Heron Lake Plateau sleeping children are still flying

Though it killed Niamh to wait to search for Screech, she knew that she should save her energy and allow X to scan the lands from above, and knew that at some point, he would report back. Impatience ate at her, but there was nothing she could do for now except patrol in order to make sure he didn't come back...And if he did, that he was to be permanently dismissed as quickly as possible. No sign of him appeared, though- the mute male had disappeared off into the rain, which had undoubtedly saved his life. 

...For the time being, at least.

When Quixote called out she bristled, but her tail slowly began to wag, showing the first sign of enthusiasm and interest she'd felt in some time. More than anything, she wanted to see that Raven was well, and the pups too. There was joy in his voice, indicating perhaps that Raven had been wrong about her estimate, and that the pups had survived. So after picking up a canter, she left her patrol of the borders and approached the densite, where Towhee had beat her to the chase. 

She moved to her friend's side and wordlessly flicked her ears forward. Still not terribly verbal, since the entire Screech incident, she merely asked with hopeful eyes and a slowly wagging tail about Raven's wellbeing and the state of the pups too.

Just one post from me!

There wasn't really any time to converse with Towhee before a howl went up. In addition to the reactions of Fiadh, Clover, and Finley, Elwood tilted his face toward the sky, listening carefully to the message. A smile creased his face even as Clover filled in Towhee with sign language, and then the Beta was departing as quickly as she had arrived.

The Blackthorn family stayed put; this was an exciting time for the pack, but also a very personal and intimate moment for the new parents. Instead of following Towhee, Elwood sent up a howl of reply directed at Quixote and Raven, congratulating them on the birth of their children. It was the arrival of the Alphas' litter that then sparked a conversation between Elwood and Finley, and they began making plans to move Tywyll and Cinder to a rendezvous site within the next few weeks.

In the wake of her wild whirring, the silver-cloaked fledgling was eerily still — that is, until the sweep of Raven’s muzzle blew gently on her lifespark and coaxed it to glow. Physical stimulation from her hardier siblings aided in keeping Kite present and alert, and her little mouth rounded even as her head bobbed wildly. It took a few false starts, and she couldn’t seem to figure out how to work her spasmodically quivering paws — but at last, her tongue bumped against a nipple and she automatically latched on. She suckled peacefully for a time, until the kicking and jostling of her siblings threatened her tenuous stability. She tried to hang on, but it was too late —

With an audible pop! she was knocked from the milk bar, and she wailed fitfully. It became clear, however, that Kite was issuing not a lament, but a battlecry. Trembling violently, she scrabbled with unsteady paws to right herself and then — it seemed her placid little face was set in a grimace of determination — she began to shiver-shimmy back to her place. This time, albeit with painstaking slowness, she managed to make it on her own, latching on and nursing with renewed vigor. Faltering, falling, and having to start over every few minutes was probably a little frustrating for the new parents to witness, but it was simply Kite’s reality; and every time she got knocked down, she got back up with a new modicum of surety.

As the howl sounded, Eljay had been spending time with Cinder and Tywyll. "What?!" he blurted out aloud when he heard the call. Luckily some others were near enough to not leave his siblings in the cold as he rushed off towards where the call had sounded from. He should have been there to make sure everything went well! He'd promised Raven to be there!

When Eljay arrived he was panting heavily. He saw Towhee stand there and Quixote too and asked: "How did it go? What... Is Raven well?" He shot a panicked look into the den and hoped that Raven was healthy — he'd never forgive himself if she had died because he wasn't there for her when she needed him.

Wrapping this up! Thanks to everyone who hopped in to meet the babs!

Raven felt her eyelids growing heavy. The sudden onset of birth had taken a lot out of her, not to mention the emotional toll her two stillborns had exacted on her. She kept a brave face on for her packmates, however, and felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude and affection toward them for their obvious displays of caring and concern. She responded to questions directed at her, and allowed those she trusted to enter the den for a closer look at the newborns. Soon, though, she felt sleep pulling her under its inescapable tide and she surrendered, leaving the rest in Quixote’s capable hands.