Things had finally happened - this was his home. He had worked limb for limb to get this place, after leaving some emotional treasures behind he did decide to move the pack to the woods for now. He meant to ask them if they had any idea's territory wise - however this would be where they stayed. The place his mother met her demise, the place that he and Zephyra confessed for each other. Everything about it to the atmosphere, to the feel of the dirt underneath his paws just felt right. The morning had started off early for the man, and knowing Zephyra she probably was not awake yet. Yet the male wanted to see her, needed to see her. Since autumn began he craved her attention with the business he seemed to have rolled himself into. He certainly hoped she was not annoyed with him - he wouldn't blame her if she was. It was also the fact that her siblings had decided to remain in Myriad. How was she feeling, and was it any better on her that he knew that night she had cried. He worried immensely and these new found feelings were almost overwhelming. Rivaxorus searched for her by her scent, not wanting to wake any other members within the lands. Once he thought he was close enough to her location, he let out a bark. Perhaps he would ask her to share a den with him, she was his queen after all. Something both their parents did - and she as well as anyone knew, they both tried to run or live within their families legacy. He loved her and there was no denying that, but he wanted to be fortunate enough to always make sure that it was her who was comfortable where she stood. "Talk" "You" Think

His scent, ever so familiar to her nose, like an imprint stored in her mind, drifted to her nostrils as she walked quietly through the woods. She breathed in the scent with a content sigh, already knowing he was searching for her through the woods as the smell strengthened. Her paws slowed, waiting for him to find her like a game of hide and seek she ever so willingly wanted to be found. Though before he reached her exact location, he let out a bark, and awaited her arrival. She rolled her eyes playfully, letting out a snort and trotted over to him. Why did she have to do all the work? Why couldn't he come to her, who she desired at this point in time? Why did she have to look for her own prize - her lover? Well, he was the alpha; he could do whatever he wanted, she supposed. It felt odd to call her friend - or perhaps mate as he had randomly decided to address her - an alpha. More importantly, her alpha. About a year ago as children they were friends, good friends if she could add. She never saw herself growing more attached and having stronger feelings than that. She never thought much about love nor did she wish to burden herself with such an emotion. She saw it as a silly and unnecessary thing, as all pups do. A lot had changed, she had to admit. Never did she think she would fall this far and hard for someone who she had thought would always be her friend. Now they were more than that. When she reached him, she nuzzled into his cheek, hoping to greet him in a caressing embrace if he so wished. She felt satisfied, complete, when she was with him. All of her worries ceased to exist. It was just him and her, just how she always wanted it. Though when she closed her eyes for a second to let the moment sink in, a small thought - a memory, popped into her head. How could she forget it? It was the sole reason why she sought him out. "So," she began in a casual tone, battling her lashes playfully as she gazed into his bicoloured stare. "I heard you say something about us being mates now." She tried not to sound too stern in her words, though there was an element of seriousness behind the topic. "Speech"

The affection was more than welcome, as she pressed into him. The two large wolves were an odd pair to be honest. Though maybe their size accounted for some sort of comfortably with that. Rivaxorus never thought of himself to be in this position, romance seemed so much of a backdrop in his life. He knew it was there, he knew it existed, but the possibility of him being in that position. Now though, as she spoke, his muscles tensed a bit. By her tone of voice, he knew he had messed up somewhere. His rather unamused look stared at her as he let a silent uh oh fly through his head. Sitting his rump down, his bi-colored orbs searched her over. "I'm sorry I was under the impression that two wolves that loved each other were mates." He said. Yes they were young, but maybe both had been forced to grow up far too fast. They had each other and for Rivaxorus that was enough with the world on its hinges. His gray tail curled up around his waist. "I'm sorry about that my queen, I didn't realize it made you uncomfortable." he let the queen title come out like a purr. He really hadn't meant any harm by the word. As he saw it, she was his mate. He would do her no wrong. "I'm glad Ren and Nixie are here, as much as I know Ren's not much of a fan of mine." Rivaxorus looked at the ground. He really was glad, he wouldn't be able to express that to them. Though he would need to talk with both Nixie and Ren one on one. His hopes were for everyone in this pack to flourish after all. His gaze looked up to Zephyra, "How are you feeling?" many of them were still yearlings. Yet they would grow, with spring approaching, he depended on the older wolves of the pack to teach the younger. "Talk" "You" Think

