Manea had spent a large portion of the day with Avacyn, finalizing some ideas and plans her daughter had for the celebration she had promised at the last pack meeting. The preparations had taken longer than she had originally thought, but she thought that it would turn out better in the long run for it. Her vacation with Alastor and her new pregnancy were also partially to blame for the delay, but if anything the new timing would put the celebration just after the brith of their newest addition so there would only be even more to celebrate. Once they had gone over everything she started making her way back toward their cave. The early days of this pregnancy felt harder than the last. The morning sickness was certainly worse and more often and it felt like even the smallest task made her tired, but she knew that would pass with time. She had only barely begun to show with a slight swell of her stomach to show for the pups that were beginning to grow and already she was eager for them to come into the world so she could see what she and Alastor created this time.

When she reached the cave she had intended to go to her and Alastor's sleeping chamber to lay down, but as she was passing through it was so oddly quiet. Everyone was out, even Irilyth, and she paused as she looked around the cave. It was starting to get later in the day, but she supposed it wasn't quite late enough for everyone to return for the evening. She knew Avacyn at the very least would be out for a while longer getting things in place and setting things up. Saracyn did his own thing for the most part. She hadn't seen Alastor for a while though and that was only mildly unusual since they were together so often. She hummed softly and turned back toward the cave's entrance, wondering if maybe she should go looking for him. Sleeping alone was never any fun. Searching the island for her husband sounded like such a chore when she was already ready to fall asleep though so she settled for laying down near the entrance of the cave in the plush pile of furs that created a seating area of sorts in the main chamber of the cave. At least then she could see out to the paths in front of the caves so if he came this way she would know.

Manea rested her head on her paws, willing her eyes to stay open while she waited. A small part of her longed for the days before the pack, before the band, when it had just been her, Alastor, and their children. She could think with fondness of the days before Avacyn and Saracyn were born, but she could never wish for them not to be. Their children were her greatest accomplishments. However, she did miss the days when things were simple and it was just the four of them with one another. She didn't regret creating the pack and she knew that its legacy was far bigger than anything else she would create, but there wasn't anything else fighting for their attention or pulling them away back then. The vacation she took with Alastor reminded her of those times and she only wished that their duties here would allow for those moments more often.

She did end up dosing off a couple of times while she waited, but did manage to be awake when she finally saw Alastor walking toward the cave. She lifted her head from her paws and blinked the sleep from her eyes, giving him a little smile when he reached her. "What have you been up to?" she asked curiously as she looked up at him, noticing that parts of his thick, flowing coat were still damp in places. "I didn't know you fancied yourself a swimmer," she joked with a chuckle, bringing her aqua gaze up to his obsidian eyes.

"Manea Mendacium"

Alastor trudged his way out of Alias Lake, water deluging from his flowing coat like a waterfall as he stepped out of the water and onto the pebbly shore. It was late in the warm autumn afternoon by the time he'd gotten himself cleaned up after his romp with Relm, scrubbing the mess and scent of sex from his fur to the best of his abilities. Not because he felt any sort of shame for what they'd done, but because with his new longer fur, having it get matted and messy tended to be much more uncomfortable for the giant wolf. Walking up along the shore, Alastor gave a shake of his strong body, tossing loose water from his fur in all directions. He would likely remain damp for some time—another curse of his luxurious new coat—but at least he didn't look or smell or feel a sight anymore. With the sun still up in the sky, the dire brute moved to perch himself on a large rock by the lake, letting the sun dry his fur. Abyssal black eyes watched the way the light danced and reflected off the surface of the water, nearly hypnotic, while he ruminated about the evolution of his relationship with Relm. He still didn't know how it had happened, how things had gotten this way, but somehow they had. Relm had been his to protect. Now she was becoming something else entirely.

After some time of letting the warm sun dry his fur, Alastor rose to his paws, gave another short tousle of his coat, and then began to make his way back to his den. It was still early enough that the twins would likely be out doing their own work, but he wanted to check in on Manea. As his wife's pregnancy developed, he began taking on more and more responsibilities for caring for her, just as he had done dutifully during her first pregnancy. He didn't mind; he quite enjoyed doing things for her, especially as she was growing the newest addition to their blossoming family. He did wish she would start to take it easier though. Being the ever industrious leader she was, Manea refused to give up on her duties or delegate any of them to Avacyn. Perhaps he'd have a talk with her about that; keeping her healthy was his primary concern, after all. Alastor climbed up the mountain path that led to their cave, gazing out across the expanse of Alias from coast to coast as he walked. Arriving at the den entrance, he was surprised to find Manea lying asleep right at the mouth of the cave. He blinked in surprise; had she been waiting around for him?

Approaching the den, Alastor saw Manea's eyes open as he drew near, then her head lift to greet him with a small smile. The dark-furred brute smiled back and came closer to gently bump his massive head against hers in a gentle nuzzle. "I've been tending to the pack's needs. Running patrols, same as always," he replied. It wasn't a lie. She made some sort of comment about him fancying himself a swimmer, and the confused brute turned a curious glance down to his still damp underside. A hearty guffaw left the massive wolf and he grinned back at Manea, moving to come lay beside her in the entrance of the den. "My dear, you know I love the water! Maybe a touch less so now that it takes me an eternity to dry, but it's never enough to turn me off from it." Again he chuckled, then peered down the length of Manea's body to her belly, which was just beginning to swell with their children. The dire brute murred at the sight of his beautiful wife pregnant with his pups, shifting closer to nuzzle into her scruff and drink in her scent, altered slightly from her pregnancy hormones. What was it about her being pregnant that attracted him to her so? "How are they today?" he asked, lifting a paw to drape across her side and rub slowly over the bulge in her midsection.

"Alastor Mendacium"

Manea scoffed a bit when he insisted that he did in fact love the water even if his thicker, fluffier coat diminished that love a bit. She couldn't remember a single time that he'd ever just dived into the water to swim for the hell of it. In fact, the only times she could easily remember him being in the water at all was when he slipped into the icy water chasing after that massive dire wolf and when she forced him into a bath after his illness during the long night. She didn't press him on it though since he quickly moved past it, instead coming to lay down beside her and draping his paw over her side so that his large, ebony paw was resting on her slightly rounded stomach. She smiled and leaned back into him as he nuzzled into her scruff, enjoying the closeness she had been waiting on him for through most of the afternoon. "They're draining," she said with a chuckle when he asked how their growing children were doing. "But it'll all be worth it once they're here." A few weeks of exhaustion was nothing in comparison to having their perfect child here in their lives and growing their blossoming family once again.

She was tired and probably could have fallen right back asleep if given the chance, but she thought again about Alastor saying that he had been running patrols, but also had somehow ended up taking a swim in the middle of it. There was something there that didn't quite add up, but she mostly brushed it off, thinking of all of the possible shenanigans that her wild hearted demon could have gotten into. Some combination of her exhaustion, thinking about pack duties, and the morning she had spent with Avacyn did finally bring her pregnancy fogged brain back around to a topic she had been meaning to talk to him about and hadn't gotten the chance to which at least distracted her from her husband's odd absence throughout the day.

