Bearclaw Valley Friday Night I Crashed Your Party

She woke up in the middle of the night with a start. An owl hooted softly in the darkness, and she assumed it was the bird that had startled her, but when she settled her head back down and closed her eyes, she found that they slid back open easily. She huffed. This meant that she would be awake for at least an hour now and so- why not get a head start on the day's list of tasks. 

Whether or not they ended up officially claiming the valley, she did intend to make it appear as such so that they wouldn't be perturbed as much. There was only one way into the valley, which would make for a good, short patrol. She set about meandering along the edges, leaving her scent-marking behind as a warning for any who came their way.

ancelin had settled into the role of a provider more easily than he had thought he would.
nothing had expected him to find a pair of wolf kids hanging out here, or a woman who couldn't share their common tongue. 
it was ironically the rise which had prepared ancelin to hunt well, to guard, to answer instinct. food was needed and so he found it for them.
there was also the vague sensation which had not left, that he knew them somehow. ancelin tried not to spend any time on this, though it did crop up at night no matter what he did.
his mate was up early. ancelin yawned and padded after her, nipping at ameline's tail with a tired grin. "we're supposed to be on vacation, you know."

She snapped out of her focused stare when she heard pawsteps approaching. Even in the darkness, he was unmistakable and she smiled as he approached, watching him over her shoulder. Her tail lifted slightly at his touch, swinging to bat him on the shoulder and again his hip as he drew level with her. 

She knew that this wasn't what he had expected their life to be- it wasn't what she had expected, either. And yet, a little cluster of wolves tucked away in a beautiful valley was still preferable to whatever it was that they'd left behind. She wondered on and on how their departure had been received, but tried to push those questions to the fringe of her periphery; the rise didn't matter anymore. 

Her brow raised. "Oh, right," She said, feigning surprise. "Dunno how that thlipped my mind," She said in jest. Between the potential of an impending civil war, a one-on-one fight with the former leader and the guilt that came with abandoning it all, their plans of freedom had been overshadowed. Now, having children to tend to, they found themselves tethered once again and yet she didn't mind it. She toyed with the fur near the bearclaw hanging in his fur. "It kinda maketh me more ecthited to have kidth of our own, though," She said optimistically.

ancelin growled softly as ameline came near, his ears pinned back as he sought the edge of her jawline with a lick. he hadn't even resisted falling into a familiar routine, and realized it had been necessary all along — on his own terms.
a small part of ancelin wondered if avicus would come after them, but other than that, he kept the rise far from his mind. hopefully they'd found the fuckin peace they wanted.
her words warmed his cheeks. "yeah? we'll be pretty experienced by the time that comes around. i mean, you already are. more than me," he added, thinking of how she'd put herself right in front of the pups and fed them quickly.

"Mmhmm," She said, warming as she leaned against his side. It took next to nothing for Ancelin to stir primal feelings within her, held at bay temporarily while they conversed. 

She knew he intended to compliment her, but she couldn't help but wonder if his statement wasn't some sort of admission of apprehension regarding his own experience. "I'll thay," She agreed. "That li'l one with yellow eyeth took to you right away," She said. "Exthperienth ith one thing- jutht bein' a natural ith another," She growled, glowing with pride. The sight of Ancelin around kids always made her heart feel full, knowing that some day, she would get to see him alongside some of his own children.

a wind rose in the creaking old trees, and ancelin pulled ameline against him, exhaling a good deal of his stress right into her inviting ruff. he was indeed apprehensive, which was what he told masque. but thinking about masque hurt, and thinking about how the younger kids of the rise had liked him somehow hurt more.
ancelin hadn't thought he cared so much.
"a natural, huh," he grunted, flushing a little beneath his mate's praise. "gotta get them through winter before i can claim that," he grinned; downplay, downplay, downplay. 
"but while we're on the subject — how many do you want, leelee?"?

"They'll be fine," She murmured, "We got thith; both of uth," After all- it was just two pups. Surely they had dealt with harder times when raising the children Avicus had left behind. Fostering children gave her great pride and satisfaction, and the feeling that she was doing better by the children she took care of than what others had done for her. She knew love for orphans that had only grown fiercer now that she knew how ostracized they could be, even after a year of hard work and dedication. 

"How many?" She asked herself, rhetorically. "Hmm...I mean, at leatht two, maybe three. I'll deal with four, but I feel like that'th when it thtartth to get harder." She said, reflecting on the most recent Redtail litter. She thought of Augur and New Snow's children, and found the smaller litter number a bit more appealing. "What d'you think?" She asked then, curious to know where his preferences fell.

"four would be difficult," ancelin agreed, though a bit absently as his eyes traveled over the heavy stone walls separating the oddly shaped valley from the rest of the rising sun.
the presence of neighbors was highly noted, a formidable and active pack with solid leadership.
and yet ancelin in this moment was assessing the fortress of stone as a place to successfully raise a litter that size, even if he didn't know it, even if it felt to the young hunter like a random perusal.
"we'd make it work, though," he concluded with a wink. "i want like seven hundred but i'd settle for two or three," ancelin said glibly, returning from his contemplations to press their flanks against one another and chase the edge of her jaw with another kiss.

From what Raelle had told her, she had been born in a litter of four which led her to believe that there was indeed a possibility that she might too bear a large brood. Ancelin seemed to share about the same level of concern that she had had, but the confidence that they would manage. She chuckled, tail waving- impressed that he might want for so many heirs. 