She felt the change in his hold, how his relaxed muscles became tense once she spoke. That was the moment she decided to pull away, for being held in the paws of her tense lover wasn't comfortable at all. Her softened rubies searched his bicoloured gaze, wondering if she had upset his emotions. She hadn't mean to, of course. All she had sought was some sort of explanation, for he hadn't even consulted with her. Oh, had she spoken too sternly? Was she making a catastrophe out of nothing? Perhaps they were mates now that they had confessed their love for each other, but was that enough? There had to be more to it then that, and weren't they taking too big of a step forward? Sure, their circumstances had forced them to grow up earlier, but becoming mates? Now? When they weren't even fully grown up? "I thought there was more to being mates than just that," she murmured quietly, looking away from his gaze. "Are we even ready for this?" Sometimes she had no idea where their relationship stood and where it was heading, and now that he had plunged the possibility of being mates, she was only more confused. Were they dating? Were they engaged? Were they just loving each other regardless of statuses, just allowing their emotions to flow and freely intertwine? "I don't know what my family would think of it." She had never cared about the opinions of others, especially her family. Whether they agreed or disagreed, she couldn't care less, being the apathetic girl she was. Though over the past season, she had grown more concerned over their wellbeing, now that they had been divided by their mother's passing. As their queen and sister, it was her duty to care for them, even if she hadn't done so before. He expressed his relief in having her brother and sister a part of the pack, though mentioned not being much of a fan of her brother. A small frown creased her features, though she remained silent upon the topic. Not everyone got along well with each other, she supposed, but what was the reason? Did they not like each other? Was it because of her? Was her relationship with the Adravendi alpha preventing her brother from befriending him? "I'm glad they're with me," she admitted softly. "I'm alright, and how are you feeling, my king?" Like he did earlier, she gave a little purr as she locked their eyes once more. "Speech"

Maybe he had pushed her too hard, but he didn't see any wolves who loved each other who just said that. What did one call a wolf you loved? Rivaxorus knew of marriage, but never had he heard of the concept of 'dating' that was something foreign to most wolves anyway. At his age, he had no instincts to do more anyway. In his eyes there was much more to being mates, but the fact was he was willing to go far and beyond for that. His eyes turned to a more somber tone, if she wanted him to stop he could. Though he could feel whispers in his head, he knew he would be questioned. He then remembered what his aunt had told him - never break her heart. Even the thought of it tugged at his heart strings. "We wouldn't know until we tried would we?" he said, looking at her seriously. Now a little more confident, "Mates love each other, sure there's more to it but whose to judge on that?" he pushed his front paws together. A little nervous maybe, a little embarrassed as he looked down. "If I want to always be by your side I don't know what else to call it. To live for you and do whatever I can for you. You're the first person outside of my family I've grown close to. Not only that but you're the most important." his ears flicked for a moment as he looked back up. He was loyal to her - scared or not she made his heart pound against his chest and that was all the more something. "I'm feeling.... a little surreal. The group I conjured up needs a bit of work but I'm glad a few wolves are showing interest in climbing the ranks. Shows a bit of progress I suppose. As for Ren - I think the reason he doesn't quiet trust me yet is because our first meeting wasn't exactly the greatest..... I might have been a bit heated at the time since I was there to speak with my sister." he lowered his head. It was a bother, perhaps he should speak to Ren. The last he wanted was the male to feel uncomfortable, he wanted him to know Riv was dependable enough. He would protect all of these wolves the best he could. "So stressing out over all these things, I desperately wanted to see you." "Talk" "You" Think