"I've been meaning to ask you," she began, shifting a bit as she moved to lay more on her stomach than on her side so that she could see him better and keep herself from falling asleep. "Do you have any thoughts on who we should put in our higher ranks?" With another pup on the way and her pregnancy progressing further by the day, it was something that had come up in her planning and delegation of things. "Avacyn and Saracyn are certainly coming into their own, but I would still like to fill our other important roles soon as well just in case we need to take time away for any reason. I at least want your opinion on the Generalis since that's supposed to be your main support for our fighters." She could probably handle selecting wolves for their ambassadors, but if it was going to be someone that Alastor worked with frequently then he ought to have a say in it.

"Manea Mendacium"

Alastor quirked a brow to his wife's scoff when he mentioned enjoying the water. Had he said something funny? He didn't think he had, but he let it go all the same. Manea clearly didn't recall how much Alastor actually enjoyed bathing before his fur had made it a chore rather than an enjoyable activity, and while he had spent more time swimming with Lurid in his past relationship, he'd never had an aversion to water. In fact, he was quite an avid fisherman too. Alastor dismissed those thoughts while Manea reclined into his side, relaxing almost to the point of slumber while he gently rubbed her swollen belly. It was still far too early in her pregnancy to feel any kicks or movement yet, but he knew that those were his children growing just beneath his massive paw. A fatherly smile touched the behemoth's face as he considered the prospect of getting to be a new father once again. Manea had really gifted him some of the most amazing experiences in his life, and he would be forever grateful to her for that.

His queen explained how draining the pups were on her, something Alastor had noticed as well. With her first pregnancy carrying only their twins, she had been much more lively and active. This time, there were clearly more than just to puppies inside of her sapping her of nutrition and strength. He knew a culling would be coming in time, and though it still twisted his stomach and made his heart ache, he knew it had to be done. He respected Manea's beliefs. "I know they will be," he rumbled in reply, tenderly kissing and licking over his mate's forehead while they cuddled in the fiery evening sunset. The two wolves fell quiet after that, Al content to snuggle his beloved while she barely clung on to consciousness, his velvety paw pads stroking and massaging over her bloated sides hoping to bring her some soothing. It didn't last long, however, as a few moments later saw Manea shifting to roll away from his grasp to better face him. He turned his attention back to her, jet black eyes gazing into deep aqua pools while she asked him his opinion on moving some wolves around into higher ranks.

Alastor couldn't resist smirking some as she once more confirmed his thoughts on her still taking on too much of her role as Genetrix even when she should be relaxing and enjoying her pregnancy. Ever diligent, always working towards another goal... That was his Manea all right! "You're supposed to be relaxing and off duty, my dear. You know what Irilyth told you about taking it easy," he reminded her with a gentle and jesting scolding, leaning closer to boop his nose against hers. "And no, I don't have ay thoughts on it—mainly because our warriors are... well, frankly, lackluster at best." Alastor sighed and rolled his neck, getting a few good cricks out of his spine before he explained his reasoning. This was going to take a bit. "You know I would love to see Kichi at my side, but he hasn't been progressing on his skills very much. Saracyn is a talented warrior, but I doubt he'll relinquish his special position with his sister anytime soon. So that just leaves Relm, who is a skilled fighter, but I know you two have... difficulties." That was putting it lightly. It was no secret that Manea and Relm blended like oil and water. Relm certainly possessed the aptitude for the role, but since it sat so close to the Genetrix and Genetor, Alastor didn't foresee Manea giving it to the pink girl.

Which left one big question dwelling on his mind. "You know our warriors' skills as well as I do. Do you believe we have anyone worthy of the position yet? I'm not opposed to leaving it vacant until we have a candidate we both can agree on."

"Alastor Mendacium"

Manea chuckled softly as Alastor reminded her that she was supposed to be relaxing and that Irilyth had told her to take it easy. That was something that she had always had an issue with and she usually preferred to stay busy rather than slowing down. It was beginning to feel like her body wasn't going to give her the option and it was going to force her to slow down at least for a little while, but before she could do that she had to get some things in place. If she didn't take care of these things now when would she be able to? When she had a new born to care for? No, that wouldn't do. Unfortunately, Alastor didn't have much to contribute when it came to an opinion on who they might put in that spot. He did have an opinion on the quality of their warriors however and she sighed because she knew it was true. She had tried to encourage and nudge their members in the right direction, but she had yet to see any major effort from many of them.

He did eventually go on to mention Kichi and his hope for him, but how he had ultimately hadn't lived up to that yet which she could agree with. She hadn't spent much time with the young man as of yet, but he had made a good showing at their raid with Fenmyre so she hoped that he would continue to improve himself. She also agreed that Saracyn likely wouldn't want to give up his special position and even if he did she wouldn't want him to. She could tell that Avacyn was taking a lot of responsibility and weight onto herself so she wanted to make sure there was nothing keeping Saracyn from being her support if she needed it. Then he mentioned Relm and she only responded with a huff and a little shake of her head, glancing away from him as he summed it up to "difficulties". "That's a... kind way to put it," she muttered. She couldn't even fully explain why she hated Relm the way she did, but she had never had a pleasant interaction with the pink marked woman.

Alastor brought her attention back to him as he questioned whether they had anyone worthy and offered to just leave the position vacant in the mean time while they waited for someone to reach that point—or at least one that they could agree on. She had a feeling that if she didn't hate the woman so that he would have wanted Relm in that spot, but she just couldn't fathom having someone in her inner council that she couldn't have a full conversation with. "But how long will that be?" she questioned. "I want to know that there is someone responsible for things if we're ever away for any reason or occupied with the kids or... any number of things. I don't want everything to fall on you while I'm recovering from giving birth." She sighed and shifted to lean into him again, giving a small shrug as she frowned and looked out over the island again. "I don't suppose there's much of a choice right now, but I also don't know how to encourage them to improve themselves or where to find strong warriors to recruit."

"Manea Mendacium"

Alastor could tell by the look on Manea's face as he began to rattle off the names and shortcomings of each of Elysium's warriors that she knew he was right in his response, but that she loathed the fact that he was right. The lackluster state of their forces was a sore spot for the demon brute as well, though he would never undermine the pack's integrity by voicing it out loud to anyone but her in their private conversations. After seeing just how easily their pack could be rolled in a raid, Alastor knew the wolves needed to buckle down and hone their skills to mastery in they intended to keep their home a permanent fixture. Manea's expression remained mostly neutral, some disappointment, but it didn't turn into outright hostility until he mentioned Relm. Alastor's brow furrowed, dark eyes narrowing a bit while he listened to her mutter out some response with barely contained ire. He didn't understand his mate's dislike of the young woman; Relm was an acquired taste, sure, but he couldn't think of a single thing she would have done to provoke the hate of Manea.

