Bearclaw Valley calm and collected, she keeps her composure

it was another chilly overcast day but within reigi, spring was coming.  soon, her children would be born.  soon, the wilds would be swathed in glorious pastels.  soon, soon, soon.

she just had to keep biding her time.

somehow, she had understood the implications of her last exchange with her mate.  something had changed inside of her (boy, weren't a lot of things changing within her?) and she carried herself with more confidence than before.  the collar that had otherized her was gone, and now she was sure she could count on alexander to care for the life that stirred within her.

she started upon the borders as soon as she woke, tending to them carefully as she did each and every morning.  at this point it was less of a sense of duty and more of a routine but she continued anyway, dousing the borders with her scent.

There was a strange mixture of pride and jealousy inside of Blondine. On one hand, she thought that Reigi deserved her promotion, being Xan's lover and a constant contributor to the pack, but she also felt as though she herself had been wronged. Blondine did plenty of work to earn her a spot as a leader (maybe not an Alpha, but wasn't she Beta material?), so it didn't make much sense to her as to why she wasn't afforded the same gift. 

All of that being said, one thing that Blondine was not was a brown-nosing-ass-kisser; if Xan didn't think that she was ready, then the last thing she would do was beg.

Near the border, she could see Reigi's plump self tooting around and marking her claim. Knowing that she was no longer approaching an equal, but her Alpha, Blondine lowered herself accordingly and approached with more caution. Hey, dove, she cooed, hoping that they would still be able to have decent conversations.

she'd been busy marking something with her gross pregnant pee when blondine joined her.  she finished her business and gave an affable wag of her tail.  but wait.

whoa, whoa, whoa.  wait.  what was this?  blondine seemed sad!  but she didn't smell sad.  she was just doing that thing indra always did in front of xan where she practically melted.  but that is not what reigi had wanted when she had become alpha.  alexander could be as strict as he wanted, but reigi would always be a benevolent leader.

her brow furrowed as she burst through the space that blondine had so kindly offered her, nosing at her healer's chin. 

what did reigi need to do?  play had always worked with alexander but she didn't feel like it was appropriate here, and cobwebs seemed more for physical wounds than for bad moods.  

hai, she offered quietly, her excitement dwindling down into something kind of sad.  o-kaay?

Bless her heart, Blondine thought as Reigi nudged at her chin. She should have known better than to think that a life of leadership and responsibility could ever corrupt such a bashful spirit. In response, Blondine lifted her head a twinge, but instinctively avoided the Alpha's gaze. I'm okay, sweetheart, she cooed, only then making the move to match their gazes, How are you? 

Seeing that some things would stay consistent between the two of them, Blondine's tail began a more triumphant wag behind her, signaling her change in mood.

i literally.. cannot force myself to be serious right now i'm So Sorry

well, it was a start.  maybe she couldn't make everything between them normal (which she was VERY STOMPY ABOUT) but at least blondine wouldn't be keeping up with that super-submissive stuff that reigi wanted no part of.

she gave a delighted yip in response to either blondine's question or her tail wagging — or both, however the other woman wanted to look at it!  other than being a blimp everything was fine and dandy up in reigi-land.

reigi looked to blondine and then to the border again, swinging her head to them in a silent request to please do this mundane everyday task with her.

There was a moment of hesitation between Reigi's invite and Blondine's acceptance; she preferred to stay either beyond or before the border, and never really found the actual borderline to be of any interest. Nonetheless, she appreciated the opportunity to spend more time with Reigi, so with a firm nod of her head, she followed the mercenary's guiding gaze. I don't know what I'm doing, Blondine warned in a sing-song voice. It couldn't have been that hard, though, right? What did they have to do besides look-out and pee?

How's that belly? the young medic asked, her eyes slowly rolling over Reigi's swollen belly. It wouldn't be long now; the skin was taut and nearly void of fur, and the protruding nipples weren't going to be easily hidden. If Reigi's due date was coming, then Blondine knew that Laurel would be following soon after; she'd have to talk to Xan about leaving, and she would have to do it soon.

she caught the beat between them but did not think much of it, and easily she led the way and started rubbing herself along the bushes, rocks, and shrubs, urinating here and there.  blondine's assumption would prove correct — there was very little to do, but reigi enjoyed her routine.

at the mention of her babies, reigi's tail began to wag and her front paws stomped the ground excitedly, her flews turning up in a smile.  she was doing good!  she hoped they would come soon, mostly because she could not imagine getting any bigger.  it was admittedly kind of miserable.  soon, she said to echo this thought, running one of her paws along her distended abdomen before she returned to marking, throwing her head back in an unspoken how are you?.

Lord, my God, Blondine thought, Please let me be gone when soon comes. It wasn't that Blondine was afraid to see Reigi give birth (except that she was), and she wasn't nervous to see those pups latch on (except that she was), and she certainly was not concerned with what the Redleafs might get into around that whelping den (except that she definitely was). There were so many things that could go wrong, and Blondine knew that, in this playing field, she was the bad luck charm that no one needed to have around.

By the time those pups were big enough to sneak out and see the world, Auntie Blondine would be back to spoil them half to death. Blondine was content with that thought; as an aunt, she had no real commitment. When she wanted to play, they were there and ready to go, but when she wanted a nap or some me-time, those pups were headed right back to Momma. I have this crush, she said with a heavy sigh, and I still haven't told her.

 

if you want me to re-write this and replace it with something else, let me know, but this is totally how reigi thinks becoming mates is done.

she slowed to a stop as blondine's words whirled around in her head.  so she had someone she wanted to court?  how exciting.  reigi still had not caught on that it was indra (though at this point she was unlikely to care — she trusted blondine even if the redleaf girl was the source of her ire).

okay.  she beckoned blondine to come forth and disappeared into the forest, seeking out a bushel of flowers like she had shown alexander.  she gathered them in her mouth and presented them to blondine, tail wagging gently.

it was not long before blondine had made her decision regarding indra and bid annasiak adieu.