The fairly large puddle of rainwater was good enough for her as she started looking for a way to clean the blood off of her face and paws. Vale, as she found out he was called, was stable and now she had a moment to breathe and rest. For a brief moment she was alone while she laid down beside this puddle and started washing off her paws and face. The pool quickly became tinted with red. The bitter taste of the herbs she had used still lingered in her mouth and her muscles burned from overuse. Thoughts of the blood oath still lingered in her head as she stared down at her own reflection in the bloodied water. She was tired, but there was something else she needed first.

She got up and turned back toward the dens that Elias had lead them to, easily finding his scent and following it to find him. She assumed this was the den he had chosen for the two of them, but even if it wasn't she couldn't be bothered to think of that in this moment. As she passed into the shade of the den she glanced to the side and noticed the small pile of herbs that were left from what her and Daelos had brought sat off to the side of the den. Good, at least she knew where they were. She wasn't sure if Daelos herself had dropped them off or maybe Elias had brought them here. Either way, she was glad they were here. She hadn't told Daelos that some of these that she saved were meant for Elias.

Zuriel's gaze was pulled back up to Elias' as she drew closer to him like a moth to a flame. In the whirlwind of being reunited with him, leaving Lirim and coming here... She had forgotten it was autumn. It was normal for her to use herbs to help ease everything associated with being in heat, but there had been no time for that over the last couple of days. Any lingering benefits those herbs might have had were gone from her system by now. It was hard to find any words to say as she stopped in front of him, her muzzle maybe an inch or two from his. Somehow being alone with him here felt different than any time she had been with him before.

She brushed her muzzle against his cheek and it felt like a crackle of electricity. She sighed softly and just leaned her cheek into his for a moment and closed her eyes. She could feel the smooth stone of her necklace shifting against her fur with each breath she took and the cool rock of the cave under her paws felt cool in contrast with this warm feeling spreading through her veins. "We're going to create something legendary here," she said quietly as she let her eyes open just enough to see him again while she lifted her muzzle and reached up to tenderly lick his ear. She might not fully understand everything about his plans just yet, but she felt more alive with him than she had in a very long time.

"Talk"

Elias had been through a lot these last few days, to say the least. The new memories all of his travels from his frequent movement from East to West and back all the time were accumulating in the clutter of his mind as he waited in the den, watching Zuriel closely yet still having some trouble focusing on her. Where was the magnetic pull she had on him? He could feel her presence so close to him and he wanted her but he could not focus. No, it wasn't just memories from his recent occurrences around Boreas, memories from even before plumed into the clouded gloom in his brain but he didn't even want to acknowledge those nightmares.

Giving them thought was his own grave mistake as he remembered the brilliant white fur that flowed upon Kat’s nape every time he showered it with lavish attention, and then how brilliant red it became when he had come to his senses again and realized that he had hurt her on their last night together. He had wanted to throw himself into flames for what he had done to her and that sort of guilt didn't go away with time, not for Elias. He would always remember her but he really didn't want to think about that right now. He had to, though. He knew he did. He had to be aware of just how great he had let go of himself before and what had been caught suffering from his apparent craving for destruction.

Because even she wasn't safe.

Elias quietly watched her with his intense sanguine stare when she drew nearer to him. The smell of blood, herbs, and her naturally sweet fragrance flooded his senses all at once and he immediately became attracted to absolutely all of its consistency. It pulled him out of his memories and made the titan curl into her beautiful frame and embrace her, his neck lowering over her own as he brought her closer to his chest. He needed to focus on her and her alone at this moment and the feel of her warmth, her fur and everything about her was the hanging thread keeping him in reality and not the chaos he knew his mind could spurn at any given moment, no matter how much they had meant to him.

