. He takes his head out of Cotton's chestfur and looks at Lexus, his eyes slightly red and poofy. He smiles at his brother and gives him a lick across the nose. "Thanks Lex," he says weakly. Lexus' question also causes Haben to look up at Cotton. Oh please let the answer be no.

The answer is blurry even to her. Cotton doesn't know for sure. The girl looks at her brother, thoughtful... "We're all safe here." Home is a safe place, no one would ever dare to get here and try anything, or so she hopes, "You guys don't worry... Nothing bad will happen to you as long as you stay here."

Silvan sighs as he makes his way back to the meeting spot. He'd been up the mountain on his patrol today, but still hasn't found any of the missing members of the pack. he looks up as he gets closer, noticing that a few of the pups are up with cotton, nodding and waging to them as he gets closer, "Hey, what are you guys up to?"

Haben feels a lot better at Cotton's answer. Knowing that the pack isn't in any danger because of him /really/ makes the pup feel a lot better. He licks up at Cotton's muzzle then looks back down at Lexus, poking his shoulder with his nose. "Thanks guys," he says warmly. He's about to say something else when his ears suddenly perk up at a new voice. Looking over, Haben sees that it's Daddy making his way towards them. "Hey Daddy!" he says happily, but doesn't get up to greet him. He feels a lot better right here for now.

Great, dad's here now. Cotton prays he doesn't find out... But also she didn't have time to create a plan in case someone asked where they've been all this time. She'll get in big trouble if dad or mom find out. The girl nuzzles the pups one last time, sniffing the air as she recognizes that scent. She clears her throat and sniffles a bit, rubbing her eyes before dad gets a chance to see her, she was crying after all, "Just playing dad..."

Lexus is finally coming down off of a good supply of adrenaline from the whole experience and as such, he's feeling tired. He aims a good natured nip at the other pup's ear before going to rest his head on Haben, nice furry pillow that he is. His head shifts to see dad when everyone starts mentioning him and he offers a happy little bark as a greeting… it's flopping time, he's not being bouncy right now.

Silvan grins and gives the pups a lick before nuzzling Cotton, he can tell she's not alright, but doesn't want to drag the pups into it, "Looks like you wore them out already."

Haben remembers his promise he made to Cotton about not telling anyone anything-- not that he has the desire to let everyone know what happened-- so he just stays quiet for the moment. He returns Silvan's lick with his own before he turns his head around to look at his brother. "You tired?" Well, Haben is too, but wants to at least /talk/ with Dad, so he guts it out.

She can see the pups are tired, and she too is tired... Cotton lowers her muzzle to nose Lexus gently, just making sure he's ok. Seems he'll fall asleep any minute now, again she'll have to stay with them all the time now. Cotton gaze meets her father's, chuckling softly, "They're just being lazy..."

Lexus yawns wide and settles in against Haben, eyes drooping and all "Good play dad" he lies. He's just about staying awake but the yawning probably answers Haben's question.

Haben nods up at his father at Lexus' words. "Yeah, fun too," he lies. He doesn't like the feeling of lying to his own father but he promised Cotton he wouldn't say anything. He lets out a small yawn as well after Lexus and lays his head down between his paws but doesn't fall asleep just yet. Maybe the adults will still have some talking to do.

Silvan nods, looking around at the other sleeping wolves before settling back to his haunches, asking, "So what did you do tonight?" he can’t help but pry a bit.

Cottonpaws knows the pups are ready to dose, she can feel how they get comfortable nestled between her paws, "Not much... We just played hide and seek and tried to teach him a
What a pity, Lexus can't give them game away, he's dozed off, happily settled with his siblings and hopefully without dreams of scary cougars.

Oh, hide and seek! What a good cover up. Haben smiles up at his father and says, "Yeah, it was fun. I found Lexus a bunch of times!" No harm done since he's asleep now right? Giving another small yawn, Haben is starting to think of sleep as a good idea. After licking at Cotton's muzzle again, the pup lays his head down between his paws and falls asleep, trying not to dream of the possible outcome of the day.