“Just lucky I like you or I would have left you in the heat,” Toya’s words were muffled as she put the bottle back to her lips and took another long drink of the whiskey. She was something else…

Ojuk’s whining made Gaea even more nervous than before. Gulping a bit she cleared her throat and opened the stable door to put the warg pup in her arms down. It went just about as they had expected it to. “It’s okay Ojuk I promise to make it up to you…” Gaea’s voice was a bit pitiful as she realized Ojuk felt betrayed. She knew it was going to happen but it was different actually hearing it.

Once the pups and Ojuk had calmed down Gaea slipped some meat out that she had been hiding and offered it to the older warg. Ojuk didn’t want the meat from her as he grumbled at her. “I’ll make it up to you I promise.” Cautiously she rubbed his ears and gave a smile. “The pups needed a good home I promise you. I wouldn’t make you upset otherwise.” Once she looked away the warg took it from her hand and she smirked a bit in Olvar’s direction. There was still much grumbling.

Once they got to Toya’s they found the queen standing outside with a mage. It didn’t take long for the portal to be open and Toya just flicked her wrist up in a lazy good-bye as the group made their way through into the Highlands. Toya’s instructions were dead on as they warped just outside the limits of the cottage. It was sturdy looking but worn showing its old age. “There it is,” Gaea had Lofe back in her arms now as they got up close to the cottage.

There was a barn off to the side of it perfect for the wargs to sleep in and to keep the little ones out of trouble. The cottage looked to be two stories at most. Once they got the wargs settled Olvar and her set out to look at their new home.

Unlocking the door she opened it slowly so she could peek in. Not only was it super dark but she could smell the dust in the air. It had been a long while since Basselina had been here. Gaea waved her hand as dust shot up near her and coughed a bit. “Oh, we have a lot of work to do…”

Finding the candles around the cottage she started to light them with tiny bits of magic. Now she could get a good look at the inside of the cottage. There was a large stone fireplace on one side while on the other was a large set of stairs that led up to a small balcony-like area with a room attached. She guessed that was the bedroom. Under the stairs was a small room like workspace that she figured she could utilize to make her medicines. On the bottom floor towards the back was another small room with a wash tub and other things for cleaning yourself with. In the center of the main room was a large table with benches covered in dust.

By the stairs was a crate and Gaea went over to slide the lid off. It was sealed very well as she pried it open and dumped the lid next to it. “Ah! She left the furs here! That’s one thing we don’t need to get.” Gaea seemed pleased as she pulled out the warm furs for the bed. “This doesn’t seem so bad… It is quite empty though but we can fix that.”

Magic always left Olvar uneasy, but this was a mercifully quick experience. All they had to do was step through. The wargs sensed his uncertainty, and so were put off themselves, but with a bit of coaxing, everyone made it through. The highlands were much more comfortable, and their destination wasn’t far.

In many ways, the cottage reminded him of home. Simple and sturdy, with a barn to one side–a bit smaller than the barn his family had used for their horses, but a fine structure all the same. It would make for a safe, dry place for the wargs. A bit of work to fix up some of the supports and it would be as good as new. For now, he and Gaea got the pups corralled into one side, and Olvar quickly latched the gate to keep them contained. Ojuk refused to enter with the younger wargs present, and instead took up a position stretched out in the sun just outside the barn doors.

With the rowdy beasts content for now, the lycan followed Gaea into the cottage itself. It was well-built and solid on its foundation, with minimal creaking in the floorboards. His eyes had adjusted immediately to the dark, allowing him to examine the rooms ahead of time while candles were hunted down. He stood for a moment at the base of the stairs, a hand light on the bannister. This place was simple, certainly, but still nicer than he’d grown up in by a long shot. Sure it was dusty, but that could be fixed easily with just a bit of work.

