Post by Pavane on Jun 26, 2011 20:04:11 GMT -5
The sun is shining through the leaves, and Ikuna is chasing after one of them as it blows along in the wind. The world seems a bright and cheerful place to the puppy today. So far as he knows, things are just getting better and better! It's been quiet, today, with so many wolves out on various expeditions, but that's okay. More time for him to play with Tala! He bounces up to the top of a little rock, and turns to look back to his sister, giving her a cheerful bark and a wag of his tail.
Tala ears perk as she follows after her brother, a few barks escaping her as well in the process. Once her brother stops upon the rock she leaps forward to try and push him off the rock to become top pup on the rock it would seem. A happy giggle escaping her while she bounces on her paws, her tail swaying about happly.
Down from the kill of the crab apple tree comes a slowly trotting form of Wachiwa; clamped in her jaws is the dead calf of an unlucky spotted deer. The largest kill Chewy's made solo so far, and with specific purpose in mind for it. As she comes in sight of the den, she's glad to see the pups at first, tail wagging! .. then drooping slightly as she remembers her job. Well. Okay. Let's start this slow first. She utters a muffled chuff at the pups, in greeting, then, approaching closer, drops the dead fawn to the ground, before ripping open a large, yummy chump close to the flank, and then saying, "Heyya guys, you two hungry? I got asked to let you guys try the stuff that us big wolves eat!" She smiles, laying down in front of the deer, ripping off bites of it, and then chewing them with intent on making them easier for the pups to stomach.
Oh, no, it's Talapounces! Ikuna giggles and tries to brace himself for that leap - but he still gets bowled over, tumbling head over heels down the hill and ending up lying on his back, paws up in the air. He laughs, and his tail thumps against the ground. Then he looks over to Wachiwa, and gives a happy bark! Hey! He rolls over onto his feet again, and starts to bounce toward her. If he notices that momentary droop, he just puts it down to more of the same trouble that's been floating around for a while. He nuzzles up under her chin, giving a licking greeting, and then peers curiously at the deer she's chewing up, before giving it a curious lick.
Tala grins down at her brother and barks out at him a few times before crouching down as if she's about to pounce on him again. Well that is until another voice catches there attention. She glances over to Wachiwa, ears perking forward and she turns barking back to her and then follows along after her brother tail wagging about. There is a pause at the talk of being hungrey and she licks across her maw while bounding up to Wachiwa and bumps her head against the adults shoulder. Her gaze then rests on the fawn and she sniffs out. "Wut's dat?"
After chewing that mouthful till it's nice and gooshy, Chewy drops it into a heap at the paws of the pups, and then rips off another couple of chunks, saying, "It's adult food! But I'll get it started for you so it's not so tough. Wanna try? You might like it!" And oh, how she hopes they do, because she doesn't want to have to give Skah another big headache. "It's what makes us all big an' strong an' helps us sing and dance and gives us ideas like the hill rolling game!"
Ikuna sniffs at the pre-chewed food, and peers up at Wachiwa again as she chews more. "Bii?" he says, and then grins. Big is like bigpuppy. He remembers how his friend Ahiga ate food like this. Now, apparently, it's his turn to be big like that. Wow, that's great! "Bii!" And, with that, he lowers his head and takes a chomp of the softened-up meat, chewing at it with enthusiasm and then swallowing it down. He's all ready to be a big boy!
Tala looks rather confused to say the least as she peers at Wachiwa and then at the food that she sets down. She shifts closer and sniffs at it a few times before making a face. "It smell fuy." This said before she eyes her brother as he goes about eating it. For a few moments little Tala doesn't seem too sure about this, but she soon takes a little bit and chews on it. For the moment she doesn't spit it out.
The second mouthful is deposited, and Chewy watches the pups tentatively. She smiles.. buit the smile is tempered. She's got to make sure they eat first... "Yup, makes you all big and strong. Smells funny but that's only because it's new. New things will always smell funny at first till you try'em," she says, watching Ikuna and Tala. Why oh why did she volenteer for this? She's bad at sad things. She sighs. Then says, "Your momma wanted you to eat this, so you should eat up." She smiles! .. it's not TECHNICALLY a lie, right? Wya wanted them to grow up, like all moms do, right?
