[html]  HAHAHAHAHAHA.
She didn't like the idea of having to stay away from Clouded Tears for a long period of time...that was why they'd moved back here. Naniko hadn't exactly convinced Poe that pack life was the best thing for them, but the female had agreed to stay there with her temporarily. It had satisfied the white girl, had made her happy. She was pleased that her wild cousin had agreed to "settle down".
She put her basket of herbs down as she entered the den that they shared, going toward the fire. She reached her hands out to the fire, letting the flames warm them. It was freezing outside, and her coat didn't absorb the rays like her beloved mate's pelt did.
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[html]  In some strange, twisted way, it was meant to be. There had been signs, perhaps all throughout her life, that a relationship of this caliber would and could only grow between one of her own blood. The angelic daughter of a cousin she had perhaps been too close to, after a brother she surely had, damed by the feisty were that had given her her first taste of lip and tongue. It was forbidden and taboo, Poe was sure of that, but perhaps that had helped her to propel further. So far as to obey the sweet plea of her lover into a pack, into the structure she had come to believe she was not built for. But this, this soft body and innocent eyes, pulled her with such force to disregard it all.
"Chilly?" she asked from the dark reaches of their now-shared den, with lazy eyes and a warm smile that emerged from the haze of sleep. Her eyes drifted dreamily to the firelight that moved across the expanses and curves of Naniko's soft, damp fur in a manner that hurried her form the fogginess of sleep into an arm-stilting seated position.
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"Sorry to have woken you" She said softly, rubbing her hands together. It had to be below freezing outside...hardly the type of weather one usually went out in. But she had things that she had to do as an Apothecary, like checking in on patients. Creatures got sick whether it was cold outside or not. In fact...they got even sicker when it was cold. Most lost precious calories by shivering.
Luckily, she did not have that problem. She took a place next to the dark girl, absorbing both her warmth and the heat that came from the fire. "I hate being cold--but I had to make sure that Phoenix was still doing okay. Pilot and Dierdre are taking good care of him." It had been more than two weeks since everything had happened in Storm, but she was always careful about checking back in with the patients-who knew...maybe their symptoms would return after two weeks. It just depended on if they followed her directions and took the medicine that she gave them.
"It took me a while, but now I can have a bit of a rest. Oh--and I brought this back" She undid the strap of her backpack. "I left the herbs at my old den, and found this on the way back...I had just enough room for it" "It" was a large leg, one torn from a not-too-far-gone carcass, of a deer or reindeer. "I prefer my meat cooked--if only for the warmth of it--but if you want yours cold, I can warm some of it for less time"
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[html] "No need for that," she said in reply to Naniko's apology, with the light ease that filtered her tones around her mate. Watching her move with a dreamy adoration, she slid one arm around the younger girl's side as she sat down, dragging the two bodies, light and dark, warm and cold, into an interlaced contrast. Poe's cheek smooshed against Naniko's shoulder as she spoke of her expedition of herbs and health, accents to Naniko's deeply maternal core. It was more than just the physical that they pushed opposite ends, balancing and rounding in the end, one way or another.
For the wolf that still refused to hunt the traditional way (or walk on four legs for any reason, for that matter), the pieces of mammalian flesh that Naniko offered her were always accepted with a tone of excitability. She flicked her salivating tongue inside of her mouth and drew her other arm around Naniko's waist, locking her wrists in a full circle. "Ah, you pamper me," she grinned, blinking away the remaining threads of sleep. "Why don't I cook it up for us, then. It sounds like you could use some time to relax, Doctor D'Angelo." The effect that their genetically connected last names had on her mentality had faded. It was a rare moment now, when it drew memories of the D'Angelos to the west, or the scrutinizing face of her mother..
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She had heard of certain weapons that could be used to hunt animals. Apparently a few wolves in Storm had found a stockpile of them in the human city; she had seen Dierdre with one, and had seen another in the back of Phoenix's den when she had gone to visit him. They'd called it a "bow", and had said that they used "arrows" to bring down the prey. Sharp pieces of rock stuck onto sticks. It was a strange idea.
"mmmm..." Nani couldn't see Poe in the darkness; her eyes weren't quite that good; but the nice warm feeling spread when the dark wolf pulled her closer. She put her chin over the other D'angelo's head until it rested in the nook of her neck. "Heh...if you say so. Even doctors need to be ordered sometimes. For our own good. I don't know if I want to let you move, though...you're working well as a heater"
She passed the leg to Poe, staying within the other's arms while she pulled it out of the backpack. The two were close, that was certain. Naniko had never expected anything to develope between them...she hadn't had a single clue to it. It had just happened. They were so different from one another that it had seemed unnatural that they would connect...but their differences didn't get in the way. The differences between them seemed to work for them, and not against them. They usually found some kind of a middle ground. "I've never cooked an entire leg at once...do you know how?"
