Rising Sun Valley It's kind of like those sunsets

tags for reference, though any/all are welcome to pop in :)

She returned from her hunt with a fresh kill, only to find there was no mouth to feed. She was left with simmering suspicion, which fed her insecurity. @Reverie did not need to be bed-ridden, so it was normal for her to have gone out- maybe she went to get a drink. Maybe she wanted to stretch her legs. But Moss couldn't snuff the thought that perhaps Reverie had gone to look for Lestan. Begrudgingly, she wanted closure, and willed for Reverie to return within the next hour. She waited, unwilling to surrender to her thoughts, wanting to give Rev some of her trust, assuming she would mosey back so they could spend the night together again. 

But the silence stretched for far too long- and there was no sign of the sun-kissed blonde by the time the sun set. 

Convincing herself she was being responsible, not smothering, she left the area, and followed the most recent trail left behind that she could track. To her dismay, it led across the borders. Worried, she loosed a howl to let @Arric and @Akavir know that she was going to search for Reverie. They would have known by then that she was pregnant, and for her to go wandering could be hard on her health. She felt there'd be nothing suspicious abouot her own temporary departure, if she was doing it in the interest of a packmate's welfare. 

Along the way, her heart sank. She followed Reverie's trail as far as she could, noticing the torn up plants and snipped stems along the way. The berries she'd consumed would not be good for her, or her children. She hastened her pace. 

But Reverie's trail became erratic, and led through mud, water, bushes...It whirled and looped, and Moss found herself following the same scent trail more than once...Then, more than twice. When she could track Reverie no longer, she dreaded the outcome- and loosed a long, loud howl- hoping if Reverie was within earshot and willing or able to respond, she might do so. Meanwhile, she continued to rove, in search of another set of tracks that might lead her further, falling further and further into a sense of betrayal and despair.

I want you to know Reverie and I had an argument about this post. Rev won

Moss called to her, and Reverie could only stop and close her eyes for a moment. She was ankle-deep in a small stream, exhaustion pulling at her bones, but stepped out to set her bundle aside. She took a deep breath. What could she do? Leave Moss to worry? After every promise she'd made, it felt unfair.
So she found a place to store her bundle and marked it for later. She traced her own steps back, avoiding the water this time, and after a little while she thought to call out.
Reverie was subdued when she met Moss. I'm sorry, She didn't dare get too close. Instead she only stood and trembled. I can't... I don't know how to stop running away. I thought I did. But then... Then Lestan left her. She sucked in a breath. I think it might be time, not now but soon. I was going to find a healer, but I realized I - want to be alone when it happens. I don't want to be at the Creek. She would go back with Moss, settle her, and when she left again she would ensure no one pursued her.

wolfsong across the valley in a feminine pitch. then again, a higher and melodic sound.

cries to the heavens, not for her, yet almalexia answered them all the same. a thin thread of scent guided her, the elder of the pair as she soon saw. the prophet descended in silence upon them.

and saw that one — a girl as almalexia had once been, spun not of midnight but of sunlight and seafoam — bore the weight of creation upon her frame. the coarse hairs along her spine rose at the wrongness of it, and yet the prophet delighted in it too. she spoke of her time, and of a healer.

i know medicine, almalexia purred as she slid ever closer.

i looked over threadlogs and it looks as if this will be on the 31st? (: so i am going with that

She was partially relieved- and surprised- when Reverie answered her call. She got a rough gauge on which direction Reverie's voice had come from, and galloped heavily in that direction until she spotted her packmate, looking somewhat bedraggled and wet, and somewhat doleful. She approached, pushing her whiskers forward, and sniffed. She could smell the scent of herbs, but Reverie herself looked sober and well. 

Her words worried Moss. She was upset that Reverie had run from her and admitted to doing so. Her state of mind was not terribly encouraging, given the fact that she would rather give birth off in the wilderness, all alone...It felt almost as though she was willing for death to come for her, if that was what fate allowed. 

Another voice interrupted their reunion and Moss, who had been stiff with tension anyway, turned suddenly toward the stranger and snarled, baring her teeth in a warning. She offered, then, to help- and claimed to know medicines, but there was something about the slim, dark woman's intrusion that made her nerves flare, still. She sheathed the blunted daggers she'd revealed, and quelled her growl. 

"Let me talk to her, alone."

It was not a request, but she tried to make her voice sound calm and reassuring- so that the stranger did not fear that Moss was going to harm Reverie, and might let them have some time together to talk, before taking advice from a stranger, no matter how well-meaning the stranger might have been.

I'm doing this in Walmart I'm so sorry for the quality

Shadows reached for them. No — a shadow, a woman, and Reverie found herself unsettled in some instinctive way she could not put a name to. She stepped away, closer to Moss, feeling the beginnings of fear prickling at her as her companion growled. Reverie knew Moss would protect her, but still she feared the violence of it. The blood.
Until the woman spoke.
Reverie frowned, but it was a thoughtful expression. Wait... She said softly. I - have we met before? The gilded girl stepped closer, remembering Bellatrix now and that feeling of knowing. It was something about the eyes, all over again. Gold and indigo. Where did she know those colors from? Reverie glanced at Moss, ears twitching with uncertainty.

distrust rippled through the air between the trio. the prophet was silent as first one spoke, then the other. daywalkers, both of them. soft things. easily perturbed. almalexia only smiled.

find me when you are ready.

i will be close.

i will be watching.

she would not surrender this found treasure so easily.

the prophet departed. for now.

