Heron Lake Plateau thanks, I hate it

attn: @Towhee

He felt exhausted, but he couldn't bring himself to sleep. Camilla was asleep, or at least she appeared to be, and the two small struggling pups beside her were still breathing. He kept a vigilant watch on them, paranoid every few seconds that one (or both) of them had stopped breathing. Phox hadn't paid any attention to the two lifeless forms that lay nearby. He had forgotten all about them once the two lively ones had been born.

They were so small. Smaller than he had expected. Maybe too small. Each shuddering breath seemed like it could be their last. Often times, he thought it would be their last. But their tiny bodies kept rising and falling. Air in, air out.

After parting ways with Tegan, Towhee began a patrol. It was slow going, as her own thoughts distracted her. She was so far gone into them at one point that she'd stopped without even being aware of it. She stood like a statue, staring off into space, until a tight pinch from X's talons snapped her back to the present.

Before she could even turn her head, she felt the telltale lightness and whoosh as the hawk took flight. Sensing the urgency in his rapid launch, Towhee spun on her heel and galloped toward the slope leading up to the plateau. She didn't slow until she came upon a bunch of bodies just lying out on the open plain. That wasn't altogether unusual, although there were some heckin' weird feels and smells in the air. Something of import had happened here.

Towhee's toes dug into the dirt as her eyes found her brother first, then a catatonic Camilla, then two squirming bundles between them. Said eyes flew wide and Towhee tiptoed nearer, gaze fixed on the mismatched pups. "The fuck you come from," she muttered to no one, then even more lowly answering herself: "Camilla's vagoose."

But... when had this happened? And how? And why here? Towhee had so many questions. But she didn't speak a single one of them. Her eyes slid back up to the parents, who looked downright exhausted, and then she took a step back and raised her head. Her entire body became stiff as a board as she instantly assumed the role of body guard. Funcle Towhee would come later; for now, she was their guardian against anything that dared disturb them.

He knew that Camilla had done all the physical labor, but Phox couldn't help but feel physically exhausted, too. The whole ordeal had put him through some trauma he wasn't quite ready to deal with, and when he saw Towhee, he didn't even know how to describe the mishmash of emotions that stirred through his body. She came close, but not too close (thank goodness), and then she backed off. The two bodies lay peacefully beside them, and Phox quickly looked back to them to make sure they were still alive.

Phox licked his lips, swallowed, then spoke. A boy and a girl. He hadn't discussed names with Camilla before or after they had come into this world. Phox knew that Towhee wanted one named after her, but it didn't seem... it didn't seem right. Neither of them were like her even the smallest bit. And though they were less than a day old, Phox felt he knew that already.

We lost two, he said, eyes downcast with doubt and grief and worry and a whole slew of other negative emotions. Maybe one of those could have been Towhee Jr.

Phox stirred and Towhee's attention swept down to his face. She smiled at the news, her tail beginning to wave. She wondered what they'd name them—all jokes aside, she did not expect anyone to name a child after her—but her thoughts scattered, her tail fell still and the smile slid right off her face when her brother informed her of the bad news.

It happened, she knew, but that didn't lessen the ache in her chest for her brother's loss. -I'm sorry,- she signed slowly, then paused and slid onto her haunches. She scanned the area briefly, then looked back to the new father. -But everything is okay with these two?- she queried, gesturing at the very teeny newborns at Camilla's breast.

Was everything okay with them? He looked down at them again, expecting to see one suddenly still, but they kept on trucking. Maybe one day he would be able to stop checking on them every ten seconds, but it wasn't likely anytime soon. I think so, he replied. He couldn't tell if Camilla was awake or not, but her eyes were closed and she seemed at peace on some level.

I think Camilla is okay, too. Raven and Poe were worried about her at first. Maybe they were still worried. He didn't know, and he was too afraid to ask.

Towhee nodded gratefully at his, "I think so." When he mentioned Camilla in the same breath as Raven (and Poe? Who was that? Oh, yeah...), she knew her sister-in-law was in the best possible hands. She did glance over at her again, a worried crease appearing between her eyes. She looked bushwhacked. Towhee had made a lot of jokes about the birth destroying Camilla's bits, though they'd been just that: jokes. It seemed that, despite their small size, these pups—and their ill-fated siblings—had really done a number on their mother.

But fifty/fifty wasn't (weren't?) terrible odds. And if she had anything to do with it, these pups would grow up big and stronk. -I'm here for you guys,- she signed with slow, emphatic movements, catching Phox's eye, -in any way you need. Speaking of which,- she continued, pausing to assess the scene as a whole, -would you like a snack or anything? Or, like...-

She hesitated. She still didn't know the details about the birth and why it had taken place out in the open. Towhee didn't think it was important just now. She could get the gory details later. But for the moment, she couldn't help but wonder, -Should we move you guys somewhere more sheltered?- There was a hesitance to her signs, as if Towhee was afraid of stepping on toes. She didn't want to push either of the exhausted parents if there was good reason for being out here, yet she couldn't help but be the concerned aunt uncle funcle.

He expected her to be her same old snarky self, so it was a relief when Towhee offered support rather than some witty comeback. She suggested they move, but Phox shook his head. I don't want to move them, he said, They're so small, so fragile. I'm worried something might happen if we try to do that. He knew there was some risk to being out in the open like this, but he refused to move them for at least another day. Maybe then he would feel more confident in their survival, but not yet. Right now, they were safe nestled between their parents.

Food would be good, though. I'm not sure Camilla has eaten anything since. Phox certainly hadn't, but he wasn't exactly putting himself first right now. He had been hunting endlessly for the weeks leading up to this (and had expected to for another couple of weeks), but nature had other ideas.

He explained that he didn't want to move them. Towhee swallowed and looked around dubiously, though she did not argue with him. They were his mate and offspring, so it was his call. If he felt it was safer to stay out here in the open rather than move them, Towhee would go with his judgment call. In the meantime, she'd do whatever it took to mitigate any threats.

Phox took her up on her offer of a snack, which made her freeze. She hadn't thought it through too well and was very reluctant to leave them. She hesitated for a few seconds, then a realization struck her. Her orange eyes lifted and found X circling overhead, almost like yet another guardian. Towhee smiled gratefully at the hawk, then yapped a command to him. Hopefully he understood. In any case, he broke his pattern and winged away.

"I didn't want to leave you guys," she explained when her attention dropped back to Phox and family again. "He should be back soon with something to eat. I'll keep watch, so if you wanna catch a few winks or anything..."

Thanks, Towhee. He was exhausted, there was no doubt about that, and getting some well-needed rest was exactly what he planned to do. Burnt sienna eyes cast over his two living children one more time, and he situated himself so that he was making a crescent moon shape around them. Now they were sort of fenced in between himself and Camilla.

He was halfway through some thought about how long it would take him to fall asleep when he began snoring softly.

We can fade here or continue once X brings back food. Up to you!

Phox thanked her and promptly conked out. They made quite the family portrait, all snuggled up together. Towhee smiled fondly at the scene, though the instant movement caught her eye, her face transformed into a fearsome snarl. It was a heron winging past, headed for the lake. The Beta's hackles settled as her orange gaze tracked it across the sky.

It would be a while before X returned and even if he were to show up earlier than expected, Towhee didn't want to disrupt the family's rest. She settled in for a long wait and a silent vigil. It would probably be downright boring, yet that's exactly what she hoped for.