Gypsy was anxious. This was nothing new, but she was anxious to the point that she feared reverting to her former, sullen, withdrawn ways. The tiny plum and snow fae had blossomed while being a part of the band. The wolves around her had helped the little blind woman to realize her worth. After being used and abused for so long, it had taken a lot of work to break her out of her sense of worthlessness. She had been an object before and nothing more. Now she was so much more. She was becoming independent. She could traverse the land with much more ease. She didn't need to be babysat anymore. Gypsy was coming into her own. Why then was she feeling this way?

Indigo.

Gypsy loved Indigo. Since the argument with his sister, the betrayal by Duchess and then the loss of the pups, the diminutive fae had only grown closer to the giant, maned man. She spent her nights with him, making sure that he was okay. Caring for him was second nature to her and she did it gladly. She slept beside him each night and woke up beside him each morning. All of the close contact had made her feel urges that she had never expected to feel. Though she was no stranger to sex by any means, she had never felt the desire for it. It had never been her idea in the past, but now it was an idea more often than she liked. Why was this a problem? Just thinking about having sex threw the young woman into a panic. The last thing that she wanted was to initiate intercourse with Indigo only to make him stop and possibly make him feel worse than he already did. He was a sexual being. The lost puppies had proven that. She didn't doubt that he missed such close contact. This was the one thing that Gypsy had been unable to provide for him and it made her quite sad.

Gypsy had moved away from the rest of the band so that she could think. The small fae fit her tiny frame comfortable against a little rise in the land. A thin blanket of snow covered the prairie and, aside from the purple patches, her pelt blended in with it. She rested her muzzle on one bent paw and sighed, her sightless eyes staring out into nothingness. How would she become okay with intimacy? Really, it was beyond her. She had no idea at all.

"Gypsy"

**Gypsy's past is full of some extreme abuse. Be warned.**

Indigo may enter any of Gypsy's threads as he sees fit.

For a while now he had been feeling a bit separated from the group perhaps with the exception of Emersyn. He had tried to help Indigo and lift him up when all of the strife began, but eventually Gypsy gravitated closer to Indigo while he shifted more toward Emersyn and that had been how they had settled out for a while. He had been venturing out more, exploring more, waiting to see how things would land. Now that Emersyn had taken the lead of the band while Indigo continued to recover he had taken it upon himself to start checking on the other members of the band as well. Emersyn could more than handle coordinating the important things like making sure they were protected and fed so he tried to lean in to things he was more adept at as well, which in this case was trying to help everyone emotionally and make sure that the winter wasn't effecting their health.

As he looked around the camp he noticed that Gypsy wasn't there and that made her his target for today and he went looking for her among the pale, snow dusted prairie that surrounded them. Luckily the vibrant violet splatters that covered her little body made her fairly easy to spot - the color standing out in stark contrast to the white and brown winter landscape. He smiled a little as he moved toward her, the subtle crunch of his paws through the snow giving him away. He hadn't really had the chance to spend time with Gypsy one on one since they left The Hallows, but ever since the time he spent with her sharing bits about their lives and eating sweet berries he had been quite fond of the delicate girl. He always tried to greet her and check on her from time to time as they went about their days in the band even as she became more and more independent.

"Hello, Gypsy," he said as he got close, settling down to lay a couple of feet from her with a curious tilt of his head. Even though he knew she couldn't see his expressions or gestures he still couldn't help but do them. The force of habit was too strong. "What are you doing out here on your own?" Most days she was glued to Indigo's side so any time he found her away from the large, maned man it was a genuine surprise. Her expression as he approached had been troubled, but he didn't want to press her for anything she didn't feel comfortable sharing.

Segin Epsilon

Gypsy heard Segin's pawsteps moving across the snowy ground. Each member of the band had their own unique gait as did some of the more well known goats. Bertha surely did as well. The fae's white ear flicked backwards to catch the sound, listening as he drew closer and closer. Eventually he was near and he settled down in the snow with her. The man's words met her mismatched ears and Gypsy gave a slight frown. She didn't really know how to explain. She didn't know if she wanted to explain. Eventually though, she managed to speak.

"Hi Segin," she started in her delicate tones. "I just... came out here to think." She trusted him. More than she trusted most wolves. He had never been anything but kind to her and had never pressed her for contact or other things. Segin was loving and thoughtful. He cared for all of the members of the band. Even Duchess, though they were all upset with the other woman. Would he be able to understand? He'd been abused as well. Perhaps he could.

Hesitantly, Gypsy spoke. "I'm... I..."It was hard to get the words out. Despite her worldly ways, Gypsy was surprisingly innocent. "I'm worried... that I'll never be able to give Indigo what I know he wants." She blurted it out quickly then took a breath, trying to calm her beating heart. "He and Duchess were obviously sleeping together, but I don't know if I can do that. Not anymore." The small fae's ears drooped as her muzzle slipped back down to rest on her leg. She looked utterly defeated. "I'm afraid of intimacy, Segin." She finally admitted it aloud.

"Gypsy"

**Gypsy's past is full of some extreme abuse. Be warned.**

Indigo may enter any of Gypsy's threads as he sees fit.

Segin gave a little nod when Gypsy told him that she had come out here to think, a soft smile pulling at his lips. "That's understandable." With the way things had been going there was no shortage of things to think about and consider. He wasn't going to press her for more details, instead just content to be here with her for a little while, but eventually she went on and explained a bit more with some hesitation and struggle to get the words out. His silver eyes lingered on her with a worried curiosity as she finally managed to tell him what was on her mind, revealing her thoughts on how she thought she wouldn't be able to give Indigo what he wanted. His brows pulled together with confusion for a moment until she added how she knew that their former leader and Duchess were obviously sleeping together and how she didn't know if she could do that anymore. He didn't know all of Gypsy's backstory, but he knew enough to know that anything related to physical touch or affection were not easy things for Gypsy. It was a common theme for all of them that Indigo had scooped up and he was really the only one it seemed that took the opposite approach of diving head first into his demons to drown them out with better things.

His ears flicked back with sympathy and he frowned as she expressed how afraid she was of intimacy. It hurt his heart to know this was bothering her so deeply and part of him wished he could do the same thing he had done with Emersyn for Gypsy—give her a better experience to start easing the pain of her trauma with and start rebuilding what sex could be in her mind. He remembered how even a little touch had made her react though so he knew it wouldn't be nearly that easy. "Even I'll admit that Indigo does have a tendency to go for physical affection more often than not, but I also know he would never think less of you or not prefer you just because you can't give that to him," he assured her even though that wasn't even really the biggest issue here in his mind. "He's going to love you the same either way. The way you've been so incredibly dedicated means more than anything else ever will."

But that didn't really get to the root of the issue, did it? Even if it was triggered by how she felt in regards to Indigo, it was still a fear that could continue to fester for the rest of her life and no one deserved to live like that. He paused, considering his words before he added gently, "I know what happened in the past can't be undone. Those scars, physical and mental, are real and I can't just make them go away even though I wish I could. But... If... If you ever wanted to try anything, even if it's just little things like snuggles and kisses, I would be happy to help you with that. I will not pressure you or ask you for anything, just... know the invitation is there if you need someone to take baby steps with." He looked down at his dark paws, snuffling around a bit of snow under them. "It's never easy the first time or sometimes even the second or third time after... after being hurt like that, but I promise it does get better—especially when its with someone you care about."

Segin Epsilon