Wolf RPG

With Finley at his side, Elwood made his way towards the rendezvous site. There had been a dark cloud hanging over Redhawk Caldera for the last few weeks, but the discovery of their unexpected news had caused a ray of sunlight to break through. Things were still uncertain for the pack, and this wouldn't change Fox's decree -- if anything else, it would only bring about a need for more protection -- but there was a lightness to the couple's step that hadn't been there for some time.

Elwood bumped against his mate -- his mate! -- affectionately as they walked, though he was careful not to throw her off balance. He sneaked a glance at her from the corner of his eye, still finding it hard to believe that she was pregnant. Although the swell of her belly wasn't prominent yet, it would become more obvious with the passage of time. He was excited, but he couldn't help but feel a little nervous; her pregnancy hadn't been easy so far, and he worried that it would continue to be difficult.

He shook those thoughts from his mind as they stepped into the clearing and looked up the gentle slope. He didn't see Peregrine or Fox, so he paused and released a short, low howl, beckoning their friends to join them.

In spite of how excited she felt over the news she and Elwood were about to share with their closest friends, Finley still felt rather nervous as they waited for them to arrive.  It was all just so.. unbelievable.  Not only what had happened between Elwood and herself, but with all of RHC.  Part of her felt certain that the news would bring joy to their friends, but there was another part of her that felt just as certain they would be upset over it.  Truth be told, it was not exactly the greatest timing, especially with Peregrine now occupying the lowest rank in the pack.  Now there would be only two truly active leaders what with Fin being laid up as her due date came closer.  Not even two really since Elwood more than likely would be distracted by taking care of his mate and the baby Twigs sprouting in her belly.

His mate... Fin felt a little tingling in her belly at the thought and for a few seconds, her worry was forgotten.  She was a mate and would soon be a mama.  The Finley of old would have been completely mortified.  This Finley was just blissfully happy, for the moment at least.  Just like any other emotion in the fickle Blackthorn's heart, it could not be trusted to remain dominant for all too long before a new whim would come along and sweep it underneath some other random concern.  It was a truth that Fin was quick to prove for me when after about 30 seconds of cuddling up next to her mate all happy and lovey, she tensed and began to frown.

"You know.. Maybe we should tell them another day," Fin said quietly - a sentence she'd probably said to Elwood a dozen times that day only to backtrack the moment he gave in and told her that they could wait.

She'd been meaning to go talk to them; she really had. But life had been so gorram crazy, that Fox had barely had time to do anything at all besides train the children, patrol the borders, and think about how she might mend things with Peregrine. She knew the latter shouldn't really be her sole responsibility, but she longed for the day when things with Peregrine would go back to some sort of normalcy. Fox knew better than to think that they would go back to the way things were, but she was too stubborn to give up on the two of them. Peregrine had been—would always be—the only wolf she ever loved.

But enough about her own problems.

Elwood's call tore her away from the children immediately. (She loved them, too, but she'd neglected her friends too long.) Fox bounced onto the scene with an alien spring in her step, especially once she saw Finley. "Hey!" she beamed, "What's up, you two? Everything okay? I meant to find you after the whole military demands thing, but," she looked back to where she'd come from, "Y'know, mom stuff!" Fox gave a half-hearted shrug, hoping the both of them would understand.

This morning, Peregrine invited the kids to join him on a mock patrol around the inner caldera. Raven declined, of course, choosing to go off with her Aunt Magpie instead. Peregrine accepted her rejection with a small smile, even though it broke his heart. Reminding himself of his two eager trainees, he guided Nightjar and Wildfire toward the territory's heart and spent the next hour or two explaining boundaries, patrols and all the various details of guardianship.

The Beta male's call cut through the air toward the end of the lesson. "You two can find your way back home from here," Peregrine coaxed his two elder children. "Head straight back. I'll check in with a howl in fifteen minutes." After seeing them off toward the rendezvous site, the Kappa began padding toward the summons. It was a bit peculiar, knowing that refusing to answer might be considered insubordination. Of course, he had no reason not to show his face, so it was a moot point.

He was the last to arrive. His eyes flicked to Fox first, then beyond her to the Beta pair. They very much looked the part today. There was an understated joy about them. Peregrine didn't smile much these days and when he did, it was usually tight or fleeting. He favored Elwood and Finley with a small but genuine smile, then slunk to Fox's shoulder. He blinked at her, silently asking if it was okay for him to stand beside her, then focused his attention back upon the Betas as he awaited the expected news.

