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"I dunno what I'd do without Rurik, akshully. Prob'ly get crazy lonely and become a crazy cat lady. Just shout at strangers an' hurl cats at them if they come to close." Null pondered the scenario for a second before nudging Rurik with her elbow. "Good thing I got'chu around to stop me hoarding cats an' cack'lin', huh?" The runt grinned up at the giant, who was momentarily so overcome with affection that he couldn't help but bend to lick her ear again.
Null tilted her hand back and forth in a 'so-so' gesture. "I like being able to soak. I hugely dislike being grubby, so I prefer it when I can take my time grooming. But Rurik gets really anxious, so." Null shrugged and Rurik made a slightly apologetic noise. Rurik was less of a neat freak than his friend, and his oilier coat was rather self-cleaning anyway. He didn't really 'get' her obsession with grooming, but it didn't really matter.
Null couldn't help but grin bashfully at the praise. It wasn't often that she was complimented on her abilities, and it always struck a pleasant chord with her when someone took enough notice to do so. The pair continued to listen to Soran as she detailed how her father had hated her for having black fur, and Null's expression morphed into a mixture of incredulity, confusion and a healthy dose of rage. "Because you have black fur? Honestly? That's makes literally no sense, I can't even begin to follow that logic. I just-- I cannot-- ugh, that is so dumb, that much stupidity physically pains me. Yeah, I think your 'bad dad' story trumps mine." Null pinched the bridge of her nose, squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep breath. Rurik grinned apologetically. Ze can hawe difficulty understanding irrationality. He explained, rubbing between the trapper's shoulder blades soothingly.
"Hm? Oh, my dad? He was, like, a believer in being a proper wolf, y'know? He liked my brothers because they could run down a deer and kill it with their teeth, but me? Nah. Neither of my parents even thought I'd live more than an hour when I was born since I was like, really little," She gestured with her hands the way her mother used to, indicating a ridiculously tiny size for even a newborn pup, "So they named me 'Null', which quite literally means 'nothing'. Just as a way to refer to the pup they thought was gonna die, y'know? But it stuck. And they kind of considered me a waste of space 'cause I was too little to just bite my way through problems? But my dad was the worst with it. My nana was alright, but she died when I was very young. And then they kind of resented me because three of my brothers didn't survive their first winter, like they thought I'd stolen their place or something? It wasn't a very healthy place to grow up. Null shrugged as though it was no big deal, even though it still hurt how her family had treated her. "But it's alright. When I have pups I'll make sure they all know they're loved." Null put on a bright smile; it was no secret that her biggest goal in life was to be the matriarch of a huge sprawling clan. She wanted as many puppies as she could physically have.
The pair listened to the description of the packs around the area-- ha, Salsola had a bad reputation-- and they broth wrinkled their noses at the mention of Inferni. "Aw, dear heart. We've heard bad things about Inferni, I think every non-coyote has. It's like-- I have nothing against coyotes at all. Not a thing. What I dislike is any kind of canine who view themselves as the 'superior breed' and hate on anyone not in their little clique. It's just bigotry. She spat the last word with enough venom to kill an African elephant. She couldn't stand any sort of discrimination based on breed. It was fairly natural to prefer your own pack over another, but hating someone for being a different kind of canine? That sickened her.
