With Jael upon his back, he moves from the room that he had claimed as hers. Not that he has to claim it, but he wouldn't let anyone push her out either. As he stands in the hallway, he lifts a paw to point at the room across from hers. "That is mine. My wife and pups stay there as well, but once the pups are a year old, they are free to move out to their own rooms. We are on the top floor and there is only one staircase that leads to the roof," Gilgamesh knows he has dropped a bomb on her, but doesn't falter or stop as he points to the doorway at the opposite end of the hallway where indeed a staircase led upward. Small glimmers of light peer in from above where the walls and doorway are not quite all the way sealed. "This floor is reserved for me and my family and now you," he pauses to glance at her over his shoulder as he begins to move down the hallway to the stairs that lead downward.

He refuses to give her time to balk or refuse. When he reaches the next floor, they are standing in a wide common area with rooms lining the hallways. "This is where the rest of the pack may wish to reside if they do not take up home in one of the smaller buildings or in the archipelago," Gil gives her time to look around before he heads down one more set of stairs. Once there, he turns to where the main meeting room is. Ambling over, he peeks in the doorway where the fire smolders in the fireplace. "This is where I hold meetings when the weather is bad or we need secrecy," again he gives time to glance around before he moves back toward the foyer. "There is a makeshift kitchen and storage toward the back of this main building. Out the back, there are a few small buildings that others may make their den or use for training or crafting," at that, he turns to the main door to head outside.

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He sleeps across the hall, but it turns out that he does not typically do so alone. A bomb dropped on the girl, and she can't conceal how she stiffens... though Jael was glad she didn't have to look him in the eye as she did. Of course, he is a king and this is his dominion... of course has a wife. Though she had a hard time strangling the whimper in her throat, only barely able to hold it back, she deflates a bit where she curls upon Gilgamesh's back. He had a wife, but held her like a treasure... she doesn't understand. She doesn't pretend to understand the ways of men, though.

Me, and my family, and now you. The words shouldn't make her feel like this, shouldn't bring a warmth that would stain her cheeks had she been any paler. He looks over his shoulder, and she tries to conceal it. Conceal the little bit of her heart that had only been in her throat for mere hours, and had already been bruised. Was this an omen for things to come? Though she could see the red flags, Jael would make the foolish decision.

"Y-your wife... what will she..." Jael trailed off, the words dying on her lips. Though she doesn't know how to ask the question, it wouldn't be hard to sort out. She allows herself to rest against Gil's back, words softer than she'd admit them to be. The kids too, what would they think? And how would he be with her in... in public? The thought of so many eyes has her leaning even more into Gil.

"I've never seen anything like it," it was hard to chase the wonder from Jael's voice. There was so much of it, each seeming to stretch down in every direction. "Do you keep livestock?" The words were quiet, curious. She was a shepherd, in what felt like a past life. Jael would always have the desire to be useful, in any way she knew how. Anything to please him, this man who'd cared for, this man who holds her... this man with a wife. Her savior, her king-- already a double edged sword.

Gil won't deny that he can feel her scrunch up tighter into his coat as he says the words. Her faint voice against his coat has him chuckling. He wouldn't have allowed anything to happen if he had any inkling his wife would mind. Then again, Modesty could be a wild card if she ever had the gumption. "She will speak her peace in private, but I doubt she'll harm you," another chuckle before he glances back at her once more with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "At least while I'm looking," he adds before ending it with another chuckle. Was scaring the poor girl a nice thing to do? No, but was he a nice guy? Not exactly. Leaving the issue behind them, not allowing her any more room to worry, Gil turns his focus back toward the foyer.

Jael's amazement at his sprawling building has him smiling with pride. Well, he was the Pride Sin at one time, remember? "There are other places among Boreas and Auster that are just as magnificent or even more so," fuck you Castle Town and he hates to admit it, but he was an honest man at least. Her next question has him turning to the door that leads outside. Once they are in the morning sun, he blinks against the bright light, adjusting for a moment before leading them across the grounds and out toward the beach where he had brought her in from.

As he stands on the beach with Jael on his back and the ocean breeze ruffling his coat, he sighs. "The archipelago is full of birds and it is ours. The waters are also ours and we are free to fish whatever we may catch. Currently, I am in the process of stretching our lands farther into mainland Boreas. First, the beach where I found you, and then past that, I hope to find grazing grounds or something with land prey that can be sustained. To answer your question, no, but if we ever needed it, we steal it," honest man again never afraid to give straightforward answers. "Do you have a history of keeping livestock?" Gil asks earnestly as he begins to take them around the shore to the back side of the isle.

