Swiftcurrent Creek des knaben wunderhorn

it had taken mahler an inordinate amount of time, its length something he could not admit without shame, to find and dispatch the beaver that hung bodily from his jaws. its blood trail stippled the ground between his forepaws; the gargoyle set down the carcass to lap crimson from where its limp throat lay open. 
the brute hefted it once more, extending his stride to carry himself into the sun-stippled recesses of the forest. it was to the cache closest wylla's den that mahler was heading; he would not engage her again, but felt she would not reject the offer of fat-rich meat. and when he had lain it by for storage, the wolf came away with part of its flat tail in his jaws: a possession for das entlein. 
he did not stray to her densite now; mahler strode resolutely through the woodland with gentle chewing audible, hoping to soften the tough flesh of the beavertail into something easier on jaws far smaller than his own.

The young mother did not find it strange no one had visited her own whelping den with a gift besides the father of their litter. They were mere Omegas - traitorous bastards, one could call them. Not even Durnehviir, the woman that had promised to help out with motherhood, had come to see what Chusi had created. Nor Arrille or Clock for that matter. What friends she had, pfft.

Knowing both her young and Koji would enjoy some time to bond, she left their den to stretch her legs and drink some from the river. Her whole body felt a bit soar from birthing and nurturing the babes that had spawned along with so many other in The Creek. Eilonwy and Kubo would have some playmates, at least. Chusi herself never had that luxury, which was probably why she had grown up faster than many. Not in age of course, but in wisdom and understanding of the world (though it was primarily rainbows and butterflies, she hoped).

When she spotted the man, a packmate she knew little about, she smiled a bright yet tired smile and with a small wag from her lowered tail did she greet him.

thanks for joining!

mahler would have continued on, had not the slight frame of a she-wolf approach. in the lines of her body did the musiker read her submission; the man paused in his steps and rested upon her his flat amethyst gaze. ash-studded and delicate, her pelt was soft with warm tones, and her dark eyes shone with exhaustion.
lowering his muzzle somewhat, mahler blinked and drew her scent o'ertop the beavertail. another mother. perhaps in his excitement he had only considered wylla's daughter; he knew now he had been a fool to believe a large pack would house only one pup. if only for his own purposes, the gargoyle found curiosity in himself toward the finely built woman who looked scarcely old enough to have given birth. 
dropping the toy to the ground, mahler was silent for a small measure of time before his jaws parted. "you are nursink."  too blunt a statement, perhaps, one gathered by the strain behind her friendly expression and her cub-rich scent. "have you eaten?"

It was nice to see a different face for once. Being stuck in a den to care for your young kind of prevented her from exploring and meeting her newer packmates. She found this quite a bummer, for those were some of the things she was the very best at. Even now, with only a proper greeting had she made the stranger drop whatever he was doing to talk to her. He reminded her of Koji just a little bit, with his lilac eyes and dark tones, but there was enough to keep the two apart.

She nodded, a little embarrassed. What must he be thinking, a young girl and already spawning her own offspring? It wasn't something that happened often, surely. She shook her head then, the usually talkative girl muted by her own thoughts of what everyone was thinking about her.

small powerplay! let me know and i can amend if need be <3

mahler watched her countenance fall, observed the quietude that had seized hold of the girl, one with which she had not approached him. and while he believed the young frau, his muted sense of hierarchy suggested she was not eating well enough for being a nursing mother.
it was the same distance from the laws of his kind that allowed mahler to regard the dark-eyed woman as no different than the other she-wolves in the pack who had given birth. the musiker unfortunately was prone to rigid and monochrome reasoning in many instances; this was such a one. "vait here," the gargoyle ordered in tones more firm than he intended.
and when he returned some handful of moments later, mahler bore a fatty strip of meat from his cached kill; in its place, the toy he had mellowed for the duckling wylla now raised. "nursink mothers are in need of richer food," he explained by way of a statement, once he had set the offering at her small paws and backed some feet away. lapping blood from his jaws, mahler waited to see what the girl would do; if she accepted, he would consider it a source of satisfaction he could take in her nourishment, and if not, mahler was nothing if not persistent.

