Plague sent her on her way after they talked everything out together and her white gloved paws moved swiftly away from Ashen. Maverick hadn’t walked away too long ago, and she knew if she hurried she would catch up with him. The crazy thoughts raced through her mind as she raced through the snow, following Mav’s pawprints, determined not to have another night away from him. Saying how she felt out loud to her brother was the push she really needed to accept the truth of the matter. She had taken long enough to know now that it was not just her loneliness driving her. Venom’s heart had opened to Maverick, she cared about him and she wouldn’t have been chasing him now if she wasn’t certain the inverse was also true.

"Maverick?” Venom called out into the darkness as she neared the camp. She slowed, hesitant now that she had arrived to her destination. Certainty had dwindled as she walked, but only for fear of rejection. The Empress knew exactly what she wanted, but she had a fear for what Mav would ultimately desire. This wasn’t a topic they had ever breached, but it wasn’t out of the blue. They both had a strong desire to be in the other’s company. She just wasn’t sure if he would want such a permanent situation as she did. "Mav?” She asked again as she approached carefully after the encounter with Plague.

"Venom"

He hadn't really left her—not immediately, at least. When he'd bid Venom good night and excused himself, Maverick had actually hung around in the dark woods for a minute more, watching to make sure Venom was all right and not in any sort of trouble. He didn't know who the white and brown brute was that had found them at the border, but whoever he was, Venom knew him and knew him well, given how she had settled into his side while they spoke. He couldn't hear what was said, but judging by their relaxed demeanors, he supposed Venom wasn't in any sort of danger. Once he knew she was all right, Maverick had breathed a sigh and trudged his solitary way back several lands over to his camp. Part of him had thought to pack up and move closer to Ashen so he could be right there for Venom—but then he reminded himself that he was nobody to her, and that's why they had to keep sneaking about and maintain a low profile. Just another stranger in a world much too big that she was having a good time with. He was her medicine for her heartache, and medicine, as good as it made you feel, was a temporary thing.

Maverick had trudged his way through the cold and snow all the way back to the Fern Gulley, his camp suddenly seeming much more dreary and lonely and less like home. He scowled, feeling his spirit deflate as he crawled into his den and buried himself beneath his bedding, trying to drown out the world and his own thoughts. Life had been so much simpler before getting mixed up with Venom. He'd had an easy routine to his life. Get up, find an adventure, find some entertainment of the lady, liquid, or herbal variety, go to sleep. Wash, rinse, repeat until he decided to move on. Now look at him... He was lingering, he was thinking things like moving closer to her pack, he was doing crazy shit like planning dates and meetings. What the hell was wrong with him?! This was all wrong. He was a vagabond, a scruffy rouge with no place in a world like hers. Their relationship was built on tiptoeing and sneaking around. It wasn't fair to her. It wasn't fair to him either, but when did he ever give a fuck about what was fair to himself? Life wasn't fair. The end. If he really cared about Venom, then maybe the greatest kindness he could do for her was to disappear.

Just as his dour thoughts were beginning to carry him off into an unsettled sleep, a sound from outside his camp caught his attention. At first he thought it had been his morose mind playing tricks on him, but when her voice called out for him a second time, Maverick rose from his bed with such a start he sent the furs flying. Venom was here. Maverick emerged from the small den in a flash of blue and white, and there she was, standing in the moonlight with her fur shimmering like she was made of diamonds. "Ven?" he asked in surprise, padding through the snow towards her, concern painted on his face. "What are you doing out here? Is everything all right? Are you okay?" Maverick's heart stopped with a jolt when he realized that his words that had come out in a flurry had all been concern for her. The vagabond had never cared for the wellbeing of another that swiftly or readily before. But Venom... dammit, she had a way of getting to him! Still, here she was, standing in the cold and dark in the middle of the night at his camp. He needed to know everything was all right with her.

"Maverick"

She didn’t want to go another night without him, she realized as Plague found them sneaking around the border, that what they were creating wasn’t right. Sneaking around being secretive about the budding emotions for one another and how they were fostering a relationship. It wasn’t what an Empress should do, and it wasn’t fair to either party. Yes Maverick continued to come back, he was always punctual for their secret dates, and he had found himself in the Hallows at a wedding he wasn’t even a part of just to accompany her. If he didn’t have the same feelings growing as she did then this would end tonight. Either way things went, there would be no more hiding.

His trail was fresh, and she hadn’t been with her brother for too very long, but as Maverick erupted from his den she could see his dreamy features, and knew she had disturbed him. What was more though, she was struck by his reaction to seeing her here. Concern swiftly overtook his features as a flood of questions came pouring from his mouth. It made the corners of her lips pull back into a warm grin as white gloved paws helped to close the distance between them.

