Perfect (ily)

[Bhu ♥ Irwin]

I put my ears back as red goo entangled into the fur on my paw. I grumbled in agitated curiosity as I lifted it to my muzzle and attempted to chew it out. It had a grainy texture, like when Michelle's trips me and I get a mouth full of sand. It had the same salty taste, too, but a bit more tangy. It caked over my tongue, refusing to be swallowed, so I was forced to make a scene and choke it out before shaking what I could of the remainder off my foot. Not that it made any sense--I put it right back down into the thick substance, anyway. The area smelled of many dogs, unfamiliar scents accept what I could tie to Grandpa's fur. Some where his own, but others were always faint enough to be from dogs he interacted with. If they were dogs, which I assumed they were just the other pack that he went to visit sometimes. There were cat scent's, too, but mostly tainted by blood which told me it was fresh kill. Fresh cat scent was nowhere in the area, so this land was avoided by the 'prey'.

I turned amber eyes to my friends, curious to see what they made of this place. I could hear roaring from a deep dip in the earth, and when I made my way to peer cautiously over the edge, I could make out the faint image of water. Lots of it. It looked to be moving fast, big sticks sweeping through the currents. Mom, when she first started teaching us words, said long, quick-moving bodies of water are usually called rivers. I wanted to investigate it, and I was thirsty, but I saw no way to scale down the wall of the red stuff on each side of it. I stepped away the edge carefully, looking around the area and smelling the air. I caught no scent of any other water source. I grumbled irritably. We had been walking for what seemed to be ages and I had forgotten to drink before we left. I looked to Michelle uncertainty. She was the most resourceful of the three of us,but also the most reckless. "Think we can get to that river?" I prompted, hinting towards the drop where the river roared. I looked to both dogs, though I was pretty certain Brandon would advise against an attempt.

[I L Y I C H]

"You could try." I glared hateful at the trio, watching with what I guess was satisfaction as the biggest blackish one jumped. I'd seen them rambling their way up the canyon side, and I'd been curious. Just a little bit. Theodora said curiosity was a good thing, but Nimrod didn't seem to like it much. Humans said it was bad. The thought made me twitch the smallest bit. I didn't like to think of the humans much. The paler tawny girl turned towards me, lips curled. Orange eyes focused on the display of anger I stared back unemotional. What was I suppose to respond? I wasn't sure, so I wouldn't. There wasn't much of a point anyway. "You might die though." Turning my head slightly I looked down the rocky face, visualizing how easy it would be for such little bodies to go tumbling away into the deceptively quiet waters. The current hidden under the clear rooftop of the river was powerful enough to drown even a full grown folami.

Staring at the strangers all over again, I watched the bigger boy shift to stand slightly in front of his two friends. Guarded anxiety flickered into me. Maybe they were actually enemies. Gods only knew that the humans raised their cubs to be monsters from the very beginning. Shadows of the training ring rippled in the back of my mind and I took a small step to the side, shielding myself instinctually. "What are you children doing here anyway?" They smelt of Vea Apxn. What would the rival pack's pups want with the muddy clay anyway? Moran said he'd been smelling a lot of their smell on our soil lately, but hadn't seem too troubled by it. Maybe it was just because they were puppies. But then I was only six months of age too. Age meant little. This creatures could just as easily be marauders if they wanted to be. The girl at least had relaxed, peering over the back of her friend's back.

In the end she moved first, shoving out of the black brute's protection. I stepped away, hackles raising, but not letting on much more. Couldn't let them know I knew they might try to kill me. I was in control here. Me. "I'm Michelle. Whats your name? Do you live in the other pack like my daddy?" Ears twitching just barely, I gave the girl a long hard stare before flicking something close to confusion towards the brown, older brute. What was I to make of this? Awkwardness flooded into my mind and I took another step to the side, making to circle hoping that maybe I could threaten them into leaving so I wouldn't have to answer any silly questions. Why would this.. Michelle need to know any of those things anyway? It was dangerous.

[Bhu ♥ Irwin]

I would be lying if I said I didn't twitch in surprise at the foreign voice. The downside to having been in the pack lands was that I couldn't pick a out a fresh scent and say someone was still here. I had caught several not-so-stale dog scents, but dismissed them as folami that had patrolled this area today and nothing more. My stupidity was going to get my friends killed. I turned calmly, eying Brandon as he positioned his larger mass to protect Michelle and me. I gave the stranger a skeptical expression, masking over any sense of unease or fear with mild curiosity. I allowed enough wariness to leak through into my eyes and stance so that as not to be judged as arrogant, or ignorant. I allowed Michelle the first word from our side, knowing she'd frown upon anything less. I caught the boy's confusion and the faintest smirk passed my lips. Michelle could do that to a dog.

