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Elizabeth was in an exceptionally good mood this morning. As usual, she had arisen to see her mate off that morning; Ambroise's duties kept him away from their home in the foothills for large parts of the day, so she liked to take advantage of every opportunity to exchange pleasant words with him before he vanished. An early riser by nature, it hadn't been a hardship for her to manage the nearly pre-dawn risings, and she cherished the peaceful nature of the morning.

Mornings had become harder since, to her joy, amazement, and delight, she had become pregnant. These days, sleep dominated her life; she went to bed early, and mornings were a chore. She still rose when Abmbroise did and made sure he took the time to graze or eat before going...then as soon as she was gone, she would usually go back to sleep for a few hours. It was a very indolent lifestyle, one that her active mind found a bit of a trial...or would, if it weren't for the ultimate joy she felt in her situation. Having children had long been a dream of hers, one that she had resigned herself to never reaching, when Ambroise had asked for her hand. Their unconventional courtship had resulted in a happy, accommodating partnership that now promised her her greatest wish.

She was more than willing to deal with extra sleep!

But for now, she was well-rested; having just woken up from yet another nap, she was on her way over to the nearby stream for a drink, her gravid belly making the trek slow and much more arduous than it should be. But as she came close, she saw, to her delight, a splash of red against the snow up ahead. A visitor, how wonderful! And with that color, if was undeniably a relative; her mother-in-law had been a frequent visitor, but even at this distance she could see it was a stallion. Fenghuang, then? It had been too long since she'd seen him, the little rascal! Smiling, she called out gaily, "Fenghuang, is that you?"

Elizabeth had realized rapidly on the heels of her greeting that the stallion was NOT Fenghuang; his coat was far darker than Feng's rosy red, and lacked the swirls that decorated the younger male. Oh dear. But fortunately, the stallion hadn't been offended at being called the wrong name, and had even provided a useful bit of information himself: he was Fenghuang's brother, and consequently Ambroise's! It was an unexpected event, but one that she found quite delightful: thus far, Fenghuang was the only one of her mate's sibling that she had had an opportunity to meet. It was a pity that Ambroise wasn't here to make proper introductions, but she was now filled with more energy at the thought of meeting an in-law than she had in some time.

Cresting the little little rise, Elizabeth came into full view of the stallion (and provided him with a full view of herself, pregnant belly and all!) and offered him a pleasant smile. "I do beg your pardon, I saw your coat and assumed you were Fenghuang. Now that I see you closer up, I can easily see my mistake, but please be assured that you are just as welcome as he. I've been looking forward to meeting more of you!" With an apologetic nod, she made her way over to the water and took the requisite drink, the mountain water cold and crisp and delicious. That taken care of, she was all Elizabeth: Manners, composure, and good breeding!

Straightening up, she reviewed the stallion once more, offering him a smile. "From your coat color, I suspect that you would be either Althalus or Killian, but assuming has done me no service this morning, so I shall let you clarify that for me at your leisure. I am Elizabeth, and it's my pleasure to welcome you to our little home. I'm afraid you won't find Ambroise about, though; he left hours ago, as I'm sure you can believe." Having had her arrival passed from guard to guard, messenger to messenger, Elizabeth was operating on the additional assumption that all of Ambroise's siblings knew their eldest brother was mated and consequently knew of her; the remoteness of some of their situations had never factored into the equation, nor the idea that she might be a total mystery to some of them!

Possessing a somewhat serious nature herself and being mated to a stallion who few would accuse of being mirthful, Elizabeth had had very little exposure to the playful, teasing ways that seemed to be par for the course amidst the rest of his family. Oh sure, she had seen Fenghuang on several occasions, but that delightful rapscallion always at least tried to act his best around her; and true, her mother-in-law was a little...exuberant most of the time (especially when she had learned that she was going to have more grandchildren!), but Elizabeth had a long way to go before she would be able to inherently understand their humor, or catch all of the things that they didn't say.

