Dragoncrest Cliffs a great machine of death is roaring and rearing

Kheviel had not expected to find sudden companionship in a yearling male. She found that he hardly left her side, which made her feel strange and not a little uncomfortable. But there was some tiny part of her that craved his nearness, though she would never admit it to herself or anyone else. Today, though, she was alone, and she stared at the ocean and sat doing nothing. The pain was lesser today than it normally was, but that didn't mean it wasn't there, seeping into her bones.

She craved the summer sun, when the heat would bake into her body and loosen her muscles and ease the tension some. But summer was still months away.

The clock ticked with every kick of her children. At times they seemed to hunger for a certain meal, other times they rebelled and pattered their feet against her womb after having been fed an unusual meal. They were strong, opinionated.

She went to the sea where the pressure of the water might soothe her swollen sides. The pack’s eldest, Kheviel was there. Word had spread of her ailing joints, but Chacal had been assured that she was being looked after. By whom, wondered but approached nonetheless with a soft croon and a knowing smile.

Kheviel's ear twitched at the other's arrival and she glanced over to see a pregnant woman waddling toward her. This made her think of Cayentano's many references to babies, and did she want any. Her own heat still had not come, though it was only early spring. And if it did, what would she do? Throw herself at the young male who'd been feeding her relentlessly for days? She sighed and turned back to the ocean, saying nothing to the expectant mother.

As she neared, she realized that the scent of their newest male recruit was mingled in her fur. Chacal smiled softly, glad that he was being put to work. Regardless of the care she had been given, she seemed wistful; she sighed, and looked to the sea.

Chacal drew alongside her and sat down.

The sea could bring nutrition, joy, soothe aches…But it also brought memories that caused her eyes to mist.

”’I ‘ave been meaning to come an’ ask ‘ow you are-
‘Ow you be feelin’, an’ if you like it ‘ere thus far?”

Kheviel's ears flicked at the woman's words, noting the sing-song quality of her voice. She did not remark on it, for she did not care. She'd met all kinds in her six years, many with accents different from her own.

I like it just fine, she said. As for how she felt... Well, she felt the same as always, just... Cayetano was a nice distraction. She would never tell him that, though. My body is the same. I feel pain every day. But there is plentiful food and... She trailed off, not wanting to talk about the yearling male who pestered her constantly.

It was hard to put an age on Kheviel. By the look of her fur, Chacal thought, she couldn’t be too old- but her posture showed stiffness, her movements showed that she might be guarding against pain. Chacal felt for her; she did not suffer from chronic pain herself, but she could see the toll it took as Kheviel explained.

”Be dere anyt’ing I can do to ‘elp?
We ‘ave medicines- herbs, plants an’ kelp…
I be not one to want to tell you what to do-
But I will be of any ‘elp if you so choose.”

Tending for infants was gratifying- but she knew that it was equally as fulfilling to tend to those who had lived a long life and who deserved only comfort and calm for the rest of their days.

Kheviel realized that the woman was rhyming, not just speaking in a sing-song tone. Her ear flicked to hear it and she gave the woman a curious once-over, but said nothing about it. I don't know, she said, and was already tired of talking about her pain. I've been given poppy seeds in the past but I don't like the way they make me feel. I've been this way for so long that I've... learned to live with it. She heaved a sigh. I suppose if you want to try, I'll take whatever you give me, but at this point, I'm not hopeful.

There was a time not so long ago when she would've simply shut the woman down. Maybe Cayetano, in his own weird way, was a good influence on her. She pulled a face at that.

She got the sense that Kheviel was exhausted, and it pained her to see the woman so burnt out by chronic pain. She mentioned poppy seeds, and she opened her mouth slightly, the soft click of her lips slipping apart punctuating the idea that she understood why the woman didn’t like the side effects.

”Dere be ot’er t’ings you could try,
I t’ink per’aps I know somet’ing. I will bring it by,
De next time I go to our herb supply.” an anti-inflammatory medicine, she thought, one without any drowsy side-effects.

The ocean might feel too cold to her, this early in the year, otherwise she might have suggested that she soak in the salt waters.

”De young man- Cayetano- ‘e be feedin’ you well, at least?” She inquired next.