He reminded himself that it has been years and he had been so young and endured so much, he had changed. Rubies centering his pale gray face closed shut tight as he pressed his nose into the thick fur along the back of her neck when she lifted up to lick his ear. It nearly made him freeze with how it affected him, sending shocks all across his body in tune with the steady rhythm of his pulse until they would fade. His muscles tensed and then loosened all so quickly, but it was clear that he was feeling anything but relaxed even with her. His nose found the metal of her necklace and it reminded him of he and Aures’ son and the metal beings that they had found together in that field. There were so many of his bastard children that he had found and he silently cursed himself for even having them. That was something he would never admit out loud- but it was such a taboo for his bloodline to live without their young. There was so much power in blood, and theirs was a lineage that was forever a part of Ruina. These children had no idea, even Zuriel barely understood. He had so much to tell her. Could she handle it all? She had performed so fearlessly on Vale and had been so confidently decisive in her decision to leave Lirim that he was nearly beginning to believe she would.

”You did a really important thing for me today, Zuriel.” His eyes opened as he pulled himself from her and looked into her blue toned gaze, she had proved herself to be greater than any healer he had seen, and if Daelos was said to be even better than her….? He felt like he was nearly invincible with his faith in them to keep the pack alive.

”The blood oath you witnessed today- it's a very ancient practice by my family, and when my father expanded our family into a full on militia against the dangers of the jungle- he made every wolf and familiar we recruited take that oath. In our culture, that is big- we took them all into our family… for eternity. My father said it had been too long since our blood has spilled for what gave it life- and I believe he was right. I kept hearing from these new wolves that had become a part of our lifestyle that they were 'finally’ feeling as if they belonged somewhere or like they were a part of something. I felt that way my entire life with my father, so I didn't know what it was like to not feel a drive until I was on my own out here in Boreas. Until I lost everything.” He would likely never reveal the exact details of what he lost, who he lost, and how he had lost them but there was a distant sound to his voice as he spoke indirectly from his mind. He refocused on Zuriel.

”My father made me his heir before he died and I tried when I was younger to lead like he had but I was too inexperienced with too much blood being spilled in my grounds. It hardly was a family at all by the time it was nearly over- but just because I failed in keeping Ruina thriving then does not mean I am not still the heir. It is a lifelong bond, and I will be the Apollyon of Ruina until my life ends.”

He wanted to speak far less with her and simply give in to the feeling of her, but he couldn't. These children would not be bastard children, they would be the next leaders of his kingdom and would need to be brought into this life correctly. The spirits of Ruina needed true homes here within their pack, they needed bodies of their blood and of their devout. ”We call it a Kingdom when we present ourselves to other packs, but there is no King- there is no Queen- there are only demons, so I never understood. I think it is something my people stole from the Kingdoms they tore apart and enslaved, something they adapted to as means to blend in.” He suppressed the urge to growl as he was forced to admit the nature of his people, of the possibility of revealing the true horrors they were capable of and scaring her away. His mind was reeling and his emotions beginning to bubble up beneath his skin, threatening to melt him down until he succumbed.

His eyes glimmered in the soft light they caught briefly when he turned his head to the den entrance behind him, suddenly becoming a strange and eerie calm once again while he refocused. Their den had taken incredible work to clear- it was grand in comparison to the one his parents birthed him in. The walls could easily fit a group of ten adults the size of him, though most of the space had occurred naturally in the side of the mountain- he had just been lucky enough to discover it. Their new, grand home took only minor demolition and cleaning to preen for their arrival. He admired it, though his gaze seemed to set on two drying mountain goat hides from the days he had spent here working on it.

”You should probably know your calling now if you are to stay like you promised, Zuriel. Before you help me any further.” For as much as he loved her and wanted her to be comfortable, there was almost no amount of grace that could keep his words from feeling hauntingly ominous even to himself with the more he revealed. ”The mate of the Apollyon is The Demon Mother, and when you say legendary you have no idea just how old these legends are.”

