Bloodfang Chronicles - Dotb Ch. 01

The sun is high in the sky, the new day has arrived, and what a day it is. Birds can be heard singing in the trees, and the wind can be heard rustling the leaves and branches, along with the rest of the greenery growing in the fertile earth.

"Mm...what time is it...?"

A large, black-furred creature sits up in her bed, her sheets falling from her torso to reveal her sizable breasts, and her toned, muscular abs. Rubbing an eye with a hand, she swings her legs out from under the cloth that keeps her warm in the night, then stands. A large yawn reveals her sharp teeth, and her yellow, slitted eyes close for a moment before her jaw closes as the yawn ends, and her eyes open again. "Too early...I was hoping to sleep in today."

Walking towards the washroom, she passes by the large mirror built into the door of her armoire, her unclothed body seen as she passes it. After entering the rather large room, she steps inside the shower, then sighs in relaxation as the hot water rushes over her, soaking into her fur and warming her body.

"Mrrr...just what I needed, I think," she mutters to herself, a soft smile adorning her features as she begins to clean herself, scrubbing down her fur and making sure that she gets a nice layer of soap everywhere within reach.

Once she's satisfied with her work, she lets the water rush over her again, washing out the soap before exiting the shower. A large towel sits on a shelf mounted to the wall, soon wrapped around her body, letting the fabric absorb the excess moisture from her fur. Approaching the sink after making sure the towel is secure, she goes about her routine of brushing her teeth, flossing, and gargling water, her long, silver hair seen in the mirror, hanging freely from her head.

"I bet they're planning something for this year too. Maybe Ferran would be willing to pick some things up so we can make a cake," she mutters, chuckling at the idea of her husband in a frilly apron and oven mitts. The idea keeps her chuckling softly until she reaches her armoire, opening the doors and looking over the many dresses, shirts, and pants that are hung inside. Humming in thought for a few moments, she pulls out a grey kimono, slipping the clothing on before stretching a bit with her hands on her hips.

A knock on the door draws her attention to that direction, and she approaches the door before opening it, looking down once she sees that no one who is close to her height has arrived. Her eyes rest upon a young Panthar servant, her orange fur, and her black and white stripes clear at a glance. With a smile on her face, the Panthar gives a soft, friendly wave, making the wolf-like woman smile softly. "Good morning, Lady Kura. It's a lovely day today, isn't it?"

"Indeed it is, Lotus. I take it you are finding it to be just as pleasant as I? Perhaps you and the others have a surprise in mind?"

Lotus gives a soft giggle, a hand rising to her mouth, and she gives a mischievous smile by way of truthful response. "My lady, I have no idea what you're talking about. Lord Ferran did want to see you, however. He said something about heading into town with you for something, and would be waiting for you in the parlor."

"Well, thank you very much for delivering the message, and I shall see you once we return, I imagine," Kura says with a happy smile, giving Lotus a brief hug, which is returned by the Panthar without hesitation. After a moment, they break the hug, and Kura begins to walk towards the parlor, glancing over her shoulder and calling back. "Have a good day, Lotus!"

Lotus gives a smile and a wave in return, then waits until Kura has turned the corner before snickering and entering Kura's room, taking something out of her pocket and quietly closing the door. Once inside, she almost hurriedly walks over to the bedside table, then opens the drawer before putting the item inside and quickly closing it.

"Perrrfect~" she mutters, rubbing her hands together and giving a soft giggle before heading back to the door and exiting the room, fast-walking through the halls as she heads for a different entrance to the parlor. Once at the door, she opens it a crack, then peeks through it, seeing Kura and a tall, white-furred wolf-like creature.

"You're ready to go then, love?" the white-furred wolf asks with a smile, wearing fine clothing that looks rather different from Kura's and Lotus', being that they consist of a pair of leather pants, and a nice, red tunic, along with a large axe strapped to his back with a long, thick cord of leather. They broadcast to all around him that he is not from this land, though he did find love with someone native to it.

"I am. So, Lotus let me in on a little secret," Kura responds, the two walking towards the front doors before exiting, leaving the still smirking Lotus behind as she begins to prepare for what's to come later in the day.

"And what secret would that be?" Ferran asks with a soft smirk, seeming curious, but also playful. "Let me guess, you think we're up to something."