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[html] Poe was exceptionally well-versed in the practical side of the remaining human world. Her time spent in Europe and with European wolves would have been enough to give her a solid concept of how they functioned, but she had also spent six months living in the city right next to them, relying more on the world of concrete buildings than that of trees. It was strange living under the ground again, and if it weren’t for the time spent with Naniko there, she likely wouldn’t have done it again. But in a form of one of their many balancing-act compromises, Poe kept a small collection of her favourite odds and ends in a far nook, and kept up her old apartment as a storage space. That said, she knew plenty of human weapons, but lacked the proper skill to put them to much use, besides a trusty fishing pole and a few traps that she had yet to fully explain to Naniko for various reasons, personal and practical.
She smiled at Naniko’s response, nuzzling the tip of her nose along the white girl’s bridge before releasing her grip and reaching for a wool blanket she’d been napping on, exchanging it for the deer leg. “It’s no competition for my super-powered huddling, but it’ll help until I’ve got us something to eat,” she said with a flashed grin, crawling to her stash of city goods for a good knife.
“Honestly, I haven’t got a clue,” she admitted carelessly, unwrapping the leather cloth she kept it in and examining its blade. Dulling a little, but it would do. “I figure we can just cook up a couple of pieces for now and save the rest for cooking tomorrow.” She knelt by the chunk of flesh and began cutting ragged pieces from it. From there, she used two coat hangers that she often used for cooking as skewers, lodging them into the soil at an angle over the small fire.
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She was fine with hunting the normal way; she found it more difficult in the two legged form. Naniko had never really become "at peace" with her werewolf form, and only used it when she really needed the hands...mostly whenever she needed to get into her backpack, or when she mixed herbs. She hadn't had good experiences with shifting, and whenever she did shift she always expected the pain to come back. It had hurt for a long time for her.
Taking the offered blanket, she unfolded it and wrapped it around herself. The heat from the fire was helping to warm her in her cocoon, and she wasn't shivering quite as much. "That's a good plan. The game-hole is getting a bit low...it'll be nice to have something in it so that we can sleep as long as we want tomorrow without worrying about having to go out and get more" She watched as Poe put the food over the fire, her eyelids drooping a bit. She was pretty tired...and the warmth wasn't helping.
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[html] Poe was by nature, a fairly laid-back, go with the flow type of girl. But she was deadest stubborn when it came to shifting, absolutely refusing to shift into her four-legged form for any period of time. It was the most practical and every-day difference between the two, but they managed one way or another, as they did with everything. Their bond was indeed unexpected and in many rights unfortunate (carrying a Khalif tradition that had resulted in madness and deformities, Poe’s unusual size only a minor example), but neither girl was one to argue away what felt right. And as things stood now, it was Naniko’s gentle face and soft curves that gripped Poe. Leaving the meat cooking (a little haphazardly hanging above licking flames), Poe crawled back to her cousin before she could doze off.
“Come on, you’ve got to stay awake for your dinner, my dear,” she spoke warm and low, crawling onto Naniko’s lap, legs folded to either side of her hips and arms slipping under the blankets, across either side and around her back, pulling her tight in an almost over exaggerated cuddle for warmth. “And don’t be so worrisome," she scolded with a playful pinch to her side. "If stocks are low, I don’t need to eat as much as I actually do. Do keep in mind, I am a pipsqueak.”
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[html] edit: MANNNNN. I JUST EDITED THIS IN INSTEAD OF COPYING IT AND PUTTING IT INTO A NEW POST! GRAHHHH.
It was probably stupid for her to try and save all of the animals in Clouded Tears...but what else could she do? After she'd helped that eagle, Hrrarl, they had slowly began to come to her. She'd thought about turning them away, but after she'd seen some of their injuries...she just couldn't. She'd been injured many times before and knew how it felt to be in pain. She wanted to make all of their pain go away. Plus the wolves. She figured that any practice she got with the animals would prove invaluable to helping the wolves of the pack. She would gain knowledge by seeing what worked with the animals that she treated. It was a give and take.
"Maybe you should try and bring me to the two legged side" She tossed back at her, grinning. She knew how much Poe enjoyed the freedom of the werewolf form. "With enough persuasion..." There were things that she could do with Poe, like holding her, that she wouldn't be able to do in her four legged form. They could nudge and nuzzle, but that was no comparison to nice pair of arms that could hug, fingers to run through fur.
"Love to. You're so good to me...I don't know what I'd do without you. I'm so glad that you came here--I wasn't sure...if it was for the best, at first." The words continued as a thought; "If I was worth moving all the way here".
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[html] Bwaha. Incestwarmfuzzies!
Despite Naniko’s misfortune when it came to family, Poe dared to wonder if she had been better off. Upon their first meeting, Poe had explained a shallow interpretation of the D’Angelo curse, but of course it was more complicated than a game of colours and poor luck. There was a self-destructive, dooming edge to the majority of the family, rounded out by a thick layer of angst and holding a begrudged core. Naniko defied all of this, and Poe loved her for it. She was genuinely at ease with the world and had no need for the smoke and mirrors Poe tended towards.
