[Bast]

Bast had never been very good at this 'on her own' thing. She wasn't supposed to be anyways, at least, she didn't think so. Mother and father kept promising that soon, she'd be taught how to hunt, but when the battles started, she was still just play wrestling with other pups in the den, still just learning how to walk without tripping over feet that were far too large for her, still just growing up and certainly not ready to be on her own. But then the rival pack had attacked, leaving her with no choice but to play dead for hours until she could flee, and then she ran, as far and as fast as her tiny legs could carry her.

Initially, she had found another pack to take her in and feed her, which is how she had reached a land far enough away from the pack that killed her family. But they had tired of her, finding little use for a pup that was not related to them, and so she was chased off. But she was far enough from the land of her home that she had made do. Too small to actually catch anything she was reliant on finding 'leftovers' from other wolves and eating what she could. There was also the difficulty of shelter and staying warm, but frankly, so long as she could wake up and move in the morning, she considered whatever shelter she had previously found to be 'sufficient'.

That had been her life now. She didn't really know how to live any differently. It was just her and the constant struggle against a world that had dealt her a very bad hand, a hand that she had promptly thrown away to make her own. She would survive, she would thrive, she would live, no matter how hard or how long she had to struggle to do so if only to shove it in the face of those who had killed everyone she held near and dear. 

So with a determined strut and nod, she set out to continue the only thing she had known how to do for nearly a week now.

[FrenchFry]

{ A L L I V A N T }

---

With the world at his grasp and no fences or gates to keep boundaries, Allivant felt has free as eagle soaring across the vast landscape. He had waited years to be finally be able to leave his parents den and explore the world around him. Hearing stories every night about the land of giant trees and mountains that raised up to the clouds, the winds that roared through the valleys, and the ways a wolf can be able to prove himself to that land. A sense of determination and fierce wonder rattled through his bones. Eyes dead set on the valley before him, he had one goal in mind: To discover this land and what it truly would hold for him.

Continuing down the path he had made up in his mind, Allivant looked around for any exciting landmarks to behold. He didn’t seem to find much, but only a few trees, rocks, a lizard or two. Although interesting, not enough for him to stop and investigate. He didn’t let these mediocre sights let him down. Alli knew that something must would be around there, something for him to find and truly stop and ponder at. His feet started to feel the weight of his journey, he could no longer ignore the feeling of his dense fur holding him back. He continued on for a few feet more, then sat down without even pausing to look around, panting with his eyes closed, giving a slight yawn as well. The breeze came and hit his face like a nice cool splash.

The length of his journey was getting to him. After days of underwhelming exploration, Allivant’s patience was getting thinner and thinner. Deep inside he could feel the optimism rising up, the sun in his belly trying to force him to get up on his feet, but unfortunately the rest of mind didn’t feel the same. He sat there some more, enjoying the feeling of just... doing nothing... something he hadn’t done in weeks, it felt like. He gave a deep breath, and opened his eyes expecting to see the same sight his always does. Trees, rocks, and a lizard or two. Which he of course did, but he also noticed a fuzzy little dot in the corner of his eye. ’A Rabbit’  His conscious responded, convincing him to ignore the occurrence. But, it started moving, in a non-rabbit sort of way. It was small, and walked with four feet, but no hopping. ’Wait... Wait that’s a... A pup?!’ His thoughts couldn’t make much sense of it. A small pup alone in the woods, strutting around. ’Where are the parents?!’ He couldn’t just stand around and think, he had to do something.

Now a mission was engraved into his brain, he felt a purpose burn through his head. This child needed a guide, a protector, someone to get them back home safe and sound. A job Alli felt qualified to do. He trotted a bit faster, but not has fast as he would like to. He didn’t want to scare the young wolf, but he felt a sense of urgency rush through him has he moved.
”H-Hello there!” He called out with a quiet tone, ”A-Are you okay? D-Do you need help getting home, kid?” He stuttered his way through his sentences, trying to gather up his thoughts.

[Bast]

Bast froze when she heard the sound of rapid pawsteps heading towards her. She instinctively dove into the nearby brush, something she was always careful to make sure and stay near for just these circumstances. But when he called out after her, he just seemed concerned, and his concern was enough to coax her into sticking her tiny head out of the brush, enough that she could still use it as protection and cover should the situation turn violent, but also enough that they could have a friendly and peaceful conversation....if such a thing was possible with a pup only three months in age and only just learning to speak.

