The world outside of the den was an overwhelming place. Where the den was spacey enough for he and his family to move about and snuggle with one another, the rest of The Waste and even more so the lands surrounding The Waste, were too much for the tiny pup to handle all at once.

For this reason, Ezekiel had been sticking close to the den most of the time, still a bit wary of leaving on his own. As the sun slowly rose over the lands, a ray of sunlight fell to the entrance of their den. Ezekiel was the first to awaken out of his family, which was something that was becoming very normal. It appeared that he was an early riser.

Feeling alone suddenly, Ezekiel looked around, surveying each family member. Bright, curious eyes sparkled with the kind of mischievousness that could only be found in the eye of a child and landed on the sleeping form of his father. It was early still, the sun only just having awakened to start the day. Gabriel would be up soon anyways, so there was no harm in helping him up, was there?

Regardless of the rights and wrongs of what he was doing, Ezekiel jumped onto his father’s powerful body, his paws digging into his father’s chest. His soft tongue flickered over his father’s cheek, his coal-black nose nudging him. "Daaaaaaaad! Dad! Daddyyy! Wa’ up! Time ta rise ‘n shiiiiine! Wakey wakey!" His voice was not yet developed and came out as a high-pitched squeak. The kind sure to drive any father insane.

indent One might assume that Gabriel would be unable to sleep at night with the weight of what he had done. This was not the case; the burning of Bleeding Souls had been an act of God, and as his hand and his sword, Gabriel did not feel guilt for any action. Many had died, many had suffered, but this was how it was meant to be. He slept in darkness untroubled by dreams, something remarkable for a man who had, as a boy, suffered visions of terrible grandeur.

indent Gabriel, on his side, was woken the moment his son leapt on his chest. Grunting and opening one eye, he pushed his front end up and soon his back legs followed suit. Yawning widely, the doggish male shook the sleep from his head and glowered down at his son. Faolin and Talitha were still asleep nearby, and opting to leave them there, Gabriel half-pushed his son with one paw, four legs moving him outside of their den and onto the dirt area directly outside of its mouth. Tall grass was all around them, broken up only by large rocks that pointed away from the entrance like spears. “What do you want, Ezekiel?”

Ezekiel had not truly stopped to think whether or not his father would like to be awoken in such a manner. However, it was too late now and as his father pushed him roughly out of the den and into the dirt patch. Slightly startled by the seemingly effortless action, the boy stood up and shook himself off, his cheeks warm as he noted the glare aimed in his direction.

Staring sheepishly at his father, it occurred to Ezekiel that he didn’t really have anything he really wanted from his father. Was simply to be around him a good enough excuse? Perhaps Gabriel did not yet see the importance he held in his son’s eyes. From Ezekiel’s point of view, Gabriel was everything he dreamed of being and more. "Well…" he choked out, unsure of exactly how he should respond. Would his father be angry with him?

As the sun continued its journey over the lands, Ezekiel suddenly felt very awkward. Shifting back and forth, he kept his eyes focused on the ground. "C-can we take a walk? An’ you can tell me a story from when you was a liddul boy like me?" he asked nervously. It seemed like a good enough idea. He liked listening to his father’s stories. Mostly because he liked hearing Gabriel’s voice.

indent Until his children directly disobeyed a command, which Gabriel doubted would happen, he would never be truly angry with them. They knew the rules of the clan and his own creed; stay safe, avoid strangers, be prepared to run. They had to survive and he intended to see that through. Yawning again and looking down at the boy, the yellow-eyed man smiled faintly. “Sure,” he said, moving with ease down the faint slope that led away from their home.
indent From here, Gabriel began to take the eastern slope, following a worn deer trail towards what had become the clan borders. “Well,” he began as they walked. “My brother and I used to explore the beach a lot. There was one day where we found a cave down by the shore. It was huge, bigger then anything I had ever seen. Baneesh thought there might be something at the back of it, or that there might be a secret tunnel.” By this point they had reached the border, and Gabriel paused to mark this. When finished, he lowered his leg and continued along the path the clan was wearing down. “We went back but didn’t find anything. Of course, by the time we turned around, the tide was starting to come in. The water started rushing in and we were too little to fight against the current. We kept trying to get out and the water kept pushing us back, getting higher…”