Dragoncrest Cliffs Tardy for the party

She wanted to deny it to safeguard her heart, yet Wildfire would've had to be extremely ignorant to pretend the signs weren't there. Ever since the initial quickening, the puppies—as she had very haltingly permitted herself to think of them—hadn't stopped moving. It was overwhelming in a way. She had thought her womb barren and emptied and now it was thrumming with signs of life. Her sides were growing almost visibly day by day and the urge to nest was growing steadily stronger.

Tentatively, she let the seed of hope take root, flower and blossom. When this April morning dawned crisp but radiantly sunny, Wildfire felt her heart buoy. She strode through the woods in the direction of the beach, grinning like an idiot as the puppies stirred continuously as if to say, Mama! We're here! Alive! Awake! Enthusiastic!

portia was the opposite of wildfire this year-- which was strange to think of. portia hadn't missed her own signs of-- potentially-- coming into season, but nothing was set in stone, and truthfully she was in no rush. especially not now... not with this leg. the leg wasn't healed-- probably never would heal properly, either. that was just how broken bones worked sometimes, especially breaks this bad. poor portia's foreleg had snapped right in half, and though it was set and wrapped up nicely now it just... well, wolf medicine just wasn't the same as modern day human medicine. 

she did a lot of praying, in case that counted for anything. 

but she could walk, kind of. it was a gross limp and she couldn't put much (if any) pressure on her still-healing limb, so she looked stupid. but portia had things to do-- herbs to gather and wolves to check up on. so she forced herself out for short periods during the day. was it the smartest? well, no, but portia was convinced enough that she wasn't doing any harm. 

wildfire was easy to spot against the sand-- bright red and... actually kind of large. portia's nose twitched, ears pricking with surprise. she'd heard all about wildfire's miscarriage, straight from the source-- treated her for shock and in case of complications blah blah blah. she was a midwife, sure, but she'd only dealt with a miscarriage once before, and once it happened it had been over. 

the speckled fisa let out a light yip, taking a few hop-steps towards her friend, tail wagging. "you're glowing! i can see it from over here," portia called with a bright grin.

I love your writing, just sayin'.

Her toes struck sand and she beamed out at the churning surf, tipping her head into it when a brisk sea breeze whipped against her. She felt so amazingly at peace right then, with the puppies dancing in her belly. She didn't even worry about the war they were facing. She wouldn't be able to step up and act as ambassador in her condition but it didn't really matter. Her mate and children—and the rest of the pack, of course—would smite the enemy and be done with it. They were Drageda and they were mighty.

A voice on the wind prompted her to turn, smiling ear to ear as she hastened over to Portia. "How's the leg?" she asked right away, looking down at it and up again at the Fisa's face. After a slight delay, she acknowledged the other woman's comment by joyfully chirping, "All is not lost, after all."

<3 <3 <3

ah. portia frowned, moving it up a little to give it a short look. "very broken, but maybe less broken than before... i hope," she said sadly, but looked back up to wifi with a smile still. focus on other things. she'd had nightmares nightly thanks to her and dalia's attack, and if she could not talk about it during the day time then... well that helped. 

distraction helped. 

"that's incredible, hun, i'm so happy for you and heda," she purred, her tail waggling, "then you're due soon, aren't you?"

Although it was the furthest thing from funny—considering the circumstances leading to the fracture—Wildfire couldn't help but laugh at Portia's phrasing. "I hope so too. How long does it usually take a break like that to heal?"

But it was hard to focus on broken bones, especially when the Fisa pointed out Wildfire's encroaching due date. "Oh shit," she blurted without thinking, chestnut eyes flung so wide the salty air stung. "Just a couple—few weeks. I need to figure out where I want to give birth," she babbled with a loud blink.

Remembering her manners, she grinned lopsidedly at the woman who was one of her longtime friends. "Thanks, Portia. I'm happy for us too."

"a few months," said portia sadly, voice lacking it's usual chime, but still smiled anyway, "boy, hun, i just don't know what to do. on one hand, i'd really like to get back to work-- but i really can't with this leg and, on the other hand, i want nothing more than to just stay home and never leave." her ears splayed for a few seconds before pricking back up. she shouldn't be talking about this-- she didn't want to talk about this, but it just sort of tumbled out. they should be focusing on happier things... like wifi's pregnancy. her friend! pregnant again. 

she hesitated, trying to move past what she'd just said. "don't mind that mess," she said with a shake of her head, continuing on, "not back to the ol' log?" 

In the split second before Portia answered, Wildfire realized she already knew the answer. The flashback struck her like a bolt of lightning, the first of its kind and hopefully the last. She stood there, stricken, for a beat afterward, all of Portia's words having gone unheard as she went very still and let the phantom pain and a terrible sense of anxiety slowly ebb from her. She wasn't trapped in a dark, foul-smelling cave with a broken leg anymore...

When her chestnut gaze refocused, she realized Portia was looking at her in anticipation, clearly having just asked a question. "I'm—sorry," Wildfire said haltingly, a slight hitch in her chest. She exhaled, then drew in a steadying breath. "I think I just had a flashback," she admitted, because it was Portia. But she quickly added, "I don't really want to dwell on it though. It was just—weird." And painful. And scary. And awful.