He took a step in front of the entrance, shadowing her from the gentle light the overcast sky outside provided, though it was temporary as he kept moving and the light once again blessed her hallowed being. His left side had been presented to her as he began to circle her very slowly and calmly while he looked her over, secretly trying to keep himself busy as leaning against her was making it hard not to give into his craving to devour her before what was necessary was taken care of.

The feeling of his neck curving around her own was beginning to feel like a familiar, secure blanket. It felt like the piece of her that was missing was suddenly rejoined. It was calming, but also somehow made every nerve stand on end. She pressed her face into his fur for a moment and let herself savor the feeling of having him so incredibly close. For so long he felt like an unknown mystery, a figment of her imagination at times, and how he suddenly felt so real. Anything that was happening in the world outside of this den seemed like a far off dream. It didn't erase the stress that this long day had put on her, but it certainly eased it.

At the sound of his voice, her ears perked forward and her eyes opened again so her gaze could meet his. She wanted to insist that she had only been doing her job as a healer when he mentioned doing an important thing for him, but it was more than that, wasn't it? Would she have tried so hard to save that man if it hadn't been so apparent that he was important to Elias? She might have, but she couldn't be sure. It had really only been luck that had saved Vale considering Elias just so happened to have the materials she needed. For now she remained silent, instead just focusing on every word he spoke like it was the most important thing she had ever heard. In a way it probably was.

This felt like the beginning of an entirely new life for her and her family. When he spoke of feeling like they were finally part of something it was a feeling she could understand. After spending the majority of her life in one pack or another and never quite feeling like she fit there... It suddenly felt like she had a bigger plan and purpose. The way he grew distant after mentioning losing everything made her curious, but she didn't press him for more information now. They would have the rest of their lives for her to learn more about him. For now stayed quiet and focused on the information he was giving to her now. It felt like this was setting the stage for everything that was to come and felt important that she remember everything he was sharing with her now.

It was a dark history he was sharing, darker than she had ever been a part of, and she was sure this was only barely scratching the surface. She expected to feel some kind of fear or worry at the thought. After all, she was bringing much more than just herself into this. Her children, the future children she hoped they would have, even her siblings and extended family would be tied to all of this in a way... The weight of this choice weighed heavy on her shoulders, but the only way she knew how to describe how she felt was a solemn understanding.

Her gaze remained on him as his shifted to look out the entrance of the den into the soft light that was filtering in. For a moment she got lost in how his ruby gaze shone in the last night of the day, the scars along his muzzle standing out against his dark fur. She wondered if she would be the only wolf in this world to see the softness in his features the way she did. Others might see him as large, intimidating, scarred... He was all of those things, but she saw so much more. The thought made a small smile tug at her lips for a moment and she had to resist the urge to reach up and smooth down a rouge tuft of fur on his cheek.

She refocused on his words when he began to speak again, her gaze tracking him as he began to slowly circle her. "The Demon Mother..." she repeated quietly, feeling the weight of the words on her tongue. "...there is no King- there is no Queen- there are only demons..." His words replayed in her head while she began to piece together the information he was feeding her in small bites. It felt like everything in her life had lead her to this moment. She had never had feelings like this for anyone other than Elias, her only children were with him... In the last few years she had been put through the fire and had come out stronger and more sure of herself than she ever had been before. There was much more to learn about what this title entailed and what her place in this story was, but she had no doubts in her mind.

As he crossed in front of her again she reached out, taking a small step toward him and leaning her head into the thickest portion of his neck to stop his circling. She nuzzled into his fur with a soft sigh, shifting her feet so that her side was pressed to his. She could tell that she was quickly getting addicted to this feeling of his fur mingling with hers and the way his scent cancelled out everything else around them. She needed him more than she needed air to breathe. "Then I'll be The Demon Mother till the end of my days," she finally told him, feeling the commitment to those words seeping into her bones.

"Talk"

As she repeated the call of The Demon Mother once more, Elias watched her carefully.. right up until she cut off his circling and forced him to be near her once again. He inhaled sharply as she came to his chest, his head lifting naturally to place itself above her own and embrace her. He was hesitant, but only because the intoxicating presence of her was becoming threateningly irresistible.