"Hi. I'm fine." was the initial, and obviously cautious response. He seemed to only be coming from a place of worry, and she could appreciate that. If she saw another pup her age, wandering around with no scent and no guardian, she would want to jump to their rescue too. But Bast already knew herself to be a good pup, she didn't wish anyone harm, that wasn't an assumption she could make about other strange creatures she met around here, especially fellow wolves, those were the very same creature that had put her in this situation, still, maybe not being totally unhelpful and rude was an option too, it's not like she could hide the lack of parentage, given she didn't smell like them anymore.

"No home. Turned out. They meanies," she declared in the short stacatto like sentences of a pup still mastering the whole speaking process.

[Angus]

Sunny days were always the best days for exploring. Always. 

The sun shone through the valleys and forests as it stretched out its glorious rays in an attempt to touch every last thing it could, leaving the underbrush speckled with sunlight and a warm feeling. This was an exceptionally good day for the pup that found himself wandering the wilds. It wasn't much of an odd occurrence for Angus the young pup as he trotted along happily, lost in his own thoughts. He wandered along through the dense underbrush, watching as it slowly thinned out around him and the trees rose high in to the sky. The pup often found himself thinking of the one lone wolf, Hyperion, that he had met along his journey. It was a short meeting, but the wayward prince had left him with an adventure: seek out Gemini, and so, Angus set off in the hopes of finding this mysterious and wonderful place. Perhaps his family would be there as well.

So the pup marched on with a spring in his step, large ears taking in every sound as the birds sang above him and the water of nearby creeks trickled down in to larger streams. Of course, things like this that were so peaceful could never really last. In the distance came the noises of others, and Angus was quick to his senses once more as he found himself bounding through the trees and making his way to the situation. 

As he neared, he heard the sound of voices talking; his heart racing faster as he neared closer. He could smell two distinct smells, and he could faintly make out one voice sounding higher than the other- perhaps a pup like himself? The adrenaline running through his veins doubled as his excitement grew, tongue now rolling from his open mouth as he pushed his little body to go faster so he could get there in time.

"Hello!" he called out as he saw the figures in the distance growing closer and closer by the second. "Hello, good day!"

[FrenchFry]

{ A L L I V AN T }

---

Has the pup froze at the sound of Allivant’s words, he froze too. Disappointment came over him has he saw the child run into the bushes. Scareing her was the last thing he wanted to do, so in order to prevent himself from looking too fearful he put his ears back, crouched down, and tried to make himself seem more approachable. However, he wasn’t completely surprised a thing like this could happen. One hindered pounds of Canine charging would make anyone want to hide in a bush, especially a young child. Then, has he saw her head poke out of the bush, he felt a feeling of reassurance.

”Hi. I’m fine.”

A bit shocked that she could speak at such a young age, Allivant gave a simple nod in response and glanced around once more, seeing if he could find any sort of authority figure standing by. So far, he couldn’t see anybody, only the typical sights. The clouds rolled over ahead and cooled the air around him. The nice, cool breeze calmed him down, allowing him to gather up his thoughts. Now that his mind was starting to catch up with his actions, he realized that somebody had to have been her guardian at some point. How would she know he was threat? And where to hide when a threat occurred?

”No Home. Turned out. They meanies.”  

No home... meanies... His mind slowly put the pieces together. This child must of come from a broken home, possibly. Why else would be out here alone? Unless she ran from home... But he couldn’t stand here and make assumptions. Allivant simply was confused at this point, a homeless child seemed a bit of a big plate to carry. He wanted to help this kid, but at the same time, wanted to stay out of trouble himself. If her old home had been filled with dangerous wolves that chased their own pup out, whose to stop them from still searching for her and now for him... ’Stop that!’ His mind shouted back at him. ’You’re paranoid! No one’s out to get her... or me... I just need to get her home, or uh, a new home.’

”Do... Do...”, He hesitated to speak. The child’s broken speech made him realize how young she is and how careful he needed to be with his words. Thinking once more, he tried to come up with a good question to ask a lone kid. ”Do you have a-anyone to watch over you... Like a guardian or anything?” A sense of strong awkwardness stuck in his throat.

But then he heard foot steps in the distance, they were small but still they were coming fast. Alli stopped and froze in place, his heart raced with speed and he began to get up and look around carefully. He got closer to the bush, feeling ready jump in himself... after he kept the child safe of course. But thankfully, a small voice called out.

”Hello! Hello, Good day”

Allivant gave a relaxed sigh has he saw the small pup come towards him. It was always good to see a friendly face, especially during a difficult time. ’And perhaps...’ Alli began to ponder, ’He knows of other kind wolves?’

”Oh, Uh, H-Hello there!” He called out, trying to sound has polite and mature has possible. Even if his squeaky voice prevented him from doing so. ”H-H-How have you been? You okay?” He used his go-to words has a small conversation starter.

