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For Kansas. <3 Dated November 1.
_____ It was November, and to what avail? There was no snow and it wasn't all that cold yet. Of course, Icarus didn't know about snow yet or that the ground would turn completely white, but he was expecting something new. He had lived for a few different months now without deciding there would be something distinguishably noticeable at the beginning of each, but today he had it in his little head that when he stepped outside the world would be turned upside down. But no. Nothing.
_____ Except Pilot. The white wolf was rounding the border's edge again, and off he went to carry out his duties. Considering his own den was close by, he often stopped by the Phoenix' den to make sure all was well. After poking around, he had clearly set off. And as the small dark brown whelp stumbled outside into the morning light, he saw the while colored furher slip off into the distance.
_____ So, there was nothing considerably different outside, but that didn't mean the pup was discouraged entirely. He was going to find something, no matter how small. Maybe it would be a tree with a few less leaves or dark patches of green grass turned brown. Whatever it was, the pup was going to find it sooner or later.
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Omgwtf, I love that song. Chiodos = <3.
_____ Kansas was looking for something different, too, though perhaps not in the way Icarus was. The white boy expected to see that thing called “snow” someday soon, as he knew that in the dreaded winter, the stuff appeared somehow. He didn’t know where it came from or what it looked like, but he knew it would come. And he knew it came in wintertime – winter was here, wasn’t it? Or were they still in autumn? He got so confused with the seasons. He was well aware that it was quite a bit colder than it had been when he was born – maybe it had to be really cold before it snowed. But how much more cold could he take?
_____ He crawled out of the den’s entrance, giving a deep yawn that sent an involuntary shiver up his spine. Nope, nothing was different today, either! That was discouraging. Movement up ahead caught his eye, giving him a taste of excitement. Was it his brother? Kansas started out at a run, realizing after only a few seconds that it was indeed Icarus and soon gaining up on the brown puppy. The other boy seemed keen on finding something, searching the trees and earth alike. Kansas fell into step with his only male littermate and began to search, too. “Whatcha looking for?”
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Sorry for the wait. Short posts good with you? :] And, I <3 chiodos too.
_____ At first, Icarus was too into his search to even notice that his own brother had joined him. Instead, the pup turned his nose up to the wind and sniffed at the air, trying to detect something unfamiliar. Of course, Icarus couldn’t really track or notice differences in smell just yet – he was too young – but that minor detail wasn’t going to stop him from trying.
_____ He turned to his cream colored brother and sniffed his shoulder, but to no avail. "You still smell the same." Icarus told him, a small frown forming. This was going to be harder than he though. "D’yah know it’s the first of the month! I bet somefins diff’rent. Wanna help me look, Kansas?"
_____ The brown pup turned to look out at the expanse of Storm’s lands that trailed away from them. It was so large, and yet he still couldn’t see anything visibly different. Maybe Kansas knew where to look.
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Yeah, short posts are good. 
_____ He watched his brother sniff the air, curious and getting confused. What on earth could he be looking for? As far as he knew, nothing needed to be found, unless Icarus was searching for something to eat. He glanced at the nose that was pressed against his shoulder, quizzical, frowning when his brother spoke. "Of couwse I smell the same. So d’you." He sniffed the brown boy’s head and shrugged his small shoulders to prove his point.
_____ Okay… the first of the month. Still, however, Kansas couldn’t figure out what his brother was talking about. He traipsed along beside him anyway, glaring at Icarus as if it might help him connect the dots. Of course, it was his job to follow his siblings around – he’d probably never take it upon himself to find something that was lost, or that he was curious about. "Well… yeah, but, wha’ are y’lookin’ for?" he repeated, trying to keep from sounding as frustrated as he felt.
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_____ Though the boys were colored completely opposite of each other, their eyes were identical to one another. Peering into his brother’s, Icarus felt almost as if they had some sort of connection. There was no need for him to gesticulate or try to explain himself, because his brother already knew what he was thinking. It was as if he was peeking into his own eyes, his own soul.
_____ But Kansas proved that theory wrong as soon as he asked the same question again. "Ohhh, come onnnn Kansas." Icarus sighed, looking away and taking a few steps forward. He puffed his small chest out and looked back towards his brother. "Dontcha know? It’s a new month, so there hasta be somefin diff’rent. Why else would they make it a new monf?" He shook his head at Kansas. Sometimes he wondered about his cream colored brother. He sure was slow today at catching on.
