Suspense was letting herself explore, they'd gotten settled, and with her mother's near-constant cajoling, she'd finally been convinced to go out and explore. A splotch of greenery on the horizon with the desert so close had caught her attention and she'd made her way there. The small oasis opened up before her and Suspense felt her breath catch in her throat. It was beautiful. For a moment she forgot about everything, she was simply enjoying the lush vegetation. But distractability had always been one of her biggest flaws and with her eyes on the draping leaves she failed to notice the sharp bank of the lake. One minute she was moving over the roots of one of the willows and the next she was stepping into open air. A surprised shrill squeak lifted from her lungs, followed quickly by a splash as down went the tiny woman. Now Suspense wasn't a bad swimmer, she'd grown up in Abaven on the banks of the river she'd learned how to swim. But the river did not have the reeds and weeds this lake did. And when she started to paddle towards the surface she found herself held in place, her left back leg tangled deeply into the weeds holding her tight. Suspense suddenly thought about her mother then, waiting for her daughter to return home. Suspense was the last of her siblings her mother had, she couldn't do that to her! She struggled harder but found she could not easily cut herself free from her position. Luckily for the tiny woman, her raven Tamerlane was always watching and when he noticed the woman fail to surface he immediately took wing to go and harass the first other wolf he saw into helping her, if her surprised noise and splash hadn't already drawn their attention. "Speech" Think

Art by RoyalOverdose

Kore slowly plods underneath the willow trees as his mind churns with questions. The changing of seasons marks his, and his siblings, second year of life which, many wolves consider to be adulthood. Yet a darkness hangs over the small trio as it has become clear that their brother, Kalyke, has disappeared. How long his blue fire-kissed sibling has been missing, is uncertain but Kore and Ao know that something happened. It had been difficult to bid his moon touched sister farewell but the safety of their brother is important to them both and that is why he is here, slowly searching the land for any sign of his missing sibling.

A sigh rolls past his lips as the galaxy-cloaked man realizes that this is, yet another, dead end. Frustration has him kicking a small pebble into the lazily flowing river that weaves its way through the roots of the trees. Suddenly, a loud splash catches Kore’s attention and he pauses to listen. Loud splashing continues and a bird begins to make a racket. Dread drops a lead weight in his belly and the tall man rushes to where the chaos is unfolding. Light blue eyes quickly spy a raven that is flying toward him and it seems to understand that he wishes to help. The pair rush to the scene and the man quickly takes in the area.

The raven swoops down toward the water, as if, pointing out a spot and Kore hurriedly leaps into the cold liquid. It comes up to chest and he gasps as the chill hits his body but he continues on, hastily wades to where a dark shape struggles underneath the surface. Inhaling, the man wraps his slender forelegs around the small wolf before holding his breath and plunging his head underneath the surface. He finds the weeds that are keeping the wolf prisoner and, with a carefully placed bite of his saber teeth, he frees the trapped limb.

Withdrawing his head, he uses his legs to swiftly pull the smaller wolf to surface where, once she breaks above the water, the taller man gently grabs her scruff. He tries to be as careful as possible with her scruff and his sabers as he nimbly leaps onto the safety of the shore. Once his paws hit dry land, the galaxy clad man promptly, yet cautiously, lays the monochrome woman down. Panting, Kore gently lays a large paw on the smaller wolf’s side and he leans down toward her face, listening for the sounds of breathing as he softly says, “Hey there. Breathe. Can you do that for me? In through your mouth, out through your nose. Nice and slow. Like this.”

Kore mimics the slow, steady breathing as he does a quick check of the woman while hoping the few things that he picked up from his sister is helpful.


