Galway Girl

When he heard her voice, Regulus wasn’t expecting the sudden wave of resentment that struck him. From his end, knowing nothing about how his sister had come to have children, it appeared that Zuriel had found someone, and had kids, and she hadn’t even bothered to come and find him to tell him the happy news. He didn’t even know if she knew… but of course she would know. Faite would have told her, surely.

But that resentment stunned him slightly, as did the reluctance he felt to rush to her call. He wasn’t going to deny it; knowing she’d had kids and having to find out by smelling her scent in Lirim’s borders had hurt.

He finally pulled himself away from the bush that really had no reason for him to be sniffing it so interestedly, he turned and broke into a slow trot. He didn’t rush to greet her as he drew near, but he tried to paste a cheerful smile onto his jaws, and tried to keep his tail in the air, affecting a jaunty wag.

“Zuriel. Been a while.” How’re the kids? He was dying to ask, but just now, he was worried that if he spoke the words now, they’d come out in a tone he didn’t want to use with her. He didn’t like how sullen he felt. So instead, he let his eyes rove her form, and his nose analyze her scent. Kids, definitely, but no male fresh on her coat. In heat, definitely, though.

She looked well; sleek and well fed, and content, though she looked nervous as hell right at the moment. Had she realized that he may be hurting? Or was she afraid to tell him that she’d had kids and not told him, not knowing he knew. Enough with this sulking. Just get it in the open.

His haunches dropped to the ground with a heavy thud as he blew out a sigh. “May I be blunt, Sis? I’m hurting. You’ve had kids, and you never told me. I had to find out by catching your scent in Lirim’s borders when I passed by. I didn’t even know you’d joined Lirim! I’m an uncle through both of my littermates, and I haven’t had a chance to meet any of my nieces or nephews.” He didn’t shout at her, not once, but his tone held a lot of the pain he felt.

His head jerked to the side, eyes stinging, as he blew the emotions hard through his nose in a sharp sneeze of a huff, before looking back at her, eyes begging. “Why didn’t you tell me you were having children? Did I do something wrong?”