Hazel eyes gazed up at the second level before jumping back to Gaea upon her exclamation. “Furs?” He peered over the railing to see what she’d found, tilting his head slightly. “Those will be nice at night.” Dust floated through the air in front of him as he ascended the steps, peering around curiously. “There’s some kind of balcony. And I see a bed up here too. Otherwise it’s rather barren.” After a brief inspection of the bed, he returned to Gaea, satisfied that it would be plenty warm between the two of them and the pile of furs.

“Wargs sleep outside then?” he asked, almost sounding disappointed. Almost. Ojuk was great for keeping warm in the wilds, but damn could he snore. And the pups would be nightmares to every piece of decor. “We have plenty of time left in the day. Do you want to start working now, or take time to explore the land a bit?”

“Especially here in the Highlands where it doesn’t get quite as warm as the surrounding areas.” Gaea looked over the furs and she could tell they were Basselina’s work. “There’s so many…” Her sister was indeed a mighty hunter. Turning her head towards him while he inspected the upstairs she pondered a bit. “I don’t think Basse spent much time here, to be honest. She is always on the move. She’s only settled down thanks to that knight lover she picked up… Lokir I think his name was?”

She heard the disappointment in his voice as she sighed a bit. “If we brought them inside they would want to sleep with us and that will be nightmarish to break the habit of once they are bigger.” She could tell just by how dependent they were on them. “Imagine three Ojuks in bed with us.” It was for their own sanity really.

“I say we clean up the house first and explore later… It shouldn’t take that long if we put good hard work into it. I’ve seen a bigger mess when Gemma causes it than this place.” Gaea got an empty wash tub for dishes that she found stashed in the corner and went around the back of the cottage to where a stream seemed to be bubbling out of the ground. She gathered as much water as she could before she brought it back in and threw cloth at Olvar. “I’ll make the rewards for finishing this well worth it.” There was a wink from her before she laughed.

After several hours they had managed to get most of the cottage in order and Gaea was messing with a basket and a blanket. She took the food for the evening and put it delicately inside the basket followed by tucking the blanket around it. “I’ve decided it would be a nice treat to take you on a picnic. The breeze is nice here and the wargs could play out in the open without having to worry. They don’t seem the type to run off on us. It will be good for them.”

She pulled the basket onto the mid of her arm before she kissed Olvar gently on the lips. “It will be fun.” Not to mention relaxing after all the cleaning they had done. They made their way into the barn and unleashed the tiny wargs. Lofe got so excited he ran so fast he could stop and ended up using his face to flop on the ground.

Gaea let out a laugh before she helped the puny warg back up onto his big paws. They decided to venture only a little bit away from the cottage but far enough where the little ones could explore on their own if needed. For the most part, the warg pups stayed with them but it was Lofe who was trying his boundaries. After got caught sniffing the wrong thing he yipped and ran back in between Gaea’s legs almost tripping the poor half nymph.

“Lofe it’s okay… It’s just a snake if you don’t bother it… It won’t bother you.” She reached down and rubbed his ears. They arrived at the spot and Gaea pulled out the large blanket. Thanks to Olvar and in no way shape or form Lofe the blanket was spread neatly on a grassy hill. The whole time it was being set up Lofe kept running under it and scaring himself before finding himself amused by it all.

“What a dorky warg.” Gaea let a chuckle out as they settled down onto the blanket. She pulled the basket in between them to show him what was inside. It was just food rations for travel but somehow Gaea had managed to sneak out a bottle of wine with her. “Mother makes wine so I figured she wouldn’t care if I took it from her for us.”

It was an odd combination but Gaea didn’t appear to be fussed over it. Her eyes went to Lofe as he pounced over to his siblings and began to play with them. Gaea scooted closer to Olvar and snuggled up to him. “It’s nice here. This was a good plan.” She got the glasses and popped open the wine so she could pour it for them. “We’ll have to do it again when we have actual food.”