Sure, it kinda tastes weird, but it's a way to be like bigpuppy Ahiga, and like his brother Asku, and like nice Chewy... and for Ikuna, that's enough of a reason to make him enthusiastic about the strange grownup food. He wags his tail, and leans over to bump his shoulder against Tala's. "Be bii!" he tells her, grinning. Then he looks up with those big trusting puppy eyes at Wachiwa, and nods. "Mama bii." Yet another of the Best People Ever he can be like. He lowers his head, and takes another bite. He can get used to the taste, if that's what being big is about.
Tala glances to her brother, well he seems to really like it. Still the taste is rather strange to her. She goes about swallowing down what she was chewing and gets another maw full, her tail wagging all the while. "Mama bii.. We be bii like Mama?" This questioned as she pers up at Chewy. While little Tala likes Chewy a lot she still loves her mother the most which is a normal thing between a mother and here young after all.
.. Yes, go and make Chewy feel even worse. "... Yeah, yeah, if you eat this you'll be big and strong like momma." She says, softly, though she knows eventually she's going to have to break their hearts. She sighs softly, ears drooping a little, then says, "Eat till your tummies are all full, and then I have a story I need to tell you..." She frowns to herself, as the words to a song come to mind that she starts so half sing to herself more than to them 'I'm gonna let you down, I know that now, make you cry, I know I will, and why should you believe I would never leave, or that I'll be around still? For all the by and by, and hard as we try, the bough breaks and the cradel falls, for everything I do that will tear at you, I'll say I'm sorry now."
Ikuna swallows down his second bite. "Mama an' dada biii. Bes." He'll have to eat plenty if he wants to catch up with them - so he takes a few more bites, listening to Wachiwa's song absently, before he decides that's enough for now. There's a limit to how much New even an eager puppy can handle. He plops down on his hindquarters, peering up at Chewy with a grin. "Sory?" he asks. Those are almost as good as playtime and games!
Tala chews and swallows down a few more bites of the prechewed food. Her tail slowly sways about as she shifts and wiggles on her paws and then settles herself down upon her belly while licking across her maw. She listens to the song from Chewy and peers up her. "Why yu sory?"
"You two full?" Wachiwa says, brekaing from her sad thoughts, before she casts a kind gaze over the two, and then smiles. "Okay, I want you two to get all nice and cuddled together for story time," she says, as she moves a paw to try and move them a little closer together, and a little closer to herself as well. She sighs. Well. "... Once upon a time, there was a mommy and a daddy, and they had two puppies. The puppies names were.. Hmm.. Ikuna, and Tala!" She says, trying to smile. "... And Ikuna and Tala had eht best mommy and daddy ever, and they were always happy, and they had a big family with older brothers and sisters, and friends, and even though sometimes things were scary, the family was always there for them."
Ikuna flops over against Tala happily, nuzzling at her cheek before looking up at Wachiwa again to listen. Yay, storytime! And he grins as he hears his name and his sister's, and gives a little bark. But... he has a growing sense of something wrong, as he listens. The little puppy is rather sensitive to emotions, and for all that Chewy is trying to smile, she also has some of the sad look around her. He looks a little confused. The words are happy, but... he presses himself closer against Tala.
Tala shifts and settles herself down next to her brother and presses close to him. Her tail sways and thumps upon the ground while she looks up at Chewy paying attention to everything that is said. As the story goes on she looks a but confused as well but doesn't say anything, not yet at least. A glance is offered to her brother and she gives his ear a few nips after sitting quieting for a few moments, which is hard for a bouncey pup.
... How long ago was it that she had to learn this hard lesson when her parents were gone? Chewy doesn't remember. But she does remember Haht and Wya were there for her... So she decides, she will be there for their pups. She sighs, looking at them. ... They're going to hate her. "One day, Ikuna and Tala's Mommy and Daddy went out to get big wolf food for their puppies and the rest of the family. They found a very yummy large deer, and they caught it. It was delicious! And they were very happily chewing up some bits of deer for Ikuna and Tala to try... But ... But a monster came along, and decided it wanted the deer for itself, and didn't want to share. So it attacked Ikuna and Tala's Mommy and daddy, and they fought back very hard! ..." She trails... It's.. it's.. Wya and Haht were like her own parents, too... "Yup, they fought real hard," she says, starting to feel sick in her stomach. "... And I really.. really wish I could say they won... But the monster was too strong... And Ikuna and Tala's mommy got hurt very bad, and so did their daddy... And the monster took the food away.."