He surrendered to the feeling of her beneath him as she told him she would be The Demon Mother until the end of her days, his red eyes disappearing some as his expression softened and he relaxed his heavy neck on top of her own. He felt her side against his and the tempting feeling made his blood rush and his mantle come to life, hackles prickling over his shoulders from his sensitivity to his rising adrenaline. Something told him their bond was older than this life, that them finding each other was destined by the will of Ruina’s fallen. A small smile played on his own lips as he thought of this and gave a single kissing lick to the back of her nape and pulled away from her. He began walking toward the skins of the mountain goats, seemingly with a purpose.

Every fiber of his being wanted to draw itself back to her but he resisted. The memories of their first night together still plagued him, hauntingly familiar every time they became close. Katar’s voice was quiet now and had been for awhile, he did not feel compelled to harm her.. but did he have the strength to perform the blood oath and keep his sanity?

'Elias, look at her. As frail as I was.’ It was as if the mere thought of Katar summoned her, and Elias froze completely. Every muscle in his back tensed as his short fur stood fully on end along his spine just for a brief moment. He willed himself to focus, eyes dropping to the goat skins while one heavy paw kicked one back. The dagger from the oath had been hidden underneath.

'Elias, come on. Do you think she will obey you any more than I did? She is in season.’ Katar giggled, 'Of course, you know that. You're practically drooling because of it. Remember Elias, you killed me because you lost yourself when I refused to listen to you when I was in my season. I knew you would like her when I told you to claim her that night, that's why I called you to her- but will she understand any more than I did? Will she make it? Or will you have to kill her, too?’

Elias lifted his skull, looking away from the dagger.

'You could just go ahead and get it over with. You could end it now. You don't have to waste time on it, you know you will break. You will hurt her eventually, the first time she defies you- like you did to me. Just kill her, Elias. Spill her blood, spill it like mine. Devour her like you devoured me. Give her to me.’ Katar’s voice had become so loud, Elias couldn't hear anything else.

He could hear his heartbeat in steady tempo behind her words, getting stronger and faster the longer they went on. He growled through clenched teeth and felt his limbs begin to shake with the more he resisted letting his psyche internalize and give in to Katar's demand. He didn't want that. He knew it. So why was he struggling with the idea of giving up, of giving in?

To keep his limbs from shaking, his weight immediately retired to his haunches as he kept his back to Zuriel and shut his eyes. His head lowered, turning toward the wall of the cave as he did his best to tune out the whispering of Katar.

One thought breached through the madness and he nearly whimpered through his growl. Zuriel wasn't weak. She went through so much in her life and still faced him, still loved him. She left everything she knew and followed him here. She saved Vale without hesitating on ever knowing what she had to do. Hell, she was probably stronger than he was. In fact, he knew she was.

'Give her to me. Throw her, Elias. Just like me. Do it. I need her soul. Feed me. She won't stay, just like I wouldn't stay. Do it now before she gets away.’

”Zuriel,” his bellowing voice was strained through a tight jaw, but still audible. He sucked in his breath through drool ridden teeth and quivering lips. He didn't even know what to ask of her, he just knew he needed her. He needed to focus.

The moment Zuriel felt his neck rest over hers again she felt herself melt into him. If he had taken her then and there she would have welcomed it. Her thoughts were already on the future and this new life they were creating for themselves. When he stepped away from her again she had to hold back her disappointment, but from the look on his face and the way he moved toward the goat skins laying off to the side she could tell that whatever it was that he needed to do first was important. She turned to keep her eyes on him, watching his back now as he walked away from her. A small smile was resting on her lips... until she saw him freeze and his  fur stand on end.

