Since returning from the wash that was the festival at the Hallows, Eltrys had been diligent in hunting for Haydee and leaving her a meal by the falls. He didn't push or pressure her for the rest of the season.

Summer grew damp, wet, and slogging into a mild autumn here in Auster and his heart had grown heavier by the day. He wasn't keen on pushing himself on her but he saw no one else was pressing themselves close to her, supporting her, or uplifting her. He was also not keen on entering the cave she dwelled in.

He brought her a meal, as usual, but this time he sat and waited for her to appear to take it. Which he had done a few times, but only sometimes. With the meal he also placed a mid-autumn flower for her.

"Haydee, come on a walk with me." His voice was soft through the demanding words. He won't take no for an answer, not for this.

"Speech!"

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Haydée had been trying to push herself to be a part of the world after she and Eltrys had admitted their feelings for each other because she had wanted to do, no be, better; for him. Yet the world is cruel and fate loves to play tricks with those whom are just finding their footing after tragedy strikes. The Bonfire Festival was supposed to a chance for her to heal; to show her face in a friendly, neutral place and be a part of the community once more… which she had so desperately needed.

Strict instructions had been given to her not to engage with Raiders and she had honored that, never once looking in their direction or uttering a single word to them but still, they had harassed her and cutting words had been thrown her way. After that, after realizing that she was not welcome in the world outside of the pack borders, Haydée had decided to shut herself away so that she could try and figure out what was wrong with her.

With her deepest apologies to the man who had stolen her heart, she had withdrawn to her den for some deep introspection.

Time lost all meaning to her as days began to pass without much to mark them in her candlelit den behind the falls. Sleep came and went, her thoughts her only company as she stayed hidden away from the cruel world. While she laid there, devoid of any real feelings expect worthlessness, part of her begin to hope that everyone would move on without her so that she could allow her body to quietly wither away.

But no matter how much she tried to rid herself of all attaches to this plane of existence so that she might leave, Eltrys kept pulling her back.

Meals were left for her, showing the depressed, listless woman that he still remembers her and he would sometimes even linger to talk. Haydée tries to hold on, for him, for her family that have lost their way and sought their paths outside of Polaris but she found it difficult as she replayed where she failed. Memories flicker across the dark walls of her den, playing out her life in vivid, technicolor detail as she quietly watches from the sidelines, wonder, trying to find where she had gone wrong.

Yet, somewhere, in those dark days where she sat feeling the victim of life, a spark of light began to flicker to life.

Eltrys.

His mere name sparks emotions so deep and powerful that they threaten to drown her with their sheer beauty. Haydée holds onto them, nurtures that kernel of love that he had placed within her heart and waters with each meal and visit he gives to her. Time passes and she grows stronger, making him her lifeline to the outside world as she slowly heals the wounds on her soul. Peace comes as she examines the traumas she has experienced and slowly, painfully, begins to come to terms with them while laying to rest the animosity and self-loathing attached to each event.

Life finally returns to the woman and each subsequent visit with the earthen male shows signs of improvement. This evening, like so many others, she emerges from the tunnel system, pausing to squint against the dying light of the autumn day until the soft light no longer hurts her eyes. There he stands, beside a meal and mid-autumn flower, handsome as ever and Haydée’s heart squeezes painfully in her chest as she once again wonders why he waits for her. Small paws tentatively approach, her ears falling back a moment as she hesitates, countless questions pushing up her throat only to die unspoken on her lips.

A smile warm, but small, tugs at her lips as she moves to him, needing to touch him and make sure that he is real but holding off just in case he no longer has the same feelings. His voice catches her off guarding and wide emerald eyes blink confusedly up at him as he softly demands that she walk with him. A teasing grin weakly tugs at the corners of her lips and she dips her head, saying, “Okay.” It is a simple word but holds so much in it. The steps toward healing have begun and she no longer feels compelled to hide herself away in her den day in and day out.

