Ulric made his way back to the mangroves with his prizes in tow. The hunting he had done with Cairo had been surprisingly successful - mostly because of how helpful his knowledgeable cousin had been. At least now he knew who to go to if he had any sort of question about how to hunt or skin anything in the future. Now all he had to do was figure out how to turn these supplies into something he could actually use. Cairo had given him some tips, but in the end he didn't really know what he wanted to do with them yet and he hated to waste such well prepared leathers on his attempts until he was sure what he wanted to do. He had the fairly sizable piece of leather in a loop and used it to carry the large set of antlers that had drawn him to the buck in the first place. As he made his way back toward the den, the corners of his mouth pulled up with a little grin at the idea of showing Azariah his finds. He wasn't sure if she'd be willing to help him with his project or not, but at the very least he was excited to show her what he had been up to for most of the day. He loved sharing his life with her and finding ways to incorporate their tasks together. He stopped near the entrance of the den and sat down the leather and antlers that would hopefully become his armor with a little bit of creativity and work. "Talk"

Azariah had been busy gathering things for a basic first-aid kit, though she was on one of her drop off stops currently. Herbs with anti-microbial properties and small, but strong, bones for sutures. She made sure to keep in mind she would have to make a trip back to the Forgotten Isle and get her bag. She had found it in one of the larger dens there, and missed having it handy. Still, the back and forth of gathering and dropping off herbs kept her busy as Ulric was away from her. His absence had become something that caused her to worry excessively and she had to keep herself busy in these moments or she would surely crumble. It was such an intense feeling, even her heart physically squeezed in her chest to a nearly painful degree. Which was why when she caught the scent of him, she nearly erupted with excitement. Dropping the bits of calming lavender on the floor by their bed, Azariah turned and rushed to greet him. Her head tilted as she came in to kiss him, her tail waving happily behind her. "How was your trip, love? And what have you brought home?" She knew what leather was, though, she wanted to know his plans for it. In her mind it was a perfect armor thickness, something that would stop most wolves' teeth. She burrowed her head against his chest and made her signature purring sound to make sure he knew she was happy he had made it home. Taking a second to listen to his heart as she waited to hear his plans for the antlers and leather.

Note: Sorry it's a shorty XD Hard to switch between Lurid and super cute couple over here lolol. I love them so much though, and I didn't wanna leave you waiting <3! They rock my socks ^_^
| Word count: 274 words |
"Talking." | 'Thought.' | 'Others.'

Seeing his love again brought the brightest grin to his face and a happiness that he couldn't quite explain. Seeing how excited she was for him to return only made that even more true and he couldn't help but let his tail wag just as enthusiastically as hers. He returned her greeting kiss with one of his own and even though she questioned what he had had brought home, he completely abandoned the materials in his mind as soon as she snuggled up to his chest with the happy purr that was so uniquely hers. His projects immediately took a back seat in his mind and her intoxicating presence came to the forefront. He didn't respond to her questions right away, instead focusing on her and settling onto his haunches so that he could bring his forelegs around her and wrap her up in his embrace. He pulled the smaller woman against him with a little grin and leaned down to place a tender, passionate kiss at the end of her muzzle. For a few long moments he let himself just enjoy her and melt into her like an ice in summer. His eyes closed as he kissed her again and again while holding her form against his, letting his strong arms support her smaller frame. He wondered if he might ever get over the desire to shower her with love every single time they crossed paths, but he highly doubted it. After a few long moments he finally slipped his muzzle away from hers with a wide, loving grin. His silver eyes peered down into hers with a soft, slightly breathless chuckle. It was hard to resist the temptation to just slip away into the den with her now, but there was still questions that he had to answer. He didn't loosen his hold on her at all since the idea of letting her body slip away from his sounded like a fate worse than death, but he did give a small nod toward the leather and pair of mule deer antlers he had brought back with him. "I did a little hunting today and happened to come across my cousin Cairo in the process. He was surprisingly knowledgeable on skinning and hunting so he helped me get all this here. I thought it could make for some good armor if I can figure out how to make it." He chuckled a little at himself as be brought his gaze back to his lover's, his smile immediately brightening again at the sight of her. He dipped his head again and placed a small lick across her nose and grinned. "I wish I had been here with you all day instead... I don't think we would have been nearly as productive though." "Talk"

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?

"Talking." | 'Thought.' | 'Others.'

