Luneshale Pass I deserve it, don't I?

If only for a short moment, Leto emerged from her den. It was a rare sight with her recently born litter needing her kept close.

Her throat was dry, she needed to drink something. Taking the short trip only a few feet to the stream that ran through the pass she leaned down to lap at the water, freshly thawed in the transition to spring. Leto was beginning to thin down once more, the change clear after months of swelling up.

Lifting her head to take a breath, she felt hesitant to return. Her legs were beginning to cramp up from laying with her children for so long, ears ringing from their whines. Sometimes she questioned whether or not raising them alone was the right decision.

But, it would get easier. She needed to be patient. Looking back towards the den that now belonged to a her family rather than her alone, she felt her expression soften.

these days soto ranges the borders obsessively. leto's young compel him to do this; it is as if he is waiting for the other axe to fall.

it doesn't come, though -- and as the days soften and the sun's rays grow longer, he reins back his compulsive patrolling, turning inward to drink from the thin stream that houses verapaz's main source of water.

he sees leto from across the bank. motherhood suits her, though he notes her sides have become slab-sided with the demands of her children.

three of them, in fact. what was that she had said about her siblings? big and beautiful. soto expects the same of her young.

leto. he calls from the bank's shore, leaping across it to flank her. como te sientes? he recalls -- with some reluctance -- the distance in marciela's eyes those short days after whelping.

if only he knew then what he knows now.

Breaking through her pondering, Soto joins her. They have not spoken since before the birth, she is glad to see a friendly face that is not still suckling.

Estoy bien, un poco cansada tal vez. She responds to his question with a new gentle tone, one formed by a necessity in caring for her little one's. They could not hear very well in their early days, but she had learned quickly that her usual sudden rise in volume unsettled them. It had become habit to mind her tone.

She is admittedly excited to show off the children to Soto, but then again she's excited to show them off to just about anyone. To her they are much more than just an accomplishment, but it can certainly feel good to say 'Hey! Look at what I made!' ¿Ya los has visto? She inquires, nodding back towards her den. Eyes were open and little legs were learning to stand, it was an exciting time that she hoped to share.