Redhawk Caldera window rattles

Accio @Peregrine! Surprise private thread. :o

Things had been so busy over the past week or so Fox felt she hadn't seen her lovely since their voices had called out over the caldera. That wasn't exactly true, considering she often hunted him down at night and curled up next to his warm, bulky form, but she certainly did not want them to grow distant. She knew it was that which killed his relationship with Hawkeye, and Fox was determined to be nothing like his former mate. She wondered where they emotionally distant woman was now, though she figured it wouldn't matter even if she did know.

Turning her attention toward the inner regions of the caldera, Fox crested the ridge and spotted the dark form of her lover milling about below. A grin formed on her face, and she carefully navigated her descent toward her home's namesake landform. When she was close enough, she sashayed toward him and called out, “Hey, lover boy...”

I'm going to pretend this isn't long after Blue Willow dropped by with the bad news.

Fox was a sight for sore eyes and when she sidled up to him, Peregrine stretched out his muzzle, his nose gliding down the curve of her neck. "Hey, love," he breathed against her rusty red fur. For a moment, he said nothing else. Instead, he buried his face against her, breathing in her familiar smell and hoping to keep the tears at bay.

When he withdrew at length, he caught her eye and said, "My brother's gone missing. No one's sure what happened but... I have theories." He sighed, his eyes falling mournfully to his paws. He'd considered the possibility that their relocation had triggered Atticus's departure, yet ever since he had parted ways with Blue Willow, Peregrine had become convinced that his brother had succumbed finally to his brain injuries and instinctively sought solitude at the time of his death.

Yay for theories!

If she'd been a more intuitive wolf, she would have realized at once that his tone was sullen and sad. Instead, she continued about her merry way until he mentioned the absence of his brother. She furrowed her brow. “Atticus…” she murmured, faintly remembering the (literally) absent-minded sibling of her mate. He'd also been the father of Bones, and she winced inwardly at that thought. But that led to another theory on her part. Perhaps stupidly, she assumed Peregrine was thinking the same thing. Had she even told him of the appearance (and subsequent disappearance) of his niece? She could have sworn she had, but she could not recall. She knew she had told Atticus, that was certain.

“I think it was Bones,” replied Fox. “She came back, and… they did terrible things to her when they took her. I told Atticus, and…” she trailed off. Had he sought revenge on Tortuga? It was a death wish, if that was his intention, and Fox grimaced at the thought. If he did make it, she hoped that he tore Cutlass limb from limb and spat on her carcass. That was assuming he made it past the sentries that were surely keeping watch.

Because I now picture our characters as Meredith and Derek, lol, I can't help but think of Atticus as Mark Sloan (Derek's best friend on the show), who was very badly injured, had a "surge," then ended up dying. And, omg... Mark even had an illegitimate daughter that appeared earlier in the show! :P

Fox's own theory took him by surprise. He stood very still, pondering that possibility, then quietly dismissed it with a shake of his head. While he actually could picture Atticus wanting to avenge Bones, his brother certainly hadn't gone after her when she'd first been kidnapped. Furthermore, he wouldn't do something like that without mentioning it to anyone. No, Peregrine felt his own theory was much more likely, if all the more depressing.

"I don't think so," he murmured. "If he'd had something like that on his mind, we'd know. What I think..." He trailed off for a moment. Saying it out loud might make it feel too real. A deep sadness washed over him. "I think Atticus is dead. I think he was never going to fully recover from his head injury. He had a final surge — when he woke up — but ended up succumbing. My theory is that he instinctively sought solitude when he knew what was happening."

As he spoke, Peregrine trembled slightly and, despite himself, a single tear fell from each eye. He blinked and no more came, for the moment. Sighing softly, he pressed his face into his wife's neck.

Had Fox not seen Haunter's final days, she might have dismissed Peregrine's theory outright. However, she'd been there for the last few weeks of his life, right up until the end when she'd awoken to a cold body. He hadn't been all "there," and acted much the same way that Atticus had. The thought sent her, for a moment, back to the morning when she'd awoken next to him, yelling and kicking at his stiff, lifeless body. The memory made her stomach turn, and she swallowed hard to fight back the urge to empty its contents. Still, though it didn't quite line up to what Peregrine was saying.

Fox searched for the words to explain that it might not be the case, and filled the silence by licking the top of Peregrine's head. "I don't know if you've ever heard me..." she trailed off, "but I still wake up sometimes and think that you're Haunter. He was... gone in the head, like Atticus. But when death was preparing to take him, he did not seek solace. I... I woke up next to him, and he was gone." Gone, and there, all at once. Death was such a strange and mysterious phenomena. She had never fully explained what had happened with Haunter, and she was not sure that she ever could. It was a deep, dark sadness that weighed her heart down.

