In Dire Straits - little booger in a big world

The day was young and the fog was still thick. Spring was in bloom, filling Alteron with fragrant and colorful flowers, plants, and other vegetation. Cro had decided that he very much liked spring. He found it was easier for him to camouflage himself, being that he himself was quite green, much like the densely growing foliage around him. He’d come to learn that Alteron was always quite green, but for the time being, he relished in this season.

Dad had allowed his only son to go adventuring for the time being, being very trusting of the boy. They were within Alteron’s borders after all, everyone should know to watch out for the little bugger. There would be strong repercussions if someone were to hurt Cocytus’ shining star.

Trotting along happily, squinting through the fog as he did so, he found himself upon the waterfall in the flatlands. It was loud, nearly deafening as he got closer and closer. He wasn’t sure he’d been over this way before – he was still trying to learn the lands as best as he could.

Snorting at the falls for being so dang loud and interrupting his train of thought – was there much thinking going on in that pretty little head? – he turned away and headed a little ways down the stream from the falls.

His pace slowed as he continued to look around, finding it hard to see much through the fog that refused to burn off as the sun rose higher in the sky. He was bored.

“Where is everyone…” He muttered to himself, somewhat annoyed. Dad had mentioned that there was other pups around his age that he could play with, but he hadn’t met any of them yet. Probably the smart thing to do would have been to have Cocytus escort him to their den to meet them all, but that was too logical. And what fun was that? It was far more fun to adventure and get a bit lost. Right?

Wrong, apparently.

Frowning, he sat down near the stream. Usually he was pretty decent at entertaining himself, but it was getting boring just finding things to do on his own. He did enjoy spending time with his dad – he was great, and would play with him when Cro was bored – but there was something about being a kid and wanting to play with other kids.

Someone who could laugh at a fart joke with him.

Huffing, he laid down at the edge of the stream and dipped a paw in the running water, flicking it absentmindedly and watching as the water droplets caused ripples to form on the surface as they flung from his paw.

A E S T H E T I C

[Image: daydreamer_by_lunecy-dcq777i.png]

The morning air was cool, the forest frosted with fog and mist. Heavy drops of dew slammed against the moist ground, creating an eerie atmosphere around the cobble castle. The runt of the Chariot's litter wobbled from the stone structure, wary of going too far, yet a child's curiosity was much stronger than fear. Soon Lucerne found himself wandering farther and farther away, despite his mother setting a parameter around the area. In this moment where he followed interesting spots, he forgot about the boundaries he was to reside in.

Soon he had gotten himself lost, wide golden eyes staring behind him. A dark forest with no clear path. None that he could see anyway, he was too small to see above the foliage effectively. So, all he could do was press forward, hoping to find something open so perhaps his mother could find him once she noticed he was gone...

Would she notice?

The roar of the waterfall drew him toward the river's edge. It was loud, a static hum that he had never heard before. The mist was heavier here, the spray from the waterfall spreading several feet down the river. The boy hadn't noticed there was someone else there, he was in awe of the huge cascade of water falling down and into the river bed below. It was only when he was a few yards from the bank did he see a small body, paw lightly splashing against the current.

"Uhm... hello?" he called, though was unsure if he was loud enough. He was hesitant to meet anyone new, what if they were dangerous? His siblings were more brave than he was, Lucerne was quite the timid creature. Glamdring had hammered this into his mind. Yet, he didn't feel right just walking by and ignoring them if they noticed him scurry away. So, the boy walked closer. "Hello?" he called out, louder this time.

I hope they're nice.

✦ ✦ Speech Text ✦ ✦

[Image: d__melted_red_candles_by_angelichellraiser-d6hsx66.gif]

The waterfall continued to crash noisily, the sound a constant string of rumbling and gurgling in the distance. It was almost hypnotic as Cro lay on the riverbank splashing the water with his forepaws. The young boy soon found himself in a trance, oblivious to the world around him and completely lost in his own little world.

Crocus didn’t hear the first greeting that came from the smaller pup, but the second one caught his attention. Perking his ears, he turned his head sharply and saw a runty looking pup staring at Cro with wide amber eyes.

He didn’t recognize the boy, but could only assume he was one of the kids his dad was telling him about before.

Rising to his paws, Cro turned and faced the timid looking pup. “Hey,” he said casually, his tone somewhat chipper. He tried to mask his excitement in a feeble attempt to come off more cool and nonchalant, but he was so dang bored he couldn’t help but smile a bit.

“What’s your name? I’m Cro. Are you one of uh…” Pursing his lips as he tried to remember the name of the parents. Cocytus had told him once or twice, but his memory was failing him. “My dad told me there was more pups ‘round here.” He settled on that, brushing off his forgetfulness. Didn’t really matter much, anyway. Not to him at least.

A E S T H E T I C