Batten down the hatches
#1
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Neela wanted to kill something.


The safety of her pups had been threatened. At ten days old even Luca, the strongest of them, was far too young to be moved much, never-mind Isla who hadn’t once seemed far from the brink of death in her short life. Still with Enzo’s help the pups had survived the journey into the courthouse and Neela had retreated to the lower levels, found a room that was empty and curled up in a corner, snarling at anyone who tried to enter.



Neela was currently sprawled in her Lupus form, curled up around the pups as they fed. She had gathered what pillows and blankets she could from the room to provide covering for the pups but it still didn’t seem enough and even Luca seemed to be shivering against her belly. Still despite the shock the pups were still moving at least – the feeling of tiny teeth against her teats was evidence for that – and even Isla, who had simply laid sprawled on the floor not moving since arriving, had managed to drag herself over and feed with some help.



The pups seeming safety now didn’t stop Neela’s anger at being uprooted like this though. She wanted to go up to what was threatening them and attack it, tear into the threat with tooth and claw and make her pups safe. But she couldn’t do that now, hurricanes and flood waters couldn’t be fought; all that Neela could do against these threats was cower in the corner like she was doing.



It was frustrating but that was all she could do. It took all Neela’s self control to stop herself snarling and raging at the situation; as good as letting some of her anger out would feel all it would do at the moment was scare the pups. Instead she was forced to keep her peace as best she could, able to do little more than gently lick at the pups and make soothing noises to try and calm them.



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#2
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At least things could have been worst. While their situation was not suitable, Alyssum kept up her calm and unfazed appearance, if only for the sake of the pack. She knew that they were scared, some where more obvious than others, and the lunar queen would not allow herself to appear defeated by this storm--as long as she kept her morals up, maybe things would not go even more south.

But, when not in the presence of the others, which were rare and far in between with her running about and making sure everyone was okay, her mask crumbled and the tension overcame her like water. Hair that was tied back would frizz out, giving her a wild appearance, and she would always have to re-groom herself before going back to her pack mates. This time, she held a bundle of blankets that had once been a huge pile, having been distributed to those who accepted her offer, and was approaching a secluded room that was left alone for a rest.

The woman brushed a hand over her mane to remove it from her eyes, and softly rapped on the down with pale knuckles. "Neela, it's me." She had not seen the female ever since she gave birth, and if this had been any other situation, she would have been more happy. But, she subdued, quiet and calm, again putting on the facade. Alyssum knew that Neela had been hostile lately, and for a good reason, and she was prepared to turn around at the slightest hint of anger, not wanting to stress her anymore than what she already went through. "I brought you some blankets--they're pretty warm, and I'd thought to give them to you."

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#3
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A deep throaty growl, loud enough to be heard outside the door clearly, emanated from Neela’s lungs when she heard the sound of footsteps approaching the door. The pups squirmed a bit in protest but didn’t show any overt signs of fear or stop feeding; somehow sensing that Neela was between them and whatever she was growling at. The growl cut short on Neela’s lips when Aly’s voice sounded through the door, more out of not wanting to growl at someone that she considered a friend than Neela actually being happy to have anyone at all dropping in to visit. While she wasn’t growling anymore Neela was silent, making no move to call out for Aly to enter.


The mention of blankets sweetened Neela’s disposition some – prompting a quick look over to where the pups were shivering against her side despite the blankets swaddled beneath them – and she called out, her voice still tense and short. ”Come in.” Neela called out, her voice half welcoming and half threatening the horrible fate that would befall Aly is she somehow managed to harm one of Neela’s children. Ruffling her fur unhappily Neela curled up around the pups a bit tighter and peered at the door, waiting for it to open.<




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#4
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Unintiving growls echoed from within the room at her approach, and she had the right mind
to turn around. But, the blankets were not fated to go to waste, and she was going to make her
offer and see what the woman within would say to her offer. At the sound of her voice the growls
had stopped, and time seemed to suspend as Neela was silent within the room, and Alyssum
guessed she was weighing her options. The woman decided to keep the visit short and sweet, especially when the mother called back with half a warning.

The coywolf slipped into the room and quietly closed the door behind her, and for the first
time looked upon the newest additions to the pack. They were curled close to their mother, some
blankets already surrounding them, but with the Canadian weather there was never enough
blankets to go around. The Luna approached the family slowly, and knelt about a yard away, and
passed the item over to the mother. "They're beautiful," she commented softly as she stared at the moving bundles. For a moment, she thought about the far-off future, and imagined
little pups of her own running about, not knowing how long that future would have to wait. In this situation, any happy thought did not live long before another pressed to mind. "Are they doing well? Do you need anything else?"
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#5
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The blanket that Aly brought was a welcome sight. In better times the brown furred Luna herself would have been as well but now Neela didn’t particularly want to see anyone, she just wanted to be left alone to tend to her pups. Still she let out a grateful huff as Aly passed her the blanket, which was promptly dumped on top of the pups and folder beneath them. This kept Neela occupied for a miute, though she looked up again when Aly spoke. "Thank you.” she said in response to Aly’s compliment, shuffling her torso when one of the pups squirmed at the noise, almost as though it was aware they were being spoken about.


Unfortunately Aly’s next words didn’t sit as well with Neela, provoking a growl which displayed sharp white teeth, still decorated with red from Enzo’s efforts at forcing his way into her house, "Cara is dead and Isla’s probably gonna follow her shortly. What I need is for this fucking storm to stop so I can get them somewhere safe and warm and dry, but that’s not gonna happen is it?” Neela’s voice was bitter and increasingly aggressive, barely above a snap at the end. It wasn;t particularly fair to Aly to take this out on her – even like this Neela could hardly blame her for the weather – but Neela needed some way to work out her frustration and Aly had made herself available. For a second Neela seemed as though considering whether or not to bother getting up and attacking Aly but then she suddenly slumped, dropping her head onto her paws. "Sorry.” she muttered, her voice low but contrite, laden with a sigh.


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#6
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The woman was careful not to get too close to mother or children except only to pass over the blanket, but she could not help but want to get a closer look at the newborns. It was perhaps a natural, instinctual curiosity that was presented in females in general and in an alphess wanting to check out her newest additions, but whatever the case, she withheld her prying and merely sat cross legged and settled with looking at the blanket that now covered them that would move slightly when she had spoke about them.

Alyssum was not well prepared for Neela's sudden sharp and pointed hostility, and did nothing but press her ears against her head as the woman lashed out her words. Sea foam eyes stared gently yet with strength into yellow ones, and calmly stated with an edge of sadness, "Tony told me about Cara. I was upset to hear such news, and I still am." To lose a child... it was unimaginable. "And I am sorry that I cannot do anything about the weather. If I could, I certainly would. Until then, preserve." Storms never lasted forever. All they needed to do was survive the next few days, and try to cope with whatever the hurricane did not destroy.

Surprsingly, the Luna did not feel threatened by the snarling woman, and she watched as she visually calmed down. Her eye brows furrowed a little, and murmured softly, "There is nothing to be sorry for. It must be difficult to be in your position in this situation, and I do truly regret with you all having to go through this." Her hands, that were resting on her knees, squeezed with a little force. "No family should go through this, period. Especially children. I mean... it's just!" She suddenly cut herself off, and sighed. "Sorry... I didn't mean to get that... emotional." She had nothing to blame but the weather, she supposed, and the tension that surrounded her pack. She didn't really consider the cause to be something on this inside rather than the out.

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