"We have many yearth to make 'em," She said, shuddering as his touch ignited her senses. "Our own Bearclaw family, with little Anthuhlinth, an' little Amelineth," She said, a smile edging as she spoke the name that they had chosen together.

ancelin only had the capacity for the same sort of pair produced by new snow and augur every year. the lurking genetics of his mate not withstanding, however, ancelin was filled with anticipation of the future.
"it's a nice place," he mumbled, though what his muscles bones hair follicles and marrow were shouting was mine. the borders were dusted with he and ameline by now, enforcing this latent aggression and dominance now presenting itself. she had tasted leadership and he had always been in the background. now she held her own and he for the first time had been thrust into a leading role by default.
the presence of children did not help this knifing sensation of possessiveness, pups small enough to need their feeding.
his eyes were warm on her.

She hummed softly, a gentle purr of pleasure. She considered the valley, settled deep into the gorge, split by a flowing river. If nothing else, it was certainly discreet, though she thought for a moment about the valley's one entrance, wondering if that might ever prove to be a problem. In the meantime, it made things quite manageable; they would not have to worry quite so much about strangers coming for the children if there was only one small border to protect. 

She had nodded silently, though her gaze was distant for a moment. His gaze felt like warm candlelight on her skin, and drew a smile to her lips, though it was faint only lasted for a moment, fading like a shadow beneath a cloudy sky. "Do you think they'll come for uth?"

her smiles were reason for adoration; ancelin kissed one corner of her mouth and then the other. "i don't. the kids might support her there but i doubt they'd come all the way here just to fight us. besides," he went on, head lowering until he could trace her shoulder with his muzzle, "we're not alone here. there's at least three adults, and more, if their mom shows up."
they had a pack already, young and hunters. ancelin was just not yet ready to embrace that thought fully until he himself was more settled. "pretty sure my dad was born here," he mused, trying to remember what little he knew of the place itself.

She reflected on the manhunt they had been dragged along for when she'd been an adolescent, and while Ancelin didn't seem to think Avicus would hold a grudge, Ameline had reason to believe otherwise. At the end of the day, he was still a part of her family- and she was the one who had sought to uproot them from their home. She took some solace in his words, though, and tilted her chin up. 

"You're right; though I dunno if they'll wanna thtep into thome other family'th drama," She said. Maybe, if the children's mother showed up, she might participate, to repay the debt. "I don't think they'll give uth a problem. It'th really only a mattuh of time before Avicuth thtepth down again, anyway." She stated with an easy roll of her shoulder, as though to shrug off her worries. 

He spoke of his father- a rare occurance, and she tilted her head. "What maketh you think that?" She asked.

"i don't know. he said it was a valley, this way, but not much else. maybe i'm wrong and he's never been here before." ancelin shrugged, though the feeling did not leave him even if he denied it.
"well masque will probably take it then," ancelin commented offhandedly, though he didn't care what avicus did at this point. there was a sense of regret however, that he'd never been close enough with his aunt to ask anything about her past. his past. theirs.
not in a thousand years would he admit he missed her, but he did. not in terms of affection, but constancy; she had been the last member of that bloodline standing. and he had left after all.
melancholy, ancelin sought ameline's comfort, butting his head against her shoulder with a low growl.

"Hmmm," She mused quietly. She preferred to believe that they had found the valley that she considered to be Ancelin's birthright, though she knew they could make any place of reasonable value their home- and pass that birthright down to their children once they came of age. Still, she was fully prepared to accept this as her father-in-law's birthplace, anyway, and tell all of their children that it had always been in the family. 

Her features lifted when Ancelin mentioned Masque. She considered the possibility for a moment, and pursed her lips thoughtfully. She had dismissed Masque before- but the Caru-Ulfr had proved their mettle many times since then. "I kinda hope tho." She admitted. "Might give 'em a bitta thtability. I jutht hope that if Avicuth doeth have more kidth, she won't bail the fuck out on 'em again." She said. 

She thought of Mulherin, Redsky, Watcher and Carrion, all left behind before their puppy teeth had even finished coming in. She considered her own upbringing, and how Ancelin as well had been left behind as well. The two girls that were now in their care had been seemingly abandoned or orphaned as well. 

"We're gonna be good parentth, aren't we?" She asked.

"excellent," ancelin rumbled in surety, wanting to throw out all talk of his aunt and her kids and the rise; he filled his senses with ameline and nipped first playfully at her shoulders, then a bit more insistently.
all this discussion of a future reminded him of the portion it took to get there, something on the horizon of both their lives. he could sense it even if he could not name it, and now trembled with an answering desire that brought his mouth close in a whisper; "gonna have to be quiet."
and then ancelin would urge her into the trees, to christen the long and sacred shadows that might be his by blood but already belonged to them by deed.

Excellent parents. She would have to draw what little knowledge she had of good parenting from Augur, New Snow and Masquerade- for them, caretaking had come effortlessly, as had the fidelity that was necessary to remain present and see all the children through to adulthood. 

She tilted her head in confusion for a moment- her mind still stuck on the revolving wheel of assurance and doubt- until she saw the glimmer in his indigo gaze. She felt a flutter in her chest, and cracked a grin. "Insatiable," She murmured affectionately, before she was whisked away to the privacy of shadows.