Brush Tail

Name: Brush Tail
Pronouns: she/her
Dam: Swan's Song (deceased)
Sire: Kagerou 影狼 (deceased)
Siblings: Kissed by the Earth (half-sibling)
Offspring: Sleepypaw, Vixen (Rusty), Mushroom Cap, Millaray (Skinwalker), Vienna's Charm (Spotted Leaf)

Brush Tail's first memories were of her mother, Swan's Song, and her rough tongue sweeping over her pelt. The soft whimpers of the other puppies from other litters filled the air and Brush Tail began to slowly open her eyes, seeing the soft, rounded, fuzzy shapes of the world around her. A soft mewl escaped her throat as she nudged her way closer to her mother's soft muzzle.

"Oh, hello, little one," came the gentle rumble of her mother's voice, "you've got such pretty gray eyes." Brush Tail's tiny tail twitched weakly in response, a happy instinct ingrained within her. Whining softly, she wiggled to Swan's Song's belly and began to nurse. "I can already see your future, my sweet pup," the rumble came again, "it's so beautiful. I hope I remain to see it."

_______

Brush Tail stretched as she made her way out of the puppy den, happy to finally frolick in the sun. She had been the only puppy in her litter, and while it was nice getting to have all of her mother's attention, it got a little boring only playing with her mother or by herself after a while. At least now she was finally allowed outside! Brush Tail took a deep breath, drawing the sweet smells of the forest in, finally present in her muzzle and not filtered through the dusty air of the underground den.

She heard a rustle behind her and turned to see her mother pushing her way out of the den, shrugging awkwardly past the hanging roots. Brush Tail wagged her tail enthusiastically at her mother.

"Isn't it beautiful! It's so big, Swan!"

Swan's Song laughed, nuzzling her pup's shoulder. Brush Tail was her first puppy, and Swan's Song felt like the little she-wolf was a gift from the goddess. Patterned just like her mother (and her father, though Swan's Song knew little to nothing about him), with a vivid gaze and a readily wagging tail, Brush Tail felt like the puppy she'd always wanted but never known she'd wanted.

"Are you excited to explore?" Swan's Song asked, batting gently at Brush Tail's shoulder with one large paw.

"Of course," Brush Tail responded, dropping into a play bow.

"I see she's out and about," a deep voice rumbled from behind them. "I'm glad the goddess saw fit to sustain her through the winter." Brush Tail quickly spun around, and her jaw dropped at the huge male wolf towering over her. Except for the occasional mate of one of the nursing wolves, male wolves didn't come into the nursery often, and when they did, they were hard to imagine standing, due to the fact that the nursery ceiling was too low for any of them to do anything but crouch. This wolf was much huger than Brush Tail, with an interesting marking patterning his face, two brown stripes descending past his eyes, with a creamy white for a base color.

"Me too," Swan's Swan smiled, nudging Brush Tail fondly, "the goddess always serves us well. With me looking after this little rascal for the past few moons, I haven't seen you much, Sunrise! How have you been?"

The big wolf's tail wagged gently. "Oh, very well. A lot to do - it feels like the hunters come home from every hunt complaining of one bruise or another, but it keeps me on my paws, just how I like it." He crouched down to eye level with Brush Tail, saying more softly, "Hello, little one. My name is Sunrise Touches the Lake! And you're Brush Tail."

Brush Tail nodded, eyes wide. After a moment, she squeaked out, "You're...the herbalist, right?" Her mother had told her a little about the roles of each wolf in the pack, and the herbalist's job was make sure wolves were healthy and strong, as opposed to watching puppies or foraging for food. Brush Tail thought the herbalist was super cool, especially now that she'd seen Sunrise. Were all herbalists as cool as he was?