[PRP] Growing up, bit by bit (Alanna x Eon)

[jinxgirl5]

Alanna paced around nervously, pausing from time to time to stare into the forest. She never stood completely still, fidgeting with increasing agitation. When she began to rock back and forth on her paws she went back to pacing again. The whole pattern had repeated itself at least a half dozen times, since Alanna had awakened to discover her mate had slipped off on an errand.

It had been a several months since she and Eon had met on that full-moon night. They'd been seeing each other frequently since then, with Eon traveling to the edge of his tribe lands to spend time with her, but it was only in the last month that Eon had finally managed to convince Alanna to come with him to his tribe and make it her home. Alanna had been absolutely petrified at the prospect of meeting and living among all those strangers, but the tribe Elder, Ari, Eon's great-great-grandfather, had proved to be kind and handled the timid vixen with a gentle hand. Though Alanna still wasn't quite comfortable yet, she was starting to think of the tribe as home.

But the last few days she had been even more anxious than usual, frequently wandering off on her own with a puzzled or troubled expression, answering inquiries of how she was doing with short, noncommital responses before vanishing. She'd even been distant with Eon, something highly unusal for her.

Alanna had just been feeling a little off. All of a sudden she found herself frequently tired and taking several naps during the night as well as sleeping all day. Her appetite had been fluctuating from nauseous to ravenous for no reason that she could tell, and her mood had been fluctuating just as badly! Not that many would have noticed the last part since Alanna tended to stick to Eon and didn't socialize a lot.

She'd noticed the changes and was terrified by them. What if she was ill, maybe even critically? Why else would her body suddenly start acting up? She couldn't bring her find a shaman or carer to ask; they were still strangers to her, and she was far too timid to approach a stranger and confide her fear. So she sought time alone, trying to puzzle this out on her own. There'd been a twinge of guilt that she hadn't asked Eon, but he hardly knew much more about healing than she did (probably less!), and might have fetched someone to come look at her. So she kept her silence and ignored the guilt as best she could.

The last few days were blur of self-observation and experimenting the with different herbs that she knew. There had been a couple moments of false triumph as various symptoms vanished, only to be replaced by a kind of despair when they returned again. Nothing she tried seemed to work. Only when she was sure she'd thoroughly exhausted her knowledge of healing and had experimented as much as she dared did Alanna come to the conclusion that if she didn't get help soon she might get worse, even possibly die! So yesterday a few hours before dawn, she resolved that, for Eon, she would bite the proverbial bullet and seek help from the other tribe members. She'd even been debating who to seek out, when she'd felt it...

The shock paralyzed her for a good half hour. She had spent the rest of the night trying to confirm her new theory, and sat in stunned silence of her conclusion as dawn light washed over her dark fur. Alanna stumbled to the little den she shared with her mate and found him asleep. Still in a bit of shock herself she decided to tell him later when they woke up for the night, curling up at his side and falling into a fitfull sleep...

Now here she was, at present time. Alanna shot a glance at the full moon in the sky as she paced, finding just a touch of irony in it; full moons always seemed to herald in life changes for the mated couple. She took a moment to sit, suddenly tired, hoping her mate would show up soon yet unsure how she was going to find the right words to tell him her news....  

[NatiStorm]

Eon walked slowly back from the caves of the Lunarie tribe towards the small thicket that he was coming to know as home. Alanna had been living with him here for a few months now and everything seemed to be going his way, up until recently.

He shook his head and sighed. He'd been trying so hard not to let it get to him. But how could he not? Over the past few days Alanna had almost shut him out completely. There was obviously something wrong, but Alanna wouldn't even give him the slightest clue as to what's been going on with her. Eon's first impression was that she was sick. She had been sleeping more than normal. But it was much more than that. In the time they had spent together, Eon had memorized Alanna's normal behaviors so that he could adapt to them and make her feel comfortable. But lately, she just hasn't been herself at all.

The dark male's ears drooped some as he continued walking at an even slower pace. Was it something he had done? Had not done? Was it because he pushed her to become part of his tribe? Was he moving things to fast and causing her to have a breakdown? Eon shook his head again.

This evening Eon had sought out his mother to ask what she thought of the situation, but then chickened out feeling like he needed to handle this alone. He ended up just asking Nato for any herbs that could calm him down since he had been feeling a little anxious from the Alanna situation. Nato had given him a root to chew on and Eon had headed off back to the thicket. Where he knew Alanna would be waiting.

For the first time, he was actually nervous about going back to her. He wasn't sure what was happening to her. What was happening to his beloved Alanna. And he didn't really want to face whatever it was because he was afraid he was the problem. But he was an adult after all, and he loved her more than anything, so continued on until he arrived home.

He approached the thicket more quietly than usual, almost hoping Alanna was still asleep. Of course, she wasn't. Eon seated himself a bit away from her, trying to take in her mood.  

[jinxgirl5]

Alanna resolve wavered at that point; had her legs not been shaky and her body tired from all the pacing she had done she might have just up and walked away. Instead she reminded herself to stay calm, breathe, focus on lowering her heart rate. There was no reason at all to be terrified; it wasn't like her news was bad.

