It had been a while since Naniko had come to this part of Bleeding Souls, but here she was. Ever since she had heard of Skoll's death she had wanted to visit the Sugarwoods again, to find the tree that they had sat beneath the last time. Back then she had only just become pregnant, so she hadn't known about it yet. She had hoped to come back and talk to him again, to get more "warrior's advice" on the new pack that she was trying to form, but it seemed that she was too late.
The large white wolf sat down beneath one of the sap-covered trees, being careful not to lean up against it. That was how she'd gotten stuck the last time. She would hang around here a little while and then head back to the site of Crimson Dreams. Naniko was unshifted, standing on four legs; she'd had to choose one form or the other for the duration of her pregnancy, and she'd picked this one.
Her green eyes swept over the surroundings. It was just over mid-morning, but there was still drops of dew hanging off of the plants in the immediate area, the ones that she hadn't walked through and touched yet. It had rained here earlier. The two year old looked up at the sky, at the gray clouds that still rolled overhead. A little rain wouldn't hurt anyone...and she had this nice tree to rest under if it did start. She let herself recline down into a laying position on her side. Her large belly prevented her from laying on her stomach, nowadays.
She was just deciding that it was time to leave when she saw something off in the distance. She couldn't quite make out what it was, exactly, something small and moving. In the old days in Clouded Tears, Naniko had often cared for injured rabbits and squirrels...maybe it was one of them, seeking her out. Some of them had to have escaped the burned territories, after all, and perhaps they remembered her.
She took a few steps forward, hesitantly, squinting. A puppy? What would a pup be doing all the way out here in these woods? She didn't know much about the other packs, but she doubted that Iskata, Deuce, or Laurel would have let a little one wander away without going after it to make sure that it was safe. Especially one this young.
The she-wolf made an awkward attempt at speech, but was interrupted by Odebeh's stammered introduction. She wasn't sure what to make of him, really. Most of the little ones around here had a pack that they belonged to, that they smelled very heavily of. He was a mix of scents. "I can try to help you" She said slowly, assessing. "But you need to calm down a little. I'm not going anywhere--come a little closer. You do look cold. I wish I had a blanket or something with me...but my fur will have to do. While you warm up we can talk, if you'd like...about where your family is."
Maybe another pack had popped up, one that she didn't know about. That would explain the weird smells, if his mother had come from that area. She motioned toward the tree with her head, padding over to sit beneath the safety of the branches. "What's your name?"
He looked so frail compared to her, tiny between her front paws. She wished that she could do more for him, but they were out in the middle of nowhere, practically. No packs hung around this area. She'd only been travelling through her to gather up some old memories, or even she would not have been in the Sugarwoods these days. It was too far away from home. Or...where home had once been. They had only just decided today that they would be forming the pack on the same grounds that Twilight Vale had once occupied.
Naniko was lost in her own thoughts for a few moments, but she came out of it as the youngster's voice sounded again. "I'm sure you would have done the same if you could have" Naniko didn't believe in talking to pups like they were stupid, or young. She'd always hated the way her parents had treated her when she had been younger. Before they'd left, anyway. Naniko had been just under three months old when Roman and Kaelyn had taken their leave, abandoning her and her sister Pontiac. She had wandered for a time after that, looking for them, before eventually settling down with Iskata in Clouded Tears.
"I think the first thing we need to do is make sure that you're okay. Don't you think, too? You should worry about yourself first...and then we can look for the others. What pack did you come from? Do you remember the name?" She huddled in a little bit, putting her head down to try and keep the heat in a little bit more. Back in the mansion they had clean, fresh towels...a fireplace, and more.
It didn't seem as if he knew what she was talking about. Could he really be from somewhere other than Phoenix Valley, Dahlia de Mai, or Esper Hollow? Each one of those places had a distinct smell, though, and she couldn't catch any of those from him. He sort of smelled like this forest, and like another place, too, one that she didn't recognize. Wouldn't his mother have realized that she couldn't raise pups without a strong pack there to help care for them?
Maybe not. Naniko couldn't imagine thinking like that; she had grown up with the knowledge that even if she wasn't strong enough to do some things, the pack would always be there to support her and pick up the extra slack. She'd try, yes, but she didn't need to worry. "I'm Naniko...and I'm a loner right now. No pack. Why don't I bring you back to the mansion that me and my friends live in, and then we can see about the others. If there are more, I definitely want to look for them. I don't know how much you could do, wet and tired as you are...we have strong wolves who can look good and hard for them."
She had to make sure that he knew that she thought this was important. Really, she was mostly just worried about keeping this one warm and dry...and then she'd worry about the others. But she would definitely send someone back to check out the area. Right now Naniko couldn't travel much; she was afraid that too much of that would bring her into premature labor. This would be her last trip outside of the general pack area for a while.
"What do your siblings look like? And their names, so we can call for them?"
She knew that she needed to get him somewhere warm and safe, whether he protested it or not. If there was one thing that she was really firm on it was that everyone stayed safe. During the war between Dahlia de Mai and Inferni, the fights, she'd managed to keep Twilight Vale out of the worst of it by trekking to Inferni herself to ask for a truce. They'd all had relatives who were involved, nearly every member of her pack. But she had made the decision that Twilight Vale wouldn't pay the price for their relatives' war.
"It's a big house. A big den that's warm, and cozy. There are other wolves there, but they won't bother you. And if they do, we can get you a spot there that's all your own...where no one can go." Most of the wolves had their own bedrooms. She didn't want to make him go with her, but at the same time leaving him here in the woods wasn't an option. And she couldn't stay out here for much longer. She hadn't even brought her backpack with her, or he might have been able to ride in that. He was small enough, though..."I can carry you there on my back. We'll look for your siblings as soon as we know you're safe. But...I can't tell them to look for your family until then."
She had considered carrying him in her mouth, by his scruff, but wasn't sure how comfortable that would be for him. "Yes. Nani's going to take you somewhere safe...and then once we've both had a nice long sleep we can talk about what to do next." She was sure that Savina would help look for his siblings, if they asked her. She was Naniko's "right hand man" when it came to pack matters, from the biggest problems to the smallest. Naniko didn't really consider him to be a problem, though. Half the time that she brought little ones home with her they ended up taking leave and abandoning the pack after a couple of months. So she would think of this as a temporary thing...keep from getting too attached to him.
But even as that thought crossed her mind she knew that it was unlikely. Of course she would get attached. She always did. The large female lowered herself slowly to the ground on her stomach as he moved out of the way. "It'll be cold for a little while, as we walk there...but the mansion is a wonderful place. It's worth the trip. Climb on up"
