Lead me through Thorns and I’ll come out Victorious

On the VW Borders with @Hieronymous, takes place a few hours/a day after This Thread. Any VW members welcome!

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 Tired. Cupid and the High King known as Hieronymous had come this far already; he couldn’t rest now. Tired. His body ached uncomfortably and his stomach felt like it was full of tiny squirming creatures. Oh. Wait. It was. 

 Tired. The man repressed a whine as they walked, flicking his tail back and forth in agitation. He couldn’t be bothered to worry whether or not it seemed he was frustrated with Hiero, but he was bothered by his own fucking complaining!
 He was certain it was just hormones, but Cupid felt so sad and mad and felt like he had to throw up. It was not fun in the slightest. The ginger-pelted man felt slight guilt towards the fact that he had to excuse himself multiple times from the excursion. Sigh.

 “Are we nearly there?” Venus asked, a desperately hopeful tone in his voice. He felt like he’d been walking too long, even though it was nothing compared to the desert and the plains.
 Thank the heavens that Hiero had found him instead of someone else…

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“Almost.” He could remember the first few trips he had up the mountains himself, how he had to get accustomed to the thinning air and new terrain. How his body slowed with phantom aches he couldn't read or know about until his legs just stopped moving altogether. But at least he didn't have puppies to carry - and so he took it especially slow for Cupid. Waiting as they figured their footing, taking little rests here and there to catch her breath (ofc he thinks Cupid is a she, sorry 8) once he's told he'll respect Cupid's pronouns).

“We can take it one step at a time, I'll make sure your bed is extra comfy as soon as we get there.” The man says with a bright smile over his shoulder. “In the meantime —” Also as a way to distract her from the physical labour “Why don't we get to know each other?” Kill two birds with one stone so to speak.

“What are you best at? This way once you can start working, I can figure out a job for you that won't take you away from the newborns.”

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Having been eagerly awaiting the return of her beloved father for some time, Rea was overjoyed to spot his distinct patchwork pelt from her vantage point that overlooked the lowlands. The girl abandoned her guardian's watch post and, with her tail swinging excitedly, she scrambled to her paws to make her way swiftly down the mountainside, eager to meet him half-way. Less than graceful in her movements, Rea stumbled here and there. On the fourth trip, when she slumped dangerously close to a cliff edge, she figured it'd be in her best interest to pay better attention to her footing.

When at last the High King was closer and within her sights, the young Boesch yipped cheerfully as she veered toward him. She invited herself into his personal space, her chin and elbows raw from rough tumbling, but she was not aware of the most recent little wounds she'd collected. “Hi!” Rea chirped as she reached to butt her crown to her daddy's throat, then squirmed against his chest to pepper his nearest cheek with enthusiastic kisses; she'd missed him! “Where've ya been? What'd you find?” At the corner of a seaglass eye, she became aware of another, so she arched her neck to get a better look, “who's this?”


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 Almost, Hiero had said, and Cupid let out a sigh; a mixture of relief and exhaustion (though the exhaustion wasn't nearly as bad as when he was in the desert and in the mesa).
 He'd been feeling constant mood-swings lately, too. When the high-king had first found the man, he'd been snappy and aggressive, but, then mid-way he'd calmed down... he felt like crying throughout this entire trip, but what if that made Hiero uncomfortable and he revoked Venus's invitation?

 “Any bed right now would do wonders,” The fawn-hued man murmured, pausing for a moment and shaking on of his legs. He felt like all his limbs were aching. Like, aching so badly. He grumbled for a moment, before rushing ahead to catch up to the king. Get to know each other? “Sure,” He hummed.

 What was he best at, hm? He doubted pleasing people would be the best thing to say... “I can hunt, obviously, I can dabble in a little bit of healing, I can do any generic jobs, really, I can withstand travelling for days on end while pregnant?” The last sentence was a joke of course, but he wondered if it'd be any use to the the king.

 Then, suddenly, a new scent came around; similar to that of Hiero's, it seemed. Nose wrinkling in a snarl and back arching, the man hadn't been aware that it was – in fact – but a young puppy.
 Until it darted towards the king, that is. She greeted her father was a few affectionate kisses, asking general questions, before turning to Cupid.

 “Cupid,” He answered bleakly, heart still beating way too fast for his liking. In an effort to calm himself down, he added; “Best man to ever travel from the desert to the mountains with only three, no, three and a half rest stops.”
 Probably not something he should be proud of.

