Frodo || 9 Years || Male || Strays United Scavenger || M: Quilo, Temari (Ind)

As the first light of dawn filtered into the camp’s dens, many of its inhabitants began to stir for the morning – breathing life into the previously desolate camp. The sound of their paw steps could be heard ringing through the camp as they traversed the crunchy snow, likely waking a few more occupants with the noise. Frodo was one of these pack members to arise in the wake of this minor disturbance, large ears twitching to determine the location and size of the being forming them. Though, this proved to be a rather difficult task due to a certain someone…

The sound of snoring resonated through the den, bouncing off the walls and interrupting the small male’s concentration. His ears flatten against his head as he flinches slightly at the all but earth-shaking sound barrels their way into them, shaking both his eardrums and his body. Slowly peeking one brown eye open, he sends an annoyed yet moderately amused glance to the slumbering lug beside him.

Quilo laid beside him, flipped on his back with his legs sticking straight up into the air. His tail wrapped slightly around the min-pin’s body, but constantly rustled the more he dreamt. His head was in a straight line with the rest of his body, his jaws slightly parted as he snored and mumbled in his sleep. After one particular mumble, he rolled completely onto his side – back facing the small male and tail moving away from him.

The mutt couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight, his one open eye crinkling in glee while the either simply scrunched up more. Although his snoring may have been annoying to some (and slightly to him in that particular moment), he couldn’t deny how endearing the whole thing was. He really couldn’t be any more care-free, could he?

Rising his head, the fawn and gray male shook his head of his prior thoughts. With a yawn, he rises – a slight case of pain flaring up in his joints at the movement. He ignores it for the most part, electing to simply stretch out the pain. Though, he made sure to put in the back of his mind that mentioning this to the alpha would be necessary…

A snort sounds from the slumbering husky beside him followed by a string of mumbles. Something about not touching “that rock?” Yeah, he had no clue what the younger canine was coming up with in that noggin’ of his. But if it was enough to cause him to run in his sleep – as he had just started doing, pawing at the nest beside him frantically – then it must be a doozy of a dream.

With small steps, Frodo pads over to the much larger canine and probs his shoulders with one of his front paws. “Up and adem, kiddo. Got a whole day ahead of us, It’s time ta get ta work,” he probes once more as he speaks.

“W-wha-?”

The fluffy canine shifts at his response, twisting his body to hold his head and shoulders up while his legs stretch out in front of him. His eyes were partially lidded and bleary, but slowly gaining some awareness as the seconds passed. His ears were a similar story – floppy due to having been laid on, but quick to per up and flicker towards the older of the two.

With a huff of amusement, Frodo padded toward the den’s entrance, inspecting the camp’s new surroundings as he waited for the taller mutt to catch up. A fresh blanket of snow lay across the ground, nearly marking the half-way point of his body. Some trails had apparently already been formed from those that had already awakened. Though, that did not make it all any less daunting.

Turning his head at the sound of approach paw-steps, a brown gaze lands upon the now fully awake Quilo peering down at him in curiosity. Offering a wide grin, he turns his gaze back to the clearing in front of them and speaks. “Looks like we’re one of the last ones awake,” his eyes flicker over the various pack members scattered around the area as he says this, “The whole pack may as well be up. Hope we didn’t miss anythin’.”

He stands there for a few more seconds, contemplating his next course of action as he did so. Behind him, he could hear the sound of a certain canine padding off following a friendly offer – something about going to ask a friend of his if any tasks had been handed out. Frodo only gave him a small grunt of acknowledgement.

After mulling over his options, the miniature pinscher finally settles upon the idea of staying put for the time being. Between the snow being bound to cause aches in his joints and the fluff ball doing a bit of digging, there wasn’t much pushing him to stumble his way through the tall layers of snow. So, with perked ears, the fawn and gray male settles down on his haunches and waits for any sort of development to occur.