Manea huffed and lamented leaving the Generalis rank open and unfilled. He didn't like the notion any more than she did, but he would have rather left it vacant than fill it with a warm body wildly unprepared to handle the responsibilities of the role. "You and I both know that sharpening skills takes time. There's no set amount of time for someone to become a master of their craft. It could be days, weeks, hell even months. But we'd be weaker for putting someone ill-prepared in the rank than if we just leave it vacant until we find a worthy wolf." He knew Manea wouldn't be happy to hear it, but he had vowed to always be honest with her—even if that honesty hurt sometimes. "You know you can count on me to manage the pack in your steady, my love. I don't mind the work. So if this is about me, I assure you, I'm fine." As Manea shifted to recline back against him, Alastor once more accepted her into his arms, draping a thick muscled foreleg over her side to rest protectively over her belly, paw pads caressing her warm skin and soft fur while he soothed her and their growing pups. "Why exactly do you dislike Relm so much?" he asked after a moment, genuinely curious. Were it not for whatever vendetta Manea held against her, she would be their frontrunner option for Generalis instead of being without one.

"Alastor Mendacium"

Manea knew she could always count on Alastor to give the truth to her straight even when it was hard to hear. It was what made him more than just a good romantic partner and why they had been able to transition into their positions of leading this pack together so easily. He was her sounding board when she didn't want to confront the answer that was in front of her. She knew he was right in his assessment of being worse off with someone unprepared for the role rather than waiting for someone to prove themselves worthy of it, but that didn't make it easier to hear. She frowned a little as he assured her that he was willing to take on the work if that was her concern and she replied, "I know I can count on you and I trust you to do it if you had to, but I want you here with me and our child. I want you to be able to enjoy their earliest moments too without worrying about keeping up with both of our work." Unfortunately, this time at least, it seemed like they wouldn't be able to fully avoid that, but it was still something that weighed on her mind that she wished there was an easier answer for.

She tried to push the worries to the side in her mind for at least a moment as she leaned into Alastor and he wrapped his foreleg around her again, letting the feeling of his paw brushing over her swollen belly soothe her a bit. Being in his arms and snuggling like this did make things seem at least a little less pressing. However, when Alastor spoke again and questioned her dislike for the previously mentioned pink-marked warrior her temporary peace was disrupted and her ear flicked with a bit of irritation. She did honestly wish she could pinpoint one moment or one thing that had caused her to have such a bad taste in her mouth when it came to Relm, but it was difficult. She had been indifferent to her when Alastor first started bringing her around the band and hadn't had much more interaction with her other than seeing her in passing or perhaps some sort of introduction so having her first real encounter with the woman be pulling her rage induced husband off of her put Manea's opinion of her in a rough place right from the beginning and it hadn't improved any since then.

"Her willingness to disregard your direct instructions and put herself in the position I found you two in certainly didn't put me on the right foot with her," she told him after a moment of trying to find the best way to put her impressions of Relm into words. "I'm still not convinced that she didn't do that on purpose out of some twisted desire for you to fuck her and I don't appreciate anyone touching you without my involvement. Besides, when I tried to give her the benefit of the doubt and I tried to build some sort of relationship or bridge between us she gave me nothing but short, bitchy answers that told me absolutely nothing and gave me no reason to think any differently of her." Manea huffed with annoyance, a snarl twitching at her muzzle as she stared out the cave's entrance over the rest of the island in the distance. "Why do you care so much? I know you brought her to us and you... what... saved her from her father? If I didn't know any better I'd think that pink thing is sucking your dick or something."

"Manea Mendacium"

Although Alastor wished he had some grand answer to solve all of their problems, the truth of the matter was that he simply didn't. There was no perfect solution to Manea's conundrum, and concessions had to be made somewhere. He knew she recognized it, even if she wasn't pleased by the circumstances or willing to admit it yet. Manea confided that she wanted him to be able to spend their newest child's earliest moments with him as well and not just her, and the massive wolf's heart ached to consider missing out on any part of his own son or daughter's life. Things had been so much easier with Avacyn and Saracyn, back before the pack and the responsibilities, when they could just live their lives as they pleased. A part of him missed that freedom—but he wouldn't trade his mate's dream for it. Perhaps they could have Avacyn and Saracyn take on a little more of the duties, like they had when he and Manea had gone on vacation to Auster. It would be a bit of a test for them, all while they remained close by in case they needed support.

Before Alastor could voice the suggestion to Manea, his violet queen was huffing and scowling, irritation painted across her face at the mere mention of Relm. She launched into a tirade against the pink Abraxas girl, listing out every flaw and trespass she had perceived. Alastor couldn't disagree that Relm had endangered herself by testing him in his rage state, but he also couldn't rightly blame her. A lot had happened in the chaos of that day, and as far as he could remember, she was just trying to check on him and make sure he was okay. He couldn't recall any sort of lascivious intention the fae had toward him in his moment of clarity. It wasn't as if she threw herself to the ground, legs splayed for him as some sort of trophy for murdering her sire. Manea stormed off towards the entrance of the den, putting some distance between them while she then turned her venom towards him, pressing him for why he cared.

"Why do you not?" retorted Alastor, his voice calm yet resolute, following her movements with inscrutable black eyes. "You don't know Relm like I do. She doesn't open up to others because she can't. Not even to Kichi, and he's her closest friend." He gave a pause, then continued on. "Relm was neglected and manipulated from birth, Manea. Her father was an incestuous sociopathic narcissist. He saw Relm as an accessory to his life and not his own child. I knew her as a little thing when he brought her to come join Lurid. She wasn't permitted to ever leave his side, wasn't allowed to make friends or go exploring. She was more akin to his pet than his daughter. He didn't love her, he owned her. He was trying to rape her the day I killed him, no doubt looking to impregnate his own child. She was neglected and abused, just like I was. That's why I understand her and connect with her—and it's why you never can." Though not directly accusatory or aggressive, his final sentence did possess an edge to it intended to deliver a point. Manea had grown up privileged, born to a noble family, a whole family that loved her. She knew nothing of trauma or abuse or neglect or damage. She would never understand Relm, nor would she ever understand him, it seemed. Sometimes he wondered if Manea knew just how good she actually had it in life.

But Manea had made a comment, insightful or just off-hand, and it wasn't something he was willing to hide from her. "She hasn't tried to suck my dick," he said, shaking his head, but then added after a pause, "...not yet, at least." Alastor released a slow sigh and lifted heavy eyes to Manea's backside. He couldn't feel remorse for the connection he and Relm had built, but he could feel some for having acted behind Manea's back, even if it was only an hour or two earlier and it wasn't something he was trying to hide from her. "We have had sex. Just a little while earlier." There really wasn't any more to say about it. He'd intended to tell Manea as soon as he could, and now he had. Alastor wanted to get ahead of that and be honest with his mate. Not only because she deserved honesty, but because he'd promised to protect Relm from any backlash, and he couldn't do that if they were sneaking around fucking one another behind Manea's back. Now Alastor waited, watching for Manea's response and reactions. Whatever came next, he was prepared to take.

