The leaves were preoccupying at least for some span of time, but Maluki was young and easily distracted: his attention span was rather unfocused at all times. The thrill of springing into the air was, however, very liberating. Daddy could show up at any second to bring him home, but surely he would want to play along, too. Daddy had mentioned something about liking the trees this season, so Daddy must have meant catching the leaves in his mouth. In fact, he was probably the best at it: he was so tall and smart, there was no way anyone else could catch more leaves. Maluki made a mental note to ask his dark-furred father to teach him the secrets when he arrived.
A sound echoing in his ear brought the pup's wide, green eyes to the side, watching as a stranger his size approached. She made a rather quick demand out of him, which perked his ears and cocked his head to the side. There was no hesitation, no second thought: "'Kay," he replied simply, tail beginning to wag and a smile breaking his puzzled gaze. He skipped on over to her, a bounce in his step in excitement to see a new friend. "What's y'name? I'm Maluki. I come aaaall the way from Clouded Tears. My mommy's the beta there." Wide grin. Talkative little Soul, he was. "So whatcha need help with, huh? We should play hide 'n seek instead. I can't count, so can you count first?" Attention diverted and ears flicking, his bright eyes quickly began to scan the surrounding milieu for a hiding spot.