Redhawk Caldera b u s l a s b a n n

Although talking with Maia had brought Ani back down to earth, so to speak, she was still very excited to have met Stratos. And now that she’d gotten some answers to her questions, there was someone else she was just bursting to tell.

Chicky-D! Chicky-D, where are you? I have something to tell you! Ani yelled in a singsong voice as she raced around the caldera in search of @Chickadee.

This post is invitational, not obligational! And anyone is welcome to crash it. ;)

<3

it was so cold! and it was getting colder. her fur had responded, thickening as she hit a growth spurt. "nanny!" she shouted back, dropping the turtle she had dug out of its burrow. she kicked leaves over it and ran to join her sister, nipping and giggling.
"what's up!" the girl asked next, eyes dancing.

She lowered her head to sniff at the snowy ground, keen to locate her sister’s scent trail. This soon proved unnecessary as her sister called back to her. Ani’s head immediately whipped upward at the sound of Chickadee’s voice. She bounded toward it, the two meeting in the middle in a swirl of frosty sparkles.

Chicky-D, I met a boy! Ani exclaimed, putting a paw over her heart, giggling as she declared, And I’m in love!

a boy?? chickadee stuck out her tongue. "blech! but boys are so icky!" look at their gross brothers for instance! "in love? like mama and daddy?"
she brightened with curiosity. "where did you meet him? can i meet him too?" chickadee had only left brecheliant once, a homebody at heart, but this was too cool to pass up.

Brothers are icky, Ani countered with another giggle, but this boy is so beautiful and kind, Chicky-D! Yes! Yes, of course you can! I’d love for you to meet him! I met him in the woods north of here! His name is Stratos! she shared, every single sentence coming out an exclamation.

She paused to take a breath, eyes dancing and cheeks aching with the broadness of her smile. Not only was Ani happy to talk about Stratos, it meant all the world that Chickadee seemed happy for her and interested in learning more.

He doesn’t live there, though, she thought to add about Bramblepoint. He calls his pack a village, isn’t that so cute?

her tail wagged furiously. beautiful and kind. and he made nanny's eyes shine like the ice she had noticed beside the lake. "a village? that's a cool word!" she said exuberantly. 
she'd never felt the way about anyone the way that her sister seemed to feel about this beautiful kind boy. "what color are his eyes?" she teased, butting the other girl lightly. "i bet you have made up like, a hundred poems, huh?"

I know! Ani veritably screamed.

Chickadee asked about the color of Stratos’s eyes and she let out a happy sigh as she drew up his face in her mind’s eye. She couldn’t wait for her sister to see for herself, though she would do her best to describe him in the meantime.

They’re blue, so blue, Ani said, brighter than the sunniest sky I’ve ever seen. We were admiring the icicles in the trees and that’s what they remind me of; they’re so icy! But also warm at the same time, she continued, letting out yet another airy giggle as Chickadee butted her.

Preening now, she told the older girl, He called me ting-miaq and then qu-pa-nu-aq, which mean ‘bird’ and ‘songbird.’ He also said my actual name is pretty, she shared, her excitement reaching fever pitch as she grabbed Chickadee’s shoulders and shook her gleefully.

oh, god! her sister really did have it bad! yet she listened good-naturedly, to the words as well as the way nanny shaped them.
and then the other girl said something that involuntarily surprised her and forced a bit of defensiveness into her gut. her actual name? why wasn't her name good enough? 
that felt unfair. she wasn't sure what to do with the feeling but chickadee was not about to ruin anything right now. "he sounds great! and he can teach you new words? is he gonna be your boyyyfriennnddd?" she laughed, letting herself loll back and forth dramatically as she was shaken!

Gosh, her eyes lit up when Chickadee teased her about titles. Better yet, Ani wanted to marry him! But especially after talking with Maia, she knew she couldn’t just run off with someone she’d just met. Anyway, she had no desire to leave her home or family, even if Stratos was very tempting!

That actually made her think of something. She lightly shook her sister once more, then released her and fell back with a thoughtful look on her face. Most young women would’ve joked about whether Stratos might have a brother, perhaps, so Chickadee could find a good match too.

But Ani always wanted to share with her beloved Chickadee, so she proposed gleefully, Maybe if you like him too, we could share him?

chickadee fell back with the same theatrics into the wet leaves piled on the ground. she tangled her forelegs with ani's and tried to drag her down with a hoot of laughter. "share?" 
but she was thoughtful, even as she tugged at the other's ruff, untangling it in places that could not be reached by ani herself. "well. he'd have to like me back first, right?" but her eyes danced. "so! if we like each other, then yeah. why not? that would be cool."
super cool. it had never occurred to her that she'd ever have to be without ani, and with this little suggestion, she had no reason to suspect that her sister was about to truly run off with beautiful kind stratos of the blue ice warm eyes.

Ani let herself be pulled down too, laughing brightly as her sister echoed her offer. She nodded earnestly. Perhaps it was strange to propose such a thing, yet there wasn’t a jealous bone in her body, particularly when it came to Chickadee.

Her sister pointed out that Stratos would have to like her back. Ani took it for granted that he liked her in the first place and she was absolutely certain he would adore Chickadee as much as she did. She flapped a paw, gesturing at both of them.

What’s not to love? she asked cheekily, planting one on Chickadee’s cheek for good measure. He’ll be the luckiest boy alive! she chirped in a singsong voice. We could all share a den and raise babies together, Chicky-D! Doesn’t that sound wonderful?

"it sounds like you have it allllll figured out, ani," chickadee said with full warmth. "that sounds very nice!" and why not? she had no thoughts of the future beyond this moment. "how many kids will we have?" she giggled, rolling to paw leaves right toward her sister's face!
and yet she was a little nervous to leave brecheliant, a little nervous to meet this boy.

As many as we want! Ani shouted happily.

Truthfully, she’d never given the concept of children or motherhood much thought. But just now, she decided she would love to have puppies someday. She would aspire to be just like Mama Maia. All the better if she could share that miracle with her sister.

I think I want six, Ani shared after giving it a moment’s thought, three boys and three girls. I’ll name one of the girls after you, call her Chicken! she joked, slapping her paw against the ground.

six! but that didn't seem so many, chickadee decided, given how many siblings they'd grown up with. "then i want eight!" she declared, laughing at her sister's joke, "and i'll name one nannigans!" a boy, she decided.
she kissed her sister back and sighed contentedly. "this will be fun. when are we going?" if he was all that great, she didn't want to wait.

Between them, they would bring fourteen pups into the world. Ani wondered if there were enough teats between the two of them to nurse such a gigantic litter! The thought made her giggle uncontrollably for a few seconds.

Soon! Ani promised, nibbling at Chickadee’s earlobe. I promise. Although right now, I don’t want to be anywhere else or with anyone else, even a hunk like Stratos, she added, throwing a foreleg around her sister’s shoulders and squeezing her close.

I figured you could archive and/or fade here.