With a grunt and a groan, Artorias’ body collided with Briar’s one last time before he collapsed to the bed beside her, a softened thump as his body hit the plush mattress. A pleased sigh escaped the brute’s mouth as he relaxed into the tangled mess of sheets with his wife, breathless and satisfied with a big dopey grin on his face. His forelegs opened to receive Briar into his embrace and snuggle her close in their post-coital bliss, basking in the warm floaty afterglow with her. The alpha couple's bedchambers were quiet and still now in the aftermath of their lovemaking, only the soft crackle of the dying fire in the hearth keeping it from being totally silent. Artorias nuzzled his cheek against Briar's forehead, careful to avoid her antlers while he buried his nose in her scruff, breathing in her scent while they both came down from their high. His paws roamed absentmindedly across Briar's back, claws delicately combing through her soft fur while he lost himself in thoughts that had filled his head frequently over the recent weeks—thoughts he knew he couldn’t keep putting aside forever.

The rise and fall of packs around them... The deaths of their closest allies... The threats that loomed outside their walls... The future of their family and the Hallows...

Their legacy...

As the pair of lovers began to catch their breaths, Artorias craned his neck to plant an affectionate lick over Briar’s forehead before letting his head fall back onto the pillows to stare up at the ceiling. "Briar…? Could I have your opinion on a… delicate but serious matter…?" he asked after some time in their relaxing interlude, breaking the stillness with his low, hushed tones, barely speaking above a husky whisper in their peaceful pillow talk. He lifted his head from the pillows a bit to peer down at where Briar was resting on his chest, his eyes seeking the deep turquoise of his wife’s as he sought her guidance and support. She had always been his voice of reason that helped keep him grounded when the worries of life got the better of him. He needed her now more than ever.

"Artorias & Briar" | "Carpathian"

With one final cry of ecstasy, she and Art both reached the highest points of pleasure and they collapsed into the mattress with heavy panting and floaty grins. No matter how many hundreds or thousands of times she had been with her husband like this it never lost any of its luster or intensity. She was more than happy to settle into Art's embrace with a breathless hum, her eyes fluttering closed while she caught her breath and tenderly nuzzled into his chest. It was always her favorite way to unwind at the end of a long day and with a seemingly endless list of stresses and concerns around them it was important now more than ever that they take the time where they could.

As they cuddled together in the quiet of their room, eventually Artorias' quiet voice pulled her attention back up to his face, making her blink her eyes back into focus to see him clearly. Her turquoise gaze found the familiar fiery orange of his and she gave him a little smile and a curious tip of her head to his question. "You know better than to have to ask..." she chastised him playfully, tipping her muzzle up to swipe a quick, affectionate lick over his chin. She knew how heavily Art let things weigh on his mind and she had always been more than happy to be his sounding board or voice of reason whenever he needed it. "What's on your mind, darling...?" she questioned, her voice keeping the same hushed tone as his.

"Artorias & Briar"

Art murred happily and gave little delighted grumbles as he relished Briar's tender affections, the affectionate lick over the end of his nose and her warmth draped across him while she clung to his body and he to hers in their afterglow cuddles. He loved any time he got to spend with his mate, but being entangled together after a bout of passion to unwind at the end of their days was by far one of his favorite ways. She chided him teasingly, earning her a playful smile from the titanic blue wolf, his tail gently beating against the bed in a slow frisky wag. Yeah he knew, but he just liked when she teased him for asking anyway. Shifting his weight slightly to better lay Briar across his chest so they could both rest more comfortably and he could gaze down into those beautiful turquoise eyes that had stolen his heart years ago, he released all the thoughts pent up inside his mind.

"I keep thinking to myself... what happens if I die? What happens to you, to the kids, to our family? What happens to the Hallows?" Artorias paused to take a slow breath, staring back up at the ceiling and into nothingness as he shared all of his worry and fears with his mate. "I've imagined death so much all my life, ever since my mother's death, but I've never given it any serious consideration... until now. With everything going on, the challenges for packs, dynasties falling, families getting slaughtered in their own homes... it worries me. It worries me that I won't be able to protect all of you, and if I can't, what happens next? Does our family and our legacy end? Does the Hallows simply cease to be?"

Artorias took another deep breath, turning his gaze back down to Briar's once more. "I know what I can do, but I don't know how I can do it. I've put off naming an heir for so long... What if I end up deeply hurting our children by not choosing them? How can I ever choose between them? It feels like I'm picking favorites and I can't do that. So what am I supposed to do?"

"Artorias & Briar" | "Carpathian"