Nova Peak psycho cocaine crazy

An updated one for @Scimitar ! Short posts? :) What's the lowest limit, anyway - 250 characters?

Bazi had spent the early to middling parts of her pregnancy in a state of extreme selfishness. She was moody and unpredictable, bouncing between opposites of every scale of emotion known to wolf kind. But that morning, she woke up feeling more like herself than she had in weeks. In the glow of fragile morning sunshine, she dragged her baby barrel to the river for a drink and a dip before waddling back to the patch of earth she shared with Scimitar. He was snoring, and for once, the sound did not make her want to slit his throat. "Lover," she whispered, bending inelegantly to nudge his cheek.

Short posts! Don't match my length here -- just trying to jump back in to Scim's character. o.o

His mate had always been a force to be reckoned with -- but whatever stories that had been told unto him that a pregnant she-wolf was a beautiful, glowing entity upon the earth had surely lied to him.. and the lie had sucker punched him squarely in the face.

Scimitar allowed the pale dove her space -- he had noticed her paws would linger further from the borders these days, and while he worried for her well-being (and that of his unborn children), he kept these fears to himself. Bazi's best friend had once more swept herself away from them.. this time, with the two boys in tow, and the Peak had become far too silent because of it. Within weeks, though, he could only imagine how it would liven up.. and the way Bazi's belly swelled in size, he was beginning to believe she housed at least 10 puppies in there.

This was a thought that he also kept to himself, not wishing to lose the rest of his left ear should she decide to clip it in her annoyance at him.

He did not sleep soundly these days.. and when his lover's whisper of sweet nothing's rose him from his gentle sleep, he felt his chest constrict in anticipation. His large body tensed in reaction to her quiet croon, debating if it was another trick of her hormones. Bracing himself, the cinnamon male allowed a small smile to pull at the corner of his lips, though it did not quite meet his eyes -- "Morning," he rumbled, carefully selecting his words, lest he unleash a hurricane.

None of Scimitar's private thoughts were obvious in his expression, and he was fortunate that his wife was presently in the sort of good mood that lasted longer than thirty seconds. She gazed adoringly at his sleepy face, slathered kisses upon it, and stepped back to admire the face of the wolf she had chosen for her own. "I need some help," she told him, shifting uncomfortably under the weight of her sizeable belly. "I want to build the den - today." Her voice might not have suggested it, but there was little room for argument or compromise here.

Trying to mentally shake the sleep form his mind, the russet male released a low growl of adoration to his mate as she offered him a morning kiss. Her mood might not last.. but he sure as hell would enjoy it while it did. Rolling upward now, his shoulders arched back in a leisurely stretch, allowing his good ear to flicker in the direction of Bazi’s voice.
 
Den building day. He had known this day would come and soon – but somehow, it did not feel like any place they would choose would be good enough. With a nod in agreement, the Alpha pushed himself up to his paws, continuing onward with his stretch. “Sure – do you want anything to eat first?” This was always his primary concern – she was eating for more than herself and he wanted to make sure she never went without.

One day, when the pups were a little older, or perhaps after her second litter, Bazi would look back on her first pregnancy and be amazed at her mate's patience. He met her demands with little resistance, keeping sighs and eye-rolling to himself (probably because he feared for the safety of his testicles, but still).


She looked enviously on as he stretched, and not until he reminded her of it did Bazi stop to consider whether the growling in her belly was hunger or just cramps. "I'm not sure.." she intoned, face scrunching up with concentration. "I think so? I get these cramps - I figure they're normal, since I haven't stopped growing - and it makes it pretty hard to figure out if I'm hungry. But.. I must always be hungry, right? I mean, look at me!" It was probably the second joke Bazi had made about her condition since figuring out she was pregnant. Things were looking up.

She flashed him a good-natured grin and 'wheeled' around - slowly - to waddle in the direction of the nearest cache.

Bazi’s response was so blasé – and when she wheeled about to seek out one of their caches, Scimitar was upon her heels, feeling a nervous flicker in his chest at her mention of cramps. He did not know if it was normal – and he didn’t have anyone to ask, with Paarthurnax gone. A light scowl would darken his features only momentarily before sweeping away as he attempted to hide his thoughts. I would be beneficial for the pack to find a healer to replace the one they had lost.
 
As they came upon one of the fresher caches, Scimitar dipped his nose down, pushing some of the dirt away before digging at the patch of soil. Revealing a tattered piece of meat, he pulled it out and nudged it to the direction of his mate, encouraging her to eat. “Any ideas where you want the den to be?” He drew a blank himself.. All he wanted was somewhere that they would be safe.

Like Scimitar, Bazi had initially feared the worst when the cramps started. With Paarthurnax gone, she had told no-one, becoming a virtual recluse in her own home, fretting about every single change. But something was happening to her. The larger she got, the less she worried - the dark thoughts of early pregnancy were falling away, and she was starting to look forward to meeting her new family. The birth still scared her shitless, of course, but she got the feeling that it was much too late to turn back now. The magpie's metaphorical offer to 'pop' her had been a turning point.


Bazi waited patiently for her mate to unearth breakfast, plucked it from the ground, and gave the soiled meat a few shakes to dislodge debris. It was chewed and gone before Scimitar's question left his lips. Bazi shrugged. "Somewhere in the forest.. near the stream, but not too close." Puppies plus running water did not equal happy ending. She reached a hind leg out to scratch at an itch, fell hilariously short, and spent a good few seconds trying to convince her body to play ball. No such luck. Puffing and embarrassed by her grunting, she flashed Scimitar a pififul look. "Scratch my ear?"

