Stitch by stitch

Caught in his embrace, Azariah's curiosity faded, and something far warmer took its place. Her softness yielded against the solidity of his body, relaxing into him rather than pulling away. She felt so tiny in comparison to her bear, in a way that made her feel safe rather than afraid. His love brought with it a healing balm of tenderness, something Azariah had craved all of her life. It wouldn't matter if this was the thousandth time that he held her like this, Ulric had a way of warming her from the inside out, and she knew he always would. Swept away by a rushing tide of desire for her love, Aza rode the waves as they came, returning every bit of affection she received. One day, she would find a way to show Ulric just how special he really was to her. For now, she basked in all he was, and the desire to be closer to him. She wondered briefly if she would ever get used to the need for such intimate contact with him, but it seemed to only grow every time she saw his handsomely scarred face. As he pulled back from their passionate mini love-fest and she met his gaze, she realized there was no urge to dart her eyes away or otherwise avert her gaze. Instead, she found herself lost in the pale silver of his eyes, her own rubious gaze obviously lost as her focus shifted from one of his eyes to the depths of the other. A smile adorned her face the entire time, her lips curling sweetly so that the love showed clearly on her delicate features.

Even though he had pulled back to look at her, she made no move or effort to shift or pull away from him. She was right where she wanted to be. Just the ability to meet his gaze was a testament to the fact she was exactly where she needed to be. The purr that seemed forever in her vocals escaped her mouth ever so slightly as he began to speak, gifting the soft sigh it escaped on a rolling quality. The sound itself would not be enough to interrupt, just enough to show she enjoyed the timbre of his voice and was held in rapt attention as he spoke. Pressed against him as she was, she could feel the rumble of it as he spoke, sending delighted shivers down her spine. The motion and sound surely not helping the urge he felt in those moments. She settled more against him as he explained the hides and antlers, as well as his plans for them. Her heart skipped a beat as her excitement became palpable.

Giggling at his last remark and the lick he planted on her nose, Azariah retained a playful grin as she looked up at him, "Oh, I think it would have been very productive. You are in luck though, I lived alone a few years... Just Umbra and me, anyway, and the bird is really only good for a lookout or if you need someone dive-bombed once...I digress... I taught myself how to stitch up deep wounds - birds are not good with fishbone needles. This couldn't be that much different in application, but I would need something stronger than fish ribs to get through it. And, of course, something to bring it all together. I'm sure we can have fun figuring it out!" With Ulric, she felt comfortable enough to show her thought process aloud, getting off track as memories of Umbra's beak slipping as she attempted to help Aza stitch a particularly nasty wound on her hind leg. After that, Aza taught herself how to sew flesh together. How much different could armor be?