Those big puppy eyes get even bigger as Wachiwa continues. Ikuna lets out a soft whine, pressing close against Tala, as the scary monster comes along, and then finally it's just too much to take. He bounces up to his feet, bracing himself defiantly. "No!" he says. "Mama bii! Dada bii!" His parents are the biggest and best and awesomest, and no monster, no matter how scary, could possibly be big enough to defeat them. Chewy must be wrong. She's a smart wolf, but... but she must be wrong about this. The alternative is too terrible to even consider. "No. Mama an' dada BES."
Tala ears perk while she watches Wachiwa while the story goes on, her tail thumping a few times until the story starts to get scarey so to speak. Her ears lower and she frowns while peering at the adult wolf, a faint whimper escaping her and she shifts while presses closer to Ikuna in the process. She says nothing while her brother talks out, and say nothing until Wachiwa says her parents got hurt. "Dey no hut.. Dey bii! Dey do anying!" Seems the little pup doesn't want to think about her parents losing and she looks around, ears perking. "Wer ma.. pa? Me ask dem!"
Chewy winces at the protests, and then says softly: ".... I... I'm sorry... Pups... But... There aren't always happy endings in life.." She says, softly, before she looks at them with that horrible wrenching sadness in her gut. "... Ikuna and Tala's Mommy... ... Your Mommy.. and your Daddy... Didn't want to lose to the Monster.. They didn't want to get hurt, no one ever does... And they were hurt so bad.. Oh babies, I'm sorry, but.. They had to go be with the Ancestors... They were just hurt so bad that the Ancestors came and took them away... But they're still watching over you.. They still love you alot... And even if you can't see them, they'll still be there for you... And so will the rest of us.."
Ikuna nods his agreement with Tala. Mama and dada will know the right answer. Wachiwa is smart, sure, but she's not as smart as his parents are. Who could be? They're... well, they're just the best. At everything! It's a joke, right? Chewy is going to say, 'just kidding', right? But... she doesn't. His eyes just get wider as Wachiwa keeps on insisting things that obviously, clearly, MUST be wrong. Why is she saying all these bad things? He shakes his head, back and forth. "Noooo..." he says again, but his voice is less certain of it, now. It's an impossible thing that Chewy is saying, a _wrong_ thing, but... but he knows what lying sounds like, and this isn't it. This is real, honest, sadness.
Tala frowns while watching Wachiwa, she looks serios and sad the more she says this. The pups ears lower and she glances to her brother and then over to Chewy once more. "Dat no tue.. Ma an Pa are ok.." They have to be ok, she can't believe that anything would happen to them. A soft whine escapes the pup and she presses closer to her brother and lets her head settle between her paws looking utterly crushed.
Chewy utters a shuddering breath, as with the pups not wanting to accept, and yet knowing they're going to have to, she feels it all just come crashing down, everything. Wya and Haht were as good as parents to her. She chokes a small sob, and forgets composure in the sake of the pups, as she says softly, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry I can't make things better, and I'm sorry I can't say it's all a horrible joke... But.. Your Mum and Dad... they loved you very.. very much, they loved us all so much. And it hurts me so much inside to know they're gone.. I can't think what it is for you two.. but.. But ... Oh gosh just come here." She cralws closer, trying to pull them in with her paws so she can hug them close, and fuss over them with her muzzle and tongue.
Ikuna's ears droop, and so does his tail. He lets out a whine to match Tala's, and looks up at Wachiwa with a final, pleading gaze. Why can't she make it all better? But... she clearly can't. If mama and dada are really... are really hurt so bad they can't even come back anymore, this is way to big for ANYONE to fix. He just looks utterly lost, barely even moving as Chewy comes closer and tugs the pups against her, and then finally the nuzzles and Tala pressing against him penetrates his confusion. He pulls himself up, putting on a brave face, and nuzzles at his sister firmly. "Oona bii now." He'll be big now, and be the one who takes care of things. Didn't he just eat big-wolf food? He'll do the best he can, and try to make sure everything's okay. He licks back up at Wachiwa, and down at his sister again, trying to comfort them both.