She grinned wide and teasingly rolled her eyes at her pale lover. “You are too soft-hearted for your own good, Sweet. For all of your devotion to the four-legged way of life, you aren’t playing your role in the food chain very well if that’s your way of keeping the herbivorous population in check,” she stated smartly, squeezing the curve of her hips just below her waist gently, always teasing, always playing. But she gave in to Naniko’s wishes without any true argument, any honest resistance. “Why don’t you come fishing with me tomorrow, then. Or I’ll show you how to set up some traps.” She paused, considered and added, “Outside of Clouded Tears, so as to avoid your furry friends, of course.”
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[html] edit: so now you can read it again oO;
It was probably stupid for her to try and save all of the animals in Clouded Tears...but what else could she do? After she'd helped that eagle, Hrrarl, they had slowly began to come to her. She'd thought about turning them away, but after she'd seen some of their injuries...she just couldn't. She'd been injured many times before and knew how it felt to be in pain. She wanted to make all of their pain go away. Plus the wolves. She figured that any practice she got with the animals would prove invaluable to helping the wolves of the pack. She would gain knowledge by seeing what worked with the animals that she treated. It was a give and take.
"Maybe you should try and bring me to the two legged side" She tossed back at her, grinning. She knew how much Poe enjoyed the freedom of the werewolf form. "With enough persuasion..." There were things that she could do with Poe, like holding her, that she wouldn't be able to do in her four legged form. They could nudge and nuzzle, but that was no comparison to nice pair of arms that could hug, fingers to run through fur.
"Love to. You're so good to me...I don't know what I'd do without you. I'm so glad that you came here--I wasn't sure...if it was for the best, at first." The words continued as a thought; "If I was worth moving all the way here".
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[html] A suggestive glint hit her green-toned eyes upon Naniko's challenge, and Poe was unable to drop her devilish grin. "And I just happen to have a natural flare of a particular form of persuasion, lucky me..." she said lowly, sliding her palms down Naniko's waist, curving across her hip bones and taking a brief and light-riding dive down her inner thighs and back. Ah, there was so much more than held hands and hugs that the werewolf anatomy could achieve well beyond the capacity of their four legged version. Easy and innocent, Poe's hands whisked away from Naniko's body and placed themselves on the ground before her knees, which tilted her entire torso away. With heavy bangs covering one eye and much of her face, she brought the subject back to the mindful.
"You would have been just fine without me, 'Niko. You're a strong girl, in more ways than you seem to recognize," she began, a lovingly firm comment that was moved past before there might be a chance for argument. "For better or worse, I'm here for you, and you alone. I wanted to be closer to you, and I continue to want to be near you." She nudged her muzzle to one side, pushing her dark hair from her gaze to lock it on her companion's. "I love you, Naniko. Remember that when you're unsure." Because they had both found plenty to be unsure about before getting to this point. Their shared blood, their shared family, and the many, many differences despite these too-close components. It had been a miracle that Poe had set aside her fear of commitment without all of that weighing down on them.
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[html] Taking a break from my Music Booster's scholarship essay x_x -stab-
The touch made her shiver, not only because the blanket had fallen away a little, but because of the force of it. It was unexpected...but enjoyed. This wasn't really the time or place, especially not so close to the fire...but Poe seemed to know that. A few seconds afterwards, the tease of a wolf was settled back down next to her, looking as if nothing had happened. Naniko pushed the blanket off of herself and stood up, preparing to get the dark wolf back--but Poe was already speaking again. The alabastor wolf settled for peace and stood behind her love, wrapping the blanket around her.
When Poe finished Naniko blinked. She wasn't sure how to respond to that, really. She didn't think that she was a strong person...maybe good with pups and medicine, but that was about it.
"Me too. With you. I feel like we've always been together...or were meant to be." She sat back down next to the fire, looking back at Poe. Before long, though a peculiar smell came to her nostrils, distracting her. "Food's on fire."
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[html] Meant to be. That was a strange concept for the dark girl, who had felt that term only in brief, passionate rushes that cascaded away shortly after. But Naniko had been different, from beginning to present, and a lingering feeling of tameness around her cousin-lover. The thought permeated her gaze and mind, lulling her into silence that was shattered in seconds.
With Naniko's calm warning, Poe whipped around to look at her coat hanger set-up with wide eyes and a small yelp. "Shit!" she shouted, launching herself up into a crouch by their side, plucking both wires from the ground and shoving them meat-end into the dirt. Several squeaks, whines, and delicate muffling-slaps later, Poe sat staring at the smoldered remains of Naniko's offering. "... I blame this on you, you know," she said finally, in a grave, soft voice. Turning to look at the white figure behind her, she offered only a scolding tilt of her head. "You and your sexy body are just too damn distracting for my- or your own good, clearly." She nodded as if feeling settled by her attractive accusation, ready to retry her (not-so) fool-proof method, despite the gathered smoke that could only slowly leak from the makeshift vent above them. "Now, cover yourself up like a proper lady and keep these pervy hands away!"
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