It would be the first time he left Seracia as anything but its King. An ear twitched backward as he tried to decide upon a destination. Jupiter had been on his mind for quite some time - what with her new litter and intentions to go after the vagabond Kaios. He supposed it was only right that he seek her out on his first day away from the Kingdom, and see how his friend fared. He'd been near enough to hear the call that she'd issued, the one that would bring the vagabond into the battlefield hopefully for the last time. Rumors were thick about Kaios and his strength, and Gerhardt was mildly concerned that he might be going to visit a friend that couldn't be found on this earth any longer. If Jupiter had lost though, surely he'd have heard of it? Diplomatic ties were strong between Ludicael and Seracia, and the former-King should have been informed had her death come all too soon. With this line of reasoning, Gerhardt was sure that he wasn't going to be attending a graveside on this day. He strolled toward Ludicael with naught a spring in his step. His tail hung limp, bouncing occasionally between his hocks due to his bumpy stride. His ears lay at a comfortable and relaxed angle, neither tilted forward with interest or tapered back in displeasure. The sparkle that once accompanied his amethyst stare was all but gone after the death of his former lover: Adette. Not a smile or simper crossed his lips, nothing more than a vacant expression. The King had lost some of his fervor in the recent battle, and it had taken whatever he'd had left to relinquish his power over his Kingdom. He knew it had been the right decision, but that didn't mean it had been in any way easy. A sigh crossed his lips as he came to the borders of Ludicael, hardly minding them for more than a moment before strolling across them with ease. Last he'd checked, he had an open invitation in the mangrove. Besides, he hardly felt as if Jupiter would be displeased with his company for a short while. Cranium tilted upward as a long - rather morose compared to usual - howl echoed from his cavernous chest. The melody lilted into the air, beckoning forth no one but the Sol, though if the came he wouldn't refuse them. Robin fluttered above him, alighting in a nearby mangrove. You needn't follow me everywhere, Robin. The bird clicked her beak. I do what I believe to be necessary. Amethyst eyes rolled as he rocked onto his haunches, barely a few yards inside the territory. He would let the Sol do the rest of the walking, if she had time for visitors. speech speech speech

Her pups had been out and about for only a few minutes--having disappeared into the mangroves, pursued by her verbal warning to stay out of trouble and in the borders--only a couple of minutes before the beckoning howl from an old friend graced her ears. Jupiter had sent Mercury along to stealthily watch them without their knowledge and knew he would call should there be trouble, and yet she could not stifle the worry that sprung forth when she heard Gerhardt's summons. Had they wandered outside of the borders, only to be caught by the Seracian king? But they couldn't make it across the very shallow part of the river she'd show them and then to the borders, could they? There hadn't been much rain, causing the river to only laxly meander, so that couldn't possibly be it.



Regardless, she set out to meet him, taking up a steady pace that she'd finally been able to upkeep since her soreness had faded. Now she only needed to be cautious of the wounds that would finish up their healing soon. There was no need to reopen the injuries just as she was about to be rid of them, especially with the possibility of war upon their head.



As she headed toward the source of the call, she couldn't help but growl to herself with contempt. After a few days worth of contemplation she'd come to realize that the words that she swore he'd uttered hadn't been a coincidence or a figment of her imagination--he'd said the he wouldn't have killed her. What a stupid thing to say in a dying breath, she snorted, ears pinned against her skull. I came there to kill him and his little sobbing wasn't going to stop me. Not even his piteous words would have held her at bay should she have not passed them off as her imagination. If he'd had an inability to kill should he have bested her, that would have been his own damn problem, and she would have come for his head until she had taken his life once and for all.



Without realizing it, she'd neared him in her mocking thoughts and realized it only when the queen heard his voice. She tilted her head with confusion, snapping a twig or two as she came forth and into view a few seconds after her purposefully-created noise. The woman, too busy taking in Gerhardt's own scent, didn't take any notice of the bird perched in the mangroves.



