Redhawk Caldera so let's piss off the neighbors.

Finley felt ornery. And it was very confusing for her because while ornery in itself was not at all strange for the feisty Blackthorn, ornery this particular time of year could be a sign of some other event. It was that event that was causing her to be hyper aware of her emotions, and consider this particular orneriness as a potential clue to something else. What did this mean? Was this an exponential amount of orneriness? Was this the amount of orneriness that should cause her to barricade herself and her mate in their den and drive out any visitors such as their own son? Or was this the kind of ornery where she should try to make BFFs with a porcupine, fail, and contentedly give up after successfully avoiding the mutilation of the other half of her face?

Ugh. Self-awareness was too difficult. Finley needed herself some @Elwood.

It was the safest thing to do (lol do), because if this behavior did mean that she was heading into her heat, then she needed to be making the most of it. She and Elwood had decided to expand their family, and both Eljay and the alpha pair had given their blessings. Who was she to disappoint them all by not reproducing? No one. Probably. How does that work.. Oh who cares. Where is Finley right now.

Her search for Elwood took her away from the rendezvous site, which was again bustling with puppies and family since the Firebirds had been relocated from the whelping down. Fin suspected that her mate was off hunting to provide for the little ones (their own not-so-little included), and so she ventured towards the evergreen forest towards the east of the territory where she and her mate had raised Eljay for the first few weeks after his birth. She wasn't sure why she was headed in that direction. Half of the time during her search, this uncertainty equated to not being sure why she thought she might find him there. The other half of the time, she was uncertain because she was so spaced in the brain that she couldn't remember what she was doing at all.

But. Uh. Oh, a tree!

Fin came to a stop amidst the cool shade of the evergreens, glancing about herself in the empty void between knowing what she was doing but not, and not at all knowing what she was doing. After a moment, she tilted back her head and sent a howl to the air for her mate, hoping to attract him there if he was around. She knew well enough (oddly enough) that it could take him some time to find her, especially if he wasn't anywhere near the wood, and so she distracted herself by sniffing at the nearby trees, seeking out the scent trail of a squirrel she could be obnoxious at until he arrived.

As it so happened, Elwood was not anywhere near Finley -- in fact, he was pretty much on the very opposite side of the caldera -- but her call reached his ears nonetheless. His lips tugged into a smirk and he kicked up his heels, throwing his head back to send up a response and let her know that he was on his way.

Some undisclosed amount of time later, he finally arrived, panting and breathless. His face was wrinkled into an apologetic expression as he wove through the trees, his destination marked by the soft glow of Finley's silver fur in the dappled sunlight. He didn't immediately detect her ornery mood, but he nipped playfully at her hip as he drew up alongside her.

Finley had managed to terrify exactly three squirrels in the time that it took her mate to arrive. It might have been four were it not for the fact that this particular squirrel seemed to have no emotions but a big "fuck you" for the world in general. Fin had seen squirrels sprawled out along tree branches in high summer when the temperature was so abysmally hot that the mere thought of stepping away from the shade was unbearable, but never had she seen one lounging like that with a bit of a chill still in the air.

She was in the midst of prowling about the tree with said squirrel in it, planning her method of attack, when she heard pawsteps behind her. The beta paused and glanced about until spotting Elwood approaching with a smile upon his muzzle. Were it not for the sudden, unexpected departure of all semblence of thought at his presence, Finley may have then realize that she was in deed in heat be it evidence by the extremity of her emotion, the wild burn of her desire, or simply the headiness of her own scent. But, she was completely unaware as she gave a purring growl and worried his cheek with her nose, his throat with her tongue, and the length of his spine with teasing nibbles from her teeth.

She turned to face him, and it wasn't just the expression on her face that tipped him off. His nostrils flared, drinking in a scent that was foreign and yet all too familiar. Elwood felt himself grow warm from the inside out, the sensation only exacerbated by the kisses and gentle bites that Finley delivered to his face and neck. He had given this very moment much consideration, but he was briefly caught up.

