He had been sick. The pregnancy was harder than he expected, especially with the conditions he'd had before it even estarted. He told himself it didn't matter, that he'd be able to handle it. In the end, he'd changed back into his original body almost immediately and he'd tucked himself away as he tried to recover. Finally, he had worked up the strength to get out. He didn't want to go with anyone else. He wanted to prove to himself he was self-sufficient, that he could do it. Besides, he had the best surprise planned for Pincher. A nice dinner, someone to look after the kids, their first proper date since everything had happened. He knew that the man he loved had a way of withdrawing when things happened and Jacob didn't want that, so he was pushing himself maybe a bit harder than he should've. Jacob was stubborn, but he wasn't stupid. He'd never been stupid. So he wasn't sure what made him do it. He should've taken someone with him, he should've just told Pincher what was happening, or if not Pincher than someone- anyone.

But instead as the dinner was half set up, someone had come. He still didn't know who or what they were. Before he knew it, he was unconcious and then he was somewhere else, in the dark. It was so dark. Not even a glimmer of light slipped through it. He felt like he was breathing ink. And then came the questions. There were too many for him to count, too many for him to remember. Most he didn't understand or know the answer to. He sobbed most of the time and claimed to know nothing. It was something he was trained to do from a young age. But they didn't believe him. He couldn't describe the things that happened after that. He didn't even necessarily remember all of it. He wasn't sure he wanted to. No, he knew he didn't want to. They asked him about Pincher, about his Deniz, his mare, about his kids, about someone named Emrys which sounded familiar but he couldn't place, about his dad and his family, about everything. Jacob wasn't even sure what he'd said or hadn't said in the end, he had just wanted desperately for it to be over.

Eventually, he gave them what they wanted or they got tired of asking. Either way, he was back at the place they'd started. He had no idea how long it'd been. He was glad to feel rain against his skin, although it made it hard to breathe in the cover they had him in. There was still something veiling his sight and he spoke, "W-Where's my husband? Where's Deniz? Is 'e safe? Where are my kids? Where's my family-" It was the first time he'd said something on his own accord in... however long it'd been.

"We've determined your husband is a threat. It's a shame but-"

"Wha'? H-How? I-I-I-I didn't- I don' remember-" Jacob's frustration was clearly growing and tears stung his eyes. "I can't let ya' hurt him. I can't let ya' hurt 'em. I-I-I can't-"

"Don't make this harder than it needs to be. We've determined you are not Emrys and therefore we have no quarrel with you. You are not a threat. Now-" At this point, the cover on his face was removed and he took his first deep breath of clear air and was tempted to stop to feel the rain. He hadn't been sure he'd ever feel anything like this again. "We have greater things to accomplish here so-"

"No." Jacob moved as best he could, spinning around and trying to pin whoever it was down. He was vaguely aware of claws slashing at him but he didn't register it. Or rather, his skin wouldn't. He was so detached and his nerves had been shot long ago. He wasn't sure what happened. All the sudden, though, the rain formed into a large spike. Jacob knew vaguely that it was him doing it, though it was more of an instinct than anything else. It then ran itself through the stranger. It was then Jacob realized he hadn't just been fighting another dog. The creature before him was some sort of large cat, though the name of it's species escaped him. This is when he looked at his body. There were scratches all over his body and some deep wounds. He didn't feel them really but that didn't mean anything. If he stayed here, he would bleed out. He might bleed out anyway.

He tried to walk home. He tried to push himself in that direction but the scent was confused by whatever had happened to him and the rain itself. "Deniz!" The word came as a desperate cry and now the man seemed to allow himself time to register everything that had happened. He told himself all that mattered was that his family, that Deniz, was safe. He didn't care about anything else. But even if he couldn't feel the cuts, he knew he was slowing down. He just had to make it home to say goodbye. Finally, he came to camp. He tried to drag himself to the submarine but it was too far. He collapsed before he made it there and he felt a sob rise from him. "P-P-Please, I don' wanna' die. Don' let me leave him 'ere alone. Help me, please, please-" He wasn't sure what he was pleading to. He'd never been one for any sort of religion but here he was. He didn't want to leave, he didn't want Pincher to be left alone. What if Deniz didn't think he tried to come back? What if he didn't understand he hadn't wanted to go? "D-Deniz! Deniz!" he sobbed the name desperately, over and over again.

