Dawnlark Plains can't get used to something so right

for @Pema but any passers-by welcome to hop in! assuming Pema is right around the den

He'd made a point to stay by Pema's den, only visiting Grayday's body once a day or so. It was changed, now; without Shale's constant presence, the scavengers had had their way, picking the flesh from the bones. It was all he could do not to chase the vultures away--but he knew it was just their way, surviving as they were designed to. Besides, there were more important things to do besides keep watch over a dead man. . .

One of which was to prepare for his incoming pups. The grief he'd felt over Day had slowly morphed into a growing anxious excitement over Pema's due date, coming sooner and sooner, and he occupied his mind in preparing for the litter. Today, he surveyed her den, thinking it was perhaps too small for her, her herbs, and the newborns.

He entered the space, sniffing around to see where excavation could be made to make it larger, wider. The sweet, earthy scent of plants suffused the air, and he breathed it in, feeling at peace. It was a soothing note, a means of calming his spirits, which boomeranged wildly from joy to fear, depending on the hour. Pups were always a blessing--but he knew all too well their birth could end in tragedy, as well.