Redhawk Caldera I'm yours, yours, yours for every season

I made a few assumptions. Let me know if I need to change anything, @Fox...! (And this is yours if you want it. <3)

Fox had taken the failed pregnancy much more in stride; whereas Peregrine had been forlorn and withdrawn, she had been more relieved than anything that it hadn't taken. A small distance had sprung up between them because of it, though it had begun to close over the past week as they shared a sickbed. Perhaps it was strange to bond while dripping snot and coughing up lungs, yet the Alpha male was happy to finally move on from his melancholia and feel closer to his mate again. They would bear through the winter, then prove their true virility in the spring with a healthy litter of pups.

They were more or less emotionally sound and Fox was starting to overcome her illness. Peregrine was glad she was feeling better, though the Alpha male lagged behind his younger mate. His personal plague persisted. He felt stuffy and tired all the time. He tried to stay on top of his duties but he became exhausted quickly, especially since he couldn't breathe comfortably. He was prone to sneezing fits, which were not only pleasant but incredibly annoying. In fact, he was right in the middle of one now as he stood near the northern borders, eyes streaming as he fired off sneezes like a (loose) cannon.

It was true. Fox had felt a flood of relief when any signs of pregnancy had disappeared. It would be better, easier this way. And, when the time was right, she and Peregrine would find themselves parents again. Raven and Nightjar were almost ready to be launched into the ranks with the rest of the adults. Just that thought was terrifying in itself. They were no longer children, but functioning wolves that could make their own decisions.

She had been wandering the borders, contemplating these things, when she heard the tell-tale noise that alerted her to Peregrine's presence: a sneezing fit. She grinned, knowing just how much he disliked them (while she found it adorable). Her little red feet made their way to him, and the rest of her body with it. Despite the little rift that had temporarily grown between them, Fox still felt every bit in love with him now as she ever had. "Still not feeling one hundred percent?" she asked, although the question was rhetorical.

The last one was every bit as intense as the first. In fact, Peregrine felt himself pee a little as the fit finally ceased. He frowned in disgust, then sniffled so noisily that he didn't hear the telltale footfalls coming his way. When Fox spoke, he whirled, a rope of snot swinging with him. When he stopped, it kept going, sailing off to who knows where. Peregrine blinked after it, then faced his mate again. Well, he turned his face slightly to the left so he could see her with his good eye.

"Now that you're here," he purled romantically in reply, reaching out to nibble at her cheek and leaving a little swath of slime sticking to her fur. "Oogh, sorry," he said, quickly licking it away. It was pretty gross, though he'd tasted worse. "I'm an old man," Peregrine mused, referring indirectly to his inability to kick the cold's ass as quickly as a younger wolf (like her) might, as well as to the fact that he'd just wee'd himself.

Fox squished up her face at the snot, though she didn't really mind it all that much. Snot was just another bodily fluid they were destined to have to deal with sooner or later. Now that she'd raised a litter of pups, she'd ingested all kinds of unmentionable things. Unfortunately for wolves, they didn't have baby wipes, diapers, or tissues.

"That you are," she agreed, a twinkle in her eye. "but you're my old man." Not in the sense that he was her father, of course! She gave him a smooch on the cheek, glad that they had a bit of time to themselves. Fox had never been the talkative sort, and sometimes she found it just as easy to be with Peregrine than worry about saying anything at all. She didn't start a conversation, ask any of the things that she might have, or suggest that they go off on some grand adventure. Fox was content to patrol with him, and gestured for him to lead the way around their jointly-led territory.

"God, I hope not," Peregrine quipped in response, nibbling tenderly at the tip of one silken ear. "Although I guess it's technically possible..." He was over two years older than Fox. If she hadn't known her parents' identities perfectly well, it might have been remotely possible. But he was pretty certain he had never unwittingly fathered bastard pups somewhere along the way. In fact—and he would never tell anybody this—he hadn't even lost his precious "V" card until meeting Hawkeye. It was his arrival in the Teekon Wilds that had given rise to the side of him that was interested in leadership, a mate, pups and the like.

His young mate gestured for him to continue his patrol but Peregrine just shook his head. "I actually just finished... and it wore me out. How about we grab something from a cache and mosey back to the rendezvous site for a cuddle puddle?" the Alpha suggested instead. He was tired but not exhausted, so they could take their time and enjoy each other's company. "I'll do my best not to sneeze on your food," he vowed with a switch of his tail as he turned, prepared to start climbing.

She'd be lying if she wasn't a little bit disappointed that Peregrine wanted to turn in for the time being. Then again, she knew how utterly sick she'd felt just a few days ago, so she could certainly empathize with not wanting to be out and about all afternoon. "Sure," she replied, nipping lovingly at his ear. "But don't even think about sneezing on my precious food." She scrunched up her nose, although there was definitely a smile hiding underneath it. Whatever cross-contamination might happen had happened hundreds, if not thousands, of times since they'd been together.

