Broken Antler Fen Crazy Girl, Dont You Know That I Love You

Since the pack meeting, Brandy had been even more distant than usual. Still spending her days wandering across the fen and talking to those she met, of course, but she no longer hunted that could be explained by the bandage still on her leg and her interactions were often short. Her lemon eyes no longer sparkled as she trotted about the fen, but instead were dull and usually focused on the ground. Ambrosia still wasn't back, but her daughter sure hoped she was having fun, knowing that soon she should be coming home. It'd been around two weeks, right? 
Even Aduin saw little of his mate, who had been spending nights alone in their regrown grotto den. Questions liked to bounce around in her head before she nested down for the night, and because of that, she assumed, night terrors plagued her sleep. She'd been woken up multiple times from crying, or being scared awake by the intensity of her dream. What they were about, the copper girl remembered fleetingly. Like shadows, the memories floated just out of her minds reach. How was she supposed to make them better if she didn't know?
No doubt, Sebastian or Pearl or even Aduin would find her, question her, tell her to come sleep in the Cove again. She was worried about waking someone, and more often than not the contact made by those she slept around usually her black and white mate woke her up and scared her even more. 
Pressure, the only way she could describe it, had been building on her heart for the past few weeks. Her energy levels had been through the roof since she'd started restraining herself, for Aduin's sake, but never before had she been so sullen and, well, QUIET. Why she did not know, but she could tell that something needed to change.... But what? 
Tonight, just after the sun had sunk below the horizon, Brandy paced circles around the clearing that homed her den with Aduin. Her ears were splayed on each side of her head, dangling low, and her tail nearly dragged in the dirt behind her. Her body was low to the ground as she slunk in circles, head down and dull eyes focused on where her paws placed themselves. 

To whoever wants to deal with Brandy being hysterical and possibly a little crazy :3

pounces on thread

Pearl was out for a while longer that night, thinking it nice to watch the sunset over one of the lakes. There were so many vivid pastel colors that still remained in the end-of-June sky even after she had made her way into the forested areas of their territory. Her territory. It was odd even now to think of this territory and Sebastian as her own, despite having the title of Alpha for well over a month. 

She trotted back at a steady pace, calmly enjoying the summer air that was cooled by the lakes. Eager though she was to return to her place by Sebastian's side, there was a scent that caught her interest and diverted her beeline to her den. What was Brandy doing out here? Wasn't Aduin flipping out over her more than usual? Pearl had noticed her over-frequent territory wanderings, but now she knew where the girl was.

But what the girl was doing when Pearl found her, however, was even more so troubling. She chuffed to make sure her presence was known before calling to her, "Brandy? What'cha doin' there?" 

The apple didn't fall far from the tree, it seemed. Like Ambrosia, perhaps it was the lack for ways to serve the pack, or a buildup of stress and energy, even both together? Who knows. One way or another, Pearl scared the shit out of her when she announced herself behind the copper girl. Standing in her only blind spot, Brandy jumped and spun around with wide lemon eyes, taking a moment to recognize the snowy alpha. When she did, the yearling plopped her butt on the ground and, curling her feathery tail over her paws, cupped her ears forward in an attempt to look more friendly than she felt. Her leg couldn't be an excuse forever, and perhaps she was fortunate that it was her councelor friend that found her that night. 
             "I-erm, I couldn't sleep."
Thinking it wasn't common knowledge yet that she hadn't been sleeping outside of the Cove silly girl, the Valentine halfway hoped that Pearl wouldn't further question it. She would though, of course, and Brandy couldn't hide her problems forever.

Pearl arched an eyebrow at Brandy as she sat across from her. "That's an odd way of passing time, then," she said, slightly worried about the younger. This behavior obviously didn't fall under the category of normal. Of what she had observed, anyway.

"Are you doing okay? What's going on?" she asked with a concerned note to her voice. If Brandy had something going on, she wanted to help.

Pearl sat down, and it was at that moment the copper yearling knew she wouldn't get out of this. It was clear Pearl was worried and wanted to help, so she stood. She crouched and crawled over to Pearl, her lemon eyes pleading. 
           "I-I don't know Pearl. I feel really.... Wound up."
Should Pearl let her, she would sit again at the pale womans flank and press into her side. Shewas trembling slightly, both in body and her voice.
                        "I spend all my days moving and hunting and patroling, but I just cant get rid of this, like, knot in my belly."
It was hard to explain, the awful way she felt, but at least she was trying to open up to her alpha.

Pearl didn't really allow Brandy to come up to her, it was more of a surprise that she just let happen. Had she known that the younger was like this sooner, she would have definitely tried to be there for her. 

Brandy pressed against her, and as a way of calming her down began to comb through her fur with her teeth. "Have you talked to Aduin at all?" she asked quietly. Before she questioned any further she would like to know more about what was going on.