"Alastor Mendacium"

Manea didn’t consider herself an unreasonable woman and she was willing to hear Alastor out despite her own misgivings for this wolf that felt like an intruder in her life, but when she more or less accused Relm of sucking his dick and he jumped to the defensive instead of denying it or brushing it off Manea took notice. She sat a couple of feet away, facing away from him while he turned the situation back on her, questioning why she didn’t care. A hard retort hung on her tongue, but she bit it back, letting him continue even though she never looked at him while he spoke. If it had been anyone other than Alastor she likely wouldn’t have put her own ego aside to listen, but she loved and respected him enough to at least keep quiet while he spoke.

She knew that Alastor spent far more time with Relm than she ever had, but as soon as he began insisting that she didn’t know Relm the way he did it only made her bristle more. He went on, giving her all of the context and detail she had tried to give Relm the opportunity to present herself, painting the awful picture of her childhood and her abusive father. She didn’t feel guilt or remorse for how she had felt about Relm leading up to this moment since the pink marked woman did nothing to defend herself or state her case in all the time that she had lived with them, but Manea did at least reconsider how she viewed the other woman. It all certainly explained a lot of things and as much as her own dislike of Relm didn’t want to let her admit it she could at least feel bad for what she had gone through and be glad that Alastor had rescued her from that. She did her best not to bristle or get defensive at the edge to his last comment about how she would never be able to relate to him or Relm. She knew that at least in a way he was right, but she felt like she had at least done her best to be understanding for him in their relationship and if she had known even a fraction of Relm’s story she didn’t think that she would have been nearly as harsh on the woman.

She might have said as much or at least conceded that she had been harder on Relm than she should have been, but before she could gather up the will to overcome her own stubborn pride Alastor spoke again, mentioning how Relm hadn’t tried to blow him… yet. That sent her thoughts screeching to a halt and even though she still kept herself from turning to look at him her shoulders tensed and her brow creased. As soon as he admitted that he had sex with Relm earlier that day all of her small suspicions started to click together. Why he had disappeared for a length of time today, why his fur was wet even though he had supposedly only been patrolling, why he was so quick to defend her. He hadn’t gone swimming, he had bathed to wash that bitch’s scent and the remnants of their act off of himself.

Her hackles had bristled as he spoke and that initial hit of rage hit her system, but she managed to force herself to sit still and let that rage simmer until she was able to smooth the snarl that had pulled back her lips and got her fur to lay flat once more. Not only did she not want to put more stress on herself than she already did for the sake of their pups, but she had to remind herself that they had never agreed to be exclusive to one another. They had more or less agreed to share whoever they wanted to bring to bed, but apparently that agreement no longer held weight. She knew her fury at the situation was purely because of who he had slept with, not because he had slept around without her. She would have likely been disappointed or maybe a bit mad either way, but because it was Relm the situation was different. He knew how she felt about Relm and yet he did it anyway and that’s what bothered her most—that and the fact that Relm clearly meant something to him so this was no longer just a fun fuck for the hell of it. Then there was the icing on the cake of the fact that he had been with Relm only to show back up here and cuddle with her like nothing happened.

Manea was seething with quiet rage when she finally got up after a few long moments of silence and turned to face him. Her expression was mostly passive, but the fire in her aqua gaze gave away her true feelings. She stalked toward him, her tone low and dangerous as she spoke. "Did it feel good fucking her while I was out working for the pack, exhausting myself, carrying our pups, waiting here for my dear husband to return to me? Hm?" She stood looking down at him where he was laying, another snarl twitching at her lips. A growl formed in her chest and she lunged toward him, shoving his shoulder to push him onto his back as she quickly climbed over top of him, straddling him as she pinned him to the ground and pressed one of her large paws to his throat. She didn't know who was to blame for what happened, whether he had approached Relm or if Relm had seduced him, but she honestly couldn't care less. They were both guilty as far as she was concerned, but she put more blame on Alastor than she did Relm. The other woman was already near the bottom of her list so this offense wasn't even surprising coming from her. From Alastor though... this hurt her more than she expected it would.

Her chest ached, but it came to the surface as anger instead of hurt, her lips curling back as she leaned down to bring her muzzle to his ear. "How many times do I have to remind you that you are mine," she growled, punctuating her words with a tighter squeeze around his throat. She was furious and upset, angry and possessive. A less violent woman might have cried or questioned him or maybe even thrown him out of their den if not more, but that wasn't her. Her shoulders trembled lightly from the heavy emotions that sat on her chest and her ears flicked back as she stared down at him and only just barely remembered to let him breathe. "I let her live here because you asked it of me, I promoted her because I thought you would appreciate it. Is that not enough? What is she to you?" she demanded as she made herself loosen up her hold around his neck, though she didn't lift her paw away completely. The only thing that was bringing her any kind of comfort was feeling like she had some kind of control on him even if it was just for a moment.

"Manea Mendacium"

Alastor didn't know how Manea would react to the revelation of his antics with Relm, but he had a vague idea. When he saw his wife's body go rigid and her hackles raise, he knew what sort of response he was about to get. Several long moments passed where neither wolf said nor did anything, both remaining stock still, save for Manea's subtle quivers of rage. Alastor had expected anger, but when the violet fae turned back towards him after some time, he saw a barely contained rage held within the dire fae's aqua eyes. Though her expression did its best to remain stony and impassive, Alastor already knew that Manea had chose violence. She stalked towards him like a predator, practically growling out words dripping with vitriol while she questioned if fucking Relm had felt good while she was working herself to the bone while carrying their children. Alastor's obsidian eyes narrowed some; the brute very nearly commented back about this being exactly why Manea needed to stop working through her pregnancy, but decided to be smart for once and held his tongue. Tight-lipped, Alastor simply held Manea's furious gaze, completely unfazed by her snarl. He didn't fear her—he never would. There was nothing Alastor feared, not even death, and if his doom was to be handled out by the Mendacium matriarch and his better half, then he was ready for the embrace of sweet oblivion.

Manea lunged for him with a vicious snarl, and for once Alastor did nothing to defend himself. He took the brunt of her attack, allowing himself to get rolled onto his back beneath his enraged mate. What choice did he have though? Fight back and risk harming his children? The very notion was inconceivable to the demon wolf. So he took her attack, took her pushing him to the ground and straddling his prone body. Were he not in such a dishonorable state and Manea so violently furious, this would have been pretty damn arousing. Ah, who the hell was he kidding? This was still arousing to the demented brute. But any lecherous thoughts or feelings this position would have provoked in him were overshadowed by impassive emptiness as one of Manea's massive leonine paws pressed down on his windpipe with all her might, choking him to the point where he couldn't even gasp or wheeze. Alastor's body jerked as it fought reflexively for air, strangled sputters and convulsions of his throat in her paw the only sort of resistance she got from him. Through her vise-like grip, he could feel his wife's anger, her hate, her scorn and her pain. It wasn't unjustly deserved, not in the least. Alastor was reaping his just desserts for telling her the truth of his transgression.