"Kore Regni"

Suspense's thrashing and paddling paws was slowing and she swore a dark shadow came over her. And that's because it quite literally did, she dimly felt something wrap around her and then she was free, her paws wiggling uselessly as she tried to continue to pull herself up to the surface. Luckily whatever had freed her was clearly interested in not letting her drown. As her head breached the surface she gasped for air, more from instinct than from awareness, though as air started flowing through her body again that was starting to come back too. Though for now she was mostly focused on coughing. It wasn't until she was laid carefully on the ground though that she thought to look at who had rescued her. God, it had been some time since she'd been around anyone nearly as big as this young man was, by her estimation probably as big as her brothers had been though considering her own diminutive size and her hazy memory of her brothers it was honestly hard to tell. He was giving her instructions on how to breathe and she wanted to chuckle, his clear anxiety was endearing. But instead, she was still coughing so she decided it was probably better to actually follow his advice, once she'd gotten the fit under control she followed his instructions. In through her mouth, out through her nose. As her breathing started to settle Suspense decided she was probably able to talk and start trying to warm herself up now. She was shivering pretty strongly now, the chill of early spring probably not helping. So warmth first. She wanted to curl in on herself but had learned at least a few things from her mother about treating a near drowning, instead, she extended her limbs, keeping the dampness from being further pressed into her body, she leant her head down and started awkwardly licking at her forelegs, awkwardly because she was trying to lick against the flow of her fur, the better to warm her body up but her angle wasn't exactly making it easy. "Thanks for rescuing me." She said, her voice had never quite lowered the way her mother's had, giving her a higher pitch. "I uh- Kinda didn't see the water before it was too late." She giggled in embarrassment. "Speech" Think

Art by RoyalOverdose

The worry and anxiety that Kore feels for the unknown wolf is etched onto his features as he leans in close to the small wolf. Brows knit together as she coughs, knowing that her oxygen starved body is trying to get air in while ridding any water that might have gotten into her lungs. A weary smile worms its way across his lips as the coughing slowly subsides and the woman extends her short legs. Bright cerulean eyes blink in surprise as he watches her lick against the grain of her fur and he finally becomes aware of the bite of the early spring air.

Mentally, he kicks himself for not realizing it sooner and he leans back to think. Her words pull a deep, rumbling chuckle from his chest and he removes his paw from her side. Blowing out a relieved sigh, Kore’s deep tones swiftly follow suit as he says, “It is a nice day. But uh, maybe keep one eye on the day and one eye on the land. Hmm?” One eyebrow lifts as a gentle laugh billows out. Shifting away, the man clad in galaxies lays down next to half drowned monochrome woman.

Without hesitation, Kore lifts one of his slender, strong front legs in an invitation her to warm herself in his embrace. He has heat to spare and, if she'll accept it, he can help to lick some warmth into her back. Sure, it is kind of intimate but the galaxy hued man is more focused on making sure that the pretty woman he has just saved doesn’t die of hypothermia. Eyes scan her form as a small, worried smile appears on his lips, worry still knitting his brow. While the lines are softening it is still clear that is concerned for her wellbeing.

As he waits to see if she will accept his invitation, Kore gently asks, “Is there somewhere I can take you? Don’t want you to freeze to death out here after all the work I did to save you.” The words hold no bite, just the gentle teasing one might except from a sibling and he adds a wink along with a lopsided grin. The man is resolute in making sure that she is warm and safe before he even thinks of walk away. If that means that he has to shadow her to some distance land… then so be it.


"Kore Regni"

He chided her lightly and Suspense looked at up at him, pausing her licking for a moment. "Unfortunately my line of sight isn't exactly expansive." It was a light jab at her own height, not that it actually mattered in this case, the water had been down and not further than she could see. She went back to trying to warm herself, not noticing the man was really moving until the majority of his weight hit the ground, she glanced up at him, not stopping until he lifted a foreleg and the woman stopped, tongue still poking from her lips. She hadn't been close with any wolves outside of her family, what few friends she'd had while younger had been lost in Abaven's fall, so there was some awkwardness there for her, though not for the reasons he might assume. Still she was cold and it would take quite some time to dry and warm herself so might as well take the offer. She pulled herself into his embrace, feeling his warmth almost immediately, it wasn't hard for most to completely envelop her of course so that wasn't surprising. Tamerlane landed on a nearby branch, clicking his beak reproachfully but otherwise not expressing his opinions. Suspense resisted the urge to push herself into the man, snuggle right on in there, but she wasn't a pup and this man was still largely a stranger. "There's a pack near here, Avalon." She suddenly realized she had yet to introduce herself. "I'm Suspense by the way, sorry when I'm not drowning I'm usually more polite than that." She gave him a returning wink before closing her eyes for a moment and tipping her head back, now that the bigger man was blocking the chilly wind for her the warmth of the spring sun could be more easily felt on her face. "Speech" Think