_____ "Now let's go find it!"
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_____ Kansas found it strange how they shared the same eye color. A little creepy, too – it was like looking at an inverted picture of himself, only with the exact same eyes. His own were large at the moment, trying to understand his brother, fearing he’d be considered stupid if he didn’t get his act together soon and figure this out. He wanted to be loved by all his siblings, and he constantly feared that they’d reject him, whether consciously or not.
_____ The fact that he couldn't understand was really getting to him – it was, as he’d already established with himself, frustrating that Icarus couldn’t just tell him already – wouldn’t that be so much easier! He hung his head at his brother’s response, afraid that he would suddenly not want Kansas to go with him on the search for being so slow on this. But maybe Icarus didn’t even know what he was looking for! And that was the beauty of it. Suddenly, the cream boy understood, and, a little embarrassed, smiled toward his brother. “Oh, alwight. What d’you think we migh’ find? Um… that white stuffs?”
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_____ Icarus had yet to see snow, or understand what it was. When his brother mentioned the ‘white stuffs’ he had no idea what he meant, unless he was referring to Dierdre or Vegetarian Shark. As far as he knew, those where the only oddly white colored things. He turned to his brother and shook his head once more. He didn’t think that the whelp was keeping up with him – asking what they would find so that he wouldn’t have to think for himself. But Icarus caught on. He knew his brother knew nothing.
_____ "Oh, Kansy. You know nofhing!" Icarus marched forwards, intent on finding whatever he was searching for. Though he blamed his brother for not knowing, the truth was clearly that Icarus had no idea what he was searching for either. Just anything different. "I bet Firefly would know. But she ain’t loving us no more ‘cause she left."
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Pfft, that game keeps changing his name to "Texas!" 
_____ The only difference between the two’s searches was that Texas was only looking for snow. He remembered his mother mentioning it once, how it was cold and white. But he didn’t know what to look for. He assumed it would just be in little piles here and there, hiding from them. Secretly, despite his brother’s insistence that they were looking for anything, Texas would keep his eyes peeled for snow, his obsession for the day. Then, he could prove to his brother that snow was the important and only significant change they could possibly spot.
_____ Icarus’ words surprisingly didn’t really bother him, and he merely grinned smugly. He would find snow! He responded coolly, giving a hint of quiet playfulness with a wag of his tail.“Wha’ever you say.” The mention of Firefly was really what got to the boy, and he looked at his paws, the wagging of his tail ceasing immediately. He was terribly heartbroken about his twin’s disappearance, and he, too, had to wonder if she still loved him. “Where d’you think she is? Why doesn’ she love us?” he asked softly.
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indent Icarus didn’t truly know why his sister had suddenly disappeared, but he did know that she seemingly had started to spend less time around the den and more time away from him and his siblings. She was the most outgoing, and was always there to offer reassurance whenever any of the pups had doubts about anything. Now with her gone, Icarus started to second guess things and had a tendency to stick around 127.0.0.1. He had always been the type to keep his distance from the chaos his siblings created, but now his mother saw more of him than anyone.
indent "I dunno. Maybe she doesn’t like us cause we’re boys. Maybe she’s jealous or somefin. I ‘unno. But she ain’t lovin’ us no more, I know that. Why else would she be gone?" Icarus took a step away from his brother and frowned. He wanted to find his father and ask him to bring Firefly 127.0.0.1. Would he be able to do such a thing? Come on, Kansy. Let’s go find the somefin new. I don’ wanna talk about Firefly no more."
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indentA sudden rush warmed his face and made the corners of his eyes tingle. It was so hard to talk about Firefly, the girl who had been a sister and best friend to Kansas at the same time. He’d been closer to her than to anyone else so far in his life, and losing her had been a strong blow to his fragile heart. Talking about her like this sure did make him want to cry, even though he knew that this was not what big boys did. But he couldn’t help it. Tears began to trickle down the sides of his face; he tried to cover them up by turning away to cough.
indentHe couldn’t imagine Firefly being jealous of anything. Maybe this was because she was not with them any longer, and he only remembered her good qualities, passing up anything else about her that may have irritated him. Icarus' suggestion that they move on from her relieved him, and he tried to smile, the steady flow of tears finally ceasing. Kansas bumped shoulders with his brother playfully and made a big deal of looking around him for a change. I don’ see nofin’. Hey, d’you see alla the trees don’ have leaves no more? They all on the groun’.
