nothing can save you

@Kroc

The bear of a she-wolf was home, and had since acclimated again with the land. But the woman roamed with a hunger in her heart, a hunger to settle somewhere. While the idea of somewhere with dirt appealed to her, what appealed to her more was the basin, deep, dark, and quiet. From Tarritut, Tonravik would head there. Her belly had begun swelling, though by sight none could see it; her stomach would drop, as opposed to round out. Now and again, she would cramp. These symptoms had started recently, and she hated them.

If she was not sure then, she was certainly sure now. After her finding Tatsuya, Tonravik came into these changes... but kept moving on nonetheless. Tonravik would always pull her weight, no matter how heavy it would become in the coming days.

With Tonravik and Kerosene home again, things weren't really all that different. The wolves of the Spine stayed to themselves for the most part, a good portion of them crossing each other's paths in their patrols around the border. In all reality, things had stayed quiet, as they nearly always were. It was not something she took for granted, knowing that at any moment, some fool of a wolf could come barreling out of nowhere to disrupt that peace. Such things kept them on their toes, of course, but this was approaching a level of ridiculous that even she had a hard time comprehending. 

But that was of no consequence now, tracking Tonravik with a sure and swift step. Only earlier today, she had caught a small snack, a rather plump grouse that she carried with her on her hunt for her fearless leader. It was not too long before she spotted the dark creature, dropping the carcass at her feet, her tail waving through the air briefly. 

The smell of food came to her nose before the smell of her subordinate and Beta did. Tonravik paused in her journey, turning and finding the white one immediately. The woman moved with grace despite her bearish lumber and discomfort, noting the dropped carcass and then, the pale wolfs face. Having just had her fill of the moose she had tracked and waited with, the leader did not deign to make a play for the grouse, only waved her tail in turn. But that tail lifted, urging the other show her that her place as Beta, her second, was remembered; Tonravik had been gone for two weeks with Iqniq, and as her head lifted as well, she reinstated her place.

"Nanuk," she greets gruffly, eyes falling once more to the grouse before she gestured to the direction she was traveling.

There was no hesitancy in Kroc submitting to her leader, proud to serve and support her and her mate. They had both earned such respect many times over and the creature let her see as much, lowering her tail and loosening her posture. She was loyal and while such a thing with her was hard-won, Tonravik had broken those walls in one fell swoop, letting the female find a home in Tartok's realms once again.

And while she knew the customs and had integrated seamlessly, even from her first moments at Siku's side, she had never had another name than Kroc of Tartok. So, it was with unmasked but still subtle surprise that she regarded her dark Alpha, as if confirming that it was she being called Nanuk. And indeed it was. In that single moment, all that had been before was peeled away, leaving a wolf with a newly christened name. Shedding those last remnants of the wolf she'd been before, Kroc Saurturi was no more. Even Kroc of Tartok was dead.

In their place stood Nanuk of Tartok, forever loyal to the one and only Tonravik. 

Again, her tail waved, closing the distance with easy steps to nudge her shoulder gently. There was no more contact than that brief touch, for it was a warm day and she would not wish such discomfort on either of them. 

The other seemed pleased, and Tonravik reciprocated the gesture a bit more roughly, if only because she literally did not know how to be gentle. Even with her mate she was rough in all things, from preening (which she was not well-practiced in) to anything else. She moved to nose the others shoulder-blade, inhale her scent entirely, to see the things she had missed with her nose.

Not much.

Content with this, she turned back, again, toward the direction of the Basin and began to plod in that direction, following her gut instinct as she sniffed at the earth and the sky for a place she would be content within, to stay around and guard herself. And where her pack mates would bring her food, and in time, she and her cubs. A strange thought, but she readied herself for the day.

The contact was not pushed away, a deep thrum echoing in her chest as they interacted. The white bear-like female was one that didn't often show affection for others, unless they had truly earned it as Tonravik had, and even the leader's bright furred mate and her darker aokkatti. With no others had she bonded with so close yet but in time, she was sure it would happen. Tartok was family, and as that family grew, so too would the network of those she bonded with. 

Following at Tonravik's side, she aided in the search, not needing an explanation as to what the female was looking for. With pups on the way, there was only one thing that would cause this wandering and that was to find the birthing den. Her eyes roved the land around them, examining the locations and their merit. Just with a glance, the ones she saw would be unfit, either too exposed or too small an opening for a creature of Tonravik's size. She knew this with only a look because she was used to her own size and if she could not fit there, then the pregnant Alpha certainly wouldn't be able to either. 

Tonravik continued to sniff around, inspecting. Nothing thus far felt right, or was right. One thing was too exposed to the elements. Another, much too in the open. Some too small, some too large and inviting. She knew this place, and knew it well; she would find somewhere. Her mind flipped through the places she had seen and smelled. She followed one such scent trail now, thinking of the darkness it offered. But, would it be secluded enough?

Annoyance swept over her, her mood-change swift and sudden. Her patience was thin to begin with; now, it was near nonexistent. But her search was important, and she was not one to give up. This was a thing she knew she must do, that her instinct guided her toward. It was difficult to enjoy. She preferred sleeping in the open, rain or shine, the only cover required being trees.

But she sought a place for solitary confinement. A place to keep all others away, her mate included, until they were old enough to be seen by others. They would feed her, and she would feed her babes; and in time, her babes would become men (she believed she would give birth to sons) that would also aid in the hunt, and the pack would feed one another.

Her imagination was not great, but this was what she knew the cycle of life to be. Only now would she begin to get used to it; this was the very beginning.

Nanuk had never known this purposeful wanderlust. She never wanted to. Children were not her thing. She would, of course, tolerate the leading pair's spawn but beyond that, she preferred to be around grown wolves. Still though, she followed Tonravik, watching as should inspect this location and that one, moving across the lands as they sought a suitable den. 

Her ears flickered, glancing at her companion, friend, and Alpha as she felt the roil of annoyance ripple through the air. She did not close the distance between them safe for a very brief, encouraging nudge to her flank. Anything else and Nanuk likely risked losing her nose. She liked that where it was, believe it or not and so let the distance between them grow again, chuffing when she found another cave, a larger one. Tonravik would have to inspect it but at least it was larger than the last few. What specifics her leader had in mind, however, Kroc was unsure of.

Tonravik found this wanderlust keeping her in the bounds of the territory, deep in its protected depths. Like her Beta, the woman was no good with children; she had never had an opportunity to deal with them, either, given she was chased off when her mother had bred and she herself had turned a year old. Her impatience would not bode well for any child, her own included. Certainly, it could spell death for any not her own.

Her flank twitched at the companionable nudge, and she watched as Nanuk moved toward another secluded area. Tonravik followed as the other woman chuffed, and inspected it quickly. It was a good area, large, but too open. Had it not been instinct guiding her, Tonravik might have accepted it... but she needed something difficult to weasel into, yet comfortable enough for growing bodies and her own large one. So she turned from it, her dark eyes falling to Nanuk. An appreciative look was given, before she resumed her search. The task was a difficult one, her instinct not giving her any leeway in what she must find.

Fading this one too! -cleans up thread log- <3

Tonravik came closer, examining the possible den. Nanuk simply watched, standing a fair few feet from bother the pregnant female and the home she was considering. When she turned from it to continue on, so too did Kroc, her paws carrying her at the other's side. Eventually she would split away from her Alpha to patrol the borders as she did each and every day, content to protect the Spine as she had charged herself to.

Thread fade.