Tala ears perk and she whimpers out while she peers up at Wachiwa, a faint snuffle escaping her and her little eyes are damp from the tears that are running from her eyes. She shifts slightly and leans back against Wachiwa but is utterly quiet. Her eyes close, a ear twitching towards her brother but still she says nothing. Perhaps if she doesn't say anything and keeps believing that it isn't true it won't be! An if she keeps thinking this her parents will come running in and everyone can laugh.
Chew's ears are fully deflated to the side of her head as Ikuna licks back at her face, and she sobs softly, "Yeah.. Yeah, you've got to be a big boy now, Ikuna. You've got to help take care of Tala, c'os she's your sister, and we're all family," she says, softly, nuzzling the two pups in her paws, before she says, "Annd all us big woofs will take care of you, too, till you're our age. I promise I'll be here for you, if you ever need me, I'm here. But you'll both have to be big pups now. That's why you have to eat Big Woof food and grow up big and strong. Oh babies I'm sorry.."
Ikuna stays cuddled close to Tala and Wachiwa, trying to lick and nuzzle and make everything be better. It's not, of course - there's a big hurt inside of him, just like there is in the other two, but his own heartbreak isn't enough to stop him from trying to make the others as happy as he can manage. Even if none of them can manage terribly happy right now, he's still trying to show his sister and his friend all the love he has for them - and maybe some of that love for his parents that he can't give mama and dada anymore.
Tala ears perk forward slightly, a faint snuffle escaping her in the process. She shifts and wiggles, pressing against Wachiwa's chest and nuzzling at her, and then turning to nuzzle back at her brother, whom she gives a lick across his chin. The girl doesn't say a word though, lost in trying to understand everything and dealing with her own heartache it would seem. Her eyes soon close and the little pup soon drifts off asleep cuddled close to her brother and Chewy.
Chewy keeps the pups close, nuzzling and licking them occasionally, until they fall asleep; at which point she sets her head down on her forepeg and sighs, eyes closing, though she does not sleep. She does not sleep because right now, she must watch them... And she also feels like the world might crumble if she sleeps.
Ikuna settles in, resting his muzzle over Tala's back and curled against her side, the two of them nestled against Wachiwa together. He starts to fall asleep too, the emotional stress of all this utterly exhausting - and as he loses consciousness, and the self-control that makes him put the others above himself, he lets out a quiet whimper. He'll try hard to be big, but he's still just a little heartbroken puppy.
Tala ears perk as she follows after her brother, a few barks escaping her as well in the process. Once her brother stops upon the rock she leaps forward to try and push him off the rock to become top pup on the rock it would seem. A happy giggle escaping her while she bounces on her paws, her tail swaying about happly.
Down from the kill of the crab apple tree comes a slowly trotting form of Wachiwa; clamped in her jaws is the dead calf of an unlucky spotted deer. The largest kill Chewy's made solo so far, and with specific purpose in mind for it. As she comes in sight of the den, she's glad to see the pups at first, tail wagging! .. then drooping slightly as she remembers her job. Well. Okay. Let's start this slow first. She utters a muffled chuff at the pups, in greeting, then, approaching closer, drops the dead fawn to the ground, before ripping open a large, yummy chump close to the flank, and then saying, "Heyya guys, you two hungry? I got asked to let you guys try the stuff that us big wolves eat!" She smiles, laying down in front of the deer, ripping off bites of it, and then chewing them with intent on making them easier for the pups to stomach.
Oh, no, it's Talapounces! Ikuna giggles and tries to brace himself for that leap - but he still gets bowled over, tumbling head over heels down the hill and ending up lying on his back, paws up in the air. He laughs, and his tail thumps against the ground. Then he looks over to Wachiwa, and gives a happy bark! Hey! He rolls over onto his feet again, and starts to bounce toward her. If he notices that momentary droop, he just puts it down to more of the same trouble that's been floating around for a while. He nuzzles up under her chin, giving a licking greeting, and then peers curiously at the deer she's chewing up, before giving it a curious lick.
Tala grins down at her brother and barks out at him a few times before crouching down as if she's about to pounce on him again. Well that is until another voice catches there attention. She glances over to Wachiwa, ears perking forward and she turns barking back to her and then follows along after her brother tail wagging about. There is a pause at the talk of being hungrey and she licks across her maw while bounding up to Wachiwa and bumps her head against the adults shoulder. Her gaze then rests on the fawn and she sniffs out. "Wut's dat?"
