1x1 with WalkingWithBarefeet

for our bear OCs. c: you can start if you wanna.

"C'mon, Naka!" the cub called as she ran through the forest. It was a beautiful winter morning, the snow deep and shining under the first of the sun's rays. Although the snow slowed Euila's progress, she loved it all the same. And plus, it gave her an excuse to run slower--she didn't want to get too far away from her sister. That was when Euila spotted a branch sprouting from a humongous pine, the bough weighed down with snow so that it nearly touched the forest floor. With a mischievous glint in her eyes, Euila skidded behind the tree, waiting until she could just spot her sister's little brown pelt hobbling her way. A little closer....come onnn....NOW! With a yell, Euila jumped out from the tree and leaped for the branch, clasping it in her powerful jaws. She dragged it as far as she could, hearing the beginnings of a yell come from her sister's throat, but it was then that Euila let go of the branch and turned on the spot, shooting away from the falling snow as quickly as she could.
"Hey!" she heard Nakana squeal when the snow from the branch all cascaded down on her, "That's not fair, Euila!" But Euila just laughed, tripping a bit on a root, hearing the giggles in her sister's voice as she dug herself from the snow.

The white-shrouded forest glinted in the afternoon light. Sunshine dappled on the ground, with only empty branches to mar its passage down to the earth. Three sets of tracks marked the snow, one large and two small. Leading from the prints were three furry shapes, dark against the brilliant background. The family of bears trudged at a slow pace, or at least the mother did. Both cubs were more energetic. The darker one bounced from heap to heap, while the lighter one followed at a gentle trot, his ears flicking.
"Watch the ice, Sarashia." The adult rumbled as the smaller cub skidded on the frozen layer of ice beneath the snow. After it had first fallen, the white snow had refrozen as another layer and another poured on each day, making the deepest parts rock-hard and very slick. The she-cub scrambled to regain her balance while her brother gave a few good-natured chuffs at her silliness. Zamarru ambled the rest of the way over to her, blinking his grey eyes at her.
"Whee, I'm tired." Sarashia huffed, staggering to her paws and pointedly yawning widely. She glanced at her mother, who rolled her eyes and snorted.
"Hop on, then." The she-bear relented, and her daughter gave a gleeful yip and scampered over. She waited as Mvenki lowered herself and then clambered on, gripping her tightly. Zamarru shook his coat and then stomped away, leaving his mother and sister to a slower pace. Before long he was far ahead of them, and the quiet forest was undisturbed by any rumbling chuffs or growls. It was his time alone that the young cub enjoyed, the peace and quiet. Especially in winter, when the birds were gone and the rest of the forest in a cold slumber. Then could he really hear the silence.
Zamarru was carefully trudging along when he heard noises--bear sounds. At first, he thought his family had caught up. But then he detected unfamiliar scents and paused, lifting his muzzle. Startled, he wondered if they had wandered into another bear's territory, and he was immediately agitated. But the voices he heard were young and full of laughter, and he realized they were cubs--probably not a danger. Zamarru pondered if he should head back, but his curiosity made him stay put. The growing loudness of the squealing and churring made him guess they were headed straight towards him, and out of instinct he stumbled back, eyes flicking around. He launched himself into a thick fir tree, scrambling on the bark until he managed to pull himself into the lowest branch, about five feet off the ground. Tree-climbing wasn't his best skill, but he thought he might be able to stay put for at least a little while. Mvenki hadn't told him much of this either--she called it a sport for black bears. Apparently they were so weak they had to run and hide in trees all the time. Zamarru had wrinkled his nose at this, but really he was a bit of a nervous cub himself, which explained his rush to hide. Thankfully, Sarashia hadn't noticed this.
The he-cub clung tight as he waited for the strangers to appear, hoping they wouldn't look up and spot him. Even though it was a needle-tree, the paleness of his fur and the sparse, rather scraggly branches wouldn't cover him well.