[Bast]

Bast watched the larger wolf quietly as he kept engaging her and, from what she could tell, tried to appear friendly and non-threatening to her. She could appreciate that if the act was genuine, and slowly began to ease her way out of the bush. A genuine act or not, he clearly was not going to try and kill her outright, and so she saw little reason to be rude and hide away in a bush. So with slow and albeit cautious movements, her inky form slowly slid out from the underbrush to meet him and get a frontal view of his expressions as he seemed to realize the lack of scent on her in combination with her words.

"I did. Found pack. Wolves. But they betrayed. Alone now." she explained quietly without making eye contact. Before then, she had still trusted, still hoped, that maybe, even though she had been dealt a bad hand, it was just that, a bad hand. But the betrayal had taught her that no, she was just a pup in a harsh and unkind world, and somehow, despite being unable to trust, she needed to pretend, in order that she might endure until she was old enough to care for herself. It felt strange, knowing so much at such a young age, but really, it was all she knew anymore, to be independent and brave so that no one could betray her.

But all independence and bravery were lost when she heard the sounds of approaching footsteps and back into the bushes she went, remaining still and trying to conceal herself with the shadows as she waited to see what would occur with the new arrivals.

[Angus]

"Oh, uh h-hello there! H-H-How have you been? You okay?" 

Angus's pace didn't slow until he nearly barreled in to them both. The reddish brown pup was already beaming when he halted, staring at the pair with his large green eyes that seemed to be even more pronounced against his face with two dark circles almost similar to glasses around his eyes. Even the curly tufts of red fur on his head seemed to bounce excitedly on his head, his tail and rump wagging so fast that one could have made the assumption that he'd lift off and fly away if he could. 

"Hello-Hello, sir! I'm great! How are you? I'm...I'm Ang- I'm Angus!" The stutter in the pup was inherent to his excitement as his sentences came and went for a moment. Angus looked at the pair, noting that the younger seemed to be roughly his age. His smile only broadened.

"Oh!" he yipped, his entire body still shaking with excitement as he tried to steady and calm himself down. "Hello!" He looked to Bast and tilted his head. His brows furrowed a bit as he took a good long look at her, puzzlement clouding over his originally excited and happy expressions. Was she familiar? Perhaps. There was something about this pup that he couldn't shake but he wasn't entirely sure what it was. To be fair- most all puppies did tend to look the same until they grew in to themselves. 

"I'm, I'm looking for my parents. Have you seen them?" came the next line of questioning as he returned his gaze to the taller wolf. Perhaps these two had seen them; perhaps Angus was on the right trail home after all. "Or a pack called G...A pack called Gem..." he paused, furrowed his brows and worked through the sentence in his head. What had that Hyperion wolf called it? Gem something. Angus huffed in frustration.

"Gemini!" he barked after a moment, the word rushing in to his head. The excitement grew once more as he looked at them both. "Are you both from Gemini? I was, I was told, Hyperion told me to come find it. And maybe, maybe, and maybe my parents are there too!"

For a pup that was supposed to be weary of the world, Angus found himself falling in to all the exact opposite categories.

[Ivaylo]

Shadows of leaves crisscrossed Ivaylo's face like a mask as she cowered in the protection of the shrubs above higher ground. She drew closer and closer gradually, slowly trying to listen in and figure out who they were, and if they were a possible threat. She suspected maybe not, judging by how young two of the wolves seemed. The eldest was no wolf, but a big burly dog that was a bit larger than herself. From however long it took her to notice them greeting each other to now, she decided it would be smart to try and observe these strangers or at least ask them for directions. She had met several other wanderers or loners on her journey, and many have not mentioned much of any dangerous groups, nor welcoming ones. Maybe this would be different, but her doubts were always one step ahead of her.

She paused for one moment, a few leaps away from the odd trio, her ears pricking up and about as the brown boy introduced himself to the two others and mentioned his missing parents. Or was it he that was missing? Not that she didn't care, but she did not want to know. What would be the use? Could she promise him that it would be alright? That he'd find his family, and be safe again? She scoffed, her forepaw shivering a bit. Pull it together, man. At the very least, she could ask them where to find shelter. Some how, she could feel a storm coming.

No. Why even bother with that? She was just going to waste her time talking to these other younglings. She could find whatever she needed herself. That's exactly what she's done, and what she'd continue to do. She began to turn around carefully to crawl away, as to not make a sound and give away that she was ever there.

"A pack called G...A pack called Gem... Gemini!"

Ivaylo stopped midstep and swung her head back, her spring green gaze fixated on the boy. What did he just say?

"Are you both from Gemini? I was, I was told, Hyperion told me to come find it. And maybe, maybe, and maybe my parents are there too!"