After chewing that mouthful till it's nice and gooshy, Chewy drops it into a heap at the paws of the pups, and then rips off another couple of chunks, saying, "It's adult food! But I'll get it started for you so it's not so tough. Wanna try? You might like it!" And oh, how she hopes they do, because she doesn't want to have to give Skah another big headache. "It's what makes us all big an' strong an' helps us sing and dance and gives us ideas like the hill rolling game!"
Ikuna sniffs at the pre-chewed food, and peers up at Wachiwa again as she chews more. "Bii?" he says, and then grins. Big is like bigpuppy. He remembers how his friend Ahiga ate food like this. Now, apparently, it's his turn to be big like that. Wow, that's great! "Bii!" And, with that, he lowers his head and takes a chomp of the softened-up meat, chewing at it with enthusiasm and then swallowing it down. He's all ready to be a big boy!
Tala looks rather confused to say the least as she peers at Wachiwa and then at the food that she sets down. She shifts closer and sniffs at it a few times before making a face. "It smell fuy." This said before she eyes her brother as he goes about eating it. For a few moments little Tala doesn't seem too sure about this, but she soon takes a little bit and chews on it. For the moment she doesn't spit it out.
The second mouthful is deposited, and Chewy watches the pups tentatively. She smiles.. buit the smile is tempered. She's got to make sure they eat first... "Yup, makes you all big and strong. Smells funny but that's only because it's new. New things will always smell funny at first till you try'em," she says, watching Ikuna and Tala. Why oh why did she volenteer for this? She's bad at sad things. She sighs. Then says, "Your momma wanted you to eat this, so you should eat up." She smiles! .. it's not TECHNICALLY a lie, right? Wya wanted them to grow up, like all moms do, right?
Sure, it kinda tastes weird, but it's a way to be like bigpuppy Ahiga, and like his brother Asku, and like nice Chewy... and for Ikuna, that's enough of a reason to make him enthusiastic about the strange grownup food. He wags his tail, and leans over to bump his shoulder against Tala's. "Be bii!" he tells her, grinning. Then he looks up with those big trusting puppy eyes at Wachiwa, and nods. "Mama bii." Yet another of the Best People Ever he can be like. He lowers his head, and takes another bite. He can get used to the taste, if that's what being big is about.
Tala glances to her brother, well he seems to really like it. Still the taste is rather strange to her. She goes about swallowing down what she was chewing and gets another maw full, her tail wagging all the while. "Mama bii.. We be bii like Mama?" This questioned as she pers up at Chewy. While little Tala likes Chewy a lot she still loves her mother the most which is a normal thing between a mother and here young after all.
.. Yes, go and make Chewy feel even worse. "... Yeah, yeah, if you eat this you'll be big and strong like momma." She says, softly, though she knows eventually she's going to have to break their hearts. She sighs softly, ears drooping a little, then says, "Eat till your tummies are all full, and then I have a story I need to tell you..." She frowns to herself, as the words to a song come to mind that she starts so half sing to herself more than to them 'I'm gonna let you down, I know that now, make you cry, I know I will, and why should you believe I would never leave, or that I'll be around still? For all the by and by, and hard as we try, the bough breaks and the cradel falls, for everything I do that will tear at you, I'll say I'm sorry now."
Ikuna swallows down his second bite. "Mama an' dada biii. Bes." He'll have to eat plenty if he wants to catch up with them - so he takes a few more bites, listening to Wachiwa's song absently, before he decides that's enough for now. There's a limit to how much New even an eager puppy can handle. He plops down on his hindquarters, peering up at Chewy with a grin. "Sory?" he asks. Those are almost as good as playtime and games!
Tala chews and swallows down a few more bites of the prechewed food. Her tail slowly sways about as she shifts and wiggles on her paws and then settles herself down upon her belly while licking across her maw. She listens to the song from Chewy and peers up her. "Why yu sory?"
