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For Marit. 300+
The Lilium’s children were rapidly growing into handsome young men. Every day now, Alexey became more and more aware of their unstoppable growth. It was scary and oh-so beautiful to watch at the same time. Conor had finally found a friend; a little girl the Caretaker actually approved of. Catalyst was a good influence on her protégé and although she probably didn’t realize it, it was partly thanks to her that Conor was able to smile and socialize with others the way a normal pup should. Admittedly, the boy’s behavioral changes also meant a lot more time spent alone for Alexey. There were days, such as this one, when she’d find herself sorely wishing he’d come home early just to be with her.
It was a little silly of her but she couldn’t help it. The Acer was painfully aware that she probably needed him more than he needed her. Cwmfen’s company had sufficed to keep her busy the day before, and Alexey was somewhat looking forward to witnessing the birth of Dahlia de Mai’s second litter. Her mind skipped from one pack mate to the other, some of which she hadn’t seen in quite a while. How were they fairing? A gigantesque poplar provided the coolness she needed on such a hot day; she had no intention of escaping its shadow anytime soon. Around the trunk, a leash was securely fastened. And at the end of that leash was Conor’s new pet; the baby fox he’d rescued.
Lexey had been reluctant about keeping it at first, but the orange-hued creature had quickly grown on her. It could move around on its own now and although some horrible monster had pulled out all of its baby teeth, the Caregiver was confident adult ones would soon fill the void in its mouth. Perhaps once it fully recovered, Conor would decide to set it free. It was his pet after all; the cub’s fate (be it freedom or captivity) was the boy’s decision. A sigh left her lips as she leaned her head back onto the tree, amber-colored orbs staring at the blue skies above.
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Passing through the vegetation Mew spotted her friend easily. Not because her furs gave her away so easily, that was more like herself, but because she knew that face very well by now. She'd been envious at first, when she found out that Alexey was taking care of her nephews. Why had no one seen fit to ask her to take care of them? Blood relation and everything. But then again, Alexey knew them better, and it was Alexey who had found them. It was probably better for the boys to be around someone they knew, rather than their stranger aunt. Sadly, though, she'd grown a little intimidated by the thought of meeting them, even though she adored children, and so she'd kept her distance. The result was that she didn't know them at all, but she would probably get the chance to do so when they were all grown up. She eased her own mind with thinking that they were probably easier to communicate with as grown wolves than children anyway, even though she knew that that was probably wrong.
........Smiling, she finally reached her friend. Standing on top of the steep hill overlooking the house where they usually had their piano lessons, the view was beautiful. It certainly was one of those spots that never could compare with anything else. Just as Mew was about to simply wave at her friend and set off down the hill towards the house (she always was eager to get started with the piano lessons. They made her feel useful), she noticed something peculiar about her today. In a leash in her hand, was a fox. Now, why.. who had a fox in a leash? It wasn't exactly a normal pet choice, not that it was normal for them to have pets in the first place. Her left eyebrow arched, and she looked at the creature, puzzled, before looking back up at her friend.
........You.. have a fox?
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300+
Another’s presence interfered with her daydreaming. As a beam of sunlight washed over her face, Alexey allowed her lips to spread into a smile. There was no doubt as to who it was; never had she encountered anyone but Mew near the hidden valley. It was their little sanctuary; a place where music reigned and problems were safely discarded. Piano lessons weren’t always easy to attend, seeing as she had two boys to take care of, but she had yet to miss an appointment. Time with Mew was sacred and unless there was an emergency of some sort, Alexey made sure never to skip a single lesson.
Music sheets were scattered on the grass around her. She’d gotten most from Lubomir’s library, although he hadn’t been around at the time. The Caregiver did not think he’d care if she borrowed a few things, but made a mental note to tell him whenever she saw him next. Perhaps his mate could relay the message, too. Amongst the pile of papers was Pachelbel’s Canon in D Major, a piece she was particularly interested in learning. She hadn’t heard it yet but according to the notations, it appeared to be an easy-going melody. “Mew!” she exclaimed excitedly, anticipating the upcoming lesson.
