Ankyra Sound The more I reach, the more I fade away.

For Caiaphas. Post 100 for you, yay!  :D

Her moonlight tryst with Lycaon had been a foolish mistake that could easily cost Nyx her place or even her life but in the haze that accompanied her heat cycle, she did not pause to consider the concequences that could follow. Wylla, volatile as she was and likely still bitter over the Arrille drama, surely would not let such blatant disregard of her leadership slip by without punishment. Instead she continued to seek the pallid Beta's company time and time again, eager to lure him to her once more and secure herself in his embrace.

She didn't particularly care if another might be drawn to the distinct aroma of estrus that trailed her across the strand, for she had already succeeded in coupling with Grimnismal's highest-ranking male. His scent still clung to the tresses of her dense fur - marking her as his for the season - and if any other bold enough to pursue her were to try his luck, Lycaon would surely be guarding her close enough to see them off.

Thunder rumbled across the territory as Nyx padded through the damp sand toward the Grotto where she hoped to rendezvous with her pale companion, and a smattering of rain began to fall. She rarely spent any time within, for she knew the masked coywolf dwelled within its hollows, but Lyc often lingered there and for as long as her body yearned for his, she too would find respite there. Cold damp hung heavy in the air as she stepped carefully into the shelter of Caiaphas' coveted Grotto, and Nyx gave a quick shake her pelt briefly before striding deeper into the darkness.

a clatter ahead announced the ruination of caiaphas' solitude, and rightly affronted by the breach of privacy, caiaphas lifted her thin muzzle and set her hateful gaze on the mouth of the tunnel so that she could identify the perpetrator. a shape slowly materialized and for a moment remained indistinguishable as a packmate -- caiaphas lifted her reedy body to an upright position and scowled until nyx stepped into the theshold.

had she been aware of nyx's clandestine union with her son, she might not have regarded the agouti so frigidly. as it was, they were hardly on pleasant terms (truly, was anyone on pleasant terms with caiaphas?). she set her jaw into a stubborn clench and inquired: "what do you want?"

She'd been half expecting to find the hybrid within the tunnels of the Grotto, but had hoped to avoid crossing paths with her. So when her electric eyes found a pair of yellow orbs peering up at her through the darkness, she exhaled heavily in visible disappointment.

Caiaphas was volatile, and despite her automatic dislike for her, Nyx knew better than to intentionally provoke her. While she would have happily ignored her and continued on her way, the masked coywolf saw fit to grumble a demand of her to accompany that permanent scowl on her sharp features. Nyx furrowed her brow. "I'm looking for Lycaon," she said simply, unwilling to elaborate.

the sigh exacted out from the slender ostrega was met with an indolent scowl; caiaphas studied nyx brazenly, still sitting. the darkness of her features did not lift as the she-wolf revealed her reasons for diving below ground, and caiaphas' gaze flickered along the columns of flowstone as she weighed how to respond.

"lycaon?" she asked, as if never having heard the name. her eyelids fluttered innocently as she feigned difficulty in recalling where she had seen him last. "i know where he is." she offered, though the ostensible way her words formed suggested she would not impart such knowledge willingly -- not without something in return.

The witch feigned innocence, and Nyx' expression remained entirely cool to mask the frustration she felt. She wasn't expecting Caiaphas to offer their Beta's location to her and she was entirely unwilling to give her the satisfaction of asking that she share this knowledge. It was unlikely that Lycaon would be far anyway, considering her fertile condition, and the agouti was more than prepared to seek him out on her own.

She was about to retort with something snarky, but her electric eyes flicked curiously to the noticeable swell of her pack-mate's flanks and she stalled. The coywolf was pregnant? By whom? Blinking back to look upon the hybrid's obsidian features, Nyx twitched her nose in obvious discomfort. "You're expecting," she blurted in her surprise, stating the obvious despite determination to avoid seeming like an idiot. The golden Ostrega gawked at her comrade then as a myriad of questions flooded her mind, though one remained right at the forefront of her thoughts: does Wylla know?