Euila laughed, risking a glance back to see her sister's progress and getting a stubbed claw and a tumble in the process. She rolled herself onto her paws again, the simple movements made difficult from her giggles, and she looked ahead again to see a fork in a pathway through the forest. Euila quickly began to go one way, and lept over a log on the path. She jumped into the brush, hiding her pawprints by swiping at them as she made them, backing through the brambles sticking up in the snow until she made it to the other side of the fork. Now Nakana will think I've gone the other way! With her plan in progress, Euila continued her erasing of pawprints on the new path until she thought she was a safe distance away for Nakana to be unable to see her from the beginning of the fork. She then turned and struggled not to laugh with triumph as she padded along through the forest.
She had only gone for a little bit when she heard her sister's distant call, "Euila!!! I'm going back to Mom! You're too fast and I'm tired--not to mention cold! I'm still covered in snow!" Euila smiled at the teasing in her sister's voice, slightly miffed that her ingenious plan had not been tested. She knew Naka wouldn't be in any trouble on her way back to their mother--she always liked to stay close to her cubs and would be within shouting distance. Euila decided to continue on, running and jumping in the snow drifts. Then something hit her on the head and she sniffed, falling back onto her rump. She shook out her fur and a large piece of bark flew from her neck fur. She looked up curiously at the pine near her, and she screeched in surprise as she fell back yet again. Only a few feet up, sitting on a low branch, was a little pale cub clutching at the wood. Euila's ears flattened against her skull and she stood and backpedaled as quickly as she could to the nearest thing to hide behind--a rock that was barely larger than herself. She tucked herself behind the small boulder as much as she could, hoping the stranger wouldn't come after her. What if he's mean? What if he brings me back to his family and they try to eat me?! What if I never get to see Naka again??

note: Euila hasn't really met any other bears before..... ^^;

ooc: lol,that was amusing. X3

Zamarru hadn't meant for the bark to dislodge and fall. His claw had jerked suddenly as the cub had come trotting into view, and the piece had tumbled down to hit her head. He winced, knowing that she would look up and spot him. When she did, however, he did not expect her to jump back, screech, and scurry to hide behind a rock. The strangeness of it made him almost want to laugh. He didn't, although his mouth did twitch as he peered at where she was hiding. The rock covered most of her but he could see a bit of fur sticking up from the side. Zamarru tilted his head, hesitating on whether he should come down or not. The other cub seemed sincerely frightened and hadn't come out of her hiding spot yet. But Zamarru didn't want to just sit here, waiting for her to do something. So he carefully lowered himself off the branch and down the pine tree, landing with a soft thump on the snowy ground. He lifted his head, trying to see over the rock, but couldn't. He inched sideways, slowly, nervously, not wanting to startle the she-cub. One step at a time, circling around, nose twitching and eyes wide.

ooc: heehee thanks xD she can be a scaredy cat sometimes :3

Euila wasn't sure what to do. Her eyes were wide and her sense so alert with adrenaline that when the other cub plopped to earth, she winced at the thump. She blinked her eyes tightly, tensing her muscles to race away from there as quickly as her short legs would allow. She could hear the other cub shifting around from the other side of her rock, hear his nose sniffling the air for her scent. She curled tighter to the ground, took a deep breath, clenched her eyes shut again, and said with as much courage as she could (which was about as much courage as a cricket would have facing a very hungry snake),
"W-wh-what do you want? Who are y-you?"
She ignored the trembling, tiny sound of her own voice, and let out a pitiful roar in hopes that he might get scared and run off.

Again, there was the strange urge to laugh, this time coupled with a bit of fear. Why was she so frightened? Had...had...had she been hurt by other strangers before? Or what? Zamarru couldn't get it through his brain. Her voice, so plainly terrified, didn't spook him, nor did her weak roar. In fact, it made him more curious. However, noting her fear, he paused in his approach and sat down. Maybe he ought not to rush up to her; maybe just relax and wait. He didn't reply just yet, as he despised speaking to others, but simply sat in the snow and flexed his claws in the white powder. He dropped his gaze and stared down for a bit, wondering where his mother and sister were. He hoped they weren't close, or this new cub would probably die of fright if she saw them. Besides, this was something he wanted to enjoy on his own. Sarashia was probably nagging their mother, and they would be busy for a while with digging up roots and such.

After a long pause Zamarru lifted his head and peered in the direction of the rock, behind which he could see the tufts of the cub's brown fur, spiked with terror. He opened his mouth, feeling stupid for having waited so long, but decided it best to reply anyway. "Hello?" he rumbled out, in his quiet, slightly smooth voice. "Uh, I'm not going to hurt you." he continued, flicking his ears. He stood up, shifting his weight. "My name's Zamarru."

