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Saga had been working tirelessly, and now it was her turn to sleep but fitfully. Not even touching on the daily practice and potential lessons she was putting herself through, she'd been searching, gathering, building. It was a good thing, honestly; her hormones were growing ever more unruly, and while there was still some sort of tentative peace in she and Dulcie ignoring each other, she didn't want to exist in this fashion any longer. She couldn't, they couldn't, the three of them couldn't sustain the ever-crowding den like this. She couldn't wonder if she had to worry for her children, if she had to walk on eggshells around those Dulcie birthed. She didn't need them to be a perfect throuple for fucks sake, even though that would be best case scenario she supposed, but she needed to know it was still a safe space.
Perhaps, she told herself, Dulcie needed to know he was welcome here. His appearance and whirlwind entanglement into their lives had been sudden, and painful, and the last weeks had been strange... but Saga regretted not being more welcoming. Not trying harder to be nice. For not getting peppermint first. Jaxxon was in on it, but only a little. He didn't know why, or for what, or frankly any details. She'd told him exactly two things: She needed Dulcie out of the den for just a few hours, and that she hoped it would be a pleasant surprise for their new denmate.

Saga might not have birthed any pups herself, but it wasn't her first time building a nest. Still, it was her first time building one as large as she planned this one to be, and she'd taken the days in their return to gather materials ahead of time. She didn't want the cream man tired and cranky from being gone all day long and coming home to what Saga hoped would be a nice heart to heart, so she wanted to be as quick as she could. Hell, her own emotions were as fickle and fluttering as a songbird, and she didn't want to push herself more than she already had.
She'd bribed a pair of raccoons to help her, asking them to use their deft little fingers to form long strands of grass, moss, and leaves into what might've been called a mat by a human brain trying to place what the corner of debris could be. As it was, Saga could only ask the critters to mold this carpet-like area into a nook in the far, far back of the cave that was hidden from immediate view of the entrance. After helping the critters fill their bellies with a feast of bugs by lifting heavier objects they couldn't budge, and after Saga had arranged most of the pelts in the den onto the plush layer, she had them weave in some feathers for softness, color, and more padding purposes.

Saga laid in it with them, rolled around, tested it. She thought it might've been the most comfortable one she'd ever made, but she was both biased (it being a nest she would be using herself) and stressed about it being good enough for Dulcie, too. She thanked the raccoons, gave them some of the berries she'd collected yesterday as an extra thank you, and sent them on their way -- while she hoped to see them again, she didn't trust the others of the pack to let them wander with impunity. After that, she went on her own way and went back to her own den, one that'd laid vacant each night since she'd first slipped into Jaxx's. It was only used for storage now, but its proximity came in handy today.

The sun was sinking lower, and she had to hurry. Dark clouds were gathering on the horizon; she hadn't planned for bad weather, and she hoped Jaxx wouldn't hesitate to ruin whatever surprise he knew was coming in order to rush his lover out of the rain if it broke before Saga was ready. She brought in bundles of berries (not the kind she knew Jaxxon had, she didn't have time for that), she'd asked for some herbs from Eldritch that would help their queasy stomachs and strengthen the pups, and laid them all by the makeshift bed. Saga stood before it and sucked in a deep, nervous breath, biting her lip, and whisked around to yet again head for her den.
She brought over a few bones she had stashed and strew them into another corner as enjoyment for them and future pups alike; cleaning up the territory offered plenty of good opportunities for Saga to gather things with bits of meat still clinging to them, good for snacking or sharing with friends to chat about your day over, and even a few neat animal skulls that decorated nooks and shelves nicely, if not morosely. She brought in a pile of moss she'd gathered in preparation for the far off birth and tucked it to the side with other herbs, and after that, she'd gone back for the flowers. She'd gathered an array of colors, and put them in places to accent the den like with the skulls on the walls, half-way beneath some pelts or the edges of the nest. It gave the cave less of a stony, cold smell and looked more... homey.

She brought in a fat, freshly-killed-this-morning groundhog and set it on one side of the nest, the side she (in her head) had designated Dulcies. She didn't know how much he knew or didn't know of her, what a feat it was for her to manage a kill at all so early in her budding skillset, but she hoped he felt the spirit of the welcome party even if Jaxx hadn't mentioned it when the mangled rabbit had been left in the den. This kill was.... well, one could tell Saga hunted it, but it wasn't as bad as last time!

Saga smiled as she stood back, though the nerves still grasped at her ribcage. Would it be enough to thaw the frigidity that'd accumulated between them?

She loosed a small, short note into the cool dusk air just outside the dens yawning entrance and trotted back inside to wait, sitting neatly beside the wall that hid the small sanctuary. The flower petals illuminating a path past her and through the gap was the only indication that something might've been beyond view.