The wind rustled through Killjoy's short brown fur. His ears swiveled to take the sounds in around him, blue eyes closed, wishing his littermate the best as she moved on to lusher forests. As he did so, he hardly got the scent of nearby Wolves. Eyes opened slightly, his nose twitching to take in the scents. Night and Shadow. His head didn't turn to look at them; Hopefully they'd leave him alone. There was no such luck as not too long after that thought had passed his mind, he could sense someone coming up behind him. Killjoy's head turned to see who exactly it was. A short nod to Shadow as he sat down next to him. A smile was attempted on the male's maw, the edges twitching slightly. The normally perky wolf's ears were back, a deep pain in the endless puddle of blue eyes as he gazed at Marbled. “You would think that after some time it would, but no, I don't think it ever gets easier.” The snow crackled as Killjoy slid into a lying position, his head on his sister's head, eyes closed, taking in her now slightly stale scent. He hoped with his full heart that somewhere in the clouds she was happier than living without her mate. “She was my last living family member..” His voice trailed off, looking back at Shadow. Why was he complaining to Shadow? The Alpha has lost far more in life than he had. His head rested back on hers, wondering what he would do. There was so much to do; He had to talk to Rags, Xola and so much more, but how could he go back to camp with a cave now laying empty and cold? With two less mouths to feed? A puzzled look fell on Killjoy's face as he pulled himself into a sitting position. “Why are you guys out here?” He questioned, eyeing Night as he sat up on a hill looking down at them. “Is everything alright with your packs?” Killjoy stood up, alert now, his mind racing through all possible outcomes. He paused and looked down at his sister. He needed to bury her before anything else. “Hold that thought.” He whispered hoarsely to Shadow, beginning to dig next to his fallen sister, his claws ripping at the frozen ground. It took only a few moments before he stepped back; He hadn't gotten far but suddenly all of his energy had left his body. He couldn't remember if he'd eaten yesterday anymore, or why he'd come out here in the first place. Killjoy stepped back and sat down, catching his breath.

Quilo || 3 Years, 5 Months || Male || Strays United Guard || M: Frodo, Temari, Alha (Ind), Kenai (Ind), Loki (Ind), Harry (Ind)

“I’ll be back soon, Frodo! I’m just going to ask a friend if tasks have been handed out yet,” the husky shouts over his shoulder as he pads away from the old male. A grunt of acknowledgement was all he heard as he faced forwards once more, scanning the camp for a certain someone.

His pace remains decently slow in his searching, a stark contrast to his usual trot but still holding his upbeat persona. Tilting his head slightly upwards, he sniffs the air – hoping to catch a whiff of her amongst all the others floating around the camp. His ears twitched and twirled as he did so, trying to possibly catch his fellow husky talking if he couldn’t grasp her location the other way.

Though his nose could only pick up on a more stale trail of his fellow husky, his ears did manage to hone in on the approach of bounding pawsteps. Turning slightly to face them, he spies the one he was looking for – Temari. His tail begins to blur as it picks up speed to match that of her own, booping his nose (mostly accidentally) to hers in greeting. Opening his mouth to excitedly state his good mornings, the brightly colored canine cuts him off – asking a few questions of her own. Funnily enough, the same ones he was looking to ask her.

The guard laughs, amused by this turn out. “I was going to ask you the same thing! Frodo and I woke up a tad later than I usually do,” he looks to the side, seemingly embarrassed before perking back up a second later, “In the meantime, we should probably go ask Alha for what we should do.”

Grinning, he nods towards the alpha’s location where she stood talking to multiple others… most of which he could not remember the names of. But he at least remembered that the one was his new friend’s brother!... Whatever his name was.

At the shoulder brush, he looks back to his companion and catches just the tail end of her commentary. Nevertheless, he nods his head in agreement to what he did manage to hear. “Of course! Now, let’s go ask Alha what we should do.”

Leaping forwards and absolutely not stumbling the second he did, the male begins to lead them towards the shepherd.

Hondo l Male l Beta l Eastern l M: Veracious

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Hondo suppressed a grin at Veracious's joke, and even a little chuckle before his face turned more serious. "This pack hasn't been on patrol for awhile." He started, even though deep in his mind he was thinking: Because we've been doing other things. He glanced at his now healed leg, scar tissue starting to form. He lifted his topaz gaze to rest on the area behind Veracious. "There could be anything out there." He finished then brought his gaze down to Veracious. "We'll start on the western border, then make our way south, rhe come up north following the eastern border. Remember, if we encounter a loner or another pack wolf, don't attack unless attacked upon. It is just the two of us, so keep your eyes open." He brought his gaze down and met Veracious's. "You ready?" He asked, his tail sweeping back and forth in content, awaiting the response from the she-wolf. His mind began to wander towards Killjoy. Hondo knew exactly what it was like to lose someone close to him. Littermates, parents, friends. He sighed; Hondo had lost a lot of wolves in his life, but as he learned, and would share with Killjoy upon his return, you have to look on the brighter side of life. Embrace the connections with friends and family. He thought of Illusion, his best friend, and his brand new family. He thought of Killjoy, boy have they been through a lot together, and his budding relationship with River. Hondo knew the two would become mates. But that didn't help Hondo, as he knew deep down he would never have someone like that in his life, never have that kind of support. He let out another sigh before looking expectingly towards Veracious, awaiting her response.