Sun Mote Copse you woke the world inside of me

@Odessia

She had been told to cease her patrols, yet Waawaashkeshi could not help but want to walk the tree line and look over the hills beyond. But she had to admit - it was tiring.

Sat in the sunlight for a rest, the woman with her rounded belly and swollen teats could not help but wonder how much longer she would be able to do this. She would need to retire to her whelping den soon, the way things had been going. She was excited for her litter, excited to raise them with Nasamiituuq, but it would be foolish if she did not admit that it would be incredibly hard.

She would have to get used to managing the pack from one place - before that, she would need to get used to remaining in one place. Releasing a breath as wind blew past her, she had to wonder just where all of this would take her.

There were no pressing matters for Odessia to attend to beyond her own survival—which was just the way she liked it. With her appetite returned and her nightmares diminished, she had plenty of time to roam the wilds and scout out locations. For what, exactly, she had not decided. She had found more instances of those flowers popping up, for which she was grateful. It meant that Solenya did not have some sort of monopoly on them.
Spotting somebody up ahead, Odessia thought it best to (cautiously) investigate. It had been quite awhile since Odessia had run into the wolf in estrus, and since the encounter had been so brief, she did not recognize that this was the same female. In typical Odessia fashion, she took in the other wolf's appearance and made her judgements.
"Got knocked up, huh?" she said.
Odessia had been around the year prior to help her own mother raise her younger siblings, so she knew the signs all too well. The distended, round belly. The pink nubs where hair should be. The look of pure exhaustion (although she could have been imagining that one).
"My name is Odessia."
Might as well make proper introductions.

A stranger was usually a welcome sight to Waawaashkeshi, but given the greeting this one provided.. she could not help but be a bit put off.

..Waawaashkeshi. She offered her own name in return, squinting her eyes. Something about this one felt familiar, though she could not quite place their face just yet. What brings you to the copse? She wanted to remain friendly - it was in her nature, even if the woman was a somewhat off-putting. Maybe she was just more direct than others; Waawaashkeshi could understand that.

The obviously pregnant wolf failed to acknowledge her question.
"Waa-waa-waat now?" Odessia asked.
That was—by far–the most outlandish name she had ever heard in her life. She was pretty certain this wolf was messing with her, but she was not entirely sure how to determine if that was true or not. Recognizing tone was not her strong suit by any means.
"Is that what you are? A corpse?" she asked, her voice somewhere between skeptical and outright terrified.
Odessia was pretty certain now that this wolf was trying to pull one over on her. Although if she were an undead entity, that would be even more terrifying than a misunderstanding—maybe. Could the undead even get knocked up? Did she die while knocked up, and she was now sentenced to walk the earth for all eternity carrying around her unborn children? Was that better or worse than having the undead children?!
Odessia tried to mask her quickly spiraling thoughts on the matter. Maybe that explained her gobbledygook name. It could have been her "undead" name, given to her when she crossed over to the other side (wherever that was).

Mystery solved. She wasn't direct, she was outright rude. Carrying twenty plus pounds extra of puppies has made her far less tolerant of bad attitudes.

No, copse, not corpse. My territory. She had half a mind to call on A'yan or Sunchaser to chase this one off. We here are called the Summerwalkers, and we are very much alive. A silly thing to have to clarify. What kind of wolf really believed in the undead?

Looking over the pale wolf, she frowned. You look familiar. Quirking an eyebrow, she looked to move on from the awkward interaction. Were you a member of Moonglow?

Waa-waa-waat did not clarify on her name, but at least she clarified the second part. She was not, in fact, an undead pregnant wolf roaming this land for all eternity. That was one mystery solved at least. She continued, seeming to recognize Odessia on some level (or at least be very curious about her). The name "Moonglow" did not ring any bells at all.
"Nope," she said, "never even heard of 'Moonglow' before. This 'Summerwalkers' thing, are you one of those woo-woo packs?"
Odessia was beginning to notice a trend in the names Waa-waa-waat mentioned at least. All nature-based, which the loner certainly liked.
Her gaze fell back to the rotund belly of the other wolf, staring at it a bit too long and hard. She wondered what it was like being pregnant, having to carry around all that weight all the time. If it was fun at all, it had to be type two fun*. Odessia had never been up close and personal with the birthing process either, but she could not imagine that being very pleasant. She was not even sure if it would qualify as type three fun**. She swallowed hard, wondering if she would ever have the instinctual urge to procreate. She sure hoped not.

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* Type two fun: the kind of fun that is really only fun because you can say that you did it. Think "running a marathon" or "riding your bike one hundred miles in a day." It may still be fun overall, but there is some element of tremendous effort and suffering.
** Type three fun: no explanation for this one, just thought it would be funny to add.

She had to hope that her full sense of tolerance would come back after the birth.

Woo-woo? She repeated, awaiting some sort of clarification. I don't think so.