Elwood nudged Finley reassuringly. He would have been worried by her suggestion had she not already said those exact words a multitude of times. "It'll be fine," he murmured -- the exact words he had said more than once -- and leaned into her. He had admitted to her already that he was nervous too, but despite the poor timing of their news, he truly felt that their friends would be happy for them.

Luckily, the pair was not left alone with their thoughts for too long; if Peregrine and Fox had kept them waiting much longer, Finley might've tried to sneak away. The fiery Alpha female was the first to appear, and Elwood felt a simultaneous twinge of excitement and anxiety. She greeted them cheerfully, and Elwood realized that it was the first time he had seen a genuine smile on Fox's face in weeks. That buoyed his own spirits, and his waving tail mimicked hers.

"Hey! Everything's great. We actually have some news..." he started, and it was at about that time that Peregrine slunk up next to Fox. It felt unnatural to see him showing subordination to the rest of them, although there was a ghost of a smile upon his lips. "Hey, Perry," Elwood said warmly, using his expression to show the former Alpha that he was glad to see him, despite the circumstances.

"So, uh, I was just saying to Fox that we have some news to share," he continued, shifting his weight as his stomach twisted nervously. He glanced at Finley, then said, "We finally tied the knot. We're mates. And..." Here, he paused, giving her the chance to finish his sentence. His heart thrummed apprehensively in his throat.

It'll be fine... he whispered to her.  She wanted to argue with him again, but Fox suddenly came into view and Fin knew that her fate was sealed.  She wriggled her toes anxiously, twisting the grass between them and tearing it out in little tufts.  Likely by the end of the conversation, there would be nothing but dirt beneath her paws.  Maybe not even Finley herself would still be there - she'd have burrowed right down into the earth and disappeared like a nervous little mole.

Fin found herself unable to return smiles to either of her friends, regardless of how happy they were to see them ('happy' of course being a little of a stretch for describing Peregrine).  As they she were hearing just his voice echoing from the distance, Fin registered her mate's words as he announced part of their news, then turned to her to let her finish.  She turned her wide-eyed, deer-in-the-headlights look away from the Redleaf-Disarinnos and set it upon Elwood.  Was he really making her talk?  How did she even?  Words?  WHAT ARE WORDS?

The Blackthorn (or was she a Grove now?  ......OH GOD SHE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW THAT???) felt quite certain that the best thing to do here would be to turn around and run for it.  Fortunately, her nerves couldn't even allow her to do that much, so instead she just looked back at her friends and after a few swallows and failed attempts at starting she speak, she finally managed to sputter one word: "...pregnant.."  Fin turned back to look at Elwood then like a child looking to an adult for approval that she'd done a good job.

When Peregrine strolled up beside her, Fox softened her gaze, licking the top of his nose with a wolfish kiss. Out of everybody, he had taken the incident the worst. Granted, he was the one who had caused it... but Perry understood and owned his mistake, something Fox had not quite expected from him. She was so used to being blamed for everything under the sun (not necessarily by Perry, but by everyone else), it was hard not to think with that mindset.

Elwood began to speak, and when he said the word "mates," Fox squeaked with delight. She wanted to say more, but she was cut short as Finley spat out the last of their announcement. Fox's expression (which she wore quite openly) went from unabashed happiness to shock to slight horror to bewilderment and finally to a forced smile. She was happy for them, without a doubt. Her jaw clicked shut, and she stared back and forth between Elwood and Finley, truly at a loss for words. Either that or she was worried that if she attempted to say anything, she would regret whatever she said.

The Firebirds had only been alive for three turns of the moon. They were growing quickly, and they were halfway to being mostly self-sufficient... but Fox wasn't sure that Redhawk Caldera could support another litter so soon. She had doubts, and she had a lot of them. Grey eyes turned to Peregrine, hoping he could make some remark that would save her from insulting their Beta pair.

She licked his nose, which warmed his heart a little. He then leveled his jade gaze on the silver pair (keeping it at a respectful level, of course), his expression patient but expectant. His eyes shifted primarily to Elwood when the Beta male spoke, announcing that he and Finley were finally official. A genuine smile began to light up the swarthy Kappa's features, though it froze when Elwood trailed off and evidently waited for his new wife to add something else.

