Dragoncrest Cliffs Dynasty

She was finding it incredibly difficult to think logically. She knew it would be a bad idea to run into the middle of the territory, like her instincts screamed at her to do, and let any and every male in the pack go to town on her. Wildfire also knew the timing couldn't have been worse. Winter had barely gotten started and they had only just been thrust from their home and forced to start over somewhere new. But how could she argue with mother nature? Wildfire wouldn't (maybe couldn't) let anything stop her from going after her dream.

She was ready, more than ready. Swallowing the last of her nerves, Wildfire stepped closer to the surf and called for @Thuringwethil and @Dio. Her heart beat wildly in her breast. Despite the odds stacked against them, somehow they would make this work. Pups would bring them hope for a brighter future. They would strengthen their bonds and their claim. And Wildfire would finally know what it was like to be a mother. No, nothing would stand in her way.

In the chaos circulating their upheaval, he had found less time to dwell on his upcoming contribution, and what it would all mean for him. Maybe he'd lulled himself into thinking that it wouldn't come about too soon; Wildfire was pretty young, the winter seeming a little unpredictable already, and he'd not entirely sorted his matters with Portia either. But soon the painfully unmistakable scent of season came to him and he knew his nose wasn't lying. Suddenly he was keenly aware of a great many more things, and how he ought to approach them -- perhaps most loudly of all, that basal, carnal craving that odor inspired in his kind.

On hearing Wildfire's summons, he was on his way shortly after with a stiff tail and a long stride. He knew what would come soon after. If Wildfire's determination towards this all carried over onto now, he had little doubt that she'd have what she wanted. Deep down he was gleaning his share of satisfaction from knowing he could help her, solidify the pack's future, and perpetuate his genes all in one fell swoop. It was not an opportunity to pass aside.

Even over the the seasalt, her scent remained loud and blaring. He squinted against the misted breeze and neared her smoothly, already having noticed she was still alone as he zeroed in nose-first. "Wildfire," the gold wocha greeted in a low rumble when he reached her, and he had to remind himself to click his jaw shut entirely while watching carefully. In his experience, females could vary wildly and he already felt his heart racing in anticipation of what she may bring. Neither had he been so close to the scent of heat in quite some time, and greedily he savored it, yearning quietly already.

His tail wagged, arced up, and he stood before her in her power while they presumably awaited the commander's arrival -- as requested.

They have taken well to the new territory though she still felt like she’s fumbling around most of the time. The dragon she knew inside and out, aside from what was below that she could not see, and she knows it’ll be a little while before she can maneuver these lands with her eyes closed. It certainly doesn’t mean they are ready for any hiccups as they had been once upon the mountain. With Wildfire going in to heat, Thuringwethil isn’t sure what to do with the curve ball. Even a night or two of sleep hadn’t brought the commanders forward to tell her way to do and she has to rely solely on her gut.

And her gut, of course, tells her everything about it is wrong.

They aren’t prepared for the winter as they once had been and the last thing they need are puppies they can’t properly take care of. She’d given Gyda a stipulation when she wanted her own children but she knows Wildfire can’t be bought with the same motive. Wildfire’s in heat now and ready to make the move but Thuringwethil finds a heavy feeling in her chest.

Thuringwethil reacts to the call as she slips through the cavern by the lake and through the tunnel, out into the secluded beach that belonged to Drageda. However, for the time being, Wildfire is kept there to avoid the hungry males but by the smell of it, Dio has reached the destination before she has. A growl rumbles in her chest as she works her way out of the second cavern and into the stretch of beach where Dio is with her mate. The thought alone twists her stomach, even in normal circumstance, but Wildfire wants her there and Thuringwethil couldn’t find it in her to object at the time.

Heda offers another growl to Dio to step back—whether or not he does—and she approaches one side of her mate to put herself between them.

“I do not think now is the right time,” she tells her carefully, though she addresses the both of them. Her attention swings to her mate, hesitant on how she may take it the information. She’d given a condition once, long ago, which the time had to be right. Even Seageda had their terms for breeding within the ranks and their biology could do little to stop it. Children solidify their future but only when they are capable of raising them without the strain on the rest of them.

Wildfire did not fully anticipate the sexual tension that emanated between herself and Dio when the Wocha arrived. She wanted to go to him, lick his face and rub her body against his. She resisted the impulse, feeling a little traitorous. She must overrule the whims of her heat, at least until Thuringwethil got here. Despite having the commander's blessing for this pairing, Wildfire would never let it come to fruition until she received her mate's explicit consent in the moment.

To say that she was dismayed when the Heda arrived only to force herself between Wildfire and Dio, then declare that now was not the right time, would have been an egregious understatement. She felt a Molotov cocktail of emotions, ranging from indignation to despair. Her mouth opened and closed as she struggled to come up with a response. She defaulted to feeling extremely defensive, which was very peculiar; the Bandrona had never been at such odds with Thuringwethil.

"You—you're going to deny me this...?" The words barely scraped past her partially frozen lips. There was heartbreak in her chestnut eyes. Perhaps it was just her hormones and emotions getting away with her, yet Wildfire was convinced that their bond might not survive it if the commander reached out and snatched her dream from her at the critical moment. She had not anticipated that something would stand in her way, after all: her own mate.

He finds it so easy to give Wildfire his whole indulgent focus, but it is painfully short-lived in this earliest form. Suddenly he's newly aware of the commander's arrival and based on presence alone, he's backing off before she gives him a growl and cuts between them.

