AAN: what will Genki think up to deal with the dinos? who knows but it better be good.

All About Abode

Genki woke with a new idea in his head. Somehow sleeping on a problem seemed to work out well for him. He would discuss it with the elders and see if it was plausible but he figured it would be if they had some help from the dinosaurs. It would take awhile to complete but it would keep them warm over the winter. Rising quietly, making sure not to disturb his wife, he grabbed his sketchbook and began to sketch out his idea. The plans he drew were simple yet showed in detail what needed to be done. He could only hope his skill with digging dens and locating resources would work for this project. He was so engrossed with his work he failed to notice his wife was up. She was confused by what he was doing but rose and walked to the desk he was sitting at. Wrapping her arms around his shoulders she whispered,

"Is something wrong?" he jerked back startled but soon calmed, "sorry… I didn't mean to startle you…"

"Its fine. I was so side tracked I failed to notice you until now. I'm sorry."

"What are you working on?" he showed it to her,

"A way to help our dinosaur friends. With out some sort of shelter it's likely they won't survive the winter. A building is out of the question as I'm sure they have a severe dislike for them after being held prisoner for so long. But a den or cave would be workable." Holly followed his train of thought,

"They have no reason to dislike a den or a cave. And from the look of your drawing you are hoping to find a hot spring to warm it or construct something to do the same job?"

"Yes, I'd prefer a natural hot spring as it'd make it a lot simpler but making a heater would work as well." she nodded, though unsure of how to make one she knew it was possible. "First I need to council the elders though and see if they have any ideas on how to make the den or locate a hot spring."

"Do you wish for me to be there?"

"You can come if you like, you don't have to." he glanced back at her, his expression a gentle yet confused one.

"If you don't mind I'd like to spend time with the pups and with Ashlee."

"That's fine. Just don't push the poor girl, she's been through a lot emotionally already."

"I won't Genki… I'm sorry I seemed so disappointed by her progress… its just hard for me…"

"I know it is. Just be patient things will get better." He nuzzled her for a bit hoping to make her feel better. She returned the affection, finding it a welcome relief for now. After a bit he pulled back with a smile. Giving her a soft kiss he glanced to the window. The sun was rising well into the sky now; he knew the others would be up soon. "Lets get some breakfast started, I'm sure today will be a long day for us both. I get the feeling Granity might try talking to us again."

"What gives you that idea?"

"Just a hunch."

"A hunch huh? Well I will look forward to that then." Holly rose and changed, she easily beat Genki down stairs; who had decided to finish his drawing and then bring it down stairs. They both knew he couldn't talk to the elders very much until after he was done with work for the day.

It didn't take Genki long to get started on his work for the day. Larry always seemed to be impressed by the speed in which the man created his pieces and the craftsmanship he put into them. Genki could sense when Larry sat down near by and began to write in his notebook. He had learned a great deal about the wire wrapping process the young man used. Though it still amazed him how quickly the young man could wrap a single piece and make it look astonishing at the same time. The pieces were very popular with women in the big cities and Larry had made a lot more profit from them than any of his silver pieces. Genki had even made some wonderful silver pieces and had the forethought to take a mold of them so the style to could be reused. After Genki finished his list for the day he turned to see Larry watching him expectantly.

"So how is Holly doing this day?"

"She's fine. She seems to be enjoying spending time with the pups and with Ashlee." the man nodded,

"Has Ashlee fully recovered? I heard she was ill."

"Yes, she is well now. Holly made sure she got everything she needed."

"I'm sure she did. Holly has always been thoughtful and caring." he saw Genki smile, "tell me does Ashlee wish to keep her child?"

"Though distant from him in some ways she has always met his needs… so I don't think she hates him. But I am not sure if she will keep him or not at this point. I doubt she even knows. Holly has been encouraging her to open up a bit more, but we'll see how that goes." Larry nodded once again,

"Genki I have a few questions for my book."

"Go ahead."

"You mentioned before that you courted Holly properly as a Garou on the way to stop the dinosaurs. But I know nothing about this courtship, or its purpose." Genki chuckled, he then began to explain the process as he did he drew out a diagram for both the male and female dance steps. He did the same for each part of the courtship preformed including the rutting dance. Genki made sure to explain the process in such a way that its purpose was evident. Larry asked very pertinent questions about the whole thing and Genki was more then happy to answer them in detail. But when it came to a touchier subject Larry hesitated. "Say Genki… do Garou… mate as humans do or as perhaps a tiger would?" Genki raised a brow but then smiled and answered.

