Luce could tell that Belle took her opinions to heart, and that was enough. Her sister's shrewd idea to wait on the other packs seemed to be the best path for now, but Lucretia was glad that Hannibal had reappeared to rule as the Empress' right hand. They could use all the help they could get. "I am so exquisitely happy, for you and for us," she murmured, stepping forward again to close the distance between them and press her cheek to her sister's. "I will return this evening, and in a few days' time the honey will have had a chance to combine more thoroughly with the herbs." Without further words, Lucretia left her sister by the den and headed back towards her own with the herbs she'd collected in tow.
Come sunset in two days' time, Luce arrived for Belle's regularly scheduled assessment. So early on in the pregnancy, these evening meetings were mostly girlish chatter about potential names for the unborn Kleins and gossiping about their siblings. It was quiet time that Lucretia had come to cherish. Tonight, she came bearing gifts. After tending to the honey tonics reverently over the past few days, she had filled a few dried gourds with the fruits of her labor. She had added pre-fermented peaches and autumn apples that she had already had on hand, and the smell alone was intoxicating. "Hello, bearer of princelings and princessettes!" She called into Deathbelle's den. Luce sat proudly before her offering, hoping that Belle would find it as delicious as it was healthy.