“I don’t even want to imagine one Ojuk crammed onto a bed,” he told her, descending the last step. “Let’s get to work then.” If they both worked at it, cleaning up the place would be easy. It wasn’t all that big, after all. Olvar began rightening furniture while Gaea went about her own work of gathering dishes from the scattered reaches of the house. He had just straightened a trio of chairs around a table when a cloth smacked limply against his face before falling sadly to the tabletop. The lycan smirked, shook his head, but went on to clean the dishes she had gathered together.

Three hours later and the little cottage was looking decidedly less like a bear had gone rummaging through it the night before. Gentle arms settled around her waist as he stepped up behind her, chin resting on her shoulder. “What’s that?” he asked, regarding the basket curiously. Her answer brought a lazy smile to his face, and he gladly accepted the kiss before releasing her and heading for the door.

Outside, the pups began romping as soon as they were set free from their confines. Ojuk did his best to keep Olvar between he and the younger wargs. “Big baby.” The shifter rubbed his mount’s nose with amusement, the huge beast grumbling in reply. “Don’t be so sour. You need to be a good influence, yeah?” A huff. Ojuk wasn’t impressed with his new responsibility.

The odd little pack moved along, headed up a nice hillside for their picnic. Ojuk was close at his right side, Forrest taking a place on his left. Shade was a bit further from the group, sticking near the edge not far from Gaea. Ahead of them, Lofe was travelling twice the distance by swerving back and forth, sniffing as much as possible, whether it wanted to be sniffed or not. More than once he was startled back to the body of the group by something unknown or unexpected. He could make a good scout if he always returned upon finding a strange new object.

Upon finding a suitable location for their picnic, Olvar helped Gaea set out the blanket, shooing Lofe out of the way several times when the pup tried to scamper beneath everything. The lycan took a seat as soon as he was able to discourage the disruptive play from escalating, a decision that was apparently very boring, as Lofe opted instead to turn and jump onto Forrest’s play bow. Shade circled the boys, bouncing into openings and nipping at their paws as they wrestled. Ojuk found a patch of sun to lay down in, yawning widely.

With everyone settled in, Olvar turned his attention to Gaea and her basket of goodies, most interestingly the wine. “Your mother makes wine?” He removed a few rations from the basket, setting them on the blanket in front of them while his companion shifted closer and poured the wine. He smiled. “I’m sure I could hunt some rabbit for us. Probably deer too. The pups will have to learn eventually, so I’ll take them out with Ojuk sometime in the next few days.” Living off the land. It would be like his first years on the road all over again. This time, however, he wouldn’t be alone.

Gaea chuckled up at Ojuk as the older warg tried to stay away from the young ones. He would get used to them eventually. Finally, when they got everything set up Gaea watched Ojuk lounge in the sun and chuckled a bit. “He’s like an older uncle of theirs.” The little wargs were playing with each other which made her grin a bit.

“Aye, she’s been making wine for as long as I can remember. Probably even before that. Her favorites are the reds but she has been known to make some white. They are known for their earthy tones.” She listened to his idea and nodded as she handed him a glass. “That sounds like a good idea. It would be good for the pups too. I can always go and pick things as well. Get what we need from a neighboring town… I think there’s one not that far from here that we can trade with.”

Gaea lifted up the wine glass to her lips and tasted it. Lofe was pounced on by Forrest now as the boys continued to play. “They are going to grow fast. I can tell. They are already so different from when we picked them up… Well… When I picked them up. They are definitely happier.”

The grass seemed to flicker in the opposite direction as the breeze which got Gaea’s attention almost immediately. “Oh no,” there was a groan from her lips as she spotted a woman not far from them. It was Angela. “What are you doing here?”

“Is that the gratitude you show to someone for saving your life?” Angela got close and sat down on the blanket away from the happy couple.

“That is the gratitude I am showing to my mother who I know is being nosey.” Gaea tilted her head and put her head on Olvar’s shoulder. “What are you doing here Mother?”