Euila tried to stay as still as she could while the cub approached her--but then he sat down in the snow. She would've peeked around to see if he had left after a while, but she could hear his claws crunching through the snow as he kneaded it. Euila dared to let herself relax just a bit--if this bear had wanted to hurt her, surely he would've by now right? Then again I might be right where he wants me--trapped while he waits for his friends to surround me from behind... she did all she could to ignore the paranoia. She knew she was being an idiot, but she could not help it. Then he spoke. His voice soothed her and she felt her shoulders relax slightly as he introduced himself. She waited a few beats, apprehensive still, then dared to poke her head out from behind the rock.
"...I'm Euila.." she murmured even quieter, her leaf-green eyes searching. Her ears, which had been laid back against her furry head, slowly turned upwards in a curious manner. Perhaps he is a nice bear...I've been silly.

The cub closed his mouth and waited, waited for a reaction from the strange scared she-cub. Only moments passed before he saw movement, and then a head peeked out from behind the rock, a fuzzy brown face with bright green eyes. He flicked his ears forward to catch her words, a name, and lightly sniffed the air again, drawing in her scent. Euila... His mind matched her face to the name, as she watched him apprehensively. A calmer silence drew on between the two, filled more with curiosity and mild wariness, rather than sharp fear and panic. Zamarru dipped back his head, and tucked his legs close to his body, trying to seem smaller and less of a threat to the nervous Euila. He wasn't sure what to say, now, and his mouth grew dry as they continued to watch each other. Something flicked on the edge of his vision and he started, but it was only a leaf twitching in the slight breeze. The air washed over the cub's fur and shook him more awake, as bits of snow fluttered around, stirred by the wind. "You can come out, you know." he told her meekly, lifting a paw and poking it in the direction of the rock.

Euila blinked shyly, embarrassed by her actions. She complied, padding out from behind the rock to sit with a flop opposite Zamarru. She then tilted her head so far to one side that it was parallel to the ground. Then, she flicked on paw upwards, flinging snow at Zamarru's face.

[short post is short. Weird cub is weird. :3]

Zamarru jerked back, shaking his head and blinking at her. He couldn't understand this cub. One moment, cowering behind a stone, the next, splashing snow at his face without a single word. He shook out his pale fur, rippling down his body, and tilted his own head back at her. There was only one thing he could think of to do in response, so he lifted his paw and then flashed it back down so that it launched a clump of snow back at Euila.

Euila allowed the snow to slap her face with a stinging yet mushy crunch. She blinked the slush out of her eyes, then waited a moment before shaking the fluff away from her face and neck fur. She allowed a large smile to break across her muzzle, and immediately began laughing. Her leaf-green eyes squinted near shut as her wind-chime laugh erupted from her small throat. She scooped some snow in front of her with her forepaws, still letting out giggles. She then glanced up at the other bear cub and gave him a mischievous glare before launching the ammunition at him with a swipe of her powerful paws. The force of the blow knocked little Euila back, rolling back and forth along her spine, her forepaws grabbing at her hind legs as she giggled with glee at her new-found friend.

The light-furred cub shook away his puzzling thoughts. He was just happy she hadn't run off in terror. See--it hadn't been that bad, meeting a newcomer? Zamarru mentally shook his head. He kept it still in reality, but jumped slightly as the sudden sounds of joy burst from Euila. He stared at her for a few moments, wondering if she often had sudden mood swings. Her giggling was infectious, and he couldn't help a smile tugging at his muzzle as he watched her move, shaking with mirth. He let out a few reluctant churring. As the she-cub tossed at him another clump of snow he sprang back. The snow spattered on his front legs, but the bulk had missed him that time. He rumbled with more laughter as he darted back towards Euila, amused by her antics in the snow. Zamarru scraped at the ground and threw puffs of white powder in her direction, his front paws flicking up with each movement. He bounced up and down like a pouncing fox while he did so, infatuated by the excitement and happiness.

Euila was able to get a hold of herself quickly enough so that she could roll sideways out of the way of Zamarru's first few attacks. Still giggling and smilling, she stumbled to her paws and danced around in the snow, dodging most of his missiles and managing to send a few of her own his way as well. It was strange--she'd never played with anyone before besides her sister and sometimes her mother.
That's right--Naka! They should be catching up any minute...I wonder if he has any siblings too...?
Still pounding around in the snow, their battle fierce, Euila panted out, "So, Z-Zamarru....d'you have a mother? Or brother or sister?"