"I’m fine,” she tried to put him at ease as she raised her muzzle close to her, her gaze downcast towards his lips as she steeled herself. Venom didn’t know if she could handle the rejection from him, but if she never said it their fate would be even worse than that. All of their time spent together, all of her time spent thinking about him, debating the future, all came to a head right now. "I don’t know that everything is alright though.” She continued softly as she pulled away from him again, lowering herself to her silver marked haunches as her tail wrapped around her hips. A sign of her insecurity at that moment.

Venom’s purple pink gaze lifted to his stunning blue eyes and her resolve was renewed. Her chest was tight and nerves settled in her belly like nothing before. She felt like she was a yearling again with the emotions filling her up. "Maverick…” Really she was at a loss for words, but it was in these moments that she spoke most truthfully within. "I don’t want to spend another night alone, I don’t want to keep sneaking around and hiding my affection. I don’t want… I don’t want to say goodbye to you anymore.” She searched his features before she went on in finality, "I want you to be my ruffian.” Her words were quiet, somewhat pleading, and deep down, frightened. This was either the beginning of something incredible, or the end, it was all up to Maverick.

"Venom"

Maverick would scarcely breathe until Venom had confirmed that she was okay and unharmed. A thousand different scenarios of what could have been wrong to bring the Ashen alphess out to his isolated camp in the dead of night had flooded his overactive imagination. Her words soothed his anxiousness and the dire brute breathed a sigh of relief, his posture visibly relaxing when she assured him she was fine. But that still begged the question of what she was doing out here. It was dark and cold, and far too lonely for the Empress to be prowling about on her own. Not that he didn't trust her to handle herself, but he definitively did not trust the rest of the world with her. She padded her way closer to him, her sunset eyes lingering on his mouth as the space between them diminished. He didn't withdraw or pull away, he never would from her. Once they were practically upon one another, she stopped and reclined into a sit, silver haunches meeting snow as she confessed that everything wasn't all right.

Anxious concern twisted up Maverick's gut while he scrutinized Venom's expression, desperate to figure out what was plaguing her brain. She looked insecure and uncertain, but about what, the vagabond couldn't even begin to guess. He took a cautious step closer, his every breath forming a translucent cloud of steam from his nares while he waited for her to extrapolate further. Again those eyes that captured the essence of twilight lifted to meet his, stealing his thoughts and his breath while he lost himself in them, feeling as if he were peering into the Empress' very core through those stained glass windows of her soul. She spoke his name, hesitating with what she wanted to say. Maverick felt his heart wrench and sink when he realized what this was. This was Venom breaking off their unconventional relationship. This was the end of their escapades together. He swallowed hard, jaw setting as he prepared to throw on the mask that concealed the raw emotions he buried inside and hide the pain as he had always done.

But the blow to his heart never came. Instead, Venom spoke words that took him fully of guard. She didn't want him to leave. She didn't want to spend another night alone without him or continue to hide their relationship to the world. She was tired of sneaking around to see him and she didn't want to say goodbye. The shock painted on his face was impossible to hide when she said she wanted him to be hers, calling back to their first meeting when she called him "her ruffian". As frightened as Venom was, Maverick was equal parts taken off guard. His chest felt tight with the conflicting emotions. He'd had women beg him to stay with them before, but none he felt anything for even a fraction as much as the way Venom made him feel. When he was with her, it didn't feel like he was playing a game. It felt like he was just cutting loose, being himself. He'd seen Venom grow from a cold, broken effigy of herself into the lively and vivacious ruler sitting before him now. He'd invested into her in ways he'd never done with any casual flings before. But did that mean he was ready to be hers? Was he capable of being a steady, monogamous wolf?

For a few moments, Maverick stood there, mouth agape as he opened and closed his mouth over and over again. His brain told him this was the best opportunity to find stability and happiness. His heart told him this was everything he wanted and needed. But his spirit, that untamed and indomitable spirit that yearned to run and play and explore didn't know how it would take to being domesticated. To being a house husband, the consort to the Empress. Although he did have to admit, Prince Consort Maverick did have a tempting ring to it... "Ven... Venom..." Maverick began, his mouth slowly beginning to form the words his brain and heart desperately wanted to say. "Do you mean it...? Are you sure this-" He gestured to himself with a paw. "-is what you want? I'm not some noble lord or highborn wolf. I don't have accolades or fame, titles or treasures. I'm just the scruffy hooligan who showed up on your doorstep."

