A little earlier summer XD

Esti was dying. She knew it. She couldn't keep food down anymore, she couldn't sleep really. She even smelled different. It stank. When she was little, she could always run to Valhalla, but that pack wasn't even a thing anymore. Esti didn't really know what pack it was now, or who had it when. She was younger, then. If she went to the willows, she could have found her way back, but since the pack wasn't really a thing anymore, she went to the next best place. She sat again on the boarder of Imperium. Her heart was beating heavily and she recalled times when she had the big sickness when she was younger. She never wanted to go through that again. What if this ended like that? She was scared, actually scared. She was dying, and she needed someone to tell her it was going to be quick. She called Valen, hoping the waiver in her voice didn't attract too many others. He needed to get here and quick."Speech"

He answered the call with no small amount of trepidation. Esti didn't sound like her usual snippy self. Her call had a distinctive worried edge to it, one his imagination quickly grabbed hold of and took off with. Were they under attack? Had a pack fallen? Was there illness? A plague like the one that had claimed his sister? Valentine approached Esti from downwind. He knew immediately that she was pregnant; the smell was unmistakeable. That knowledge made him wary, their time together immediately jumping to the forefront of his mind, but he kept his reservations to himself. "Esti? Is everything...alright?" ""

Valentine came quickly, as always, his stormy form quickly closing the gap from the horizon to Esti. She wasn't surprised, she wasn't actually sure what to feel, scared was always a good guess, though. He asked her what was wrong and she laughed. It was nervous laughter, breathy and empty, "I'm dying, Valentine." Her eyes shifted at various things in her surroundings; a bug flying, a leaf falling, "Can't you smell it? I'm sick, I can't eat, I can't sleep-" her fears began to overcome her, her voice began to shake, she began to shake, "I'm dying..." She licked her lips nervously and fidgeted, her paws scraping at the ground. She wanted him to respond. He was taking too long! Esti's breath caught for a second and her eyes flicked up to the brute's face, urging him to hurry up and speak. Speak! "Speech"

Her jittery laugh sent his browspots shooting heavenwards. He was on the verge of speaking when she continued on and informed him that she was dying. Wait, what? Dying? "Can't you smell it? Valentine stared at her. Was she joking? Surely she wasn't serious! The words, the look on her face... he couldn't help it. Before he could stop it, a peal of laughter escaped his lips. He stifled the sound, trying to kill it before too much damage was done, and after a few heartbeats managed to not only rid himself of the sound, but wipe the smirk off his face. Valentine forced a serious expression and then set about trying to explain. "I'm pretty sure you're not dying," he said gently. "I think...well, no," the brute amended, "I'm actually pretty sure that you're pregnant." Did she really not know it? Had she never scented a pregnant fae before? ""

As Esti expressed her concerns to the brute, he suddenly burst out laughing. Esti's brow furrowed and her maw dropped open slightly. He straightened himself up pretty quickly, but Esti couldn't manage to do the same. Her face was frozen in something that probably looked like she had just gotten slapped in the face. It was a mix of disgust and hurt pointed directly at Valentine. He tried to explain that he didn't think she was sick or dying, just that she was pregnant. Esti paused for a minute. Pregnant? Now it was her turn to laugh, "Yes, yes, I'm pregnant and my wife and I have been happily together for like five seasons." okay, the wife part might push it a little far. Granted, Esti never really had been exposed to the knowledge of how pregnancy worked, but she knew there was usually a mother and a father, obviously. She even had a father and a mother, and a pretend mother, "Yeah, but seriously, I don't even have a husband or wife, soo..." the girl shook her head,  "I don't really think that's true. Look- I mean- I kind of know I'm dying, I had the sickness before, what's to say it's not coming back to take my life this time?" Pregnant? Yeah, right! Esti had never even been in a pack around another woman who was pregnant. How did things like that catch on anyway? Probably like a cold. "Speech"

Her words drew a sigh from the brute. Was she really so naive? Hopefully she was just trying to be funny. Valentine was inclined to belief that, but the more she spoke the less certain he became. He couldn't believe his ears and his expression slowly began to morph into one of incredulity. Her reasoning was like that of a child's. She couldn't possibly be serious. ...Was she serious? The brute began to shake his head slowly in amazement. "Esti," he said gently, "We were together, remember? A 'mate' is just a title, you don't need it to have kids." Her talk of the sickness was far reaching and he strongly doubted it had returned. If he remembered correctly, those who had been sick hadn't smelled pregnant. He was sure that was a detail he would have remembered. His tone firm, he said, "You're not dying. You are pregnant." ""

In response to her talk of the sickness, Valentine gave Esti an odd look, one she hadn't seen before. He began talking to her slowly, his voice serious. Esti hung onto his every word due to his change in nature. He explained that you didn't need a mate to have kids and confusion struck lightly on Esti's face. If you didn't need a mate to have kids, then why did it seem that everyone had one? What was the point of having one if you didn't need them? Valentine stated firmly that she was not sick and that she was pregnant. Esti didn't believe him still, she didn't want to believe him ever. He wasn't a healer, how would he know anyway? He wouldn't. Would he? The thought of having kids shook Esti. Suddenly she wasn't sure which she would prefer, dying or having kids. Her heart started speeding up and Esti licked at her lips. There's really no way she could have been pregnant though, right? Was he sure she was pregnant? Was he really sure? Softly, almost weakly, Esti asked, "Valentine, are you sure?" How? Why? "Speech"