Stone Circle Instincts Lead Me Home

For @Grayday but anyone else is free to pop in and meet Amber before she pops! Either a Naturalist or Astrologist thread!

Amber was officially too fat to hunt. The usually plump woman was broad-sided and reduced to waddling -- with the growing of her belly, her temper shortened each day. Cranky just didn't suffice. 

Steady was kind enough to let her growing family in -- looks like she didn't have to go crawling back to Silver Creek alone after all -- but Dagfinn had gone off to the coast. The Ciel woman hoped he'd be back to meet the children, or at least would stop by long enough for her to ask him to go back to Spring and invite her, Natashe and Heston to Easthollow.... If she was allowed, that was. 

Today the obsidian woman's hormones were particularly raging, but she wasn't in a bad mood: it was, however, the day her instincts had decided she would find a whelping den. Since dawn, she'd been scouring every inch of the meadow -- the openness of it all made her a little nervous, but at least here she would have more stable ground to dig into, even if there were few trees. 

Grumbling to herself as she hobbled around in the noon sun, Amber wondered how many puppies there were. Her size said a full litter, but their movement was little and it worried her. This only served to drive her paws faster, trotting into the very heart of the meadow and searching out maybe a fallen log, or a hollow tree somewhere.

News of Althaia's demise had reached even Day's reclusive ears, by then, and when he'd first heard word, the blinding male had felt something he hadn't felt since the fires that'd attacked him and his family in the days of his youth.

Fear.

He'd been scared since then, of course. When one lived in the wild as wolves did, it was only natural to be worried, or anxious, or uneasy at times. He'd been scared to disappoint Steady when he first joined the Silvertip Pack. He'd been afraid he would starve during his winter alone. He'd been frightened of rejection when he'd gone to Adeline to apologize for hurting her feelings, for being rude to her. But none of it had been the bone-chilling, mind-numbing, all-encompassing fear that'd sung through his veins right then.

A woman, a mother had been murdered. Her head had been ripped away from her body. Her children had been left to orphan in an unfamiliar pack - one of them was gone without a trace. It was the sort of horrific deed that Day had only ever heard stories about. He'd never thought that it could actually happen. He'd never imagined that a wolf would have reason to harm another in cold blood.

Nobody knew what'd gone on that day, but Day knew enough. He knew enough to worry that the ones he loved might be next - it could be Adeline or Amber, or worse (and that it would be worse could only be admitted in the private space of his own mind), the children that grew within her.

Day was terrified that one of them would be next. And though he wished that he could keep them both together and watch over them in this way, Day knew that his first duty had to be to the woman. To his mate. Adeline had her own guardians, and it was time that Day washed his hands of her. The reality of the situation pained him beyond all belief, but his preocupation with her would help no one, least of all himself.

So Day had taken to trailing Amber wherever she went, even when he felt that he might not be welcome. The woman needed to be protected, and it was Day's job to do so. Most of the time, he tried to do this without disrupting her day too much, not wanting to crowd her in this new environment. They spent time together - the nights, most notably - but rarely did he disturb her when she did not ask for him. Today's behavior, however, seemed to warrent a comment on Day's part.

"What are you looking for?" Day wondered aloud as he approached, privately very amused by her single-minded search. He'd already felt fondly toward her when they'd parted ways on that mountain, but their time spent together only seemed to further endear her to the grayscale male.

News of the mother's death had also reached her, but without knowing Althaia or her pups, Amber didn't really care. It was a sad, horrible fact, and she too worried for her own brood, but that was just it: her pups were okay, and she still had her head. The selfish, awful thought hurt Amber's heart, but it was undeniable -- she was not an alpha, but in her hormone rattled mind, her own pups had more of a right to live than even herself. Her children hadn't even been born yet, but motherhood was hardening her to the outside world each day. 

Nothing suggested that the murderer would strike again, but Amber did not fear this. The ebony Ciel was confident in her ability as a mother and wolf that she could defend her children from any and everything. 

If she failed, they would have Grayday and, from afar, Dagfinn. 

Often, she wondered if the traces of her mate were coincedential, or if he was keeping close to her. Truthfully, she didn't mind either way: she'd never been an overly needy woman, much as she loved attention and idolized Grayday. She would rarely call for him, would seek him out silently if needed, but preferred for him to come to her. Reguardless, the constant scent of him was enough for her to feel protected, safe, even if he wasn't doing it on purpose -- even Amber had to admit that the adjustment was easier to make when he wasn't constantly on her tail.

When he did materialize, her heart skipped with joy, and a great smile overtook her previously furrowed face as she turned to him. Rumbling softly deep in her chest, the queenly Ciel didn't respond until she'd pressed herself into his chest and rubbed her scent thickly on him. Her silky voice was flooding with love and excitement, drunk as she felt on her hormones and instincts. As always, she looked at Day like he was her knight in silver armor. 

