Redhawk Caldera Empire of steel.

She couldn't help but wonder if lethargy was a symptom of pregnancy. The past few days, Towhee had barely left the cave, she felt so weary. She didn't feel sick otherwise, simply drained. Today was no different, though she dragged herself outdoors and commenced a slow walk toward the borders. She hadn't been doing her regular patrols and she knew her Regents were a little out of commission lately. Their comrades were picking up their slack, yet Towhee knew she needed to make an effort.

It took twice as long as usual and she was so dead on her feet by the end, the Sovereign simply plopped down in the snow for a rest. She let out a long breath as she rolled onto her side, lids heavy as she peered up at the white winter sky. She didn't fall asleep right away, though her mind drifted lazily as she sprawled there, musing about the pups hopefully growing inside her and thinking, too, of their cousins.

At some point, Towhee did fall asleep. When she woke sometime later, she rolled and sat up with her weight on her elbow. She stretched and yawned, then slowly stood. She began climbing back toward the direction of the cave, though she decided to make a pit stop at her Regents' den. She still hadn't had a chance to talk to @Phox and there were now a few different things on her mind she wanted to discuss with him.

Life went on without Alyx, without Quetzal, without Primrose, without Figment. It was hard with so many of his children flying away from the nest, but Phox reminded himself that was the way things were supposed to work. Staying at home forever was never really an option, was it? Sure, he and Towhee had stuck together pretty much their entire lives, but they had also spent nearly a year apart back when they were kids.

He was taking a nap when she stopped by the den, though the smell of her stirred him. Niamh was already out, and he figured it was probably a good idea to catch up, anyway. They hadn't gotten a chance to do that since... well, it had been awhile. Phox slipped out of the den into the chill of the wind.

-Hey, Towhee.-

As soon as she arrived, she sank to her haunches with a sigh. Her brother emerged a moment later, likely alerted by the shuffle of her footfalls in the crunchy snow. Towhee tapped her tail and managed a weary smile for Phox, mustering the energy to lean forward and touch her nose to his.

-"Bruh, I must be cooking up a massive batch of kiddos 'cause I am wiped,"- she said in way of greeting, reaching up a paw to rub sleepily at one eye. -"It's good to see you. Sorry if I keep this short, I need another nap, stat."- Towhee set her foot back on the ground and, before she dove into any of her inquiries, she inhaled before saying, -"Hey, how're you holding up?"-

-Pretty sure I'm cooking some up, too,- he said, grinning. Technically, he'd only provided the fuel and Niamh was doing the cooking, but that didn't make him any less exhausted just thinking about this year's litter. Every child seemed to come with their own quirks, ambitions, and problems. He couldn't imagine what this year would bring for the kids: both his biological and adopted ones. And he certainly planned to provide for both litters, despite not fueling Towhee's batch.

-I'm... okay. Kids leaving is hard, even when you know it's coming.- Even though Alyx hadn't technically left (?), he knew the time was coming soon. Quetzal had already made her departure to the Frosthawks. Primrose was... well, he couldn't stand to think of that right now, lest he choke up.

-How about you? Is Reyes... wanting to be involved?- he asked. He hadn't been keeping up with Towhee's relationship with him, having been busy with his own duties as a biological father. He did know he'd smelled the two of them here and there around the territory (unless that's too meta-gamey, in which case please nudge, lol).

-"Truth,"- she said simply to his astute statement. -"Been thinkin' about that, actually. We should raise the next batches with dispersal as the goal. Then it won't suck so horribly when it happens. Am I brilliant,"- Towhee quipped, -"or am I brilliant?"-

Phox brought up the very subject Towhee wanted to discuss with him. -"Yes, and I want him to be,"- she replied honestly. -"But I still want you to be a father figure too. We need to come up with a special title for you, like Neema and Towma. I was thinking Phaddy."- Her lips twitched into a tired smile as she huffed a laugh.

Growing a little more serious in the next moment, Towhee admitted, -"And there's actually something else I've been thinking about. I wouldn't say I'm in love with him but I do like him a lot, plus we're making a family together. So... I was thinking about asking him to make it official. And I thought about making him Sovereign beside me but that wouldn't feel right, at least not right now. Maybe a third Regent though?"-

There was still at least one other thing she wanted to float past her brother, though it really depended on what he had to say about these matters. Besides, Towhee had just given him a lot to chew on, so she paused there, orange gaze lingering expectantly on Phox's disfigured but handsome face.