Dio's ears tucked back and his head ducked instantly with a soft whine, for he had no intentions of riling her anger under such circumstance. Better sense was still pooling in his lower reaches with his nose so full of heat, but he knew himself well enough to begin to gather some pieces of meager composure anyway. This was far too delicate a subject already and tension already brought a wary prickle from his hackles as he kept it together to watch carefully.

The Wocha shot a hot glance to Wildfire the second Heda spoke and licked his lips nervously in light of this exchange. While not fundamentally wrong in what she declared, Dio's eagerness to response to the call of heat, and knowing that Wildfire wanted this, said that maybe it would not be here at all if they were so ill-equipped. Maybe the winter would dawn mild, end early, and stay plentiful here beside the seas. However he understood her point, somewhere past all the haze of the Bandrona's hormones lingered that  thought: they had onl/y settled. This would officially put a timer on many things for them, which could they afford that right now? Dio was torn. He knew what he wanted to do, true, and what was so close -- until the commander declared otherwise.

There had been a time, long ago, when her word would not have been met with question. While she hasn't exactly given Wildfire a command, Thuringwethil knows she has faltered somewhere along the way. Sleeping Dragon evicting them from their own home has proven that she is not the Heda she once was or is meant to be. The hurt across her mate's face causes a twist in her stomach and she inhales a slow, steady breath. She'd seen Wildfire hurt before but the look she's given feels like a knife to the gut. She isn't sure how to handle it as the girl's mate but as Heda, she lets her fur bristle and her shoulders square back. Dio has already taken a step back and so she does not shoot him the glare she feels necessary and instead keeps focus on the woman in heat.

"I am not denying you what you want but I said it would happen when the time is right and now is not that time," she reminds her but she is not certain how it will be received or if the bandrona remembers anything beyond the yes she'd given that day. "We just lost our home and we barely have our hold on this one. We have lost members of our own that we need to search for and we need to prepare for the winter. Puppies are not something we are equipped for."

She'd once given Gyda an ultimatum but they had a better standing—and part of her hadn't been expected that ultimatum to be met—and they'd been fine but their claim is shaky and barely met, clear by the wolves that had not respected her borders some days ago.

It is then she turns her gaze toward Dio to gauge his reaction. Wildfire's scent plays a toll on her but she can't imagine what it must be for him and to take that away. If anything, despite his urge, she hopes his logic will prevail and if she has to, she'll chase him away from her mate in order to prevent it.

"We will have our family, Wildfire, but I cannot put Drageda at risk more than it is," she says as she turns back toward her mate.

The Heda explained her position, which was backed by sound logic and reason. Yet Wildfire was not in a reasonable mood. Her emotions flared wildly as Thuringwethil addressed her, calmly explaining her stance and leaving no room whatsoever for debate. Wildfire felt indignation and nearly heart-stopping disappointment. She couldn't believe that her mate would wait until this moment to make such a declaration.

Utterly dismayed, the Bandrona couldn't find her words for a moment. In the end, she could only manage three: "But you are." They hung heavily in the air between them. She didn't dare look up at the commander, nor at Dio, especially as the flashes of anger and despair took on physical form in the appearance of tears swimming in her eyes.

Without another word, Wildfire retreated further along the beach, where she would stay, utterly despondent and unresponsive to any entreaties.

A very tense series of seconds comes to pass, and he quickly wishes he weren't present at all despite Wildfire's summons. While maintaining his proper deference of flat ears and low posture, he doesn't feel quite right lurking off mid-sentence, but it is abundantly clear by the logic laid bare by their commander that this isn't going to happen right here and now. He can't help the frustration, or the urge that starts it all in the first place and with a hardness to his expression, he watched this all play out -- including Wildfire's heartbreak, although he couldn't yet tell if sadness or anger reigned supreme.

When she took off, he eased back more and watched her departure's pathway. He would have to stake out a guard from far enough away to let her have space. Not because he didn't trust the other males around, but he'd take no chances having others harass her after that. He wasn't happy about it either, or being anywhere he could smell her still, and bitterly he would manage. His minor strife and frustration utterly paled compared to Wildfire's at present.

He didn't say anything, but glanced to Thuringwethil with a brisk nod before he too began to move away and swing wide up the beach. Dio wondered how much she trusted him, and didn't want to push the matter right now. He intended it to be clear that he was not pursuing, although not overly thrilled about it, and resigned to go guard instead.

Last post from me. Feel free to continue without her? :) Or wrap it up! Whichever. <3

It is almost as if Wildfire did not hear a word she said and Thuringwethil frowns, watching as her face turns and she can no longer see the hurt in her eyes. Her ears slick back against her head and she opens her mouth to continue, to explain the risk they will be taking if they attempt for children now. It may delay their family longer than Wildfire may have wanted but if it ensures Drageda will be strong when the time comes, Thuringwethil will make that sacrifice.

But you are.

Her jaw tightens and teeth grind together, watching as Wildfire turns away from her and trots further down the beach. The urge to follow after her is strong but her feet remain planted in the sand, watching as she wanders. Thuringwethil only hopes she can take in what she said and understand the decision.

Dio’s movement from the corner of her eye causes her to turn and she flashes her teeth and her fur bristles in warning though his distance is kept safely away, his intention becoming clear. It is likely Wildfire will not want her near but leaving her alone with Dio unsettles her. It is to be an ultimate test of their trust and whether or not he will obey her, whether or not Wildfire will obey her, is left to be seen. Thuringwethil does not pursue either one but she gives Dio a warning look before she searches again for her mate, watching her for a moment longer before she turns and retreats, giving her the space she desires.