Her mouth felt dry then, and Nyx remained awkwardly silent as she considered the impact this betrayal may have on the already frayed temper of their little Alphess. She did not even pause to consider how her own union with the leader's pallid brother may rouse Wylla's wrath, for Nyx had was naive to the strong possibility that this act may have resulted in the same situation that Caiaphas now found herself in.

nyx's gaze was hardly discreet; the siren queen felt her hackles prickle subconsciously as she looked brazenly over the sylph's figure, coming to rest at the swell of her barrel. caiaphas swung her thin hips away and regarded nyx coldly, though in truth other than the visible stare of the golden woman's gaze, caiaphas was hardly offended by the statement.

it had been her life's work to have children -- and finally, finally, the matriarch of the sound had her dreams realized. all she had ever wanted was a child, and it had driven near every decision she had made since she first came along ankyra's desolate shore. it still pained her mother's heart to recall kevlyn, and at times larus too -- and she resented the luschyon brood (save lycaon) for their dislike of her, for she had once cradled them all close to her breast.

but now, she would have her own -- no thieving, no pilfering. lives spat forth from her own body. it was still a shock to her.

"i am." she announced haughtily, though did not elaborate. poor nyx -- stuck in a cave with an unsavory wretch that was terrible at small talk to boot.

She blinked, her eyes so trained on the roundness of the Caiaphas' abdomen that she completely missed the chill of her fierce stare. No matter how she moved, the very obvious swelling continued to show. The coywolf had hidden her secret well enough until now, for Nyx was yet to hear of it from their pack-mates. The golden Ostrega considered taking her leave then and there to seek out Wylla and deliver gossip of the sea witch's illicit brood in a hopeful exchange for brownie points, but the subconcious reminder of her own fragile state kept her rooted to the spot.

And, for the first time, she realised that she might actually feel a little sorry for Caiaphas, though she would never dare admit it.

There was pride in the hyrbid's tone when she concluded that yes, she was pregnant, and Nyx lifted her toxic yellow eyes to seek the siren's obsidian features once more. The two she-wolves stared at one another then, silent and unmoving, one as unsure as the other. "Uh," she started, rolling a peppered shoulder in her clear discomfort of the situation before she offered an uncertain "congratulations?" in place of the condolences for the loss of freedom she almost issued.

After all, she was not to know that Caiaphas had longed for her own litter over the years, because Nyx herself had absolutely no yearning to rear any of her own.

she half expected some witty impart from the ostrega -- none came. caiaphas rested on her haunches, her thin back against the wall of demineralized flowstone. her gaze mirroring nyx's own: she was ready, whatever parted from the golden woman's lips.

instead, a congratulations -- she looked upon the russet brown of the woman's muzzle in distrust, eyes narrowed -- the suspicion did not last long, for caiaphas was terribly selfish and brimmed with pride at her own condition. that any male would cover her... well... that was a subject for another day.

she simply nodded instead of offering a thanks -- insufferable, rude sot that she was, she refused to appear vulnerable. even alone in a cave with nyx. "they will be the first of my blood." she announced, though she considered it was not particularly fascinating to the female. "speaking of blood, lycaon is in the forest." she had considered lying and steering nyx deeper into the grotto, to seal her in her own stony crypt -- but that would make lycaon sad, and other than the lives in her belly and possibly kierkegaard, lycaon was truly the only wolf the heedless siren queen genuinely cared about.

Nyx continued to stare, uncharacteristically awkward and unsure where else to look now that the coywolf's pregnancy had been noticed. A mere cant of a raven-tipped ear regarded Caiaphas' claim that this would be her first litter which, unsurprisingly, was of little interest to the gold Ostrega. What she really came to wonder was, who was brave (or crazy!) enough to mate with Grimnismal's sea witch?

The topic moved swiftly onto the topic of Lycaon, which roused the mountain wolf from her musings. She blinked up at the masked hybrid, reminded suddenly of the real reason she'd slunk into the Grotto in the first place. "Thanks," was her simple response as she stole one last look at proof of Caiaphas' crime, before dipping her muzzle in silent farewell and turning away to make for a prompt exit.

she hadn't liked how nyx had musefully stared, but did not endure it long -- no sooner had caiaphas revealed lycaon's location, the golden thing was off. caiaphas scowled after her scuttling form like a wronged hag, but said nothing. it would take her some time yet to connect nyx's interests in lycaon as something a little more than simply superficial -- but for now, she was content to be left in the grotto alone -- the true way she preferred it.