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While Jacob hadn't been there to find them, he'd heard about the eggs some time ago and decided to go investigate. He wasn't sure if there was any sort of parent around for them but it certainly didn't seem like it. He had plenty of experience with creatures that came in eggs, primarily birds. He also had minimal experience with some reptiles , although he knew it'd be better to call upon Roxanne if they were seriously considering this to be a reptilian creature. While he had experience, it was incredibly minimal and he wouldn't want to mess anything up. He wasn't sure what kind of creature they'd be or how intelligent or sentient they'd be, but he felt a need to keep them safe. They were children, after all, just like any other child in the clan and he wanted to be sure they were safe given they were even more defenseless than usual. If they needed some more heat or had to be kept in safer conditions, he almost felt as though it were his duty to provide that for them. It was a ridiculous thought given he had no real attachment to these eggs and they could be some terrible man-eating monsters that intended to consume him the moment they hated, but he still couldn't convince himself to stay away.

For that reason, he'd gone out to study them, taking a little journal with him and jotting down some notes. After he'd wrote down everything he could think of to reference back to his books, he began to gently sketch them. He may sure to include a key so he could remember their approximate size. He had come out both because he wanted to make sure the eggs were safe and also to gather some information so he could reference his books and learn a little more about what they might be. Not only that, but it was relaxing. Between his wedding and being stuck in Ascendants for a bit, things had been a little crazy and stressful lately and knew they wouldn't slow down anytime soon. It was nice to take a moment to himself where he could be alone and breathe, only doing the things he enjoyed such as sketching and taking care of something else. If only his patients were always this easy to take care of and this willing to cooperate. Jacob did all he could to help his clanmates but the simple truth was that some of them would always refuse his help and there was nothing he could do about that. For now, he'd have to be content taking care of his eggs.

Jacob thought he heard something nearby and lifted his head, a small frown forming on his maw. He set his sketchbook down and stood to get a better look at everything, at which point he noticed the snake. He sucked in a sharp breath, his paw briefly rubbing his stomach before he moved forward, glancing back at the eggs. What should he do? He knew he couldn't just let it eat them but he also wasn't too sure he should be fighting, especially after his experience in Ascendants and when his own legs were already so weak. He knew he'd never be able to live down the guilt of doing nothing and letting them be eaten, though. So the man drew himself up as tall as he could, taking in a deep breath before calling, "Go! Shoo! Get outta' 'ere! Ya' can't 'ave these eggs!" He spoke as loudly as he could without breaking into a full shout and hoped it'd be enough to scare the creature off. He also hoped that it wasn't venomous.

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Jacob could hear other people arguing in his defense and he felt relief beginning to trickle into his chest. Of course bast wouldn't let this happen to him. They were friends and he was sue the man knew nothing about Roy or his plans to hurt him. As soon as he saw this, he'd make it stop. Jacob was sure that everything would be fine. Then he heard Roy's response to those that were arguing for his freedom and his heart sank back down, fear beginning to grip it's icy claws over his lungs. The man began to talk to him again and he pressed his ears again his head, trying to push himself further away as the claws continued to inch closer. "I know Pinch real well, better than anyone, but I dunno' nothin' 'bout stuff like tha'. It ain't my job ta' know n' 's not like we sit 'round talkin' about work when we get home. I can tell ya' what events we got planned through the next month but I don' do things li-" At the comment that Pincher took joy from harming innocent people, Jacob felt his heart twist.

He knew what sort of people he attracted and what sort of people he chose to spend with his life with. People who weren't in his situation would never understand. There was no sense in trying to explain to Roy how he could love Pincher more than anyone in the world but also have such differing morals from his fiance. It'd been that way his whole life. There were people that couldn't understand why he stuck by his father or why he still held fond feelings for his Pa and even for Jersey, after all they'd done and been through. Jersey was by far the most mild example he had but the basic ide was the same for all of them. He felt anger bubbling up in him and, for a moment, before Roy's claws had made even a spark, he began to try to speak. He wasn't sure what the point of it was, he knew that someone like Roy could never understand. "Ya' don' get it n' ya' don't want to n' tha's fine but stop tryin' ta' act so righteous when you're doin' the exact same thing you're accusin' him of. I ain't done nothin' ta' you or ta' Ascendants n' I-I don' have what ya' want or know what ya' want me ta' tell ya' n'-n' I jus' wanna' go home-" his voice continued to falter with each word and seemed to gain more emotion as he spoke.

