Wreck, as an immensely practical totoma, as not wont to being particularly cheerful in the first place. The closest she came to being cheerful was with a very beautiful buck of the Swamp, of which soon after, she ceased to be cheerful again. Any residual cheer upon recollection significantly subsided with the onset of nausea, and gradually, an increasing heaviness in her belly, one that no fasting nor swimming could get rid of. She was resigned to that being the rest of her life - again, being an immensely practical totoma - but she continued to be uncheerful about it, because that was her right. At this time of morning as she grunted and jogged along the coastline, she was almost downright grumpy. The pull of her abdomen was not letting up.

"HELLO," a Kiokote with his eyes gleaming intensely pulled up next to her as she made her way heavily and angrily down the beach, voice irritatingly booming, "you are running tremendously fast!"

Wreck rolled her eyes up and turned her head slightly to pretty much growl at him in warning, because she had enough of bucks for a good while.

Distant Thunder was actually genuinely surprised by the full-bodied noise from her throat. He didn't think he was that annoying, but he never did think he was, which is why he kept on doing this.

"Oh, I don't want anything from you," he tried to assuage her, which only drew another warning hiss and a spray of sand from her hooves. She was remarkably good at kicking sand into him.

He tried a different approach, yelling "I could give you something, actually!"

Oh, that got her to stop. Good!

"What," Wreck said in a sarcastic way that was mostly full-on angry, "it is something only you can offer?"

He looked mildly thoughful, the glow from his eyes waxing and waning with his blinks, before confirming, "as of the kin currently on the beach, yes."

She threw herself upon him and started to beat him with her heavy hooves, which was a testament to Totoma as he was quite a solid Kiokote.

"Remarkable!" He yelled between kicks, "still so sprightly for someone so pregnant!"

"Someone what?!" She screamed back at him, incredulous but hooves still going.

"Pregnant! You know, with child!"

Her hooves stalled.

"I know what that means! But who?!"

Immensely. Practical. Incredulous. Totoma.

"Oh! YOU! Congratulations!" He boomed with delight now that she'd stopped beating him.

She bellowed. He got up from below her hooves.

"What can you give me for it," she hissed.

"Ah," he puffed, "a blessing"

"Something for the nausea," she said dismissively, tail flicking sharply. She was still processing this, but she understood this is how little lambs were born. She chided herself for it inside.

"I'm afraid I can't do that," he had considered it and decided it was probably out of his control, circle of life and all of that, "you should get some of that salted Rise and Shine meat. I can bless your children though."

She looked at him through half-lidded, bored eyes. Being an immensely practical doe, she would have assumed children live and died by survival of the fittest. Also she was not taking being pregnant well.

"Sure."

He was about to say more upbeat things but hastily continued to yell up to the Motherfather, "HEAR YE MOTHERFATHER, SOOTHE THY CHILD OF THE MOUNTAINS AND BESTOW DIVINITY UPON HER OFFSPRING. LET THEM HAVE -"

Thunder looked over at her hopefully. Her eyes were just as half-lidded as before, and she was chewing on her bottom lip.

"- HEALTH. OUR GRATITUDE UPON THE MOTHERFATHER. Done!"

He smiled at her with a measure of nervousness. She turned tail to pound sand down the coastline.

If she saw Early again, she'd beat - well, she'd...she'd figure it out.

He was a very pretty buck.

END