The young bear cub skidded around opposite of Euila, barely able to discern his surroundings from all the flying snow. He periodically felt some clump on his pelt, and some soar past him. He'd never had such an exciting battle like this, not with Sarashia. His eyes sparkling with delight, he tossed his head and pelted more snow at the she-cub. Her panted question made him falter slightly, and was rewarded with more snow spattered on his chest. He sprang to avoid more. "Yeah. Yeah, I have a sister and a mother." he answered, ducking. He swiped another clump towards Euila.

"Really??" Euila's claws scrambled to avoid a snow missile, "Me too! That's crazy!" With a giggle the bear cub leapt behind a rock and scraped together the biggest cannonball of snow she could--scooping it up under a paw and lifting it. She struggled not to be toppled over when the weight of the snow almost caused her to tumble to the side--instead, the little bear put a front paw atop the rock she hide behind, locked Zamarru in her sights, and hurled the cannonball as hard as she could.

Zamarru shook his pelt, though it was a futile attempt. "Cool! I--" He glanced around to see the she-cub vanishing behind a rock. Blinking with curiosity he ambled closer. Then he saw the huge white clump coming straight towards him, and let out a squeak and froze. It splattered on his face and chest, knocking him back a few steps with the impact. Coughing out snow, he staggered to his paws and shook his ears. "I'll get you!" he charged forwards with a fake playful growl and over the rock to drop down on Euila.

Euila's laugh quickly turned into a playful scream as a shadow swept over her and she looked up to find Zamarru as the source. Her thick paws scrabbled on the icy snow as she hurried to escape, but to no avail. The cub landed on her, and with an "Oof!" the she-cub's legs splayed out and she was flattened on the snow. Zamarru didn't weigh much, no, but he was still slightly larger than Euila herself. Plus, having someone leap and crash down onto you was going to leave a mark. As Euila's breath came back, she giggled and thrashed under Zamarru, squealing, "Lemme go, lemme go! I'll bite your foot off if you don't lemme go!!" She reinforced this threat, straining to reach the other bear's forepaw with her mouth wide open and making 'Ahhh...arrrrghhhhaarrhh' noises, trying to hold back laughs all the while.

Success! He felt Euila sink beneath him, heard the breath rush out of her. Churring with unstoppable laughs, Zamarru felt himself shifted as she squirmed about, trying to free herself. He scooted himself off of her after a moment, tumbling over and over a few paces away. He rubbed his nose with a fuzzy paw and blinked over at her, grinning slightly. He staggered to his paws, still a bit dizzy, and chugged back towards the she-cub with a playful growl.

Euila laughed past her growl as she finally was allowed to rise. She struggled to her feet, her legs a bit cramped, and was just shaking the snow from her pelt when Zamarru crashed into her again. She was sent rolling, head-over-tail, until she finally slammed her back against a tree trunk. She branches shook slightly, and she formulated a plan. She playfully glared at her new friend, then yelled, "What, is that all you've got?! C'mon!" He charged again, and just as he was within range, Euila jumped to her feet and kicked with all her might against the trunk. She'd just enough time to realize she wouldn't be able to escape the blast-zone before both she and Zamarru were engulfed in white fluff.

He realized what she was about to do a bit too late. Skidding to a halt, he felt the snow collapse on him and the world was suddenly white. Choking out the powder, he scrambled frantically to find the surface. It wasn't far and he gasped as he shook his head free. Dizzy, he staggered fully out of the heap and glanced around for Euila. He saw her emerging from the side and felt a bit better that she had been hit too. Her plan had backfired a bit. He smiled at her, though didn't continue their playfight. He was exhausted now.

Euila let out breathless laughs between her panting, scooting over towards Zamarru as she swatted him playfully in a lazy way with her paw. "You know what?" she sighed, "You're alright, Zamarru." She smiled at him, showing her little cub teeth. "Yup," she continued, "it's a good thing we met, 'cause I've been needing a friend. I mean I love my sister, but you know how little sister's can get, yea?"

Euila noticed Zamarru's sudden shift in expression, and right as she was about to ask him what it was all about, the scent struck her. Her fur bristled in fear--she'd never met another bear without her mother by her side. And her sister was out here somewhere too, on her own--unless she'd made it back to their mother by now. The young cub looked to Zamarru, her leaf-green eyes shining with fear. "Who is it? What do we do?" She whispered to him, casting her eyes about as she tried to pinpoint which direction the bears were coming from. Luckily, it didn't seem they were going through the path that Euila herself and her sister had been on, so as long as Nakana had stayed there to look for her or had really gone back to their mother, it was fine.