While Manea brought her muzzle to whisper a deadly quiet threat into his ear, Alastor choked and sputtered again, feeling his lungs draw tight as they filled with carbon dioxide and spasmed for breath. A tighter squeeze around his throat cut off his blood flow entirely, causing a sudden head rush of dizziness. Alastor's mouth fell open in a silent and breathless gasp, black eyes staring blankly up at the ceiling of the cave. Suffocation always seemed like such an awful way to go—unless it was in an erotic way. This wasn't the case however, and Al found himself wishing Manea would just rip his throat out and be done with it already. Darkness began to creep in on Alastor's vision, but he still couldn't fight back. He glanced down at the swollen belly of his mate, thinking of the little lives growing within. He couldn't—he just couldn't. Not even if it cost him his own life. Thankfully, just before he slipped out of consciousness, Manea relaxed her grip just enough for Alastor to swallow a few deep breaths, coughing to soothe his burning lungs. Manea demanded to know what Relm was to him, an excellent question, even of himself. "She's under my protection," he said back with a subtle growl in his deep tones, words broken apart by heavy breaths. "She's someone I care about. Like Kichi. Like Sera." Granted, he wasn't sleeping with Kichi or Seraphina, but the intent was still the same. The wolves he cared about were under his protection for as long as they lived. Relm was no different in that regard. But if she was asking if Relm was a romantic interest... "I don't care for her like that."

"Alastor Mendacium"

Manea almost wished that he had fought back, that he hadn't just laid there and taken what she gave him, but she understood why he didn't and that frustrated her even more. He was such a good father that even though she was still early enough in her pregnancy that a light bit of fighting would be very low risk to their growing pups he still allowed her to strangle and choke him out just to keep from accidentally harming her or them. She could see it in how he reacted to her anger and her violence and how his obsidian gaze left her face to glance down her body to her rounded stomach. She wanted more reason to be furious, more reasons to cling on to anger instead of slipping into a feeling of helplessness, but he wouldn't give it to her and she hated it. She was so utterly dependent on him for every aspect of how she wanted her life to be thanks to her family's beliefs and her refusal to fall into the same weakness as her mother. The thought, no matter how unlikely, that he might have feelings for someone else that could try to steal him away from her terrified her in a way she didn't really want to admit.

After he swallowed a few breaths to recover from her strangling, he declared Relm under his protection in the same way Kichi and Seraphina were and insisted that his feelings for the pink wolf were not romantic in nature. She held still like that for a few moments longer, searching his face to make sure he was telling the truth, before her fury finally began to fizzle out and leave exhaustion in its wake. She sat back a bit with a shaky sigh, letting her paw slip down from his throat to join her other paw resting lightly on his chest while she sat basically in his lap. She looked down at her violet paws resting among the long, plush ebony fur on his chest and tried to find a way to just feel numb about the whole situation, but it was difficult. Her hormones running amok certainly didn't help matters, but it was times like these when she was reminded how he was the only one that could truly throw her off balance and pull emotions out from under the controlled, calculating exterior she usually kept. He was the only one that could ever make her loose her cool to such an extreme degree.

"No, I wasn't tormented and tortured growing up like you or Relm, but I still had trials of my own," she told him quietly after a few moments, still not meeting his gaze while she looked down at her own paws on his chest. "Growing up raised to believe that I was the future of an entire family, the one that was sent to bring greatness back to the Mendacium name, and yet somehow still resented and scorned by my own mother... The pressure to be flawless and never have a misstep or risk disproving the family's beliefs...." She sighed tiredly again, letting her claws gently comb through the fur on his chest absentmindedly. It was an expectation and a pressure she had never allowed herself to let go of. It was the reason she worked so tirelessly and refused to have anything less than the best for their family. They all depended on her and failure was not an option.

She knew she had never really discussed the details of what brought her family to its current state and with as raw and vulnerable as she felt in that moment it spilled out as she tried to explain why his actions hurt her so. "My father was killed before I was a year old. My mother never truly loved my father so as soon as he was out of the way she was so quick to move on and throw her family away with him. I had to be the one to maim and banish my own mother from the family and strip her of her name for breaking our most sacred law when she had Desponia... I understand that our traumas are vastly different, but I'm not privileged or perfect either." She hesitated for a moment and finally brought her gaze up to meet his before she added, "I know I put on a damn good show of always being confident, but... I'm not. Not always. The fear that I might lose you, that someone might steal you away, is always there."

"Manea Mendacium"

The reprieve that Manea gave him from her chokehold hadn't been expected to be anything more than momentary, but when he said what he did, Alastor was surprised to find his wife's massive leonine paw falling away from his throat rather than squeezing it shut again. He gazed up at her with confusion in his abyssal eyes, watching the gamut of emotions running across her face and flickering in her aqua eyes. She wanted to be angry with him, but it seemed to be getting more and more difficult for her to do so. Eventually, Manea settled with her paws resting on his fluffy chest, gazing down at her feet atop his broad, muscled chest while she sat perched atop him, practically sitting in his lap as she loved to do while she grappled with her emotions. Alastor didn't say a word, just letting her process things while he waited to see if he was still about to be killed or not. When it became apparent that he wasn't going to die today, the black-furred brute began to relax, not yet daring to try and touch her or say anything yet.

Manea did eventually break the tense silence between them, looking utterly defeated, confused, and even a bit scared. He'd never seen the woman he loved like this before; she was always so confident and composed. This raw and emotional side of her was uncharted territory for the Mendacium man. Then Manea began to speak, telling Alastor the story of her life growing up. She hadn't been subjected to the abuse or torment he and Relm had suffered through, but she had tribulations of her own she had to overcome, difficult choices she had to make. The pressure of perfection placed upon her by her own parents, and then her mother's subsequent betrayal of her family and how she had to punish and exile her. Alastor remained quiet, giving his mate all the open space she needed to fill while she let all of her emotions come spilling out in her vulnerable state. It was very difficult, however, for Alastor to suppress the rumbling murrs of delight threatening to bubble up in him while her paws began to comb sharp claws through his long fur and rake across his chest. Even in her emotionally fragile state, just Manea's fidgeting on top of him was delightful, but now wasn't the time. He was trying to be respectful of her.

When Manea brought her worried aqua eyes back up to meet his, she would find Alastor's calm and focused gaze locked solely on her. She was his only focus now; she had all of his attention. He gazed into the depths of those blue pools, only now daring to reach up to touch her. While she admitted that the fear that she might lose him to someone else was always in her heart, Alastor reached a massive black paw up to tenderly caress his wife's cheek, stroking paw pads along the curve of her jaw. His other paw lifted to rest on her waist, rubbing a small circuit up and down from her hipbone to her lower belly, where the swell of her pregnancy was just starting to show the most. "Nobody can steal me from you, Manea," he vowed, his deep voice low and gentle as he spoke. "I vowed this to you on the beach that night many seasons ago. No one can ever know my soul or have my heart the way you do. No one. I'm sorry I made you fear any different." Alastor remembered the vows they'd made the night they took one another as their mate, bound their souls together, and he was given the name Mendacium. He remembered every promise he ever made, because they meant something to him, but none more so than that one. No matter how close he got to Relm, nor anyone else, no living being could take him from being Manea's.

