She had succumb to a world of agitation, of resentment and silent seething. Even the reprieve of sleep she had long for was plagued by restlessness, stemmed from frustration that had eaten away at her during the waking hours. Was it so difficult to find peace even in her home?
Of course it was, when home was the very place where these irritancies came from. Over the course of a few days she had grown more wary of her mate’s time spent with their denmate. Undoubtedly it was out of a sense of obligation and care for the Jiryu, but in the back of her mind the Exultare could not shake the feeling that there was another reason for this. It was a vile thought to even entertain, but it was still there… the demons of mischief whispering obscenities in her ear to contest whatever rational thought she had hoped to conjure. Slowly they were sinking their venomous clutches into her, tainting her otherwise pleasant disposition.
Her patience for this was nil at best, nearing its tipping point each time she awoke without her mate beside her. Always gone of checking on Nayru, no longer waking her kindly as he used to. Was he getting tired of this now, she wondered. With the pregnant female growing more noticeable by the day, was this his way of confession to his aid in their existence? He may have played the part of a surprised man well enough, but his actions were saying otherwise. As if he knew he would be found out and like a coward he was hiding away, hoping she wouldn’t take notice or just continue to be the oblivious fool. Awaking again to an empty place beside her, the Nomad felt her temper rise and obsidian claws raked through the soft furs that made their bed. He wasn’t there…yet again! She struck the vacant place with a heavy paw, disheveling the tidy bedding to be strung across the floor.
X’yrin rose to her feet, marching irritably out into the cold afternoon. She needed air before she did something she regretted, a clear head instead of this jumbled mess of assumptions. She paused at the mouth of the den, suiting her form to equip with more able arms and legs as she looked overhead to the awning of naked branches. For a body just awakened it was quite giving to her wants, moving effortlessly as she grabbed for a thick branch above the den then hoisted herself up to ascend to a more comfortable height. Above the silent guardian watched as the irritable female proceeded to climb the thick branches up a little ways then situation herself against its trunk, her back braced against the bark as she straddled with width and attempted to recline. A moment’s peace among Nature was all she asked for before these dreadful thoughts got the better of her and she wound up cursing everything in existence. But was that too the fanciful dream of a fool in denial? Was this escape just a pathetic means to keep from confronting what was steadily pressing on her mind? No… this was relaxation and nothing more. A means to rid herself of that suffocating odor of their combined three scents. A proper rest undisturbed and nothing more…
“He is back…” the golden female’s eyes snapped upon at the alert of her companion, oblivious to her sudden doze until her eyes were again assaulted by light. “And?” the woman groaned moodily, bringing a hand to veil her sensitive gaze until it adjusted to the light. She needed run down and greet him every time he returned… but the silence of her companion suggested that that indeed was what she was meant to do. Sitting in a tree hiding would have just been childish even if that was the course she’d rather than take than confronting him, for now at least. Reluctantly, she swung a leg over the side of the branch then slid down to a crouch on top of a neighboring limb below. Carefully she maneured her way down to tree until she was again standing firmly upon the chilling snow. She said nothing as she looked into the mouth of the den and made no move to enter it. She simply stared at it, resisting its inviting warmth to remain rooted in the cold.