[Nicholas Acker Villin]

The weather was sunny like the mood of the Villins. But, even the sunniest of days could have clouds, and Acker's mood was like a cloud threatening to obscure the sunrays. It was time to raise some funds for the wildlife and Acker's mother was up to the ask. Emilia had invited the right people for the occasion and they were all gathered at the park near the forest. The idea was that they would meet the wildlife expert at the park and then follow his instructions.

Everyone was dressed stereotypically with khaki clothes and backpacks ready to face the forest. Everyone but the cloud "I know that you knew about the dress code, why are you dressed like you are going to a funeral?" Emilia meant black "At least take off those glasses" her Italian accent got heavier and heavier the more she got frustrated which Acker found amusing "Sun..." he pointed at it "...glasses" he pointed at his black glasses. Emilia rolled her eyes muttering something in Tuscan, she loved his son, but he could be so frustrating.

There was no time to deal with that now because it was time to meet the wildlife expert. Acker was reading the background check he had done on the guy, a quick one, just to verify that he was legit and not a scammer. Matthew Brookes was his name. It just looked like he was standing there with his two dogs, but in reality his eyes were focused on the lens as if he was reading something, luckily his eyes were hidden by the dark lens so it didn't look odd, the doc just looked bored standing there. In contrast, the others were all chatting, excited to begin this wildlife experience.

@matthew

[Deleted]

The bright sun shone warm on Matthew as he carried his daughter towards the meeting point, quietly talking to her before they came within earshot of the group.

"Remember our rules, kiddo," he told her. "What are they?"

Harper's ear flicked, and she gave a series of yips and body motions that roughly meant 'no shifting or talking'. Matthew nodded, scratching her ear. 

"And no biting, either! You need to remember, puppy teeth are sharp." He shook his head, knowing they had been lucky not to get into any trouble when Harper had decided to nip the hand of an overly affectionate lady who had insisted on trying to grab her. Though personally, he had been tempted to bite the woman too... whoever in their right minds would just snatch a child from her parent? Not that anyone could know Harper was his daughter, but still. He told their cover story often enough to make it clear they were close, and one of his ground rules was 'do not pick up the wolf pup'. He had made it plain that that woman would not be invited on future walks after that incident.

As he emerged from the trees by the group, he adjusted his grip on Harper so she was laid across his arms and able to face the group, the way she liked to be. In this position she was able to leap down from his arms whenever she felt like it, if she wanted to investigate something, though she knew not to wander too far, and her wolf pup instincts reminded her to stay close to her father, for the most part. Some would say taking the four year old on these excursions was risky - his partner, Elizabeth, certainly thought so, and constantly fretted over Harper accidentally shifting and revealing the family's secret - but Harper adored the trips, and when Matthew had tried to leave her behind in the past she had simply taken the first chance she could to sneak out after him anyway. Better to be with him and supervised than out wandering the woods alone. Anything could find her out there, and there were many animals who wouldn't hesitate to kill an unattended wolf pup - black bears, cougars, even coyotes would jump at the chance to remove a potential future competitor. 

Pushing the thoughts away, he focused on his group for the day. He didn't, technically speaking, work for any group or charity. He simply occasionally offered his knowledge and experience to other groups, and nobody had questioned him yet. His record was perfect; the few potentially dangerous encounters they had come across had ended peacefully thanks to his understanding of the animals of the area. It helped that he ran his walks through his own territory, and often patrolled the trail in wolf form first to double check what was in the area. Today he had pinpointed a site with a small herd of elk, which he would keep a safe distance from in case there were calves, and a black bear sow who may or may not have cubs. Best to avoid that one too, he knew. 

"Morning everyone!" he called as he approached. "I'm Matthew. This little one here is Harper. She's about eight weeks old, and is a grey wolf pup my partner and I have raised from being a newborn after we found her in the woods." He smiled as he said that. Technically, he wasn't lying, after all, although Harper was four years old. "I have to lay out some ground rules for her, I'm afraid. Yes, she can be petted. She might decide she wants to walk instead of being carried, in which case I must ask that if she approaches you, please do not try to pick her up, as she doesn't like other people trying to carry her and might bite. I must also warn you that she might nibble when she gets excited. If she does, gently push her nose away from you and she'll get the message. This isn't her being aggressive - wolves nibble each other to show affection and as a form of grooming each other, which is what she takes petting to be." He glanced over the group again, noting a man among them with two dogs.