"We are capable of doing both. The rutting dance leads to a more tiger style rutting but we are perfectly capable of mating as humans do and often will just to change things up. We are after all part human so that position does come naturally to us even in our Garou forms." He waited till Larry had jotted some things down before continuing, "I will say we prefer to mate as tigers do when it comes to pregnancy."

"Is there a specific reason?"

"Yes, it allows us males to penetrate deeper inside and gives a greater chance of pregnancy because of that."

"Does it hurt or discomfort the females?"

"No, they seem to enjoy as much as their male partner does. Perhaps more so in some cases." Larry nodded, jotting a few more things down.

"Genki could you do some other drawings for me? Perhaps some relating to those positions and the position a Garou mother would give birth in?"

"I can. I take it you want a very complete book then?"

"I would like it yes." Genki smiled and spoke to him about the few things that had made Holly blush when she read them in his book he gave her. Once done he saw his boss smile. "Genki do you think Holly would talk to me about such things? I'd like a females perspective on mating." Genki raised a brow again and then gave a sheepish grin.

"I'm not sure if she will or not. You can always ask." Larry nodded,

"I'll ask her then in private. Though I'm sure she'd feel better if you were there."

"She would probably be more comfortable yes."

"Does the likely hood of her having a Garou birth increase if the pregnancy happens in Garou form?"

"It does yes, though it's never been confirmed to always happen that way with the Garou who shift forms. Those who stay in Garou form all the time almost always have Garou births."

"I see, well thank you Genki. Would you ask her if she would be willing to answer some questions? I don't want to put too much stress on her."

"Sure, I will ask later tonight."

"Thank you. Well I'm done with you for the day. So I will see you tomorrow." Genki rose and nodded. Taking his sketchbook with him he head out to the den.

He found Buaya sun bathing with the young ones running around. It took him little time to locate Star Thunder and Bear Fur. The pair bowed their heads as the young alpha came to have a seat next to them. Once pleasantries were exchanged Genki got straight to the point.

"I have an idea on how to help the dinosaurs survive the winter but I would like your wisdom on the subject as well." the pair nodded and Autumn Harvest was flagged over. She sat next to Bear Fur awaiting the young alphas words. He flipped to the proper page and showed them his design. "The idea I have is to make them a den or find a cave near by here they can escape the cold. I'd prefer if it had its own heat source though I can build an artificial one if I have to."

"Hmm…" Bear Fur stroked the fur on his chin "a very detailed design, you are an exceptional designer. I don't see a problem with the design as it is, but finding a hot spring or a heat vent might be difficult."

"Is it possible though?"

"Aye, it is possible. Just unlikely in this region." Autumn Harvest studied him now.

"Will you help me try to locate one?" all three nodded, "thank you. I will make a design for a heater if I need to make it." they again nodded.

"Very prudent young man." Star Thunder smiled to him, his smile almost fatherly.

"When would you like to go searching for this heat source?" Autumn Harvest probed.

"When ever you are available, we need to have this done before the winter months come." they all nodded,

"How about after the hunt this evening. It'll be easier to locate a heat source when the temperature drops a bit." Bear Fur offered his wisdom,

"Alright, if it's agreed then we will search then." they all nodded.

"Will Jasmine Talon be joining us?" Bear Fur asked with a glint in his eye.

"I'm not sure at this point. She seems to want to stay near by Ashlee at this point."

"It would do the girl some good to get away for a run. Besides I think Ashlee needs some time alone as well. I will have Cloud Berry prepare a meal for her if you want."

"If you are insistent then thank you. But I doubt Holly will let the meal go unprepared. Though you might convince her to come run with us after it is finished."

"Aye that I will do then." he saw her rise and go to where his wife sat with the other baby sitters. Ashlee was dosing some ways away; she seemed content to relax since she had the chance.

"Do you think the dinosaurs will share this den?" Bear Fur asked, stroking his chin.

"I'm not sure… I'm hoping they will. I know they fear the coming cold but I'm uncertain if they fear it enough to tolerate each other."

"Well I guess we first need to see if there is a suitable abode for them near by then we will tackle the next problem." Star Thunder stated putting things simply. Genki nodded before rising to play with some of the pups.

