Sex: Female16 Days Left Danica slipped into the glade as silently as possible, paws stepping heavier on the ground than normal due to the added weight. Emerald eyes stared at the little peace of heaven she happened to come across once more. It didn't seem to be a high traffic area with several members wondering about. Instead it was empty with tons of flowers beginning to pop up and bloom. She smiled at what seemed like a safe sanctuary that would hopefully become the first home her pups would know. It was a beautiful tucked away location within the Thickets, and for that she was grateful. The weather was fairly warm with a few clouds looming above head in the light blue sky. Soon enough the young woman found herself standing in the middle of the field, muzzle pointed to the sky as she watched the shapes float by. Each one with it's own resemblance to something she knew or, plain and simply, a blob. One in particular made her smile, smudged upon the mass was a white form that reminded her of a face. The face of a young wolf, and at that very moment she mumbled aloud, "There must be an afterlife." The bittersweet moment was captured by nostalgia as the memories of her younger days slipped through her grasp once more. The stories of her short past flashing before her causing a sadden smiled, a single tear running down her face then hitting a blade of grass. It rolled down the bright green onto the ground and dissolved into the dark soil beneath her. Swallowing the start of a sob she whispered, "For my brothers, I shall be an amazing mother." Danica had yet to truly mourn over her assumed lost of @Ashton. No matter what anyone would tell her, she listened to her broken heart, and what it said was clear. He was long gone from this world to roam the stars with her sweet Tacoma. Her sweet Ashton and her sweet Tacoma, she could feel herself shattering a little bit inside. They would be missing out on being uncles and were no longer able to smile at her. *My sweet brothers...they died so young.* Their teasing and taunting was longed for, and she found herself thinking how foolish of a child she had been. When little she'd beg them to stop not realizing one day she would want that back enough to kill. A loud sigh parted her lips, and she cared not to quiet it any, assuming that she stood alone. Brushing off her emotions Dani followed her instincts, scanning the ground for a hidden opening amongst the vegetation. She needed a warm place, with decent room for them to rest. Maybe even enough so that if @Titan visited he could fit within it's confinements. The entrance would have to be just small enough it'd go unnoticed to the naked eye, but big enough for her to slip in with ease. *Maybe if it's surrounded by something thick and heavy...*”Speech” |
Dawnthieves.de - Table by PuppyThief |
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Huck wound through the thicket, stepping silently through the underbrush. He'd learned the rhythm of the forest, maneuvered it innately as though he'd always been here. One might not know he was from the alpine if he wasn't so blindingly white. It was that alone now that gave him away. The silence devoured him on days like these that crept by at a dull pace, bringing hours of lackluster nebulae, thoughts wayward as the wind. There were some days that gave him glimpses of the others, those made him feel worthy, but it was easy to grow cold and thick with self-doubt when nobody surfaced. He'd wind on and on until the boundary line vanished seemingly with the horizon, and he'd blur in the scent of being lost. It wasn't long until the glade found him, resting so delicately in the dancing motes of sunshine. He resisted the urge to devour it in a powerful stride, take the flattest sliver of land by white storm. Even as his heart lept for a galloping pulse, his wilted eyes yearned for the tranquility of the glade, untouched like still water. A sigh gusted through his throat, and one small, silent step at a time, he entered the haven. Through the tall-blooming flowers, Hudson caught eye of the creamy wisps of Danica in the nearing distance. He halted still, feeling a hint of reluctance crawl timidly in the back of his thoughts. He studied her for a moment, watching her from behind while she gazed off somewhere in her own mind, much like how he pictured himself to look out here - stuck in the inward complications of the troubled soul. But something eventually stirred in him, maybe it was a wild hair by which he decided to approach her, his one chance to be bold enough to reveal himself to a total stranger in complete solitude. With unknown grace, the white wolf made his way round her side at what he judged to be a comfortable distance and he charmingly placed himself, tail tucked around his paws in the grass beside her. He was far enough away to gather himself if she chose to turn on him, but he was only thinking about the shallow words bubbling to his throat. "It's such a nice day, isn't it?" HUDSON SAWYER |
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The words of a stranger cut through her concentration and she twisted about herself in fluid motions to stare at him wide eyed. Her hackles had rose and suspicions laced her words, "{b}Yes...it is...but, who are you? "[/b]Nervously the young pregnant wolf tentatively approached him to smell his fur, finding it drenched with her mothers. Calming some she stepped back to announce,"I'm Nina's daughter, Danica. " There wasn't much of anything else to say to the man, but a light bulb went off in her head not much longer. "Hmm, my mother trusts you... "She started off naively,"So I'm assuming that I can. I'm looking for a birthing den, think you could make use of yourself and help me out?" It was sweet, yet bitter, at the same time masking her true emotions. Warily she watched him awaiting her response.