"Now, ground rules for the walk itself. First of all, please stay on the trail. I check it regularly to make sure it's safe, but off the trail I can't guarantee you won't find yourself ankle deep in a wasp's nest, and none of us want that! I can't guarantee we will spot any wildlife on the walk, but if we do, you can take photos but please keep your voices down and try not to disturb them. This is their home, we're just visitors. If we encounter anything large, please follow my instructions. Most animals won't want anything to do with us, but we might get something a bit more curious or wary of us." Finally he turned to the man with the dogs. Harper seemed particularly interested in them, her gaze fixed on the two canines with clear curiosity. "And sir, I'm sure your dogs are well trained but please mind they do not disturb any of the wildlife. So long as they stay on the trail, don't bark and don't disturb Harper, they can stay loose, but if they do begin to cause a disturbance I will need to ask for them to be leashed I'm afraid." After all, a barking dog would scare off wildlife all over the forest, or could attract trouble - a black bear with cubs wouldn't appreciate being harassed by dogs, and was a dangerous enemy to go against.

There was even a chance of encountering Elizabeth. Though she preferred to stay close to the den while Matthew was away, to guard the younger kids and Cole, she still had to maintain the territory and had mentioned taking a walk up towards a field close by the trail to try and catch something small. It was also possible Cole would be with her; he liked to walk, and nowadays he and Harper were ready to observe the hunts, as they would for several years until they were large enough to take part.

Nicholas Acker Villin

[Nicholas Acker Villin]

Acker wasn't really reacting to anything as if he didn't care about the wildlife expert's arrival and explanation of instructions. The first reaction he had was when Harper was introduced, the doc's head tilted a little bit at the same time Apollo did. Zeus instead was more stiff. Acker thought about Apollo and his friendly attitude when the leash was mentioned because Apollo would 100% try to approach Harper. Instead, Zeus was more of a snob.

"Oh! That won't be a problem, right Nik?" Emilia asked her son. The doc rolled his eyes behind the dark glasses when his mother called him Nik in front of everyone, but she asked again when he didn't respond right away "Nik...the leash?" he didn't have a leash in his pockets. Usually, his assistant would worry about stuff like that, but unfortunately he was away for business at the moment "Where is your assistant?" Emilia's tone was disappointed because she had taught her son to rely on himself instead of expecting others to do things for him, yes even though they were rich.

"He is working..." Acker didn't say it out loud of course, but the tone heavenly implied that the doc would have preferred working too instead of being there. Such tone warranted a look from Emilia, that kind of look that only a parent could give to a child with attitude.

Acker opened his mouth to speak, but his mother stopped him because she knew what her son was about to say "You are staying!" Acker shrugged "I can't! Your heard him! I don't have a leash and we can't risk my dogs causing any disturbance" Emilia pointed a finger at him "Fermati" oops, Italian engaged, Acker knew better than to disobey now "Does anyone have a leash?" the others in the group looked at each other and then eagerly started searching their backpacks.

With every passing second, Acker's hope grew bigger because it seemed that no leash could be found. His hopes crashed when someone in the group triumphally held a red leash in his hands and another person a blue one "Thank you so much!" Emilia thanked them while taking the leashes "There you go!" there was a huge smile on her face when she handed the leashes to her son. Acker sardonically smiled back and put the leashes on the dogs. Red for Zeus and blue for Apollo, it matched their personalities. Acker petted Apollo when he kindly licked his owner's hand to make him feel better about the situation.

Meanwhile, someone in the group took a picture of the adorable Harper. A sudden flash of light hit the poor pup's eyes.