After the evening hunt, Genki lead the pack elder out to search for the steam vent he would need for the dinosaurs den. Holly joined him and he let Autumn Harvest lead since she had the most experience in locating such things. Though they searched for hours their search yielded no results. After returning home Genki joined his mate in their room. She seemed rather exhausted but he couldn't figure out why.

"You alright?"

"Yeah… just tired I guess."

"Well you haven't been as active lately… perhaps that's it."

"I guess… maybe I should play with the pups more. I'm just worried…"

"If you aren't better in a few days I'll let Harvey or Autumn know alright?"

"Yeah, thanks." he lay down next to her holding her close.

"You know Larry had an interesting question for you earlier. I promised I would get an answer for him."

"Oh?"

"He wanted to know if you'd be willing to answer a few questions concerning mating and your pregnancy? Its up to you whether you want to answer such questions." Holly seemed taken aback for a moment then had a look of uncertainty wash over her features.

"I'd have no problem with answering about my pregnancy… I'm not sure about the mating though… that's…"

"I know it's really personal, that's why it's up to you. He said he'd respect your decision."

"Alright. Well I will think about that one." Genki nodded, he pulled her close and kissed her cheek.

"Get some rest." He smiled seeing her go to sleep almost immediately.

The next few weeks consisted of the pack searching for the heat vent or hot spring after their hunts. The elders took it upon themselves to look further a field in hopes of finding what was needed. Holly showed increasing signs that she was having a Garou pregnancy rather than a human one. In some ways this was a relief but it also made her reluctant to stray from home. So the alpha female remained with the younger pack members while the other searched. Genki invited Larry over one night for a chat; Holly made them some tea and then settle next to her husband.

"Thank you, the tea is delicious."

"Your welcome Larry."

"Holly did Genki mention to you that I had some questions?"

"Yes he did. I have no problem with anything concerning my pregnancy but the other subject depends on what you want to know."

"Well I'm assuming you know which pregnancy you have now."

"Yes it seems to be a Garou pregnancy."

"Does it make it difficult to move or anything?"

"No, it honestly doesn't inhibit me at all.

"Well after you have your child would you let me know if it was painful or anything?"

"Of course. I've seen many births so I'll let you know any differences." He nodded, jotting down a couple of things.

"As far as the mating goes Genki and I were discussing the two positions. What I was wondering is if the tiger style position was uncomfortable for you or not?" Holly glanced to Genki who gave her a sheepish grin. She shook her head at him.

"No it wasn't uncomfortable, though I had half expected it to be."

"Now you don't have to answer this, but did you like as much as the normal method?" She seemed to debate whether she wanted to answer for a moment then nodded.

"Surprisingly yes I did."

"Alright this question is for both of you. I walked in on… Autumn and Bear Fur the other day. I noticed both were growling and he was… I would assume holding her by the scruff of her neck. Is that normal?" the couple looked at each other a moment then back at him.

"Was he biting the back of her neck?"

"Yes."

"Ah… well though it is normal in some ways it honestly depends on the Garou. I do not do…violent looking sex with Holly. But some like it rougher than others. No doubt it was mostly for show, I doubt Bear Fur would ever try to harm her nor would he force her to mate."

"Genki you never told me about that."

"I do believe it was explained in the book I gave you Holly."

"So it is normal?"

"Yeah it is with the elders. For some reason they tend to do that more." he wrote a few more notes down.

"Is there a reason behind it?"

"Yes, though I have never understood it fully. Basically it's more of a challenge that way. Think of it as a form of game. See who submits first. It's never meant to harm anyone but it can look violent to an outsider."

"So it was about dominance?"

"In some ways. The elders already have their ranking. Like I said more of a game than anything." He shrugged; he never understood it. Larry nodded, he decided he'd had enough and went about some normal chatter with the couple before taking his leave. Holly seemed unsure of what she'd learned.

"Genki why would they play such a game?"

"I'm not sure… it never made sense to me. That's why I never do that with you. I know you wouldn't want it that way."

"thank you…" He nuzzled her as he lay down next to her.

"Get some rest, our little one will be here soon." she nodded then relaxed to do just that. he glanced out the window wondering if they would find a new home for the dinosaurs before it was too late.

AAN: sorry for the shortness and the delay… lots going on at work lately and with other things. I'll try to not have such a big delay next time.