Oak Tree Bend ruled the streets until the morning light

May 17th, Partly Cloudy, 64F/18C, 7pm
@Kyna
Aponi is 7 weeks pregnant, her sides are very swollen

Last year the silver woman had taken shelter within a small stone natural cave and called it her birthing den, this year she would have to construct her own. She had spent the day fighting off exhaustion as she had paced throughout the territory with purpose. Blue eyes swept left and right as she walked, quickly analyzing each patch of earth before moving on. Aponi had ruled out the majority of the territory without even needing to search it, much of the land was too close to the borders or the communal den or the river or where Spieden had given birth. This left very little to work with and the Aquila felt herself drawn to where she and her eldest daughter had built their own private den so many months before.

Even this would not be acceptable, she could not be too close to the previous den. Still she found her paws digging into the earth far enough away to appease her need for privacy but within eyesight. With a grunt she hacked at the dirt and roots of the oak tree she had chosen to hide the entrance beneath. From a distance the entrance would be disguised by the base of the tree and surrounding foliage but it would be a challenge to hollow out the space on her own in her condition. Aponi had removed enough dirt to make a hole large enough for her body to rest in but not be hidden from view when she could dig no more. Laying down into the soft freshly turned earth the mother fought to keep her eyelids open, knowing how much work she still had to complete before she could be done.

   

The warm weather had finally broken the very last tendrils of winter’s grasp.  While spring had truly come, it seemed the season past was not quite willing to give up on its hold.  For all the sunshine, there was still cold nights and wet days, until finally, finally the spring ushered the coldest months away until the days grew long, and then short again.  Kyna was pleased to feel the sun on her shoulders, warming her from outside in.  Most of her time was spent alone these days, if not with her friend Sahalie.

There was little peace to be found in a group, and the golden girl much preferred a litany of her own thoughts to the blathering most wolves would spill out in order to avoid the silence. 

This particular evening, the yearling was trotting back to the heart of Oak Tree Bend with a spring in her step, a large rabbit held gingerly in her jaws.  The blood staining her golden muzzle told of more than a single kill – Kyna had herself a meal before returning to the sport, providing for the pack’s caches.  With so many expectant mothers (So many!!  Was it something in the water!?), the pack’s hunting ability would be limited.  It was largely a self-taught skill, and one the girl prized highly.  So highly, in fact, that she hesitated to stop upon finding her mother in a sunken hole, eyes closed.  She’d ballooned the past few weeks (much to the yearling’s unspoken horror).

Ultimately, curiosity won out, and Kyna changed her course, halting a few paces away from her dam.  “Are you well?” she asked Aponi, mouthful deposited at her feet.  One eyebrow arched elegantly.  For all that her siblings believed her nothing a princess, the girl had been growing more and more regal with each passing day.

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A wild dissertation appears!

Sorry I took so long, I'm the worst

Silver eyelids fluttered at the sound of approaching footsteps but as they passed her the blue eyes closed once more, not really registering who was near her. That is until the scent of a fresh kill filtered in through her nostrils. Leathery nose twitched as eyes opened in once more, sight narrowing in on the sight of the rabbit hanging from her daughter's jaws. Aponi's stomach fought back a rumble of protest as her pride flared, there was not a chance in hell that she would be asking her yearling daughter to provide for her.

Ear flicked lazily at her words, her gaze tearing away from the prey which had now been placed on the ground unaware that she had been staring. Brow furrowed slightly at the words not understanding why she would ask such question before they smoothed at the raised brow. Each day that continued Kyna seemed to be growing into herself, more Aquila than Aponi had ever thought possible. It brought her pride to see such an expression on the girl's face and suddenly her heart ached wishing she could tell her so. Maw opened once ready to say the words but she couldn't force the words out.

Instead Aponi nodded, "Just tired is all, I'm running out of time to build the birthing den." Icy gaze looked wistfully over her daughter once more, larger than she was but built willowy and graceful. It caused a small smile to flit across her face, "It's hard to believe it's already been a year since you were born." The words were out before she could even think and once they rang out between them Aponi faltered, unsure of what else to say.

@Aponi -- I am also the worst, good grief.

   

“Oh.”