The eyes fixed to her stomach made Keshi a bit uncomfortable. It did not feel the same as when Nasamiituuq looked at her wondering about the life they would have together, or when Sunchaser looked before asking if she wanted to rest. Summerwalkers are traders and storytellers. She did not voice her discomfort, looking to spit out her usual information instead.

Odessia blinked, refocusing away from Waa-waa-waat's belly as she answered. Maybe she should shorten her name further. 'Waat' would be sufficient. She swished her tail and rocked back on her hips into a sloppy sit before bringing a leg up to scratch at her ear.
"Yeah, 'woo-woo.' I met this one wolf who wanted me to be 'reborn' or something. Not really my thing, and she thought she was better than me. She has no idea what she is missing out on by not having me there. Why would you want a pack full of traitors? Seems like a bad idea."
Storytellers did not seem all that useful to Odessia, but the wolves around here seemed to have some weird ideas about what was useful and what was not. Solenya had wanted her to tend a garden or something along those lines. Why do that when she could just find the plants she needed already growing out in the world? Agriculture was certainly not on Odessia's list of qualities she considered to be normal in her canine kin.

Yes, sounds confusing. She admitted with a chuckle, her attitude brightening the slightest bit. No, we are not like that. We only want to live peacefully and see the world. It was simple, but the simplicity was what made it so great in the eyes of Waawaashkeshi.

Have you wandered for long, Odessia? She asked, looking over the strangers coat for tell-tale signs of such wandering. If you have been, you are clearly a talented ranger. You look healthy.

Her positive attitude restored, Waawaashkeshi could only hope it would last until she decided what to do with the woman.

Odessia blinked. Waat did not deny that she wanted a pack of traitors, although she did say they wanted to "live peacefully and see the world." Those seemed like two wholly different vibes. She went on to ask how long Odessia had been "wandering," and then offered her a compliment. Now that was the way straight to Odessia's heart.
The blue-eyed girl stood to shake her coat gently and puff out her chest when the words reached her ears. Finally somebody who recognized her talents and beauty.
"I prefer the term 'traveling,' but wait—hold on—what does any of that have to do with traitors? Do you think I am a traitor?" she asked.
Maybe Waat had not heard her question correctly the first time (or at all). Probably pregnancy brain. Was that a thing?

For a moment she only blinked, putting pieces together. Ah - we may have misunderstood. There are no traitors here. Only traders. She tried to pronounce the 'd' a bit more strongly this time. We trade our goods in the summer. She could not be sure if that would clarify, but it was worth a try.

Pushing to a stand, Waawaashkeshi knew she would need to return soon. Where do you plan to go next? She asked. It seemed to her that Odessia enjoyed talking about herself, anyways. We will stay here until the summer, but maybe when the pack travels we will cross paths again.

If she were a cartoon, a lightbulb would have lit over her head when Waat enunciated the word in a more exaggerated fashion. At least she got the word right, although the explanation made no sense to Odessia.
"What goods are you talking about?" she asked.
Odessia could think of nothing she wished to trade for anything. Food was only killed if she could eat it; scavengers took care of the rest. Even back in her pack of origin, they had returned to their kills several times to pick off the remnants for themselves. She was reminded of the strange wolf had been collecting fruit to turn into poison. The wolves in this area were truly another level of deranged. Would Odessia, too, become riddled with strange ideas and habits if she remained her and continued to drink the water? She would have to keep a good hold on herself and not let that happen.
"No real plan where I go next, just following wherever my feet take me. Usually that means toward food or water. You know, the stuff needed to survive until tomorrow. I thought this would be the part where you try to recruit me," she said.
After all, that was how these things usually went.

It depends on the year. We do not like to waste anything if we can help it, so we trade off what we don't need for what we do. She could remember her mother carrying anything from bones to coyote pelts. This year's Summerwalkers would not have a huge inventory given the shorter timespan, but it would be enough.

She listened to Odessia's following words with small nods. Following what was needed to survive was a respectable way to live. Do you want me to recruit you? She asked, raising an eyebrow. She hadn't gotten that impression. If you want to join us you are welcome. We will not turn you away. She gave a friendly smile, but it was hard not to feel a bit confused. This woman certainly was not her usual bright-eyed recruit, in fact Waawaashkeshi was surprised that she had kept her attention for this long.

Odessia was not wholly satisfied with the explanation on trading. It still seemed super strange to have any sort of relationship with another pack if you could help it. Fighting for resources (or at least staying out of one another's way) was the way of the wild... not whatever this was. She could maybe see the give and take with territory boundaries as the pack grew and shrank, but anything else was absurd to her. She kept that to herself, letting the conversation continue to the next topic and dropping this one.
Waat's recruitment pitch was weak at best. Oh, how nice it had been when Viper was around... sans the whole "attacking with no warning and then dying right in front of her" bit. Out of everybody she had met, he had been the only one to truly see her for who she was: somebody who deserved so much more than anybody wanted to give her.
"I will think on it," she said.
"Farewell, Waat," Odessia added before swishing her tail and jogging east.