Dahozhoni Meadow I can feel it gettin' near

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Her children were growing older, lankier and tougher. To Leto, that meant one very obvious thing; she could finally shake off the baby weight. She was glad for @Soto and the rest of the pack keeping her so well fed, but she was missing her lean pre-pregnancy figure.

Sprinting through the meadow, she considered bringing something home for her children. Maybe whatever prey she could manage to catch, or some of the flowers in bloom (those would be good for freshening up the den, too!)

She had to wonder what she would do when her children were grown and ready to take tasks of their own. She wouldn't be able to produce another litter yet, so what would Soto have her do? Aside from that, she had to wonder what tasks would be assigned to her children as well. @Apollo was tough and feisty enough to scare off a horde of fire ants, but Delos.. he was soft, not to mention that strange sensitivity to the sun.

Frowning, she refocused on her aimless run.

it had taken some convincing, but verapaz's resident recluse had agreed: they would watch the den while soto prowled after leto.

he imagined she was den-crazy, cooped up. he recalls marciela feeling the same, lamenting the freedom of their pre-child life. soto spent evenings wrapped around their daughter as marciela took to the woods. many nights, she returned empty handed -- but soto never faulted her for this, and believed that the excursion itself was as important as a full belly.

but leto was not marciela, and he worries as he trails after her. her gait was aimless, the pattern of her tracks inconsistent. he lopes after her with his good eye scanning for the telltale signs of her pale figure.

She is not able to keep going for as long as she used to, Leto soon sitting to catch her breath. She wonders if her children will be runners too.

The countess can't help but find it strange how motherhood has changed her. She knew how it would change her body, but her mind was something she did not account for. She never would have admitted it when she followed Juarez to the pass, but she never expected her life in Verapaz to last. Leto had never been able to stay in one place, not ever. It was not in her nature, and she was convinced that it would never change.

Not for anyone.

But now months had passed by, and she was still here. Still in Verapaz, still with Soto, still watching for those who had disappeared the way she would have. It made her heart ache to think that one day her children may leave too.

he comes across her reclining on her haunches, expression spent. motherhood and the crucible it impressed upon the hosts of new life was a powerful cocktail; soto had seen many changes in the women that brought life to their world.

once, his brother had described it as a form of witchcraft. soto and tomilo listened rapt as juarez flit from topic to topic like a junglebird, at last alighting on the intriguing and mystifying subject of womanhood. you see, he explained patently, life must come from something, and as we know of the witches, their powers come from extracting energy from something else. a sprig of thyme, the sacrifice of a doe; would not the same be said of bringing new life to this world? perhaps the cost of it is a fraction of your soul.

leto. soto apprises her, coming to sit alongside her milksap form . estas bien?

She flinches when Soto suddenly joins her, but her body is quick to relax into a grin. You scared me! She snickers, giving him a playful push. Estoy bien. Leto has to wonder what has him worrying after her, but in truth it would bother her more if she got an answer.

¿Crees que estoy gorda ahora? She only let the silence sit for a moment before asking her question. The most dangerous question a post-pregnancy woman could ask. She did want to know, and she knew she was a bit plump now, but like anyone else of course she wanted the answer to be no.

allowing her good-natured jostle to unbalance him, soto grins. juarez's face fades from vision, replaced by the glowing figure of verapaz' countess. they have much to be grateful for, and yet, soto is filled with worry.

his expression falls as leto's question reaches his ears. for all she'd said, she may have well presented a viper-pit for him to fling over. in some ways, he prefers the snakes.

it is not cruelty dancing in his gaze, but something else. prefieres que tus cachorros mueran de hambre para que puedas ser flaca?

His response is safe, Leto sticking her tongue out at the Segundo. No, She spat, smiling a moment later. He was too hard to tease.

Ellas crecieron rápido. She spoke again after a moment, her tone lighter now. He's right, the handsome tuck of her stomach was a small sacrifice for what Verapaz gained - it would return to her with time. Has sido de gran ayuda. She has never been quite sure how to express her gratitude to him, or the others frankly. She had thought her children would be raised with her as a single parent, but the pack has been plenty family for her babes.

not only did the grow fast, they grew large. soto has no blood-ties to the children of leto's womb, but they are a part of verapaz and therefore, a part of him. 

un lobo no es nada sin su manada. soto replies succinctly, quickly brushing aside feelings before they became sentimental and mushy. it was not his preference to display these things, but he understood leto was cut of a softer, finer material that would fray if abraded. 

good work. he flips tongue, scanning the brittle grasses in the distance. ellos pronto tomarán omertà.

Soto speaks of the omerta, and something in her chest pushes Leto to be nervous. ¿Qué significa eso para ellos? She asks him, looking to meet his face. She has to be curious; its her children they're speaking about, and it means accepting their first tasks she wants to know what that might be.

Her boys are still so young - is it really time for them to have more work put on their shoulders already? She knows time has passed, but it's just been so fast.

she's apprehensive, as every mother has the right to be. and truthfully, what mother would she be, if she did not question the pathways set before her children?

his own mother springs to mind. he's hardly an altruist, but soto got the impression very few choices presented to zemora in her lifetime. 

he would see to it things were different for leto. call him stupid, call him soft. he's seen enough dead sons to know the difference.

será su elección. he promises, meeting the full inspection of leto's worrying gaze. si juran, sirven al verde. Si no, tenemos aliados en la caldera que les darán la bienvenida.