It hadn’t dawned on Kyna that her mother would require a separate den to give birth – but the more she thought on it, the more it made sense.  When she was very small, it was only herself and Aponi.  If her father wanted to see her, then he would visit.  She had not realized her dam had carved it out herself.  Her brows furrowed as she looked at the woman (grown like a balloon!) and to the shallow she rested in.

“Would you like help?” she hazarded to ask.  Ears flicked forward and back as she swallowed, uncertain how this offer would be received.  “I am sure you could on your own, if you’d rather – I only imagine that it goes more quickly with two pairs of paws than with one.”

Perhaps more importantly, Kyna wasn’t weighed down with living beings squirming around inside her.  The very thought of it made her entire body shudder, casting the thought away before it could worm around even more.  Picking up her kill, the girl crept closer, depositing it now with intention by Aponi’s side.  She did not need it, after all – hunting was something she considered herself very capable of.

“Does it hurt?” she blurted, lacking all characteristic tact.  “The puppies.  Inside you, I mean.”

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(This post was last modified: Jun 23, 2016, 05:55 PM by Kyna.)

A wild dissertation appears!

Shallow water has trapped several fish in a small pond. Hunt Opportunity

Perhaps weeks ago she would have coolly responded with an "I don't need help" but with her pregnancy Aponi didn't have the energy with pettiness. Instead she gave a -somewhat exhausted- smile and murmured, "Thank you." It took her a long moment before she could even collect herself enough to stand and when she did it seemed to take ages. Now that she was standing how swollen her sides were came into full view and it looked as if she had nearly tripled in size. Wobbling out of the small hole she had created she came to her daughter's side before making a wide 180 to look back at her handy work.

She sighed, ready to start digging once more when Kyna's question brought her pause and a silver ear flicked in her direction. Glancing up towards her she hesitated, "No they don't... hurt exactly. Not all the time at least but sometimes when they kick it hurts temporarily. Nothing compared to when they really want out though." It was meant as a joke but when the pain she had gone through a year ago surfaced her face twisted into a slight grimace.

Stomach gurgled as the scent of Kyna's kill entered her nostrils once more and the mother glanced towards it longily. Her pride ached at the thought of taking it but her physical needs were currently stronger than her mental ones. Taking the rabbit gingerly in her jaws at first she took a bite, what followed could only be described as bloodlust as the pregnant she wolf tore the prey to bits, devouring every morsel before she looked back towards her daughter. Smiling a silent thanks for the meal she was rewarded with a swift kick into her rib cage.

Flinching slightly she suddenly looked back on her yearling daughter, "They're kicking now, would you like to feel?"

Perhaps she would have been more taken aback by the thanks if there were not more pressing thoughts swarming about her mind.  No matter how hard Kyna tried not to think about it, she kept sneaking furtive glances towards her mother’s sides.  Why would anyone ever want to go through such a thing?  Goodness, even the fiery blond didn’t quite consider herself worth so much body changes, trouble, and what she could only imagine to be mental anguish.  She was never going to have puppies.  Ever.  It looked horrible.

The girl was about to set to work, her paws kneading the cool earth, when suddenly Aponi presented her with a query.  The fallen princess’ head shot upwards, eyes rimmed with white as she glanced from the silvery wolf to her sides.  Kicking?  They were kicking?  Surely they couldn’t kick their way right out of the woman and…and…explode her, right?

After a sharp exhale, Kyna scolded herself – no, that was ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous.  Clearly, her dam was not the least bit concerned by the squirming inside her belly, and so, the youth had no right to be, either.  With a small shake, the young Argyris crept forward, and after another tentative moment of thought, pressed her muzzle to her mother’s ribs.  A moment later, she felt a small nudge in return, reeling backwards with surprise.  “I felt it!” she exclaimed, caught somewhere between absolute wonder and a dull sense of horror.  “Is that – is that okay?  Are they okay?”  Why would they kick like that? “Are you okay?  Is that – is the kicking normal?”

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A wild dissertation appears!

Kyna's reaction was enough to bring a chuckle out of the expectant mother. The question had been innocent enough and instead was responded with a look of absolute terror. The fiery eyes were rimmed with white when they trained on her swollen sides and Aponi had to smother another round of laughter. Still she exhaled and shook her head, seemingly composing herself enough to at least move forward and give it a try. As if on cue only a moment after the blonde muzzle pressed against the swollen sides one of the pups delivered a sharp kick.