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There was a little twinkle in his eye, a little glimmer. This is a dragon of a man, after all. She tries not to look sad, but then, perhaps the concussion was making it hard to be quite as composed as she usually is. Jael remains more intimate in the way she rests against him, still unwilling to give up on what she knows she's experiencing. Though some of the illusion had been cracked, how much of that mattered? How much of that mattered when he is still here. Her words are quiet, confidential despite the open space. For all she could tell, for all he could tell, they were alone enough. "Don't stop looking." It's spoken as a prayer, murmured close to his neck. Too confidential for the space, but then, walls like these may know far more raw interactions with god than the halls of churches could dream of. The only space that matters is the one between them.

He is a stranger, and he's more. A girl is a god, but what is Gil? Maybe they're both sinners. She could be a god, but what was she here, clinging to him. Jael's safe harbor in the storm that brought her here. What was a little more scarring? She blinked against the bright daylight, suddenly self conscious about the tenderness in her gaze and in the way she settled against him. Jael straightened up, remembering herself. Scanning the world around her with a bright gaze, alert, though there was a haze from the lingering pain and the medication and maybe from the fact that it was an unusually tender heart aching in her chest.

They peer out over the ocean, her chin tipping against the stiff breeze. It was still chilly, a cutting breeze sending a shiver down her spine. Proud as she was, she'd huddle back close to Gil's shoulder. They fished here, that made sense. The whole archipelago is theirs... Jael can't conceal how impressed she actually is. They would look for grazing land that could be sustained farther out, and she gave a soft hmm. The logistics part of her brain already reeling, Jael gave a soft nod. It was a lot to think about, but hell, that was her wheelhouse. "Will you show me? The places that you say are more magnificent than this, and the place beyond the beach?" To be fair, she hadn't gotten a great look at the beach.

She remains comfortable in her perch as they make their way around the island, and Jael marvels at the relics of an era before theirs. "A history, sure. The line between shepherd and rustler gets a little blurry if you squint too hard." She gave a soft giggle, her head resting softly on Gil's shoulder. Though it was maybe more than she should have been doing out in the open, it's hard to resist. "I've never seen so many buildings in such good condition." She remarked lightly, gaze brilliant and wild on the isle as they explored.

He barely hears the mumbled prayer into his fur. The idea of Modesty being vicious humors him. If anything, Modesty despised the idea of getting dirty. One hair out of place and she would be more disgruntled than learning he had someone else. But he understood why Jael would be cautious, worried, scared. After the last twenty-four hours, they had been through a lot. Gil couldn't deny the flame that crackled between them. That tension, that pull, it was as if he had been waiting for her his whole life. Now, don't get him wrong. He loves his wife. Gilgamesh, the Raid King, is a fucking simp for his gorgeous wife, but... Jael. Jael was something different. He could protect her in ways that he would never need to do for Modesty.

The thought lingers in the back of his head as they continue to move along the beach toward the far side of the isle. She asks if they can see the further reaches of their lands and into Boreas. He needed no time to consider an answer. "When you are healed," he answers, almost a little tensely. Unlike Jael, Gil knows what lingers out there. If she can't run, she would be at too much risk. She had to be able to at least do something if they were to come across a predator or worse... another wolf. He has to remind himself not to bristle at the thought as he remembers the fucker who had attempted to kill her.

Glad that she speaks more, he turns an ear to listen to her gentle voice. Ah, what a pleasant sound. Even her giggle makes his heart beat a little harder. A delightful noise that he wants more of. Her head resting on his shoulder is comforting. Though he is on alert for anything that might cross their path, he still makes sure to pay attention to her words. "Sounds as if you will fit in just fine here," Gil muses with a smile and a light chuckle that rumbles his chest. Oh, he knew that blurry line all too well. "It definitely has seen worse and better days, but I hope one day we can return it to its glory - or as best as we can manage," he adds on as he turns to glance at the looming building that he could see through the trees.

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He has a wife, she shouldn't be doing this. She shouldn't be feeling like this. Jael knows just how she'd feel, if she were the one in his wife's shoes. She knows how tight she'd be holding on, and she knows how upset she'd be to find her husband standing just as he was now. The guilt, the anxiety, all of it creeping up in her system-- why, then, does she cling closer? Hold tighter?

His words seem to hold a weight, an edge. Jael lifts her head to softly, warmly rest it against his shoulder. She can feel the tension in him, and she wants to ease it. To comfort it. But then, this is the kind of safety she's never known. The small woman is tender with him, soft. Soft in a way she doesn't like to let herself be, but he... he doesn't know that. Not yet. For as little as the dog is, she's tough.

Every word savored, every little rumbling chuckle and glance. Though Jael was mostly paying attention to the world around her, she'd pretend she wasn't stealing glances at him too. When he gives her his ear, when he tips his head, all of these things... attentive. He's attentive. There is some danger in him, but that makes this even sweeter. Why does she feel... special? "How long have you been here?" The words were soft, curious. She wants to know him. More than that, but to know someone was the first step.