The more he spoke, the more confused she grew. Her head spun with questions and complaints upon the topic, and the longer they remained on the subject, the more she wanted to leave it. 'Try' to be mates? Was that how it worked? Mate-ship wasn't something they could trial and experiment with, or at least she didn't think they could. It was a black or white kind of thing. And what would her family think of it? 'Oh, we're just testing the whole mate thing to see how it goes.' Her relationship with them was barely holding together, and she didn't want to disrupt what bond she had by saying she had a mate. They weren't even close to that stage in their life, nor did she think they would be understanding of her. The least she wanted to do was argue. There was no room in their relationship for arguments. She just wanted to raise her opinion and concerns. "I don't know if I'm ready," she confessed softly, hoping he'd understand it wasn't entirely about what he wanted, but what they wanted. Unlike her, he was totally ready to take their relationship forward. So ready that he made assumptions and told the whole pack about it. She didn't want there to be any surprises like there had been. "So we can just declare that we're mates, here and now?" It all sounded too soon, too quick for her. What were they going to do for their remaining eight or so years? Continue being mates? He replied to her query saying he felt surreal - whatever that meant, and added how the wolves of Myriad - their new pack-mates - were sufficient for now. She gave a small nod of agreement. The pack didn't seem like much now, though she could envision everyone coming together and making Myriad truly a strong home worth being a part of. There were a couple wolves she knew would rise through the ranks, and as their queen, with equal authority as the alpha, she had to be constantly thinking about her pack-mates. She carried more power than she ever imagined. "I'm still trying to get my head around being a queen. Seems like a big thing," she admitted with a nervous chuckle. "I don't even know how to be one." "Speech"

She didn't know if she was ready. There could be a number of things Rivaxorus could list off, but he wasn't sure. He didn't know if he could just wait, how was he supposed to treat her then? What they did recently, wasn't that the affection of lovers. It was how he saw his parents interact with each other, he didn't see siblings hell even friends act that way towards each other. Yet just because their opinions were different, didn't mean he should get angry over it. In the end he knew, he'd lose that fight. Pulling back his lip a bit, he let out a clean breath of air. Calm, keep calm. There was no use in being stubborn if he was going to lose something. The whole point of it was to keep her around. He didn't want to lose anything again like that. He would fight tooth and nail for that at least. "I'll wait for you to decide, you already know my answer. It won't change for me." he told her in a rather sultry tone. Rivaxorus, after calming himself, knew his head would be clear from the clouds. Many things made him realize that if he took a step backwards it allowed him to take one forward. His chest heaved a bit, and his two different colored eyes looked over her. He didn't know about her, but he wanted to stay with her for as long as he was breathing. That was almost asking the impossible of course, but he couldn't deny his own self that much. His gaze softened, he wasn't a wild animal thought. He was a tyrannic king - he wouldn't shackle her even if she wanted to leave. He thought he had known this, his tail flicked for a moment. The conversation seemed almost distracting for the both of them. He could see maybe he was trying to distract himself from having an argument with her. She couldn't wrap her head around being queen. Well - it was hard for him to stomach that he had gotten this far as well. He stood up straight, because she was strong. "If you don't want to be queen that would be alright with me, but I'm not even sure how to lead myself. I spent a lot of time watching other wolves and there's not just one way to do it. You have to find out what works best for you and your members." he said. "Be someone that your pack depends on, but not too much so where they can't do anything for themselves." Rivaxorus turned his head to the side looking at the tree's. "I know, we can make this place great." "Talk" "You" Think

ooc: please excuse the phone post :x

Perhaps that was what she needed - time. Time to just sit down and sort herself out. She didn't want him to wait for her - wait for her to decide what she wanted in this relationship of theirs and then resume their intertwined lives once more. She didn't want to postpone their relationship, their love for each other just to figure this out. She didn't want him to think she was picky or making a drama out of nothing nor did she want the passion and devotion in their love to decrease. She didn't want to change their relationship, at least not negatively. She wanted it all to run smoothly, for her to know her emotions inside out and outside in, just to know exactly what she wanted. But that wasn't the case, that wasn't how her feelings worked.

Though it seemed she had all the time in the world to decide, all whilst he would be waiting with the same answer, she felt the need to make her decision quickly. And quickly she would. All she needed was a day or two, just so she could fully adjust herself to Myriad and to seek out her family. "I still love you the same," she assured him with a smile, aiming to plant a small lick to his cheek. She could sense the tension in his body, the annoyance and perhaps frustration she had spiked in his mood. As much as she knew it was her own fault, she didn't want those mixed emotions to drive them apart.

"Oh, no, I still want to be the queen," she quickly told him, not being able to imagine the possibility of another woman in her position, leading the pack alongside the alpha, being so close to him. No, she couldn't bear such a future. All that troubled her was the weight of the responsibility her position carried. With little experience, let alone interest, she was feeling a bit daunted. Even the alpha himself didn't know how to lead, though he had observed others. With a small idea sparking inside of her, she thought about her own mother, as painful as it was. She had been the secondary alpha of Sonticus before Cypress had handed leadership over to her. What had she done as second-in-command, other than running off and leaving the pack to her son? Zeph wasn't going to do that. She'll keep the pack afloat; more than that, thriving and blooming. "I hope so," she murmured, burying her head in the crook where his shoulder met his neck.