Green orbs scanned over his frame looking for any hint of danger, lips parting to offer a low growl. "Oh, and, if you can prove of use to me...don't go telling everyone where my den is at, hey? I haven't really made any...friends...here." Danica grew hesitant and decided to refer to them that way. In all reality, she didn't know where she stood with most of the pack. For those who had heard of her blowing up on Kopah she assumed didn't think much good of her.
There was no way she'd allow this white man before her to rat out their home, then in the night, allow someone to slip in and silence the life of her children. A sudden chill caused her to shiver, gulping at the thought and suddenly starting to rethink asking for his help. "{b}Not to be rude...but I would prefer my children to be alive and well, safe too. I'm not sure how to mask our scents though? Do you know of anything? "[/b]Her airy ways showed just how scatter brained she was today. Jumping from mood and thought to a new temper and a new wonder."speech"
A streak inside his coldish heart pounded red for a moment, jolted into rhythm at the purity of interaction. It had been weeks... months since the white canine felt any sort of casual in the presence of another. It was enough for that one little part of him to ride easy and take in Danica with not only his eyes, but his voice. Since this, his thoughts built and pent under self-deprecation, loneliness - all the things that made an identity roll in the grave. Until now, he'd lost himself in the tangle of underbrush, pushed far enough under that not even sunlight penetrated his eyes. But now the light of Danica's eyes was a wash of hope. A small, cool breath found way out of Huck's lungs in one slow sigh. Yes. This is what it means to speak. He could only hope that the feeling was genuine, that she was genuine. His thoughts briefly rolled back to the past, and he remembered glassy eyes that met his every time with nothing but colored evil - hidden so well in someone so opaque. The wolf let his eyes wilt momentarily, at his own paws as Danica surely studied him and let her voice eclipse the start of his. "I-," he began, but stopped quietly for her to proceed with her long, womanly rambles. Hudson roved his eyes over her once more as she spoke to find that she was noticeably plump, with... puppies? His heart reached out to her, he knew the hardship of motherhood second-hand from his experience of being a nanny for the first year of life. He could spot a pregnancy from miles away, and normally tuck tail before a trace of him hit her wind. It was odd that Danica's mate was no where in sight, or smell for that matter and with each passing moment, his thoughts turned gradually around what exactly that meant. "I'm Hudson, it's nice to meet you, Danica." Slowly he was gathering subtleties from her tone, the way she was beating around the bush, talking about absurd things like trust. These finer things went unnoticed in someone who didn't understand what trouble was. Hudson could infer. His ears wavered, flicking back a little with confusion, picking up a little on the slack in her game. "I'd be glad to help you, but... Why me?" His eyes were soft, he didn't want to seem like he was trying bargain, just inch a little further to that burning bush of trouble. But he knew why him. Of course, he was the perfect specimen to keep a secret: that strange loner, too shy to even speak a word about himself, and you could forget someone else. He would be perfect for this little task of hers, and he knew it was becoming bigger with each chosen word that slipped from her teeth. And then it came, the fire and whimpering bush - the truth he'd guessed all along. Puppies. It came clear to him that she wasn't the one in trouble, but the unborn products of an unthoughtful mistake. The white wolf sighed again, this time with the weight of his pounding chest, and her defensive growl. "Oh," he stated. Probably the dumbest thing he could have said. But it was all he could manage to say. Could he really risk the only home in this new world he'd ever known for the false purity of Nina's soiled daughter? It was rough truth. But the truth was dangerous. "Listen," Hudson fumbled with his thoughts, feeling the guilt rise higher in his throat. "I can keep a secret." He hated the idea of lying to Nina. But at the same time it wasn't lying if he wasn't speaking. "I know what will happen to them if the pack finds out." He looked her directly in the eye, solidifying his word. "Trust me, I've seen it with these eyes right here and I don't ever want to see it again." He knew what kind of pain that would be. He knew any risk would be worth it for her. Hudson was lost in her questions and the weight of what decisions and risk stood in his pathway. She needed to slow down, and he knew that informing her of that was in itself risky. Pregnancy did insane things to a woman's mood, and the right words were small threads of hay in a needle-stack. Hudson peered around through the flowers, saw a hollowed out tree decomposing from the bottom up. "There," he pointed with his nose, and began trotting off toward the enormous tree carcass. "We'll worry about our scents later," he hollered. "But first we need to dig a hole about midway down the length of this hollow trunk, that way you have adequate shelter and security. You know, in case anyone starts nosing around." HUDSON SAWYER |
