Elderberry turned towards the goose when she began to yell, and his beak opened in a short-lived expression of surprise as she rose her voice and screeched. His green eyes blinked, seemingly baffled, ears flattening soon after, as Blackberry's voice rose even louder. He shuddered for a moment, downy quills ruffling. Elderberry was quite glad that the yelling hadn't, it would seem, been directed at him. But just to be safe, he moved forward and turned to stand beside Jayberry. Finally, she looked towards him, and as the expression in her gaze softened, so did Elderberry. She explained everything, and although the words took a while to register, one thing stuck, something that was easy to understand, and a spark of warmth rose in his chest. Mama. Family. Elderberry nodded slowly, clacking their beak in pleasure.

As a small bark reached their ears, the newborn turned back towards Jayberry and nodded a greeting, ears perking to her own introduction. "Elderberry," he said softly, the voice a low thrum in his throat, just in case she hadn't heard.

Then, a big moose moved closer; one that had been in the background all the time. Elderberry moved over to him now, glancing back at Jayberry in case she wanted to follow. Downy feathers settling, he peered up. He opened his beak to speak, and but was cut off by Blackberry, speaking again- this time softer. And asking for a promise. Promise... Elderberry slowly came to understand. He approached his mama, looking at her with clear green eyes. "Promise," he said, firmly, and loudly, voice croaking with the raised volume, halfway between the chirp of a newborn goose and the braying of a young moose. It wasn't pleasant, exactly, but it was legible.

@Blackberry @Kitaka

Whenever Blackberry's voice ripped through the air, drawing all eyes to her, Kitaka did not flinch away like she had before. She had looked to the goose in the mounting chaos, and, like a firm, guiding hand, Mother took charge of the situation.

The hyena pup's large, round ears pricked at the mention of her other name. She knew that she was Mulberry to the goose, and now, apparently, to the others as well, and she was okay with that. It was the name given to her by Blackberry, or Mother, after all. Since Kitaka didn't know how to speak yet, she couldn't tell them her born name. She would be able to one day, but she wondered if it would even matter by then. Perhaps it was just her name, something only she knew about herself. She could be okay with that too.

Dark eyes danced between one hybrid and the next as Blackberry shrieked about never attacking the family. Although the words weren't directed at her, Kitaka took them to heart. The moose, the other canine, and these little ones obviously meant something to Blackberry. By default, that meant they now meant something to her. She probably wouldn't have made such a decision herself, but now that it was made, she accepted it.

Whenever the hyena heard her name again, she also noticed that 'Jayberry' was repeatedly being said in reference to the other canine. So that's her name, Kit thought with a long look at the wolf. They were family now, so when Jayberry looked her way again, she let her tail wag a few times. Jayberry wasn't focused on her anymore though, too busy nuzzling up to Blackberry and Blueberry and professing her love to them. A pang of jealousy made Kit's tail still, and her eyes narrow.

Mushrooms suddenly appearing at her paws drew the striped pup's attention away from Jayberry for the moment. Even though they didn't appear harmless, their sudden appearance had startled Kitaka. She let out a soft whine of confusion and backed away warily. Whenever she looked up a few steps later, she stood outside of the circle. Her gaze passed over the cuddled family quickly, another pang of envy shooting through her chest.

Desperate to feel like one of them, Kitaka lunged forward and then crawled right up under Blackberry. The pup curled into as tight of a ball as she could, trying to avoid as many of the mushrooms as possible. She also wasn't fond of the idea of any of the others touching her, but she couldn't voice that concern at the moment.

@Blackberry

Blackberry was happy when most of her family crowded up to her. For a moment, she reveled in the love that spread through everyone, the promise that bound them together. The promise of family. And, suddenly, everything felt like a dream. Her previous life of anger and pride, her journey through Hell, all of her hatred and vengeance that dug into her heart like claws, the claws of the wolf that haunted her dreams and ripped her to pieces again every night, everything seemed like it was from a time long past. Nothing more then the wisp of a memory. This was what was important now, family.

Of course, Blackberry would not stay like this for long. However much love she felt for her blood children and for her adopted children, the anger would come back eventually. The love for battle. That was written in her very core and these were the things she wished to teach this new family. A family of blood and berries. Yes, that was a good name. Bloodberries. A little silly, now that she thought of it, but nothing fit better. The family name.

