Ravensblood Forest convalescence

Lotte cracked a smile at the mist-shrouded mother-to-be. She was such a funny little wolf! The battle-whetted soturi felt their differences keenly, but if she squinted — Olive wasn’t all that bad. She was easy to get along with in that she posed little to no threat to the Ansbjørn bitch, was devoted first and foremost to her husband, and had no designs on Arturo’s affections. Even her children seemed of little importance now, although Lotte’s moods were as capricious as her hormones could make them. Right now she was in a good place, willing to regard the sage-eyed sage with tolerance and magnanimity. “This will be my first litter also,” she said, though it was probably obvious. Lotte wasn’t that much younger than Olive, for her first head had come only two months prior to her second birthday, but she tended to expect more from older females. In the tundra, age had been indicative of experience and strength — but the softer clime had made for softer females, and Lotte couldn’t find role models in Olive or August. This had irked her at first, and would continue to irk her from time to time, but if she could do away with her childish expectations —

…well, more sisters was never a bad thing.

“My mother always said that I was made for motherhood,” Lotte mused. “I drove my siblings mad with my fussing.” Her throat grew tight as she thought of Bård and Tove, Lærke and especially Dagfinn. She didn’t know quite what to make of Olive’s question: “How lucky are we to experience this journey together?” There was something deeply singular about pregnancy that made Lotte want to shut down that idea where it stood and keep it for herself, but there was also a deep desire for camaraderie that kept her from doing so. Her hesitation was palpable before her black-masked face broke with a mischievous smile. “We are lucky,” she agreed with a chuckle. “Maybe Arturo and Dakarai are not so lucky — I, for one, eat enough to feed myself and ten cubs.” Her tone was rife with disappointment as she muttered: “I eat this much, but still I am not fat,” she fairly pouted. “How long does it take for them to show?”