Frights-and-Nights

Borya had been half-listening to what was going on around him, instead having been more focused on a bird that was in the trees. He promised he had been trying to listen to his parents, he really was! But once he had heard the familiar tune of a singing bird, his ears had turned to listen to the sound instead, his head giving a twitch to try to twist around and try to find the bird, eyes flicking from the dark, tall build of his papa to the large canopies that surrounded them. In between his sneak-peaks of the trees, he tried to scan for the figure of a bird, to see if it was one with bright colors - which he hoped it was, he loved seeing how colorful the birds could be! - or if it was one of the more dull birds. It was hard to tell with all the leaves that covered the trees, even if they were now changing into oranges and reds, threatening to fall into the camp, and it made him want to keep his gaze even more focused on the trees. His mind was completely away from the conversation by

Bright, gold eyes blearily opened, body still warm with sleep, buzzing with it. They flickered, squinting at the pale beams that shined, pooling into the den. His Baba slept next to him, curled up, ears lightly pinned back as he seemed to grow. Nuzzled under a paw, in the groove of his neck, Borya could see how the light made Baba grow, sides going up and down with every breath. A bubbling yawn broke out, mouth straining as his legs felt lousy. He tried with all his might to break it, but he could only wait until it was done, snapping his jaws down. Sniffling, he raised tired eyes back up to his guardian, who still slept without flinching. Sleepy warmth was draped over Borya's own eyelids, his head lazily bobbing with the force of trying to stay awake. The sun still shone through, lights beaming through the curtain of moss, warming up despite the chill of winter wind. His spine shook, fur bristling as the chill slipped in, only to be shuffled back out quickly. As he nestled back