You are strong and you are brave.

The lightning should be afraid.

So, dry your tears and close your eyes.

You are the love this world will need.

Lullaby of the Boar Beast-Folk

{Fastos Gon Vestos Quick}

The next few days we stayed inside as a large snowstorm rolled through. The only time we went outside was to use the restroom or for me to fetch firewood. Clover was keeping her distance and I wondered if she was embarrassed by the kiss she stole. Willow didn't want to go outside and any time she did, she would look around everywhere. Maybe that elk lord scared the poor girl too much. I would have to do something tonight to help her but didn't know what would work. I asked Clover to make something nice for us tonight and I put the bottle of wine outside in the snow. It shouldn't freeze. With a light hum, I stocked the cabin and made sure the frozen crops were brought into thaw. Past that I didn't have anything to do but wait. Waiting was always hard for me. I sat by the fire and pulled out a stick and a long knife. If I aimed the knife just right, I could fling the shavings into the fire. Clover moved a stool over and sat by my side. Maybe she was just cold, the poor girl was still just skin and bones. She pulled a shawl around herself as she moved closer, I put down the stick and knife so I wouldn't risk hurting her. Willow was playing in her room with Betty. the girl would use a knotted rope to tug with the much larger wolf. They would go like this for hours until both would fall asleep on the bed. I'd give it another five minutes until they would be sleeping again. I was fairly sure Betty wasn't napping but liked being close to the girl. It was like she was her pack mate.

"Can I, ummm, ask," Clover said moving slightly closer. She must be really cold given how red her face was. "How did you, ummm meet Betty?" I leaned back and smiled.

"A few years ago, I was attacked by her mother. I won and tracked her back to her den for the pelt. Inside the den was a small pup. It wouldn't have been right to end it or leave it there. The only reason she didn't have a mother was because of me. Only right thing to do was to take her home and make her a part of my family." Something brushed against me, and I looked down to see Clover pressed against my side. She was looking into the fire and those long ears fell across my back. With a sigh, I moved and pulled her into a hug. Iffen she was cold, body heat was the best answer. She squeaked and weakly struggled, but stopped the moment I lifted my arm. I could hear soft snoring coming from Willow's room and knew that the girl was out. She would be up in about an hour so until then, we had the house to ourselves. Suddenly I realized how close we were and started blushing. Why was I blushing? I had women in the past, but this felt more real somehow. Like there was something building between us. I was no idiot, but I felt like a fool now.

"Clover?" Why did my voice come out so high and wavey. It was like I was a lad again wanting to sneak off to the barn. I cleared my throat and looked down into that huge red eye.

"Yes, Quick." My heart skipped a beat. That was the first time she called me that.

"I have feelins for you." I said dropping it out there like a log in a frozen lake. No taking that back now. She just kept looking up at me, that huge eye watering. Had I hurt her feelings or jumped too soon? Fastos you may have put your clopper in your mouth now. I wished she would say something or do something, just sitting there frozen was killing me. Instead of saying something, she stood quickly and kissed my lips wrapping those thin arms around my neck in a hug. My big clumsy hands wrapped around her middle, and I just held her enjoying the quick chased kiss. She pulled back looking into my eyes and blushed madly. "Does this mean you feel the same?" I asked, worry filling my foolish heart. She laughed and something inside me broke. Was she making fun of me? Instead of answering, she nodded and kissed me softly again. I didn't let her go this time. It may be wrong, but I loved this woman and wanted to show her that. I expected her to slap me or try to pull away. She pressed into me and hummed into my lips deepening the kiss between us. Did this mean she liked me back? I broke the kiss and leaned up kissing her softly on the forehead. This was rewarded by the cutest giggle. I felt like running around the cabin, pulling her into the bed and half a dozen other things. "Am I right in thinkin you have feelins for me too?" What was wrong with me? She just nodded and tucked her head under my chin and held me tightly. I pulled her onto my lap and just held her happy as a boar man in a watering hole.

A few hours later the stew was done, and we started the party. I didn't want to break our embrace, but Willow had woken, and the stew needed to be portioned out. We ate and talked around the table about what we liked about each other, but I couldn't meet Clover's eye and her voice seemed softer than normal. It was like we were kids caught kissing in the temple. Willow just looked between us and smiled.

