While Relm was mostly secluded to herself and her duties, she did care an awful lot about what Manea specifically thought of her. Being here with Kichi and Alastor was the only thing she wanted in her life and the only good things to happen to her. It wasn't easy for her to be likable and that wasn't specific to Manea or so she thought. She actually thought very lowly of herself and while no where near a common ground with Manea, so highly of her. Manea and Alastor ran Elysium together, but ultimately she believed that Manea would have the final say if it came down to removing her. She didn't want that, but if that's how it had to be...

It was about midday, the celebration for the yearlings birthdays would be upon them any day she assumed, and she did want to work better with Manea. She had wanted to seek her out for maybe over the last week now, but really couldn't work up the courage to do so. Not go find her in the middle of Manea's duties that was. She simply waited to find her in the common areas as long as it wasn't so late in the day, and so when she spotted her resting along the lake shores she sucked it up and took her opportunity.

She quietly approached her, awkwardly as ever, waiting until she was close enough for her to hear her and so she didn't have to shout, "Manea?" She questioned a little hesitantly, Relm's social anxieties were easy to notice. Still she took a quiet breath, and just as when she sparred Manea it was like something washed over her and she was in a different mind set, "I wanted to see if you wanted to join me in a hunt for the yearling celebration." Just like she broke the ice with Alastor in their spar, she was hoping to do the same thing with Manea. A little differently driven of course. Relm wasn't aware of Manea being pregnant yet so she wasn't expecting her to not being feeling well or weak from the growing pups in her stomach and of course she didn't know those types of things first hand.

"Relm"

In the fallout of her fight with Alastor, the insistence from both him and Irilyth that she slow down and take it easy intensified to the point that she thought they might force her to stay in the cave until the pups arrived if she didn't. Irilyth couldn't pinpoint anything in particular wrong with the pregnancy, but she continued to constantly be worn out and strained by even the most simple of tasks. Today Avacyn had caught wind of what was going on and refused to even let her discuss the plans for the upcoming celebration when Manea went to have her usual meeting with her, her daughter instead sending her away and telling her to rest. Of all the times to be sequestered to the den with her own thoughts now was certainly not when she wanted that to be. Her emotions over Alastor's tryst with Relm were still tangled and messy, sometimes making her angry and other times dragging up her insecurities from the depths.

She tried to at least appease her worrying family by finding other places to rest on the island, picking a sunny spot by the lake to lay down rather than having to be cooped up inside all day. The pups she was carrying clearly still had some growing to do before they were born, but her round belly was slowly beginning to be more noticeable. The warmth of the sun was soothing and as she laid with her head on her paws she was able to chase away her own thoughts in the steady sound of the small waves from the lake hitting the rocky shore. That peace was interrupted as the voice of the one woman she had no desire to see called her name, making her ear flick and a slow sigh pass through her nose.

Manea didn't respond immediately, but did eventually lift her head to look at Relm with a carefully neutral expression. She couldn't even say that she hated the woman now. Not any more, at least. Now she just wasn't sure how to label the way she felt about her and that was almost worse. It put her somewhere between dislike and neutrality, distrust and intrigue. She wanted to know what Alastor saw in her besides a similar background and a need to protect her or maybe that was really all it was and that was enough for her husband to want her. The fact that he and Relm had slept together still irked her, but she was at least attempting to give Relm another chance for Alastor's sake while he worked his way off of the thin ice he had put himself on.

She was surprised by the offer Relm made, so much so it almost made her suspicious of Relm's intentions, but she tried to just appreciate the fact that Relm was willing to contribute toward the celebration Avacyn was working so hard to plan and not search for anything deeper than that. After considering Relm for a moment she sighed softly and replied, "I genuinely wish I could. Nothing would make me happier than chasing down and ripping into some prey." Laying around for someone so accustomed to always being busy felt like it was worse than death and it had been far too long since she had gotten to enjoy a good hunt. She shifted a little to lay more comfortably and not put as much pressure on her stomach. "Unfortunately, Irilyth and Alastor have put me on strict orders to not do any strenuous activity. This pregnancy has been far more draining than the last."

"Manea Mendacium"

Relm wouldn't know the more inner makings of Manea's mind, the aftermath of her and Alastor's last time together, any way Manea reacted Relm tried to take lightly. She knew she wasn't easy to cozy up to, and frankly she was sure that most of the pack didn't care much for her either. I wasn't like she was being very social anyway. It was no different with Manea. She wanted to try to do better which is why she was here. And she wasn't in much of a different situation with Alastor too long ago. It was hard being around Manea as it was hard being around Alastor following Kefka's death. Not everything could have the same fix, but she wouldn't know until she tried.

With a bit of silence at first, Relm just stood her ground and waited for Manea's response. God she hoped she wasn't actually ignoring her. She couldn't help that strain of her social anxieties and insecurities but she maintained her physical demeanor well. She had grown really to just shut herself down when it got the best of her. Maybe that wasn't healthy, but it seemed to get her into the right mindset.