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indent "Hey yeah! You’re right! Mebbe thas it! Yah, Kansy! Thas it!" Icarus bounded over towards a stand of trees, racing in order to reach one of the piles of leaves so that he could investigate. Of course, leaves had been falling for some time now, but now the trees that were destined to loose leaves were almost completely bare. It left the once full and friendly looking trees to be rather cold and cruel-looking. Icarus stopped at the base of one particular tree and stared up at its maze of monotonous branches. "‘Ey Kansas! Lookit here! They’re creeeeepy," he said in a low voice, before shuddering. His eyes then went to the littered leaves and they lit as his imagination ignited his thoughts.
indent As he took a few steps forward, the leaves crunched under his small paws. Their sweet aroma released and mixed with the brisk air. It was a scent that was unfamiliar to the pup and his eyes widened with the thought of something new. They really had found it! Yippee!" The small Phoenix child called out as he jumped into a heap of leaves that had gathered under one of the trees.
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indentWith the subject of Firefly behind them, Kansas allowed his mind and attention to drift from her sad memory to Icarus and their "search". He knew the leaves had been on the ground for a while, but it seemed appropriate to mention at least something different, as so far they hadn't discovered much. Besides, the naked trees looked very eerie and threatening, their limbs jutting out at odd angles, sharp and rigid. Icarus’ approval lit up Kansas’ face, and he let himself smile toward his bright-eyed brother.
indentThe scent of the forest seemed to thicken as they neared each pile of leaves, waning when they drew away from them. Kansas giggled and followed his brother’s gaze to the gnarled tree, and, once he saw it, the boy backed up a little and his ears folded backward for a few seconds. Oh! Tha’ one gives me the heebie-jeebies, he responded softly, a bit frightfully. He watched his brown brother leap into a pile of leaves, and attempted to jump right on top of them, just for a little dose of childlike chaos.
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indent "Rahhhhhh!" Icarus yelled as his brother jumped at him, crinkling more of the leaves as Icarus rolled over and sent his brother tumbling to the side. The smell was wonderful and Icarus took a deep breath to savor it. He wanted the memory of fall to stay with him, for it would be a whole year before it would be back again. By then they both would be much older and probably able members of the pack – patrolling the border and hunting with the rest of them. Icarus couldn’t wait for that. He wanted to grow up now. Even though he had been warned to cherish his childhood.
indent "Hey Kansas, d’you think daddy will be alpha forever?" What he was trying to hint at was whether Icarus might have a chance of succeeding to the same rank as his dad. He wasn’t sure if anyone knew of his secret passion, but he loved his father. He wanted to be exactly like him. And the only way to do that, was to do everything that he did. Including becoming the leader. Icarus was too young now to consider that other factors determined ranks. "I might wanna try bein’ it."
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I'm sorry for the wait! Want to wrap this up soon?
indent He was impatient to grow up, too. He was a big boy for his age, but he wanted to be as large and strong as their father, and as beautiful as his mother. Icarus was just like Phoenix, with the coat of deep chocolate; and he happened to also have the advantage of the Sadira-blue eyes. This troubled Kansas, and in a sense, he was jealous. Icarus had the physical advantages of both his parents, and, being so young, the cream-coated boy placed a lot of value on physical attributes. Already he could tell that his brother was strong, as Icarus overtook him and rolled him around in the piney leaves.
indent Thus worried, Kansas listened to his brother’s question, and took a moment to think about it. Did being the alpha mean you had to have the job forever? He knew what death was, but wasn’t quite ready to associate it with his father. It was also his desire to uplift Icarus. He shook a few leaves from his coat and continued to stare absently and the gnarled tree. Finally, he gave a mix of answers that probably didn’t make much sense, but it was something. Um… I unno. He’ll be the leader for a long, long time; until he gets all old and stuffs. But you gotsa good shot! An’, maybe it’s even better ‘cause you look like him… or something. He grinned.
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No problemo. Do you want to go ahead and just wrap it up here?
indent For some reason, what Kansas said made complete sense to the Phoenix child. Perhaps it was because they were siblings or because they both shared the similarity of possessing a child’s mind. Whatever it was, it made Kansas’ words ring clear as a bell. Their dad was going to live long and prosper as a powerful leader. Then one day, Icarus would grow up to look just like him. When that time came, perhaps he would inherit the role. But of course, by then he would finally discover what it truly meant to be a part of a pack. And true also, his childhood dreams of following in his father’s footsteps would have a different meaning.
indent But for now, it was all the fuel the pup needed. He smiled back at his brother and crawled to his four paws. "‘Ey, you wanna go see if mom’s home? I’m kinda hungry." He grinned with pure satisfaction of spending this time with his brother and he couldn’t wait for the day they both were given the rank of Lehrling. Then, the two boys would really get to learn what it was to be a pack member. "I’ll race yah!" He called out, before propelling himself away from the leaves and creamed colored pup.
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