When Kyna went tumbling backwards Aponi could not contain the laughter that swallowed her. In fact she laughed so hard tears gathered in the corners of her eyes and she had to sit down as her sides began to ache. Sniffing slightly in an attempt to get her laughter back under control the mother shook her head, "The kicking is completely normal. You never stopped, I used to think instead of having to give birth you would just run right out and take off on your own."  Maybe it was an omen of the restless paws that Kyna would grow into, the same that Aponi herself possessed and according to Naira her biological father had as well.

The thought was shoved aside as quickly as it had popped into her mind, Mapplethorpe was her father. Whether he had given her the genes or not her had been the one that had loved her as a pup, more than her own mother had. Clearly blood meant very little, which was why Aponi was less than concerned by the thought that her current litter would grow without a father. Too many parents just increased the odds that the children would become screwed up emotionally anyhow.

(This post was last modified: Jul 26, 2016, 01:59 AM by Aponi.)

The strawberry blond eyed her mother’s side suspiciously for a moment, not entirely certain she was willing to accept the explanation.  But what did she know?  She’d never been pregnant before (and the world help her, she never would be, knowing what she knew now!) but Aponi had, clearly.  If the older women wasn’t going to be concerned about the pups’ antics on the inside of her ribcage, then the youth supposed she shouldn’t be, either.

Still.

It all seemed very bizarre to her.  One ear twitched forward as she huffed, but the alarmed expression slowly dissolved from Kyna’s face.  “And it doesn’t hurt?  How strange,” she murmured, inquiry more of curiosity than consternation this time.  Why would anyone want to go through that?  Twice?  Things weren’t exactly going well between herself and her mother, wouldn’t that be a discouragement?

Or maybe she meant to try again, with new children?

Her mind raced and the redhead hummed softly, glancing back up at Aponi as she weighed her options.  She could ask – but she was as likely to get a lie as she was the truth.  She was as likely to get an answer as she was a scolding, but…  Well, she did have the advantage now.  If Aponi snapped, she could run, and there was no way her pregnant mother would ever catch her now.

“Why?  Why do all this?  Again?  Having puppies, why would anyone want that?”

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A wild dissertation appears!

Kyna seemed completely unsure about whether or not to trust the words that the mother had spoken and she watched as the blonde face screwed up with hesitation. Again Aponi smiled and unlike her typical grin which carried malice and mocking this one was warm, like a mother ought to have. Shaking her head a little she spoke again, "Sometimes they get a good kick in and its uncomfortable but nothing like the pain that comes when it's time for them to be born." Her own mother had never had any kind of conversation about how pups were made or the process, maybe because as a child she had run so early. Aponi was unsure as to whether having this kind of talk was normal or not but she would be damned if Kyna wound up accidently pregnant next spring like she had at her age.

Unaware as to what was brewing in her daughter's head the silver brows furrowed suddenly as she looked over Kyna. So beautiful she had grown, large and graceful with a coat like sunset, her eyes only heightening this effect. The crease deepened before her mouth ran away with the thoughts forming inside her head, "There's no boy you're interested in is there? I know you hang around with Sahalie and Alastor quite a bit..." Was this why there was a sudden interest in how pups behaved during pregnancy, was she beginning to think of where she made be a year from now?

The words that had been buzzing inside Kyna's skull were surprising and the brows shot from a furrow to high on her head. For a moment her expression was unreadable other than this one gesture and there was silence. Blunt claws dug into the earth as Aponi tried to get her own explanations straight in her head. Then the silence broke, "I... When I conceived you I was very young and knew little about anything related to how pups were made and what happened when a female went into heat. Your father and I got carried away when I found him at the plateau and we were both surprised when we realized I was pregnant. But we both loved you from the very start, and I still do with all my being." Her voice fell silent for a moment and the usually light eyes looked dark as if something were brewing behind them.

"I know I haven't been a good mother to you and I'm not trying to replace you with these younger siblings. I'm trying, I always have been even if it hasn't seemed like it and I'm going to keep trying as long as you'll let me."