Ooc:: Crappy post is crap.

Philomena may have reunited with the pack if they have decided to settle here but has seemed kind of out of it / more distant since being caught in the eruption. Wasn't able to write it out as I planned but Philomena confirmed the death of one of her children from the first litter {Evangelos} during that time. Anyone {though Olympia wolves preferred} are welcome to come to this thread. It is the wee hours of the morning though, before sunrise, so keep that in mind~ <3

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Ever since the eruption Philomena’s mind had been in a thick fog. Thank the Gods for Bee… had the other woman not been present she would have never made it out alive. It had been something experienced she never wanted to again. Had it been because of that, or perhaps merely the will of the Gods, that the children had been born late?

It was during the stillness of the night that she had them… children that lay curled now at her side. Philly had called for no one. She could barely focus…  hardly celebrate their birth.

Two of them hadn’t made it… and their small bodies lay at the entrance of the den. She hadn’t had the will to leave the other newborns to go bury them. She couldn’t help but feel like this was a form of punishment… and before she had realized what had happened the woman was crying.

Was it through some fault of her own, perhaps being caught in the eruption that had taken them from her?

Philomena set her head on her paws, chest heavy as she allowed the survivors to nurse.

...would they too be taken away by the cruel hands of fate?

speech

Célestin stared numbly at the two small forms at his paws, his mind trying in vain to make the image make sense. But the truth was nothing did right now. Olympia wasn't really Olympia anymore. They'd fled their lands as the volcano has erupted but not everyone had made it here, in fact Célestin himself hadn't found them until very recently and now... Well now Pegasus was... lost. That's what he decided to call it anyways, he refused to believe the man had abandoned them but the truth was it had been a few days now and he'd left no message to explain his disappearance and hadn't yet returned. Célestin was trying his best to not assume the worst, he woke up every morning hoping he'd find signs of his lovers return but he was slowly growing less and less hopeful.

And now? Now as he stood at the mouth of the den of the woman he'd seen around he couldn't really process what was happening. The two little forms at his paws, still and cold already. They looked like... well they looked like Pegasus. Or rather they looked like Beauforts but they were outside of the den of that woman, the one he'd seen looking at Pegasus... hanging around him... So he knew who's they were. Some part of Célestin broke in that moment, the man he loved was gone... not even around to mourn his own children...

Célestin lay there for a long while, long enough he wasn't even sure of the passage of time anymore. He wept for the tiny creatures, huddled them to his chest and silently cried for them and over them. He allowed all his grief and worry spill out of him as he silently cried, finally the milk scent of the woman reached him and drew him from his misery. Slowly Célestin rose to his paws and took a tentative step towards the mouth of the den, would she want to see him? Would she even know? No of course not, Célestin had agreed to give Pegasus a year if he needed to break the news... He should have asked him to do it the moment they got home. Now instead of anyone knowing about them, Célestin was left to harbor the secret for Pegasus, something he'd never wanted to be a secret in the first place. He wondered who it was that was made the "other one" in this scenario and as he thought on Pegasus' talk of his family and the need for an heir, for an official marriage and a secret love he knew that it was him. He was Pegasus' hidden affair... That nearly toppled him again, nearly sent him into another sobbing spiral but he merely faltered.

Célestin had promised to protect Olympia, to protect all that was dear to his lover and if the woman inside the den was all that was left of that then he'd perform his duty, not gladly but he wouldn't abandon his promise. So he slowly lowered his head, peering into the darkness, searching for the form of the maned woman.

"M'am, do you need assistance?" He asked lamely, a dumb question for a woman who had just lost two of her pups, maybe her only pups, and her... mate. That thought hurt, wounded him to his core and for a brief moment he was hyper-aware of the flower woven into his fur... the last symbol of Pegasus' affection he'd received before he'd... gone.

Art by Blue-Onyx

She had never noticed his arrival.

Didn’t notice him mourning those who had been still at birth. Her attention had been given to the two at her side. Yet, as she watched them, Philomena felt her heart clench in her chest. The boy that had initially survived wasn’t breathing right. Philly shook… she knew it was too late. His breathing was far too shallow… had been since he took his first breath.

He wasn’t going to make it either.

She was being punished. She had to be. Phenomena let out a low whimper as she watched him.

Maybe she had never meant to be a mother… A selfish request on her part to the man who had captured her heart. He… he didn't even know she was here. That his children were coming to the world just to leave it.

It would be after her son's breathing stopped and tears thoroughly wetted her cheeks that she heard him.

A fellow Olympian… she didn't know his name but she had seen him with Pegasus and heard his voice in passing. More than that… Well… she was in the dark.

"...I…" Her voice cracked.

Yeah, she needed all the help she could get. She was broken and had already lost the majority of the litter… if she lost the last child she was sure it would break whatever was left.

With a small squeak her daughter began to wiggle away from her mother. Bold, fearless, and yet helpless she made those shakey movements across the floor of the den until she found another form;; Cel's paw. With a squeak the seemingly all white ball of fluff curled up on his toes and came to rest.

"S-she's the only survivor…" Her words dripped with sadness as Philly moved her son away from her side.

"I don't even know if he realized…" Her words were quiet as she lowered her gaze. As much as she wanted to believe Pegasus would have taken note of her body's changes she wasn't sure if he had paid it any mind. If he even knew that he had children he could have, and did, lose.

“I could definitely use a paw… if you’d be willing… I…” She let out a heavy sigh. “Would… would you be willing to watch her while I took care of them?” It was a lot to ask but she couldn’t leave the other pup for long… especially without warmth. Not to mention she hardly wanted to ask him to tend to the task of laying the other three to rest.

speech

The woman spoke, but then her voice faltered in her throat and though by all rights he should have resented her he also felt his heart breaking for her. He sent a silent prayer to whatever gods might be listening that they return Pegasus to them, that he had simply gotten lost somewhere and would return soon, grinning, if not for himself than for this woman whom he'd left to bear her grief all alone.

There was a high pitched squeak and as Célestin peered into the dimness he failed to notice the small bundle slowly crawling towards him. Instead, he shuffled slightly, unsure what to do... should he wait a bit longer to see if she'd give him a straight answer? Should he leave? His pondering was interrupted by a small warm form bumping into his paws. Dual toned gaze would turn to stare ponderously down at the pup as she pressed into his paws. Instinctually he reached down to nose the tiny bundle, gently sheltering her from the autumnal chill of the outside world.

The woman's voice reached him and he closed his eyes for a moment, silently willing the white child at his paws to survive. For her to thrive. He simply listened to her words, knowing instinctively that the he the woman spoke of was Pegasus and Célestin couldn't help but wonder if this was partially his fault, had he been a distraction for Pegasus, a way to escape the family he'd made but had clearly not wanted... at least not in the way it happened. He felt his guilt flare.

As her question reached him Célestin slowly nodded, then realizing she might not be able to see him spoke in a shaky voice. "Of course." He looked down at the tiny scrap. "May I come in?" He'd wait for her response, then pick up the tiny girl as gingerly as he could. Maneuvering around the woman so that he could curl up on the floor of the den, gently ushering the pup towards his warm side and tightening his curl to shield her.

"Let me know if you need anything else..." Célestin said softly, feeling his resolve already wavering. He listened for the woman's movements, placing his head on the ground, watching the child carefully. This was it, this girl was the most precious momento of his lover left. He closed his eyes and allowed the pain to wash over him again, silent tears once more rising to his eyes and he closed them, curling tighter, willing himself to hold onto the precious reminder of Pegasus as tightly as he could.

Art by Blue-Onyx