She then noticed Mulberry had chosen not to join the huddle, the young hyena curled beneath her. She first turned her attention to her young daughter and leaned down, giving her a gentle touch with the smooth side of her beak. "It is alright, young one. We all love each other the same. No one here will hurt you. You will get used to it, I promise." She stood back up and looked around at the rest of the family. "Family. My family." She locked eyes with Blueberry. "Our family. We will be the great and terrible Bloodberries. All creatures in the caves will hear of our names. They will respect and fear us! They will despair at our call! And we will grow stronger, greater, every single one of you, my children, my loves, you will become great. I promise you this now. If anything should seek to harm you, I will fight by your side. I will help you tear it to pieces and spread its very soul across the earth to soak into the mud and rot. I will do anything for you, my family, and you will learn to do the same for your sisters and brothers. What do you say to this?"


___________________________________________________________

"Lock the doors and close the blinds"
We're going for a ride.

tags: @Blueberry @Elderberry @Kitaka @Jayberry
notes:

The moose calf with a goose's head nodded at her, giving her his name. Jayberry gave him the best smile a canine could, tongue lolling out, revealing the gleam of her gem. Her tail wagged a steady rhythm, and it wasn't long before her butt was following suit. She pressed into Mother's feathers, nuzzling against them, before looking up as Elderberry and Da joined as well. She took a moment to nuzzle everyone, before seeing the other pup throwing herself at Mama's feet.

Jayberry whined quietly, tilting her head as she leaned down to nuzzle the other's head. "Mulberry?" she asked quietly, "What's wrong?"

And then Mother was speaking again, and Jay was quick to echo: "Our family!" She listened intently, taking her words to heart with a vehement "Yes mama!"

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

Blue was so so so proud of his family. Blackberry was already an amazing, though harsh, mother and his children were already learning and accepting valuable life lessons. He listened carefully, quiet as usual. His large head nodded slowly in agreement with Blackberry's words.

"We are family, and family takes care of their own. I will always be there to protect you, children." Blue said rather loudly, compared to his next words, which were loud whispers. "If you guys wanna talk about anything, I'm here too. Mama can get scary sometimes" Blue joked, though he looked lovingly at the goose. There was truth in his words though. Blackberry could be less than understanding, her mind gone, the only sanity poking through was her love for her family. Blue, on the other hand, he only really lost himself in battle, and even then he held compassion. Blackberry could easily overreact.


Blue was the reasonable, responsible and level-headed one. He held kindness, despite his rough nature. He would hold that for his family, and he'd offer whatever advice or comfort they needed. From personal experience, he knew Blackberry might not be able to offer the same.


____________________
"Hear my war cry"

Word Count: 204
Tags: @Blackberry @Elderberry @Jayberry @Kitaka
Notes: here

Baneberry's feathers rustled impatiently, waiting for Mama to finish talking. Papa said a few words too, and Jayberry agreed. Bane wanted to be able to agree too, but she wasn't sure that she wanted to be feared. She wanted to make friends, and be happy and protect, not go out and harm on purpose. They were supposed to fight. They were supposed to be cruel. They were supposed to be respected and feared. But what if Bane didn't want that?

However, her sense of loyalty wouldn't allow her to speak out. It wouldn't allow her to tell her Mama and Papa 'No'. She had to stay loyal, she needed to have the same beliefs and the same mindset. She needed to make them proud. So the hybrid nodded her head sadly, trying to make herself look excited but failing miserably.

____________________
"You only get what you grieve."

Word Count: 140
Tags: here
Notes: here

Huckleberry pressed closer to Mama, her hum the only thing that gave her confirmation. Content and peaceful, she smiled gently. "Family is good. Family is great. Fear the family, fear the Bloodberries. I do what Mama says and that shall make me happy. Happy, happy, happy!" Her wings waved lazily, touching gently across the family that was nearby, whether it was Baneberry or Elderberry or Papa, whoever was close.

But she noticed the Mulberry was not nearby. She blinked open her eyes and looked down, seeing the little curled ball underneath Mama. Carefully, she lowered herself and wiggled next to her, her coarse hair brushing against the hyena's side. What was wrong, what? Was she hiding from something? Were they playing? "What, Mulberry, what, what! Why do you hide? Huckleberry is here to protect the family! Are we hiding?"