But... "There're happier things to think about," she said, almost as if to herself. She did a mental rewind to capture the healer's query and said, "I might go back to the log. It'd probably make the most sense. Although I love the redwood. Maybe I'll find someplace new. Who knows? Holy crap, I can't believe I'm pregnant—still..."

her own words seemed to go right in wildfire's ear and out the other. truthfully, portia couldn't decide if this upset or relieved her-- but she understood her friend regardless based on the circumstances, so she didn't voice this. she merely nodded empathetically-- both she-wolves went through similar experiences, neither really had to explain their actions to the other. 

she nodded thoughtfully, pressing on a happier smile. "i think i'm back to that old den from last year-- near my medicine cache?" she replied, trying to hold on to their more cheerful conversation. as an afterthought, portia's ears pricked and she added, "well i'm not pregnant, of course, but i've been thinking about it-- just in case, you can never be too prepared..." her ears fell and she ducked her chin, eyes gleaming and tail tapping gently on the sandy beach as she shot her friend a soft smile. "the world is wonderful in that way, isn't it?"

If Portia returned to her old den and Wildfire went with the one she'd used last spring, they would be neighbors again. That thought pleased the Feisripa, though naturally it made her curious about Portia's current condition. Her chestnut eyes settled on the other woman's midriff right as she began to explain that she wasn't pregnant. It didn't sound like she particularly planned to get pregnant, either, but was leaving it up to serendipity.

"I'd love to raise our kids together again," Wildfire replied. They wouldn't be partial siblings this year, though that had never really mattered. She personally considered all the pack's youth cousins. "I hope that happens for you and Dio, if you want it to, of course."

"oh i do," portia said quickly, gently, ears pricking as she viewed her friend, "i would want nothing more than another litter, especially beside yours." and they'd grow up together as friends, not sibling-cousins this time-- and that thought was pleasant to the fisa, who had more of a jealous edge than she thought she had. and then, with a small shrug, portia added. "i just hope i can give dio a son, this year," she shared freely, a bit hesitantly. it went without being said, portia's first litter gave way to perhaps the biggest failure drageda had ever seen. at least, in portia's eyes.

Portia did want that and Wildfire grinned, feeling so utterly buoyant today despite her earlier hesitations. She could already picture their newest babies growing up together, just like Artaax, Blixen, Bobby, Sirio and Dalia had been raised closely together. Never mind that the Feisripa had never developed a particularly close relationship with her niece or nephew, due in large part to her long absence...

And apparently, she'd missed something huge. She did an obvious double-take at Portia's words, expression screwing up in confusion. Her lips parted to ask what she meant, then pressed shut again. She tried to think: did she even know of Sirio's and Dalia's current whereabouts? Well, Dalia was around and injured (per Artaax), though, come to think of it, Wildfire didn't have the first clue about Sirio's whereabouts.

She had the feeling she was about to kick a hornet's nest but Wildfire's confusion was so great that she couldn't resist saying the boy's name questioningly: "Sirio...?"

portia smiled, because wildfire looked so confused that it was almost comical. of course, she'd probably long forgotten about her son, she hoped everyone had. "sirio," she repeated, but phrased as an answer rather than a question, "he's around, somewhere, his scent is fresh just past the borders but he's no longer a part of drageda." 

and, as an afterthought, and a mild amount of hesitation, she added, "or this family."

but that was the thing! and portia shook her head quickly to try to get that point across. "but dalia is here and is going to help me raise this next litter-- they'll be perfect little drageda poster children." she'd be sure of it.

Portia didn't seem in the least perturbed by Wildfire's baffled question, nor the fact that her son was no longer her son. Wildfire stared, jaw slightly agape, as the Fisa casually mentioned the disenfranchisement. She supposed it was a good thing Portia could be so upbeat and focused on her daughter, as well as her upcoming progeny. But even though Wildfire knew how the rules worked—wolves that left were considered enemies—this sort of scenario had never crossed her mind.

What if Artaax, Blixen or Bobby one day wanted to strike out on their own? Would she be forced to disown them? What about the children even now dancing in her belly? The thought left her feeling ill. She couldn't imagine how Portia could be so cavalier about it. The Feisripa didn't hold it against her, she just struggled to make sense of it.

But now was really not the time to dwell on such horrible things. Wildfire was supposed to be feeling celebratory. "How's Dalia doing? Artaax mentioned she'd been injured? I'm sorry I'm not as up-to-date on pack matters as I should be..." She paused. "Maybe we could go find her, tell her the good news?"

"it's not so bad," portia said gently to her friend as she noticed her reaction. it really wasn't. it was actually quite easy to disown a son that was so clearly detestable to dalia. 

"she's doing well," the fisa then said with a smile, "we haven't talked much about it-- she's been trying to forget it which... well, i suppose i understand. but, don't put yourself down, you've been through a lot, i'm just glad to see you so upbeat now, hun." with a little purr of a noise, portia leaned forward to nudge her friend's shoulder. "but sure, i'm sure she's organizing back in hougeda," she added, and slowly began to hoist herself up. "you'll have to wait on me though," she chirped with a little laugh, because of course... the leg wasn't the most conveient thing in terms of getting around.

Although the word didn't trigger any sort of reaction, the thought of going near the caves did send a little shudder through Wildfire. "No worries, I'm not in any kind of hurry," she reassured her friend, returning the friendly nudge, "and just so you know, I can't go into Hougeda. But we can convene outside, right?" She didn't want to make a big deal out of her phobia. It was already hard enough dealing with always being on the outside of the pack's hub.

On that note, Wildfire's brow furrowed as they began walking slowly toward their destination. "What happened? To Dalia, I mean?"

"of course, hun," portia said gently, nudging her friend understandingly. and then the pair set off, albeit slowly, and portia explained to her friend that dalia held only minor injuries, most scrapes and bruises and the unavoidable mental scarring, but that she herself had taken the brunt of the attack.