When they'd first begun to hook up, Mav had fully believed that their trysts would be temporary. After all, she was an Empress, and he was an unaffiliated rascal. The more time they spent together, the more attached he had become, and he'd even dared to let himself fantasize a world where he might have been good enough for her. But that had always felt like what it was—a fantasy. She deserved someone more worthy of her. Someone who belonged at the side of a monarch. A prince, not a scoundrel.

"Maverick"

She couldn’t really read his features as she finally began to speak. There was no other eventuality than this one, confronting how she felt and laying her heart bare for Maverick to see. Her sunset eyes rested deep into the endless sky blue of his gaze as silence settled between them. The night wrapped around them as she finished speaking. Venom held her breath and froze as she waited for him to answer her confession. Maverick was obviously taken aback by her words and another beat passed with only quiet lingering.

Finally she was able to see the surprise as his expression cracked and his jaw fell from his upper lip. She didn’t know what he had expected her to say, but this was obviously not what he had come into the conversation to expect. It was her turn to expect the worst, her heart clenched as he finally found his voice, starting by whispering her name in disbelief. He questioned her as his mismatched paw gestured vaguely to himself as he tried to talk her down. This wasn’t rejection, this was knee jerk reaction.

The words he said further convinced her as he tried to talk her out of her feelings. Uttering the words that had held her back from this confrontation from the very beginning. That was why she had hesitated, why she had snuck out and around with him. She didn’t know if this was the right path for an Empress to take. But Plague’s words held strong. Her second in command had given her permission to do what was right for her for once. Venom had taken her highborn Prince as a husband and he left her. She had seen to her duty, now she could focus on the desires of her heart. Venom knew beyond a doubt now that she wanted this man beside her.

"I mean every word.” She told him softly as he questioned her, and went on to give his list of reasons why she shouldn’t. "Maverick,” Her voice was soft, she tilted her features, finding it easier to gaze longingly into his eyes now that she had come clean with her emotions. "That’s why I want you. I had my royal husband, and you’ve seen where duty and honor have gotten me.” She would never regret Hattori, he had given of himself while he was with her. He had paid his dues, but that wouldn’t offset the breaking of his oath. Or her broken heart.

"Venom wants you.” She told him, leaning closer once again, giving him power over her as he was free to accept or reject her offer and advances. "The Empress just gets to benefit as well.” She joked softly, scarcely breathing as she waited.

"Venom"

His words that questioned her judgment were swiftly dispelled when the snow and shadow Empress quickly reaffirmed her claim that she meant every word she said. She wanted him to be with her. She wanted him because he wasn't a highborn lord from a noble family. Venom wanted him as he was, as she so eloquently put it, phrasing her heart's desire far more poetically than he likely would have. She had had her highborn husband once upon a time and it had laid her low, rent her heart to pieces and left her in the state that he had found her in. She didn't want someone for titles or accolades, power or fortune. She wanted him. The gravity of that claim left the dire brute reeling in shock. Maverick had always ben a bit of a Casanova, able to charm and flirt his way to just about anything he wanted, but that had always been with lowborn wolves such as himself—commoners who saw him as a handsome face and toned body. He'd never once gotten to this degree of commitment with any of them. Perhaps that made him a bit of a reprobate, but he had never cared. He'd followed flights of fancy and whatever his heart wanted at the time, and all those times before his heart had wanted a quick and easy lay to satisfy his urges and then to be on his way. But this time... this time things were different. He'd invested himself with Venom in ways he had not anticipated. For once in his life, Maverick was thinking past tomorrow. For once, he didn't want to run away.

The vagabond wolf swallowed hard, his breathing shallow as all sorts of unfamiliar emotions welled up and tightened in his chest. His heart was racing, pounding against the inside of his ribcage as he gazed deep into Venom's hopeful eyes, those sunset jewels looking to him for the answer she was no doubt praying to hear. This was the turning point of his entire existence—the point where Maverick had to decide who he wanted to be. Would he reject her, break her heart, and keep running away like the vagabond he'd always been? Would he take her up on this chance to become something he'd never been before? What if this was who he was always meant to be? The man beside the woman, giving her the support and love and assurances in herself she needed from someone. He had already seen the happiness he could bring her in the short season they'd been spending time together and it made him feel fulfilled in ways he never expected it would. Was that enough to turn the wide-eyed wanderer into a domestic man? Maverick was intimidated by the shift his life was facing—but the more he thought about the notion of running away, of leaving Venom and hurting her, of being alone again... he realized he couldn't do it. That wasn't the life he wanted anymore. The realization brought an incredulous grin to the wolf's face. If only his brother could see him, the wily renegade, being tamed by the sly and shrewd Empress.