While Bazi might have been easing in to her role more clearly now, Scimitar felt himself become more unnerved with each passing day. He kept these thoughts to himself, though he knew it would be best to seek out a listening ear somewhere.. whether it be Kaskara, Falwasi or Kieran. But this was pushed aside as his mate plucked up a piece of meat. He would go without for now – not even fully to be noble, but because he felt if he tried to put food in his stomach right now, it would revolt its way right back up.
 
Inhaling deeply, he allowed a small smile to pull at his creamy muzzle. Moving forward to nip at her ear tenderly in hopes of ridding her of the itch, he released a playful growl, planting a kiss upon the top of her head before pulling back. “Forest it is,” he murmured, nudging her before beginning to lope in the direction that led closer to the stream. He was careful to keep to a pace she would be comfortable with, and with a scouring gaze, he began to look for a place they would raise their family.

Bazi grunted her relief when the itch was dispatched, kissing her mate on the nose with a flick of her tongue when he withdrew. She followed him at a waddle, aware that he was making an effort to move slowly and appreciating him all the more for it. Scimitar was a good wolf, and although she would soon be shouting and screaming at him for 'inflicing these titan babies' upon her, she was proud to be carrying them.


They didn't have to walk far - mostly because Bazi was growing weary of walking, and her willingness to settle for something half-decent increased in parallel with the ache in her back and paws. A little ways up the slope, within listening distance of the Bitcurrent, was a partially uprooted treet. It was old and dying, propped up by outcroppings of mountain that kept it from falling flat. Its partial fall had created a gaping mouth into the earth that, when Bazi peered into it, looked like a perfect place to excavate further. She barked for Scimitar's attention and settled onto her haunches with a sigh. This one, said her smiling face. This is the one I want.

Scimitar's careful eyes had skipped completely over the tree in favor of something that did not look like it would crash down and smush his mate and babies -- yet his frosted mate stole forward, giving it a closer inspection. HIs own paws carried him further, inspecting a pile of rocks that could have been promising if he could dig further in t the ground.

One ear flickered to Bazi's summon, and glancing back, he noted she was still inspecting the fallen tree. Ushering a low sigh to himself, the large Alpha dutifully closed the distance between his mate and himself -- his eyes attempting to hold back the wariness he felt.

It wasn't as bad as he assumed when he got closer, and moving his snout to inspect the inside where the ground had already begun to rip up, he released a small hum. "We can try," he offered, not quite committing to a promise, despite the glow his love emanated in that moment. Still, the roots might have posed to be a problem. Moving forward, the regal Frostfur began to scrape back some of the dirt, rounding out the beginning of their home.

That sounded like 'of course, dear' to Bazi, who settled near the lip of her den-in-progress with a relieved sigh. When (after much fidgeting and numerous sighs) she finally found a position that didn't suck, the tired Alpha laid her head on her paws to watch Scimitar dig.

"Are you nervous?" she asked suddenly. It was the first time she had really thought to pose the question. After all, Scimitar wasn't the one whose body was turning into a land mine - but she supposed there were less shallow frets about impending parenthood that they could share, together.

With Bazi settled on a place to call their very own, the cinnamon wolf began to work the dirt away – his creamy paws were quick to stain brown, and heaps of dirt would fly behind him – hopefully, no one would pass by and get a spray of it to their head. There was much to prepare for, but this was perhaps the most pertinent step.. and despite his reservations on the place she selected, he wanted it to be perfect for her.
 
One ear flickered in the direction of her voice, though the Alpha kept himself to work. Idling was not a pastime of his, but it did not mean he could not keep a conversation flowing. “Terrified,” he confirmed, determining that if any deserved to know how he truly felt about the matter, it was the snowy female that bore his children.
 
Yet it would seem, one word offered quite well how he felt.. but it didn’t necessarily offer much in terms of a flowing conversation.

Terrified, her husband replied. Bazi swallowed. She tried to imagine what he was feeling. After making his delivery, the man's role in the growing and birthing of children was pretty much nonexistent. For weeks, he was limited to watching his mate grow and hoping that her insides were doing a good job of forming new life. There was nothing he could do to ensure the safety of his children apart from keeping the mother happy, fed, and stress free. Bazi did not doubt that it drove him crazy.

But it was much worse for her. No matter how sympathetic she was to Scimitar's plight, his terror paled in comparison to hers. Soon, she would give birth - and for weeks after that, hers was the warmth and milk that would sustain the pups. As if to remind her of just how close they were to ready, the pups shifted in her uterys, pressing against her organs. "I have to pee," she told her mate abruptly, and waddled off to be alone.

One ears swiveled in the direction of her voice as she moved away -- uncertain if his words had not been what she wanted to hear, and so she had determined to see alone time. He did not go after her -- if Bazi required to be alone, he was not about to get in the way of his currently hormonal mate. Instead, he continued his duty, his paws digging further and further in to the ground that one day, his wife would birth four beautiful pups in.

Instinct was key here -- each movement of dirt further from his task was almost relieving, and the coolness of the soil upon his paws was gratifying. Soon, he would need to move his snout further in, and the dirt gave way much easier.. loosened by the trees roots.

Concluding!

Bazi returned some time later to watch Scimitar neaten the den he had excavated, severing roots and digging down the floor. She eyed the dark hollow with trepidation. Here, she would experience the worst pain of her life - but also the wonder of seeing the fruits of her literal labour for the first time. The expectant mother settled once more at the edge of her husband's dig, offering appreciative noises as he carved out the family home from dirt and stone and roots.