“Oh, you know… Gemma told me that two little lovebirds were going to Sularia. I got to Sularia and I had a very rude little sister tell me that the little love birds went out to the Highlands to raise some warg puppies. You know she punched me in the face?”

“She always punches you in the face… Doesn’t explain why you are here.”

Angela smirked a bit and a box with a bow appeared in her arms. “Just… brought Olvar some gifts that will keep him happy while he spends time with you. You can be awfully overbearing.” Gaea blushed a bit but watched as the rather large gift box was passed off to Olvar.

“Thought you were done with gifts…”

“I was but this is just perfect.” Angela formed a goblet and poured herself some wine. “Wasn’t sure your preference so I got one of everything I could get my hands on.”

“One of what?” Gaea snapped up straight. “What did you do?”

“Shush and let him open his gift.” Angela took a sip of the wine with a smirk.

Olvar was hesitant to form any relations with nearby settlements, and he made sure to tell his companion as much. “I think we should limit how much we rely on a town, Gaea. I’m more than capable of hunting, and with your knowledge, foraging would be an easy task as well. We have plenty of water, and a sturdy shelter. What would we ever need from town?”

He downed half of his glass as he followed her gaze to the pups. Forrest squirmed out from underneath Lofe and essentially sat on him. The runt wriggled in protest a moment before flopping his back half over in defeat and trying to catch his brother’s tail. The lycan smirked. “They’ll do fine. Forrest is already figuring out his place in the pack. It’s Shade and Lofe I’m more concerned about. She seems too smart for her own good, and he…” Lofe hadn’t caught Forrest’s tail, but he had found his own paw, and his tongue lolled from his mouth as he chewed on it. “Well, he may have the opposite problem.”

The pressure change didn’t go unnoticed by Olvar either. His smile disappeared, and he lifted his gaze to peer over the grasses. The delicate smell of rose and lavender came out of nowhere, and guided his attention to a familiar figure not far away. She had appeared out of thin air, unnerving enough without consideration of her power. A subtle tension settled into the lycan’s shoulders. He regarded her quietly as she sat. Ojuk felt it. From where he’d been lounging, the big warg lifted his head with ears at attention. A bassy rumble bubbled from his chest.

Olvar held up a low hand to the warg, and he quieted down with a dramatic huff. “Gifts?” the shifter repeated in a questioning tone, regarding the box suspiciously as it was passed to him. The last time he’d seen Angela had not exactly been the most relaxing event, and that tension had returned along with the woman before him. Still, he loosened the bow and peered into the box. The contents earned an amused snort, even in his uneasy state. “I’m flattered, but I doubt these will fit me.” He passed the box to Gaea, preparing himself for her reaction. Everyone in this family seemed at least the smallest bit volatile. He didn’t want to be caught in the middle of a spat.

Gaea gave a soft smile and nodded to his request. “I’m sure everything will be just fine with both of us working together. I’m so used to Gemma that I normally pull all the weight by myself.” She knew getting used to working as a team was going to be hard for her so she just took a breath and relaxed for a moment. Gaea watched Lofe and chuckled. “He is special all right. Definitely no war animal that’s for sure.” She gave a wink to Olvar as she watched the pups some more.

Once they were all settled Angela returned the smirk as Olvar opened his gift. “Oh but my dear it is something for you to enjoy.” Angela sipped on the wine as Gaea looked inside of the box. Her face though dark in tone turned a bright red.

“Mother…” Gaea’s voice was in shock and she couldn’t get the words out of her mouth as she looked up at the goddess. “Why?”

“Why what?” Angela said it innocently but there was that glint of humor in her eyes as she watched the two of them. “Because I know damn well that you both are having sex and that you are adults? I can encourage fun can’t I?”