His bristling emotions calm as she curls against his shoulder. Comfort. A comfort he has not known for a while. Not to say his wife doesn't comfort him, but their relationship is different. They'd been through hell and back, but so had he and Jael now too. This was different, Gil swore by it. Something about how she just knew what he needed. The smallest movement, the gentle touch to his fur, his edge softens. Even her words seem to settle his unease as he turns them away from the beach and heads toward the other cluster of buildings that lay around the isle. "We have not been on the isle for very long, about half a year," he is thoughtful then as he is reminded of their old home. It's a thought to go back, but he knew it would be too hard. They had needed change. "Previous, we lived in a cave system on the main land, but when I took control from a dear friend, I moved us here," Gil speaks in a way that sounds as if he is somewhere else. Any talk of the pack and his role in it always left him... self-conscious and thoughtful and stressed.

"speech"

CODE BY SHELBY

Jael remains close, her voice soft in his ear. She remains near to him, close... though she wouldn't say it directly, Jael will cling. She will hold as tightly as she's allowed to, but call it by another name. Call it loyalty. Jael would change the label, but it means the same thing. While it hasn't been long enough to truly justify it, she'd make excuses, justify it to herself if she had to.

Who else would she have to justify it to? Gilgamesh... was that all? For someone who swore she didn't want to answer to anyone other than herself, Jael finds herself glad that it's him.

Only half a year on the islands, she perks up a bit. There were still discoveries to be made, at that rate. "I want to explore the rest of the isle... as soon as I'm able." With you-- don't get your hopes up too far, silly girl. He has a job to do, a family to take care of, and he can't go gallivanting at your beck and call. She knows that he'll make her wait too, and the restriction feels-- shit it feels like being cared for. Gil had taken control over from a friend, though the way that he seems to get stiff and stressed when he talked about doesn't escape her notice either. A soft hum in her throat, and she pushes her head against the side of his neck. "Being underground freaks me out, I'm glad you're not down there anymore." She admits softly, taking in the island as they travel down the beach toward the other buildings.

"So um, what else do I need to know, now that I live here?" Her tone is light, though Jael is perhaps asking just how much she needs to know to prevent herself from breaking her own heart for the second time before lunch.

Secretly, Gil enjoys the way she curls in on him. How she grips to him as if she needs him. No one had ever needed him like this before. Sure, Modesty had her moments, but she was a strong, capable, and independent woman who really only needed him for.. eh, too much to get into right now. Even his own offspring were headstrong and independent, only needing him when they'd gotten themselves too deep into shit they'd started. This was... a nice change. A welcomed change.

Her words bring a smile to his lips. "We can, yes," he replies as he continues to bring them around to the farther buildings along the isle. From the main shore, the isle didn't appear that large, but once there, one would notice how expansive it truly was. The main building and the small jungle surrounding it did well to hide the smaller outcropping of buildings that encircled the inner courtyards.

When she admits she doesn't like being underground, he chuckles. He wasn't a fan of it either, but it had provided well enough protection. Perhaps not his choice since one way in and one way out was dangerous, but he wouldn't argue with Sparrow's choices either. He thinks on her next question and lets the silence lull over them for a few minutes. Listening to their surroundings, he turns his gaze up toward the buildings and over the concrete that litters the brush.

"There are large predators still hidden among the isle. They like to lurk in the shadows so be careful," Gil chooses to warn her first of the animals that he has no control over. "There are a few in the pack that you would do best not crossing them either, but we can cross that bridge eventually," he adds on, uncertainty in his tones as his brow furrows slightly. Could he trust her around Ignis? Diablo? Those two worried him the most. "Aside from that, the isle is pretty relaxed. Most wolves in the pack keep to their own and only come around when I call," he lets his shoulders shrug. He wasn't a tyrant, didn't care what others did with their daily lives as long as they knew where their loyalty lie.

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Tenacity did not make up for everything Jael was lacking, though she would try and convince herself that it did. Sometimes the size of the dog in the fight has to matter. Injured or not, there are impracticalities to her condition that would last long after the injuries healed. For as independent as Jael fancies herself, maybe allowing herself to need him isn't the worst decision she's made lately.

And there it is-- we. It makes her heart warm, washing over her in a way that Jael can't really... can't really explain. Can't really describe. It went straight to her head and frankly? She'd let it. There was a smile playing on her lips, one that she was glad she didn't have to conceal from where she sat, perched atop the world.

The predators... the pack members. She shifted a bit, this time hiding her face against his shoulder. She wasn't afraid of them. Jael could handle them. Right? "I trust you to keep me safe from them." Not that she would go looking for trouble, but it was a vote of confidence on her part too. He'd done a good job of that so far, and Jael had every confidence that would persist. From the others, too. Shit, she really does need him already.