Sanguine Cove the outside

tag for @Aquene and @Aleister but AW

Little Kateri was restless. As her baby blues began to open the young Slayer grew fascinated with the bright light at the end of the den, despite it hurting her eyes in the beginning. There was always commotion happening outside it; new noises to hear, new scents to smell. But nothing attached to them—no faces, or figures. Mother she knew—her dark fur and comforting scent was all she knew. Father, too. But not the voices beyond the den; those were still faceless.

Not for long, hopefully.

She shuffled forward, inching closer to the bright light as her eyes squinted to adjust to the shift in light. It hurt her sensitive eyes, but in a good way. As the more she squinted the more she was able to make out—different shapes and colours beyond the darkness that her parents had been keeping from her! She huffed at the realization as she continued shuffling to the edge of the den, her tiny paws gripping the soft dirt as she gave a final—hmph!—heave to propel her body into the light.

She rolled over, quite dramatically, onto her back to observe her new surroundings. The colours were beginning to settle and adjust as she blinked. Her little nose, however, wrinkled at the assault of new smells. It was very overwhelming for Kateri—too much all at once—but she was already smitten with the outside world and the colours above her.

Chan rested only yards away from the den. The child's entrance into the outside world was noisy enough to garner his attention, mismatched gaze panning over and lighting up with mild surprise as they settled upon tiny Kateri, puppy paws in the air. He couldn't fight the smile that came to his face even if he wanted to. Chan stood and walked over, practically towering over the tot once to her. His muzzle dropped as he looked down at her, momentarily blocking out the sky.

"Uh oh, we got a fugitive on our paws," he joked, without any real concern. The only real threat around were eagles, and with Chan at her side they'd be unlikely to bother.

(This post was last modified: Jun 01, 2021, 01:20 AM by Chan.)

But I put it out of my mind Long enough to call it courage To live without a lifeline

The past three weeks had been challenging, from midwifing her own birth to the death of her son to leveling out from the hormones that pregnancy and delivery caused. It had been difficult, but she had survived. Even now, still grieving, she was surviving. Really, that was all anyone could ask of her. She tried to focus on the good, on the bundle of joy that had quickly wormed into her heart and stolen it away… and for the most part, it worked. It was a distraction in some sense, but it was also the pull she felt to her little girl as a mother.

Moon had been right, it had all come like instinct. She still made mistakes, every parent did, but as time went on, she grew more confident. She watched her trying to move, the way she adventured more and more with each passing day. She had been napping when the soft hmph caused her to stir. She was hyperaware of her daughter’s movements always, and so her eyes dragged open and she watched her daughter at the mouth of the den. With a soft yawn, she pushed to her paws. She made her way out of the den only to see Chan already with her, a hint of relief.

Like every mother, she worried about some creature carrying her small bundle of fur away, but having a man like Chan there alleviated many of those fears.

She chuckled softly, giving her daughter’s head a soft lick before nodding. “I agree. She gets bolder and bolder with each passing minute.” She couldn’t hide the adoration and warmth in her tone. Her entire world had changed, but for the first time since she discovered she was pregnant, she felt like it might actually be for the better.

on mobile, sorry for the short post

Nash was tired. He'd spent more time out than sleeping, and it was starting to show. He really should take it a bit easy, but he wanted to make sure they had everything the pups might ever need. He wanted to be the kind of pack member that did everything he could to ensure the next generation got the best start possible.

He yawned as he moved through the territory, hoping to find Chan and ask him about going hunting the next day, but stopped when he heard a light hmph and thump, and then Chan speaking to Aquene.

Nash picked up his pace and when he joined his packmates, he saw Aquene's beautiful daughter sprawled at Chan's feet.

Nash smiled. "Looks like we're all going to have to be on our toes from now on," he said, then looked at the proud mama. "She's beautiful."

I think I need help, cuz I'm drowning in myself

The weeks since the birth of Kateri had been both difficult and joyous. The inky woman knew all too well exactly what Aquene was going through and wanted to do her best to help the young mother in any way she could. So it had now become apart of her daily routine to check in with her, even if it was just a quick hello. Today proved to be a little different. As she approached the den site the scents of her children became stronger. Her mercury gaze fell upon her family and her inky lips pulled into a warm smile. She had missed the exchange between Chan and Aquene but heard Nash's compliment. Moving to her youngest son's side her eyes settled upon the tiny dark bundle at Chan's feet. "She truly is Aquene." Moonshadow nudged Nash's cheek before laying down near little Kateri. "Hello love, welcome to the world."