@matthew

[Deleted]

In all honesty, Matthew doubted the dogs would have caused any problems regardless of whether they were leashed or not - he knew canine body language well, naturally, and would have generally been able to figure out if they were up to something. Harper, too, generally didn't care about dogs, and was puppy enough that most either ignored her or tolerated her the way they would tolerate dog pups, unless they were naturally predisposed to dislike other animals. But there was always the risk that Harper would get curious, and a dog would take offence to her wild scent. For this reason he stayed quiet, watching the scene play out, not showing any visible reaction to the presentation of leashes by other visitors. 

The bright flash, however, did catch his attention. Harper was no stranger to cameras. Every trip they had, there was at least one person who forgot (intentionally or otherwise) to remove their camera's flash. But that wasn't to say she liked it, and she bared her puppy teeth at the offending human, growling. On a pup, it looked more cute than threatening, and Matthew wasn't about to punish his daughter for setting her boundaries. Better for her to growl and show her teeth than resort straight to biting someone. Wolves who rushed into violence were quick to die in the wild.

"Excuse me, but please, no flash when you take photos," he told the photographer, keeping his voice calm but serious. "Not only will you hurt Harper's eyes, but it will scare off any other wildlife in the area as well. They don't tend to like sudden flashes of light too much." 

Harper, meanwhile, had blinked the blurriness from the flash out of her eyes, and did her squirm that meant she wanted down. He gently placed her on the ground. "Remember, no nipping," he murmured to her as he did. She flicked an ear back, rubbing against his leg like a cat before trotting a little way ahead towards the forest. Her meaning was clear. Let's get going! With a smile, Matthew nodded to her, turning back to the group.

"Well, then, let's begin our walk." As he spoke, he set off into the woods, letting Harper lead the way slightly, her tail up and waving slowly from side to side as she sniffed the trail, taking special interest as they crossed the boundary into their own territory. As she located one of the trees Matthew had rubbed against that morning as a marker, she gave a puppy-howl. It wasn't a long howl, but it was loud - loud enough that Matthew knew Elizabeth and Cole would be able to hear it. As if to prove his thoughts, a more melodic howl sang back, joined by a second puppy howl. He paused, smiling as he listened to his partner and son join Harper.

"The resident wolf pack," he informed the group with a smile. "Harper often calls to them here, where their territory starts. We currently have five wolves in this pack; the parent pair, an older weaned pup, and two that were born just this year. Our walk is entirely within their territory, so we might be treated to some more howls - or, if we're lucky, a sighting of the female, who sometimes passes by here, and her older pup, who is a similar age to Harper here and sometimes accompanies his mother. It's possible that Harper is from this pack, but was somehow separated from them as a newborn."

Harper lowered her head, wagging her tail proudly as she listened to her mother and brother before turning to trot back to Matthew. He prepared to crouch, expecting her to demand to be picked up. But instead she trotted right on by, heading straight for the man with the dogs. Of course. She'd been showing interest in them from the off. He turned to continue to walk, but kept one eye on the pup in case her attempts to explore turned sour.

Nicholas Acker Villin

[Nicholas Acker Villin]

The guy apologised and put the phone away. A little startled cry escaped his lips when a sudden flash hit his eyes while he was putting the phone in his pocket. Acker smirked under his moustache. Emilia patted the guy on the shoulder "Remember to turn your phones off or to put the do not disturb mode on, please" everyone checked their phones. The group thought that Harper's growling wasn't really intimidating, more like adorable. But, Harper still was a wolf pup, so they made sure to be more careful.

Finally, it was time to march.

Zeus clearly wanted to explore: he kept walking in front of Acker and Apollo as much as the leash would allow him. Also, Zeus wanted to check the area, he was always on alert in case he needed to protect his brother and his owner. Instead, Apollo was more gentle and kind. Sure, Apollo would attack if provoked, but otherwise he wasn't as belligerent as Zeus. In fact, Apollo was walking alongside Acker and would search Acker's hand for pets when they weren't moving, and Acker always obliged, clearly the mad scientist cared about his dogs.

The doc wondered how long it was going to take for the wolf pup to notice that his dogs smelled differently. Emilia rose a brow when a sigh escaped her son's lips "What now?" that brow was asking. Acker was just annoyed that he would probably have to deal with the situation if or when Harper would notice something was wrong, wild animals could be unpredictable on how they reacted to the Lads.