The moment he began to circle us, my guard came up. This could be a way to corral us into a trap, or keep us prisoner until a larger dog or authority figure came to gather us up. I shouldered my way forward to keep my body between the stranger and my friends, circling with him, amber gaze never leaving his shifting muscles. "Now, there is little reason for this to turn violent. There are three of us and only one of you, as of now." I let a hint of warning pass into my tone, letting the boy know that one of our own warriors could come to rescue us just as easily as one of his. Never letting my eyes leave his form, I flicked a cautious tail over Michelle's shoulder. "Why can't we just have a nice conversation? My name is Kamautu." I cast a quick glance towards Brandon, apologizing ahead of time, before looking back to the stranger. "Our friend here is Bran. Michelle and Bran are the children of your alpha, and I am his Grandson. I think that is reason enough for some trust here." My tone had shifted to cautious to warm, trying to let the anxious brute understand we were no threat to him or his dogs. I glanced for a moment towards the cliff edge, smiling with gratitude before turning full attention to the stranger. "Thank you for warning us against climbing down to the river. You probably saved our hides." I blinked kindly, reinforcing our warm intentions. He had to know we would never hurt someone that saves our skins! It was barbaric for a dog to lift a claw against a hero.

"Now, come on, what should we call you?" As if coaxing a kitten out of hiding, I kept my tone steady, but gentle.

[I L Y I C H]

Ears flicking just slightly, I watched with some suspicion as the brown boy spoke. Kamautu? It was an odd name, I guessed, but then all names were somewhat odd weren't they? Besides he was right. They could easily just throw me right over the edge, and then that river would be in my lungs. It would be easy. Not that it really mattered. My paranoia couldn't overcome most of my darker moods, anyway. They might as well go ahead and do it. According to the way Nimrod looked at me sometimes the pack would thank them. Letting out a small sigh I gave up whatever I had been doing previously and sat down carefully. Even if I'd been thinking it I still sat as far away from the cliff edge as possible.

'Bran' relaxed a little bit when I sat down, his dark ears coming forward. I thought I'd recognized his white pattered face. Just a bit. Bidziil had been seemingly obsessed with Vea Apxn lately. Apparently the pack split wasn't as big an issue as Nimrod and some of the others liked to pretend it was. I wondered what Merchant would say if he knew. Or if he'd care? It didn't really matter. I didn't trust Bidziil that much anyway, he wasn't around very often. He was still nicer then Nimrod though, so I supposed that gave the ebony king some points. Still I wasn't one to trust someone just because of their parents, or family. I knew Bidziil's children were in Vea Apxn now, but I hadn't known he'd had a second litter. I'd have to remember to congratulate him if I could keep up the courage to say it out loud.

"Probably? He totally saved our butts." Michelle waved her tail, moving towards me far too quickly. Half back to my paws I only sat down again when the pale girl plopped down beside me. Far too close for comfort, but with a massive smile on her face. Gods only knew what was wrong with her. Who had that much confidence? It simply wasn't decent. Ears slightly stiff against my temples, I blinked quietly back towards these odd children. Bran shuffled slightly, settling down to sit behind his friend now that the danger had passed.

"Jackson." I offered after a long moment, watching Kamautu carefully. Skoll only knew what this could cause. They could tell on me. I could be killed for being a traitor. Even if they didn't maybe Bidziil would just smell them on me. But really it still didn't matter. My hackles were still slightly lifted though. Couldn't really bring that fear down.

[Bhu ♥ Irwin]

As the boy relaxed--well, sat down--I let my own hair flatten on my neck. We were at a good place now, if I had learned anything from the stories told of battles. That or we were being tricked, but I couldn't see this man pulling off suddenly attacking and getting all of us, even if we were caught off guard. Besides, Grandpa would be very upset with him, and his pack wouldn't want that. Grandpa was a nice man, a just man, but he still had the temper that he blamed on something called 'test tubes'. He occasionally smacked at an upsetting folami or bit or swore and it didn't matter how sorry he was a moment later, he was strong. One second of unrepressed fury and someone could be seriously hurt, or worse.

"Jackson? Grandpa said your name to my ma once. He likes you, I think. He said you had potential, and he said it in a happy voice. Said you weren't totally lost to the ways of a machine." My confident tone trailed off faintly at the end. I didn't understand half the things Grandpa discussed with my mother. The sometimes whispered out of my range, but the times they did just sit down beside me while I rested and talked openly, it was always in code when about the other pack. I shrugged away the curiosity, not caring enough to ask questions. I was the last to relax to some degree, going further than Jackson and even laying flat my hackles as I all but fell into the soft earth. I caught Astrid's scent again, but I ignored it. Her and daddy had been here, so it was okay. Well, kind of. Mommy was upset but the little red figure of herself Astrid had made caused mom to turn on dad but seem to forgive Astrid. I pawed the substance, toying with making my own apology gift, but grew bored with the motions rather quickly.

Gazing back to the stranger, I offered him a calm smile. I didn't really feel the need to say much more than I already had, but my new friend's tension upset me. Not in the 'you're annoying me' way, but simply upset me because it made my heart sad. I wanted him to trust me--I trusted him. I looked over my shoulder at Brandon, than glanced warmly at Michelle. Perhaps we could come here and play with Jackson more often! We could drag Irwin and Mukki with us, too. Well, Mukki. Irwin wouldn't like the long distance. I wondered if the boy would ever see his father's territory. "Hey, Jackson, any cool places in your territory? We will show you our's if you will show us your's!" I jumped to my paws in puppish excitement. Being confined to camp was so boring--I wanted to squeeze as much adventure into this day as I could. I knew Michelle'd agree, and I refused to look towards Brandon.

Just one day, that's all I wanted. I allowed myself to forget that we didn't know most of our own territory to show Jackson, but we could just pretend.