In true Finley fashion, she blurted a single word: "Pregnant." Like Fox beside him, Peregrine experienced a spectrum of emotions. First and foremost, he felt his heart lift at his friends' news. He had told Elwood they would have his blessing, after all, and the celebration of new life was just what the pack needed right now. But this was not how he had anticipated it would happen. He had expected they would come to him and Fox and request formal permission in advance—to be asked, not told. He had also hoped for to happen later, when the Firebirds were a bit older, at least six months. He supposed none of them could contend with Mother Nature and her timing, though...

His lips parted to ask how all of this had happened, but then Peregrine reminded himself: he had no right to judge or say anything anymore. Elwood was his superior, the highest-ranked male in the pack, with more right to breed than he did. If anyone could be upset with him and Finley, it was Fox, not him. While she silently waited for him to say something, he did the same to her, pressing his lips firmly together. But after a long beat of silence, he felt her silver eyes boring into him, so he looked at her and read her expression like his favorite book.

Facing the Betas again, Peregrine said the only thing he thought he had any right to say: "Congratulations, you two." Though he didn't say it out loud, his expression asked a second question, What the heck happened, guys?

Although Finley hesitated, she managed to complete Elwood's sentence. Once the word was out in the open, he felt a rush of relief -- but it was short lived. He smiled down at her, tight-lipped, but as he turned to Fox and Peregrine, he took in their expressions. The Alpha female's features shifted rapidly in a short time, finally settling on something that resembled happiness but didn't quite reach her eyes. Peregrine, too, seemed to need to digest the information, although he eventually congratulated the newly-mated pair.

Elwood felt his heart slowly sinking to his feet. Their elation at the fact that the pregnancy hadn't been completely terminated had overlapped the reality of the situation -- they hadn't necessarily been given permission to bring a litter into the world. Although they were the pack's Betas and both Fox and Peregrine had expressed their willingness to let them procreate in the future, they had still skipped a very important step. Elwood's former self -- stiff, rigid, logical -- wanted to slap his current self upside the head for thinking that their leaders would just accept their news with open arms. How could he have been so stupid? And now, he had put Finley in an equally awkward position.

He cleared his throat, glancing down at his mate again and gathering support simply from her presence. "I know it's, uh, unexpected. We weren't exactly counting on this, either. And the timing certainly isn't the greatest..." he said, purposefully avoiding meeting his friends' gazes. Not only were the firebirds only a few months old, but the pack was in the middle of some fairly dire straits after the mess with Junior. Neither he nor Finley had anticipated that this would happen, but it had -- and they would all need to deal with it. He began to gnaw on his lower lip, his tail hanging limp between his back legs as he waited for the other shoe to drop.

The moment the word slipped from her mouth, Fin knew. Both Fox and Peregrine were anxious about the news. Ideally, there would be wagging tails and excited congratulations. All Fin and Elwood got was a somewhat forced sentiment and tight-lipped smiles that looked more like grimaces. She immediately wanted to cry and she pressed herself closer to Elwood as he tried to explain.

"We definitely didn't mean for it to happen, but..." Fin's voice broke then and she didn't try to pick it up again. What was she supposed to say? She regretted nothing about this pregnancy except that she hadn't realized sooner when she could've have protected her litter for the entire term. She would not apologize to them for the miracle she and Elwood had been blessed with, but she couldn't exactly explain that without telling them just what it was that made this so special, and she still wanted to protect them from the knowledge of her miscarriage and the self-blame that was sure to come of it.

Fox still wasn't quite sure what to say, but Peregrine managed to squeak out a congratulations. They would now have to work even harder to defend their borders. "How soon?" Fox asked. At least, if she had that information, she could have some idea of when to begin preparing things. And, of course, they would need to announce it to the rest of the pack. The last thing they needed was for the rest of the pack to be surprised by newborns. Fox still wasn't quite comfortable enough to send her best wishes to her best friends, but she would come around.

There were other questions she wanted to ask, but she held them back for the time being. She was, however, excited at the prospect of her own children having more playmates. They would be younger, but Fox couldn't think of better friends for them to have. And a very tiny part of her was already hoping one (or more) of the Finwoods would fall in love with one (or more) of the Firebirds.

Elwood leaned into Finley under their friends' gazes. She tried to elaborate on what he had said, but her words failed her quickly. The last syllable of her sentence hung heavy in the air: "But..." They had made a mistake, and they knew it, but neither of them wanted to see it from that perspective. After the close call they had experienced, her pregnancy was a miracle. This litter would bring them closer than ever before -- and, in fact, already had.

