Hideaway Strath Let me hear your battle cry tonight

Socialization time for @Lotus!!! @Kynareth Deagon @Simmik @Alduin @Atka @Tulok @Aerin @Whrist @Vein @Leigh @Arlette @Charles @Ramesses @Endre @Valour @Turmeric @Mulberry @Thyme @Blair @Hemlocke + Will be doing some minor PP of Lotus for the sake of them getting to a rendezvous site! :> Set for around mid-afternoon after Nyra recruits Blair! 6/1/2021

The Empress had watched her precious daughter grow over the course of the past month, had seen the splotches of russet appear in her child's pelt, though Lotus's eyes were, for now, still blue. In the coming months, Nyra would inevitably find pleasant surprise in her daughter's eyes becoming fire-gold much like her own.

The Overseer had returned from her patrol with a recruit almost two hours ago, and allowed him to start settling in for the time being while Nyra fetched Lotus from Arlette, guiding her only child back to the whelping den for a thorough bath, before the Battle Phoenix took her daughter's scruff in her jaws and once again descended the steep rise, trotting roughly fifteen to twenty yards from the base of the borderline-wall. This space would do for now. 

Placing Lotus gently at her giant paws on the ground, Nyra smiled to her daughter and spoke with gentle encouragement;
"You get to meet the rest of the pack today, sweetheart. There are other pups here too, that you will get to play with. They're a little older than you and a little bigger, but don't let that stop you from standing up for yourself if any of them get too rough, okay?" 
With that, Nyra stood tall, proud, ethereal and yet radiating with raw power like her co-lead. She raised her muzzle to the air and summoned every Saint, and every soon-to-be Archangel, with a howl. 

Come meet our latest Dagger, everyone! 

if any of my presumptions are not ok, please let me know so we can hash out & i can edit <3

Over the last month, Charles had had a weird feeling at the pit of his stomach. He brought Nyra food, knowing that she needed it and couldn't easily go hunting on her own right now, but that was pretty much the extent of his fatherhood right now. Most of it was from caches, because Charles wasn't the best hunter. Only one time had he gotten lucky and managed to catch an injured rabbit. He wasn't sure if Nyra had noticed it, or cared very much. He usually just left the food and scrammed, and it seemed that she didn't want much more than that of him, anyway.

Nyra had said that he could be there as a father, and that maybe he should be there as a father, but then, she'd not really asked anything of him. She didn't ask him to come see Lotus when he brought food (as a matter of fact, they practically didn't speak at all). She hadn't even called him when the birth had taken place. Kynareth had been the one to be there. And he'd been the one to call Charles. Going off to the Archangels was daunting. It was so tempting just to stay here, in the Saints, with Kynareth. Charles felt his stomach twist as he thought of Kynareth. He wasn't sure what was wrong with him, but it had become pretty clear that something was seriously wrong with him. He didn't want to get with Nyra again at all, despite their actual tangle and their actual child that came out of it, while thoughts of Kynareth made his cheeks flush uncomfortably. He pushed it aside for now. He knew that everyone would judge him if he didn't follow his child and his child's mother to the Archangels.

Anyway, he had been rather nearby when Nyra's howl sounded. Again, he wasn't mentioned especially. He was just, like, there with the rest of the pack. Charles wondered if Lotus even knew he was her father? Was she big enough to get such things, anyway?

Of course, him being nearby meant that he showed up as the first one, and Charles smiled a forced and awkward smile at Nyra as he greeted her. Hey. He then glanced down at little Lotus. How's she doing? he asked Nyra off-handedly, but when he looked at Lotus, he felt something in him change. She didn't look a lot like him, but there were tiny details that he recognised. The brown cloak of her fur, the way her nose looked... He couldn't help but wonder if he had looked the same when he was young. He just stared at her, feeling his world shake.

another calling for the pack to meet a child toward which pharaoh would never be properly inclined.
he followed with a lighter step than before, less dour; he was scribe-aspirant, and with this, he felt Amun's face shine pleasingly upon him. also, this was a pup of nyra's own; he attended more to keep her fickle favour than to see any child.
he was blessed again to see, with a jarring pleasantry, a man with full-fledged coyote features. the memory of how the creatures had always brought him a carnal comfort piqued pharaoh.
it seemed he would not be without a honeyed vision, and surreptitiously traced charles' features with a canny lapis eye, shifting focus from time to time in an elegant manner as not to be caught staring.

Though the two males already in attendance shared a feeling of hesitancy -- or even reluctance -- to respond to the Nightwish's call, The Priestess was only too eager. She'd kept her distance while Lotus was rather young, recalling the incident where she'd overstepped with Simmik, and had been looking forward to the day she might see the little girl again. Children had always been her passion and she felt she shared a special bond with those she had helped delivered -- as well as with their mothers. Though this wasn't to say that she had any favorites amongst their Daggers, though she was particularly fond of @Alduin's antics and found @Tulok's loyalty to his parents unbearably sweet. 

The sylph was practically waddling at this stage in her pregnancy, her thin frame swollen with the child she would soon bear, when she came upon the scene -- glinting moonstones of excitement reserved for Nyra and Lotus as she trotted up to the small group with a wide grin. Her whip-like tail wagged fiercely as she settled on ivory haunches nearby, offering a polite smile to Charles (whom she was not too familiar with) and Ramesses (whom she was not too fond of). 

"She is absolutely precious," the midwife cooed, admiring how the child had grown and the russet patches appearing on her snow-blanketed pelt. "Congratulations, again, ye two," she murmured to Nyra and Charles, including the shy coywolf as she praised the small family.

Her world had expanded greatly the last few weeks. Her eyes opened and although her eyesight was not wonderful, she could at least see now. Not to mention her hearing started to get a bit better. Ears attempting to stand. Her paws grown into a comical size as well as her head.

