Jacquez's bewilderment reached a new level as the little male began loudly questioning him. He was not speaking gibberish anymore - for the most part - but his words were so quick, and accented, it was hard to understand what he was asking. "S-sorry - what ees 'pi rat'? Maman deed not teach me a lot of words..." He swallowed the lump in his throat, adopting a braver expression. Just because he could not remember his Maman's face did not mean he no longer had a family. Dogs were tough like that, they had to leave home when they were very young, because it made them stronger. When they were big and brave enough, they could go home again and have their family back. That's what he told himself, at least, because the alternative was just too cruel to consider.
He flinched visibly as the odd little thing let out a squall, screaming uncontrollably and darting in erratic circles about them. Jacquez curled his tail between his legs, dark brown eyes worried as shrank against himself. What was wrong with that boy? Didn't he know that the noisy strays got killed first? He inhaled sharply as something touched his side, and then struggled to smooth the prickling fur along his spine as he realized the other puppy had drawn up against him. He flashed an apologetic half-smile, adjusting automatically to let the fluffy boy crawl underneath him. That much was instinct; he hadn't felt a sibling's warmth in too many moons, and it was a great relief to the nervous mongrel to have actual contact again.
His muzzle snapped up again at the sound of a 'thud'. It turned out to be the unpredictable youth again, though, having collided rather painfully with a tree. Jacquez tilted his head, curiosity replacing caution. "Why deed you do zat?" he asked, trying and failing to suppress his accent. All three of them spoke funny, but he wanted them to understand each other. Maybe they could work together and find food.