Greatwater Lake Drag me to death, like a lit cigarette

forwarding this by a day or so... depending on how quickly he reached the lake.

There was no other wolf in existence he had a single care for in this life but one. And Khaba knew exactly where she would be.

Roaming along the great lake, he searched for sight or scent of @Zharille.

She would be here. She had to be. For if not, there was nothing else he the mind to live for.

Once, this woman had accepted him in his time of despair. Now he can only hope she will do so again.

she had called for them, but they did not come.

her ice man had departed when his white woman had gone; they went together, zharille thought, and was bitter about it. she had not seen the others - and was growing increasingly despondent, and angry, and heavy! soon her children would arrive and she was not prepared.

when she saw a dark, bear-like shape by the water, with its head down and its body creeping along, zharille was hesitant. she wanted to drive away the threat but knew better than to face a bear alone, especially so heavily pregnant; but she crooned a warning note all the same, unaware that this was someone she knew.

Someone approached. But they carried a different scent.

Then the crooned; a warning. 

He stopped, for a moment, only to be sure this was who he thought it was. 

It was.

Slow, he moved. Careful, gentle, wary; her warning had been heard. It was not his wish to upset her.

A low chuff in return, he gave. Eager; willing her to allow him to approach. To embrace her. For her to embrace him.

the woman had not expected this man in particular to come crawling home to her, and it was evident by the way she watched him; the low angle of her tail, the twitching of her tail-tip and the shifting of her ears indicative of interest, even if it was reluctant.

when the creature moved, she recognized it - recognized him. and the closer he got, the easier it became to assume the prideful arc of her tail, and the lifting of her posture; but the walk over was tedious, given the sway of her belly. she was positively corpulent at this stage.

as angry as she might have been, she was also desperate now. the other men had fled from her after getting what they'd wanted, and she was left alone with a lake she could not swim in, could not adequately fish from; she needed him.

so she approached, sniffing at the air around him, and finding - a woman's scent?

zharille withdrew like a snake readying a lunge, and flashed her front teeth.

what was this?

I'm sorry if this too soon for Naz! let me know if so!

There was recognition, but also a flare of hunger. Another had come with him, and she knew it. 

@Nazli was not far behind him.

Turning to the girl, he beckoned. She should join at his side so that Zharille may understand.

But first, to Nazli he would speak. This woman is a friend. It is different life here. Words are few. None, for her. But it needn't be for us.

Now to Zharille. Khaba gestured to the young wolf beside him. She was no threat to their companionship, or whatever she wanted to call it. She was a friend. One that required his protection, as he had promised it.

she had hidden at every opportunity.

they had gone the way of the secret passages, beyond to the woods, and beyond even that! from the lake nazli could make out the shape of the mountains and felt a dreamlike freedom; as if she were indeed dreaming, and any attempt to make sense of her situation would cause the untimely wake to reality.

and there came the crooning of a woman's voice. nazli was afraid to be seen, and so she hid until khaba called for her. when she finally crept from hiding she was clearly disheveled: tinged with a gray-brown mud and sullen, with dark circles by her eyes.

she looked nervously to khaba and shrank back, like a child might.

zharille out!

it was not a woman that joined him, but a fat and ugly girl. there was not much about her that was wolf-like, and at first zharille only saw the threat of the coyote blood in her - and the fur of her spine rose defiantly. she eyed this misshapen girl with disdain.

what made khaba choose that over the strength of zharille? she remembered the man that had come, and then stolen khaba from her initially. he had smelled of dust - and this girl, she also smelled of that same dust, but bitter too, like a snake's musk.

a rumble started low in her chest, and she looked to khaba again, as if debating what she might do - what exactly was she capable in her current state when her rage did manifest? but khaba was strong too; stronger now than zharille, who had to protect what she carried in her belly.

she gave a snap of her teeth towards the girl as the singular sign she did not like this and then, withdrew with a lick of her lips. she looked away from both of them, accepting their presence here.

Zharille was not pleased by this at all. Khaba knew to read the signs. But luckily for both him and Nazli, she pushed past her disliking and showed acceptance.

Taking it without question, he turned back to Nazli. Let's find a den where you can settle. She was his priority now. And despite how much he wanted to run after Zharille, he would have to wait.

the woman gave her a look that made her feel incredibly homesick, of all things. none of akashingo ever let the truth of her station become a weapon to wield against her, yet they sometimes held that disdain, or that dismissive affect. it was familiar, and with everything else as foreign as could be around her, she latched upon that.
no words were shared between the stranger and khaba, which was odd. nazli dared to glance her way, and at that time she had to freeze, as there were teeth slicing the air! she shrank back again and pressed against the shadow beside her, comforted at once by the presence of the ex-jodai; and then the other woman was leaving them be.
are you sure we are welcome --? she whispered to him, trembling.

pleased when the girl shrank away, zharille gives khaba one lasting final look; one of reproach, which softens only as she pulls from the gathering spot and begins to tread away through the trees. she does not see this girl as a threat because she is so young, but she dislikes the stray that khaba has brought to her door. it will be his responsibility to keep them alive - zharille would owe this ugly thing no favors.

one ear turned when a dull sound caught in it, that of the girl's voice, but zharille was already a wolf-length from them. she gave a huff and swaggered on, leaving them to their own devices.

last from me! new thread coming soon!

Nazli was uncertain, but in her stead, Khaba pushed away any sense of doubt.

We are, Nazli. She is a friend... Cut close, the statement was, as he knew she was in fact much more. But what his new companion didn't need to know wouldn't hurt her.

Come. He beckoned, ready to lead her away.

Now was the time to trust in Khaba. He had trusted in her, to get them out of the palace without issue; now they had a place to hide, and a woman who would hide them. The girl was uneasy with all of it; but she had to try, and so she silently fell in to walking with the man as he led her along.