When Manea finally responded, Relm could say she felt more at ease. She seemed rather mellow and friendly so, that was a good thing, right? What she wasn't expecting was the news of her pregnancy. Which wasn't bad or alarming, she certainly wasn't up for that kind of life, more specifically motherhood. SO there were not even flicks of jealousy to the thought. Whatever deeper thoughts Manea may have had about Relm and Alastor as a pair was really no contest to what she had. "Oh, uh," She took a gentle seat beside her while she was not so eager to travel for the hunt anymore. "Did you... want my help with anything?" she asked genuinely, not immediately shooting down the opportunity for any type of interaction with her.

"Relm"

Relm was clearly surprised by her current state which made sense considering she hadn't really made a big show of it or talked about it much. Those who needed to know would know and the rest of the pack would find out naturally as her pregnancy progressed and her body showed the signs of it. With Relm's original plan shot down she had half expected the pink-marked woman to take her leave, but instead she sat down and asked if there was anything else she wanted help with. She gave Relm a curious and slightly suspicious glance, but considering one of her issues with the other woman from the beginning was feeling as if she was unwilling to make an effort she felt like she would be hypocritical if she turned her away now. Manea was being forced to actually follow through with the promise she made to herself to try and find common ground with this woman that Alastor cared about and in some ways she was thankful that she didn't have to be the one to approach Relm first and in others she wished it was a time when she felt more like herself.

"Well... I do need to start making my way back up to the caves so I can get something to eat and take the herbs Irilyth prescribed for me. Would you accompany me?" She didn't like to admit how worn down she had allowed herself to get in the first few weeks of her pregnancy and now it was difficult to do much of anything—including climbing the mountain trail to get back to their dens. She usually waited until Alastor was done with his tasks for the day so that he could go with her to make sure she made it without incident, but since Relm was here and offering her help she might as well take advantage. She rolled slowly onto her paws and stood, her round belly a bit more obvious when she was standing. Her back and legs ached, but luckily the trip back to the den wasn't all that far, albeit a bit steep.

She started to walk with Relm beside her, quiet and not really sure what to say. She felt like she had to address the elephant in the room, but she also wondered if perhaps it would be easier to just ignore it and allow Relm and Alastor's relationship to be what is was. In the end she finally decided that not confronting it would only allow it to borrow into her insecurities again and she was trying to avoid that for all of their sakes. "Alastor told me about... you two," she told her, giving Relm a glance as they moved steadily through the winding path. "I've gotten his side of things and his promises and assurances, but I need them from you as well." Her tone wasn't hard or accusatory or threatening. She was simply stating a fact and looking to make sure that Relm's feelings on the matter matched Alastor's. "I don't control Alastor's every move. He's allowed to make his own decisions, have his own fun. If it's just about the sex then fine. If it's more than that... then you're towing a fine line."

"Manea Mendacium"

Manea offered for Relm to join her up to the caverns of the island and she easily agreed, "Sure." Rising as Manea did and waited for her to move on first.

She wasn't well versed in any regard of pregnancy or pregnant women, so she didn't really understand the importance of her role beside Manea of the mountain trail. Maybe she just wanted company... or maybe she was in the same thoughts as Relm wanting to make things work between them.

Relm went a little wide eyed in her steps as Manea mentioned, fuck this was embarrassing. She didn't expect her and Alastor's sexual relationship to be secret, but she certainly didn't want to talk about it. She couldn't help the wince on her face at the thought, but at least Manea wasn't met back with lies or violence. Her eyes glanced at Manea who she had kept just a step ahead of her, she wasn't sure if she had been able to see the look on her face, she was sure there were still remnants anyway.

It had finally come her turn to speak, while Manea hadn't necessarily asked her a question but knew she wanted a response. It took her a moment to form words, probably not a surprise from the usually awkward girl. "I won't... you have to trust that I will always be honest with you Manea." She spoke while understanding that their relationship was not far or necessarily on good terms, but it was the truth. She would stop in step if Manea did, otherwise she would keep walking along the trail beside her. "I won't tell you that nothing is there. Alastor means more to me than I can even describe." God she was probably digging her grave. "But Manea, you have to understand that my loyalties are more to you. It's more important to me to stay here rather than the latter." She sighed quickly before picking back up again, "I don't want you to ever think or feel like my intentions are ever against you. I wouldn't allow it to be anymore than it is." And that's how she would keep it. She would never want to put herself between Alastor and Manea, to replace Manea in Alastor's life. She literally wouldn't allow it had Alastor ever had he idea which she wouldn't have expected. She understood Manea's place in Alastor's life, she was hoping that Manea could see the same.

"Relm"

She was interested to see how Relm reacted or what her response would be and when she glanced over at the other woman she could tell from her expression that the topic was uncomfortable to say the least. It wasn't an easy thing to address for her either, but in the end it was better if they did and left no wondering or uncertainty to let things grow or fester in her imagination. She wanted things to be plain and clear for the both of them so that they could all find a way to coexist in peace—or, more likely, just find a way for her to accept Relm's presence here. She gave a soft hum when Relm insisted that she would always be honest with her and then turned her gaze back toward the path in front of them, though she did keep her ear turned toward Relm as she continued to listen. Just like with Alastor, she was willing to hear her out and make her own judgements once she heard both sides.