Then there was fire again and Jacob shut his eyes and pressed his head as far against the ground as hard as he could. He seemed to barely contain sobs from escaping his maw as he trembled on the ground, his breathing suddenly speeding up once again. He tried taking in air but they came as short, shuddering breaths. "N-No! No, fermo! F-Fermo, stop! I-I-I-I-" he seemed nearly incapable of forming words now as he trembled beneath the bobcat. Then someone else seemed to step in, putting himself between Roy and Jacob. He wanted to thank the stranger or maybe tell him to get out of the way, that he didn't want anyone getting hurt for his sake again but the rate of his breathing stopped him from saying anything at all. Dots were beginning to appear in his vision and his sides heaved as he tried to get his own breath under control but there was too much panic for that now.

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Jacob wasn't completely sure what haed just happened. He'd only come out to the raid because he was angry that Pincher had even decided to do it. He'd intended to invite quite a ew people form the Ascendants, especially given that his best man was currently living here. It wasn't a permanent situation but the fact still stood. Suddenly, though, he wasn't yelling and he wasn't asking Bast to come to the wedding, there was just absolutely nothing.He briefly felt something on the back of his head and that was it. He woke up to a very angry man yelling in his face and pinning him to the ground. "Wh-what? No, ya' don' understand, we don'- I don'- we don' talk about thing like tha' n' ya'll shoulda' known way before now 'cause I visited not tha' long ago 'cause my best man kinda' live 'ere right now n'-" before he could even get the words out, there was a heat source. Suddenly, the man was completely still and totally silent. The rambling from just moments ago seemed totally forgotten and he couldn't think about anything except the fire that the angry man was holding. The moment Roy brought it to existence, he seemed to hold his breath briefly before it sped up exponentially. It wasn't quite hyperventilation yet but it would be. When he extinguished it, it took a few moments for the man to recover before he could speak. "L-Listen, I dunno' anythin' 'bout stuff like that. I don' 'ave much interest in it n' it ain't my job anyway, I'm jus' supposed ta' throw parties n' sometimes spy on people but I really haven' done none ah' tha' yet so-so it's not a big deal-" his voice shook as much as his body had only moments ago and tears were gathering in his eyes. "I-I jus' wanna' go home-" 

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Crippling fear. That was how Jacob would describe how he felt towards most fire. It was the reason that he used battery operated candles to set the mood on he and Pincher's dates, the reason he never attended any of Typhoon's bonfires, the reason he seemed perfectly fine cooking and baking but couldn't bear being anywhere near an open flame. Every hint of orange grasping at air, longing to spread itself as far as it could, sent shivers of terror in Jacob. The flame wasn't just a single one but something that pulsed, something that devoured all it came across, something that devoured his life. His fur, his skin, his legs, his Pa, his Ma, everything from his old life. All taken, devoured by fire. Crippling because it didn't stop at chill and shivers down his spine. It locked his legs, wrapped around his chest and held it tight in it's grip. It stopped him from moving, from even breathing, and he couldn't stand it. He'd tried to face it before. He'd tried to just face it head on, to pretend it wasn't a problem and do his best to power through but he couldn't do it. Every single time he was frozen in absolute terror. It wasn't just nerves. Suddenly he would see the building collapsing all over again, his Pa' body disappearing in flame and smoke while he ran away.

He knew that there were a few people in the clan with the abilities to create fire from their paws but most didn't do it on a regular basis. That was why the canine seemed so shocked when he came across Dagda. He could tell he was an intelligent creature, that Jacob shouldn't be so afraid, but his breath was caught in his chest and his throat felt as though it were closing. While it might not be an open flame, it was close enough. The lava that pulsed on his body was enough to make Jacob freeze, his breathing and heart rate suddenly increasing at a rapid rate. Jacob had passed out on several occasions from hyperventilation while seeing fire. It hadn't happened in some time but it didn't mean it couldn't happen anymore. He knew he shouldn't stare, that it was rude and that he'd make the child feel uncomfortable but he couldn't bring himself to tear his eyes away or to move or to speak. he should say something, he should say hi, he should say his name, he should say anything that would distract him from the fire but he couldn't bring the words past his lips. He watched as the being consumed a rock and he only felt his terror increase. His paws were shaking badly now, especially those that were heavily bandaged. he tried to stay standing and tried to just force himself to turn away but he couldn't. He should just tell him to leave, that he needed to collect himself but he still couldn't speak and he felt tears gathering in his eyes. Why did he have to be like this? He just wanted to be well. 

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