No, not bad, but it was still change. That was the source of a lot of Alanna's anxieties, change. Things had just been going so well, and now here was change. Common sense said this particular change would be for the better and bring more happiness, but Alanna couldn't stop that poisonous little voice of fear that whispered doubts into her head, tried to tell her that maybe this would be a destroyer of happiness rather than a cause of it.

That insidious little whisper threatened to close Alanna's throat, make her babble and excuse and slip away so she could hold on to her old life for another day. But... 'What's the point,' she thought unhappily. 'I'm already losing what I had by sneaking around and avoiding Eon these last couple days.'

That loosened Alanna's tongue just enough. "I'm pregnant," she blurted before she lost her nerve, then reflexively cringed, both from what Eon's reaction might be and the way she'd just dumped the news out. So much for trying to be delicate about it.  

[NatiStorm]

Eon internally sighed. Alanna looked more stressed and tired than ever, tonight was not going to be one of the good nights. He shifted he weight back and forth nervously. Should he confront her? Should he just comfort her and hope whatever it is that's bothering her goes away?

He was just about to greet her good morning and hand her the root to chew when Alanna blurted out the problem. A problem that Eon had never even thought to consider.

Pregnant?...Alanna was pregnant... She was going to have kits... His kits. He was going to have kits. With Alanna. He was going to be a father to Alanna's kits.

The gears slowly turned in his head as he sat staring at Alanna. A smile slowly spead over his muzzle, which was quickly replaced with shock. Why hadn't she told him sooner? Why was she handling all of this alone?

"Oh sweetheart! Why didn't you tell me? Here, chew this. Lay down. Can I get you anything? Food? No food?" Eon was now the once pacing around Alanna, fussing over her condition. She was pregnant! He needed to take care of her! Her health was at stake!  

[jinxgirl5]

Alanna was being a bit bombared with emotions herself; anxiety when Eon froze, a small shock of pleasant surprise when he smiled, more anxiety and sudden uncertainty when he seemed to get hit with some shock of his own and froze a little more again, relief, gratitude, and a little bit of bemusement when he began to fuss over her.

All with a good overcoat of stress catching up to her from the emotional roller coaster she'd been on for the past week and her own body going through physical changes.

"I didn't know until last night, before I came back home," Alanna said in a quiet voice just above a whisper, complying with her mate and laying down, but leaving the root unchewed between her paws. "I thought I was sick and was trying to figure out what was wrong and couldn't figure it out, then I felt something bump against me from inside me. Like a tiny kick."

She blushed a little. In hindsight it should have been obvious what was wrong with her. If she hadn't been off on her own so much one of the tribe females would have probably recognized the signs long before she herself did.  

[NatiStorm]

Eon sighed a happy sigh of relief. Alanna hadn’t been hiding anything from him, just one night of figuring out how to tell him. And she wasn’t mad at him or leaving or dying or any of the other possible worries he had congered up in his mind. The only difference was kits were on the way.

“Thank you for telling me, Love. I was about to go crazy not knowing what was wrong.” He snuggled up beside her, engulfing her with his fluffy tail and coat.

“Although, I think this means we might need to find a new thicket.” And that she would be meeting his mother soon. But that comment could wait, Eon didn’t want to stress her out more than she was at the moment.

He gently nuzzled her neck smiling. “I’m so happy. You’re going to make a great mother.” He paused in his nuzzling for a moment to look at his mate. “You never answered me. Can I get you anything?”  

[jinxgirl5]

Alanna's blush was a pink deep enough to rival the color of her fur. "I was afraid to tell anyone," she admited, snuggling closer to her mate's side like she thought she could hide from the world in his fur. "I'm still really nervious at the thought of people staring at me, even if just to find out what might be wrong with me." Her voice dropped into a mumble. "I didn't want anyone staring at me unless I was sure I couldn't fix things."

Her blush, which has been fading a little while she spoke, returned again; she was starting to wonder if all the times she felt a bit faint was because all the blood in her body was busy coloring her skin!

"We'll definitely have to move. We know better than to roll into the walls, but babies might hurt themselves on the thorns." Even if it had been a really big thicket she would have worried about it. Yes she could pad the walls, as they already partially were now, but kits tended to burrow a lot for various reasons. She wouldn't trust padding any less than four foxlengths thick, and that would require a very big thicket to pull off and still have room inside...

Alanna gave herself a mental shake and answered her mate's question. "I'm fine right now," she said quietly. "I'm not thirsty, and I don't think I could stomach anything at the moment." Nerves, of course, but it didn't help that one of the youngsters in her womb chose that moment to practice its kicking. She winced, wondering how such tiny things had that much strength.  

[NatiStorm]

Eon leaned into his mate, worried about her condition. He knew a part of him wanted to be angry with her for endangering herself by not tell him, or anyone, what was wrong, but she just looked so cute when blushed. It was impossible to be mad at her, which frustrated him when she wasn't around.