Fox was content to follow along beside him as they started the ascent up Redhawk Caldera. Sometimes, it was difficult to believe that she had such a good life here. Peregrine was a big part of that, of course. Were it not for him, she wouldn't even be here. She'd probably be living under Scimitar and Bazi's rule (ugh!). Then again, that wasn't very like her. She likely would have struck out on her own and attempted to round up some likely suitors just as she'd been doing at Swiftcurrent Creek. That felt like ages ago, though.

After some time had passed, she spoke up. "I barely know the rest of the pack," she began, not really knowing where she planned on going with this. "I think I need to do a better job of getting to know them. I've been so... out of it, lately." Some could be attributed to the various things going on in their lives, but she knew that any leader was responsible for keeping up with the members of his or her pack.

Although he had started the joke, Peregrine pouted playfully at his mate. "It just adds extra flavor," he grouched, then cracked a smile when she scrunched her nose at him. "You look so cute when you look like you're pooping," he cooed at her, tiptoeing sideways in case Fox intended to aim a nip his way.

Together they began their ascent. He felt no need to fill the silence; it was entirely companionable. Peregrine subtly fell back, angling his head to fasten his good eye on Fox's backside. It was still as juicy as ever. He wanted to sink his teeth into it. He wondered if he would go into an asthmatic fit if he tried to get it on with her. He would probably find out the hard way (hurr hurr).

Fox eventually broke the silence, remarking on her lack of familiarity with the wolves in their ranks. "Things have been quiet around here," he said in way of agreement, "and I've noticed everyone's been keeping to themselves, including the two of us. It wasn't just the sickness either; it was happening before then," the Alpha mused. "But we can change that," he added in a sure voice, tail switching.

"But look on the bright side," he said after a long moment of silence, during which the pair of them navigated around a fallen tree, probably the result of the summer storms half a year ago now. "I'd rather this than a bunch of drama and trauma." Life was a roller coaster and Peregrine might have said that they were coasting on a straightaway right now. It was neither up nor down, just sort of boringly linear. "Although maybe we could shake things up, somehow, just a little bit..."

Fox's whole life up until this lull had been such a whirlwind of events, it was easy to forget that it didn't have to be that way. Boringly linear wasn't the worst thing in the world. Far from it, in fact. Peace was something she had grown accustomed to, at least in some small way. She did want to know the members of their pack, though, especially with the second set of children in the (hopefully near) future. Fox felt she should personally vet them. Or, at the very least, one of the two parents should. Having a bunch of near-strangers amongst them wouldn't work.

When Peregrine suggested that they "shake things up," she tilted her head at him. "How so?" she asked, genuinely curious. If she'd been a little bit brighter, she might have guessed that he was hinting that they heat things up with some friction. Alas, Fox was the dullest crayon in the box.

"How so?" Fox wanted to know and Peregrine paused with a mumbled, "Er..." So he hadn't thought that far ahead. But if the two of them put their heads together, surely they could come up with something. "I don't know. Maybe we could have another pack therapy session. The last one went so well," he quipped, recollecting that highly awkward gathering of yore. Of course, the faces would be almost entirely different now, save for their trusty Betas.

"New puppies will definitely breathe some life into things," he mused in the next moment, smiling softly at her. "We haven't actually discussed it, now that I think about it. Things just sorta happened, fast." Fox going into (pseudo?) heat, the two of them going at it like rabbits, the failed pregnancy... "You do want more kids, when the timing's right... right?" He vaguely recalled how the first few weeks had been particularly rough for her. But things had been smooth sailing ever since, as far as he could tell. He couldn't be prouder of the first Firebirds.

"Hah," Fox replied. She barely recalled the event, though she knew that many of their pack activities had quickly grown either awkward or downright crude (ahem, Peregrine). He then mentioned puppies, to which her ears perked up. "Of course I want them," she replied, pressing the top of her head into the side of his neck momentarily. She had a feeling she would be more prepared for them this time around. She knew what to expect, and she would likely be more lenient with them from the get-go. Fox also planned on not staying in the den quite as much this time around. She still blamed herself for Derp's death, no matter what she had told anybody else.

"It's too bad Wildfire won't be around to see them grow up, but I don't think Nightjar and Raven are going anywhere." Neither of them had the wandering tendencies that defined part of who Wildfire was.

She quickly assured him that she wanted to go for round two. He smiled lazily at her, angling his neck to brush the tip of his muzzle against the top of her head. Peregrine planted an airy kiss there, then continued the shuffle onward and upward. They were nearly to the rendezvous site now. He could see it from here, a hillock of dry grass sprinkled with trees. If he looked backward right now, he would get an eyeful of the frozen lake shore.

"Yeah," he replied a little generically to Fox's comment. Unaware that they were both thinking (however indirectly) of their dead son, Peregrine wondered what "Derp" would be like if he was alive today. What would they have named him? Would he have stayed too or gone away like Wildfire? Peregrine felt a queer ache as a result of this train of thought, so he derailed it with a gentle push.