Regardless, she made for an interesting but troublesome child these days.

Her legs curled close to her as her mother carried her off. It wasn't horribly far but it felt like forever being suspended in air. Her mother's encouragement was met with clumsy toddling and some laughter. Lotus was awfully sure of herself. She had never had to fight for resources or struggle against other squirming bodies at her mother's side.

Eagerly she attempted a childish AWOOOO along with her mother's call. Eager to see that someone answered them!

The man was a stranger to her. That didn't stop her from toddling her way right towards him with the aim of weaving between his long legs. She was...loosely aware of others arriving, but the man that should have been known as Father had her full attention right now.

Finally starting the 2nd round lol, anyone who hasn't joined yet is welcome to!

A lighthearted chuckle to her daughter's attempted howl;
First came Charles. He seemed unsure, shy, awkward. Yet she answered him all the same as Lotus weaved in between her father's legs.

"She's doing well. Growing quickly, quicker than I'm ready for." She smiled some. 
Next, Ramesses. The ex-royal earned a slightly narrowed glare from Nyra, but she was otherwise appeased that he showed himself. 

Then, Aerin. Nyra smiled openly as the Priestess approached, and the Overseer offered a brief nuzzle of friendship as thanks for her kind words.
"Thank you, Aerin. Shell be an even bigger pawful in no time!" The Empress chuckled heartily, loving gaze watching Lotus.

Whrist was nearby and she could not help but come to the White Warrior Woman’s call it thrummed through her in way she could not understand. Almost akin to the way Kynareth’s voice could make her melt and bend her to his will. She held back for long moments though, not that she was afraid of pups she was just … uncomfortable around them was all. Yes uncomfortable.

She didn’t understand the obligation to young, she was not raised to care about pups and so all the commotion about young pups was new and strange to her. She hated every single pup in the pack, even though she had never even bothered to interact with any of them and might not even this time. Though she was watching her pack members she was not overly close to them either. She couldn’t bring herself to get any closer to a single pup.

From her safe distance Whrist was getting ready to turn to trot away but something stayed her paws.
Her attention fell upon the new male, she had spent very little time around him and knew nothing about him, her eyes narrowed a little but she looked away toward the pup briefly before her eyes lifted to Nyra and her expression softened she couldn’t help herself. Then a familiar figure came up to speak to the woman she stared at, her white blue gaze fell upon Charles and somehow she found herself watching him instead, She wished he’d stay here she’d miss him when he left for the other pack. Could she ask him to stay? Would he? Nyra was leaving for sure and that was going to tear a little piece of her wasn’t that enough?

Charles didn't really know the guy who showed up, but he didn't really notice the stares either, so focused on Lotus was he in the moment. When Lotus started to weave between his legs the coywolf let out an awkward but relieved chuckle. He hadn't expected her to show much interest in him, since he hadn't been around much, but there she was.

Nyra answered his question and he smiled, glad to hear that Lotus was doing good at least. At least he'd done something right, then, and the child that he helped create seemed to be doing well and functioning.

Someone that he didn't know overly much — wasn't she a medic or something? — arrived and included him in the congratulations, which felt weird, but also kind of good. Charles smiled appreciatively at her. Yeah, thanks, he said after Nyra heartily responded to her, presumably, friend.

When his eyes fell on Whrist Charles smiled at her, but there was something in her reluctant, faraway gaze that made him not call her towards them. Instead he focused back on Lotus again, with a weird twist in his stomach as he thought of the way Whrist had looked at them.

there seemed to be some tension when the second woman arrived, but ramesses did not spare much of a care for it. he did not come forward; he remained as he was, watching the little tableau of royal and savage wolves greet the child.
and watching the coyote-man where he would, for that one alone truly held pharaoh's interest.

Aerin laughed at Nyra's comment, her grin morphing into a warm and encouraging smile when Charles spoke (the first she could ever remember hearing his voice aloud), the expression shifting again to alert concern when she saw Whrist. She kept her eyes trained on the other she-wolf for a moment, knowing how she felt about pale wolves and pups -- casting a quick glance back at Nyra and Lotus (unaware of Whirst's affections for The Overseer that would likely keep both mother and daughter safe, even if the Blade did hate pups) as if to check that they were still there and Whrist hadn't cast some kind of hex on them with her pale 'evil eyes'. 

Her moonlit gaze discreetly followed the slight curve of the corvid's growing belly when her eyes returned to the shadow, wondering again what it might mean -- if the children she carried were safe with the woman who they would know as mother.

Gonna start wrapping this one up since it's a tad backdated lol. I'll archive at the end of this month! <3 Also gonna PP Lotus a little since she's inactive

 


It seemed nobody else would come. Saddened, just a little, Nyra nosed her child as the young dagger grew quite clearly tired despite her curiosity. 
With this, the Overseer beckoned the cub closer and allowed Lotus to begin to sleep at her feet. She'd carry her back once everyone here withdrew. 

"It seems Lotus is sleepy." The Empress noted uselessly with a  chuckle.

my last post

When Aerin smiled at him Charles smiled back. He didn't notice the glance she sent Whrist, just happy to have his friend here as well. It seemed like Lotus was getting tired from all the attention though, and as Nyra noted this Charles felt like his welcome was being outstayed. The coywolf nodded and said, Uh, yeah — see you later. He would bring some food — probably from a cache since he was a pretty bad hunter — later and perhaps some more chew toys for Lotus, he told himself.

The coywolf looked at Whrist and looked as if he was about to ask her to join him. Then he changed his mind though and slipped off by himself. Little Lotus... She was so perfect. It was hard to imagine that he'd created that. He would count all her little toe beans from memory to himself tonight.