Danica warily watched him, nodding her head at his name. "Hudson..." She allowed the word to fall about her mouth and trail off her pink tongue as she got a feel for it. "Lovely name." The woman muttered mostly to herself, but surely he could hear her. She shifted nervously, "Well, you're already here aren't you? If someone knows than I goat try to make use of them...right? Plus my mother trusts you so I'll be hanging on a limb, or whatever the saying is.." She shrugged, however, emerald orbs studied him intensely.
Dani's ear perked at the "oh" and she waited for him to continue, now questing her choice in wolf. Of course, their wasn't many options, were there? Nina had to be busy taking care of the pack, and the young mother honestly wished to keep the pup's location secret. Of course not from her mother specifically...but Anyone who didn't know of them and, henceforth, bring harm to her offspring. Or worse take them to the wrong alpha. How would the male lead react to her babies? She shivered imaging a truly evil scene, for she hardly knew Mirren.
She trained her attention back on @Hudson, and took a moment to decide if she should tell him Nina knows. Her teeth gritted, but her mouth opened nonetheless, "My mother has been informed, but I can not say the same for her male lead. Nor for anyone else within the thickets. I do not trust the pack and even though they may know of my pregnancy, I would much rather keep the location secret. I would prefer you treated it like you previously thought it was...to Keep everyone away."
The young woman sprung into action following after the white wolf. Sniffing about the tree for a moment she examined his findings, and chose to trust him. With a quiet nod she begun digging what would soon be the first home of Daniel Black Thorben. Her little blossom.
Was it really going to take all of this for Hudson to finally admit to himself that he was a good man after all? He'd have to find himself building a home out of the blue for a family that wasn't his. He'd have to commit to the role of father in a few more weeks. But why not? Just his luck to run right up on one of the most dangerous finds of all - a pregnant wolf carrying an illegitimate child. He hated that word, illegitimate. Every child deserved the right to live their life as an individual, without the judgmental labeling the word mistake provided. As he dug, he felt Danica's softened words on his back as she made her way over to help him. He glanced back at her over his muscled shoulder when she mentioned possible tension between Mirren and Kite after having only spilled the truth to her gold-hearted mother. Surely this secret would surface at some point in the child's life, the later the better. He imagined her mother could only do so much this time around, since winter was always looming around the corner, always a whisper of death in terms of survivor-ship of the pack and offspring. Secret Woodlands could only do so much for themselves now, and he quickly knew that a slip of Danica's secret could easily cost her the life of her child, and with no mate around to fend for them, she may as well be done for too. "Mirren seems more likely to be on edge since Kite is expecting," Hudson added. "I do not know him well enough to say what he'd think, but I know him as a diligent defender and I wouldn't be surprised if he reacts as so." Hudson couldn't tell if it was right to say more now. He wished he could find out if Danica knew that hiding her son forever was impossible. Mirren, and the entirety of the pack would discover this. He had no doubts about that. He had no doubts about his own feelings toward Danica too... Even though they'd just met, Huck felt as though he would do anything to keep her child alive. He had nothing to lose. He returned his paws to the mossy dirt, carefully burrowing out a deep opening so no passerby could see the contents of the den from outside the log's cover. Hudson brushed his tail aside as Danica entered the shelter so she could see what he was starting to build and give him her approval or disapproval. "I don't think anyone would be able to see your pups under the shell of this log, but if we dig a deep enough entrance to the burrow they'll be invisible." HUDSON SAWYER |
"Sounds good...lets go pretty far and make it large enough for company...aka you." She partly mumbled, with a small chuckle, paws working away at the dirt that sprayed up in the air. Danica could guess that Hudson would have to have a place to stay, maybe even with them some nights? If he contributed enough she wouldn't mind at all. The white fellow seemed nice enough considering he was the main reason her den was being made right now. She wasn't sure where she would've placed it if not for him. The man and her, alongside pups, would need plenty of space to stretch out or curl up. She doubted that a strong attachment would form with Hudson, but life had a funny way of doing things, such as pairing her and Titan originally.
