Can you feel the love tonight?

If someone had told him a couple of years ago that he would have been preparing a picnic to surprise his mate he would have called them a liar and probably would have beaten them up for good measure. Even when he was out searching the world for someone that suited him well enough to take them as his mate, he had never pictured himself as the type to go out of his way for romantic gestures or to care for someone the way he cared about. He had just wanted to fulfill the only real obligation and direction he had been given for his life-to find his soul mate and continue on the Mendacium line without a real interest in the "love" that Manea had always been so set on. He had thought his sister was ridiculous and frivolous in her pursuits at the time, but then Ikigai appeared in his life and turned it completely upside down. Now here he was, packing a basket of carefully prepared foods to take her out on a little date. He couldn't say they were as well prepared or well done as when Ikigai made their meals, but he hoped that maybe the thought and intention behind it would cover up some of his mistakes in that regard.

Once everything was packed and he had a nice fur folded up on top to lay on once they got there, the only thing left was to collect his beautiful wife. The sun was just beginning to set so he knew she would likely be coming back to the den from her daily tasks soon so he collected his basket and moved to the front of the cave to wait for her. Luckily he knew his mate's routines well and he wasn't kept waiting long, her ink-marked form rounding the path that led up to their home from the rest of the various caves that dotted Elysium's territory. A small smile touched his lips and he rose to meet her, dipping his head to press a tender kiss to her lips. "I know you just got home, but I have a little surprise for you. If you'd like to freshen up or anything first you can and then we can go." He waited until Ikigai was ready and with a little grin he picked up his basket of supplies and began to lead her out of their den and down across the island as he took her to the nearby lake.

It only took a few moments once they had arrived at a clearing on the shore of the lake to spread out the fur he had brought for her and he gestured for her to lay down while he laid out the rest. A bottle of water, a bottle of sweet wine, fresh strawberries, a few different kinds of thinly sliced, tender meats, and an assortment of cut up carrots and sweet potatoes to pick from were all laid out on a plater. He lacked the skills she had to cook and roast things so it was all very simple and in their raw forms, but he hoped she wouldn't mind. He laid down beside her just as the sun was dipping under the horizon and the fireflies were beginning to come into full view, giving them the romantic setting he had been hoping for. Being a good husband and mate was something he was still learning and adjusting to, but maybe this was a decent start.

"Deimos & Ikigai"