"You two full?" Wachiwa says, brekaing from her sad thoughts, before she casts a kind gaze over the two, and then smiles. "Okay, I want you two to get all nice and cuddled together for story time," she says, as she moves a paw to try and move them a little closer together, and a little closer to herself as well. She sighs. Well. "... Once upon a time, there was a mommy and a daddy, and they had two puppies. The puppies names were.. Hmm.. Ikuna, and Tala!" She says, trying to smile. "... And Ikuna and Tala had eht best mommy and daddy ever, and they were always happy, and they had a big family with older brothers and sisters, and friends, and even though sometimes things were scary, the family was always there for them."
Ikuna flops over against Tala happily, nuzzling at her cheek before looking up at Wachiwa again to listen. Yay, storytime! And he grins as he hears his name and his sister's, and gives a little bark. But... he has a growing sense of something wrong, as he listens. The little puppy is rather sensitive to emotions, and for all that Chewy is trying to smile, she also has some of the sad look around her. He looks a little confused. The words are happy, but... he presses himself closer against Tala.
Tala shifts and settles herself down next to her brother and presses close to him. Her tail sways and thumps upon the ground while she looks up at Chewy paying attention to everything that is said. As the story goes on she looks a but confused as well but doesn't say anything, not yet at least. A glance is offered to her brother and she gives his ear a few nips after sitting quieting for a few moments, which is hard for a bouncey pup.
... How long ago was it that she had to learn this hard lesson when her parents were gone? Chewy doesn't remember. But she does remember Haht and Wya were there for her... So she decides, she will be there for their pups. She sighs, looking at them. ... They're going to hate her. "One day, Ikuna and Tala's Mommy and Daddy went out to get big wolf food for their puppies and the rest of the family. They found a very yummy large deer, and they caught it. It was delicious! And they were very happily chewing up some bits of deer for Ikuna and Tala to try... But ... But a monster came along, and decided it wanted the deer for itself, and didn't want to share. So it attacked Ikuna and Tala's Mommy and daddy, and they fought back very hard! ..." She trails... It's.. it's.. Wya and Haht were like her own parents, too... "Yup, they fought real hard," she says, starting to feel sick in her stomach. "... And I really.. really wish I could say they won... But the monster was too strong... And Ikuna and Tala's mommy got hurt very bad, and so did their daddy... And the monster took the food away.."
Those big puppy eyes get even bigger as Wachiwa continues. Ikuna lets out a soft whine, pressing close against Tala, as the scary monster comes along, and then finally it's just too much to take. He bounces up to his feet, bracing himself defiantly. "No!" he says. "Mama bii! Dada bii!" His parents are the biggest and best and awesomest, and no monster, no matter how scary, could possibly be big enough to defeat them. Chewy must be wrong. She's a smart wolf, but... but she must be wrong about this. The alternative is too terrible to even consider. "No. Mama an' dada BES."
Tala ears perk while she watches Wachiwa while the story goes on, her tail thumping a few times until the story starts to get scarey so to speak. Her ears lower and she frowns while peering at the adult wolf, a faint whimper escaping her and she shifts while presses closer to Ikuna in the process. She says nothing while her brother talks out, and say nothing until Wachiwa says her parents got hurt. "Dey no hut.. Dey bii! Dey do anying!" Seems the little pup doesn't want to think about her parents losing and she looks around, ears perking. "Wer ma.. pa? Me ask dem!"
Chewy winces at the protests, and then says softly: ".... I... I'm sorry... Pups... But... There aren't always happy endings in life.." She says, softly, before she looks at them with that horrible wrenching sadness in her gut. "... Ikuna and Tala's Mommy... ... Your Mommy.. and your Daddy... Didn't want to lose to the Monster.. They didn't want to get hurt, no one ever does... And they were hurt so bad.. Oh babies, I'm sorry, but.. They had to go be with the Ancestors... They were just hurt so bad that the Ancestors came and took them away... But they're still watching over you.. They still love you alot... And even if you can't see them, they'll still be there for you... And so will the rest of us.."
Ikuna nods his agreement with Tala. Mama and dada will know the right answer. Wachiwa is smart, sure, but she's not as smart as his parents are. Who could be? They're... well, they're just the best. At everything! It's a joke, right? Chewy is going to say, 'just kidding', right? But... she doesn't. His eyes just get wider as Wachiwa keeps on insisting things that obviously, clearly, MUST be wrong. Why is she saying all these bad things? He shakes his head, back and forth. "Noooo..." he says again, but his voice is less certain of it, now. It's an impossible thing that Chewy is saying, a _wrong_ thing, but... but he knows what lying sounds like, and this isn't it. This is real, honest, sadness.