Kura chuckles softly, raising a brow with her own smirk. "Come on, you send Lotus right after you know I'd be awake, and want to get me out of the house? Something's up."

"Why madam, my heart is wounded by such an accusation. The very idea is-"

Cutting off Ferran by placing a finger over his muzzle, Kura leans closer with her eyes lidded a bit. "None of that fancy crap with me, love. I hear it often enough with the townsfolk and just about everyone else besides my family and your parents."

Ferran gives a soft shrug, then licks the finger on his muzzle, making Kura pull it back with a shiver, giggling softly at him as he sticks his tongue out at her. "We can't go somewhere with no ulterior motive besides making you happy?"

"Now, I didn't say that. It's just odd that out of all the days, you choose today for this outing."

Chuckling softly, he rolls his eyes before reaching into his tunic pocket and pulling out a small leather sack, which jingles softly as he hands it to Kura. "Well, if you must know, I wanted to give you this, and let you pick something out for yourself."

"...anything?" she inquires as she takes the bag, looking inside to see that it is filled with gold coins, the weight likely much more noticeable to creatures that are not quite so tall. "Ooh, maybe I could get a new set of cuffs~"

Ferran raises an eyebrow at her, the two of them having just reached the city that is a short walk from the estate. Around the two of them, many notably shorter wolves are going about their lives as they walk the streets, chatting with one another, or shopping at some of the market stands that are selling various goods. "Really? You can get anything you want that costs one hundred gold or less, and you want cuffs? Who would you use them on, anyways? The servants will listen to you without them, you know."

Chuckling sultrily, she looks at Ferran, her eyes having a predator gleam in them. "Why, you, of course~"

The slight tinge of crimson that appears on Ferran's face can be seen through his pure white fur, and he chuckles, lowering his voice a bit. "I know that here and in Wolvaria this is normal, but you're going to need to remember that isn't something we can discuss so openly when we meet with the White Peak envoy tomorrow. We need to recall that their culture is much more reserved about sex and similar subjects."

Rolling her eyes, and lowering her voice as well, she smiles softly at her husband, leading him towards a store that she knows she wants to visit. The store in question seems to be a clothing store, though it also sells basic supplies and household objects. "I know, I know. They're a bunch of feathered prudes that are otherwise pretty interesting. No sex, no flirting, no fun. Well...that's not entirely true, and at least I won't be alone with him. That envoy gives me the creeps sometimes..."

Nodding his head with a somewhat serious expression, Farren follows behind Kura into the store, smiling softly since she seems to have been paying attention during their conversation the day before. "I see someone took notes. Yes, he's...eccentric, even for a Thelgen from White Peak. I don't trust him as far as I can throw him, but he's been instrumental in repairing relations between Wolvarians, Vampiricans, and Thelgen. Too bad the face he shows the world isn't even close to the one he wears in private. Are...you looking at baby clothes?"

Kura holds up a small onesie, the blue fabric looking rather soft, and she holds it up to inspect it. "Yes I am. Ooh, it's adjustable! They'll grow into it, and we won't have to buy too many more when we have our child."

Smiling softly at Kura, he starts to look over the various baby clothes that are on the rack in front of them, and he picks up a red onesie, chuckling softly. "I'll buy this one myself, I can't pass up the opportunity to have them match their dad, hehe. Speaking of which...when do you think we'll try to have one?"

"Soon," she says as she returns the smile, grabbing a couple more onesies before leading Ferran towards the more basic essentials for raising a child, like diapers, milk bottles, and baby powder, among other such supplies. "It feels like it might not be the right time, and...well, there's a lot of political unrest in the world right now. We're relatively at peace at the moment, but that could quickly change. I'd rather have a child with you when we can be sure that we can raise them in safety."

He nods his head with a growing smile, glad that she seems to be thinking like a parent, and a politician, already. "A sound plan, I think. There's plenty of time to grow our family, and we don't need to rush."

Grabbing a few bottles, a pack of diapers, and a bottle of baby powder, Kura adds them to the pile before heading towards the register, her husband following behind her, still holding the red onesie. "Oh, just throw the thing on the pile. It's cute, I'll pay for it."

"If you're sure, hehe," Ferran responds, placing the fabric on the other objects before they reach the store counter. At the register, a young, female wolf greets them with a smile, giving a soft bow when the two get closer.