The male's roller coaster of emotions were normal for someone of his age. The wolf was no stranger to the strangeness of emotions. If it was one thing he wanted, it was for her to feel comfortable. With him, with herself. So he soon took in a deep gulp of air, sharply taking it in as he let it out in a soft sigh. Rivaxorus would never force her to do anything, and the most important thing they could offer to each other was communication. Now that he was an alpha, now that she, was his main support. He would take it upon himself to make sure the mental state of all his wolves, including her most of all was okay. "I still love you the same." the words kind of hurt, but the lick was nice. He didn't shy away from it, more rather he pushed into it and almost into her. Their same height made it so much easier to do it. As she spoke, she hid her head into the nook of her neck. In turn he wrapped his chin to tough the back of her head. Softly into her black fur, he would breath carefully. "Aishiteru Zephyra, if anyone can do this we can do it together. I think I'm going to change the ranks a bit, give the members something more to work for. Some sort of motivation would do them good to put their minds to it." rivaxorus looked to her. "And... Aishiteru means I love you in Japanese." he figured that she needed to know that. It might have been a bit weird, he knew a whole other language but rarely used it. Perhaps because it wasn't needed entirely, but it was what the whole pack was based off of. Was that language. "Talk" "You" Think

Normally she would have recoiled and taken a step back if anyone approached her too closely, invading her personal space. This didn't apply to her alpha, of course. They could be as close as they wanted to, as intimate as they wanted to. She liked it when they were together, no, more than that. His little, playful touches made her heart flutter, and she found herself drawn to him like a magnet. Not until was he wrapped around her, pressing into her form did she feel a sense of fulfilment, completion, like the flame in her heart had been rekindled.

He utters a word unfamiliar to her ears; had she misheard? It sounded almost like ashiteru, though surely that wasn't a new word. She was trying to be a bit more intelligent, for a stupid queen didn't deserve to be a queen at all. But ashiteru? Really? That couldn't be a whole word. Perhaps he had meant separate words. Alright; what could it be? And...she...told...you? That didn't make sense! No, this was hopeless. Maybe it didn't matter. Clearing her mind of the "ashiteru" or "and-she-told-you" or whatever it was, she tuned back to his words, ones that she understood crisp and clearly. He mentioned his plans of adjusting the ranks and giving their pack-mates a little motivation. A smile touched her lips. "Whatever you'd like to do with Myriad, I'll be okay with." That didn't mean she was blindly following him without a mind of her own, but supportive of his opinions and trusting that he made the right decisions.

Then he added an explanation to his earlier ashiteru, stating that it meant "I love you" in Japanese. Ohhh! The realisation hit her, and the understanding was evident in her lit features. She hadn't misheard! It was an actual word - or sentence, actually, but not in her native tongue. "Well then, ashiteru too," she chirped with a broad grin, her green-tipped tail wagging. The thought soon occurred to her that she didn't know any other language, unlike him. Was she jealous? Well, only a little. It wasn't her fault she hadn't been exposed to any other tongue as a pup, nor did she know other ways of communicating existed. "Say, could you maybe teach me it, sometime?" she asked hesitantly, batting her eyelashes shyly.

Displays of affection probably wouldn't be uncommon for the two of them now. He yearned to be close to her, even if it felt like it would tear him apart. Tail flicking a bit, he let out a soft sigh. In due time he would notice it at least. This was his Queen, and if anything at all they were meant to run this place together now. His vision, would become something great at least that was what he wanted for all of them. At first as well, her confusion to his gesture was rather adorable. Making him smile lightly as she spoke of the pack. Yes, this was their home now. Zephyra made a rather interesting conjecture however. She asked him if he could teach her the language. It made his ears perk forward a little, he didn't often use the native tongue but it always excited him. He enjoyed it, it's history it held within his family from his mother's biological side. He shifted a bit watching her closely. Her bodily movements locked in his head, after all it was important for him to be observant. "You don't even have to try to get me to teach you." he chuckled a bit lightly. "When do you want to start?" after the earlier emotions. It would be a nice time to relax, for the both of them. Even if only for tonight before tomorrow started back up again. The little moments were the things he had to enjoy the most about his life. "Talk" "You" Think

