Blacktail Deer Plateau Missed You

@Lavender, Set a day or two after Pema's return

After taking alittle time to settle down Pema was really looking forward to seeing Lavender again. She had been with Dauntless and Easy was unfortuanatly out with Dawn. Pema trusted Dawn and the group to look after Easy and from what others were saying they were heading more north then south. Away from Blackfeather Woods. 

But the wolf that was here that she wanted to see was Lavender and so she saught to find the young girl and give her a warm hello.

Word had spread to Lavender that her friend Pema had returned, and it took all of her willpower not to race from the den and seek her out. No doubt the other wolf would need time to settle back in and to rest, and Lavender wasn't about to impede that. So when Pema came sauntering towards the den an agonizing two days after having returned, Lavender took her chance and shot straight for her.

She felt the cold sting of the air on her nose, but paid it no mind. Then it began to seep in to her flank, her shoulders, her thin-furred belly, but by that point Lavender had zoomed up to Pema and plastered herself against the heavy golden coat of her friend. Pema! The girl greeted with elation, You're home! You're here! Her little nub of a tail was wiggling so hard that her entire back end was tossing to and fro. Meanwhile, Lavender was jumping and dancing alongside her friend, nosing at her cheek or giving it a playful nip.

Did you see anything cool while you were away?

When she saw her little girl come racing out of the den she lowered herself and gave her several little kisses as her tail wagged to and fro. She had wanted to see her adoptive daughter the first day she had gotten back, but she needed to talk to Day about a few things and do a few other leadership things before she could go back her her usual self. "Hey baby." she said giving her a big squeeze. "Oh I missed you."

Even though Lavender didn't mention herself being cold Pema knew her well enough to know she couldn't be warm out here with her short dog like coat. When Pema was asked if she found anything cool the only thing she could think of was about what had happened to Burr, but knew that wasn't "cool" quite the opposite.

"Nothing too cool. Why don't we head into the den. Wouldn't want you to be cold out here." she said nudging the girl towards the den. "Did you keep things neat and clean for me?"

Pema wanted to go in to the den, and Lavender was more than happy to welcome her. She bounced alongside the larger wolf and squeezed in to the den beside her, greedy for the warmth her body produced (at least until the den space had filled with their combined heat). I did! Of course, Lavender nodded eagerly, having spent so much time in the den now that it would be strange to see any mess. Everything was right where it ought to be - well, except for the pelt that had once lined the floor; there were some grass stains, some small tears, and it wasn't centered the same way.

On top of that, crumpled in the corner, was a fresh pelt which lent a strange aroma to the otherwise normal den. It was musky and perfumed like a coyote, and a mixture of darker tones that made the hide almost indistinguishable from the den's shadowy depths where it sat discarded. Lavender spotted this and grabbed at it excitedly, pulling it towards Pema hastily at first and then with some care, tried to set it up to show off for her.

Look what dad got me! The front limbs had been amputated from the skin and some holes had been torn in where the shoulders ought to have been. The rest of it tapered along the den floor and ended at a bushy tail. Lavender grinned at her mother and her little stump of a tail was wagging furiously. Dad said we were going to move soon, and this'll keep me warm!

She was glad to know that Lavender had kept everything clean. But when she entered into the den she was hit by an unfamiliar scent which made her uneasy. She couldn't pin down right away what the scent was, but she knew what it was. She thought that one of the kids must have left some food in the den and forgotten to clean it up for something.

But as she turned her head she was the pelt in the corner of what looked to be a coyote. She looked at it with a confused look on her face, until Lavender brought it over an explained where she had gotten it and what it was being used for. "He made you that as a coat?" she asked rhetorically. "Does that keep you warm enough to go outside?" she asked wondering how useful that really was. She would be very happy for Lavender if it did.

Pema understood, although Lavender was nodding vigorously to her rhetorical question. Then, prompted by the next one, she affirmed: I can do what everyone else can do, now! I can patrol borders, go for hikes by myself, maybe even hunt things! I'm super warm in it. Look, I'll show you -- the girl was so excited that she hadn't even finished speaking before trying to squish herself in to the skin. She wiggled about, tossing parts of it above her head and adjusting with fidgets of her body, only to realize the tail was draped across her face - which meant the front was across her lower back. Harrumph! Whoopsie, just -- just a sec -- Lavender lacked finesse, but she adjusted the thing hastily and shoved her forelimbs through the gaps where Grayday had removed the animal's own front legs; after a bit of shuffling the coat hung across her boxy figure properly, and she beamed up at Pema toothily. See?

She give the girl a smile as she went on to talk about how she could do everything that everyone else could now. There would only be a few more months of cold, but Pema could see that this was really important to Lavender, so even if it was only for a few months it would be put to good use. She smiled and giggled along as the girl scrambled to put on her makeshift coat, at first on incorrectly, but then the way it was meant to be. It might have looked a bit strange, but Pema kept smiling knowing how much it mean to Lavender and seeing how much joy it brought her.

"I'm so happy for you sweet heart!" she said with a big smile. "What else cool happened when I was gone." she asked. Wondering what else this joyful girl had to tell her.