She froze in place, staring. There was no choice but to be reminded of her woes, how once she was this child, hopelessly searching for whatever she had left that belonged to her in this world. This unforgiving, cruel place she thought was just an ordinary home. But it was far from that. Everywhere would be. She did not want to be the one to give the boy this idea, the idea that he might never find what he is looking for and that maybe a part of him would become an empty shell of what it once was because of it. That's how brave she was. Not brave enough at all.

"Tell me," her gruff voice rumbled from her as she stood straight, revealing herself from the foliage. She slowly set her stare on the young brown one, the fur along her mane standing on end, bristling. She took a step toward them, her forest eyes gleaming. Then she took another. "Tell me of this pack. Gemini. Now."



ooc; liquid timed to before she joined Gemini!

[FrenchFry]

{ A L L I V A N T }

---

Allivant faced the new pup with a smile trying to form on his face. But, behind him, he could hear the other young one jump into the bushes. He felt as though he should take the blame for that, if he hadn’t of freaked out earlier she wouldn’t of been so worried. He was supposed to be the brave one here, the adult that would guide these kids, and be some what of a role model. But, now wasn’t really the time to be thinking of that.  

”Oh! Well, Hey Angus!” He tried to get his mind to think of something else, using the small, idle chatter he had been used to saying. ”I’m- I’m Allivant.” Saying his own name, the only thing he ever felt truly confident in announcing. But that confidence was enough to keep Allivant smiling for a while. He needed to, being dealt in this situation, keeping hopes up would be good, hopefully.

He also watched has Angus walked to Bast. ’This... might be a good thing’, He began to think, ’He seems like a good lad, perhaps... he might know of others...?’. Allivant was excited at the thought, maybe this young pup could introduce them to a pack. One where all of them would be safe. And maybe... just maybe... Bast could find someone to take her in, adopt her, and she would be saved. Allivant’s new goal seemed to shine right before his eyes, all he needed to was simply ask-

”I’m, Im looking for my parents. Have you seen them? Or a pack called G... A pack called Gem... Gemini!”

Something inside of Allivant seemed to burn out, and spark up all over again. Not only did the previous child need a guardian, but this poor kid needed to find his parents. But, Gemini... that might be it. A pack, hopefully a kind one, one that would take both of them in and allow them to be safe. His goal seemed to be getting closer and closer. He could feel the joy inside him spark up.

”Don’t worry, Angus!” Allivant reassured, ”Why, I’m sure we can find your parents... and Gemini too of course.” He had never felt more confidence in a sentence. He was probably, no, definitely sure they were going to find what they were looking for. He had a good nose, a good pair of eyes, and two others with (hopefully) good senses. What was to stop them from finding it?
”I think you maybe right, I’m sure your parents will be there!”

Allivant then looked to the Bush where Bast was hiding, he got down low and began to whisper, ”Hey, Don’t worry. It’s okay. We’re going to find a safe place now.” He had barely just heard of this place, but he was sure that this would be the safest place he could take these kids to. Why else would someone recommend it to that small pup?
He could only hope that, the old pack she had been apart of... the old place she had come from... would they find them? Or more terrifying, what if that was in fact the pack they had now discussed, Gemini, be the one she had come from?
’No’ His mind interruptered. ’You should never think like that! This is a good idea, you just have to stay confident.’

His ears were perked high, even with the front draping down near the side of his head, and his tail wagged furiously, even has it draped over his back swishing back and forth at an almost rhythmic pace. His youthfulness gleamed in his eyes has he thought about all the adventures and excitement that awaited him.
’This should be easy...’ His mind still reassuring him. ‘Don’t make this too comp-‘

The mastiff mind stopped has he heard cracks in the foliage nearby. He turned his head round to see a wolf, poking out of the brush and right to the small boy. Alli’s ears dropped low, his tail stiff in the air, and eyes wide open to the stranger. He couldn’t think at this moment, only stand there, watching has the arrival approached.

”Tell me, Tell me of this pack. Gemini. Now.”

Demanding... put he could sense a desperation. He stood there motionless, with a blank stare across his face. His mind took a while to catch up, and it definitely had some things to say. ’Who is she?’ He began to ask himself ’Where did she come from?’ ‘Why does she care?’ ‘Is she alright?’ Words jumbled around in his head, throwing back and forth the idea of her being both a lone traveling much like himself, to a dangerous wolf wanting to hurt these kids. But, Allivant tried to ignore his endless thinking, even if it pounded in his head. Instead, he stood there, face burning up, hair sticking up, and his jaw even started to open...
”Who...Who are you?”

---

OOC :: Sorry for being so late... School’s been really grabing away my time!