Peregrine's mouth opened and closed when she revealed that she sometimes mistook him for Haunter. Although he didn't feel jealous about his wife's past lover, he didn't quite know how to feel about his evidently lingering ghost. Apt name, he mused. He frowned lightly, then nudged his mate in what he hoped was a reassuring way. No matter his personal feelings on the matter, he knew that must have been hard.

"Not all wolves do it. My father, for instance, was surrounded by family when he passed. I hope my mother was as well. Others die safe and warm in their sleep... like Haunter. I just think it's a possibility, is all. Atticus was more of a feral, almost mechanical, entity during and after his coma. I could see him wandering away out of instinct or even confusion. Which is terrible and sad for him and which leaves us with no closure," he finished grimly.

"Take my mind off this," he begged quietly in the next breath. "Tell me something happy... or something."

Lunch posting!

For whatever reason, Fox still had a feeling Atticus was alive. She didn't know why she felt that way, and she certainly had no reason to. But she just... couldn't believe that he would go away from his friends and family. Then again, she had never known him very well. Perhaps she never would, if Peregrine's theory was the truth. It made her frown, especially knowing that Bones had cared for her father, and Fox felt like she had pushed the girl away (after losing her the first time).

When Peregrine pressed her for something happy, it was the first time in awhile that she had to think on it. "We have a great group here," she said, glancing around them, half-expecting Finley or one of the other troops to come bounding toward them. "And when the time comes, we'll have our own children. And..." she trailed off, not sure if she was entirely comfortable with the thought, "I thought on it. I think we can name the kids right away." It was just a silly superstition, right?

He nodded to acknowledge her remarks about the pack. They were small but mighty — quality over quantity. The reminder about their pups made his heart skip a beat. That day would come before they knew it. Peregrine sniffed the air without thinking, as if testing it for pheromones. Nada, though he still closed in on his wife, burying his muzzle in her plush red ruff as she told him they could name their offspring right away.

His lips, hidden by her fur, twitched. "Oh, yeah?" he rumbled rhetorically, swinging his body to press his flank against hers. He withdrew slightly, then began preening the baby soft fur around the base of her ears. "Got anymore names in mind? I was liking Wildfire for a second but now I'm leaning toward Firebird instead. Maybe for our firstborn?" he quipped lightly.

"Any chance you're well enough to practice the baby-making?" he added in the next breath, pressing a wolfish kiss to the side of her muzzle.

“I still like Fuzzbutt,” she said with a grin, happy that the mood had gone from sour and depressing to something a little more upbeat. Of course, Fox would prefer to name all of their children after whatever they looked like, so she wouldn't know how to name any of them until they were born and she could actually see them. She was a visual creature. Still, she knew that part of being bonded to Peregrine was the give and take they would both learn to live with.

When he asked if she wanted to practice baby-making, she paused. Her forefoot was definitely back in working condition, though her rib wasn't quite there yet. It still ached, but she knew that other desires were bound to win out over the pain eventually. And why not now? “How could I say no?” she replied, pushing her muzzle under his chin.

"What about Firebird Fuzzbutt?" Peregrine proposed. "My mom named one of her kids Custard, so weird names are kind of a family tradition..." he quipped. The joke about middle names spurred another, more sober thought. "On a more serious note, I just thought of something. What if we named one Firebird Atticus? Or Firebird Attica if it's a girl." Almost immediately, Peregrine felt incredibly attached to the name.

The naming discussion was set aside when Fox presented him with a why not? mentality. "You're sure? Just tell me if you're hurting or uncomfortable or anything," he said to her, nibbling the bridge of her muzzle as she slid it beneath his chin. "I love you," he added with a crooked smile.

Because it was their first tango in a while, he was torn between taking her immediately and going slow. In the end, Peregrine simply couldn't help himself and tugged his mate into his embrace. Their tryst didn't last long and he slipped away from her a few moments later, laughing sheepishly at his amateur performance.

"Sorry," he breathed into her ear. "I've missed your sexy body. Maybe round two in a few minutes? What do you think about the name?" he questioned, revisiting their original topic.