-It will still suck,- he assured her, -but maybe Niamh won't get her panties in a bunch every time if we prepare her from the get-go.- Niamh seemed to take children leaving the hardest of the three parents. Phox had at one time, too, but over the years had come to expect (and even embrace) the fact that his kids were not the homebody sort. Even Figment, who had been with them for so long, had eventually developed a sense of independence. Phox already planned on checking in on him in the spring once things warmed up a bit.

Towhee went on to explain how she wanted Reyes to fit into the puppies' lives, and as usual, Phox rolled with it. Well, all except, -There is no way in hell y'all are calling me Phaddy.- Phox would tolerate many things, but PHADDY?! Nothankyou.

He pricked his ears forward when she talked about her relationship with Reyes and making it official. The last part, though, Phox was more hesitant on. -Hmmm, maybe. I gotta say I don't know him well enough that I can say yes to that just yet.- The current leadership had known each other for years. Reyes still felt like a newcomer.

-I'll make a point to get to know him better, especially if you two are gonna be ~maaaates~,- he teased, though he was sincere about the first part. He had done the same when Towhee had entertained the idea of Arcturus being more involved, and he would extend the same olive branch to her current interest (and baby daddy).

He said the magic word: "mates." Towhee rolled her eyes and shoved at him, though there was a (not so) secretly pleased twinkle in her eye. She had never been one for romance and her entire approach to her relationship with Reyes could hardly be called romantic. But she was rather fond of him and, every day, she also grew more attached to the idea of raising their litter together.

-"Please do,"- she replied simply. -"I'd really like to promote him at some point."- It was technically her decision to make, though she definitely wanted Phox and Niamh onboard, especially if he ended up with the Sovereign title.

Anyway, that left the one last thing she wanted to float past her brother. Towhee kind of needed his validation, since she was actually struggling with it. -"Reyes wants me to take his name. At first, I was like, hell no, I'm not changing mine. But the more I think about it, the more I like the idea,"- she admitted. -"I think I want to go by Redhawk-Rivaini, so I can share with our kids."-

She stopped there, eyes searching his face. Towhee intended to drop her godparents' surname but keep her middle name to honor them. Despite this, she felt like she was betraying their memory or something. Perhaps that was silly. She hoped her brother could help her navigate her feelings on the matter.

The next talking point was... interesting. Phox had always been, and would always be, a Redhawk by name and by birthright. It was strange to hear Towhee speak of taking his name at all, and so he was relieved to hear that she simply meant to hyphenate it. He did know it would mean dropping the Blackthorn from her name, which he had never taken. He had not gotten as close to them as she had when they were younger, instead feeling closest to Raven out of all three of their parents. And then she had changed her name to Frosthawks (hadn't she, or was that only the pack name?), and while he still wasn't keen on it, he supposed he'd given up on being mad about it.

That sounds nice, he said. Admittedly, he'd never had the name talk with Niamh. The kids had taken his name, but he wouldn't have opposed them taking hers or even hyphenating as Towhee was talking about. Maybe he should have asked her, but it had never occurred to him that one or both of them should change their name "for the children," so to speak. Hell, he honestly didn't even know how his own mate introduced herself. Wow, what a terrible husband!

He reacted positively, which gave Towhee hope, though she still hadn't made up her mind on the matter. She wouldn't bother bringing it up to Reyes until then, though in the meantime, she circled back to another naming convention.

-"So, if not Phaddy, then... Phother?"- Towhee quipped, wondering if that would just cause confusion, perhaps resentment from Reyes. But it was also fucking funny, so of course she had to throw it out there.

"Phother" wasn't too far off from "father," and Phox contemplated it for a moment. -That's more like it,- he said, satisfied. It was still a hell of a lot better than Phaddy. Although he wouldn't mind the kids calling him "Dad" or "Phox" either.

-And you're still good with Towma?- he asked. It seemed appropriate to ask since they were all about discussing things lately. Maybe she hated the term. He couldn't even recall who had dreamed it up.

-"'Course,"- Towhee replied with a small smile. After "mom" and all its iterations, it was her favorite title. -"And all its perks,"- she added for good measure, before a yawn suddenly forced her jaws wide apart.

With a shake of her head, she reminded him, -"Told you it would be brief. I'm gonna go nap now. Catch you later."- Towhee gave Phox a companionable bump, tacking on a, "Phoja," as she turned and sidled away in the direction of her bed.

He grinned, glad that she was still happy with the moniker. As for him, it appeared he would just have to live with whatever silly name (or names) Towhee made up for him. She yawned, and Phox was quick to get the hint, taking his leave and allowing her to get all that beauty sleep she needed for the growing children.