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El'Myntari padded along the edge of a stream, gazing at his reflection on its glittering surface. A scowl was what he saw. It didn't discourage him, however, as that was the natural look he had on his face. The reynard was rarely pleased..with anything..and lately he'd found signs of other Leawyn in his territory. He couldn't tell their age or gender, but simply bits of fur on broken branches, or flattened patches of grass where one had taken slumber.

Still frowning, he continued along the stream, hoping to catch whatever Leawyn was intruding on his precious bit of land that he called home.

El'Myntari heard the splash before he saw what caused it. His ears flicking forward towards the sound. At the distance, he could only see a small flash of pink and green. That -must- be the Leawyn that had been encroaching upon his territory. The nerve of some forest-foxes...

He bounded gracefully towards the pinkness, a leaf or two falling gently by the wayside from his bushy tail. As he got closer, he began to wonder why the Leawyn was so small. Then he realized...this is just a yearling.

One that was just out of its kit-hood, he guessed. There was no sense in getting worked up about a curious little yearling. The reynard sighed at himself and sat down at the stream's edge to watch it. Perhaps it followed that butterfly all the way here.

"Where's your mother and father, little one? Won't they be worried, since you've wandered so far into another Leawyn's range?" he asked in a deep, yet oddly pleasant voice. His scowl had softened, but it was as if he'd always have a crease upon his brow.

Seeing the yearling attempt at puffing herself made him want to giggle! Almost. Only the hint of a smile crept upon his face. The young one was admirable, he admitted, nodding to himself.

When she stuttered her answer, he nodded. It was natural for a young one to wander off while waiting for the return of her parents. Though...he did wonder why both parents left. Usually one stays behind, especially since this one looked too young to be on her own quite yet..

Mynt's suspicions grew with the next action of the yearling. She seemed to..back down..and there was something in her eyes..Worry? El'Myntari's frown reappeared. It was only a guess, but did the yearling not believe her parents would return? Perhaps they'd been gone for a long time...

And despite being a more serious Leawyn, he found a sort of liking to this young one. What kind of fox would he be if he left her on her own? He decided he'd keep an eye on the kit until her parents returned. If ever..

Clearing his throat, he spoke, "My name is El'Myntari...buut..you may call me Mynt. If you want." Mynt rarely allowed others to use his nickname, but the yearling probably wouldn't be able to pronounce his full name. And butchering his name was something he couldn't stand. He added, "And you may play here in my territory whenever you like. I make sure to keep the wolves at bay" with a grin. El'Myntari was proud of his lithe agility, able to keep two, even three, hungry wolves practically chasing their own tails. He lifted his chin, his tail rustling slightly, hoping to look like a sort of hero or idol to the yearling. She seemed like the type that needed someone to look up to, he thought, stroking his ego.

Dae... thought Mynt, making a mental note of the yearling's name. Short and to the point, he like it. Her excitement of being able to stay made him grin, stick out his chest a tad, even. Then there was the giggling...and the bouncing..and ouf! the water spraying onto his fur! Grooming time after this, he mentally put on his to-do list. Yet he still managed to keep his brow from furrowing.

He mustn't forget, this is a young female. They're like this. He must be patient....wait, what about a pack of wolves? A whole pack of wolves, eh? Mynt chuckled to himself and stood up as tall and as heroic as he possibly could. "I could probably take down a pack of wolves.." he said, as if gauging the battle in his head. Then he added, "Maybe even a grizzly bear.." and gave a sidelong glance in Dae's direction. Yes...it was good for a yearling to have a hero, and Mynt, as egotistical as he ever was, reveled in the fact that he might just be that Leawyn.

Misaki yawned then uncurled from within her den. She crawled out of her den shaking leaves from her fur. She made her way towards the creek. She knew there was another Leawyn that lived on the other side of the creek. She had smelt it several times, not that it bothered her. She twitched her nose picking up the scent of two today. She leaned down to take a deep drink of the cool, refreshing water.

Once she finished her drink she sat down and started grooming out the loose leaves within her tail. She hummed while doing this. She could see the flashes of pink and the green of the others but chose to ignore them at least until she was groomed.

The little darling had fianlly fallen asleep into the standard ' comatose kit'. Loud noises would wake her up, but being moved, not so much. The movement and the lifting did cause her to blearily look about, squeak a yawn and tuck her paws up and away from the ground instinctively. It's a pup thing.

Once she was set back down, the pink fluff of spent energy blinked up at the female fox. A wide, tired, and distracting yawn escaped and little Dae flopped back over onto her side. She wiggled a bit in the sweet grass to make herself a fine little nest. Soon, the pink thing was laying on her back, front paws curled with her toe nails just barely brushing her bellyfur. She did look quite like a possum playing dead. Every so often one of her four paws would twitch. Yep. She was still fast asleep.

El'Myntari glanced down at the pup, letting a faint smirk creep onto his face. He wondered what she dreamt of. Chasing that butterfly from before, perhaps. Mynt layed down beside the pup, feeling at ease enough to let his guard down. The vixen across the stream didn't seem to be of any danger. Even if she was, Mynt was sure he could take her. Puffing his chest up, he responded in a low, but softened voice so as not to wake the pup.

"Indeed, My territory lies on this side of the stream." The reynard listened to her speak, her voice was gentle. Nice to know a male was in the area? He rarely heard something along those lines. Most Leawyn were annoyed by Mynt's constant patrols to make sure noone encroached on his territory. He also tended to pick fights with other males. But maybe this vixen saw him as protection. He did tend to keep the scavenger wolves at bay...

Not that he minded doing that. Mynt just wasn't sure if he liked the idea of feeling responsible for the safety of others, as much as he liked to view himself as a hero. He looked down at the yearling by his feet, thinking of the future day when she'd grow up and realize Mynt wasn't the all-powerful fox she thought he was. He was strong for a fox, but a pack of wolves could easily overpower him. And don't get him started on bears...

Listening back at what the vixen said, he heard her name and repeated it under his breath for memorization. Misaki..misaki.."Misaki" he said, distracted by the time she asked for his name. Wait..his name isn't Misaki! Flustered, the normally serious reynard struggled to correct himself. "E-El'Myntari. It's that. Not Misaki.." he rambled, adding under his breath. "Misaki is a female's name..if my parents named me Misaki I don't know what I would do.." ...wait, child? What chi-- Dae. Dae isn't his child! But he couldn't just -tell- the vixen he'd barely met that he -found- this kit and was going to watch over her. She might think he stole her..

Better to just go along with it for now..he thought, saying, "Thank you., her name is Dae....she takes after her mother, of course.." he added, looking here and there. The yearling looked nothing like him.

[ pardon laziness... ]

Dae, oblivous, wiggled around some more on the grass, drooling and blowing a snot bubble while she slept. Her dreams were peaceful. She was off chasing a butterfly in a warm field of sweet grass. Her little paws twitched as she imagined herself leaping and batting at the insect.

The bubble popped as her ears picked up a female voice. Mommy? Her eyes popped open and looked almost happy...then fear and a squeak of fright at this new Leawyn. Up the little pink thing was on her feet and bounced practically over Mynt to hide in his busy tail. "Eeek! "