"You're a bit young to be talking to yourself, don't you think, Gerhardt?" she chuckled, tone good-natured and ears forward. After analyzing him for a moment, though, the celestial fae's audits tipped back. Something was off--everything about him seemed almost... off. Different. Unusual. The woman held her tongue, though, not wishing to be rude or pry. She remembered him speaking to her about the separation of he and his wife, but hadn't heard anything of it since so she assumed it wasn't that. Thoughts wandered back and she couldn't recall any howls ringing out in the battlefield. Or had she missed some? Had the King lost Seracia? Concerned orbs remained intent on the brute as she patiently sought an answer.

"speech"

The dull ache in the back of his neck was almost gone, but was still very much present when he extended his neck down to drink, or up to howl. He'd forgotten it until he moved to bring his head back to it's normal plane, though he winced as he did so in remembrance of the wound he'd received. The thick fur had begun to grow back in number, and it was beginning to be quite difficult to tell that anything at all was wrong with the once monarch. The only indicator would perhaps be the involuntary wince he gave out when extending his neck, but that was rarely seen by others. As he rocked back, he found his tail curling simultaneously around his hips out of both comfort and habit. A placid mask came over his features, filtering out at least some of the confusion marring his face. He hadn't noticed her nearing until he had finished speaking to Robin and a twig or two broke. His head snapped toward the sound, finding his senses to be hypersensitive as of lately. Paranoia could do that to a fellow - even one so previously sane as Gerhardt Mathias. One is never too young to consult his own intelligence. He gave a smile then, not exactly the normal type that normally graced his features, but one that was akin to the regular smile - just not as bright or meaningful. How are things, Jupiter? It was a loaded question, one that could go in any number of directions depending on just what news she wished to give him first. If the deathmatch was foremost on her mind he suspected they would end up discussing that, but if the children were higher on her ladder of importance he would steer in that direction along with her. He noted, with mild curiosity, that she was very much alone. Normally her little companion, who had so marvelously whisked him toward Ludicael on a previous occasion, was right at her heels. It seemed he was elsewhere, perhaps attending to the pups that were no doubt out exploring by now. He recalled the days when Maverick, Valkis, and Kamala had patrolled around Seracia's first location - the delta. How they had loved to adventure, and how often they had disregarded his diligently set perimeter. Maverick had gone so far as to venture to the Battlefield - perhaps the worst place he could have ended up save for Tortuga or Amenti. Kamala had been a homebody, and had been perhaps the most obedient of the siblings. Valkis had wandered in his teenage years, though his pup years were spent mostly sulking as per usual. speech speech speech

A chuckle rumbled through her chest, finding that despite the fact that he seemed to have lost his genuine enthusiasm, the sense of humor that she'd always appreciated was still there. She flicked an audit as she picked up on the question that followed, gaze averting and focusing on a faraway point that seemed to be behind him, eyes narrowing a bit as she felt the inevitably scarring wounds upon the left side of her neck throb a bit. It took a moment for her to refocus, celestial optics focusing carefully upon him as she examined the King.



"Alive," the queen breathed, settling upon her rump and shifting her weight for a moment to habitually find a spot in the tangled roots of the mangroves that was comfortable for rest. In some ways, her answer was a little guarded--she could have rambled for hours on end about how the battle had went and how to made her feel, but the latter was a secret--hush, hush, my fifth--that only she could trust herself to hold. She would never tell him of the bloodlust that slightly plagued her and would never inform him of the fact that she knowingly hid her conscience behind the excuse of his misdeeds. Jupiter was no hero, even if she had gone into the battle to fight for her pups and her pack. The she-wolf was no good-doer that wished to rid the lands of scum and the more time she was left alone to think, the more she began to come to terms with it.



She was darker, somehow. A little more sinister. Slipping back and withdrawing, the one that others knew as Jupiter was sidling out of view.



"Yourself? Gerhardt, you don't seem... alright." Maybe there was a little light in her yet. Jupiter offered him a concerned smile, brow furrowing as she gazed at him, heaving a sigh and tucking her ears back a bit. The lass was worried for him--never had he approached her in such a lackluster manner. His smile was nice and his attitude was the same but the glow she'd gotten from him so many times seemed to be... missing. Kidnapped by something she wasn't aware of. And it bothered her.

"speech"