Suddenly, Harper noticed something and howled, somewhere some wolves howled back. Apollo howled too in a friendly gesture, but Zeus instead was eyeing the tree that Harper was interested in. Zeus turned around to give a look at his owner. Considering that they could actually communicate, it wasn't that difficult for Acker to get what Zeus meant. The doc walked towards the tree while still holding the leashes. Zeus started sniffing at the tree once they were close enough. Instead, Apollo's ears were up, in anticipation of any howling.

All started making more sense when the wildlife expert explained what the tree was. But, Zeus had stopped sniffing and was eyeing the guide now. Acker pretended not to notice because his mother was standing next to him.

Apollo's tail started wagging when Harper got closer "Ohhh, Apollo seems to like Harper! Aren't they adorable?" Emilia took a picture, with no flash, of Apollo lowering his snout towards Harper in a friendly gesture. Acker didn't say anything about how adorable Apollo and Harper were, however he let Apollo get friendly with Harper. The doc was aware that letting the wolf pup too close could lead to Harper sniffing that something was wrong, but it was going to happen either way, at least this way Apollo could try making a friend, something that Acker knew Apollo liked to do.

Meanwhile, Zeus seemed annoyed because he wanted to get closer to the guide, but the leash obstructed his ability to get closer without Apollo and Acker following and his brother was occupied becoming friends with the wolf pup.

@matthew

[Deleted]

Matthew continued to lead the way along the trail, occasionally glancing back to make sure that the group was keeping up - but also to make sure Harper wasn't causing any trouble. At the moment, she seemed fine - one of the dogs was sniffing her, and she was sniffing back, politely keeping her gaze averted from his, but with her tail lifted. After all, this was her territory and as far as she was concerned, these dogs and humans were just visitors. But as Matthew checked on her, he saw a change come over her. Her head tilted slightly as she sniffed the dog again, tail lowering, one paw lifting. Her tongue flicked out over her nose as she tilted her head further, ears pulling back. He knew those signs. They screamed discomfort. Something about this dog had her nervous, and her lip was beginning to curl in the way that told him she was considering nipping.

"Don't you dare, Harper!" he warned. Harper glanced back at him, unease in her gaze as she did, and Matthew understood what she was trying to express.

'Smells strange. Not like a dog.' 

"Play nicely," Matthew told her. "He's being friendly with you." Whether the dog smelt strange or not, it was clearly not threatening for the moment, and he could hardly respond to her now, in front of people who had no idea what they were. "Seems some kind of smell's made her nervous," he told the group, realizing they might be wondering why Harper had suddenly become uncomfortable. "Perhaps he rolled in something on the way here?" He knew that wasn't the case - the parents had gone to great lengths to teach their pups the scents of the forest. But what else could he say?

Harper still seemed a little uneasy, but didn't move away from the dog, and covered her teeth again as she sniffed him. 'You smell strange,' she repeated to the dog through her body language, clearly hoping Apollo could explain the strangeness. 

Nicholas Acker Villin

[Nicholas Acker Villin]

Acker had noticed that Harper was behaving oddly. Well, it was inevitable, and if Harper actually reacted to his dogs then he would have an excuse to leave. But, the guide had the situation under control, so unfortunately nothing happened meaning that the mad doc had to stay.

Apollo looked down at Harper with an apologetic look, but the dog couldn't do much about his odour. The Lads' odour was something that Acker couldn't really mask. Well, sure. He could do it for a little while, but it was never permanent. The dogs' true odour would surface sooner or later. It was like when people tried to hide their own body odour, deodorants could help until a certain point. Even those clothes that kept the odour in didn't actually help until a certain point. Acker had tried to cover the dogs' mechanical bodies with a fur that would mask their true odour, but it wouldn't work for long.

So, it was time to deal with this. Apollo lowered his head towards Harper in a non-threatening gesture. The gesture meant that the dogs couldn't really do much about their odour, it was just how they smelled. However, Zeus didn't much care for Harper and her inquisitiveness. Mh, perhaps letting Zeus sniff the guide would lead to something that would allow the doc to leave earlier.

