Dawnlark Plains dil chahta hai

they're baaaaaaack! shit post is shit but AW y'all

everyone always said that "home was where the heart is." and though adi felt, as usual, the pulll toward the sea, and enjoyed every moment on the coast, after a moon of wandering, it was time to come home. he and @Dawn made their way back to morningside slowly, savoring the alone time--for he knew they wouldn't get much of it on the crowded plains.

they headed mainland, in the shadow of the mountains, and passed through the aromatic forest before emerging onto the open rolling hills, a pair of lithe, salt-kissed wolves. adi wagged his tail, looking over at his mate with a smile, before stepping over the border and giving a gentle, crooning howl, announcing their presence back home.

he was excited to see his family and friends again, and to play with the new babes, who should be old enough to be out of the den by now. he was ready to get back to his old habits and duties, now with a newfound vigor given to him by the fresh ocean air. it was time to settle back in, become a pack wolf again.

It had been a long time since Adi and Dawn had left on their trip. Pema was beginning to wonder if they would return at all with how long they had been out. When she heard the familiar sound of a howl from Adi her tail began to wag and she got right up from where she had been laying down. She was four weeks into her pregnancy now and though others may not be showing this early Pema had developed a small baby bump. She forgot about that when she galloped to the border.

"You're back!" she said happily when she reached the border and they came into view. She rushed up to them giving both of them affectionate hugs and nudges. "It felt like you were gone forever."  she stated lightheartedly.

feel free to hop in any time with @Dawn, thalia

the first wolf to greet him was pema, and while things seemed normal from a distance, it became quite clear as she approached that things were indeed not normal. her gait was slower, more pronounced, and as his gaze drifted to her ever-so-slightly rounded belly, his golden eyes widened in surprised joy. he returned her embrace with the utmost warmth, drawing back to blink happily at her.

"it feels like it, now," adi responded, grinning. "vah! pema, congratulations. i'm so happy for you," he gushed, dipping his muzzle at her swelling abdomen. "who's the lucky guy?"

there were a few men in morningside that seemed they might be interested in the medic, but aditya couldn't come up with a solid guess off the top of his head. shale, perhaps? sylvas streiter? or even sunny--though he smirked at that, as he would have never put the two of them together.

still, whoever the father was, it was his dear friend pema about to become a mother, and that was some of the greatest news they could have come home to. "how are things here?" he asked her, the smile still lingering on his face.

Pema was the first to greet them as they neared the border; offering the both of them an affectionate greeting and having the huntress pause in her step. She noted something off, but it was not until Aditya spoke that she realized just what it was. Her gaze sparked, and she offered the woman an echoing congratulations. There was too disappointment, a resigned sort, that flickered briefly. Not because she truly wanted young, no, but because surely- 

but she had already spoken with Adi, weeks ago, and the huntress allowed the emotion to dissipate along with her next breath. "yes - how are you all?" surely should something terrible have happened, the woman would not be so jovial.

After their embraces, Adi was quick to point out Pema's pregnancy. Something she had almost forgotten in her excitement. Dawn congratulated her soon after, to which she replied,  "Oh. Thank you guys very much. And the 'lucky man' is Shale. We are about a month along now."  she said with a joyous grin on her face. As the days got closer and closer to her becoming a mother, her excitement only grew. The feeling of worry and caution hadn't set in yet, which was for the best. This was something good, nothing to worry about.

She could have gone on and on about herself but there were other things that had gone on while the pair were gone. A lot of good but also some bad, like the absence of Easy. She thought to mention the good first, not wanting to ruin the mood of a warm welcome home.  "Well. Your father and Cat's pups are doing great. A rambunctious bunch." she said with a little chuckle. "Aside from myself, Aviana is also expecting. We are about to have a lot of little ones running around."  she said in a jokingly playful voice.

shale, then. that would make pema's pups his. . .cousins-in-law? at least, that's what he thought. actually, now that he thought about it--the union of shale and pema meant that he and his best friend in morningside were now related, bonded by marriage. the sentiment sent joy coursing through his body, and he bounced a little on his toes, an almost childlike dance, wagging his tail.

and aviana, too? here adi paused, remembering his first and only interaction with the woman. it had been wretched, and he needed to seek her out to apologize. he'd avoided her ever since the incident. . .but now, especially as she was about to become a mother, he should make amends. it was only right. even if she didn't accept.

"how very exciting," aditya remarked, grinning. he looked at dawn. "looks like we've come back just in time." he softened his gaze at his mate. he knew she'd never really ceased feeling bad about not being able to produce this year--and he wanted her to understand that he would never hold it against her, even as they found themselves surrounded by other wolves' children.

her brow creased the tiniest fraction when Pema mentioned that Avian, too, was pregnant. It had taken a pack to raise herself and Sunny, and while Morningside surely was strong, and tight-knit, three mothers was a lot for any pack. admitting her thought to the pregnant woman seemed wrong, however, and she could only hope silently that the prey would run well here, too. 

still-  "aviana? who's the father?"  she couldn't particularly bring to mind anyone the woman seemed to have her eye on, or vice versa. had it been intentional? she remembered clearly her father's talk of breeding guidelines and wondered just how the woman's pups had come about. nevermind the lingering disappointment in her gut, the way her mate's eyes softened, she'd deal with that later.

She was happy to see that Adi shared her excitement. She knew that Dawn was happy for her too, at least that's what she assumed. But Dawn tended to be more of a stoic individual so Pema didn't take her pack of expression personally. She laughed a bit at Adi's last comment. "Oh yeah. We are going to need all the help we can get with so many little ones running around."  she said raising her brows. Knowing their numbers know it could be hard in the future to sustain all the pups with 3 mothers out of commission. But Cat's litter would be much older when Pema gave birth, freeing her up to do more daily tasks. But it was still a lot.

When Dawn asked about Aviana, Pema shrugged. "No one knows but her. I haven't inquired too much on it. Day gave her permission to have a litter this year. That's all I really know about it." though Pema was curious she didn't feel it was her place to intrude and ask Aviana about her pregnancy. She had gotten permission from Day and that was all that really mattered. Still, she wished that she had brought back whoever it was so they could help with the hunts in her absence.

"But what about you guys. Where did you guys end up going? It's been so long I've forgotten if you told me before you left." she said switching over now to Dawn and Adi's time away.

dawn's question had his eyebrows up; he hadn't thought of that particular variable in the scenario. that shale had taken pema whittled it down even further, and somehow, he couldn't picture either of the remaining eligible males with the woman. maybe someone outside the pack? it appeared not even pema knew, but if permission had been given, then that was that.

still, now that he reflected on it, it left a bad taste in his mouth. no father around? he wondered if aviana would tell her children who it was, if he would participate in their raising. his own background made him skeptical of any mystery surrounding paternity: he dared not ask her himself, though. it wasn't his place.

the conversation moved on to a lighter subject, and aditya smiled again, face relaxing. "we went down, down, down the coast, all the way to moonspear and past that," he narrated, hearing the surf in his ears as if he were right on the beach. "the caldera wolves have moved down that way; it was good that we came here, for it seems they were still having trouble with their old neighbors."