Breathing deeply of the mountain air, I remained at the mouth of the den, vigilant in my guard of the pups within. The chance of danger for them was slim - this den had once belonged to Ragnarok and Church, Bastille's own birthplace - it was quite possibly the highest den in the mountains. Still, I remembered all too clearly the day when a pitch black boy with purple eyes had infiltrated the pack lands and attacked my daughter and niece in their youth. Such a thing would not be allowed with these pups, and I would make sure of that. Even with my handicaps, I felt confident that I could hold my own if the need arose. But I highly doubted it would. Today would be a day of fun with my grandchildren.

My sharp sense of hearing hadn't dulled just yet, and I picked up the on stirrings coming from within the den. It was perhaps a mother's sixth sense, the ability to hear the change of breathing in a pup, whether is signified waking or dreaming, health or illness. All the same, I remained as I was, ears flicking back and forth to catch small sounds from within. And it was still something of a surprise when Swifttalon crashed into me and rolled down my side to land on her back. I turned my gray crown down towards her, brows lifted as I laughed lightly at her antics. Lowering my dark nose to her flailing paws, I let her bat at me a couple of times before I pressed softly against her abdomen and then withdrew again. "Well hello there, my darling," I said with a smile.

That was when a gold and gray bodice streaked into view, pouncing upon my tail with fervor. The hint of a warning growl rumbled quietly in my chest when her sharp puppy teeth bit a little too hard to be considered play, but before long she relented and came forward to greet me properly. "Good morning to you as well, Mêlée." I returned her affections with a lick atop her head as she flopped down with her sister, and when I looked up Eldrax had appeared before me. There was no pomp or circumstance to his arrival, but he got right to the nitty-gritty - what did I have planned for them today? I grinned knowingly at his request - my grandson certainly had something of his parents' rebellious streak in him. "That is a fine idea, Eldrax - but I had something else in mind. Have your parents shown you any of the mountain caves yet?" I looked between each of the children, knowing that they had not yet explored such a place yet, but gave them a chance to confirm that before moving on. "There are a few! Bears have used them to hibernate in, and some stretch so deep into the mountain you can nearly reach its heart." Building up the anticipation, I continued to shift my gaze between the three pups. Of course I would not take them to any place that could put them in danger, but being born from such an adventurous pair as their parents, it seemed only right to foster such explorations in them as well.

"Well then, what do you think?" I reached down to nose at the girls, my tail wagging along the ground. I would wait for their reactions, wait for them all to be standing and perhaps chomping at the bit to go, before standing up myself and taking the lead on this day of discovery.

ooc; feel free to move things along in your posts that they're traveling through the packlands!