Moon smiled at the tiny dark pup who was still on her back. Her memories flashed back to when her three left the den for the first times. Chan had been reluctant to leave the den having had an encounter with a snake shortly before. But he eventually came out and had rolled on his back much in the same way as the pup before her. Nash had also made a tumble out of the den, though Staryn had been more head strong than either of her brothers. She bravely made her stance in the world. The dark mother reminisced about her children as new pups and it had her tail sweeping behind her. She absolutely loved puppies they were so curious and adorable. She couldnt wait to watch the next generation grow up.

Word Count: 000

She was so enthralled by the colours above her that she had not heard the shuffling of feet toward her until her view was blocked by an unfamiliar fuzzy face. A loud squeak emitted from her small body as she attempted to swat at the stranger above her. The voice felt familiar, like she had heard it outside the den before, but there was no face claim to it. Her life had been nothing but shadows before; she was seeing the faces behind the voices for the first time. And it was quite unsettling.

Kateri wriggled around in an attempt to shuffle away from the stranger, her small face wrinkled with frustration. She was stopped, however, by her mother and swift lick to her head, which caused another squeak—this time out of protest—to release from her body. With a grumble and a tumble she rolled over onto her stomach, her delicate features still wrinkled.

Another voice had appeared—this time belonging to a wolf with similar coloured fur. She grumbled again as she shuffled closer to her mother. She had not expected this type of greeting following her departure from the den. It was overwhelming—the scents, the sounds, the faces. Too much to process.

A third appeared, wearing the same dark fur as the second, but she was slower. More cautious. Softer. Kateri decided immediately that she liked her. As the older woman laid down next to her Kateri rolled over into her side, squeals of joy erupting from her small body.

It was clear he startled her, sliver-like claws batting at his leathery nose. Chan grinned while heeding the child's protests, lifting his head to meet Aquene's emerging form instead. As she moved to Kateri's side he stepped back, allowing the mother ample space before sitting down. His long tail patted the ground rhythmically alongside his flank.

"Good," he responded, smile widening around the remark.

Nash and Moon were on scene with that same breath, adding their own sentiments to the mix. Chan stood and knocked shoulders with Nash, then elected to throw his mother a welcoming grin rather than approaching; Kateri was motoring her way to the woman, and he wouldn't be the one to spoil that little moment.

"How're you doing today?" he asked Aquene, given it was the first chance he'd really gotten to chat with her today.

sorry i'm late to this!!

The busy father had been checking in on Mavis and his other children before he made his way back towards Aquene and his daughter's den. Aleister couldn't wait for all for all of them to share the same den so he didn't have to do all this back and forth. Plus he was anxious to have all of his children meet and bond. He was sure his fiesty Kateri could hold her own against the other three.

As he arrived, the Vuesain was not surprised to see everyone around, though he was surprised to see his little daughter outside of the den. "Oh, my darling girl! You made it out," he purred lovingly as he approached his daughter, giving her a soft nudge to her cheek as she squealed at Moonshadow. Lifting his gaze from his daughter, he gave a comforting nudge to Aquene and a smirk to Moonshadow before turning to face the other two men that were in their company. "Chan, Nash, nice to see you here." He nodded and passed a friendly smile their way.

 

But I put it out of my mind Long enough to call it courage To live without a lifeline

She couldn’t help the soft smile on her features as the other Eastfalls found their way to the small family gathering. Nash and Moon arrived and there was a hint of pride in her eyes as she hummed in agreement. “She is, a darling little Princess.” She agreed as the maternal affection wove it’s way so intricately into her tone. She was enamored with Kateri, and it was Kateri and the need to care for her that had kept her head on straight these past few weeks as she coped with the fact that her other child had not survived the birthing process and had failed to draw life.

She grinned as Kateri as the pure joy, untouched by the plagues of the world, erupted from her maw, her eyes finding Aleister as he began to shower their daughter with his love and affection in turn. She returned the comforting nudge with a soft smile, no longer feeling the awkwardness of being in his presence as she had during the length of her pregnancy. They had a mutual connection: their daughter. She knew that now. “She finally wanted to see what all the fuss outside was about.” She teased lightly as she nudged her daughter softly. “How are Kip and the children?” She asked, curious as to how the other mother was faring. She’d had a later delivery that Aquene herself had.

Nash smiled at the young pup as she retreated to stand nearer her mom. He followed Chan's example and stepped back, then laid down so he wasn't as big - and potentially scary. His tail thumped on the ground a few times, and he dipped his head to his leader to acknowledge the greeting. This was a big day; he wasn't surprised most of the pack was here to see it.

He wondered if he should go visit Kip at her den. He wasn't close to her, and didn't know her all that well, but he wished he did. He wanted to know all of his packmates. His family.

But for now he was content to observe Kateri as she experienced being beyond the den for the first time. He had a hazy memory of stubbing his nose on his first adventure, but he couldn't be sure if that was just a dream or not. It seemed so long ago.