Lone Star Mountain that guy's brain is a bag full of cats

@Menta - pp done lovingly and with all the permissions

Menta had been the one to suggest it - apparenly this mountain looked like it was topped with a star when viewed from the right angle.  Being from a northern territory, Banner hadn't been able to see it, but she did take her friend at her word and so they'd decided to take a trip to Lone Star Mountain on this mercifully cooler summer night.  Banner made sure to prepare for their trip by sleeping in and by the time they reached their current spot, she was glad that she'd started off their journey well-rested.

It hadn't been easy going, of course.  This barren mountain was rockier than the others she'd explored, but it wasn't anything the two young females couldn't handle.  Banner's steps were careful and she'd paid much more attention to her surroundings than usual.  Death by mountain wasn't something she'd envisioned for herself or her cream friend.

Their decision to not venture to the very top was a wise one.  She eyed the frozen cap of the mountain warily from their current position where she was comfortably sprawled out on her side, clearly relaxed in her current company.  That journey didn't seem like a fun one.  Exploration was one thing, but going up there was suicidal.  They'd chosen a safe ridge, one with no obstructions to the night sky.  Menta had wanted to look at the stars and Banner needed to get out of the Keep again (even if just for one night), so why not?

She huffed when the crack of rams butting their horns together rang out in the still night air.  "Don't they have anything better to do?" she mumbled, not nearly as agitated by the sound as she let on.  "Males.." she added in a grumbly tone.

Menta was laying down, pleased in the calm air that surrounded her and her brown companion as she looked up to the twinkling northern star. The cream wasn't entirely sure why she had been so tickled by stars as of late - not believing too much in superstition or forecasts of the future - but it seemed a harmless interest in any case, and a beautiful starting tradition to share with Banner. They had been successful in their mission of hiking up, receiving the visual reward of the northern star winking back down to them, and the cream wolf had happily and immediately settled.

The stillness was broken by the sounding out of rams horns butting, and Menta's left ear twitched momentarily in that direction. Banner immediately grumbled and the cream looked over with a grin starting to play on her lips - the Italian was no expert on wolf relations, but she highly doubted that her friend was actually talking about the males currently knocking heads. Something you'd like to share? she asked, shifting her head to get a better look at the brown wolf now instead of the sky.

Her immediate response to Menta was a simple huff.  Banner took moment before she looked to her cream friend, a playful scowl on her dark features.  Did she have something on her mind?  Maybe.  There was always plenty going on up in her head despite how often she tried to keep her thoughts free and clear.  The scowl morphed into a simple frown when another crack of ram horns ricocheted off the various cliffs and rock formations of the mountain range.  Stupid rams.

Her bright green eyes moved back to staring at some undefined point in the distance.  The veiw was magnificent, that she couldn't deny.  A view like this just didn't exist down in her safe little willow-filled home.  Safe being a relative term, of course.  It was physically safe.  Emotionally?  That was another story.  The overall tone of Marauder's Keep made Banner feel like she was choking on ill will and conspiracy.  Though both Stark and Octavia had made it clear that the pack wasn't a happy-go-lucky pony ride when she joined.  She sighed, struggling with how to put it all to words.  How to explain.. anything?

"I'm pregnant."

omglol

The Italian kept steady watch on her friend's face as it turned into an exasperated yet playful scowl and then followed her gaze back into the sky, her own golden eyes searching out for the stars again as she waited for a verbal response. Rams horns echoed out into the silence again as she supposed Banner searched for whatever words she wanted to say - Menta had never been great with patience, but tonight she waited for the brown wolf to speak next.

And was it ever a doozy of an aswer that came. You're what? the cream asked on an octave higher than her usual low voice, startled by the unexpected answer and snapping her head back around to stare at the chocolate female. Her eyes, which had been lazily scanning the flickering orbs in the sky, widened automatically in half-horror, half-disbelief.

DID IT 4 DA LULZ

In a perfect world, she'd be a better prankster.  But Banner couldn't hold her snort in longer than a second or so.  She rolled onto her back, all four paws hanging lazily in the air.  It was the perfect playful surrender to her cream friend.  "I'm sorry," she chuckled.  "That was mean."  Fun, but mean.  She looked at Menta again and offered an upside-down smile of apology.

"I'd be crying if that were the case, trust me," she commented off-handedly.  A pregnant Banner would be..?  Ah, hell, she didn't know.  The Marauder hadn't spend much time around pregnant females before.  Mothers of young pups were a different story.  Her mind went to Octavia and the period of isolation she'd kept up so far.  This prompted another sigh and she rolled back onto her side.  "Things at the Keep haven't been.. the greatest.  I've been wandering around a lot, meeting new wolves.  Lots of males - I think I've only met one other female besides you," she said with a frown.  "Kind of weird now that I think about it."

The cream's innards had been squirming in surprise before Banner explained the joke and put them at ease. Immediately Menta gave a sigh, her heartrate slowing from its tachycardic pace. This had been such a restful evening that she supposed a good joke was needed to rile her up and break the stillness. The Italian gave a wide grin in response to the dark wolf's playful paws playing surrender in the air and exposed belly.

What a terrible trick, she teased, not meaning it now that she had gotten herself back under control and golden eyes back to slits as they turned their focus again to the stars. Banner went on to explain more serious matters, and Menta found herself wearing a small frown. So home life wasn't as she had been hoping for - a reunion with the family was turning out to be more dramatic than either had anticipated.

What's going on? Menta pressed gently, hoping that it would help for Banner to talk about her worries. You're always more than welcome at Ryūjin​, even if just for a rest, the cream then promised.

"Thank you," she replied seriously, her voice a little too quiet even for her.  Banner appreciated her friend's offer to rest at her mountainous pack, though she honestly hoped things wouldn't reach that point.  They couldn't.  The lady Marauder didn't think she'd leave her home among the willow trees for any reason, especially if Stark weren't also leaving.  She let out another sigh.  Damn, she sighed a lot.

"The Alphas had an.. incident.. and are both being elusive.  It's kind of infuriating," she admitted honestly.  The dark brown female didn't enjoy speaking poorly of her pack, but the situation had more than overstayed its welcome.  "Stark is doing what he can, but things are.. shaky right now."  They'd survive it.  Probably.