In Plain Sight [M] [DragonSong]

[Juno]

"Maybe not right away. Once they get settled and comfortable here," he added with a tired smirk, turning to press a kiss to her temple and stroke a gentle hand along her side. "Would you like to rest here with them for a bit before we go?"

He wasn't exactly sure how tired their journey had made her. Perhaps she'd been hiding her earlier fatigue well, or it had passed without him realizing.

[DragonSong]

"I'm fine." Her answer was perhaps a little too quick, almost defensive. She tried to play it off with another smile, twining her fingers through his. "I'll come see them tomorrow. I should probably let them settle in..."

Her voice trailed off, the implication almost starkly obvious, at least to her.

They hadn't talked about it much since Broketooth's death-- or at all, really, mostly skirting around the topic-- but her pack seemed to have come to an understanding quite without her. Chris was her mate, and her place was with him. She was still Little One, still Snowfur's daughter and Icefang's sister, still a wolf in all but shape.

But her den was no longer theirs, not anymore.

Brenna swallowed a little nervously and knelt to cuddle the pups as they came romping toward her. "I'll see you soon," she promised, both in Common and in the huffing, moving language of wolves. "I'll see you lots. You'll get sick of me, little ones."

[Juno]

Chris was happy enough to let it go at that, giving her fingers a brief squeeze before stepping back and quietly moving towards the mouth of the cave to let her say her goodbyes. He watched them fondly, a tender smile softening the tension in his face.

"We'll be back plenty," he promised, sweeping a brief look over the pack and offering them a polite nod. Admittedly it felt a little weird to know their constant presence in his day was likely coming to an end. He'd gotten so used to sharing his den with them, just watching the pups grow and the pack as a whole regain their strength.

The shifter stepped outside at last, back into the chill air that settled pleasantly in his bones. Faintly whistling wind pushed its way through the pass, kicking up flurries and tossing his hair a bit.

[DragonSong]

The wild girl spent a few more moments saying her goodbyes, allowing the pack to crowd around her, nuzzling at her cheeks and shoulders, tails wagging and tongues lolling affectionately.

Eventually, she managed to disentangle herself and slipped back out into the open wind, one last pat for the pups before she went.

She shivered slightly, feeling the chill starkly after the warmth of the wolves' bodies pressed around her, and reached out to take her mate's hand again. "You said something about hot springs, didn't you?"

[Juno]

Once she'd joined him the shifter shuffled closer against Brenna's side, accepting her hand with a firm squeeze before slipping his arm around her to draw her in close and share his warmth.

"Mhmm. I think it'll do you some good," he murmured, quite unable to think of a polite way of telling his mate she needed to relax and give herself some time to recuperate. In his eyes Brenna was silently suffering, bearing a great burden of stress in recent weeks and pushing herself further than was necessary.

Chris stepped away from the narrow mouth of the cave to usher her along, carefully winding their way back through the pass. It was a short journey to reach his parent's den, only about an hour more.

Only Faline was there to greet them. She sensed her son's presence, moving to the entrance of their den to watch the figures approach from a distance and wave to them excitedly with one arm. She motioned for them to follow her inside, stepping into the warmth of their caves and rushing to gather her son up in a hug.

"So good to see you again, it's been too long," she murmured, eyeing Brenna affectionately for a moment over his shoulder before breaking away from Chris and pulling her into her arms instead. Something seemed different about her scent though, and she hesitated to draw out the hug for a few moments longer than was necessary.

Chris stepped back to watch, chuckling under his breath and thinking nothing of his mother's fondness. "Her pack- They're living close by now," he offered in explanation. "Was hoping we could stay the night and warm up a bit."

Faline stepped back, eyeing Brenna up and down with a fond smile as she rubbed encouragingly at the girl's shoulders. "You both are always welcome," she assured, glancing to her son with a happy chuckle though her attention drifted back to the wild girl. "Are you well?"

[DragonSong]

Bryn squeaked quietly as she was gathered up into a hug, not entirely expecting it, but she relaxed after a moment and returned the embrace only a little awkwardly.

Her mate's mother seemed just as determined as Christopher himself to baby her though, and she frowned with a small sigh. "I'm fine," she murmured, trying to sound firm but not irritated-- not that she was, she was just...

Tired.

Damn.

[Juno]

Faline eyed her in surprise, mouth falling open slightly in silent question as she looked to her son who only shrugged. She'd remember the girl being quite shy but...there was definitely something that seemed a touch off about her now.

"We're pretty tired, it's been a long day," Chris apologized for them, stepping closer again to snake an arm around his mate and draw her away from his mother who easily let them go with a thoughtful look.

"Of course dear, go get settled. Your father... He should be back in the morning if you'd like to say hello." Chris winced at that, feeling a little guilty that she would have been alone otherwise and they'd only stopped in for a short visit.

After a few brief words of thanks he ushered Brenna further into the caves, leading her down each turn to follow the path of curling steam in the air. Once they reached the spring pools the air was getting to be oppressively warm. The shifter slipped his arm away to toe off his boots and shrug out of the thick coat he'd been wearing all day. His brow was drawn in concern he didn't dare voice again as he glanced at his mate, throat tense with unspoken words and his lips forming into an unconscious frown as he shrugged out of his thinner layers to leave his chest bare.

[DragonSong]

Brenna was either too distracted or too tired to notice the way her mate and Faline seemed to be eyeing her, then each other, speaking silently. She more or less allowed Chris to guide her through the caves completely on instinct, a puppet simply following her strings.

The warmth of the hot springs was enough to wake her slightly though, and she perked up a bit as she began stripping out of her clothes.

And finally seemed to notice the way the shifter was looking at her. She frowned, tilting her head to the side. "Chris? Something wrong?"

[Juno]

Was something wrong? Not with him exactly, but he was still concerned about her. She was acting strangely, had been all day. If he was being honest with himself she'd been a little off for the past couple weeks, but he'd assumed it had been grief. Perhaps it still was.

"I don't know," he answered honestly, voice a bit gravelly. "You were short, um, seemed irritated with my mother. She was only asking after you because it's been a while. She missed you too you know."

He shrugged a little, feeling a bit helpless and not wanting to dwell on it too much. He'd gotten the impression that Brenna was okay with his mother from their last visit, if a little overwhelmed by her friendliness and fondness for hugs.

"You're probably cold, hm?" The shifter stripped out of the rest of his clothing, casting her a questioning look over his shoulder before approaching the steaming spring and stepping up to it.

Chris gave a satisfied hiss as he moved in, immediately wading as far as he dared so that the water reached up to his neck. His hair was only halfway beneath the surface, the frosty white strands splaying out in a fan around him.  He brought wet hands up to run through the rest, humming in pleasure with a subtle smile as the warmth began to seep into his bones.

[DragonSong]

Brenna sighed and her shoulders slumped as she shuffled toward the edge of the water. "I know," she murmured, toeing the spring cautiously before she stepped in. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..."

[Juno]

The shifter tilted his head back as she spoke, quietly observing his mate with concern still furrowing his brow as she tested the waters for herself. He moved towards the furthest edge of the pool to give her some room but his eyes remained trained on her.

"You don't have to apologize," Chris offered with a sad but understanding smile. "I'm just concerned. You seem sort of...unhappy."

[DragonSong]

She took her head quickly, trying to smile at him. "I'm not. Really, I'm not, I'm just...tired, I suppose. Worried about the pack..."

That was true, but it didn't quite feel like all the truth. Though even she didn't know why.