The trio made good time and arrived back at Sleeping Dragon late in the afternoon, having been away for roughly a day and a half. Wildfire delivered Freyja to the rendezvous site, leaving her to reunite with her mother and siblings, then requested for
@Gavriel to follow her. She sought out a quiet corner of the territory. She had meant to bring this up on the way home but they had been so busy discussing the encounter with Floki and the outcome of the hunt that she hadn't had an opportunity. Plus, she hadn't wanted to discuss such a sensitive subject around such little ears.
But now was the time.
"Gav, I have a favor I want to ask of you." Her heart was pounding again and her breath was a little shaky. It felt a bit like someone had punched her in the stomach. This was difficult because of her history but also a very strange and awkward thing to ask of someone regardless.
"Thur and I want to start a family when I'm ready." Her cheeks heated. The next few words came out in a sloppy rush.
"Iwashopingyoumightfatherthem."
It isn’t until Wildfire pulls him away that he remembers something had been on her mind to ask him. When Freyja is dropped off and everything else is settled, he tags along with the woman in silence until she comes to a stop. Nothing seems out of the ordinary in their location, and so he finds himself at a loss for ideas, but he stays quiet until Wildfire’s shaky breath is released and her favor is put out on the table between them.
Gavriel’s jaws tighten then, caramel eyes hardened as he lingered on the answer for a moment.
The news had been a shock to him that day but his silence remained. While Drageda is their home now, it isn’t Seageda, and the changes throughout the months may have made them stronger but his questioning of their source has so far gone unspoken. His desire to follow without question has been strong but he knew they were not operating at full capacity. The leadership council isn’t complete and he can’t help but wonder if Thuringwethil had the proper subjects to help her lead, if this information would have come about.
Perhaps it wouldn’t have been asked this question.
Unable to shake the information he knows—or speculates—Wildfire speaks enough that indicates she means herself. A second time fathering a litter that (originally) wouldn’t be his. He’d taken up to Gyda and the four they had produced, and perhaps if Wildfire hadn’t taken a non-existent spot next to the Heda, he might have agreed, but something remains unsettled that prevents him from taking on the favor.
“I’m not sure that is a good idea,” he manages, ears tucking back against his head.
There was that tiny, irrational part of her that wanted an out. Despite that, the actual rejection came as more of a blow than Wildfire could have anticipated. The wind quite literally went out of her sails as a breath gusted out of her, causing the yearling to visibly deflate. Her skin felt flushed and prickly and there was a tightness in her throat. She looked down at her petite forepaws, trying to think of what to say to that. If he was unwilling, that was it; she wasn't about to talk someone into impregnating her. The very thought caused a shudder to travel down her spine.
"Oh," came her eventual reply. "Okay." In the coming hours and days, she would fret about what this meant. Was there another potential and willing donor in the ranks? Would she consider someone from outside the pack if not? What would Thuringwethil have her do? Right at this very moment, however, all the Bandrona could do was swallow and sit there awkwardly, fighting the rising urge to cry as the disappointment really hit.
He can tell how hard it hits her and he fights to urge to suck back in his answer. It is only hard because she is not one of them, no matter how she tries, for Thuringwethil only bended to the baser feelings rather than her actual duty. He supposes in some way, if he says no, they may find another, furthering the children from Drageda than they already are. There are no other males from Seageda to perform the duty, but Dio has accepted the role below Thuringwethil without a problem. His muscles tighten as the thought bitterly encourages his mind and he tries his best to shed them all together.
"Moba," he murmurs with a frown formed upon his features. He thinks to say something else, that she is wrong in what she is pursuing, but instead he bites back his tongue and looks in the way they'd come. There is little for him to say that can even remotely repair what he'd done but he shifts back a step or two to leave the bandrona.
Along with the disappointment came a flush of something else, an emotion Wildfire couldn't name right away. It was like a mixture of horrible embarrassment and a dash of... anger? Even as she thought the word, it took her by surprise. It wasn't a sentiment she experienced often, though the more she internally analyzed it, the more right it felt. With that said, the sense of humiliation was much stronger. As the seconds ticked past, she realized she was reacting to the implied disapproval in Gavriel's rejection.
"Moba," he muttered and the heat building in her core flared. Her lips parted to say something, to demand if he refused because he didn't agree with their mate-ship or desire to start a family. But Wildfire's mouth clapped shut and she pressed her lips together so hard they practically turned white. He was entitled to his opinion and it was his decision whether or not he wanted to be enlisted in this most intimate of endeavors. There was nothing else to be said or done now, nothing that would change matters. He'd given his answer and that was that.
Big, fat, hot tears brimmed in her eyes and slipped silently down her cheeks. Wildfire made no reply to the warrior's apology, only turned to go seek comfort in Thuringwethil. She would need the Heda's help to process this rejection, as well as figure out where (and who) to go (to) from here.