Gaea took her wine and downed it much more akin to a shot. “I’ve heard stories from my sisters about the stunts you pull.” There was a mischievous look on Angela’s face. “You dumped Basselina on Lokir’s doorstep because you knew he liked her and that she would never court him while she was on a job… You also ambushed Talise when she had first met Gerard and forced them into a dinner party. You gave Calanthe to Brynn as his steward knowing damn well what would happen. You made Holly dance with Justice after you found out he had been looking for her! The list goes on and on of the things I know you’ve pulled let alone the things I don’t know.”

Angela put up a finger as she thought. “I also put your brother and Episcia in a room together when they were young hoping they would just become friends…”

“You are not helping your case.” Gaea took the bottle of wine and filled the glass.

“A woman has to have hobbies at my age. Making sure my children enjoy life is one of them. You lot are such sticks in the mud sometimes… So serious about trying to help me when I don’t need it. I’m fifteen hundred years old with over one hundred children under my belt. Relax. Besides… You don’t know how much that box cost me.” She wagged her finger at the box before taking another sip of wine. “I asked Lotus for help. Lingerie isn’t something I’m very good at.”

Gaea’s mouth dropped open. “YOU ASKED THE SUCCUBUS FOR HELP?!”

Angela rolled her eyes a bit as she mulled the question. “Yes? She did owe me a favor for helping her birth those twins of hers. Don’t talk about your cousin like that… You know she’s gotten better…”

“Yeah… She’s the reason why Ignis Season is so terrible. You know how many times she’s been chased out of town because someone caught her in bed with their husbands?” Gaea looked up at Olvar as she was still red in the face. “Suppose it can’t hurt… How the hell did you get my sizes anyways?”

Angela put up another finger as she chuckled. “Interestingly enough… I hunted down Gemma. You two are identical twins. You seen one naked you seen them both.” Gaea spit out the wine she had sipped as she stared at her mother. “What? It’s true.”

“We’re done. Enough family time… You are ruining my picnic.”

“I thought we were having a blast,” Angela smirked a bit before she got up and sauntered off. “Have fun you two. I have things I have to take care of anyways…” Angela waved at them both and Gaea just glared in her direction.

“I’m going to kill her…” It was low but she took a deep breath as she looked back in the box. “There… has to be like twenty of them.” They ranged from all colors and types. “I’m sorry she barged in here like that… She’s not really the shy type. You get used to it after a while… She's one of the most relaxed queens I've ever met let alone a goddess.”

Listening to Gaea go over Angela’s record of other such happenings made her “gift” much less unusual, at least coming from her. It seemed that the so-called goddess had made quite a habit out of terrorizing her children, and her doing so was not always welcome. Gaea made that part abundantly clear. Valuing his life, and with an uncharacteristic amount of common sense, Olvar remained silent while the two carried on their rather boisterous conversation. His eyes traveled from Gaea, to Angela, to the box, then back to Gaea, following the speaker or topic. His wine glass never left his lips. When eyes turned to him, the lycan held them only briefly before glancing away, reluctant to be pulled into the conflict.

Mercifully, Angela heeded Gaea’s protests, and rose to make her exit. Olvar watched her wave a farewell. Cautiously, his attention went back to the woman beside him, and he spoke up for the first time since passing the box off. “I’ve had worse people barge in unexpectedly,” he assured her. He could think of three instances off the top of his head where he’d looked up to find a blade level with his eyes. A mother lacking in boundaries was hardly comparable.

With the intruder gone, Ojuk rested his head back down. Forrest and Lofe, who had paused their battle to watch from a distance, trotted over to where Angela had disappeared, snuffling curiously at the ground. From behind Gaea, Shade sniffed at the box.

The lycan leaned forward to grab the wine, refilling his glass and then offering the bottle to Gaea. “You seem like you might need this,” he mused, waiting for her to take it before removing the box from her lap. He closed it and set it aside. “It must be nice to have someone looking out for you at least.”

The nymph gave a smirk to Olvar and shook her head. “I’m sure you have. You’ll have to tell me stories sometime.” Gaea looked behind her as she felt the sniff and leaned over to kiss Shade’s head. “Silly woman… Isn’t that right Shade?”