"Venom Klein Abraxas..." said Maverick with a chuckle beneath his husky breath, gazing into her stunning eyes with his own teal pools shimmering for her. He shook his head in disbelief and gave a breathy laugh. "I always wondered if anyone would be able to get me to stop running. Huh... guess I have my answer now." The brute reached forward with a large multi-hued paw, gently taking one of hers in his and lifting it to hold. He marveled at her, this incredible fae that had bewitched him and twisted him up inside so much that he couldn't tell up from down, like drowning in a riptide that he didn't want to escape from. The power she gave over him was but a mirror of the power she held over him. A rebel with no loyalties or allegiances that had been seduced and swayed to find fidelity in her. There was still so much he didn't know about her, about her family or her pack or her life. But that mystery was part of the fun. Now they'd have all the time to learn one another, inside and out and as intimately as they desired. Maverick turned a crooked grin to Venom, then leaned in closer until their noses met and he felt her warm breath against his lips, her warmth staving the cold of winter away from him. "If Venom and the Empress want me to be theirs, then I hope you're both ready for me, because this scruffy, rough tramp lives a wild life. But he's ready to run with you if you're ready to run with him." Now it was Maverick's turn to feel the suspense and adrenaline that made his heart race, knowing that Venom was accepting him and wanting him as he was, but still anxious at facing down the barrel of an entire life change. But he trusted Venom. With her, he was ready to take the plunge.

"Maverick"

Both of them were very quiet for a long moment as they were forced to face the certainty of the conversation before them. This was the end for better or worse, of their somewhat secret and undefined relationship. Maverick told her that he would stay by her for as long as the high lasted and even if their inebriation was long gone she was still addicted. Venom didn’t want to let him go, and she held her breath as she waited for him to give her an answer. Become a permanent fixture in her life, give up his vagabond ways.

Of course she wouldn’t expect him to sequester himself alone, they would continue having their adventures. She had no desire to break his free spirit. But she did want him home, at her side, when the end of the day found them. Or she wanted him to go free and cut his ties with her completely so that they could both get on with their lives. But her heart clenched at the thought of Maverick choosing anything but her like the last men had.

Eventually, after a few long moments where the air wouldn’t fill her lungs if she tried. There wasn’t much relief when he said her name, her full name, with a chuckle. The glint in his eye told her the resolution though, even if he wasn’t quite ready to say it yet. Her own smile mirrored his as he reached for her paw. There was so much more to learn about Maverick, and there was so much room to grow together. She wanted to fall into the deep with him, he was a balm to her sorrow and a completely different experience in her life. She hadn’t ever been as happy or carefree as when he was beside her.

Maverick grinned up at her as he spoke again, "I wouldn’t want you any other way.” She told him as she settled the turmoil between them. She would take him just as he was because that was exactly what she needed. Venom needed him, as much as the uptight Empress did so she might loosen up. "Run with me, Maverick.” She lifted herself from her seat, looking up into his brilliant blue eyes. Now she could call him her own, now she could finally take the next step with him.

"Venom"

The smile that lit up Venom's face when he agreed to surrender his life of nomadic rambling to be a permanent fixture in hers made his heart leap in his chest, and in that moment, Maverick knew he'd made the right call. The way he felt when he saw Venom smile was all the affirmation needed to be assured that this was the path he wanted to take. It would take some growing into, he would undoubtedly make mistakes and fuck up along the way, but for his Empress he was willing to try and make a fool of himself as he went. Though neither of them said the three words yet—it was still far too soon in their blossoming relationship for such a thing—and neither of them had said any official labels or titles for one another, this was as real and as established as any relationship Maverick could hope to attain. Deep down, he needed Venom as much as she needed him, even if he didn't recognize it fully yet.

Venom told him to run with her and the larger brute's grin widened, a playful gleam sparking in his teal eyes. "Every step of the way, Ven," he said, bringing her paw up to his lips to place a gentle kiss across her knuckles. Setting her white-gloved paw back down to the snowy ground, Mav rose to his paws and was all set to go, pausing just long enough as a thought struck him. "Oh, my stuff! Bear with me a minute!" In a blur of white and navy, the once-vagabond had bolted back into his den, moving in a flurry of motion to gather up his meager and modest belongings into an old, worn pack. He abandoned everything he didn't need to keep, like the bedding, opting instead to grab his stash of recreational herbs and small mementos from his travels. Once packed, the only traces of Maverick that remained in the den were his scent, and even that would grow old with time. Soon enough, it would be as if the rogue had never been here.