"Hello, Lady Kura. Hello, Lord Ferran. Is there anything I can help you find?" the girl asks, her name-tag declaring her as Gillian. She begins to mentally tally up the total cost of the items on the counter so far, still seeming to be paying attention to the pair of nobles.

Kura shakes her head a bit, giving a friendly smile to Gillian, and begins to take out a few golden coins, placing them on the counter in preparation to pay. "No, but thank you. This is everything for today."

With a nod of her head, the clerk finishes tallying up the items before quoting a price to Kura. After paying and leaving with their new baby supplies, the two head for the market, the smells of freshly made food in the air.

"Where should we go next?" Ferran asks with a soft smile, carrying the bag filled with their purchases. He seems to be enjoying the time he's spending with his wife, days like this not happening often thanks to the busy life he leads.

Kura's stomach decides to answer for her, growling softly, and causing a soft blush to grow on her face, though her black fur does a fair bit to hide it. "M-maybe some food...hehe...it all smells so nice."

Chuckling softly, he leads her towards a food stand, knowing from experience that she likes street food just as much as gourmet cuisine. Once the two eat their fill, they head back to the estate, enjoying the walk in silence. As they pass the front door's threshold, Kura smiles happily at her husband, walking a few steps away from him since he stops just inside the door. Without warning, many different beings and objects seem to appear from nowhere, surprising the returning wolfess as they all shout in unison.

"Happy birthday, Kura!"

Taking a step back from the sudden surprise, she stumbles before beginning to fall back, causing soft gasps to erupt from some of the assembled individuals. Her back falls against Ferran's chest and stomach, and he wraps his arms around her in a hug to both steady her, and to show his affection for her, a soft smirk on his face. "Happy twenty-first birthday, love. Bet you didn't see this one coming, huh?"

"...y-...you ass!" she exclaims, laughing in amusement and happiness, having thought that the bag of gold from earlier was her present from him. Turning around, she gives Ferran a hug, her arms squeezing him affectionately. "You all scared the hell out of me! Hehehe, thank you."

Turning to face the rest of the gathered individuals, Kura smiles lovingly at them, her gratitude clear in her eyes. "Thank you all as well. For the party, for being here, and for always making birthdays an interesting time, hehe."

"You realize this just means we're going to have to find a way to one-up this one, right?" asks a wolf who has an almost silver-colored coat of fur, his green eyes filled with mirth. He steps forwards, giving Kura a hug, one which she happily returns, having to lean over a bit due to the height difference.

"Thanks, dad. I take it you were the one who prepared the invisibility spell?" Kura replies as she nuzzles her father's cheek, a happy smile on her face.

A shorter, black-furred wolf with eyes that mirror Kura's steps forwards, a hand raised, and a smile on her face. "That would be me, dear. Happy birthday! My goodness, the years just fly by, don't they? Lucian, doesn't it still feel like just yesterday that she was up to our knees?"

"Indeed it does, Lilly. Oh, how I miss the days of being able to look forwards and not up to speak with our daughter," he replies with a chuckle, separating from Kura's embrace before hugging his wife. Lilly happily wraps her arms around her husband, murring softly as she nuzzles into the crook of his neck.

"Sis, come check out the cake! Corlo spent the day making it for everyone!!" shouts a brown-furred wolfess with green eyes, pointing at another silver furred wolf, showing that her forearms are wrapped with strips of white cloth, along with her hands and knuckles. She has a wide smile on her face, the joy in her eyes a step above almost everyone else in the room.

The silver furred wolf she points at gives a soft scoff, then smirks at her, a hand on his hip and the other held up a bit in a rather cocky pose. "Please, Teilun. I made that cake for my baby sister, not for you. You're welcome to a slice, but that's it. A slice." His eyes narrow, one yellow, and one green, his heterochromia somehow adding to the air of refinement he has clearly tried to build around himself

"Oh come on, I only did that once! And it wasn't even the whole cake!" Teilun replies as she takes a step back, seeming offended at the accusation. "Besides, you ate what was left!"

"Because it was my birthday cake! I swear if you touch this cake...grr..." he says as he narrows his eyes further, and a black-furred wolf cuts between the two of them, patting them both on the shoulder.

