“Oh, it's not too far of a walk at all,” she chittered in reply to Alaine's question. One dainty hand made a slight motion towards the the direction from which she came. “I like in a town called Thornbury and it's not much of a walk. A little snow and brush in the way but you saw how fast I got here after your call, and I didn't even run this time.” She giggled gently; anyone who knew Orin knew how much she loved to sprint almost anywhere.
“Yeah, come on down, walk with me and stretch your back,” she agreed with a hearty nod. Her eyes watched her friend closely as she began to shift in her perch, readying herself for dismount. That was when the fine cloth of the cloak shifted aside and Alaine's swollen belly poked through. Before she could stop herself Orin let out a little gasp of surprise and her eyes went wide and jerked up to Alaine's face. The shock written in her expression soon melted into a large, ecstatic grin.
“Alaine!” She squeaked, but her tone was not scolding. That slight tremor in her voice was the product of her jubilation. There was not even a brief flash of negative judgment in her eyes for her friend. She did not know Alaine had a mate... Or perhaps she still did not... but either way this was still joyous news. She laughed softly and joked, “Alaine, are you making me some little pupils?”
She chuckled as she moved a step closer to Alaine's mount, waiting for the creature to become steady and trustworthy, then she took Alaine's hand and elbow and shifted herself to be of best support while her friend dismounted. From afar this may have been a humorous sight – two equally tiny Luperci women versus a tall mare. But in the end, the job was done with little folly.
Once Alaine was steadily on her feet Orin slipped around her friend and took the horse's reins, slipping them over the animal's head so they could now function as a lead. She held the straps, ready to guide the mare so her friend could have a leisurely walk. “It's this way,” she gestured and fell in step at Alaine's side when she was ready. Part of her secretly thanked the woman's condition for setting a moderate pace, for Orin herself had little energy thanks to her own unknown condition. “I have a bookstore now! I discovered it in near perfect shape. There were a few setbacks when I first settled in and some repairs are slow going thanks to the season, but it's a charming little place and hardly any of the stock was destroyed by the years. Get this... haha!... some skunks had taken up shelter inside, I suspect that's why no one really messed with the place until I came along. Don't worry, though, the smell has finally cleared.”
Orin chattered on like this for much of their short walk, though she gave Alaine the opportunity to interject when needed. Orin herself found difficulty in talking and walking the whole span, often running out of breath in just a few quick words and having to pause in her story (but not in walking) to catch her breath. Soon the woods came to an end ad the women were upon the edge of Thornbury. They emerged right at the butt end of the shopping district, and from there they could see her bookstore.
“There it is, right over there,” she broke the short silence and pointed to the bricked building on one end of the U-shaped district. “I'm afraid we don't have a stable yet. The leaders plan to build one but, just like my shop repairs, that project has been a little stunted by the winter. Hmm...” she considered for a moment, wondering what to do with the horse. “Skye keeps her horse in her house. I... uh... don't really want a mare in my bookstore, though.” She gave Alaine a guilty look. “But we could slip her into one of the empty shops, or if you think she'll be warm enough tether her reins around one of the support posts outside my store.”
She said all this as she continued forward, halting her speech on occasion as she did to recapture her breath. She yearned to start in with questions about Alaine's puppies but knew that her friend wanted to get inside and comfortable before playing twenty-questions.