It was good that she already knew how Alastor felt about Relm before the pink marked woman began to speak about how much Alastor meant to her. It still unsettled Manea a bit to hear someone else speak about her husband like this, but she had to remind herself that it wasn't the same kind of emotion and ties that she felt about her mate. Relm and Alastor were close and cared about one another, but in a different way and Manea was at least attempting to find ways to be okay with that. What she wasn't expecting was for Relm to insist that her loyalties belonged to her first. This made Manea's brow crease with a bit of confusion and she slowed as she brought her gaze back to Relm, eventually slowing to a stop while her Praelia continued to explain her stance and how important staying in this pack was to her.

That was definitely not the response she was expecting from Relm and it took her a moment to process it. At the very least she got what she was looking for from Relm—a promise that whatever this was between her and Alastor wouldn't go further than it was. She appreciated Relm's vow that nothing she did was to go against her and it made Manea look at her a bit differently. It seemed that there was a lot she misunderstood about the younger woman. "I believe you," she replied after a moment, giving Relm a small nod. It felt like a small step in the right direction for them and considering where her opinion of Relm had started after she found Alastor on top of her a few seasons ago it felt like they were making a great deal of progress.

Manea turned her attention back toward he path and began to walk again, considering things for a moment. Her limbs were begging her to stop and rest, but they were so close to the den that it felt silly to stop now. She did move a bit more slowly through as she was careful to make sure she didn't trip on some jutting rock in the path or something of that sort. "I apologize for how I treated you before," she said after a few lingering moments of silence. "I don't apologize often, but I'm not too proud to understand when I've been in the wrong." She couldn't quite get herself to look at Relm as she said it, but she still felt like it needed to be said.

"Manea Mendacium"

Relm seemed... entirely different than Manea. Relm could wash away her anxious emotions, but definitely was more odd than not. Manea on the other hand seemed more sturdy and confident, at least through the emotions she showed her. Relm could hold up physically of course and really mentally too. It was just these smaller interactions with others, those that weren't Kichi or Alastor or like the conversation she was having with Manea now that just set her off balance. They may have never really communicated the best together because Relm did communicate as Alastor knew, physically and emotionally and more so when she was comfortable. She would have to get over it here to get Manea to understand just how important staying here with the ones she cared about was to her.

Relm wasn't surprised when Manea apologized, just somewhere around that sense. They were back walking up the mountain trail but Relm had a hard time looking directly at Manea even if it was just the side of her face. That was typical of her. Still she managed some kind of awkward smile as she responded, "I know I'm not... easy. But I appreciate it." Easy to talk to, easy to get to know, easy to be around. Everything. She wasn't easy, not like this. Relm couldn't know what Alastor had told Manea about her past, but really none of that mattered to her. Things were tough growing up but could have been much worse. More so recently had it been the hardest but with her father dead she felt like she could finally move on. She didn't really know how or where, but at least she could breathe again.

Relm wasn't fluent with the ways of any relationship, and she may have been a little naive to think just how better her's and Manea's was from the way they walked together. It may have been true, or at least to some extent. She at least wouldn't jump up tomorrow morning and be right in Manea's face ready to frolic through the flowers or anything. She was sure the struggles would still come and go, but she would still do everything she could to live beside Alastor and Kichi until she couldn't anymore.

"Relm"

Manea smiled softly as Relm took her apology and the two of them fell into an easy silence—or at least easier than it had ever been for the two of them. Knowing what she knew now about Relm's past she felt like she could understand Relm better or could give her more leeway when it came to her behavior. In the same way she understood that Alastor was just Alastor and he would forever just act the way that he did, Relm was just Relm. She valued Alastor's opinion more than anyone else's and if Relm truly meant something to him then Manea would find a way to make this work. The longer she was with the younger woman the more she was beginning to recognize how harsh she had been on her at first and even if they would never be the best of friends she was still pleased that they were civil. Relm's loyalty to her still baffled her a bit, but she decided not to question it. She just needed to take these small victories where she could find them.

Finally they reached the cave and she went over to the lounge area of plush furs just inside the entrance and laid down with a relieved sigh. She was going to be so grateful when this portion of her pregnancy was finally over and she wasn't so utterly exhausted all of the time. She just kept reminding herself how it would all be worth it when their new son or daughter joined their family. She looked up at Relm with a small smile. "Thank you for walking with me. Perhaps once these little darlings are no longer behaving like parasites I'll take you up on your offer of a hunt." There was plenty of prey in the mountain range on the island that made for very fun hunts and she was oh so eager to get back to that as soon as her body allowed. She paused for just a moment, studying the younger wolf as she considered something, but ultimately pushed the thought to the side. She didn't want to move too far too fast just incase this momentary peace between them was still fragile enough to be broken. "Have a good evening, Relm," she said as she settled her head on her paws to rest for a while.

"Manea Mendacium"