The pale woman was receptive to her needs, and reached down to preen the coppery fur of her shoulders. It did indeed calm her nerves slightly, but nothing as simple as touch could undo the feelings she'd been repressing. Aduin was brought up, and Brandy's ears wilted back. She'd barely seen her mate let alone talked to him since the hunt, but then again she'd barely seen anyone. 
               "Barely, since the hunt. I saw him every night until I started having nightmares, and thats when I started sleeping alone here."
What was she to do? Leaving the fen terrified her, hurt her soul worse than all this. Broken Antler Fen was her home, and those within it her family. Her voice trembled a little less, but sounded every bit as broken and scared as she felt.
                               "I don't remember the dreams, and I can't figure out whats wrong with me."

This was all very concerning to Pearl, who didn't quite know how to help her in this situation. "Maybe you should speak to him soon. He is your mate, after all. It doesn't have to be tonight, but...soon." she said. It wasn't her place to pry, but she wanted Brandy to be happy, and Aduin was nearly a counselor. The idea briefly crossed her mind that maybe unstablity ran in the Valentine family. Disheartening, sure, but it only hardened her resolve to be a friend to them.

Hearing Brandy's voice, Pearl instantaneously lept to comfort her. "Hey hey, it's alright, it's alright," she said, softly, gently leaning in as some sort of embrace. She wanted to make the girl feel better, but was helpless to any idea of how. For now she did what she knew how.

The copper woman bobbed her head in understanding, averting her eyes from the alpha. How could she just forget about Aduin and leave himin the dark about what was going on? He was her mate for goodness sake! But.... He did worry a lot....
            "I will, but it feels like he worries too much about me sometimes. It puts a lot of pressure on me to be careful and he panics over the littlest bumps."
 She was warrior born and trained, and though she really understood WHY he worried, it simply drove her nuts! 
                         "And I don't want to hurt his feelings or anything...."

"Well, he worries about you because he loves you. You're lucky to have that in a mate, but maybe not talking to him is hurting his feelings more than you think. I know it's hard to be careful around him, but bumps are part of mate-ship, and you two need to gain some understanding of how to deal with both of your issues." Pearl suggested.

Gently putting her paw over Brandy's, she continued, "I'm not trying to turn the conversation from you, but if you still feel like there's some problems you need to talk about that you think Aduin can't help, I'm still here."

Brandy's ears lowered, feeling a little scolded but knowing damn well right she was indeed pushing her mate away. At least the alpha wasn't really yelling at her, just giving advice. 
With her inital panic quelled, the copper yearling took a few steps back to be able to look at Pearl again. She offered help for other subjects, and she figured she'd get what she could out now.
             "I worry a lot, about my mom. I know she loves it here like I do, but she gets so restless and then leaves for god knows how long.... How do I know she'll always come home?"

Pearl didn't really get most of the concept of 'sugar coating', but somehow at the same time she was sensitive. Perhaps that was why she was a good counselor, in her own special way. She watched Brandy processing her words, hoping she would be of more use than a partial telling-off mother figure. It wasn't really what she was going for, but Brandy needed to hear it. 

The younger brought up her mother, which was an understandable source of concern for the both of them. "I mean, you're here, and she'll always at least check in and see how her only daughter is doing." And there was always the possibility for grandpups so who would want to miss out on that. Pearl couldn't help seeing the irony in the situation, where Brandy was swapped for Aduin and Ambrosia for Brandy. It took a lot to remain appearing reasonable for the situation.

This answer was far less helpful than the others, but again the alpha was right and Brandy saw that. Perhaps, hard as it was to even think, it was time for her to stop being so close to her mother. The copper girl was an adult now, grown. Maybe not old enough to have pups, but she didn't need her mother around. Not to say she wouldn't always WANT her mother around....
Not once did she connect her problems, see that the way Ammie was making her feel was exactly what she was doing to her mate. Not yet, at least, but that was okay for now. Brandy's tears had dried, and her trembling had subsided for the time being. Tiredness overwhelmed her, but she was almost afraid to sleep lest the nightmares haunt her again. 
                    "I guess I've just gotta get used to the fact that my mother isn't always going to be around.... And, thats okay."

Pearl nodded kindly at the girl, adding quietly, "yes, it is." Then yawning, she got up and nudged Brandy on the shoulder. "How 'bout you come back and sleep with the group, just for tonight. If you have any more nightmares, you can wake me up." she said, gesturing to the sleeping area. 

She wanted Brandy to feel safe and happy, but she didn't feeel like she had done the best she could with the conversation. It was more like a mother-talk than anything in her mind. Pearl had done what she knew how, so in her mind, it was a step in the right direction for Brandy.

Pearl encouraged her towards home, and with a nod the yearling stood and padded towards the Cove. It was worth a shot, trying to sleep home again. She had no intentions of waking her alpha female, though, not from just a bad dream. Brandy was oblivious to the worries of said pale woman, though if she knew anything it was that a motherly talking to was what she'd needed. While she'd settled into pack life easy enough, going through life without the previously ever-present mother to hover around and guide her was becoming harder and harder. Brandy never had a problem with caring for herself and making decisions, but even then Ambrosia had always been there with her. 
Padding along after Pearl at an easy gait, the copper girl couldn't help a yawn. Perhaps tonight she'd be too tired to dream.