Art by RoyalOverdose

At his words about keeping her eyes open, the woman lightly jabs at her own height. The galaxy coated man offers a gentle, rolling laugh before saying, “Well, maybe you should team up with someone else that is slightly more… expansive.” Eyes sparkle with mirth as he lays down around her, lifting a leg in invitation for her to press into his dry chest. For him, the water had only touched high on legs, leaving his belly and chest completely dry. The small woman accepts his offer, pressing into his chest while he gentle curls his forelegs around her.

Without a word, the man cranes his neck over her slender frame and begins to lick the fur along her back against the grain. If the situation had been different, the galaxy-hued man might have been self-conscious but, right now, all he cares about is getting her warm and dry. At the mention of the pack’s name, Kore bobs his head for a moment before returning to his task. However, the woman offers her name and the man suddenly realizes that they have not introduced themselves. Pausing to smile warmly down at her, he softly offers up his name, “My name is Kore. It is a pleasure to meet you Suspense.”

Unvoiced laughter shines in his eyes as she winks and him and then she tilts her head back to enjoy the warm rays of the sun. Slowly, he returns to helping her lick off the water drops, focusing on her back and sides in long, vigorous strokes. After several passes, Kore lifts his head and looks out across the land as he gets his bearings. A hum begins deep his chest, rumbling an unvoiced song in the back of his throat as he works to gets his bearings. He needs to get Suspense back to her pack before the sun begins to track downward and chill the air.


"Kore Regni"

There was something so calming, so relaxing about the whole thing, his warmth seeping into her damp body. "I think I'd like that." She teased in response to his "suggestion." It was a response in a joking tone but if she was being honest she was telling the truth then, she'd been the only of her siblings to not fly the nest and she couldn't help but feel like she'd missed so much of her life because of that but Suspense was a fundamentally social wolf, she could not see herself ever feeling comfortable on her own for long, maybe she really ought to try and find a travel buddy... With her head tipped back and his gentle licking it was no surprise that Suspense started to doze lightly, you'd think having nearly drowned only a few moments before that she'd been too wired to relax but when the adrenaline had fled her she'd felt a great exhaustion take over her limbs and now she was failing her fight against it. It was only when her head started to drop that she was jolted awake. For a second she wasn't sure where she was, and then the next second she could feel her face flooding with heat, how could she have simply let herself fall asleep right in front of this stranger. Okay, so she knew his name now but it didn't mean they really knew each other. She silently prayed he hadn't even noticed but she also didn't want to bring attention to it by breaking the silence so instead she kinda just sat there in her own awkwardness trying to not let it happen again, even if yes, the whole thing was very soothing. "Speech" Think

Art by RoyalOverdose

It is easy for the man to hold the smaller wolf, his instinct to protect the woman who had almost drowned, shows itself in the gentle ways that Kore tries to keep her warm. Kore softly jokes with Suspense and the woman teases right him right, bringing a soft, rumbling laugh up from the depths of his chest. They lapse into a comfortable silence as the smaller wolf tilts her head back, soaking in the sun while he continues to soothingly lick warmth back into her body. The adrenaline that had flooded her system moments before has left and the galaxy-clad man notices the exhaustion that has settled in its place.

Kore continues his work, his gentle, slow movements lolling the woman into a sense of peace and safety. It does not escape his notice that she nods off, jerking herself back awake as soon as her head tilts down but, besides a small smile that curls the corners of his lips, he makes no acknowledgment of it. After some time, most of the water has been whisked away from her dark coat and the man gently nuzzles Suspense’s back, just in case she has drifted off again and his deep tones softly rumble out as he asks, “You okay, Suspense? How are you feeling? Do you want to head back to your pack or would you like me to make a fire?”

The questions are not loaded since Kore is happy to do whatever she feels most comfortable with. However, there is one thing that the man painted with nebulas is certain of; he will not leave her until he can make sure that she is safely within Avalon’s borders.


"Kore Regni"