So, Acker moved a little closer, not to the guide, but just walked a little bit further. He took a few steps forward as if he was observing the beautiful nature around him. He walked enough for Zeus to be able to approach the guide. It was Acker's dog time to sniff that something was odd.

Zeus swiftly approached the guide and sniffed him. Even though humans and wolves smelled differently, Zeus could still notice that there was something similar to the smell he had picked up on the tree.

The Lads' barked and the barking turned into something that Acker could instinctively translate in his brain thanks to the power upgrade "The guide smells like the tree" the barking meant.

Apollo had understood the message too and tried to friendly lick Harper on the face before turning his gaze on Acker. It was a pleading gaze. Apollo wanted to be friends with Harper, so he hoped that Acker wouldn't start anything. Zeus was of the opposite opinion because there was something going on here.

Meanwhile, Acker's mother had noticed that her son had completely ignored the guide. It was rude, but she justified it to herself by believing that it was Acker's way of showing her that he wanted to leave. Emilia smiled at the guide in an apologetic gesture towards her son's behaviour.

@matthew

[Deleted]

Harper was clearly still perplexed by the strange scents, her head tilting to one side as she kept sniffing at Apollo, but the non-threatening gesture seemed to ease her nervousness. Instead, she gently batted Apollo's leg with one paw before sniffing her own paw carefully, as if checking whether the scent rubbed off on her. Matthew kept one eye on her as they moved, cautious in case she reacted badly again, but a moment later she only twitched her tail in a way that suggested she was happy to leave the problem of the strange scent to the grown-ups.

The other dog's bark, however, made her flinch, and even Matthew couldn't help but slightly tense up - even in human form, he understood the language of canines. Apollo's friendly lick did little to soothe her as she flashed a glance at the other dog, fur bristling. Even though she was very young, she shared the instincts for danger that true wolves had, and right now those instincts were screaming that something wasn't right about this.

Matthew forced himself to relax, though he did cast a slightly suspicious glance at the dogs' owner. The dog had to be communicating with someone who understood it, after all, and the owner was the most likely suspect. Just another gifted, or a hunter? he wondered. Another gifted was no big deal. Maybe he was even a fellow Blackstorm agent Matthew just hadn't met yet. But a hunter was another matter, especially one that had seen Harper, heard Elizabeth and Cole. Still, he couldn't do much about it right now - if he started a fight here, on his own territory, in front of so many human eyes, it would just scream for hunters to come after him and his family. Harper had scurried to his side, ears flat, and Matthew picked her up before whispering in her ear.

"Stay calm, little paws," he murmured, too low for human ears. "It'll be alright. I won't let anything hurt you."

Still, Harper insisted on snuggling into Matthew's chest, taking comfort in her father's scent scent. She would have been calmer had he been wolf, but how could he change now? He couldn't do anything that would arouse suspicion, not even to comfort his daughter.

Taking a slight breath he looked up at the tree canopy, blinking as he saw a chipmunk scampering over the branches. Perhaps the dog's bark had disturbed it, or maybe it was just looking for food. "We have a chipmunk above us," he commented, pretending nothing had happened. Let the humans deduce what they would from Harper's behaviour - with any luck they'd assume the dog's bark had startled her. Which was true, though it was more what the bark meant than the sound itself. Which brought him to another concern. A dog's bark could catch the attention of any of the wildlife of the woods, and it wasn't unknown for some to see dogs as a threat, on occasion. Dog walkers had been caught off guard by predator and prey alike in the past, and the results could be ugly.

Nicholas Acker Villin

[Nicholas Acker Villin]

Acker reciprocated the guide's look, not only that, but he also smiled a little. It wasn't a friendly smile, but more like a challenging smirk. The doc suspected that the guide was probably getting that something was going on, but Acker didn't care, actually he welcomed it. Stuff was getting more interesting, finally this walk on the wild side was worth it.