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"Daddy, smells like love." I coughed and had to try not to fall out of my chair. Then she turned to clover with an evil smile. "Mama smells like love too." Then the little hellyen burst into laughter and nearly fell out of her own chair. We soon joined in, and it ended in a nice hug and more than a bit of blushing from Clover and I. Somehow, I had found my family. I didn't know how it had happened, but right here and now, I didn't remember the war, my friends, the years. Here and now all I wanted was to keep these two close and safe. When the table was clear I put out a blanket in front of the fire and lay down. Clover lay on my other side making a basket with our bodies. Willow didn't need to be told what was going on and climbed between us. Betty took her place at our back, laying her head on my leg. The wolf was just too damn big. "Mama, can you sing for me?" Willow asked. The little one was always asking her or me to sing to her.

"Dry your eyes,"

"That's a bunny song. Do you know a wolf one?" She asked interrupting Clover.

"Sorry, little one but I only know the bunny lullaby." Clover said sadly. I smiled and let out a long low soft howl. The two women and wolf turned to me. I did it again and started.

"The wind may howl; the moon will sing. The storms will rage and fires burn." I let out another low howl. It was a mostly sad sweet-sounding song. "The pack will keep you safe and hold you tight. Because you're a wolf in every way. Yes, you're a wolf in every way." Both women just lay there looking at me, tears flowing down their faces. Had I done something wrong?

"How do you know that song, Daddy?" Willow asked.

"Your Daddy, was around a lot of beast people and heard them singin to their little ones."

"That was beautiful. Do you know any others?" Clover asked. I stood, upsetting Betty and walked to a shelf where I kept some of my things and pulled out an old badly stained book. A few flecks of blood were on the cover and lightly stained some of the pages. The war came back, and I stood there for a long while. I could almost hear the screams and see the faces. Keven came to my mind, his mouth moving, but nothing coming out. Something tapped my leg, and I looked down to see Willow looking up at me. That large cute lower lip quivered. I Smiled and picked her up into a huge hug. Opening the book, I showed it to her.

"I would write them down every time I heard one so I would have them later."

"Can you read me some?" She asked chasing the memory of Keven from my mind. I flipped to a page and lay back down, still holding her.

"This one is a lullaby from the common cat folk." I said clearing my throat. It went on and on like this for a while. Willow started to get tired and asked me to sing her the wolf one again. I did so and didn't stop until she was fast asleep. I lifted the little one, Gods she was just so small, and Clover and I tucked her into bed. Betty joined her and would keep her warm through the night, that wolf loved her. I shut the door and turned to Clover. The awkwardness between us came slamming back. She turned to her bed and back to me. I stomped outside and grabbed the now ice-cold bottle, bringing it in. Clover had changed and was now wearing a pure white nightgown. It had thin stapps and should be cold with how sheer it was, but I couldn't think of that. My mind was just lost in how beautiful she was. She had taken to wear her hair over her missing eye and somehow this made it look like I was peeking into a hidden secret when I looked into that red eye. Swallowing hard, I walked to the shelfs and pulled out two cups. She put her shawl back on and walked over to me, putting a slender hand on my shoulder. Soon two cups were filled with the red liquid, and I took her cup holding it out taking her hands making sure she didn't spill it. She took it and moved to my bed. Wasn't sure where this was going, but I had hopes. I took my own glass and joined her. We didn't talk, just sat there. Clover tilted her cup up, draining it quickly and looked up at me.

"Finish yours." She commanded. I didn't have to be told twice. I took her cup and put it on the shelf near the bed, then took my boots off. She just sat there watching me closely.

"Darlin, not goin to tell you do anythin." She nodded at me; her one eye huge. I took off my shirt and looked over at her. Why was she biting her lip? I could feel the wine hitting me and knew it would knock her over. She stood and nearly fell down. I caught her and held her for a moment. She shook her head, slapping me with those long ears a healthy flush on her face. All I could do was laugh lightly. She pulled back and pushed me on the bed. I slid back and rolled under the covers. I looked up her with hope in my eyes as I held them up for her. She looked between her bed and me before nodding and biting her finger with a slight smile. I held my breath as she crawled into my bed and my arms. She looked up into my eyes as she leaned forward to kiss me softly before rolling over facing away from me. Without saying a word, she brought my hand up to stroke her cheek before kissing the back and pulling it down to her stomach. We wouldn't be making love tonight, but I was more than okay with that. I just held my little bunny woman and rubbed that slender stomach. She smelled so nice and something about having her this close helped me drift off to sleep.

The next morning was a bit awkward, but still nice. Willow woke us and Clover leapt from my arms and ran to hide behind the sheet that I had put up between our beds. "Mama is happy." she said to me as I blushed in my bed.

"Darlin, give us a minute to get ready iffen you please." I said trying not to jump up myself. The little wolf girl nodded at me and turned, her long broom like tail wagging happily. I saw the huge wolf looking around the edge of the door and I swear that puppy winked at me. I got dressed and got my day started.