He growled, the sound a low, gravelly rumble in his chest. He stepped forward, his tail giving a predatory lash as he pressed his chest to Finley's shoulder, snapping at her withers with a touch that was simultaneously rough and gentle. He closed his eyes, breathing deeply, and then forced his lids to part. At the same time, he moved back and away from her, anticipating her protest.

He met her gaze. "Finley," he said, his voice husky. This could be it -- but he was determined to make sure that she was aware before they went about making little brothers and sisters for Eljay.

Finley's mind was ablaze. She felt the ministrations upon her body and growled in response. Her tail curved in an arch over her spine and swayed invitingly. Desire left no room for her to play or even to consider the ramifications of her current actions, and it wasn't until she heard her name being called as if from a great distance that she even focused enough to notice the details of her mate's intent gaze upon her face.

"Hm?" she muttered hazily, not even aware enough to turn her muzzle as she usually did to hide the scarred half of her muzzle. She moved towards her mate shortly after making the sound to preen the plush fur at the base of his right ear, her eyes closing as she lost her care for whatever it was that he'd wanted.

When she replied, it was clear that he would have to spell it out for her. Elwood would have rolled his eyes had he not been halfway absorbed in the physical nature of what was happening. It would be so easy to just lose himself, to act purely on instinct and deal with the consequences later...

And as tempting as it was, he somehow managed to clear his head despite Finley's best efforts to seduce him. He grunted as she nibbled on the soft fur just beneath his ear, taking another step away from her. He shook his head, trying to clear his own mind. He even went so far as to reach out with a forepaw and press it gently against her chest before leveling her with his gaze. The sooner he made this clear, the sooner they could continue.

"Fin. Stop for a sec," he urged. He paused, licking his lips, then uttered one single word that was sure to bring her head out of the clouds: "Babies?"

Fin was on a damn mission. She failed to note the tension in his posture as she came at him, recognizes only those brief seconds when it seemed he would succumb to her intentions. She pushed forward further with every step he took away, sinking deeper into lust with every attempt Elwood made to climb out of it. She stopped only when he physically kept her at bay with a paw to her chest, which she stared blankly at for quite a few seconds even after he spoke to her.

Her mind struggled to make sense of it, as it would have had she not been so strung out on hormones, but she gave an easy smirk when she came to her conclusion, albeit an incorrect one. "Don't worry," she soothed, shifted to the side in an attempt at escaping his hold so that she could get at his face again, "No one's watching, it's okay." Cause that's what he meant. He was scared that they were being watched by babies.

He smiled as she reassured him and started to move around the restraint of his paw. He was glad that they were on the same page -- that breezy "Don't worry" spoke volumes. They were ready for this -- ready to bring the second litter of Blackthorns into the world.

"No one's watching, it's okay," she purred, and Elwood nodded dumbly, leaning forward to kiss her again. But he stopped himself suddenly and drew back again. "Wait, what?" he asked, realizing that he hadn't been successful in making his point clear after all.

"No, Fin," he said, exasperation creeping into his voice. Finally, he just came out and said it. "You're in heat. Are you ready to make babies? Now?" He sure hoped so -- and was pretty sure there was no chance she would turn him down, even faced with the reality of the situation -- but she could always pull a Finley and do something completely unexpected. He braced himself.

Finley smirked at her mate as he continued to play hard to get. She lifted a paw to bat at the one he used to hold her back, reaching along his arm with her nose and nipping playfully upon it. He seemed put at ease by her reassurance that they were alone, but all too soon he was pulling away again and leaving her to stand there, staring hungrily after him.

It took her a few seconds to actual process his words. Heat? Babies? Now? Her tail lashed in frustration. Her body gave no craps at all about whatever he was saying. It was far more irritated that he was speaking at all instead of nailing her than to bother attempting comprehension. But there was something in his tone that called her sensibility to the forefront, and after a minute of struggle, comprehension came to join the mental fray.

"Babies!" Fin said suddenly as it dawned on her what he'd been trying to communicate to her. She paused another moment to actually consider his words and the ramifications of their situation. She'd agreed to this yes, but that was when it had been a hypothetical. A probable hypothetical, but still not yet an actual occurrence. Now the moment was upon them and the question sat uncomfortably between them.