After another pause, Fox finally found her voice. Elwood shifted his gaze to the Alpha female, avoiding her gaze directly as his ears turned towards her. "How soon?" she asked, and he then looked down at Finley. There was no way for them to know her official due date, but they had traced the conception back to the weeks during her "spring fever." The miscarriage had happened only a week ago, after Junior's death, so the best they could do was estimate.

"A few weeks," he said, trying to sound more confident in his guess than he felt. The fact that they weren't sure only seemed to make this situation that much worse.

Fox finally found her voice after the pair stammered out a few details. Peregrine's gaze dropped to the Beta female's flank. He guessed it would be no more than a month at most. He then lifted his eyes, studying their faces. They looked so rueful. Their eyes were lowered, their voices shaky. Although he agreed that the timing might not be ideal, Peregrine began to shake his head softly. He didn't know the first thing about their miscarriage, obviously, but he knew they should be celebrating this promise of new life.

"This pack will be able to handle it," the Kappa said, hoping Fox didn't box him about the ears for speaking out of turn and out of place. "We're small but mighty. Yeah, we'll all have to work harder but this means an even bright future for the Redhawks." His tail twitched and he fell quiet. It would still take time for Fox and the rest of the pack to absorb the news, though in time, it would be purely good tidings.

"The Firebirds will have cousins," he added for his mate's benefit, his voice quietly optimistic as he nudged her cheek.

Fin would have been quite content to at that moment just sink straight down into the ground and disappear.  It was fortunate that she had Elwood to lean on for not only did he keep her upright, but he also kept her above ground.  Part of her wanted to burst out laughing and insist it was all a joke, if only to get those terrible looks off of her alphas' faces.  Somehow it occurred to her that it really wouldn't be helpful for her to do that, though, and so she just kept her mouth shut and let her mate carry the painfully awkward conversation.


The realization that they weren't even sure how long before their litter was born was another punch to the stomach.  Even baby Finwood seemed to sense its parents' discontent as he shifted and caused a wave of nausea up her throat.  She swallowed hard and turned her attention to Peregrine who finally decided to say something encouraging.  She managed to give him a small smile at his words.  It was quite the bomb they'd dropped on their friends, so she was happy to take whatever tidbit of optimism they would give her regarding their news.

"Sorry," Fox finally spat out once Peregrine spoke again. "I just wasn't expecting it is all." Doing her best to put on a happier face, she continued. "I'm excited for you guys, and Redhawk Caldera will do whatever it can to help you two out." The Beta pair's children would be second, there was no doubting that, but Fox was looking forward to the prospect of the Firebirds having more playmates around their own age.

Gingerly, Fox touched her nose to each of the Betas' cheeks. She would come around sooner rather than later, but for now... "I need some time to process all of this." Fox didn't wish them any ill will, but she did wish that they had come sooner. Realized sooner (seriously, did they not understand the birds and the bees?). With a final half-hearted smile, Fox turned away from them, intending to take a very long, much-needed walk.

Peregrine made an attempt at positivity, which Elwood appreciated but didn't quite feel in his heart. He would never forget the expressions on his friends' faces as they broke the news, and while part of him could completely understand their reasoning, his less rational side felt slighted. Nevertheless, he gave the Kappa a thin-lipped, tight smile and a small bob of his head, then glanced at Finley to make sure she was holding up.

He licked her cheek and then Fox's voice drew his attention once more. The tension was palpable, though he didn't doubt the sincerity of her words. She soon excused herself, requesting time to process the new information, and he watched her go with sad eyes. He then exchanged a glance with Peregrine before nudging Finley, feeling that it was time for them to go. Despite the way this interaction had gone, there was still a seed of excitement planted in Elwood's belly, and he wanted to share some private time with his mate and the mother of his children.

"We'll catch up with you guys later," he said quietly to Peregrine, then he moved away, his tail giving a gentle twitch between his hocks.

Fox pardoned herself, then left. Peregrine stared after her a moment before dragging his eyes back to the Beta pair. His mate probably didn't need or want him around right now anyway. He would keep Finley and Elwood company, perhaps reassure them a bit. Yes, it was unexpected news but it wasn't unwelcome, per se. Peregrine badly wanted to erase the tight, uncertain lines on his friends' faces and replace them with hopeful smiles.

But then they began to retreat. Wait... the Kappa thought. It wasn't his place in any way, however, so he pressed his lips together. He allowed them to saunter away, leaving him standing there by himself. He didn't feel very confident about his Caretaker abilities these days and he didn't know what rank he might hold when the pair's litter was born, yet Peregrine vowed to do everything in his power to make sure this pack was prepared for the puppies' birth.