Moving up to him, Haydée looks down at the meal that he had brought her and pauses to tenderly pluck the autumnal flower from its resting place. Gently, she lifts the delicate bud, bringing it close to her nose as she inhales the sweet perfume. The smile returns, growing in strength as she carefully moves to twine the small stem into the fur behind one ear. It is difficult to maneuver but she manages to get the flower in place and it rests over top of one ear as she looks to Eltrys. Voice soft, she says, “Lead the way.” ready to follow him wherever he might wish to take her and not caring where that is, as long as he is with her.


"Haydée Kedieo"

Her petite frame coalesces outside of the waterfall. His iceberg blue eyes squint with warmth as he watches her blink against the early evening light. She looks... there's a lightness in her step that wasn't there before, a shine to her emerald eyes that had once been absent. She responded to his invitation simply, but he could almost see the glimmer in her eyes of wanting to say more, questions stifled behind her lips.

His eyes are only for her. He watches her pick up the flower and place it behind her ear. A perfect spot for the blossom. His breath heaves against his ribs as she further bids him to lead the way. He honestly didn't think he'd get this far, thinking quickly he decided strolling along the top of the falls was sufficient for the event. He didn't know if he should brush his nose against her cheek. The soft creamy pink beckons him to bury his face against her.
Outwardly he is stoic and calm, a picture of peace. With a soft nod, he begins to lead her up the path to the meeting place over the falls. Ready to press his side softly against hers should she stumble or feel weak. He was certain her long seclusion took away some of her endurance, perhaps walking along this path was the wrong choice.

"I met the new leader of Insomnia, Enki. He was an interesting character." He starts, His eyes lingering on her soft and gentle lines, "Then I had an interesting encounter with a girl named Atreyu. She came from my homeland." She didn't have great news for him, and he didn't want to ruin this moment with such. "And I've taken the girl Alexa out for a few lessons as well. She's still shy but rather clever. Her brother hasn't seemed as interested." Gods he was talking too much about himself. He didn't mention how much the pack missed her joy, how much he wanted to hear her laugh.

He just wanted to keep her in the know, and not pressure her into talking about anything too deeply, unless she wanted to.

"Speech!"

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Haydée watches the way the corners of Eltrys’s eyes crinkle in warmth and her breath gets stuck in her throat for a moment as she realizes once again, just how handsome he is. Soft steps carry her toward him and she plucks the autumnal flower to place behind her ear before stepping up beside him to follow where he wishes to lead her. Calmness radiates off the man and she longs to do something to shock him just so she can see that stoic demeanor fall for a moment into something more… attainable.

Right now, Eltrys seems too good for this world, too good for her; almost as if he is some statue that might break at the slightest touch. As they move, her side lightly brushes against his leg and the touch leaves her tingling in its wake while a blush slowly creeps up her cheeks. While he only eyes for her, the smaller woman’s gaze is a humming bird, flitting from here to there and never really alighting on anything for too long. Her stamina is not what it used to be and that becomes apparent the longer they walk.

Still, not one to give up easily, Haydée keeps pace with Eltrys, eagerly drinking in the news that he offers and pulling her emerald eyes up to where his warm gaze greets her. Stomach flip-flops as a smile pulls at her lips and her brows lift at the news of him meeting a girl from his homeland and worry slices through her mind for a minute as she wonders if he will leave Polaris to go chase after those who hail from the same home. At the news of Alexa the smile brightens and she nods in agreement about the girl’s brother Copper.

His voice falls away and she finds herself wishing to hear more of… anything and, while it is taking a lot of effort to just keep placing one paw in front of another, Haydée voice lifts to break the silence that has fallen, “How is Saga doing? How are you doing?” Do you miss me as much as I miss you? Fear of an answer she does not want to hear seals the last questions behind her lips but she gazes up at him with concern.