Taking the bottle she nodded. “I think I might.” She was glad the box was off her lap as she pondered his next statement. “It’s different because Mother doesn’t always show up. Normally I am the responsible one and I am taking care of Gemma. I did everything for her from the cleaning to the cooking. Gemma doesn’t know how to do a damn thing and if I had to guess right… She is probably panicking right now. Everything she cooks is like charcoal.”

There was a joyful laugh that left her lips as she filled her glass and took it in. The two of them managed to get through the wine and were feeling pretty good as they laid back on the blanket and began to kiss. Lofe perked up and barked happily as he scampered over and got right in the middle of both of them. His long tongue was going all over Olvar’s face and when he had enough he jumped on Gaea who was laughing hard.

Right, the wargs were like children. “Lofe! That’s enough,” Gaea was laughing hard as she had to hug the pup to her to get him to stop. “I love you too.” They packed up the picnic when it started to get late and headed back with Olvar putting a hand on Ojuk. Gaea jumped a bit as Olvar had leaned over enough to pinch her behind. There was a smirk on her face back as she slowed down to get back to him. Gently she slapped his behind and chuckled a bit before kissing his cheek. This continued the whole way home as they got the wargs settled and ended up kissing downstairs near the fireplace.

“Hey look what I found,” she pulled away from him as she pulled out a few bottles of whiskey. “It will be fun.” They were already pretty tipsy, to begin with as she started to pour the shots. The playfulness only increased as they drank more. The more they drank the friskier the two of them got. Gaea squealed as Olvar picked her up and carried her up the stairs. “Wait,” Gaea laughed as she dipped and extended herself as she grabbed one of the furs before he continued up the stairs.

There was no holding back that night thanks to the alcohol. Gaea’s body littered with bites and bruises but Olvar was equally scratched up across his back. They were curled up under the furs together with Gaea formed against him as he held her. Though peaceful it didn’t last but for a few hours before the screams and shaking started. Gaea was having a nightmare.

The two chatted and drank for the remainder of the evening, Gaea recalling what it was like growing up in her family, and Olvar listening with a fair share of the wine going into his glass. When affectionate touch turned to pecks and love bites, the lycan moved to hold his companion a bit closer, an action that was interrupted by the sudden weight of a young warg falling atop him. Olvar cursed, pushing a palm against the pup’s neck in vain. Lofe’s long tongue still reached his face. He dare not bark a command lest he receive warg spit in his mouth. Finally the aggressive attention relented and turned to Gaea, giving Olvar a moment to dry his face.

With the pups once again pacified, they packed up their belongings to head back to Bass’s cabin, a hand against Ojuk keeping the shifter steady on his feet. All of the walk back was interrupted regularly by playful pinches and pats. Even back at the cottage, Gaea’s appetite for alcohol was apparently not satisfied. Admittedly Olvar would never say no to a drink, but he’d expected less tolerance from her.

Regardless, the pair drank, growing more and more disconnected from their inhibitions as the night went on. The play made its way up the stairs, and stayed there for the whole of what remained. When at last the two were spent, there was a pleasant sting across Olvar’s back as he held the half-nymph against him. Booze and exhaustion lulled him quickly to sleep, but it was only and hour or two before he was woken again, rather violently.

The scream rang in his ears like a shrill bell, startling him up. His hand flew for a weapons, but his blades had been sloppily abandoned downstairs. Hazel eyes danced around the room, the lycan’s fists at the ready, but the next scream came from directly beside him, immediately catching his full attention. Gaea. Once he stopped moving, he could feel her shaking. A touch once hardened for a brawl instantly loosened, resting on his shoulder. “Gaea? Gaea, wake up, it’s a dream!” A determined shake to her upper arm. “Gaea!”

Outside, Ojuk was circling the cottage, awoken by the cry. The pups, trapped in the barn, yapped and howled their additions to the older warg’s growling.