Swiftcurrent Creek boys

Bazi positively beamed, soaking up the woman's gratitude and affection. To be praised by Tuwawi felt important somehow, like receiving an honour or a precious gift - she couldn't say why; the expectant mother gave generously and often of her heart to those she considered family, and it was not a rare thing to be on the receiving end of a nuzzle or embrace. There was a raw fierceness to her that was just as vibrant when she had just woken up as it was mid-battle, and Bazi couldn't help but bask in that glow. Whatever it was - impending motherhood, the impossible good fortune of finding Njal again, surviving unimaginable journeys - it burned hot, and it burned bright.

"You deserve it - and they do too," the youth enthused, feeling a warmth spread from the very tips of her toes to the peaks of her ears. "What does it feel like, to carry them? Are they.. heavy? Do they move?" She turned to glance at Tuwawi's rounded belly, partially disguised by her seated position. A faint flicker of longing touched her own heart when she thought of the perfect little family that would soon inhabit the den - eighteen pups and two proud, wonderful parents.