"Alastor Mendacium"

When Alastor's paw lifted to her cheek she leaned into his touch with a tired sigh, feeling drained and raw in the wake of a rare baring of her emotions. She didn't like allowing herself to be vulnerable like this, but in a way it felt cathartic. As much as she shared her life with Alastor, there were still parts of each other that they were still learning and revealing together. She did feel guilty for for how she had treated him, especially as he reassured her of the things that deep down she already knew. He had never given her reason to really question his loyalty or for their relationship to feel threatened in any way. He had formed his life to match what she wanted their futures to be and hardly ever had a complaint. Someone that wasn't fully invested wouldn't have gone through all of that trouble, but in the height of her emotions she hadn't been able to think of that. She could only imagine the life she had built and the man she loved more than life itself slipping away from her at a moments notice if she didn't stop it at the pass.

She hummed quietly at the feeling of his paw stroking across her lower back and belly, the gentle tingles across her skin bringing a just a bit of pleasure and relief from the strain that her changing body was going through. Her body was going to force her to rest, especially after that violent outburst, but first she felt like she needed to make her amends. Manea eased her body down over his, settling into him and brushing her muzzle against his, slipping her forelegs around his neck as she gave him little affections in her silent apology for how she had taken her own insecurities out on him. "I believe you," she told him quietly against his lips, gently scratching the back of his neck with her claws. "Sometimes I just need to be reminded... Especially when I find out that someone else has been touching my mate." She still didn't like what he did and she couldn't even promise that her opinion of Relm would really change, at least not right away. If anything it would probably be even more difficult for her to look at Relm in a positive light, but she was willing to try. She didn't want to hate the wolves that Alastor cared for. He had adopted her family as his own and he deserved for her to do the same.

Manea's lips brushed against his and trailed down along his jaw to his throat, kissing along his neck where she had been choking him only a few moments before while her hips pressed back into his. Even though she could forgive what he did and find her own way to deal with her insecurities when she was faced with them, there was still a part of her that was furious that someone else had touched and had what was hers. She was possessive and protective of him and even if emotionally he was entirely hers to have, physically someone else had taken him and she didn't feel like she would really rest until that part of her had been satisfied. For her own sake she needed to claim him as hers before she finally let herself sleep. She kissed along his throat with slow, savoring affections for a few moments before she brought her lips back up to his, claiming his muzzle with a firm kiss for a few moments. Her hips started to press back into his with equally slow, teasing movements at the same time, making her intentions very clear.

After several long moments of this she pulled back, giving him a little smirk as she gave him a teasing lick across his lips. "Come on," she instructed him softly, climbing off of him to walk further back into the cave to the secluded alcove that they had claimed as their own. The others would likely be returning soon since it was quickly descending into night and she would rather not have their children walk in on their make up sex. Her tail brushed across Alastor's muzzle as she led him into their den and made her way over to the large, plush bed, settling down onto it with a relieved sigh as she sank into the comfort of it. She rolled onto her back, stretching out on the bedding and looking to Alastor with a little grin as her hind legs fell open and she beckoned him over with a motion of her paw. As much as she would have loved to ride him through the night, she was trying to be good about understanding when her body had gone through enough so at least for now she was having to compromise just a bit.

"Manea Mendacium"

Alastor had never meant to hurt or upset Manea. He knew how possessive his mate was over him, but he'd never thought of the reason behind it. The insecurities and uncertainties that she hid, she hid well, even from him. He knew how exhausting feeling was, so the drain that came over her as she slumped her body down across his wasn't unexpected. Alastor welcomed Manea down over him with open arms, wrapping her up in his strong, secure embrace, massive paws roaming leisurely up and down her back while sharp claws gingerly scratched her back. She needed to rest, her pregnancy sapping her of the usual strength he knew she was capable of. Right now, his priority was taking care of her and their unborn pups. That was all that mattered to the Mendacium man. Manea's forelegs came up to loop around his neck while they cuddled, and he was happy to brush his muzzle and cheek back against hers with an affectionate purr. He accepted her quiet affections and wordless apology, but in his mind, there was nothing for her to apologize for. She had been suddenly terrified with the notion that someone else was stealing him away from her, and he couldn't fault her for that. He didn't know just what he'd be capable of if he felt threatened by some other brute. They were both equally possessive and jealous over one another, it seemed. They really were more alike in ways he didn't even realize.

Manea said she believed him, explaining how sometimes she just needed to be reminded that he was hers, all while her feline claws combed through the fur on his scruff, making Alastor's eyelids flutter while quiet groans of delight rumbled in his chest. "You were protecting what is yours. There's no fault in that," he remarked in even understanding. "But if reminding that you are the only one who will ever possess me is what you need, I'm happy to satisfy that need..." A little grin slid its way over Alastor's lips while Manea seemingly already had the same idea as him, her soft lips brushing over his in not quite a kiss before sliding down to his neck and throat. The dire brute showed no resistance as he lifted his chin to bear his throat to her, murring with each kiss she placed where her paw had been squeezing the life from him just moments before. It had been such an erotic and intense experience, and Alastor couldn't say he wouldn't tempt Manea to do it to him again just for the heady rush of being choked by her. He felt her shapely hips slide back to press gently into his while she teased along his skin, coaxing a muffled groan of surprised delight from the brute, who responded with roaming paws making their way down to her rump to grope and squeeze over her, kneading her ass between strong digits and soft paw pads. He knew what Manea was doing. She was the alpha, she had to lay claim over what was hers. This was her way of reminding both of them that he was hers and she was in charge and Alastor loved when she got like this.

All the while Manea continued to cover his vulnerable throat in slow kisses, Alastor continued to feel up his wife, massaging over her hips and rump and around the base of her tail while she quickened his pulse with every press of her lips to his tender flesh. Eventually she moved back up the curve of his throat, and when her lips claimed his in a firm kiss, Alastor groaned out his desire into her mouth, his tongue finding hers in wordless profession of his love and lust for her. The violet fae atop him began to roll and press her hips back into his in slow, firm movements, drawing more groans from her dire brute while he squeezed her rump in time with her motions, helping guide their hips together as she ground herself against his most sensitive and intimate parts. There was no mistaking what she wanted from him, and Alastor was prepared to give Manea everything she wanted. Together the two lovers worked themselves against one another, getting the other hot and bothered in a slow burn of passion and lust. After some time of eager foreplay, Manea broke their kiss and parted with a lick to his lips, tempting Alastor to follow her. The dark brute rolled to his paws in a hurry, following his queen into their private alcove at the back of their den where their bedding was, the entire space practically covered in warm, soft furs from all their hunts, turning all of the alcove into one giant bed for them to roll around in during their moments of passion.