I feel like Fox has some fucked up views on sex. @_@

Fox stuck her tongue out at him, amused at the thought of calling one Firebird Fuzzbutt. To be honest, she still wasn't sure how she would be able to name any of them until she could see them. Until then, they were out in the world, they were invisible to her, and hard for her to imagine. She didn't have long to think on that though, considering Peregrine went right to town. Fox winced, but kept her discomfort hidden when he mounted her, knowing that she had to do this for him. It was part of her duty as a mate, after all, to keep him satisfied.

It was shorter than usual—a quickie, if you will—although Fox was relieved not to have to support his weight any longer. When he questioned her about the name, she slid to the ground to let her body rest. “Two names per kid?” she asked, “Seems like we’ll run out awfully quick!” Fox was, of course, joking. “Actually, that gives me a good idea. What if they each had one of your names and one that represented what they looked like?” It was the best of both worlds, was it not? As they got older, they could decide which name they wanted to go by, or it would just be decided naturally.

She is unfortunately like a lot of real women that way, I think! *pets her*

"Yeah, a first and a middle," he explained. "I don't have a middle name myself but Atticus and Crete do... did... do." Peregrine's face twitched. "Osprey doesn't either. I'm pretty sure my dad named my brothers and Mo named Osprey and me." Tangent... "That's a nifty idea. Although, other than Firebird, I can't actually remember any other names I've come up with!" he admitted with a sheepish laugh.

Unaware of his mate's discomfort during their first round, Peregrine nudged her and asked, "You ready for take two? If not, maybe I can help you along..." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at her.

“Well, you’ve got plenty of time to remember… and come up with more,” she replied, nudging his chin gently. She liked the idea of each of their children being a combination of their traditions. If Peregrine wanted to name some of them after his siblings, she was fine with that, so long as they had a little bit of her in there, too. Perhaps that was being selfish, but she would be carrying them around for two months, so she felt she should get some credit (hurr hurr). There were still several months between now and when their children would even be conceived, and considering how much Peregrine thought about his future brood, Fox had no doubt that he would think of plenty of names for the next two dozen puppies they brought into the world.

Fox hesitated only for a fraction of a second before getting to her feet. “Anything for you, lover boy,” she said sweetly, batting her eyes at him. If this was the worst she had to endure, she would do it. Denying him such a thing wasn't really within her power (or so she felt), and she had already made him wait so long. She gritted her teeth, glad that he was unable to see her face through the duration of their horizontal tango. Deep down, she knew that he would do anything for her, and so it was up to her to return the sentiment.

He liked hearing her say those words, even if he would've been more than a little appalled (with himself, that is) if he'd been able to read Fox's thoughts. "I like your attitude," he growled jokingly before nudging her into position. Instead of rushing, he took his sweet time, making good on his promise with a few passes of his tongue, which he also used to place affectionate kisses all over her lower body. He finished by planting one on her spine even as he took her.

He lasted a while longer and it was nearly an hour later when they were able to part, though the Alpha male didn't stray far from his Alpha female. He pressed his body against hers, running his nose along her rib cage and then nuzzling her forelegs. It may have seemed like simple gestures of affection, yet Peregrine was making sure he hadn't unknowingly worsened any of the damage from his mate's fall many weeks ago.

"I didn't break you," he murmured, satisfied, before littering her cheeks with little pecks of kisses. He also kissed her forehead and eyelids. "Thank-you for taking my mind off things, love."

I am so proud of my dog right now. He is actually sleeping outside of his kennel for the first time ever. :B

She grunted when it was over, sidestepping to lessen the ache on her rib. She instinctively touched her nose to her rib, nibbling at the fur there and hoping that would somehow ease the pain. Perhaps she would delve into the stash Finley had given her before. Sure, it did weird things to her perception of reality, but she could not deny that it made her feel better. It took her to a very different place. And sometimes, she needed that calm, lazy escape.

When Perry backed away to thank her, she nibbled at his chin. Despite everything that they had endured, Fox felt like they could overcome anything that life threw at them. She was determined for them to work, one way or another. And if that meant dealing with a little bit of aches and making up for it with some herb on the side, she could do that. “Of course,” she replied, once again falling to the ground, her eyelids drooping further and further until she was snoring all lady-like.

Good doggie! *pets*

Fox melted to the ground and Peregrine laughed quietly, looking down at her fondly. Typically, he would join her but he didn't feel sleepy at the moment. He knew that lying down would give him too much time to think too. He didn't want to dwell on his brother's fate right now.

Instead, he busied himself by trotting a few feet, snatching a leaf off the ground and then delicately placing it over his snoring mate. He did this several hundred more times, until Fox was hidden beneath a blanket of fall leaves. Peregrine then sat beside his lovely work of art, looking tired but proud as he gazed off into the distance.