Hudson smiled to himself when Danica joined beside him. There were four white paws working in unison with the spongy dirt, carving a deep entrance into the damp world. He could only think about the sweet taste of companionship on his famished heart, the way it made him glow warmly inside. Almost as though the flames of hope were igniting within his chest. He'd felt so much like the invisible wind of the alps, searching the hollowest parts of life with cold hands and wordless whispers - until now. Finally, now. Danica's concerns stroked his ears and he nodded in agreement to them. There was definitely potential danger under the cloak of their future. But Hudson was used to that foreboding figure standing ahead of him and he'd lived his whole life trying to conquer it, or at least take the burdens upon himself if he could, from others. Huck knew that love existed, he'd felt it once before in just one short-lived soul. He sought it because he believed in it. He knew it built in moments like these, where a mother builds a den for her child. The Sawyer took a moment to evaluate the progress of the den. In just a short time, they'd etched out a promising entrance that poured steeply into the ground, the best angle for concealing the treasures within. He felt a ginger nip on his ear, and a smile lit his features. He returned her playful gesture with less felicity and a genuine tail wag. Thank you. "It looks like a good start," he answered with that same smile lingering. He returned to the dirt with her in tow. Hudson couldn't help but laugh with her as she mentioned building it big enough for company. "Are you sure? I'm a pretty big guy," and with that he tunneled harder, catching a whiff of excitement all the while. He didn't quite know how serious she was about the whole thing, but he definitely got a kick out of how quickly he'd earned himself a parental role after only just meeting Danica. It felt nice to cut up and he couldn't remember the last time he'd joked around with anyone - or become a father in one hour for that matter. HUDSON SAWYER |
Danica giggled, enjoying her time with Hudson greatly as she dug away. As if challenging him she moved her paws quicker, removing the dirt with more force, "Yeah well, if that's true might as well show you up while we're at it!" She teased forming Daniel's future home with a man she hardly knew. It seemed foolish to trust him so, but he hadn't done nothing wrong and the girl felt that he was her only help. Dani knew @Nina , as always, was probably too busy with pack matters to spend time with her. Though she wouldn't neglect the memory of their day together so long ago playing. It was a pleasant thought, tumbling through the snow and seeing the strange prey that fought one another before them. Smiling she vowed to herself to make sure she sacrifice great time to spend with her children, while still contributing to the pack. Little did she know in the time to come her struggles with "belonging" and helping out Secret Woodlands would persist. She had been a lingering figure in Whisper Caverns for her short time there...
For now she was happy and messing around with Hudson, "accidentally" spraying him with a little bit of dirt, her tail wagging furiously behind her. Despite the fact this was supposed to be work, Danica was having a blast, probably making a bit of a game out of their efforts. "Oops, I guess that happened since you're so behind and can't keep up with me." Tauntlingly she winked, laughing once more with a bright smile plastered upon her face.