It seemed to only last for a moment and Zuriel remained where she was while she watched him push back one of the skins, revealing the knife from the blood ritual. Now she understood why he had gone to those first. She expected him to pick it up and turn back to her, but instead he looked away from the knife and Zuriel watched him with a concern and confusion forming on her features. "Elias?" she asked, but he didn't seem to hear her. She took a step closer as his whole form seemed to tremble under the weight of some unseen force, his growl echoing around the cave.

Her ears flicked back and she carefully edged closer to him as he fell to his haunches. For a moment she felt helpless. She had seen and treated so many ailments and wounds in her time, but... She began to wonder if she had bitten off more than she could chew. Doubt seeped into her mind and her steps shifted backward again. Her heart was pounding against her chest and her eyes flicked to the entrance of the den. It wasn't too late, she could slip past him, run back to Lirim...

"Zuriel," His strained voice snapped her back to reality and her gaze went back to him. She was confused by her own thoughts, but she didn't let herself dwell on that in this moment. She quickly went to her herbs, pulling out the lavender and placing both of her forepaws on top of it. She crushed the purple-hued flowers under her paw pads till the fragrant scent was surrounding her. She had no way of knowing if this would help, but she knew that lavender had gotten her though many nights where her anxiety would rattle her brain and keep her from sleeping in the nights that followed their first night together and the days after her sons disappeared.

Zuriel padded over to Elias then and sat on her haunches directly in front of him. Any hint of worry for herself was gone. As soon as she saw the painful struggle on his face she could only think of him. She leaned her weight back onto her haunches so that she could lift her forelegs, resting the lavender scented paws on his cheeks. If nothing else the scent helped her calm down and focus so she hoped it could do the same for him. She held his head in a way that made his gaze meet hers, keeping him from looking at the knife for a moment.

"Let him go." Her voice was soft, but firm. She didn't fully understand what happened in his mind, at least not yet, but something told her that whatever was happening behind those ruby eyes of his was the same that happened that night. Whatever this was, it wasn't the Elias she loved. She felt her blood rushing through her veins and pounding in her ears, praying that she was doing the right thing, but she didn't let that uncertainty show in her expression. All she could do was follow her gut and her heart. They had gotten her this far.

"Talk"

The moments of being alone that followed up to her presence were agonizing for every second that would pass by while she was quiet behind him. His world was deafened under the haunting memories of Katar, he could not hear her behind him but he felt like she was still near. He had not even realized that he was growling through his breathing, the low rumble resonating within the rock cave that they shared their company in. He realized it only now as he was alone, as Katar's voice paused for a brief moment. Had he scared her? This was their first night together under claimed Ruina territory, and Elias could only hope that she would be understanding of this... moment of hesitation as he tried to hold himself together.

The fear of scaring her away must have started to overpower his fear of hurting her like he had done to Katar, as the ghostly voice of Katar had gone quiet. He was beginning to focus, wondering if Zuriel had already run- had already given up. He would not blame her, not after how he'd hurt her the first night they were together. She was in season then, too- and it seemed that.. nearly every time he was around a woman in heat something within him broke. He hadn't told her that his time in good standing for the last two years was spent primarily alone. How would he fair against his demons when he slept next to a woman that made him crave to claim her every single night? Would she be able to handle his hunger even if she hadn't taken this chance to flee just now?

He was about to look for her when he heard the click of her talons against the pebbles beneath them, making his ear flick. The relief that he felt sent his whole body into a storm of emotions, the feeling of them becoming something physical as waves of sensations washed over the back of his neck and spine- starting from the left side of his brain and making him just... utterly.. lost in such a feeling. For the moment, he was weak and trembling as she placed her paws on either side of his face, not even able to look at her as he simply shut his eyes and tried to gain control over this feeling. The sweet scent of lavender accented her already intoxicating fragrance and he inhaled deeply, his wide chest expanding quite dramatically to accommodate. The feeling of her, the smell of her and the help of the herbs almost immediately quieted his trembling.

