Hidden Fox

Twenty-Seven

When we reached the kitchen, we found Kallie sitting next to Emerald at the large dining table. Amethyst sat across from them on her knees, arms folded and lip stuck out in a pout. Emerald looked exasperated, and Eirenae was there too, standing near the table stricken with guilt. Kallie seemed unaffected by them all, going on to eat the quesadilla on the plate in front of her.

Xavier and I cross the room, "what's going on?"

"April!" Kallie beamed at me. I returned her smile before addressing Emerald again.

"Those are mine!" Amethyst grumbled, glaring daggers at Kallie. Kallie just kept on munching.

Emerald looked up from her chair at me, exhaustion obvious in her eyes. "Amethyst, she's just borrowing them!"

I looked to Eirenae, and she shook her head. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought her in here, I didn't know!"

Scooping Amethyst up, I held her at an arm's length while she kicked and screamed at me, her angst directing all the energy to me. "No!" She shrieked as she flailed her tiny limbs about.

But I held her out like that until she was calm enough to hear me speaking to her. Xavier was beside me the entire time, but I think his big worry was that I wouldn't be strong enough to hold her. Needless to say I proved him wrong.

Bringing her in, I settled her against me with her legs around my torso. "Ames," I said softly and she peered up at me with tear strained crystal green eyes. "Use your words."

Her little arm pointed sloppily at Kallie. "She's wearing mine." Suddenly I understood. She was throwing a tantrum about Kallie wearing her clothes.

"Can I tell you something? Kallie doesn't have anything at all, and so she needs those clothes. Would you rather her be running around naked?"

Amethyst giggled, wiping at her eyes. "No."

"That's what I thought too," I said. "So is it okay for you to be nice and let her share your things for a little bit?"

She took a deep breath, the air shaking in her throat on its way out. "Okay."

"That's very kind of you," I said, kissing her head and then passing her off to Eirenae, who apologized.

"She missed her nap today because you were back and she wouldn't go down."

I waved her off, "it's okay. Probably time for bed anyway."

"No!" Amethyst protested, but it was half-hearted and she let Eirenae take her to the stairs anyway.

I sat down across from Emerald and Xavier followed suit. "You okay?" I asked the Luna.

She raised her eyes from watching Kallie to meet mine. "Oh yes! Thank you for that, by the way. I just didn't have the energy to deal with my own screaming toddler, I'm so sorry it ended up on you."

That didn't sound like Emerald at all. Concentrating, I inhaled long and deep until I found it. "Does anyone else know?" I asked, a smirk I tried to suppress staying on my lips.

She laughed, getting my hint immediately. "Oh yes, most do. I'm sorry, I didn't tell you the news with everything else going on!"

"I understand; I'm happy for you!" The exhaustion made much more sense now.

"I'm not even showing yet, but I think it's a girl." She lowered her head and placed a hand on her stomach.

Xavier chuckled, "my sister says most she-wolves that predict the sex immediately are usually right."

Emerald smiled at his words, seeming content that her next pup would be a girl, even after the tantrum we just watched with her last girl.

"Any name ideas?" I couldn't help asking before thinking.