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He chuckled softly at Cupid's declaration that any bed would be nice right about now. Hieronymous could never feel how painful and exhausting it would be to carry children, nor any true exhaustion in general either to sympathize with others to just take everyone's word for it. Empathy was key to his own survival all these years after all. Making more friends than enemies had blessed him with 5 more years in this life than he was originally expected to live.

Something he wished to pass on to a certain child of his if she were to listen to his sage advice on their unique curse.

A bit of healing? The general introduction was enough to pique his interest more than Cupid could possibly imagine. They needed a healer of sorts, even if their knowledge was shallow. Perhaps he could gently push her into knowing more about healing and medicine seeing as they needed that more than anything right now. “A bit of a jack of all trades huh? Seems like we have something in common.” He jested lightly, taking note of every little thing Cupid mentioned.

And thinking of the devil herself, Rea made an appearance. Her little scrapes and bruises would go unnoticed for now as later they would look over themselves before bed. “Rea, my little girl!” Quickly he introduced Rea seeing Cupid's immediate reaction to a new face coming over the mountainside. Hoping that it would ease their nerves just a little. Before Hiero could do the same for Cupid, they were already on it - with something curious added to boot. Best man, Cupid said.

By Hieronymous' knowledge, men didn't get pregnant, but wouldn't question it either. If Cupid went by he/him/man, who was Hiero to judge? Perhaps a little one on one later about it to know more would be an order should Cupid not be the last of his kind like this, and Hieronymous be damned should he remain oblivious of such things. “Cupid has come a long way to find a safe place to raise his young.”

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She was curious thing, eyes bright on the stranger as they roved over her unfamiliar physique. Almost immediately did she notice the rounding of her flanks that reminded her of her own mother's only recently. Her tufted ears pricked and she blinked toward the stranger's face, confusion clear on own features to hear her announce herself as... "best man"? Rea twitched her nose and smoothed a whisker with her tongue, gawking a little longer before glancing up at her father once more to seek his guidance.

Wasn't it impossible for boys to have babies? Her experience with gravid wolves was lacking, having only her mother's pregnancy to think on, but hadn't someone told her that only girls could carry cubs?

The High King continued, announcing that Cupid had, in fact, travelled a long way to rear his young. Rea was rendered unusually quiet by her uncertainty on the matter and she glanced between the duo, before settling with wordless suspicion on the guest her daddy had returned home with.


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I am so behind on threads so sorry for the long wait

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 The little puppy was left silence, it seemed, after he'd said best man. Huh? Oh, right. Yes, Cupid had almost forgotten that he looked like a woman, oops.
 Should probably remember that next time he decided to have babies.

 “Right, yeah, probably should o' said that at the start, sorry,” Oopsies.
 “Yeah, I'm a man. Intersex,” The last part of his sentence was quickly rushed, a slight side-glance sent towards Rea. It wasn't a very common thing, so he wasn't sure how Hiero would react.

 Venus didn't need to be asked questions about it daily, either, so he only murmured the word in front of – partially introduced by the King himself – Rea.

 "Cupid has come a long way to find a safe place to raise his young," Cupid was surprised at how quickly Hiero had caught on, and he blinked the king a look of gratitude before turning back to Rea. “It was really nothing.” He smiled.
 It's not like he couldn't, though. He'd feel much safer out of the desert, away from @Satan. He didn't really seem like a 'I'll help you raise these little demons' sorta guy.

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I somehow didn't know it was my turn 8)

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Intersex Cupid explained to Rea. Interesting, last he heard of intersex individuals they couldn't bare children. Colour him intrigued in talking to Cupid later about it and seeing if the man would be willing to teach Hieronymous a thing to two about it. He was no scholar, but when something new did come along, he liked to learn a few things when the teacher was willing.

“Perhaps when you're well rested, you can teach us a bit about what that means.” he said while trudging up the mountain side - almost there - the dens were high enough away from the borders. It made them tough to get to, but also easier to protect from invaders. He'd lead them to a large gaping maw in the side of the mountain, one that lead downward for once instead of up.

“As you can see by Rea's reaction, we are a traditional pack... my wife more so than I.” A pause as he turned around to gaze at Cupid mid stride. Almost apologetically and hoping it would warn them of the upcoming questions and strange eyes that would come their way. “A pregnant man is something we have never come across before.”

“If anyone gives you any grief, please let me know. We are traditional but not cruel. Sometimes tradition breeds ignorance but I believe its something easily overcome with knowledge.” He spoke a bit, trying to explain that Cupid wouldn't be alone in this no matter how many odd stares they might get. Even if it came from @Ira herself. Maybe he could talk to her personally about it should she bring up Cupid's... physiology.