"I understand. I wish you would have told me, but I understand your fear." It was true but he couldn't help the tinge of sadness that bleed through. What if something else had been wrong? What if Alanna had waited to late to tell anyone? All of his fake fears that he had thought up for the past nights returned to haunt his mind. He pushed them away quickly, there were more important matters at hand now.

"I'll go ask my mother tomorrow for tips and stuff for handling being pregnant and kits." He said, flicking his tail reflexively around Alanna's body. "Don't worry, for the time being, I won't bring anyone back with me to look at you." A wide smile formed on his face as he nuzzled his mate playfully.

"I'll keep my eyes open for a new den spot while I'm out." He paused to think. "Or do you have a spot in mind?"  

[jinxgirl5]

Alanna flushed a little at the gentle rebuke. “I didn’t want you to have to worry if it turned out to be nothing,” she explained in her soft voice. “I know enough about healing that I would have recognized if it was something serious.” But not recognizing she was pregnant? Even as soon as the excuse left her mouth it sounded weak to her own ears, and she flushed again. “I’ll tell you next time I suspect something might be wrong,” she promised Eon.

The thought of Eon’s mother made Alanna more than a little nervous. She didn’t think she’d ever met the female, since she didn’t venture out much and already had a reputation for being notoriously shy. She knew Eon must have told her about her, since they were lifemated, and was willing to bet he’d wanted to introduce the vixens for some time now. It was a testament to his kind nature that he hadn’t brought it up in any way other than in passing, to keep pressure off of her.

It was going to feel more than a bit awkward on her end to meet her mother-in-law for the first time when already pregnant with her grandchildren. It would probably be even more awkward for the first meeting to have been after the children were born, of course…

“Ah, I hadn’t given it much thought,” she responded to his question in order to distract herself. “I’ve been spending all my time recently a bit further from the tribe than we are now, and there’s nowhere really good to den out there than isn’t worse that where we are now.”  

[NatiStorm]

Eon raised is eyebrows as Alanna began explaining herself. He was debating in his mind if he should tell her that her excuse was not a very good one and that communication was key in a relationship or just let her off the hook this time since it was her first real.. illness. But he ended up not needing to say anything since Alanna finally said she'd let him know next time.

"Good. You'd better." He said, playfully licking her cheek.

After hearing Alanna say there were no good spots out away from the tribe, he remembered that his mother raised him in a den closer to the tribe that was abandoned now. Era had moved into the caves and slept with the rest of the tribe now and no one else had moved into their old den that he knew of.

"Well, I know of one possible spot, but it's pretty close to the tribe." He waited for Alanna's reaction to the words 'close' and 'tribe'.  

[jinxgirl5]

Alanna made herself sit still and think, stifling her automatic panic reaction. Close to the tribe didn’t mean right in the middle of it, after all. And it was certainly a fact that they needed to move; it was fine if it was just her and Eon out here, they could take care of themselves, but they couldn’t raise children this far out!

“I-I would be open to seeing the place first and reserving judgment until then,” she said softly, trying to find a middle ground between her sensibility and her discomfort. It wasn’t like she need fear anyone in the tribe, after all. They were a private people, if she expressed a wish for solitude then she was sure no one would disturb her. She could be as isolated “closer” to the tribe as she was here.

She fidgeted nervously. “We could go look at it now, since there’s nothing pressing to see to right now,” she suggested timidly.  

[NatiStorm]

A wide smile spread across his muzzle. It seemed like only yesterday that Alanna would have shrunk back from him and started shaking at the idea of living any closer to the tribe. But now she was willing to at least go see the spot he was talking about. She seemed nervous, of course, but it was a big step in the right direction.

"Sounds good to me." He turned and began walking into the dark forest back towards the tribe. "This way." Eon said as he turned his head back to look at her. "Don't worry, I'll protect you from anyone who may happen upon us."

As they began making their way towards his childhood den, he looked over and smiled to Alanna. "I'm proud of you." He paused to lick her cheek. "For coming to see the spot and not rejecting the idea on the spot."  

[jinxgirl5]

Alanna offered her mate a shaky yet pleased smile. She'd been really trying to make more of an effort to be more out-going; if she'd never be a social butterfly, at least maybe she could leave the timid part of her shyness behind. It was nice to hear that she was making some kind of notable progress, even if it was just a single step forward.

"It doesn't hurt to look," she said softly, reassuring herself as much as responding to her mate. But at Eon's metion of keeping anyone they came across away from her, a new worry sprung up to knaw on Alanna's nerves.

"Does-does the tribe make a....big event of these things, a member having children," she asked nervously, not sure she could deal with a mass gathering all staring at her and her rounding stomach. Or worse, dropping in on her den to "check on her". She understood that foxes sometimes got excited at the thought of children, she just didn't want any of that excitement around her!

Natitsuri

Just for the sake of having it written down somewhere so we remember, were we going to have the BCRs show up around page 2 or 3 and then have the kits wander in around page 4 or 5?