Tala frowns while watching Wachiwa, she looks serios and sad the more she says this. The pups ears lower and she glances to her brother and then over to Chewy once more. "Dat no tue.. Ma an Pa are ok.." They have to be ok, she can't believe that anything would happen to them. A soft whine escapes the pup and she presses closer to her brother and lets her head settle between her paws looking utterly crushed.
Chewy utters a shuddering breath, as with the pups not wanting to accept, and yet knowing they're going to have to, she feels it all just come crashing down, everything. Wya and Haht were as good as parents to her. She chokes a small sob, and forgets composure in the sake of the pups, as she says softly, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry I can't make things better, and I'm sorry I can't say it's all a horrible joke... But.. Your Mum and Dad... they loved you very.. very much, they loved us all so much. And it hurts me so much inside to know they're gone.. I can't think what it is for you two.. but.. But ... Oh gosh just come here." She cralws closer, trying to pull them in with her paws so she can hug them close, and fuss over them with her muzzle and tongue.
Ikuna's ears droop, and so does his tail. He lets out a whine to match Tala's, and looks up at Wachiwa with a final, pleading gaze. Why can't she make it all better? But... she clearly can't. If mama and dada are really... are really hurt so bad they can't even come back anymore, this is way to big for ANYONE to fix. He just looks utterly lost, barely even moving as Chewy comes closer and tugs the pups against her, and then finally the nuzzles and Tala pressing against him penetrates his confusion. He pulls himself up, putting on a brave face, and nuzzles at his sister firmly. "Oona bii now." He'll be big now, and be the one who takes care of things. Didn't he just eat big-wolf food? He'll do the best he can, and try to make sure everything's okay. He licks back up at Wachiwa, and down at his sister again, trying to comfort them both.
Tala ears perk and she whimpers out while she peers up at Wachiwa, a faint snuffle escaping her and her little eyes are damp from the tears that are running from her eyes. She shifts slightly and leans back against Wachiwa but is utterly quiet. Her eyes close, a ear twitching towards her brother but still she says nothing. Perhaps if she doesn't say anything and keeps believing that it isn't true it won't be! An if she keeps thinking this her parents will come running in and everyone can laugh.
Chew's ears are fully deflated to the side of her head as Ikuna licks back at her face, and she sobs softly, "Yeah.. Yeah, you've got to be a big boy now, Ikuna. You've got to help take care of Tala, c'os she's your sister, and we're all family," she says, softly, nuzzling the two pups in her paws, before she says, "Annd all us big woofs will take care of you, too, till you're our age. I promise I'll be here for you, if you ever need me, I'm here. But you'll both have to be big pups now. That's why you have to eat Big Woof food and grow up big and strong. Oh babies I'm sorry.."
Ikuna stays cuddled close to Tala and Wachiwa, trying to lick and nuzzle and make everything be better. It's not, of course - there's a big hurt inside of him, just like there is in the other two, but his own heartbreak isn't enough to stop him from trying to make the others as happy as he can manage. Even if none of them can manage terribly happy right now, he's still trying to show his sister and his friend all the love he has for them - and maybe some of that love for his parents that he can't give mama and dada anymore.
Tala ears perk forward slightly, a faint snuffle escaping her in the process. She shifts and wiggles, pressing against Wachiwa's chest and nuzzling at her, and then turning to nuzzle back at her brother, whom she gives a lick across his chin. The girl doesn't say a word though, lost in trying to understand everything and dealing with her own heartache it would seem. Her eyes soon close and the little pup soon drifts off asleep cuddled close to her brother and Chewy.
Chewy keeps the pups close, nuzzling and licking them occasionally, until they fall asleep; at which point she sets her head down on her forepeg and sighs, eyes closing, though she does not sleep. She does not sleep because right now, she must watch them... And she also feels like the world might crumble if she sleeps.
Ikuna settles in, resting his muzzle over Tala's back and curled against her side, the two of them nestled against Wachiwa together. He starts to fall asleep too, the emotional stress of all this utterly exhausting - and as he loses consciousness, and the self-control that makes him put the others above himself, he lets out a quiet whimper. He'll try hard to be big, but he's still just a little heartbroken puppy.