                            "The place I'll whelp, I guess. It's coming soon. Sleeping under the stars is nice, but the pups will need a better shelter for a few months." 

A hearty chuckle escaped the gray wolf as his mate proceeded to throughly mark him. Day didn't mind being treated like a border, and although these actions sublty changed Day's perception of the mystery that was Amber, they did not cause him to like her any less. Now that her sorrow had abated, he saw more of the confident side she'd showed him when they'd first met as well as the unwavering survival instinct that he'd admired her for during the long trek back to Easthollow. She was not quite as funny as he found Lotte and Adeline, and she was, perhaps, a little more set in her ways than Day had know, but there were a lot of qualities that she could've had and that Day was very glad she didn't.

Truth be told, he liked her the way she was. He liked the way she seemed to fit right under his chin when they curled together under the stars. He liked her frank voice and the unflinching blue of her gaze. He liked how in-tune she was with herself, with the land, and - increasingly - with Day himself.

"I have a den," Day offered, returning her frantic embrace with no more reservation than she showed. "It should be big enough for you and the pups through the winter - but we could dig it out a little more, too."

Amber was just as glad to be covered thickly in her mates scent as she was to mark him as her own, licking and even sending a few playful nips towards his neck, chin and shoulders, ever careful to never hurt him. He greeted her as throughly as she did him, but when the grey Gamma spoke she paused to listen -- he already had a den? 

                      "Is it big enough for the two of us and growing pups all Winter? Is it out in the open? We should expand before the earth freezes."

She settled back on her ebony haunches, belly hiding the fact that she even had feet at some angles, chin pressed lovingly and gently into the curve of his throat.

Another chuckle escaped him as she fired off a round of questions, each as smart and practical as the last. He wanted to answer in kind, but honestly, he was a little overwhelmed by the Spanish Inquisition that was going on. In an effort to save face, he simply wagged his tail and played coy.

"Why don't you just come look at it?" he said teasingly, giving her flank at gentle nip before leading the way in that direction.

The den wasn't much to look at from the outside, but it was neatly hidden in the trees - that ought to please her, he thought, but he wasn't entirely sure what a woman like Amber would look for in a den. He stayed on the sidelines, allowing her to investigate it to her heart's content.

"I can dig it out as big as you want," he promised, hoping that this would suffice. He was not adverse to moving house, but there would be something very satisfying about having her come into his own space - even if it meant he had to sleep outside as the pups grew bigger. He was a winter wolf, after all, and made for climate far colder than this one was likely to become.

Amber didn't notice the fact she was mentally suffocating her mate, but was happy to fall into pace after him as he offered to show her. His nip only drew more excitement from her, and she sent another one his way with a happy squeak. 

They went on for what Amber felt was a lifetime, but as the birch trees closed around them the Ciel felt much better. The openness didn't scare her, it made her scared for her pups -- they could be seen from a greater distance, a large enough bird could swoop up a tiny baby.... Too much to worry about. If Day hadn't pointed it out to her, she might've tripped into it -- it was a good den indeed!

The ebony woman rumbled joyously deep in her chest, rubbing against her silvery man before darting her way ungracefully into the den. From outside, one could hear her furious sniffling, vague scratches, and a few grumbles before again her face poked out. She of course didn't miss his offer, and though she'd like to do it herself, she nodded in acceptance.

           
                                       "Id like s'more room in here, especially for when the pups come and fill up the crevices. I'll tell you a story while you dig?"

Day winced when he saw what a tight fit it really was inside the den - it seemed fine to him when he was on his own, but of course, Amber would not be on her own. Day had already made up his mind to make it bigger by the time Amber wiggled her way out, and Day kept a tight lid on his mirth as Amber echoed his opinion on the matter.

"Well, I expect some sort of compensation," he teased, bumping his nose against whatever part of her was nearest before ambling into the den. He liked digging; it didn't require much in the way of eyesight. "What kind of a story?" he wondered aloud, voice echoing through the entrance to his mate as he began to shovel pawfuls of dirt behind him.

Day surprised her with a bump to the cheek as she poked her head out of the den, and he was quick to take her place on request -- no doubt he'd have done it anyway. Giggling softly under her breath at the loving jab, Amber moved out of his way -- the wouldn't fit in there together even had her sides not be stretched beyond capacity, and her joints seemed to ache tenfold at not being able to help. Each pawful of dirt Grayday moved back, she scooped up from the entrance and flung away from the den. 

                         "I assume you've never heard the story of Perseus and Andromeda? I can't show you the constellation right now, but I can tell you the story.
Percy, on his was back from killing the monster Medusa, spotted a young girl chained to a giant stone on the shore. He had to best an ocean beast to save her, and it was then he learned that it was her parents that put here there, King Cepheus and Queen Cassiopeia." 

She assumed correctly; "I haven't heard any stories," Day shared, ears perking as he connected the word constellation with Amber's love of the night sky. He would pay more attention to this one, even if the names she said with a little long and unfamiliar. Thankfully, Perseus had a nickname and the rest weren't too hard or too many to follow along with.