"Hang on," he called to the Alpha female as they neared a stockpile stashed in the slender trunk of a dead and hollow pine. He grabbed the nearest carcass, which happened to be a lean, stiff rabbit. Carrying it in his mouth, he rejoined Fox and motioned for her to lead the way to a good spot for eating, cuddling and perhaps more.

She paused when he told her to hang on, and she looked with interest as he plucked a rabbit from one of their many (hopefully stocked) caches. Once a hunter, always a hunter. Fox had never been that great at catching her own food, so it was damn good luck that she'd ended up with somebody who could hunt for two (or three, or four, or...). "Smart move," she said, planting a kiss on his ear. Now all she would have to do was shield her portion from his sneezing and snot, and she'd be good to go!

Fox took the lead now, with Peregrine close behind (and probably looking at her rump, unless he'd changed dramatically in the past hour). She continued up the mountain, grey eyes scanning for a good place to stop. Eventually, she found a quiet little spot that was overlooking the Teekon Wilds below. Here, she stopped, looked at Peregrine, and lifted her brow. "How about here?" she asked, though she couldn't imagine him refusing. "And please tell me you didn't snot all over our food." Fox smiled through her scrunched up face.

He was surrounded on all sides by breathtaking views, yet Peregrine's eyes most certainly lingered on the best of them all: Fox's butt. As his mind wandered to decidedly dirty places, his mouth even began to water around the cold carcass in his mouth, which happened to send his nose running. By the time his mate chose a spot and he was able to set the rabbit on the grass, there was a stream of snot running over the velveteen fur. In fact, it stretched between his nostrils and the carcass in sticky ropes, which was simultaneously gross but fascinating.

The Alpha male used a broad paw to karate chop the tendrils of phlegm tethering him to the rabbit, though surely not before Fox noticed. "Sorry, babe," he murmured, trying not to laugh. "Good thing it comes in a wrapper," he added, pressing the rabbit's head into the ground and using his yellowed fangs to expertly make cuts around its shoulder blades so that he ripped the skin right off the rabbit, baring its pink meat to the wintry world.

He flung the soiled fur to the side, then flopped onto his haunches and motioned for his mate to take the honors. "I was just thinking that if it happens again soon, the timing will already be much more ideal. So eat up, baby mama." There was a spark in his jade eyes, even the blind one. He had made his peace with the neverborns and already a new dawn was rising on the horizon. In fact, if nature followed the same course as the year previous, Fox's cycle would sync with the winter solstice about a month from now.

"Yick," Fox replied, making a faux retching sound when she saw the state that the rabbit was now in. If she'd known it was going to be that bad, she would have offered to carry it herself. At least Peregrine was gentlemanly enough to tear off the snotted-up skin in preparation for eating, although she had half a mind to tell him he had to eat it. She didn't, though, mainly because she just wasn't that mean.

She was about to take her first bite when he spoke again, and Fox paused to listen. "It will," she agreed, then tore into the rabbit, devouring a little more than half of it in a matter of minutes. The second (smaller) half she nudged toward him when she was done. "Baby daddy gotta eat, too," she said, promptly followed by a burp.

"Don't gotta tell me twice," he joked in reply, pulling a playful face at his mate's unladylike burp before grabbing himself a hunk of meat. He chewed with an open mouth, making noises like a toothless old man trying to eat turkey. It was mostly due to the fact that his nose was simultaneously clogged and runny (how did that happen?) but also because he was being obnoxious on purpose.

Peregrine ate just enough to sate himself, then stretched out on the ground with a quiet groan. "I could use a mashage," he joked, wiggling his eyebrows at Fox, when he suddenly began coughing. The fit only lasted a few seconds, thank goodness. "I'm so over this," he grumped, swiping a black paw over his nose and sniffling.

Fox rolled her eyes at him as he smacked and chomped on his food, ignoring him for the most part. While he finished up, Fox cleaned her front paws, preening the fur until it was free of blood, dirt, and other debris. She paused when Peregrine spoke of needing a massage, to which Fox grinned, padding over to him and licking his ear after his coughing fit. Happy to oblige his request, she turned her attention to the back of his neck and began to nibble gently.

"It'll all be over soon," Fox assured Peregrine, although she didn't actually know that for sure. She just assumed it would be over fairly soon because it couldn't go on forever. Not only that, but she'd gotten better recently, and Perry couldn't be too far behind. She went back to grooming his neck and back, varying the pressure as she went.

Fox was there with both physical and verbal reassurances and he couldn't decide which he found more soothing. But he instantly felt better, more relaxed. Peregrine coaxed his muscles to soften so he could enjoy his mate's ministrations. He told himself that the instant she finished, he would use his freshly limbered body to have his way with her. He would make her feel as good as she had made him feel.

Instead, he fell into a snoring heap, tongue lolling from his mouth since he couldn't breathe through his nose very well. Speaking of which, snot dribbled from his nostrils, forming a crust not unlike the salt around the mouth of a margarita glass. He hacked lightly a few times, though eventually he lay quite still, his body happy for the rest that would hasten healing.

Figured we could fade in preparation for that other thread soon..... ;)