With the promise of make up sex thinly veiled behind Manea's tail brushing over his muzzle, Alastor watched his wife's sultry movements with a lecherous grin, then swiftly followed her onto their bed as she lay down and stretched herself out upon it. Gazing down at her with infatuation that bordered on obsession, Alastor gazed at Manea as if she were the most prized treasure in the world, hungry eyes roaming over her beautiful and voluptuous form, lingering for a moment around the subtle swell of her midsection. He had already quelled her heat and planted his seed in her belly, but seeing her in the process of becoming a mother again made her even more beautiful and attractive to him in primal ways he didn't care to question. Manea rolled onto her back, an unusually submissive position for the matriarch, and presented herself to him with open legs and a beckoning paw. Alastor's grin widened, devouring her with his salacious gaze while he prowled over top of her like a ravenous predator, no doubt giving her a great view of all of his assets from her position beneath him.

Once above her, Alastor lowered his body to hers, feeling her silken fur of her belly brushing against his while he captured her mouth in another deep kiss. Alastor positioned himself between Manea's hind legs, settling himself over her fully, strong forelegs moving to wrap his paws around her waist—and then he was flipping them over, flopping to his back on the bed while rolling Manea's nubile body up over his so she was lying atop him once more, their bodies pressed fully together. His lips left hers with a lustful gleam in his eye and a playfully roguish grin on his face. "This is me reminding you..." he whispered to her in a deep, husky tone punctuated by quiet growls for her. His paws groped at her hips again, not so subtly guiding her down to stiffening parts of himself. "Go for as long as your body will let you. Then I'll take over, my Manea." Manea had wanted to be reminded that he belonged to her and that she was the dominant fae here, and so Alastor would remind her in the best way he knew how. And when she needed her alpha male to take over, he'd be sure to bring her to mind-numbing peaks of pleasure in turn.

"Alastor Mendacium"

Manea always adored the way Alastor looked at her, but the way his ebony gaze seemed to just devour her when she was pregnant was one of her favorite things. It was one of the unexpected pleasures she had discovered with him last year while she was carrying Avacyn and Saracyn and she would look forward to it every single year as long as they were blessed enough to continue having children. She stretched her slightly less lithe than normal body out on the soft furs for him to enjoy, grinning up at him while she just enjoyed the way he was looking at her for a few moments and letting her own gaze roam down his powerful form, eyeing every part of him with an equally hungry gaze. With all of the raw, frayed emotions smoothed over and brushed away, all she wanted was for her mate to make her feel loved and powerful and without a doubt she knew he could deliver that tenfold.

He only proved her point even more when he settled his body over hers, catching her lips in a firm kiss while his forelegs wrapped around her waist, only to have him immediately roll them over so that she was on top of him. She looked down at him with pleasant surprise as he broke their kiss and met her gaze with lust in his obsidian gaze. Now more than ever she was grateful for this brute that always surprised her with the little ways he showed how thoughtful he was. Growing up with men that thought little of their relationships and got into the mindset that they could do whatever they pleased since their Mendacium women relied on them so heavily, being with Alastor was a breath of fresh air and ignited an endless, fiery passion for this dark demon of a wolf. He knew what she needed without her having to ask and built her up in ways that she didn't even know she needed.

A grin pulled across her features as he told her to go for as long as she could and she was more than happy to follow those instructions while his paws groped at her hips and urged her onward. She shifted on top of him to straddle his body more comfortably and pressed another hard, passionate kiss to his lips, adding her own lustful growls and groans to their muffled sounds of pleasure while her hips began to work against his with slow, savoring motions, not wanting to wear herself out too quickly. Her eyes slipped closed while she made out with him, tasting him on her tongue with dominant growls and claws combing through the fur around his scruff and lightly dragging along his skin. She found pleasure of her own as she continued to tease him, making her moan quietly into his mouth while she continued the slow buildup atop of him.

After a while of this lecherous teasing she pulled away from his lips again, grinning and panting lightly as she shifted to sit up in his lap with her paws on his chest and she looked down at him with the dominant look of a predator that had laid eyes on their next meal. She lifted and shifted her hips until she could join them together, gasping at that familiar and wonderful feeling and filling their den with her delighted growls and groans. Her claws pricked at the skin on his chest and she gave him a sly grin, watching his expressions as her hips came to meet with his again. She continued her movements with steady, rolling, savoring motions of her hips, bringing them both the pleasure they so desperately needed. She couldn't get her body to behave as it normally would when she was with him like this, but she enjoyed it just as much all the same and it stroked her ego in a way she needed even more than the pleasure and release itself.

Manea was breathless as she slid a paw from his chest up to his throat with a wider grin, giving him a knowing look. "You liked when I did this, didn't you...?" she asked between her panting, giving a soft chuckle as the soft paw pads of her large, feline paw settled over his throat. She might have been enraged with him when she was choking him out before, but she was perceptive about what Alastor liked and she already knew how much her being dominant over him turned him on. She gave his throat a gentle squeeze, just enough for him to feel the pressure and just start to make it harder for him to breathe while she continued her steady movements. She wasn't sure how much longer she'd be able to keep them up with her muscles already starting to ache and tire, but she was too driven by her own lust to stop now. She leaned down over him, nibbling along his jaw as she growled, "You're mine... No matter who else... you touch or who... touches you... You'll always be mine..."

"Manea Mendacium"

The moment Alastor reversed their positions and put Manea on top of him, he knew he'd made the right decision. The look of surprise on her face quickly melted away to reveal that smoldering and insatiable lust he had come to know and worship her for. With his pregnant mate perched atop of him like this, straddling his waist and practically sitting in his lap, he could observe every beautiful part of her, from head to tail and every delightful part in between. His dark eyes lingered around the slight swell in her belly where their pups slept, feeling that paternal instinct kick in hard as his gaze returned to her aqua jewels and gazed deeply into them with nothing short of pure adoration and desire. Just as Manea had grown up with piss poor men as the standard in her life, Alastor had known only two women in any sort of close relation: his mother and his ex-fiancée, both of whom had abandoned him as soon as they possibly could. Manea was the stark opposite of both wretches. She didn't just value him—she treasured him, coveted him, possessed and protected him like the most valuable thing in the world. She made him feel worth something and made all the pain and anguish of his past worth suffering through to live to today. Just as she was grateful for him, Alastor would be eternally grateful for Manea.

The black dire wolf felt his violet queen shift above him, straddling his waist more properly and sliding her hips back until he felt her soft fur reach his physical arousal, drawing a shuddering breath from the brute that was swiftly silenced bay Manea's lips as she claimed his mouth in another intensely passionate kiss. Together their lustful growls and groans created a beautiful chorus of desire and love that filled their den, echoing around the cozy alcove they'd made their bedroom. Her hips began to work against his, rolling in slow and savoring motions that rubbed all the right parts of him all the right ways and made those pleasured sounds all the more frequent and loud. His eyes closed and darkness engulfed him while he contented himself with enjoying everything his mate was doing to him, singing her praise with his reactions while he tasted her, their tongues wrestling about between their maws for dominance. As her claws combed through his chest fur, his own pricked at her hips, squeezing her shapely rump while doing nothing to inhibit any of those delightful movements she was pressing into him. Together the two lovers rolled and roiled their way through a slow burn of a buildup, working one another higher and higher through the levels of pleasure and ecstasy they had become so intimately familiar with with one another.