'Let him go,' she whispered, both of his ears lifting to the precious sound of her words. Something compelled him to reach out and hook his left leg around the middle of her back to support her as he pushed his maw past her paws. He found her cheek with his own as he embraced her. If she lost her balance with her front two paws being shifted so suddenly, he would catch her and hold her still with that leg, and use his neck to wrap around the back of her nape and hold her to him. For now, it seemed as Elias gave in to his desire to engross himself in his mate- Katar did in fact 'let him go'.

He held her until the overwhelming feeling of being near her became easier to handle, and when he felt like he could listen to his senses and embrace the reality around him once again- he would carefully remove himself from her and help her find her balance if she needed. He focused on the dagger made of a ram's horn at his paws, stepping back enough that he could pluck it up with his teeth. His neck twisted from left to right a bit as he situated the knife in his jaws, getting it into a perfect position where he could control the blade as precisely as possible for a wolf. His ruby gaze drifted over to Zuriel finally, his head hanging even lower than his spine as he neared her once again. He said nothing, but his eyes told enough of his expectations as they trailed down her front half and lingered on her dainty paws.

As he waited for her to present one of them, he anchored his weight while sitting and lifted his own left forelimb. His teeth gripped the blade as tight as they could, muscles in her is jaws visibly twitching and then tensing as they readied themselves to aim. He brought his head low, his left forepaw coming up as though he were to scratch his own muzzle- though guided itself to the sharpest point he knew on the blade in one quick motion. He moved cautiously once he got closer, gliding his paw last minute slightly to the end of the blade and managed to slice into the skin between ankles and toes, along the inside of his leg. The skin there rested above visible veins and he took advantage of one of them just like he had done in the earlier oath to reopen the wound, though the movement had been so clean and quick that he hoped for an easier wound to heal after the process.

For now, though.. blood ran thick down from the open vein and trickled down to the bottom of his paw. He ignored it and used the very same paw to dig a bowl into the pebbles and soil of their den, of the Citadel of Ruina. Droplets began to form a puddle as he worked, but then his toes found their final resting place in the dampening soil. He waited for her leg, teeth tightly holding the blade even still as he dropped his widespread crown down in front of her.

She felt herself hold her breath while she waited to see if her attempt to calm him down would have any effect. Her eyes searched his face as his eyes closed. Seeing him tremble like he did pulled at her heart and her expression softened to only show the concern and sympathy that lingered on her mind. Any sort of doubt that had been on her mind previously was completely gone. The feeling that this is what she was meant for settled securely over her just as his foreleg reached out and pulled her against him. She relaxed into his grip with a relieved sigh. Her gaze shifted to look at the back of the den as his movement to pull her into another embrace made her paws fall from his face, landing around his neck instead. She held herself up by her forelegs around his neck to keep from falling backward completely.

For a moment the relief was overwhelming and she let herself close her eyes and lean her head onto the thickest part of his neck. She wasn't afraid for her own wellbeing... she was afraid for his. She wanted to help him so desperately, but this was all uncharted territory. The sound of his breathing, now more even and free of the constant, haunting growl, soothed her and the closeness of his body against hers helped to pull her away from her own doubtful thoughts. She had won this time.

When he began to pull away from her so rebalanced herself and eased her forepaws back onto the ground, bracing herself on his shoulder for a moment till she was sure she wouldn't fall over. She looked to him and was about to speak but she noticed his gaze was already turned down toward the dagger again. Part of her had hoped he would relax for a moment to let everything settle back into place, but he had his mind set. She remained where she was and watched as he picked up the knife and turned back toward her, his focused turned down toward her paws. She could only assume what he wanted since he was still completely silent, but it wasn't hard to put together what was happening since they had just spoken of the blood oath before now.

Her ears flicked toward and her brows pulled together with concern when she saw him slice open a place on his foreleg and she saw the blood rolling freely from his skin. It took all of her self control to not immediately rush to get her herbs to take care of the bleeding and seal up the wound. She knew how much this meant to him and as illogical as it felt she quietly remained there and watched as he dug a small hole into the earth between them, placing his paw there while the dirt around his paw began to grow dark with his blood.

