That what he got for pushing himself too far. Putting too much on his body, it was no wonder he had sprained another leg, and with two out of commission, walking became too difficult. He was forced to be home-bound until he had a chance to properly recover.

He trusted Zee to keep everything running, but still he chafed at the restrictions, the delays to getting his pack off the ground. He spent his days idly planning, drawing maps of his territory on the den floor as he planned the best defenses and structure of the pack that he could. His border would not be the friendliest, and if any invaded him, he would have traps set into the land to injure and delay. They were the last defense for anyone to reach the Ashen Empire, and he planned to be prepared.

It didn’t make the days any faster, and the impatient man eagerly awaited the times Zee would pock her head in and update him on the pack and her day. He expected her any minute, and he stretched his almost healed paw as he idly watched the den entrance. Another day, and then he expected his bossy healer to release him from his prison.

"Speech"

Zee's pace was slow and steady as she made her way through the territory towards their den where she knew her poor husband was cooped up and frustrated. In truth she didn't pity him too much, the brute always overworked himself and frankly Zee was sure he'd deserved whatever injury came his way. Hopefully now that the pair were alphas and had real responsibilities that Sirius would calm down and realize that petty fights and needless exploration might be more trouble then it's worth. Her head poked in first, eyes blinking as they adjusted to the low light. She'd half expected to find him sleeping the day away like he'd been told to, though wasn't surprised to see him bright eyed and bushy tailed awaiting her report. "Soon, my love." She assured him with a soft laugh, knowing he was desperate to be relieved of his den-rest. The small wolf moved in and lined herself up alongside him, resting her head on her paws with a huff. The days were becoming exhausting with Sirius out of commission. "Io and Deathbelle encountered a pack of coyotes." Zee told him off-handedly. "They're fine supposedly, but Io's vanity was injured. Now they're avoiding each other or something." Her eyelids fluttered shut. "It's like having children, those two." "Speech"

Zee was a sight for sore eyes, as she moved into the den, muzzle first, antlers clearing under the lofty roof he had built for his own considerable height. The blue of her gaze met him in the soft lighting of the den, and his expression instantly began to smooth at the soothing sight of her.

Knowing his eagerness for news, she told him to wait a moment and he, with amused reluctance, shuffled his weight into his rump as he left a spot beside him if she wished to sit near him. Both his legs, the sprained and the broken, were feeling considerably better today. He had motion back in both of them, and well the broken one still felt weak, he knew it would strengthen in time and wouldn’t be slowing him down for long.

Zee came up beside her as he expected her to, and rested her head on his paw. She looked warn, he realized, looking down at her soft, drawn features. he leaned forward, careful to work between her horns as he pushed his tongue gently through the fur just above her eyes and along her brow. He had been trusting her to take care of everything, but it was a lot to throw on the former slave. He needed to be back up and running so he could work alongside her, a pair, a team, as he had always envisioned.

He frowned at the first piece of news his love gave to him, of his Empress and his Sister getting attacked by coyotes. “What do you mean her vanity?” he asked carefully, but he knew that if he had reason to worry, Zee would have mentioned something by now. He mentioned the two avoiding each other, and he knew they had been spending a great deal of time together. More than Io had spent in the Armada, the thought left him feeling restless, but he said nothing.

"Speech"

Her husband's gentle grooming settled Zee further into the ground beside him, a pleased hum rumbling up from her throat. Thankfully it'd be a matter of days before he was back on his feet and she could settle back into a relaxed pace of life - the last thing the vain queen needed was to be finding gray fur this young in life. "Her face. The coyote." Her mumbled word came broken, as if speaking a full sentence would break her relaxation under his touch. It was lucky that the wound did not go too deep and little Io's face would appear unmarred soon enough once the fur grew back over the slices. She sighed softly and let him groom at her head for a little longer before gently nudging his nose with her skull. If he got the picture he'd back off so she could lift her head and look up at him without risking poking out an eye with one of her horns. "Has she been around here? Hopefully she'll release you from bedrest soon. The two of us need to go out and recruit a few more bodies, we have too much space to guard with what little we have." She wasn't sure exactly where those extra wolves would come from, and her stomach churned as the first thought that came to her mind was force-claiming battlefield warriors. Perhaps Sirius was changing her after all. "Speech"

Sirius bristled a little at the mention of Io’s face, presumably injured in the attack with the coyotes, he paused his grooming and looked to Zee, waiting for more information on the safety of his sister. “My sister, is she okay? Don’t drip feed it to me Zee, you know how I get” he said, trying not to sound too frustrated. Surely Zee would have said something more if he really needed to worry.

He put his head back down and ran his head through her fur again, running it gently behind her ears, and around the base of her horns which he knew had been itchy for a time. He liked the sound of her relaxed, sweet voice, husky with sleep and comfort, even if he did also want further news on those that mattered to him.