He was glad that she was always just as hungry for the attention and affection as he was so he never had to feel guilty about completely derailing whatever they were doing with his need to be all over her constantly. He had never really been someone that was interested in affection besides the occasional embrace or peck on the check from his family members, but with Azariah it was completely different. He couldn't get enough of her and he had a hard time focusing on anything else when she was around. It felt like a good problem to have, especially since she seemed to feel the same way. He loved the way her smaller form felt when it was tucked into his own, he even loved the way she gazed up at him with a love that mirrored his own, and he even loved all of the adorable, happy sounds she made. If he was being honest he could care less about the hides and antlers that he had just spent most of the day collecting now that he had his lover in his arms again, but he really enjoyed how excited the idea of the project made her. He smiled and watched as she rambled about Umbra and fishbone needles. The way she spoke in distracted bits of stories was so entirely endearing and it was one of the many, many things he loved about her. He hadn't found a single thing about her that he didn't adore. He was sure that with time they might begin to notice pet peeves about each other or find little things that bothered them about each other, but thus far he hadn't found one yet. "I'm sure we can too," he agreed with a grin and a soft chuckle. "It'll be the perfect project for us to work on together." But for now... They didn't have whatever she wanted to use as a needle or anything that they could use as thread handy so for now he could put that work on the back burner so he could go back to the other things that caught much more of his attention right now. He gave her a gentle squeeze in his arms and gave her a small, sly grin before dipping his head down to plant another firm kiss on her muzzle. He was insatiable and he knew it, but he also felt absolutely no need to try and temper his desires at this point. He was unapologetic in how much he wanted his woman and saw absolutely nothing wrong with that. When he slipped away from that passionate kiss again, he only let them part far enough for him to be able to speak. "For now... maybe you can show me how we would have been productive if had been here today?" he suggested, his tone soft and laced with desire. Maybe once they were satisfied they could revisit their armor making adventure, but he wasn't sure he could actually get himself to focus on the task when he wanted something else much, much more. "Talk"

It would seem the necessary supplies for the project would have to wait for gathering, the moment his eyes met hers and he gave her that sly - and yet smoldering - grin, Azariah knew she was lost. A tinkling laugh bubbled up from her chest as he kissed her firmly on her muzzle, returning his passion with her own, the monochrome witch broke their kiss to add gentle nips along his jaw and up to his ear. Her words were said on a voice that rumbled with her unique purr, the very tones laced with desire, "I have been thinking about exactly that since you left..." Ducking beneath his paws, Azariah was quick to turn and run, looking over her shoulder to make sure he followed before dashing off into a flower-laden clearing that gave a bit more privacy without being constricting like the den.

Who could possibly blame him for being this insatiable or all over his lady when she was this intoxicating? From the sound of her sweet, joyful laughter to the purr she had to her voice that was so uniquely hers and the nips and kisses that fell in-between - everything she did drove him crazy. The moment she managed to slip away from his arms he was on his feet, following after her with a wide, crooked grin. He abandoned the supplies he had collected for now. He couldn't imagine that anyone would be by anytime soon that would bother them anyway and even if they did catching up with Azariah was worth it. Ulric loped after her, his long strides making it easy to catch up to the smaller woman as she darted off to a secluded clearing that was dotted with flowers. Once they were in the middle of the clearing he chuckled and reached out with one of his forelegs, catching her around the waist and forcing her to stop. "And where do you think you're going?" he teased as he pulled her closer to him, catching one of her ears gently between his teeth and letting those teasing nips and nibbles trail down over the curve of her jaw. For once, his oversized frame and strength came in handy for something other than fighting and he had really been putting his build to use since meeting Azariah. Wrapping his foreleg around her shoulders, he hooked around her frame and pulled her into him in the same motion as he went rolling to the ground, pulling her down with him. He grinned and chuckled as he caught her securely in his forelegs, letting her land on top of him to break her fall and wrapping her up in his embrace now that she was laying across him. His silver eyes sparkled with humor and he just couldn't possibly keep the grin off his face. "You make me the happiest man in the world, you know that?" he mused before leaning forward just enough to place a gentle kiss on her muzzle. His tone was full of amusement and amazement, but that didn't make it any less truthful. His worries had felt so much farther away since they met and the few that did still linger felt like they were far more manageable. He felt like as long as he had her then everything would end up alright in the end. "Talk"