With a sense of duty she lifted her right foreleg and turned it to open up the inside of the limb to him. Her ears turned back while her eyes rested on his face and waited in anticipation for the cut of the knife. It was in this moment that her trust and her heart became entirely his. Any chance for her to leave was gone now with this oath. She knew that full well and yet she still sat there with a solemn, certain expression on her face. "Your Demon Mother... Your mate... for the rest of my days," she said softly before he cut into her skin, a small smile twitching at her lips.

Once the ritual knife broke the skin along her ankle she grit her teeth as the initial sting and pain caught her off guard. For a moment she watched the blood well up around the wound and begin to run down over her paw pads and drip onto the ground. In her life she had been fortunate in the fact that she had never really had any wounds to speak of. Perhaps a bruise here or there from a clumsy accident and maybe a scratch from the few spars she had been in. With the exception of some bite marks Elias had left on her scruff so long ago, she really had no scars or previous wounds to speak to. It was an unusual sight for her to see blood running from her own leg. It took her a second to pull her mind back to the present and lift her gaze away from the cut to look at Elias instead to follow his lead.

"Talk"

The look on her face as she observed her own wound brought an odd smile to the man's lips. It must have confused her as a healer to have to actually cause her own wound, and the way she seemed fascinated by her own blood.. he could tell this wasn't anything like what she was used to. She was so innocent in his eyes with how she viewed everything, perhaps that was why he was so obsessed with her. She had such a different life, such a different upbringing and her disposition was something, unlike any other woman he had met. She had every reason to be angry at the world after the night Elias had first encountered her, but she wasn't. She was stronger than that.

Elias' inky smile smoothed back out after a moment as he gave her a nod toward his paw, dropping the dagger beside them. He waited for her blood to Christian the ground beneath their paws alongside his, waited for the warm of it to bless his skin. He waited for the demons of his own blood to transmigrate to hers, to claim her and embrace her in everything that they were- that he was- and that Ruina was. She was a part of it now, she was a part of him, and something told Elias she had been before. She was home now.

"You are now a part of Ruina eternally, oathed in blood to our family. You are now blood of our blood, bone of our bone. You give us your spirit, and with us, you will run- in life and in death." His ruby eyes glistened with their brilliant intensity as he watched her, unmoving and unwavering. "Say it with me, Zuriel." He whispered his command in a low rumble.

"I am blood of your blood, bone of your bone. I give you my spirit, and with you, I will run- in life and in death." He rang once more, expecting her words in echo this time- his voice quieter so that he could hear her own precious chimes. "I am blood of your blood, bone of your bone. I give you my spirit, and with you, I will run- in life and in death."

Once they were finished, he lost every bit of self-restraint that he had been holding on to. They were bound now, at the very least by the bond of the pack- but he could not wait two seasons until the time of Amare Tada for their oath of a union. He needed her now. His toes lifted from the dampened soil that they had tainted together and stepped nearer to her, his haunches lifting so that he was no longer seated. His tail fanned out behind him as he came closer to embrace her, his aura radiating with the strength of sin.

His eyes shimmered with gleaming desire, he had become pride and lust incarnate as he looked at her- his heart racing within his chest with an increased tempo. He loved her- he loved everything about her. He loved her heart and how she had forgiven him and made him feel like he was more than just the crimes he had committed. He knew this, but at the moment they were all fleeting thoughts as... just like the night he had first met her.. his demons still wanted to devour her.

He broke his stare from her own, but it was clear that he had no intentions of letting that be the last of their interaction. His paws still wet with the trickle of blood, found themselves next to her own as he stood at her side and leaned his weight against her just slightly. His head lowered, neck reaching out so that he could warmly kiss her own lips with tender lapping before his teeth flashed and he moved to preen at her cheek. He knew she likely wanted to heal her wound, to close it and stop the bleeding- but Elias knew she would not die from one little cut. Something about keeping her just slightly out of her comfort-zone might have been what was thrilling him, but he told himself he was teaching her that she was not as fragile as she might have thought.