Babies? Now?

...

A mental image of Eljay surrounded by doting siblings and baby cousins found its way to her consciousness first amidst the slow rise of the apparently far less significant fears and anxiety. Her lips twitched upwards in a grin and she strode confidently towards her mate. "Would you just shut up and do me already?" she purred as she reached for him, intent upon picking up exactly where they'd just left off.

Elwood could almost see the gears working in Finley's head as she finally processed what he had said. Nearly all of the romance had been sapped from the moment by his blunt explanation, but he watched her with bated breath. It seemed silly to have to have a discussion prior to lovemaking, but the precaution was necessary after what had happened before. Elwood wasn't willing to take any risks this time.

Finley contemplated his words briefly, then quickly made a decision. Although her reaction was much more nonchalant than his entire mindset, he would leave it at that. He could tell that she had thought about it -- however fleetingly -- and they would have time to talk later, once her raging hormones had subsided. For now, he took her instructions at face value.

"Yes ma'am," he replied obediently, his lips twisting into a wicked grin as his body responded to her command. He gave her a rough shove with his snout, asserting his dominance, and then began to nibble down the length of her side, following the curve of her hips until he stood behind her. With a possessive growl, Elwood pushed all thoughts of consequences and the future from his mind as he moved to wrap his forelegs around her waist.

Finally, Elwood gave him. Finley grinned at him and gave a pleased growl at the vocalization of his obedience. Her tail swayed higher as he moved along her side. She nosed his flank as it passed by, keeping her head twisted so that she could watch him latch onto her backside and move into position for the oncoming kerflomple.

Finley could do without all of the madness that came with going into heat. The irritability, the hunger strikes and the wild moods were all things she suffered on a regular basis simply being her. With her hormones on a rampage, these characteristics were exacerbated to a level that was just plain alarming. But in this act, Fin was surprised to find a satisfactory release to all of those emotions. When she parted from her mate a while later after the kerflompling had ceased, she felt soothed, and almost meek from satisfaction.

Fin slithered around her mate like a snake while she set to preening the fur at the base of his ear. Her growl was a hum as she smashed herself against him contentedly. She had no words just then; only affectionate ministrations that she was generous in pouring upon him.

The kerflomple went as the kerflomple always did, leaving both participants satisfied. Elwood's breath was heavy and ragged as he dismounted and unceremoniously flopped to the ground, an absent and silly smile on his face. He gave a rumbling purr as Finley began to tend to the sensitive area beneath his ear, leaning into her gentle touch.

A few moments of content silence passed between them, and then Elwood craned his neck to poke at Finley's stomach with his snout. "Think there are some babies in there now?" he asked in a low voice, his tail thumping the ground.

Almost meek.

Finley felt as though she could curl up right then and there and drift off to sleepy land. Her preening seemed to be just as soothing for her as it was for her mate who rumbled happily at her touch. Her blinks grew heavy, and she slid down nearer to the ground, nearly ready to flip entirely and give up this silly notion of consciousness for a few hours.

But then he touched her.

It was an innocent thing. A gentle touch and some playful, hopeful words. And yet Fin felt suddenly wide awake and the fire began to grow within her again. She gave her mate a sly look before glancing back at her stomach as though inspecting it for herself. "I don't know..." Finley replied slowly with a thoughtful lilt to her tone, "I don't see any yet." She slid towards him then and leaned her lips to his ear where she whispered, "You should probably keep trying..." The beta grinned through her words. It seemed her body was perfectly willing to keep going at it until she dropped dead from exhaustion. This was going to be an interesting couple of weeks in the Blackthorn household.

Seems like a good place to end; I'll archive and start us a new one soon! :)

Elwood's ear gave a flick as Finley's warm breath tickled it. A slow grin tugged at the corners of his lips at her words and in the next instant he was rising to his feet once more. "You're right, I should probably just make sure..." he murmured, stepping towards her and touching his nose to her cheek.

From there, he wasted no time in returning to his former position behind her, and then round two began.