[Ursa]

The castle was large. It seemed unending when she could barely walk, stumbling over paws too big and wondering what lay beyond the next corner that she could never quite reach. She thought she would never see all of it, unable to conquer the labyrinth of dark corridors or the unending stairs that spiraled into the heavens. There came a day when she walked more and stumbled less, though the dark and the stairs remained obstacles that, while not insurmountable, still posed a challenge. Then, as her legs became a little longer and her heart a little braver, the castle began to seem much smaller than it once did. She still had not scoured every corner of it, the darkest depths left unknown, but she felt that she knew it’s cracks and strange whistles better now, as well as anyone could (or so she thought, as puppies always do). It was not so vast and grand as it once seemed. In time, even the sprawling forest began to lose its edge, its secrets uncovered and stories unraveled. She found herself hungry for what lay beyond.

So she struck out, as children always do, fighting her way through unturned snow and not looking back once at heavy boughs and quiet castle. Home would be there when she was ready to return, but she knew deep down that this land was hers to discover and that all of the world beyond was her playground. The world was white and the snow was hard to break through beyond the shelter of the world she’d known thus far, but she kept her eyes on towering walls in the distance that looked like mother’s teeth, sharp and long but no danger to her. They simply existed, as mother’s teeth simply existed. In time, she found where those with longer strides than hers had walked, and she follows the path they cut while keeping her eyes on the gaping mouth in the distance.

There were other things, along the way. Trees and rocks that caught her eye, but too far through the fields of snow for her to divert herself that particular day. This path was already here—so there must be something at the end of it, right? Something strange was all around her, the smell of people and things she had never seen. Something old curled delicately against the backdrop of teeth, and with one final push over a stubborn, slippery hill, she found an Old One before her. It towered much higher than any of the trees in her family’s wood, though it was hard to tell just how tall it was. As tall as the castle? As tall as the teeth in the distance? It was grand, and it was alone. It had been here much longer than any of them. It would be here long after they were gone.

She continues on, focused now on a new destination. The teeth were so much farther than she thought they would be, looming ever on in her vision but never seeming to grow any closer. Mist rolled in from the land beyond, obscuring their points from view. The Old One towered still, higher and higher the closer she came, her head tipping back until it hurt as she tried to find the top. Before longer, she found herself at the foot of one of its massive roots. Here she stood for a while, puzzling over how a single part of this tree was as thick as the trunks of titans in the forest she knew. This, without question, was something new.

Well! Time to climb it! Or—try. The slope was gentle and deceptive at first, luring her onto the incline. Then it jutted sharply up, something she ponders for some time before backing up and leaping with such CONFIDENCE at the next step on this perilous climb. She manages to hook her forelegs over, claws scrabbling at the rough bark for several seconds (that felt like MINUTES—she was hanging by a thread, here!). The pads of her paws were numb to sharp edges that cut into them as she struggles to hang on, to climb up, to do anything but the inevitable—but the inevitable always comes. The minutes are not minutes but seconds, and she falls back onto the slope ungracefully, ass over teakettle back down into the snow, which swallows her as if she had never been there at all. Her paws leave a smear of blood against the ice crusted along the top as she struggles to right herself, cheeks burning more out of anger than embarrassment—though.

It sure would be a shame if ANYONE had SEEN that!!!

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PRP for Alec, Sloan and Harriette!

[Harriette]

For once, the wind had shown mercy. It seemed as though every day, the wind howled, pushed snow into banks against structures, blew it in swirls through the air. It was always cold, the wind, and Harriette was finding resolve in the calm day, watching as snowflakes fluttered without disturbance to the white ground. She enjoyed watching the flakes fall and smiled as they disappeared against the snowy blanket below them, red and blue eyes watching in wonder as she lay there, engulfed in winter’s chilly embrace.

It was quiet today. The world was at peace, silence thick in the air. On a typical day, Harriette might be afraid to find herself alone on such a soundless day with a blank canvas all around her. But perhaps her mind was finally learning how to relax, how to shut the world out and simply embrace the nothingness.

But as she let her eyelids slide shut over those icy hot eyes, she felt her imagination light up like a flame. Silence soon shifted into unspoken words, laughter, giggles. The laughter was young and full of life, and yet it was so empty. There was no echo, the sound simply insulated by the snow around her, fading gently as the laughing shadows frolicked near then far. She refused to open her eyes, afraid she might open them to see her lost brothers, feeling vulnerable and naive. She didn’t want to get her hopes up – not again. Not anymore.

The laughter faded, and the following silence shocked Harriette into opening her eyes. There were no shadows, no spirits, no ghosts to taunt her. She was simply alone. No dragons, no ribbons in the sky. The world was simply quiet and white. Harriette gazed around herself and exhaled softly. Perhaps her imagination was growing weaker as she grew older, or perhaps she was simply tired.

A noise broke the silence, and this time it wasn’t coming from inside her head. A commotion and a soft grunt, the noises suppressed from the snow that covered Gemini. Her ears perked and she raised to her paws slowly, wondering if she should investigate. She looked around herself, wondering if someone was near by.

As she scanned the area, she saw some movement in the distance by a tree – one of the tallest trees in Gemini, she was sure. Tilting her head, she watched the figure fight with the ground beneath their feet and try to tackle the tree. Were they trying to climb it?

Harriette shook her fur and decided to go to the tree climber.

Growing nearer, Harriette saw that she recognized this young girl, and her scent was very familiar. A smile broke across the Acolyte’s face and she called out to the girl once she was close. “Hello,” she said, still smiling. “You must be one of my sisters.” Inside, Harriette was ashamed of not knowing her many siblings better. She hadn’t spent much time with the younger litters, and she felt badly about it. She thought of Antares, and wondered if this young girl was from the same litter. They grew so fast, it was hard to keep track.

“I’m Harriette – I’m one of your oldest sisters.” Her tail wagged softly. Then her eyes fluttered upward, attempting to find the top of the massive tree before them (but failing). “That’s a long way up.” She said simply, impressed at the challenge the girl had given herself.

A E S T H E T I C

[akante]

[ whispers are you still cool with me tossing my fat boi in here? ]

[Harriette]

of course, goofball

[Rhiow]

yaya

[Sloan]

s l o a n

Ursa was so hard to keep up with. But Sloan certainly did her best, following in her larger sister's foot steps leap by leap. She wasn't sure where Ursa was going, and she was positive that Ursa had no idea she was following her, but Sloan was genuinely worried that her dear sister was going to get in some sort of trouble. Sloan wanted to be there to make sure she'd be okay, that's all! That's what she'd tell Mom, too, when she found out that they'd both snuck out.

Eventually, Sloan found herself dying to take a break. Her energy was depleting after what felt like a lifetime of hurdling herself. She sat in her sister's foot steps, quite comfortably actually, and watched curiously as her breath fogged before her. She took a moment to try and make different shapes in the air, when she heard a solid thump. She swore the ground moved. When she didn't hear anything, she began to panic, "...... URSA?!" She popped her head out of the small burrow she was camping in, when she saw Harriette approach what may or may not be her dear sister.

She hopped forward, soon landing beside Harriette, and looking down at her contorted sister. She frowned, concern wearing on her face. "Oh, dear sister... are you okay? You need to be careful with how you choose to play!"

She looked up at Harriette, who claimed to be Ursa's sister. That means she was her sister, too. With a big smile, she raised a paw to wave at Harriette. How lucky was she, to have such a pretty older sister?!