She wanted to block the odd-eyed woman completely from view, and keep Reverie from taking any interest in her. Something deep within Moss suspected the woman might be some kind of babysnatcher- who might tend to reverie and her children during birth, but slip away with one while the new mother was feverish and disoriented. What she'd intended as a reassurance came as a veiled threat, so Moss watched her leave with careful eyes. 

"Don't find her. You don't want to be indebted to a stranger." She said softly. She doubted very much that Reverie would want to pay for a midwife who would only be satisfied with one of the children as payment. She flicked an ear, to see if she heard any movement nearby- and then sat down. 

Her flecked eyes searched Reverie's, and again, only saw what seemed to be uncertainty. She sighed. 

"Why did you go on your own? Can you tell me why you wanted to be alone, and far from home and anyone who could help you, while you gave birth?" She asked calmly.

The woman left, and her strange spell over Reverie was shattered. She sucked in a breath and remembered that she was cold and tired, and Moss was warm and stable. Maybe she didn't want to be alone after all. Reverie let Moss hold her gaze, let her speak, but couldn't stop herself from stepping forward to bury her face in the other woman's fur.
Suddenly all she wanted was to be close.
I was going to come back, Reverie explained softly. I just... need to do this alone. But I promise I'll always come back to you, if you'll wait for me. It was the best she could offer. But she meant it. If Moss could stand to be her lighthouse, Reverie knew she would never stay lost forever.

"But what if something happened?" She interrupted. She had no doubts that she could wait, if Reverie was just going away on a day trip, and trust her to come home- but leaving to go out into the dangerous wilderness to give birth? Reverie, of all wolves, knew what dangers there were outside the pack's borders. Moss couldn't comprehend why it was that she'd want to risk her own life, as well as the lives of the pups, out in the wilderness. 

The only thing that seemed to make any sense, was that Reverie simply wanted to see what chance she had. 

"Don't let fate make all of your decisions for you." She said quietly. "If you do...Then you'll never be able to make a decision for yourself, you'll never trust anyone, you'll miss out on all of the best opportunities...And you'll die alone."

And you'll die alone.
It felt like a threat. Whether Moss meant it that way or not, Reverie heard in her words that she would leave too. That she would find Reverie as intolerable as Lestan had, that everyone would eventually. You'll die alone. Well if the world could not love her as she was, maybe alone and dead was her place — !
I - Reverie thought of Lestan then, and frustration prickled at her. Not anger. Not yet. I need you to trust me. I know it's not easy, but - if you really do want me in your life, this is part of it. That's the thing no one understands - the thing Lestan didn't get either. Sometimes you have to let go and trust me. And if you can't, then just leave now.
Best to get it over with.

She could tell her words had stung, but Moss could not simply stand by while Reverie too chances with her life, and asked her to simply allow her to do so. She did not want a partner who endangered themselves because it was simply a thing they needed to do. Moss sighed. 

"When Lestan left, you were heartbroken, Reverie. You learned what that felt like- and then you did the same thing to me. Did you consider how that would make me feel?" She asked. She considered the plants Reverie had visited along the way; she was doing more than taking a risk. There were signs that she was welcoming more than simple fate. "You can have my trust- but you can't be recklessly endangering yourself, and just expect me to let you do it."

Moss was right. Of course she was right. And that was the moment Reverie knew that the day would come when Moss found her intolerable too. Perhaps soon. Reverie could hardly stand the thought.
I'm sorry, Her eyes turned hot with tears as she spoke, stepping back because she was suddenly certain Moss would not want her near. It wasn't enough. She knew she would do it again. Reverie would always be this. I - maybe - Maybe I should leave, because I'll only hurt you. Moss, I don't want to lose you. The tears were coming faster now. She shivered.
But I've always been like this, and it's not something I can change overnight, and I'm afraid that... that it's inevitable. That I will lose you. And I will die alone, Because Reverie would always run. Always.

She stiffened when Reverie stepped back, and she could see she'd made a point that had resonated with the flighty woman. At the same time, she didn't want to lose Reverie, and it would be indecent of her to back out on her now, when she was already half gone in the direction of isolating herself. If she stayed, and pushed Reverie to change her habits, she could cause more stress. There was no easy way to please the both of them. 

For now, the most important thing was making sure she was safe while the children were born. 

And if Reverie would be most comfortable birthing alone...Then she would have to abide by Reverie's rules. 

She sighed, and lowered her head- a horse allowing itself to be bridled. 

"I don't want to be too far away. So if you need anything, you can call out. But I can give you some space." She said. "Would that seem fair to you?"

Reverie let out a breath, and nodded slowly. I'll make sure that - I stay close enough for you to hear me if I call, She promised, and knew this was a promise she could keep, at least. Reverie would not call for Moss, but if it made her feel better to think that she might, she was willing to add another lie to the lot.
Thank you, Moss, Reverie reached out to brush her nose across her cheek. I'll - come back with you for now. I'll go when it's time. And then as soon as it's over I'll come back. Without her children. Would Moss ever forgive her for that? Reverie was unsure, but she knew that she would never forgive herself if she allowed these children into her life. To be reminded of Lestan with each waking moment would surely drive her mad.
They did not seek the woman, in the end. Reverie followed Moss back to Swiftcurrent Creek in a rather subdued state. She didn't even wait a full day before she left again, this time in the middle of the night.