She was about to gesture to the partitions when something else caught her friend’s attention. Alexey frowned; temporarily oblivious as to what could have puzzled Mew so much, but then her eyes located the orange-hued creature at her side. She’d grown so accustomed to its presence that she simply did not notice it anymore. “That’s your nephew’s pet,” she explained briefly, hoping to justify the smaller canine’s presence. “The boys weren’t around and I couldn’t leave it at home.” Well, she could have, but Conor wouldn’t have approved. She would, however, keep it securely tied to a tree for the duration of their lesson.
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Instantly, Alexey's explanation made sense, at least in one way. Children found and collected the oddest of things, but a fox? How had her nephew gotten hold of a fox, and who had given him the idea that it should be on a leash? It was a strange idea for a child to have in an environment that wasn't exactly blooming with pets. Sure, during her travels and around 'Souls, too, she'd seen that some had held pets, but often they were useful animals like horses. A fox was hardly useful, all it did was take your food!
........I see.. But what a strange thing - how'd he get hold of it? He didn't catch it, did he?
........Foxes were hard to catch, after all. They were small and agile, and quite fast. And after all, her nephews were still children, and hardly skilled at hunting or anything like it yet. The femme was truly puzzled, her one eyebrow maintaining its arch. Studying it, it looked as if it might have been hurt before, but it looked like it was fine now. She hoped the boys hadn't hurt it, some children could be sick little things. She'd seen unspeakable things done by children, just because of curiosity. It wasn't healthy, probably. But it might have gotten hurt in the process of catching it, if that was what they had done. She certainly hoped so.
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300+
Although her explanation seemed to soothe her friend's bewilderment, it wasn’t enough to quench her thirst for more information. Alexey turned her gaze away from the Lilium’s sister, redirecting her attention to the source of the older femme's perplexity. Had the creature opened its mouth, Mew would’ve seen the extent of the damage. No teeth could be seen, for they were missing from the cub’s mouth. Aside from its mangled tail, Conor’s pet did not display any evidence of the torture it had endured. Unfortunately though, from the way its tail twisted in different direction, one could clearly see that someone had broken it in several places. It was a shame that Dahlia de Mai lacked a healer; perhaps they could have done something about the cub’s injuries. At this point, Alexey didn’t even know whether the poor thing was in pain or not.
“Conor found it in pretty bad shape. There was a rope around its neck, keeping him tied to a tree not too far away from here.” she explained, peering off into the distance. The Acer was silent for a moment, wondering if a Dahlian was truly capable of torturing helpless animals. After all, Alco (Conor had baptized him as such, a witty combination of both "Alexey" and "Conor") couldn’t have been considered a grave threat, especially not at such a young age. Gesturing to the fox’s tail, Alexey elaborated on that injury. “Looks like it has a broken tail, here and there.” she continued, pointing to different locations. And then, she lifted the smaller canine’s upper lip, just so Mew could take a look at its gums; badly bruised and lacking pearly whites. “All of its teeth are missing too.” Caring for another child was indeed tiresome at times, but Conor had kept his promise thus far by doing most of the work. Besides, she’d subconsciously grown attached to the orange furball as well.
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........As her friend explained, and furthermore showed her the damage done to the fox, Mew could not help but be surprised, at the very least. Why would someone do something like that to a fox cub? It was one thing to attempt an easy meal if one was tired, pregnant, wounded or whatever, but pulling out its teeth was definitely not a part of hunting. It was just simply torture. Her mind wandered to her brother for a moment, knowing hoe viciously he had avenged her pups, although that was something else. That was family bonds, affection, and a want for revenge. No, she could not bring herself to believe some Dahlian had done this. Someone had to have snuck it in. Furthermore, it could be seen as a provocation, because if a person was sick enough to do this to a fox cub, then why not a wolf? Chills ran along her spine and she looked away from the poor creature, thinking. Her gaze wandered across the ground for a second or two before flying back to the fox, and up to meet Alexey's face.
........Maybe my aunt can help it, she's a medic. She could at least check for more injuries?
........Pausing, she simply looked at the face of her friend for a moment before continuing.
........Honestly... I can't believe someone in our pack could do something so horrible to that poor little creature.
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