Consequently, while she noticed Althalus' pause, she chalked it up to either surprise at meeting her or disappointment that he wouldn't be able to catch his brother; shock and disbelief that she was at all attached to said brother never entered her mind as a possibility! Rather, she took him at his word and smiled. "Well, it is a pleasure to meet you at last, Althalus; I've heard a lot about your family, but have yet to meet the majority of Ambroise's siblings or their families. I suppose that this is for the best, though; a little less daunting for one in my position!" This statement was accompanied by a slightly self-deprecating smile, accompanied by a modest flush at his compliments. A naturally modest mare, it was still very hard for her to take personal praise; tough when one's in-laws were such outrageous flatterers!

"You are very kind, Althalus, but I am nothing out of the ordinary. Remarkably ordinary, in fact, but it seems to suit me. And you needn't worry; I have heard that you, for all of your dramatic ways, are non-threatening, so I'll hold you to that and trust your word. Although I should warn you, my lifemate has assured me that he will personally see to any corrective actions if you prove to need them." This comment was accompanied by a slightly more cheeky grin than what she usually bore, but it had been amusing to hear staid Ambroise make such a promise; and having seen him with Fenghuang, she believed he would do it, too! "But I am sure that there will be no need for any such things; indeed, I do hope that you'll be able to catch him before you go! I believe he was going to be with Sylph today, if memory serves, and that means he may be back before dark sets in."

Elizabeth tried to be at least aware of what Ambroise was up to each day; that way, should an emergency arise, she had a general idea of where to find him. On top of that, it was just comforting to know where he could be found, even while she reveled in her solitude. But oh dear, now she was rambling! Flushing again, she gave Althalus an apologetic smile. "Forgive me for rambling; I am very good at chattering these days. But yes, Ambroise and I have been living here for several months now; the upper slopes are a bit too much for me, being from the lowlands, so this is now home. I can show you around, if you'd like; or would you like anything to eat?" Pregnant or not, Elizabeth was full of manners, and rule number one of manners was that guests needed to be treated with hospitality.

It was just as well that she'd misunderstood one of Althalus' statements: his surprise she took to be at the fact that Ambroise had relocated, NOT that he was mated. Looks like there were a few clarifications yet to be made!

Oh dear. Oh dear oh dear oh dear oh dear, she'd gone and put her hoof into it now. All this time, she'd gone and thought that Ambroise's family was all aware of her and knew about her relationship with their brother, thought that there was nothing to be modest or secretive about when it came to the family, and the second one of his siblings that she met turned out to have no idea that she'd so much as existed. And she'd met him while pregnant! Immediately upon making that realization, Elizabeth flushed, her pale coat becoming almost as dark as Althalus' own while she struggled to regain her composure in this extraordinary situation.

It was rather silly, she realized, to worry about the propriety of meeting an in-law while pregnant. After all, it wasn't like she could hide her abdomen or the other physical manifestations of pregnancy. Nor, she thought firmly, would she really want to; she was delighted to be pregnant, and very proud of her unborn offspring. It was just not quite the way that she had envisioned coming to the notice of anyone, especially not one her brothers-in-law!

But after a few moments of blushing, her legendary composure was back in place and she was returning to her normal color, shaking off the last dregs of her discomfort with a self-deprecating laugh. "Oh my goodness, I suppose that I should go back to the beginning then and explain myself properly, shouldn't I? I do hope you'll forgive me, Althalus, I fear that my wits and more addled than my innards these days, and with the way these little ones kick, that is saying something!" It was no extreme witticism, to be sure, but a sign of how much she was progressing in her acclimation to the family in that she was even attempting a joke at this point! "Please, call me Elizabeth; I would prefer there to be no formality among family; and I am Ambroise's lifemate. I wish that you would have been able to hear it from him instead, as it is the sort of news that really ought to come from a blood relative themself, but here we are."