The soft whine of the other pup made Kit's ears prick and her eyes dart to the side.

Whenever the unfamiliar touch came on her head, the hyena tensed, but otherwise stayed still. She recognized the gesture from Blackberry, and knew it was meant for comfort. The thought that Jayberry cared enough to try to comfort her made Kitaka decide the other canine was okay...for now.

Just as the thought of not letting Jayberry earn any more affection than her entered her mind, Blackberry reached out to caress the top of her head. Kit melted at Mother's touch, and raised her head to watch the goose whenever she moved away.
When Blackberry spoke again, Kit listened intently, her ears perked and her dark gaze focused. She registered the majority of what was said, with the most important parts imprinting into her mind.

Family. Bloodberries. Fight. Kill.

Kitaka nodded at Blackberry, before feeling the press of another against her side. Her sleek, charcoal mask turned toward Huckelberry as Blueberry began to speak over them.

The hybrid asked after her, just like Jayberry had, because they were family. All of them, not just her and Blackberry. She hadn't been sure of it before, and part of her still wasn't completely convinced, but...they were winning her over. They cared about her, like Blackberry did, and that was important to her.

Kitaka smiled tentatively at Huckleberry, before reaching out and gently nudging them on the cheek. Then, with a few wags of her tail, she turned her smile toward Jayberry. Her gaze roamed back up to Blackberry, then up to Blueberry, and finally settled on Elderberry. Her smile widened into a lopsided grin that left her gem-fang to gleam in the tunnel's light.

"Family," she confirmed aloud, just to show she could. Her gaze darted back to Jayberry when she remembered how well the wolf spoke. Kit would need to work on her own speech skills. She couldn't let the other pup best her, at anything.

@Elderberry

Elderberry listened with a prick of his fluffy ears, standing damply before Jayberry still. He raised his long neck to look at mama, drinking in her words of family and love, death and blood- weaving together in a harmony of contraries. He found himself nodding, a flare of protectiveness alight in his eyes. He looked slowly over his sisters and siblings, committing the look of their ragtag group to memory, ingraining them into his soul.

If there was one thing that Elderberry knew then, it was that Mama's word was law.

Elderberry looked back at Jayberry, eyes lighting up at the sight of her growing joy. He listened to the voices of those echoing around him- vowing, promising, a wave of enthusiasm. But Baneberry was quiet along with him. This time, Elderberry tottered over to her, and sank down onto his belly next to her. Even if the others were family, they were loud. Elderberry could appreciate Baneberry's newly-realized quietness after her earlier outburst. The hybrid's legs folded beneath him, and he tilted his head, green eyes questioning.

He glanced briefly towards Papa, listening to the moose's kind words. Then they turned back towards their sibling expectantly.

@Kitaka @Blackberry

Blackberry stood back and watched her family with the utmost pride. Yes, they would be excellent. She did not notice Baneberry's silence, but she certainly did notice the worry for Mulberry, who was curled beneath her and finally raising her head. They were already bonding, already getting along. They were learning the importance of loving each other all on their own. She glanced at Blueberry with a sour look, for a moment feeling a flash of anger. Was he suggesting that she did not love her family on the intimate level they demanded. However, she realized that he was probably right. She was hot-headed with little patience for anything other then violence.

But, of course, she would never admit that out loud. She was too proud. So, instead, she shot him a grim look that had a sparkle of amusement in the back. "....fine, but be careful not to insult me."

She turned back to her children, her feathers ruffling as she raised her head, proud to be their mother. "This tunnel is your home. You are not confined to it, of course, but this is our haven of safety. There are two rooms connected, Orion and Polaris. You may wander there if you wish, but do not go far without one of us with you. There are dangers beyond that will no hesitate to bring harm while you are still young. We will train you to hunt, to fight, and to be your own creature. But you will be always loyal to the family. For now, you may do as you wish. Learn the world on your own, interact with each other. Come to me or Blueberry with whatever you wish and we shall give it to you." She moved back towards her nest and sat herself down, watching her family with affection and pride.

*You may start to exit the thread if you wish or continue to interact! We can also start new threads if you want and continue from where we left off.

@Jayberry @Elderberry @Kitaka @Blueberry @Baneberry