Maverick emerged from the den into the cold night once more, the aged leather pack slung across his body. "Shall we get you back home to bed then, Empress Abraxas?" he teased her, moving to give her a playful jostle with his shoulder. "I do believe you need to show me whereabouts that actually is. As much as I've stalked- er, run into you, I've never actually been inside your home before." A roguish grin split his lips and he chuckled, moving closer to brush his side against the smaller fae's, his bushy tail whipping up and aiming to give her shapely rump a frisky smack. "Although I guess it's going to be our home now, huh?" Home. An actual home. A permanent place he could come to rest and find shelter. The notion felt so wild and radically unbelievable to the wolf who had spent most of his life on the road, either alone or with his brother's company. Venom was turning his life entirely around, but Mav had never felt more ready for a change of pace in his adventure than he did now.

"Maverick"

There were a lot of thoughts and emotions for the both of them to work through as the two of them allowed themselves to embrace the feelings they were finally admitting. Venom was well aware that Maverick would have much adjusting to his new life, and while her routine would not be quite as disrupted she would be learning to live with another again. The two of them could build a new life together. The grin that took his features mirrored on her own, she felt the joy and relief as warm and treasured as the feeling of his arms around her shoulders. He told her he would always run with her, and while part of her feared that promise, the other part of her believed him. He kissed her paw with a sly grin before disappearing to gather his sparse belongings.

Maverick didn’t leave her waiting for very long, as he emerged with an old sack and a huge grin on his maw. He bumped against her shoulder playfully, and teased her about getting home and into bed. She couldn't deny how good that sounded with the cold whipping around her right now. He reminded her that she hadn’t invited him beyond Ashen’s borders quite yet. The closest look he got was when they first met and he’d raced into her borders. He pulled himself closer to her, swatting her rump with his tail as he commented on Ashen being their home now and Venom beamed up at him. Yes, they would be together entirely. No sneaking, no goodbyes, no guilt. They were starting a real relationship.

"Our home.” She agreed with him warmly as she leaned into his side. "Our bed.” Venom continued his teasing lightly as she looked up at him with a grin on her pale features.

"Venom"

For all the uncertainties and all the doubts, feeling like he wasn't deserving of this life he was being offered, Maverick felt like anything and everything would be worth it when he saw Venom smile the way she did while she looked up at him. Her grin, a near-perfect mimic of his own, reassured him and promised him that everything would be all right. And strangely enough, he believed it. Venom had not once misled him or tricked him. She had told him no lies nor deceived him. Despite the nagging fear that something would go wrong and he'd wind up getting hurt again, Maverick was ready and willing to take that leap of faith with her and plunge headfirst into a real relationship for the first time in years. She was recovering from her own broken heart and he was overcoming his fear from his past abandonment. They each had their hurdles to overcome, yet in spite of all that, Venom still wanted him and she wanted to face those challenges together. If she was ready to stand by his side through his trials, then he would stand by hers through her own. That was what loyalty was, after all—making sure that no one you cared about faced anything alone.

All of his teasing commentary earned him a bright and beaming smile from the Empress, an expression that had been so rare on her visage when he'd first met her and had now become a commonplace sight. Her smile really was becoming of her; he'd have to make sure she always had a reason to smile. He still worried himself over how he'd stack up compared to her ex-husband in the long run. From what he'd gathered, her former mate had been a formidable force of strength and indomitable will. Calculating and cold, logical to a fault, but not someone you'd want to fuck with. Mav didn't doubt his ability to balance Venom out emotionally, but if he was going to be a permanent fixture in the Empress' life, she deserved a man who would be able to whisk her off her paws in a show of strength as much as he could with honeyed words. He'd have to make sure he stayed in peak physical shape for her, hone his fighting skills as well. Venom deserved all of the best, after all.

With emphasis on their shared ownership, Venom confirmed that they would be going back to their home, and then corrected him with a teasing grin that they'd be going back to their bed. Teal eyes lit up with sly enthusiasm, a husky yet giddy chuckle leaving the brute while he leaned in to nuzzle the side of his fae's cheek with his own. "You'd best get me back home then so we can christen it as such," he remarked with a seductive undertone to his words. The night was cold, but Maverick could think of some very effective ways of warming themselves up. With a bow and wave of his paw, he let Venom take the lead, setting the pace while he followed in lock step with her every step of the way back to Ashen—to their home and to his new life.

"Maverick"