Citizen 424 Hethvish

It was not uncommon for Hethvish to try and sneak out of Canto's place during the middle of the night. He was born and raised there by the Elder themselves and by the collective of many other rexals. He was grateful; do not get me wrong, but he was a bold child, seeking the adventures of the outside and defying the soft rules placed in front of him, just like the rest of his peers around his age. Besides, there was no harm in sneaking out every once in a while, right? As long as he could get back before everyone else awoken, it would be fine. No harm done.

As he began his ascent to the roof by climbing a tall ladder, he could not help but feel how cold the wind was blowing tonight from one of the open windows. Autumn was coming to its end now, and these chilly winds became more and more common, making playing outside a bit more uneasy.

His body was shaking from the cold, but alas, he was too determined to turn back now and grab some form of clothing. That would risk his chances of getting caught anyway. He imagined himself as someone who could stand the weather anyway.

As he finally managed to climb to the top and climb from the cellar to the roof by squishing himself through a window, he came across something he had never seen before. It was white, cold, moist and yet crunchy—and bloody slippery. If not for his good reflexes, Hethvish would have stumbled down the way he came from as he accidentally slipped on the icy clay roof, but in the end, he managed to grab hold with his claws. He steadied himself at the top before looking up at the sky, only to see this white thing trickle down by the dozen, covering the entire roof. Not only the roof... but everything around him!

"What... is this?" He asked himself as he took a step on the roof, slipping once again—but this time, he was not as lucky. He slid down the roof, only to end on the ground with a soft thud, his fall barely dampened by the thick virgin snow below him.

"Ow, ow, and ow!" he exclaimed as he stood up and shook his fur, trying to get rid of the mysterious white substance, to no avail. As he walked, the snow crunched under his chubby little feet, which Hethvish found quite entertaining. He looked down and then behind him, realizing that whatever he was walking on captured his teeny footprints, just like mud would.

"Oooo!", His mouth opened in awe as he tried his best to make the most pristine-looking footprint in the snow by jumping from one place to another, putting his hand down, and then checking if it was clear enough.

As he bounced around like a rabbit, he did not notice that he was heading towards a tree until he managed to straight-up headbutt it during one of his jumps. He landed as gracefully as you would expect it, and to make it worse, the snow that the old branches of the tree were holding now missiled down on top of the poor terra rexal, covering him completely.

Hethvish panicked as the world suddenly got dark and began digging at the speed of light to try and get himself out of his predicament. The coldness of the snow stung his fingertips and body with each movement, and soon enough, he freed his head from it, only to see a tall and powerful-looking rexal stand in front of him with a raised eyebrow. Canto.

"Now, now, little one, what are you doing out here?" Canto asked with an amused smile as he reached into the snow to gently lift Hethvish out from under it. Little did Hethvish know that Canto had been watching the little rascal ever since he had managed to slide off of the roof. At first, he was more than ready to have a stern talk with the young rexal, but as he watched Hethvish explore the snow for what could be the first time of his life, he decided to put this off for now. He expected Hethvish to get into trouble by himself, which would be a better lesson in itself than any scolding that Canto would deliver.

"I was just... I just wanted to explore a little," Hethvish admitted as he averted his gaze, shameful at the fact that he was caught sneaking out.

"And... what did you find?" Canto asked as he sat down next to the child, closing his eyes and enjoying the breeze.

"This... thing. This white thing covers everything. What is this?" Hethvish asked as he started toying with the snow, making a rather crude-looking snowball in the process, which he then picked up and threw, watching it splash and crumble as it hit the ground.

"It's snow. When it gets very, very cold, the rain freezes in the air, turning into this. It's great to play in, but if you are not ready, you can catch some nasty sickness. Speaking of... are you cold, little one?" Canto asked as he jokingly picked up Hethvish and put him on his back, giving the young rexal a piggyback ride.

"A little," Hethvish admitted with a chuckle as he snuggled into Canto's neck and back, enjoying the body heat that the Elder was emitting.

"Let's get you home then so you can warm up. You can play more in the snow tomorrow, I promise." The Elder chuckled as he began walking back towards the Hatchery as Hethvish slowly fell asleep on his back, tired after his little adventure.

ForgottenCerberus