Zeus tilted his head because he was able to hear what the guide whispered to the little wolf. However, Apollo didn't like this, he wanted to keep things friendly. Acker could sense Apollo's distress and felt bad for him, but he needed to know more. Instead, Zeus was ready to do what was necessary, but attacking any animal in this forest would be suicide. Besides witnesses, it was the wolf's territory meaning that they had backup. Acker wasn't prepared for any enemy backup. Also, his mother was there, so he wouldn't do anything hostile. He could still do other things though.

Everyone looked up when the guide mentioned the chipmunk. Everyone, but the doc. Apollo was looking at the little wolf with apologetic eyes. Instead, Zeus would have scoffed at Harper's lack of courage, but alas a dog couldn't really scoff like a human could or meant, so instead just stared at the guide.

The others were pointing at the animal on the tree and whispering to each other. Then suddenly, the Lads' ears perked up, but not out of happiness or excitement. They had heard something. The two dogs moved their heads in unison towards the direction of the noise, a noise that Acker and the others couldn't hear. In fact, the group hadn't even noticed, their attention still focused on the chipmunk. Acker was the one paying attention to his dogs' behaviour. Other than the guide and Harper, perhaps.

Acker gestured for the Lads to come closer and then took the leash off in case they needed to act, but it was just a precaution.

@matthew

[Deleted]

Tag: Nicholas Acker Villin The other Gifted's smirk would've made Matthew's hackles rise, if humans had hackles. As it was he bit back a scowl. Still, the distraction of the chipmunk did allow him the opportunity to briefly show his teeth in frustration, taking care not to let any humans see them. The dogs' keen hearing might be able to pick up his low growl, but nobody else. Harper, made even more scared by her father's tension, squirmed closer to him. It was as she did that she froze, her head shooting up as she sniffed the air. Matthew raised his hand to her head gently. He had heard too, almost as soon as the dogs had. He noted the Gifted stranger taking the dogs' leashes off, but didn't comment. Probably a good thing, given what Harper's body posture meant; it was the sign she had smelt another predator nearby. Not a cougar, probably. He very rarely saw them so close to the trail, probably because they were too shy of the regular groups of humans that came this way. Unlikely to be a coyote, either. They were bolder, but Harper didn't view them as much of a threat at her size. No, he suspected he knew exactly what it was. A black bear. He had had dealings with black bears before; they often ended up running into each other during or just after hunts, and the standoffs with them could be tense if he was alone. When Elizabeth was by his side, they would usually flee, but when he was alone, or the bear had cubs, he had to be cautious. But why was this one so close to them? A rustling from the other direction made him glance over to see a flash of black fur running towards a tree, and he bit back a curse to spare his daughter's ears. Of all the things to happen. Somehow, the group had come between a bear and her cub. Carefully he placed Harper on the floor, and she bolted for the nearest cover as she had been taught to, quickly discovering a small hollow at the bottom of a tree and squeezing in. Meanwhile, Matthew glanced sideways towards where he suspected the mother bear to be. "Everybody, please calmly take a few steps backwards," he said, keeping his voice steady to avoid causing a panic. "We have a bear nearby, but if we stay calm and let her pass to reach her cubs, she won't attack us." Oh, how he prayed that was true. There were just a few problems with his words. First, the unusual dogs. Their scent so close to the cubs could easily make the mother feel threatened. Second, the number of humans so close to the cubs. Although it could deter the bear, it could also make her more desperate to get to her cubs, regardless of the risk. And thirdly, Matthew and Harper themselves. Matthew suspected he knew the bear. There had been one who often ventured into his territory to steal food and had, on occasion, targeted his children. If it caught their scents and realized they weren't in any position to defend themselves, it could see an opportunity to remove two competitors from the territory. If the adult bear's muzzle had the scars of a wolf bite, it would be the one.

credit to Laura of Adox

[Nicholas Acker Villin]

Zeus cautiously observed the area and noticed the bear's black fur. Via the power, but without barking this time, he reported that they were dealing with a black bear. Meanwhile, Apollo was smelling the air, even though Apollo could smell better than an animal due to his robotic nature, the bigger black bear's scent was masking any other bear's scent in the area, so he couldn't smell the cubs' scent to pinpoint their location.

