Soft light of the dawn broke the leaves of the tree he was sleeping under, yet to actually make a den of his own. He preferred sleeping out in the open over sleeping in a cramped up den, dens were easily turned into prisons if the wrong person stood in front of them. Plus, it was a sure-fire way to get him up in the morning like he was supposed to be. The lazy man never really enjoyed getting up at the break of dawn, but he'd been adamant about pulling his own weight lately. He hoped Athena was proud, after all.. it was his mother that had been so worried about him years ago, before he'd taken any real interest in bettering himself.
He was still a sloth at heart, but as the rays became brighter with the sun's rising, his darkly outlined eyelids were forced to open to the sun's beckoning. His 'brows furrowed in annoyance as he looked through a squinted gaze, letting the blur of sleep fade after a few good blinks. Slowly, the behemoth rose to his paws and let out a wide yawn. Well then, it was time to get training wasn't it? There was a growing padding of muscle on the brute's shoulders, having bulked up considerably since his initial return, but there was always room for improvement. First things first, he had to get rid of the dryness in his mouth and sate his thirst by the falls.
That's where he ran into Heather, the freshly declared princess of Fiori. He couldn't recall a time when he'd ever formally met her, though in his defense she was born during his time away. With a smirk on his inky lips, the mass of unkempt gray fur kept his head respectfully low as he approached her and the water of the falls. He dipped his masked muzzle in greeting before letting his gravelly tones break the silence, "Ah, glad I ran into you. I never did get an opportunity to congratulate you at the meeting. Excited about ruling your own kingdom some day?"
Crimson eyes shimmered as they watched her, though he had to break his stare to look down to the water. He lowered his chest, back muscles tensing as he lapped in enough to coat his tongue and throat with a healthy layer of spit to keep him comfortable through-out his run. He'd likely end up here afterward, too.. but once he was content he lifted himself back up, an ear kept toward the princess all the while.
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