WC: 799
It was difficult to speak her piece, but Coli managed to get out the halting words without too much stammering. Dimly she perceived that Lilin had knelt, was gathering the cloak she had discarded on the floor, but she was too focused on her speech to react. She heard the quiet reassurances, and she would have smiled in thanks if she were not so distressed. Once more she was grateful that she had chosen to follow this long lost sister into the north, instead of remaining a drifter without family or home. She wasn't meant to live alone, and perhaps Lilin wasn't either, despite the solitary habits they both displayed. She felt safer around her sister, trusting her more than any other.
Lilin gave her word, and it lifted a weight from Coli's shoulders; she no longer had to worry what would happen to her unlucky litter if she should perish the same way her dam had. She had always wondered what Milla Jolie had been like, whether she was anything like her mother, whether life would have been better for her in that pack whose name she couldn't even recall. Her own pups would remain safely in Vinátta with their closest relative, so they would at least be spared from all that uncertainty. A part of her knew her Virdings would not cast aside orphans, it was foolish to assume they might, but... there was always the chance they would grow up to be wicked like their sire or grandsire, and she wanted them to have the best possible chance to grow up pure and kind. Now they were guaranteed it.
Coli was crying now -- no, bawling, each sob racking her body uncontrollably. She had only cried this hard once in her life, and that was when she left her one true love behind. This was different, though. There was the ever-present fear, but now there was relief as well, knowing that even if she failed this colossal undertaking, the little lives she was carrying would not be ruined. She was crying because it was all happening so fast, and she wasn't ready, but there was nothing more she could do about it. She didn't know if she could ever stop once she got started like this. Lilin's fingers began stroking her mane, a gentle touch that she leaned into. It was calming her just to know she wasn't alone.
The soft whisper found its way to her ears, and Coli's brokenhearted sobs came to a shuddering halt. Incredulously, she turned to look at her sister, lips parted in silent amazement.
"...R-really...?" she asked breathlessly, brushing the tears from her swollen eyes. Her face was a puffy mess from crying, but it was far too late to care about her appearance. "That's, that's such good news, I'm s-so happy for you and Saul!" she hiccuped, growing flustered by the sudden shift in moods she was experiencing. This was how it was supposed to be, a loving mated pair welcoming their progeny into the world together. And they were both the founding leaders of this pack -- their children would be cherished by all, little princes and princesses of the north. Coli felt a twinge of shame when she realized her bastard litter would be born before them; the Virdings had the right to the firstborn children of their pack, even if their mateship was still new.
"I... am so sorry, I didn't mean to upset y-you, or scare you about this," she sniffled, realizing her own doubts and fears must have easily projected onto Lilin. She would never have mentioned her dam's fate if she knew Lilin was expecting -- it was already all Coli could think about when she tried to imagine delivering the litter, and now her poor sister would think about it too. "B-but this is so exciting, I... I had no idea, I can't believe we're both doing this together! D... do we thank Thor or Loki?" She asked wryly, a faint smile beginning to tug at her lips. It seemed more like the work of a trickster, but if the sisters got through this unharmed and healthy, she would know who to thank. The news brought Colibri hope. Now she wasn't the only one going through these changes -- her sister was pregnant too, and now they could talk about everything. They could visit the Sacred Grove together. Their pups would be first cousins, perhaps they would even look similar to each other. Cercelee and Coli were cousins that became playmates in Clouded Tears, and as they grew up together, they felt more like sisters than anything else. Her pups would have playmates that were the same age as them, too, one big extended family. This... might work out after all.