After what felt like a time that was both painfully short and excruciatingly long, Manea pulled her muzzle from his and broke their kiss, leaving Alastor breathing hard and grinning back up at his amazing wife while she sat up on top of him, grinning back and panting as well. She looked positively feral for him, starving and wild. She was so beautiful when she got like this, and Alastor considered himself the luckiest brute alive that he was the one who got to see her in such a way. She moved her hips again, and Alastor felt her lift up, and then surround him as she joined their bodies together and he gradually slid within her. A breathless gasp stole what remained of the air in the brute's lungs, obsidian eyes going wide and rolling back in his skull while deeply pleasured groans fell from his open jaws. He growled back with her at the intensity of the pleasure, stars exploding before his eyes while their hips slowly met and he was once more within her. Manea didn't even pause before she began the slow and steady roll of her hips, grinding herself against him and coaxing deeper, more guttural and breathy moans and growls from the dire brute pinned beneath her while she brought them both the pleasure they so desperately needed. Every shift and move of her body felt heavenly, making Alastor's eyelids flutter and abyssal eyes roll back while he panted and pushed his body back against hers as he gave himself up to Manea in totality.

So lost was he in their pleasure and fucking that he didn't immediately notice Manea's leonine paw beginning to slide up his body until he felt the gentle pressure of her paw pads resting on his throat. A groan cut off mid sound with a little gasp and his eyes blinked to refocus on what was going on. Alastor gazed up at Manea, seeing the knowing look in her wild eyes while she grinned down at him in her uniquely dominant and lecherous way. She teased him with her words, asking a question she undoubtedly already knew the answer to. She had seen the way he reacted when she'd choked him in her fury earlier, and now it seemed she intended to see how that affected her husband in the bedroom. Alastor didn't respond verbally, instead flashing sharp teeth in a wide grin while salacious eyes burned up into her gaze. He started to growl in response, but Manea shut him up quickly when her paw flexed over his throat, squeezing his windpipe just enough to strangle the sound with a gag and choke him to where his every other panting breath came out as a wheeze. Alastor squirmed harder beneath Manea while she choked him and rode him, his toes curling and hips bucking up to meet hers in time with her motions. She was driving him wild yet also keeping him locked in such a deeply pleasured state that he was a slave to her.

Manea draped her voluptuous body down across his and nibbled at his jaw while she growled out words of dominance and possessiveness. He was hers, now and forever, no matter who else he touched or who touched him. Alastor gave a deep moan in reply to her claim over him, his paws pulling her hips hard to his in silent affirmation that she had all of him, and she always would. He could feel his mate's movements beginning to slow and lose rhythm as she tired, most of her energy still going to creating the little lives inside her, but he could feel her passion and lust spurring her on in each move she did still make, and he lavished in it. His paws once more rested on her shapely hips, just waiting for the moment when she either found her second wind and pushed them over the edge together or when her stamina finally wore out and he could show her that she also belonged entirely to him.

"Alastor Mendacium"

Alastor stole her breath away as he pulled her hips down into his and drove himself as deep as her body allowed, her moans and growls of pleasure mingling and echoing with his around their bedroom. She kept a grip around his throat, occasionally squeezing enough to take away his ability to breathe for a bit of time and sometimes just leaving a bit of pressure there so the intention was clear that she could if she wished. Her movements weren't as strong or smooth as they were when she began, but she kept going all the same and pulled out her last scraps of energy so she could see this through. She knew that he would be more than happy to bring them to the end if she needed it, but she wanted to have this moment so badly that no amount of exhaustion could keep her from it. He was hers and would be till the end of their days and while she knew one round of heated, passionate sex wasn't the make or break of that fact it still soothed her bruised ego and gave her that feeling of dominance that sometimes she needed more than air. She gathered her energy and pushed through to the very end, her paw flexing around his throat as she hit her peak with him, her groans and cries of pleasure echoing freely around the den as they found the heights of their pleasure.

As soon as she started to come down from that high, she let go of his throat and collapsed on top of him, her eyes fluttering closed while she panted to catch her breath and tucked her head into the crook of his neck. She was absolutely wiped out and exhausted, but so incredibly satisfied and pleased with herself. She needed this moment of reclaiming her mate even if there was no real threat. She knew it was entirely for her own peace of mind, but it still helped to calm her down. She slipped her forelegs around him as she snuggled into the long, plush fur of his chest and neck, her slightly less lithe than normal form stretched out across his as she quickly started to drift off to sleep, her body finally forcing her to rest now that she had expended every last bit of energy she had left.

"Manea Mendacium"

Just as he stole her breath away, Manea stole his in turn with every roll and drop of her hips against his that brought him riding over tsunami waves of pure pleasure and with every flex of her paw around his throat. She played him like an instrument, controlling his sounds of pleasure with her body and her grip, coaxing deep and rumbling moans and growls from him and then strangling them or silencing them entirely with however strong she wanted to choke him at that given time. Obsidian eyes glazed over with euphoria and rolled back behind half-closed lids as Manea drowned him in this river of absolute sexual gratification, totally dominating and possessing and using him as she pleased, staking her claim fresh over him as his mate and he her brute. It was erotic and hot and everything he enjoyed oh so much! He could feel Manea's strength waning as her movements atop him became shorter and more fatigued, but his mate, ever insistent in being in control and seeing things through to the end, refused to stop. He saw that possessed grin on her face and in her gorgeous aqua eyes. She wasn't going to stop until she had both of them howling to the heavens.

And she did just that, bringing Alastor higher and higher up to that plateau of pure pleasure as the coil inside his belly tightened and tightened, his muscles tensing and body preparing for its finish. Teeth gnashed together and his hips pressed harder to hers with shorter, erratic bucks until she was crying out her passion and she tensed around all of him. Manea brought Alastor careening into his climax with her, the dire brute groaning aloud as he hit his peak with her, massive paws flexing to dig his claws into her hips while their bodies pressed together one final time. That groan was swiftly cut off with a choking gag when Manea's leonine paw squeezed around his throat through the duration of her orgasm, making his head swim with the heady sensations of his own climax and the oxygen deprivation. When Manea did eventually release her grip, Alastor gasped for breath, a floaty expression on his face and satisfied grin creeping across his muzzle.

As the two lovers slowly descended from the high of their fucking into the blissful afterglow of post-coital cuddling, Alastor happily received Manea's body down across his as if he were a mattress for her. His strong forelimbs slid up to wrap around her back, holding his mate safe and secure while she settled in on top of him, snuggling up all happy and cozy with her head tucked beneath his. Gradually their labored breathing began to settle down until Alastor heard the telltale sounds of Manea's slower breathing that meant she had drifted off to sleep. The dire brute grinned proudly; she was so adorable when she wore herself out fucking him. With one paw idly rubbing up and down her back, it was only a few moments more before Alastor's eyes closed and the brute had also drifted off into a content and peaceful sleep with his wife atop of him and cuddled up in his arms.

"Alastor Mendacium"