His Wife sighed and nudged him free, he pulled his head back and gave her room as she turned to him, swinging her horns carefully in the small space. “No, but she’s scheduled to do her last check in a few days. Your right, we do need more bodies. I would be happy to start recruiting once I'm finally free” he agreed

Zee rolled her eyes at her husband's fierce protective streak. If it was any other woman - aside from Deathbelle, that is - and one he didn't so outwardly claim as a sibling, Zee'd have felt jealousy at his worry being directed at someone other then herself. "She's fine, Sirius." She assured him with a short light laugh. "If she wasn't fine you would have heard about it. Besides, when did you become more worried about the little healer then your own Empress?" Her eyes twinkled playfully, and she nudged him with her shoulder. "Deathbelle was there as well and as I hear it was injured as well." She knew the information would likely infuriate the man further, but it amused her that still her warlord was den-ridden and had no choice but to trust that the capable women in his life could take care of themselves.

He agreed they'd needed more bodies, and Zee's lips pursed at the thought of their armada badly protected. "I'm not sure where we should find them." She admitted. "Perhaps we should start looking at alliances as well."

“Your a monster” he teased, gripping her right horn gently in his saber fangs and giving it a playful tug. “Telling me those I am sworn to protect got injured without me” he sighed, looking down at his cast-leg. He had managed to mitigate much of his frustration after the first few weeks of being laid up, but hearing of the troubles Death and Io had encountered did make his frustrated. If he had been out and about, and nearby, he would have ensured neither got injured.

“If Deathbelle was badly injured, you would be at her side, not here, but I will go and see them both as soon as I am free” he said, frowning down at his leg some more as he contemplated the full range of issues related to the injury. He was a right fool, and he wished he had avoided the injury, as he has wished every day since it had happened.

“Alliances… I suppose every pack needs them” he said, just so long as the packs didn’t go expecting hand outs from them, and nor would he ever take pity from them if they were in need. The Armada would be strong, and alliances would be political and nothing more. “The offer of training might catch some ears, and those that flock to strength will come once our pack is better situated.”

Zee gasped in feigned horror as he tugged her horn and called her a monster, her paw lifting to her chest as if he'd mortally wounded her. "Me? A monster?" She repeated, her paw moving suddenly from her chest to swat him in his own. "You're the one who's den-locked and making me deliver you daily reports for your sanity." Her words were only in jest of course, she didn't mind reporting to Sirius on the goings-on of Ashen's Armada. He was much more suited to lead and Zee felt lost without his guidance.

"Deathbelle is fine, I'm sure." She couldn't actually say with certainty... she hadn't seen Deathbelle in weeks it seemed. But surely Io would have told her if there was an issue to be seen to, right? She didn't want to dwell on it too long, feeling guilty for not seeing her friend in so long. "Training would be smart, many wolves would want to be taught by someone like you." Zee nuzzled him lovingly as she spoke.

He let her swat him in the chest, her paw lightly skimming against the fur there as he looked down at the pretty grey/blue woman as she feigned innocence. “The horror” he agreed as she explained her plight, of being forced to spend time with him and deliver news. Not for long, he would be free of his confines shortly and could participate in events in the pack once more. “I trained you, didn’t I? And you turned into a fierce Queen” he said, grinning down at her as he bent to give her a kiss on the nose. His reasons for training her had been largely selfish and possessive, but he had enjoyed it. Ever since, he had been seeking out young ones to take under his wing and train. That reminded by of Banshee who he would be eager to take out and continue training with the moment he was free. He had seen little of Poem, had she taken this opportunity to free herself from her vows and escape him? “Come, sit with me Zee” he said, moving his legs to give her a spot beside him. He missed her company, and would selfishly keep her by his side forever if he could. "Speech"

Zee snickered softly, moving in against him at his offer and pressing her forehead against his neck. "The absolute fiercest." She repeated mockingly. "I think I've lost more spars then you've won at this point." Though her record was not the best she did know she was improving, it didn't help that Sirius himself was one of her only partners to train with and it'd take an impressive fighter to take him down.

She kept telling herself that it wasn't because she was weak, it was because he was strong. Though someday soon she needed to win a damn match. A small sigh pulled from her lips and she shook her head dismissively of the train of thought. "Oh well. When you get out of here I'll make sure to catch you for a spar before your muscles remember how to work properly." She smiled, and nuzzled closer against him.

He snorted in amusement at her self-deprecation. “And yet no one makes me stop and think like you do, no one else gives me pause. Your fierce enough to bite back when I do something you disagree with, and for it I have begun to change my ways.” he pointed out, smooching his nose fondly against hers as he spoke. Nothing hurt as much as receiving the silent treatment from Zee had. The bullheaded brute didn’t change his ways easily, but he did, for the sake of Zee. There was little he wouldn’t do to keep her.

“I’ll hold you to that, I don’t expect you to take it easy no me because I was injured” he said, knowing Zee wouldn’t hold back. He would be excited to enter another match with her. Well he didn’t go easy on his Queen, he was definitely rooting for her to win and not himself. She nuzzled against him, and he wrapped a paw around her, moving carefully so as not to jostle his still-healing limb. He breathed in the scent of her, and felt truly relaxed and at home, as he did only when Zee was there.