Black bears were rarely aggressive if not provoked, but protecting cubs was a valid reason for violence. Unfortunately, internet's reception wasn't great in the great outdoors, so Acker couldn't research much about black bears. However, he remembered that black bear mothers rarely attacked humans even when cubs were in danger. Usually, male black bears were the ones more prone to violence. Although, black bears with cubs didn't defensively attack humans, it was more a grizzly bear's trait, if he remembered correctly.

Acker had been studying animals and their behaviour for his creations (hence the dogs).

Would this black bear attack considering the number of humans present? Or would this bear run or climb a tree instead as a defence mechanism?

Acker didn't want to risk it. The black bear had cubs to worry about, but he had his mother to keep safe. So, he wouldn't provoke the bear of course, but he would attack if necessary.

The mad scientist wasn't really worried about the Lads. Their mechanical bodies were protected by a layer of softer material that looked like dog's skin and that material was covered by the fur to give the illusion of touching a real dog. Something that looked like blood would be visible if wounded, but if anything happened to the Lads then their essence wouldn't die meaning that Acker could re-build them.

Acker imagined that the dogs' scent would be something the bear would be weary of, however the guide and the little wolf seemed weary of something else. Was this about territory? The mad scientist in Acker found this interesting, but the worry to keep his mother safe took priority.

"Mother" he whispered "I'm sure that you have some bear spray on you" he knew his mother and she always came prepared as much as she could. In fact, Emilia nodded and took out a bear spray from her backpack. Meanwhile, Acker gave an accusatory glance at the guide "Shouldn't you have some too?"

The Lads had heard the growl coming from the guide, but ignored it considering that the bear was the biggest threat at the moment.

There were some options to consider. The Lads could walk away from the group to keep their scent away. Or, they could stay and guard.

But, the black bear wasn't really interested in the dogs. The forest was near the city, so the animals had grown accustomed to unusual odours. The black bear was interested in the guide's scent and Harper's. The black bear found Harper's hiding place somehow, probably because it had recognised her scent and followed it. The black bear attacked Harper, but found itself facing Apollo instead.

So close to the bear, Apollo could see a scar on the bear's face which Acker could see via Apollo's camera feed displayed on the glasses' dark lens.

The bear couldn't really stop the bite from happening anymore. Apollo yelped in pain, but the bear immediately stopped biting and moved its mouth away when it felt metal. Meanwhile, Zeus had ran towards the bear and jumped on it from behind, biting the bear. Zeus' bite was stronger than a real Doberman Pinscher.

@matthew
//OOC: Meanwhile, I just want to pet the freaking bear and call it Fluffy lol//

[Deleted]

Tag: Nicholas Acker Villin It was true that bears tended not to attack humans, preferring to avoid conflict, but Matthew's experience with animals tended to come from a wolf's point of view, specifically a wolf with young of his own to defend. The other Gifted's accusing glance made him bristle, and he flashed a brief glance his way. "I've never had an interaction with bears during a tour," Matthew responded tersely. "They prefer to avoid the trail." Besides, bear spray was as effective on wolves as bears, and he hadn't wanted to risk Harper being hurt by it. Now, though, the bear was targeting his daughter. For one insane heartbeat, Matthew considered shifting to defend her. Harper was howling, calling for help. Then the strange dogs were intervening, one from the front, one from behind. Matthew hastily stepped between Harper and the bear, staring it in the eyes, making himself as big as he could whilst employing the fiercest wolf stare he could whilst remaining human - the kind of look that warned the beast that messing with him was not an option. Now he was facing it, he saw the scar on its muzzle, and knew what this was. "Call off the dogs and get as far back down the trail as you can," he ordered, voice loud, glaring at the beast and raising his arms to make himself look bigger, more threatening, in an attempt to scare it off. If the group left, he could shift to defend his daughter properly. Plus, he had yet another problem now. If his partner, Elizabeth, had heard Harper's howl, no doubt she would be racing to their aid - and how on earth would he explain a random wolf leaping into the fray? He had to at the very least get the regular humans away. He could deal with the other Gifted later, if he had to. (ooc: same haha, bears are too cute for anyone's good!)

credit to Laura of Adox