He appeared all for the idea of him teaching her a new language - his language, perhaps his native tongue if he had learnt it first. She didn't think he would so be quick to reply. If only she could repay him somehow. It seemed he was always teaching her something, first fighting and now another language. She is grateful to have such an intelligent man at the centre of her universe, the sun she spun around. And handsome, but now she was getting all mushy. The question remained: how could she repay him? Learn another, completely different language and teach him that? Learn to heal, as much as she loathed having flowers in her face? What could she do?

Then the perfect idea struck her, and she would keep quiet about it, inwardly grinning a devilish grin.

"Is now a good time?" she asked with a small laugh, sending a quick glance behind her shoulder. Past the trees the sun was beginning set, fiery amber rays streaking across the sky. Another day come and gone. Many would now start to head back to their dens, preparing for slumber, though Zephyra usually took advantage of the later ours. She preferred the night over day, finding comfort beneath the moon and ebony sky. Though if the alpha found these twilight hours unsuitable, she would be alright postponing it for tomorrow. One Japanese phrase was enough for her to work on.

Zephyra would ask him if she could have a lesson now. For a moment he seemed surprised, noting the time and the day cooling into night. No, it didn't bother him at all. The coolness just made him all the more alert. As he settled himself down further, he crawled out onto his stomach curling his tail around his back paws. "Wareware wa, subete no yoru no shin'ainaru o motte imasu" he smirked. "We have all night dear." he responded towards her. Taking a deep breath before letting it out with ease. "Do you want to start with just some simple phrases first? Maybe greetings and title's." He wasn't sure how hard it was to learn an actual language. Since his mother taught her children when they were young. Being bi lingual was almost like it was carved into their dna. After all, he hoped one day he would also be able to teach it to his own children. As far off as it seemed. "Talk" "You" Think

In the dying light she saw him settle onto his stomach to lie more comfortably, and momentarily, a chilly breeze buffeted her fur. Oh, it seemed to be growing a little cold now. Looked like she would have to seek some warmth. Settling onto her own stomach, she scooted closer to lie beside him, pressed into his side. He softly murmured a sentence in the unfamiliar tongue; this one a lot longer than ashiteru. She could almost hear the smirk in his voice. What had he said? If only she knew. Well, she was learning this language for a reason - to understand it...and for them to have their own secret little conservations.

He suggested that they start with simple phrases like greetings and titles. Yes, she supposed that was a good starting point. For a brief moment, she imagined all the words and sentences that she knew in her native tongue and realised that she would have to learn all that in Japanese. It was like she was learning to speak all over again. Except, she couldn't entirely remember learning English. It just happened; she just learnt it. Though this was different. "Yeah, whatever you'd like to teach me, teacher," she responded softly with a small grin tugging at her lips. Her mind was like the blank pages of an empty book. Whatever he taught her would be new information, and she'd work hard to remember all of it.

Rivaxorus smiled at her, allowing her to press into him. He had never really taught a language before so he wasn't sure where to begin. Surely though it was one thing to relax and calm their minds together. His tail came to settle on her rump softly as he shut his eyes and tried to think. "It's not too hard to learn since it's similar to English I suppose. Japanese uses honorifics when it comes to other wolves. You can attach it to their names. -San is for a general stranger, -chan for females -kun for males. A teacher is known as -dono and someone of authority is Sama. For example, you would be Zephyra-sama. Once wolves get close enough though they drop the honorifics and just use their normal names." he explained to her. Hoping that was simple enough. Rivaxorus would then go to teach her some simple words. "Konichiwa means hello. Okami means wolf." He didn't quiet know where he was going with this but it was better than nothing. Once she learned these, they could move onto the more complicated sentences anyway. Rivaxorus hummed for a moment as he nudged her cheek lightly. "Anata wa utsukushī means You look beautiful." the male smirked, maybe he was flirting a little. "Talk" "You" Think

At first she had thought learning a language would be indeed calming, perhaps simple though she had been mistaken. She imagined all the words she knew, how they came so effortlessly to her lips and how she was using them right now in her head. The fact that she had to remember another set of words, with sounds so different than from what she was used to hearing was far from calming, perhaps a little distressing. Though she wanted to learn this language and she'd try her best.