Here they were indeed, and she was feeling much better, now that the proper introduction was out of the way. And all things considered, Althalus was being the perfect gentleman, nothing at all like the scamp she'd been warned about. Although she HAD met Fenghuang, so it was unlikely any other siblings would be able to shock her at this point. Well, aside of Adarna, but impishness and wildness were totally different things!

She appreciated his consideration though, and acknowledged it even as she shook it off. "You are very kind, but it would be my pleasure to show you around a little. I'm not so far gone that I can't be on my feet, and I've been told that staying active is beneficial at this stage, so you can help motivate me!" This was said with another laugh, and she turned back in the direction from which she'd come with a slight nod to her brother-in-law. "This way, please; we also have some foodstuffs available, if you're at all hungry from your trip."

It was just as well that Althalus was keeping his thoughts about the absurdity of her marital situation was to himself, because had she known, Elizabeth would have once again been in the awkward situation of having to determine if he was joking or not and defend both her mate, his character, and their situation. While she could appreciate and respect the bonds of family that allowed siblings to tease and joke with one another, it would take her a great deal longer to allow any levity that cast a slight on her mate. She had spent enough time around her mother-in-law to know that it was a bit of a running joke how serious Ambroise could be, but could not allow herself that he was anything lesser for it. Indeed, as far as she was concerned Ambroise temperament was perfect; he was straight-forward and understandable, rational and reasonable. What mare wouldn't be thrilled with having a lifemate so dependable?

Fortunately, she was able to remain in the dark about Alth's more devious musings, and she was able instead to accept the praise and his very courteous excuses instead. "Well, I am sure that your lifemate appreciates the dedication, and even amongst family we can't always all be aware of everyone's business. I must confess myself that my knowledge of the family at this time extends little father than Ambroise's siblings themselves; I can't even claim the pleasure of knowing your mate's name, but I am sure that she and it are lovely and would enjoy the chance to meet her at a later date."

She said all of this as she lead Althalus along the barely worn path back from the river to the rocky outcropping that housed their home, known to the less discerning as a cave in a meadow on the lower slopes. "There's not a great deal to see right now, with how early in the year it is, but Ambroise has told me that there are a great deal of flowers in this area later in the year, which I look forward to seeing!"

For her part, Elizabeth was quite pleased with Althalus thus far. Reputation aside, he was proving to be a very pleasant, well-mannered companion; his surprise he was very well entitled to, given the circumstances, and Elizabeth was rather pleasantly surprised at how well he was taking the news. Some days, she still didn't believe herself what was going on and would have to waddle down to the stream to view her pregnant form to accept that yes, this was the way things now were. It was a very contenting realization, she had to admit!

Having already once corrected his 'm'lady', she let the next pass without comment; after all, if he was the formal type, then who was she to argue with him? In a world where manners often seemed to take a backseat, it was nice to be around someone who took them seriously. He didn't seem to be using the title in a distant style, so there was hardly anything at which to take offense! Instead, she smiled and accepted what he was saying with a nod; she could definitely agree that it was a sizable family! "It certainly is a large and boisterous group, but so far I've been making good progress in at least learning everyone's names. Ambroise has been the model of good breeding in that respect, though I insist that he not allow me to distract him from his duties. I know how much he had to occupy his time, I would be very unhappy to get in the way of anything important."

She and Ambroise had made an agreement shortly upon becoming mates that they would BOTH offer opinions on the things that affected them jointly, and while she had been making good progress (well, comparatively good progress), she was still highly deferential and hated the thought of anyone putting themselves out for her, even her mate! In fact, one might say especially her mate, if they were being accurate!

But she was very pleased at the prospect of getting to know another sister-in-law, especially one in a similar situation as herself (married into the family, as it were), and so her smile was bright and her response quick at his comment about meeting his mate. "That would be lovely; so far I haven't met many of the other females in the family, just my mother-in-law herself. And as a first time mother myself, it would certainly be a pleasure to be able to glean information from another."