A Feast to Celebrate
12-16-2015, 12:45 AM
Walk | Talk | Think
Those first few moments while she waited to see whether anyone would answer her were the most stressful she had ever experienced. It was by nothing but sheer will alone that she did not shrink in upon herself, fold her ears to her head, and succumb to her own negative thoughts, trying her best to deny her insecurities since this mattered too much. She was a part of this pack - an integral part of it - and she had just as much right as anyone to call together such meetings. Even Glacier and pressed for it. It's time you did this, Anais told herself, bolstering her will against the worries that still harassed her, they need to know about their new family.
She was so surprised to see Locha approaching that she did not react right away at first, merely stared almost as if she expected the blue-marked wolf to continue walking past her rather than to join her. But she did stop, and even offered a hesitant smile that Anais quickly returned with an excited wag of her tail. "We are," she answered, nodding her head as she spoke through her smile, "though I wanted to talk to everyone first." She gave no hint of what she wished to speak of, wondered briefly if anyone else was familiar enough with her condition to recognize it already, but continued to hold firm to her resolve. You need to do this.
It should have been no surprise to her that Glacier would arrive too, but the sight of him walking their way still made her heart jump inside of her chest and her smile to brighten as only he could make it. He addressed his sister before he approached her, and she stood with her tail wagging as he reached for her and placed a chaste kiss against her cheek. Anais felt her cheeks warm slightly beneath her fur, unused to any gesture like that before an audience, but still managed to look at Locha properly before her eyes averted shyly. She leaned just slightly toward Glacier, allowing her shoulder to touch his and take comfort from his presence. Hopefully he was alright with her telling them.
Glacier's brother Solaris appeared next, offering them a kind smile that Anais returned with growing nervousness. He said nothing as he joined them, but there seemed to be something almost knowing about his smile as he looked toward her and Glacier. Did he--? Gale appeared next, smiling like her siblings had before her and offering a question similar to the one Locha had asked when she arrived. This is it, Anais thought as she glanced up at her mate and then back toward his family. I shouldn't keep them waiting.
"I was hoping we could all have a hunt, together," she stated, answering Gale's question and hopefully clearing up what it was that she had called them all together for in case they were still wondering. She fidgeted where she stood, an obvious display of her nerves, but she continued to speak. "But I wanted to talk to you, all of you who showed up. I know I haven't been the...PraeVilendis," - she said the title slowly to ensure she did not say it wrong before them all - "very long, and I hope I've been keeping the food cache stocked enough on my own. But I'm going to be needing to take a break from it soon. Just for a little while," she reassured them. "I may need some help keeping it stocked the next couple of months. I..." She paused, turned her face to smile at Glacier once more. "We," she corrected, "are expecting puppies."
Hoping the news would be taken well, she hastily added, "I thought we could use a pack hunt to celebrate, while I can still hunt. I've found some bison trying to graze in the area and thought we could single one out." Would they agree? Would it be too daunting? They had never hunted together, or at least not her with them. Entirely unsure where they considered their skills or her own, Anais leaned a little more firmly against Glacier's shoulder, hoping she was doing all of this right.
Those first few moments while she waited to see whether anyone would answer her were the most stressful she had ever experienced. It was by nothing but sheer will alone that she did not shrink in upon herself, fold her ears to her head, and succumb to her own negative thoughts, trying her best to deny her insecurities since this mattered too much. She was a part of this pack - an integral part of it - and she had just as much right as anyone to call together such meetings. Even Glacier and pressed for it. It's time you did this, Anais told herself, bolstering her will against the worries that still harassed her, they need to know about their new family.
She was so surprised to see Locha approaching that she did not react right away at first, merely stared almost as if she expected the blue-marked wolf to continue walking past her rather than to join her. But she did stop, and even offered a hesitant smile that Anais quickly returned with an excited wag of her tail. "We are," she answered, nodding her head as she spoke through her smile, "though I wanted to talk to everyone first." She gave no hint of what she wished to speak of, wondered briefly if anyone else was familiar enough with her condition to recognize it already, but continued to hold firm to her resolve. You need to do this.
It should have been no surprise to her that Glacier would arrive too, but the sight of him walking their way still made her heart jump inside of her chest and her smile to brighten as only he could make it. He addressed his sister before he approached her, and she stood with her tail wagging as he reached for her and placed a chaste kiss against her cheek. Anais felt her cheeks warm slightly beneath her fur, unused to any gesture like that before an audience, but still managed to look at Locha properly before her eyes averted shyly. She leaned just slightly toward Glacier, allowing her shoulder to touch his and take comfort from his presence. Hopefully he was alright with her telling them.
Glacier's brother Solaris appeared next, offering them a kind smile that Anais returned with growing nervousness. He said nothing as he joined them, but there seemed to be something almost knowing about his smile as he looked toward her and Glacier. Did he--? Gale appeared next, smiling like her siblings had before her and offering a question similar to the one Locha had asked when she arrived. This is it, Anais thought as she glanced up at her mate and then back toward his family. I shouldn't keep them waiting.
"I was hoping we could all have a hunt, together," she stated, answering Gale's question and hopefully clearing up what it was that she had called them all together for in case they were still wondering. She fidgeted where she stood, an obvious display of her nerves, but she continued to speak. "But I wanted to talk to you, all of you who showed up. I know I haven't been the...PraeVilendis," - she said the title slowly to ensure she did not say it wrong before them all - "very long, and I hope I've been keeping the food cache stocked enough on my own. But I'm going to be needing to take a break from it soon. Just for a little while," she reassured them. "I may need some help keeping it stocked the next couple of months. I..." She paused, turned her face to smile at Glacier once more. "We," she corrected, "are expecting puppies."
Hoping the news would be taken well, she hastily added, "I thought we could use a pack hunt to celebrate, while I can still hunt. I've found some bison trying to graze in the area and thought we could single one out." Would they agree? Would it be too daunting? They had never hunted together, or at least not her with them. Entirely unsure where they considered their skills or her own, Anais leaned a little more firmly against Glacier's shoulder, hoping she was doing all of this right.
* Because he has become her protector, Glacier is allowed into any and all threads that Anais may be in, regardless of how they are tagged.