Digging didn't take too much of his attention, so when there was a lull in the story, Day asked the question that he already had on queue about this story of hers. "What kind of monster was Medusa?" he wondered, unable to properly picture the story without some sort of imagery there. The sea beast he merely thought of as a very angry form of Doe - she was the only thing he'd ever known to come from the sea, and she was crazy enough already that a little bit of anger might make her into a beast.

It was both easier and saddening to know Day hadn't heard any stories, but that was okay, because now he could have entertainment when she was telling stories to the children. 

She was happy with questions -- it showed he was paying attention -- and obliged with the very best information she could. 

                  "Medusa was once very beautiful, but was turned into a hideous beast with snakes for hair by a jealous goddess. She's a gorgon.... Never seen one, but other stories stay she could turn others to stone by making eye contact."

Scooping out another bunch of dirt, keeping her eyes on the progress, Amber went on with the story. 

                                                      "Another god, Poseidon, was the one who sent the sea monster Cetus -- Im not sure what he was at all -- to terrorize their city Cepheus's kingdom as punishment. Cassiopeia was boasting about how much more beautiful her daughter was compared to the sea gods own creations, and it made Poseidon very mad. He demanded that Andromeda be sacrificed, but Percy saved her and somehow the god didn't retaliate. Andromeda, however, was already promised to another -- Perseus had to fight him for her hand, but in the end, the man fell. Percy got to marry Andromeda and they lived happily ever after."

Day paused while he tried to picture a wolf with snakes instead of fur, but his limited imagination couldn't be stretched that far. Maybe worms, he thought, trying that out instead. Easier, but still not quite right. He supposed it was just one of those things.

Getting back to work, he listened intently to the rest of the tale, privately feeling as though some parts were left out of it. Like, why had the girl's parents imprisoned her? Why didn't Poseidon retaliate? Who had the girl been bethrothed to?

As well, Day was unable to help but draw some parallels between their own lives and the story. Though the love triangle was not expounded upon, but the simple fact that it existed made Day think of Dagfinn. He wondered how the younger male was doing, and whether or not he'd be back. Unlike Day, the dark wolf seemed to have a keen sense for stories. He'd told a few of his own on their journey, but they'd all been melancholy and a little too dark for Day's tastes. Most of them had focused upon the glory of battle, something Day couldn't relate to at all.

"Will you show me the formations, when the sun goes down?" he asked instead of voicing the true direction his thoughts had been going. He still wasn't sure how Amber felt about how their lives were going, but he thought a night under the stars and a few sweet nothings could always cheer her up.

Amber waited for more questions on the story -- in truth, there were holes in the story that whomever told Amber had negelcted to tell -- , but Day seemed distracted. Whether this was just in his focus of digging or something else, she didn't know, but she was patient as they dug together.  When the silver male finally asked her to show him, come nightfall, Amber nodded eagerly. 

                  "Of course, love. Ill show you all you want when the stars wake up."

Peeking around Day, shoulder brushing his flank -- mostly because she could fit no further in -- her sapphire eyes scanned the area.

                                             "This looks pretty good, don't you think? I know I'm carrying what feels to be a large litter, but too much room might let too much cold in, y'know?"

He'd never had much interest in the stars before, but he was still looking forward to a little more quality time with Amber. Digging was fun, but it was comfortble for neither of them in such cramped quarters. Day evened out a few edges of the den before backing out, agreeing easily with her assessment.

"Yeah, and I can sleep outside and block the cold from the entrance," he told her, waving his bottle-brush tail so that the tip would hit her nose if she didn't dodge quick enough. "I'm made for colder climate than this, and it'll probably be a little too warm in the den with my coat.

Day agreed with her opinion, backing away after a few final touches that Amber liked. His words, however, brought a whimper from her throat. Made for the cold or not, it made the ebony woman anxious to imagine her mate sleeping in the snow, or getting hurt like Althaia. 

               "I don't want you to sleep away from us, Day. It's not safe to sleep out there, not when nobody knows who killed that other woman." 

Shaking her head, ears fanning down, Amber licked her lips in anxiety. To even think about waking up, unfurling herself from her puppies, just to find her mate, headless, lifeless.... She shuttered violently, covering it up with a shake of her coat, but her sapphire eyes fell on day sadly.

Day looked sadly on his mate, feeling her pain acutely. Though he understood her fears, he knew that he would not be changing his mind. When the pups were older, less likely to be squished by him, he would think about moving into the den - but while they were small, he would remain outside the den. Besides, he liked the idea of dangers having to go through him before getting to his family.

And, maybe this time, he would sense the attacker before they had time to hurt his pack.

"No wolf should live in fear, and I will not," Day said, standing firm. "It'll be warmer and safer for the kids, and I will be fine."

He moved to press a lick to her cheek, hoping to soothe the sweet woman.