___ But first, he was going to relax. One forearm rested on a bent knee, while his other palm was pressed flat against the shore, supporting his weight. He smiled at a lone goose as it took off from the water. It seemed odd to find it here all alone. Didn’t they migrate? With a small chuckle to himself, Apollo collapsed onto his back. His mismatched eyes studied the clouds in the sky. They weren’t big, puffy, and white as he would have hoped. Instead, they were a light slate grey that looked much like a blanket. Though it wasn’t raining at the moment, he wouldn’t have been surprised if the skies opened sometime during the course of the day. Taking in a large breath of air, Apollo closed his eyes, feeling completely content for the moment.

........It was a gloomy day, but not really a bad one. At least it had stopped raining. Cambria was padding through the mud and grass after some particularly pretty butterflies. Usually she didn't like to get muddy, but at least with her fur you couldn't really tell. Oceanic orbs stared up at the fluttering insects. Not once had she attempted to paw at the bugs. For once they were much too high in the air, but also she keenly remembered that that could put them to sleep forever. Cambria would never do that again in her life. The Marino was a true tender heart, inheriting it from both her mother and father. Her mommy could be really strong though, when she needed to be. She wasn't sure if she would ever be so strong as her beautiful mother.



........For a moment her head swung around. Had that been thunder? Oh no, she hoped not! She didn't want it to storm. Large paws turned to take her back to the house but then she halted. No, she couldn't do that. Look at how muddy she was! She would make a huge mess that someone else would have to clean up. The pup didn't want to do that. A soft whine escaped her, feeling stuck outside. Maybe if she went to the shallow part of the lake she could wash herself off and then avoid the muddy places on her way home. Yeah, that would work, wouldn't it? She thought that was the best of her option and so hurridly rushed south to Rabbit Lake.



........Soon the water came into view and she felt a little relieved. Now, the girl knew she had to be careful and not go in too far otherwise that would be very very bad. Somewhat anxiously she began scrubbing off her legs, watching the clear waters become cloudy with the mud that came off her chocolate fur.

___ Splashing that seemed rather far off along the shore reached the boy’s ears. A crooked grin caught his maw, and he opened the two-toned eye suspiciously. Was that stupid goose back again? He opened his other eye to gently lift his head, searching for the bird along the surface of the lake. He didn’t spot anything, and figured perhaps it had flown away again. But then something else caught his eye, and Apollo sat up. There was a small chocolate colored pup along the shore of the lake, and Apollo didn’t see anyone else in sight. Was that one of Savina’s children? It had to be, he decided. He rose to his feet, making his way along the shore towards the small girl. He looked around again before he asked, "Where’s mom?", pausing just a few hundred yards away from her.

........Scrub scrub scrub. She had to get all the mud off! Avoiding it on the way back to the mansion was going to be tough, but she thought she could do it. She would just step lightly and not run. That should do the trick she thought. The smoothed down stones felt good underneath her feet as her legs were washed and soaked. Though the air was getting cooler and being wet made that change more noticeable. A slight shudder shook her tiny frame. She needed to get home before it started raining and it looked like she had gotten all the mud out of her fur. Cambria had been so intent on her bathing that she hadn't heard someone coming closer to her. It was only when a voice run out through the quiet air that she realized she wasn't alone.



........The pup's eyes shot up and her heart caught in her throat. It was a stranger, some stranger that was not supposed to be in their packlands and yet he was. Cambria was reminded of that mean lady that had hit Amata that day. Was he like that lady? She swallowed hard and shifted her weight from one foot to the other. Where's mom? What did he mean? Her mom, or his'? Gaze darted around to see if any of the rest of the pack was around, but they weren't. She was alone with the stranger. "L-lei...non appartiene qui." The girl didn't know what had possessed her to speak in Italian. She knew that really only her family spoke that language. Yet somehow knowing that the stranger couldn't understand her made her feel a little bolder.

........As expected it appeared that this male didn't understand Italian. She didn't know how she felt about that. Yes, now she could say whatever she wanted to him and he would be none the wiser. At the same time though, he wouldn't know what she was saying. About how he wasn't supposed to be here. Maybe if she just kept speaking Italian then he would get frustrated and give up and leave her alone. Right now that seemed like the pup's best option to getting out of this situation. It was true, her momma probably wouldn't want her by the lake by herself, but at the same time that last sentence he spoke made her hair stand on end. You could get hurt and no one would know where you were. The girl's eyes grew wider. That thought was absolutely terrifying.



........If it had come from someone she knew, the offer to help her find her mom would have been comforting. But this was different. He was a stranger and he didn't belong here. That coupled with the spine tingling thing he'd said earlier made Cambria even more nervous. Hesitantly she took a step back from him. "No non mi porta da nessuna parte. Lei non sa la mamma." Of course she had no idea whether or not he truly did know her mother, but he was creeping her out.

........His quick stepping in between her and the water only served to startle her worse. Despite his gentle reassuring her body flattened closer to the ground, her ears snapped back against her head and her tail tucked up against her belly. Oh no, was he going to hit her now? Or try and grab her and take her away anyway? Cambria didn't want any of this. She should have just gone back to the house instead of worrying about making a mess with her muddy paws. "Partirmi solos!" she cried, her voice clearly upset. Ocean colored orbs clamped shut, waiting for the worst despite her protestation.



........Yet he just kept talking. Slowly one eye opened to look back at him. While she was still incredibly suspicious of him and didn't trust him, he was sounding less creepy. Though was he really friends with her mom? Or was he just making stuff up so she would put her guard down? Still, she did want to go home, and right now with how worked up she was going by herself didn't sound appealing. The other eye joined its fellow though her posture remained the same. "Ritorna dove? Il castellos?" she questioned. "Ritornerò solo al castellos. E non mi tocca!"