He lay on his stomach; mismatched eyes almost crossing because of the items he was gazing at were so small and so close. He watched as ants filed in and out of a small hole in the ground – a mound of small balls of dirt colored the same tan that Sirius had in his coat; the same color that was smudged just barely above his nose. Every so often the child would move a paw onto the ants and disrupt the orderly line that was working its way inside of the hole. Ants would crawl over and under his dirt dusted paw, trying to find their way around. He grinned as they scrambled to find their way back. He liked the chaos. This controlled chaos. He chuckled to himself.



The sun over head was up high in the sky and the heat was strong. Lately there had been a lot of thunderstorms, but it looked like they were going to be spared today. There was something curling just underneath the surface of the introverted pup. Naniko had confided in Pilot that she was curious as to Apollo’s behavior. He definitely wasn’t like the other boys. Perhaps there was something to be worried about. Maybe there was a streak beneath the surface that was waiting to emerge.

Jazper was Apollo’s brother by some weird family ties. He knew that he wasn’t blood – that Deirdre had adopted him. That made Pilot one of his father’s, but he also considered Deuce and Lucifer his parents as well. Apollo felt a connection with Jazz in that way – they both had a ton of family members, but no real parents. It was a strange set up, but whatever. He looked up to the black silhouette of his adopted brother and offered a thin smile. They were complete opposites in color and size – Jazper was practically an adult now. He squinted as the sun filtered into his mismatched eyes, before Jazper stepped forward and blocked out the sun.



"Hey Jazper. I was just watchin’ the ants." He looked down to the ant hill and watched as the little bodies busily entered and left the small mound of dirt. He wished he was small enough to hide away in that hole and explore the maze of caverns beneath the soil. "They’re weird lookin’. And so small." He turned his gaze back to his brother. "Whatchu doing?" He asked, tilting his head to the side. Unlike Sirius, Apollo had lost his baby talk rather quickly. He was rather good at pronouncing simple words how they were supposed to be said. Sirius still added extra endings to words, while Apollo had left that behavior behind. The only thing he struggled with was properly ending his words. Sometimes he left of the –ing endings.

"Birds?" Apollo asked his brother, giving a side glance up to the older boy before looking down towards the crawling ants once more. Their shiny bodies glinted with sunlight as they moved in and out of the ant hill’s entrance, sometimes dragging leaves and other items inside with them. "Birds creep me out," he told Jazz. He was aware that some people could talk to them, including his dad Pilot, but that was just weird to him. Maybe some day he would learn that language (low speech it was called) but for now he would stick to his Italian lessons.



"I can’t wait ‘til I’m old enough to shift," he replied, turning to fully face Jazper. He was lucky… he was almost nine months old and would be seen as an adult by everyone else. Apollo wanted to be treated with the same kind of respect and seriousness that Jazz would soon receive. Apollo couldn’t wait to grow up. "I bet you're assited, huh." Apollo asked him, pronouncing 'excited' similar to how he would expect Sirius to say it.

Dierdre. He knew that name, but he couldn’t think of why he knew it. But what Jazper said was probably true, Apollo was looking for some sense of respect, he just didn’t know it. The pup was confused about how he felt about his life, and he didn’t know if Twilight Vale was the best place for him to be. He just wanted to be older so that he could venture off on his own. He was smart enough to realize he couldn’t do that just yet. He didn’t know how to hunt or defend himself from predators. But he did know one thing. He didn’t quite feel like he belonged there.



"Sure, let’s go," he told his adoptive brother, as the two ventured towards the stand of trees. It was funny to seem them walk side by side, crisp white next to rich black. He wondered vaguely how he and his brother were connected to one another, because he realized they weren’t blood. He knew he had been told before, but he didn’t like to worry himself too much with details. But then he remembered. Dierdre. That’s why the name was familiar. Dierdre had been his mother – his real mother, the one he had never met – and she had adopted Jazper as her own. That was it. Now he knew.



"I’ve seen books in the house, but I never know what they say. Is it hard to read ‘em?" He blinked his eyes, shifting his gaze from his paws up to the land stretching away in front of them. He wondered if anyone had ever had the same kind of eyes as he had – one yellow and one that was vertically split with yellow and blue. He wasn’t aware that he got the mismatched eyes from his mother. What he did know was that the split eye was not something common in nature. He could tell by the way eyes feel on him whenever he approached a group. Even those familiar with it seemed to let their gaze linger there for just a moment longer. He wondered… was it some sort of omen?

Even though Apollo probably would never admit it, he really took Jazper’s words to heart. His brother, whether blood or not, had meant those words that he had just said to Apollo. He may have been young, but Apollo could see that they were sincere. He appreciated that, especially since he felt so lost in this world and was still trying to find his place.



With the sudden change of tone and drop in volume, Apollo turned to observe the scenery stretched ahead of him. He breathed in slowly, trying to taste the air as Jazper suggested. He had never been hunting before, and had no idea the skills needed to do so. He listened intently for instructions, nodding as a response to let Jazper know he could taste the rabbits on the air. He didn’t speak, for fear or stirring up the animals and revealing their location. He gave a nod as to signal that he was ready to be taught – to see exactly how it was done.

Apollo waited, feeling the dirt beneath his paws as he watched his brother silently stalk forwards. A thin grin had formed on his lips, but he made no sound. He wanted to do this perfectly – not wanting to ruin it for Jazper as well. With the sudden movement of his brother and the shrill call of his voice, Apollo flung himself towards the streaking forms of the rabbits. Of course, they were moving much too fast for him, but he did manage to clip one on its side as he went hurdling by it.



"I got it! I got it!" He squealed, before realizing his paw had only side swiped the hare. He turned on his paws, laughing, and trying to chase after the rabbits once more. They could easily escape the pup now. "Aww mann, they got away!" Apollo huffed, slowing his gait until he stopped all together.

"Thanks Jazper!" Apollo offered, feeling the side effects of the adrenaline leaking in his veins. It had been quite a rush, and he couldn’t wait ‘til he got older. When he was big enough to hunt, Apollo was determined to become a skilled tracker. Watching the way Jazper moved had made him only that much more in a rush to grow up. He was glad that he enjoyed Jazper’s company, unlike Sirius.



He smiled at his brother, waiting for him to join him by his side once more. He figured the two of them could head somewhere else – maybe find some more rabbits. When the look on his brother’s face changed, Apollo frowned. What was wrong? A low growl emerged from behind him, and Apollo turned to see a fox. Though he would easily outgrow this creature when he was older, the fox was similar in size to the pup. His eyes grew wide as the creature hissed and lunged towards Apollo. "Ahhh!"

It all happened so quickly, and Apollo was grateful that his brother had been there to help defend him. Had he been alone, Apollo knew he would have been in trouble. He wouldn’t have gone out without a fight, but he was well aware he would have bore many more wounds then Jazper had received. He just couldn’t believe it all.



The fox lunged at him, teeth bared as a growling hiss came from its throat. Before Apollo had time to react, he was sent spilling onto his back, the fox leaping on top of him. Jazper jumped like a blur, prying the fox away. After regaining his footing, the white youth could only watch helplessly as his brother fought. When the rust hued frame went limp, he knew that Jazper was the victor. His shoulder, however, was stained crimson from a wound the creature had inflicted. "I’m alright. But you’re shoulder – we should go home so that Naniko can take a look at it."