He assured her that his tongue was as easy to learn as English, and at the statement, scarlet eyes narrowed in slight disbelief. Easy for him to say; Japanese was his first language. Pushing negative thoughts aside, she listened in when he explained that the language uses honourifics - endings that were put on the end of someone's name depending on their social status. Alright, that sort of made sense. They would both be samas, yet for each other they wouldn't need it. A little confusing, though she kind of understood it. "Kon...ni...chi...wa Rivaxorus-sama," she repeated with slight uncertainty, unsure if she had pronounced the greeting correctly. "What would 'you look handsome' be?" she inquired with her own smirk, finishing with soft giggles.

The male gave a small chuckle to her practice. Though she pronounced it just fine as far as he was concerned. Maybe it was bit much to say it was easy, yet still. He lowered his head to sit underneath her chin. Giving a small affectionate push before pulling back. Somehow he still wanted her to know how he felt. Giving her affection as well was his way of saying he was right here next to her rather than being far away. That or uncaring for the matter. "That would be 'Kimihaikemenda'. Kimi wa means you and anata wa means you are." he said softly as he looked at her. Whenever she wanted to stop was up to her. His body was comfortable. Melded into hers almost, it made him feel at ease. He didn't think anything in the world could touch him this way. Make him uncomfortable, and in this state. He was most definitely powerful. "Talk" "You" Think

His only response to her first attempt at pronouncing was a chuckle, making a small frown crease her features. Had she said it right? Was there something funny with her pronunciation? Of course she wasn't going to have perfect articulation with these new sounds, and sure, she wasn't going to be particularly fast at speaking. Though breaking the words up into syllables seemed to help her, and trying was the most important thing, right? Currently, all the words she spoked didn't even sound or feel like a language, like they weren't words at all. All she heard were sounds, but one day, she would be able to speak it and hear it just like she did with English.

When he ducked his head to rest it beneath her chin, a small smile tugged at her lips. She nuzzled into his cheek before he finished pulling away. "Kimi...haike...menda," she repeated softly yet slowly, finishing with a firm nod. The part on "you" and "you are" made no sense to her; his words drifting into thin air. Surely that didn't matter right now; she could learn it at a later date. Trying to repeat his words and commit them to memory was enough for her to handle. "What about goodbye, and thank you, and sorry?" She just wanted to learn more!

Rivaxorus was proud of her, she was doing well. Even he didn't truly sound in tune with the language because there were different ways to interpret it. Though if it was one thing, he wanted to pass it on to the next generation. To anyone he could, it was beautiful all in it self. He sounded poetic in his head saying that but at least it was true. Sharing it with the woman he loved, even if she didn't have a clear cut answer just yet, it was probably the most blissful moment in his life right now. "Goodbye is Seyonara. Thank you is Arigato, and sorry... depends on how sorry you are. A quick sorry can be said Gomen... but also a heartfelt apology is gomenasai." Rivaxorus answered her questions. Remembering all these things was easy for him. Perhaps it brought on a small bad memory as well though, of being in the den with his mother. He shook the thought away, heart pounding against his chest. As he looked at Zephyra, waiting for her next question, or if she was done for the night. "Talk" "You" Think

As he explained each word, she attempted to repeat each and every word - including the two types of sorry -, trying to articulate her pronunciation to sound exactly like his. It was like what she had done as a pup, and what many other children continue to do to this day. She had learnt almost everything from her mother, more significantly, how to speak. She had copied every word her mother had spoken, building her vocabulary as the seasons passed. The thought of her mother brought melancholy to her demeanour; almost a pleasant type of sadness. There were many things her mother had taught her, but the one thing she hadn't taught her was how to love.

A sense of satisfaction welled inside of her. She had plenty of words and phrases to commit to memory, and she didn't want to overload her brain with too many new things. Just small steps. What had she learnt anyway? There was sayonara, arigato, gomen and gomenasai, konnichiwa...there were probably more though she was yet to remember them. The one that stood out the boldest for her was ashiteru. She'd never forget that one. "Just one more," she pleaded softly, staring into his bicoloured gaze with wide, doe-like rubies. "What is...'I'll never let you go'?" she whispered sultrily in his ear.