He didn't think of it more than that as his teeth found her nape and grazed against her skin. He found the scars that he'd left there underneath the delicate metal of her necklace and froze for a moment, his tongue freeing itself and lavishing those scars with tender affection. He had no intentions of hurting her like he had then, but there was a primal desire overcoming him that made it impossible for him to hesitate from his wishes, not even with the memory of those scars haunting him beneath his teeth.

The initial dull pain from the cut either mellowed out after a moment or became entirely unimportant in comparison to everything else. As he motioned down toward his paw she remembered how Vale had placed his paw together with Elias' during the blood oath earlier and felt silly for getting so lost in the sight of her own blood to forget such a thing. Her gaze dropped down to where Elias' paw was waiting for hers and she lowered her now blood-stained forepaw down next to his. Her blood joined his in the small puddle that was forming there. Her black-dipped paw seemed so much more delicate next to his, but somehow against the background of deep, red-hued blood they both seemed equally powerful in her mind.

Her sapphire and aquamarine eyes lifted once again to find his face as he began to speak. The words felt so familiar. She told herself that it was because she had heard the same ones just a few hours before, but it felt like more than that. "I am blood of your blood, bone of your bone. I give you my spirit, and with you, I will run- in life and in death." Her words echoed in unison with his own. As her tongue formed the words there was a sense of fate in those words, almost like they were just waiting to be said. Her body was humming with emotion that she couldn't quite understand. Her skin felt like it was on fire under her fur, the feeling swirling across her form in waves. Her heart sounded like it was in her ears and even the earth under her paws felt like it was far away.

The moment the last word left their lips Zuriel saw him stand and soon after he disappeared from her view. She was hyper aware of his presence near her as he shifted to her side. Her ear flicked toward him as she listened to the sound of his paws shifting against the ground and the soft whisper of his breath in the otherwise quiet den. She could feel the stinging protest of her paw as she lifted it away from the pool of blood their combined wounds had produced to rest it on the ground in front of her again. The last portion of her mind that was still functioning in its normal, logical capacity told her to go seal up both of their wounds and clean up the blood that was staining their paws, but the moment she felt the gentle graze of his teeth against her cheek all of her desires overwhelmed that small, rational voice.

She stood as well when she felt his muzzle begin to move up to the back of her neck, feeling herself subconsciously lean into his side. It was subtle, but she noticed the way he stopped for a moment when he brushed aside the chain of her necklace. His tongue lapped over the thicker skin that formed the scars that dotted her scruff and she understood. That sensation combined with the feeling of his breath filtering through her fur pulled those distant memories that she had burried deep within herself back to the surface. She closed her eyes for a moment, the moment when his teeth had gripped her skin the first time replaying on the back of her eyelids. A flash of panic squeezed her chest, forcing her muscles to tense for the briefest moment. She forced herself to take a breath. She opened her eyes and looked down at the blood just inches away from her and it brought her back to the present. Zuriel turned her head so that she could see Elias out of the corner of her eye, even if she couldn't quite see his face.

This was her Elias. She couldn't quite separate the man in her memories from the one that was standing here with her now, but this was completely different than that first time. She wanted this- no. She needed this. She could feel that hum of desire from deep within her soul and she knew that this night would set the ground work for everything they were going to create here. Her tail brushed his flank and her shoulder leaned into his, hoping that the touch would convey her apology for giving him any doubt, if indeed it had, and to urge him to continue. For the second time in her life she would meld together with him. The first time she had focused on anything other than what was happening - her heart beat, the snowfall. This time she gave into the rush of desire, lust, and - what was possibly strong enough to overpower every other feeling - love.

- fade -

"Talk"