Redhawk Caldera All that wasted time

Days only ever seemed to inch by when Finley was desperate for them to race. The state of the world was desparate and frightening, especially for a woman in the early throes of pregnancy. Though she constantly hoped for time to flick by in a blink, she was not at all convinced that the future would bring green lands and abundant prey back to her home. She tried to; Quite desperately she clung to the idea that in just a few short weeks, everything would be back to normal. She would be well-fed and in top form when she gave birth to the healthiest, happiest little cubs the Wilds had ever seen. It was a comforting thought in those moments when her pregnancy brain allowed her to believe it would happen.

But those moments were rare. And this moment was not one of them.

Fortunately, Finley was nothing if not a good actress. She did her best to keep her concerns from her mate and especially her son, knowing the latter needed no encouragement to darken his outlook. When the call rang out, the Blackthorn winced slightly for it meant it was time to put her happy face back on and to reach out for that ideal she didn't believe in. She swallowed her gorge as it rose at the start of her charade, then took off at a steady lope to answer Elwood's call.

Her smile was planted firmly upon her muzzle as she came to him, but she relaxed it a bit when she realized Eljay was not there. With Elwood at least, she didn't have to pretend so hard. Both of her men could likely tell when she was faking it anyway, but only with her son did she feel the need to try to hard anyway. She greeted her mate with a nudge to his chin and an obnoxious swipe of her tongue over his eye. The gesture made her grin, but it was a brief flash of joy before the gloom began to creep back in.