"Come on, guys! This is a party, you can relax! Don't worry, as long as Kura gets to have some, it's no big deal, right?" she says with a grin, flashing it at both of her siblings. Corlo grumbles softly to himself, waving a hand dismissively after a moment, dropping the subject. Teilun, on the other hand, sticks her tongue out at Corlo, then ruffles his hair, getting a soft yelp in response before he reaches for her hand.

"Stop t-that! Hey! Not the hair, Tei!" he says, failing to grasp his sister's hand before she pulls it away. Corlo then tries to reach for Teilun's hair, making her giggle before pulling away, her eyes narrowed a tad with visible humor.

"Gotta catch me if you want to do that, slowpoke. Hehehe, hope you weren't on one of your walks in the forest today!" she shouts with a cheer before fleeing from her irate brother, his growls heard as he pursues her.

The black-furred, blue-eyed wolf is left to her own devices for the moment, sighing softly as she watches Corlo chase after Teilun like an angry mutt. She fails to notice Kura approaching her, then gives a soft yelp when a hand lays on her shoulder. "Don't feel bad, Alira. You know how those two are. They'll be cracking jokes and making fun of everyone else instead of each other soon enough."

Alira looks up at her much taller sibling, seeming a bit frustrated, but nods her head with a soft sigh. "I just don't want them to break anything like they did with Riktor's party. Dad was...angry, putting it mildly. That bed was a gift from a Panthar general after dad helped heal some 'previously incurable' illness in his daughter. Turns out their court physician went senile and couldn't recognize grey pox."

"Eugh...if I ever become so old that I forget something that basic, please shoot me," Kura says with a look of mild disgust, finding the idea of losing one's mind to be a terrible waste, both of a mind and of an individual. Her sister nods her head a bit, shivering softly.

"Unless something dumb happens, then I'll get there first... Oh, try some cake! It smelled great when it was baking, and Corlo used your favorite fruit flavor for the icing!" she says as she cuts the cake, which when placed on the plate is revealed to be a nice, red color, the white icing seeming rather thick. Licking her lips, Kura takes the offered plate with a smile and a quick word of thanks, though before she can use a fork to spear a piece of the baked treat, a friendly, rolling voice is heard behind her. "Kura, darling! I must say, this is quite a nice party. Your family really went all out, hm?"

Placing the fork down on the plate, she turns her head to lay eyes on the one who spoke to her. A wolf with midnight black fur, and softly glowing red eyes greets Kura's vision, and she turns to fully face her. A red cocktail dress adorns her body, and it shimmers softly in the light from the red and clear gemstones expertly woven into it.

"Sinca! You made it this year as well, I see," Kura says with a happy smile, leaning over a bit to give her a hug, which is almost eagerly returned. A soft murr escapes Sinca's throat, and Kura gives a nuzzle before the two part from the hug. "I recall you saying you might be busy, so this is a pleasant surprise."

"Yes, the tasks that required my attention were wrapped up and dealt with sooner than I expected, and it gave me the time to throw a little something together. How have you been?" she inquires, a hand glowing softly with crimson light. The same light surrounds a plate and the cake cutting knife, her magic used to cut herself a slice and move it onto the plate before levitating the now occupied plate to her hand. "It's the first time I have been able to attend a normal party for quite a long time, and I fully intend to enjoy it."

Alira gives a toothy grin at Sinca, watching as she separates a small piece from her own cake, then eats it, humming in delight as she chews. Pausing for a moment to give a thumbs up, Alira looks at Kura, missing the pausing in Sinca's chewing, and the raised brow at her plate. "Speaking of which, we all got you some presents, too. You'll know which one's mine when you open it, hehe."

Kura gives a playful smirk, taking the fork back into her hand.and taking some cake onto it. Seeing this, Sinca's eyes widen a fraction of an inch, and she quickly swallows what's in her mouth as Kura speaks, the fork moving closer to Kura's mouth. "Let me guess, you got another gag gift. I'm looking forward to it, like every year. Mm, this cake looks good."

"So!" Sinca declares, drawing Kura's attention from the cake, the fork soon resting back on the plate, much to Alira's half-hidden disappointment. "How is your husband doing these days?"

Kura's eyes sparkle a bit at the mention of Ferran, her smile growing. "He's doing wonderfully, as a matter of fact. He and I went shopping for some supplies we may need soon. We're going to need to create some heirs, so I picked out some clothes and other things that are required."