Only now did she take notice of his accent; it was one she wasn't familiar with. Sure, at the coast she had met lots of strange figures, all with their own way of talking (or no talking at all, in Darky's case), but this one was new. Uhh- okay... She answered softly when the stranger turned. She blinked in quiet confusion, plopping her fluffy bum on the ground to make the wait easier on her legs that had not worked out in quite a while.

She had not expected him to bring her a gift at all. Unlike her foreign friend, she had been raised in a pack in which status meant everything. Even now did she think herself a failure for simply being an Omega. She had been taught to lead and satisfy her own loved ones, had even become the sometimes a little reckless leader her father probably wanted her to be, but she thought nothing of it before she reclaimed a spot in the proper ranks.

Her brows raised in surprise as she sniffed the meat he had brought. She felt her tummy rumble. Her ears slid down, curving along her skull as she smiled. Thank ya. She said before ripping a piece off to gently chew for now. She swallowed quietly and out of habit blurted; By tha way, I'm Chusi - Chusi Fearghal.

his ears cupped forward at the sound of her swallowing; satisfied, mahler rocked back onto his charcoal haunches and regarded the woman with a tangible interest. "mahler," he rejoined in kind, quietly as he appraised the young face and figure of the one called chusi fearghal. it was not his place, nor his intrigue, to inquire after the paternity of the children. they belonged to the pack, insofar as the gargoyle was concerned.
however, the man's curiosity was whetted in other regards; presently, with his usual uncomfortable bluntness, mahler inquired, "what is it you did to be ranked so low?" the man assumed it had to do with the suckling pups; chusi was otherwise hale and lovely, a fine companion for any creature. his lilac stare shone with some inexplicable emotion as he awaited her response.

Maher. She repeated sweetly in her warm accent as a large smile spread across her young face. The new mother liked him. He wasn't someone of many words but he gave off a positive vibe she could appreciate, much like she found something in everyone to appreciate one way or the other.

Her ears slid down again in shame as she looked away. 'Quite obvious, ain't it? 'Didn't 'ave permission ta have mah own kids, not tha' I planned ta have 'em - I just... She let out a long breath. She didn't feel happy even thinking about it, so it didn't quite feel nice to talk about it either. It was the biggest embarrassment she had ever faced in her life, being placed so low in the hierarchy with so much to offer with years of training in fighting and mapping and generally being a good leader.

the pleasure that spread across the young frau's face softened mahler as sunlight might following a rainstorm in a darkened wood. his countenance followed suit; he regarded chusi more warmly. and then once more she wilted, the guilt creeping into her features once more.
however, what the wolfess shared was once more beyond the gargoyle's understanding. she had been punished for a biological occurrence, her cubs threatening those of the alpha pair. objectively, mahler understood this concept, yet the code within him did not. children were the measure of the pack, and must always be guarded. celebrated. 
"and ze father?" he asked of her gravely. the flat lilac of his gaze invited no dissent; he was growing staunchly more discomfitted by the moment. a woman cast down in her hour of need, and she might also be alone. it was not something the musiker wished to abide.

He's... Well... She started, ocher eyes wandering off to some far-off place only the bright spirit could reach. He's around, I guess. She supposed that was a satisfying answer to some. To her, it wouldn't have been, but she was quite a nosy creature. Shoving her nose into others' business was kind of what she was best at, but not with ill intent. She was usually just genuinely curious.

But we're not, ya'know... She added with a defeated shake of her head. Though she had hoped to fall in love, start a pack and then have puppies, it seemed the perfect life hadn't been planned out for her. Not that she hated her own cubs for that fact though, she loved the precious humps of her own flesh and bone more than anything in the world.

the expressiveness of the mädchen face held mahler in thrall for the simple fact that he did not think his features could ever move in such a way. and yet he did not care for the pain behind her lack of an answer, the way it crumpled her countenance with the weight of grief. he saw there what had happened, writ into the few words chusi offered: a man who was no longer about had fathered her young ones, but she alone bore the punishment of their birth.
mahler wished to ask the woman who tended her, who allowed her respite from the young, but knew she received none; omega. she was worthless to those above, or so he should have regarded her. "you will not be alone now." less a declaration than a statement of intent; the young woman was a mother and therefore valuable to swiftcurrent. "call upon me when i am needed, chusi."
the gargoyle gathered himself then, for tasks must not be left unfinished, but he would not depart her until she had responded.