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She didn't understand, and looked to the High King for guidance, but he didn't seem to know the answers to her unspoken questions. Rea blinked, struck dumb - as though everything she'd ever learned through her whole life was a great big lie. She wasn't stupid: male and female produced puppies. Male wolves didn't have the equipment to whelp a litter, so... what the heck?

Intersex, apparently, was the answer, and her father noted that perhaps they could all learn something from this newcomer when they were better settled. The mottled youth shifted her soft green eyes then and arched a brow, letting her gaze linger (probably a little rudely) on Cupid's swollen flanks and obviously feminine frame. She was tempted to ask what, exactly, it was that made her (him!) "intersex", but strongly suspected that her father wouldn't appreciate such an intrusive question.

“Dad,” she leaned in closer to the High King, lifting her muzzle to poke her snout toward his ear so she could ask in a hushed tone to keep their newest acquaintance from hearing, “does Mother know?” Because she wasn't so sure that Queen @Ira would approve of a stranger giving birth on her mountain without her permission.


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 "Perhaps when you're well rested, you can teach us a bit about what that means,"

 Well, that was a first.

 No one had ever expressed curiosity towards something Cupid had learn to just... not bring up. The man his eyes widen for a moment, astonished, until he quickly blinked the surprise away and continued the journey. It was.. a difficult climb, to say the least, but the man continued through gritted teeth and a will to have his babies safely.
 “Don't worry about it,” He murmured as he climbed, lifting himself higher with each word. “I've gone through worse, trust me.” Memories of being chased out of homes, being deemed as 'cursed' and 'improper', Venus felt himself shiver. "We are traditional, but not cruel," Hiero stated.

 The man laughed; “You'd be the first, then.” It was a grim truth, and he turned his gaze to Rea, who seemed to be staring at his swollen stomach. “Odd, I know,” Then, she whispered to her father.

 Cupid shifted his weight uncomfortably as he climbed. It felt like everyone was looking at him...

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He couldn't imagine what someone like Cupid must have gone through before this. Gone through worse, there was no denying that possibility. Individuals feared and hated what they didn't know or didn't understand, something Hieronymous wanted to make sure his children didn't fall into the same trap. If you didn't know something or didn't understand it, try to. Learn. Grow. Don't hate and turn a blind eye to something. It was how individuals grew stagnant as they aged.

Caught between listening to Cupid and Rea as she whispered in his ear, he could only stare and smile apologetically to Cupid while they shifted uncomfortably so. “It's rude to whisper in the company of others Rea.” Only when she was done did he reply, patting her gently on the top of the head as a sort of reassurance to her concern. It wasn't being ignored, just simply not the time or place for that and he would deal with it himself once a conversation with Ira would come.

Which will come sooner rather than later.

“Your mother and I are equal partners and leaders, I will speak with her myself after Cupid gets comfortable.” They finally reached the plateau, where Hiero would begin to lead them down the easier path where Cupid could finally rest.

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I think we can wrap this up here if there's nothing else people wanna add?

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Things were awkward for Cupid, clearly, but Rea failed to acknowledge that. She blinked up at her father as he dismissed her concerns with a very patronising pat on the head, which brought a frown to the patchwork youngster's muzzle. The High King probably missed The Look she gave him as he glanced ahead at their company, then began to lead the way to whatever destination he'd chosen to deposit Vanderfell's newest resident. She pursued, taking up the rear to maintain pace and get a better chance to suspiciously eyeball the newcomer from behind.

He offered a brief explanation as to how he planned to deal with things, but the mottled youth maintained her silence as she trailed along at her father's flank. Hieronymous was a gentle soul for the most part, laid-back and accepting of difference. Ira, on the other paw, was significantly sharper and set in her ways.

Oh, to be a fly on the wall for that conversation. 


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 He'd continued onwards, trying to ignore the High King and his daughter and he flicked his tail absentmindedly. It was awkward, yeah, but at least someone was offering him a home, whether he'd have to work for it or not.
 Sending a small gaze towards Hiero and Rea, his ears perked as they spoke to one another, trying to listen in; "It's rude to whisper in the company of others, Rea,"

 Cupid batted his lashes, closing his eyes for a second before looking back at the path ahead of them. "Your mother and I are equal partners and leaders, I will speak with her myself after Cupid gets comfortable." The man almost smiled a Hiero's words, but he quickly continued, reaching a plateau where he assumed he'd be resting.

 Then, he turned back to the king once more, dipping his head. “Thank you,” Cupid begun. “For letting me stay and welcoming with hospitality. It..” A pause– don'tcrydon'tcrydon'tcry– “It really means a lot to me. Thank you, again.”

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I'd be happy to fade here :)

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