Arrow Lake Start all over

hoping for @Stigmata since we haven't had one in a while.

With constant tending and much rest the giant nub of what remained of her leg had healed over leaving pink furless flesh. She often woke up feeling like it was still there and tried to stand by putting it down only to embarrassingly end up stumbling. It had taken two weeks just for her to learn to walk well enough to not look like an adult sized pup and perhaps the most frustrating thing to her was that all she could do was patrol. She didn't have the balance or speed to hunt....

but she tried anyway. There was a fat gopher waddling toward the lake and she licked her maw, hobbling closer while keeping to the trees and bushes. She watched it go for a drink and then burst forward, focusing too much on the weird pattern it took to run and not enough on the gopher itself which had noticed her and hurried away. She stopped and sat down growling deeply and cursing quite loudly in Russian as she moved to the edge of the lake and lay down staring at herself with frustration.

coming indiscreetly through the nearby underbrush, chest heaving and appearing fairly ruffled, the general emerged with kazimir's lost gopher dangling limply from his jaws. he had overextended himself quite a bit to retrieve this particular catch for his ailing packmate, but even if he would ache tremendously for it later, he thought the effort had been worth it in that moment. if only to see the russian's spirits not linger so lowly.

dropping the rodent promptly at what remained of her feet, stigmata smirked over his lolling tongue. "you are getting much better, kazimir. you will be able to catch your own soon," he said with great confidence, even if he wasn't medically sure of this possibility himself. he had seen many grievous wounds, but had only even known one wolf in his life to have survived the loss of a limb. he wondered if kazimir would have the same fortitude; or if she needed a lifestyle separate from the rigors of diaspora.

She lifted her eyes at the sound of rustling in the bush to see Stigmata who had managed to snag the pesky gopher for her anyway. Gratitude blossomed inside of her chest and she graced him with a true smile as he smirked. His words made her falter a bit and she ducked her head, eyeing herself in the water silently. Better yes...but would she be good enough to uphold the Diasporian way when it came to it? He had confidence in her as always and she trusted him enough to decide that even if she would never be the full use she intended, she would do her best at all times even if it eventually wore her down. "Thank you" she said meaning for the gopher and the support. "I didn't think before acting. I only knew the bear was close and that we had children. Perhaps if I hadn't gone for it, it would have wandered off" she vented to him, explaining her foolishness with a wry curve of her lips "I've learned my lesson...I hope so, I only have three more legs" the joke was a weak attempt at lightening the mushy heaviness she had caused.

in both appearance and personality, kazimir had always been rather foreign to stigmata. their relationship had started tenuously at best, but now he could only find within himself a deep, dark wish that he'd been there himself to stand between kazimir and her unfortunate fate. he loved her fiercely, almost especially because she'd been so fearlessly reckless for diaspora, and it pained him to think she might not be changed for the worse at their expense.

the corners of his mouth twitched at her jest, and he had to resolve not to laugh, so that he could talk to her seriously. "you did what you thought was right at the time. no use in dwelling on it in that light," the steely general huffed, perhaps a little wary of (read: uncomfortable with) being drawn into emotional retrospect. "three legs are better than dead legs, after all."

his mind traveled briefly to the three-legged liri, who had adjusted well enough in her state to become a leader of sorts. he hadn't respected her, largely due to her handicap, but he was open-minded as far as kazimir was concerned. for even if she could not hunt, she could still guard the young; and her muzzle still worked, so no one wold be at a loss for company. things could get a little dicey come winter... but when had the snow season ever been particularly kind to them?

"you might do well as a healer, if you care for the practice at all," he thought aloud, knowing full well that if anyone asked him to be a healer, he'd politely advise them to fuck off. he didn't understand how mahler could do it.

She caught the twitch of his lips and her own curled up into a sly grin as she too held back a laugh. She didn't remember ever seeing him smile much, perhaps a simple flash of a grin occasionally but otherwise he was just as stoic as Mahler. He spoke and her eyes softened slightly, feeling warmth for the man who praised her despite her foolishness. He was right though, what if she hadnt attacked and the bear had stormed right for Diaspora? She had done what she thought best and though she had lost a leg, she couldn't be faulted for it. She leaned down and sniffed the Gopher, causing a particularly fierce growl to come from her stomach. She did chuckle that time and glanced up at him "Would you like to split a meal?" She offered him. She hadnt touched much more than the smallest bits left in caches and once in a while a big enough piece to fill her up. She didn't want to touch what she couldn't provide but she needed to eat. The conversation turned to healing as she was about to tear into the Gopher and she paused, giving a small shake of her head "Never have. Though it couldn't hurt, I could probably learn enough to be of use" she spoke slowly as if she was considering it as the words came out. She gave a small nod of her head "Is that something that would be more useful?"