Sure, he has been doing all these things but that doesn’t mean he is emotionally well… not that she is one to talk. Yet, even in her depression, Haydée cannot help and look over him with a critical eye, still seeking to take care of those she loves during her own, trying times.


"Haydée Kedieo"

Eltrys slows his pace imperceptibly as he notices her trying to hide her lack of stamina. The quickening of her breath, and the fragile stride he can see. He silently declares halfway up the falls is far enough and brings her to the edge of the stairs where they can look over the ocean, the caves, and the shoreline. He settles in to sit next to her, hardly noticing the view as she asks him how he is doing.

"I believe Saga is doing her best, she's been busy..." His voice fades, not sure how to offer himself up to that question. He's been... at a loss for words. He casts his gaze to the scene finally, but only for a breath as he pulls his eyes back down.

"Have you thought more about what I... Hm..." He started to ask but thought better of it. Back on that day, when he promised to carry her when she wasn't strong enough, he proposed that they lean on each other. He admits it came out of the blue for her, but she had admitted that day that she was contemplating fading away in no uncertain terms.

"The boneyard is an interesting place... I've met a few new wolves there and tried some spars." He mentions. Was that how we was doing? How does he say that she is the sunlight in his dawn? That every night he thinks of how her eyes are the color of summer filtered through the greenest leaves... Was he truly infatuated with her or just enraptured by the idea of her? Of what she represented?

"How can I come to know you Haydee? What are the flowers you pick first? The taste of prey you wish for above any other?" He asked, turning again to catch her eyes, pleading, pondering, wishing...

"Speech!"

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As much as Haydée tries to hide it, she knows that Eltrys can see just how bad her stamina has become. When he silently leads them to the edge of the staircase to sit, she breathes a soft sigh of relief and settles in next to him. Emerald eyes look out over the ocean, enjoying the way the soft autumn light sparkles on the rolling waves. She asks about Saga and how they both have been holding up and his words are somewhat… worrying.

It does not escape her notice, the way he skips over himself and her brow furrows as she readies to poke him about it again when asks something that immediately steals her voice away. Shame draws her gaze down to her paws as she softly says, “I… I don’t want to drag you down right now. I need to work on myself so that…” voice falls away as tries to think of exactly what she needs to be. Stronger? Less fearful? As long as Haydée does not know what she needs to be, she refuses to drag down the man she has fallen in love with and all she can do is offer him a small shrug.

The topic shifts and she blows out a soft sigh, a mixture of relief and guilt as Eltrys speaks of the Boneyard. Green eyes lift to catch his glacial blue gaze and sadness tugs at the corners of her eyes as she offers him a gentle smile. Carefully, she asks, “And how do you feel about fighting?” When they had first met, the man had been a pacifist and she had respected that. Yet, when everything had come to a head with the raiders, he had stepped into the role of protector and a part of her felt ashamed that she had required that of such a strong, gentle soul.

His question catches her off guard but it is welcome and a bright smile finds its way onto her lips. The schoolgirl who tries to hide the fact that she is falling for the handsome jock is suddenly back in full force and she ducks her for a moment as a blush floods her cheeks. A soft hum fills the air as she thinks, really takes the time to think about her answers because… well, no one had asked her before. After a moment, Haydée lifts her eyes to catch his brilliant, blues and offers, “Gazania. They are my favorite flowers.”

Paw lifts to gentle touch the flower behind her ear as the smile grows. Eyes take on a faraway look as she explains, “Gazania aren’t just beautiful, they remind me that after every storm, the sun will once again shine.” Paw drops as she thinks about the bright flowers that burst to life after the spring rains touch the lands, their yellow and orange faces reminding the world of the sunshine that surrounds it. Haydée shifts her weight, leaning her body in toward Eltrys so that she might rest against him.

No matter what her shortcomings might be, he is still there, asking the questions no one thought to ask and making sure that she doesn’t simply waste away in her den. Humming with pleasure, she allows her small body to sink in toward his… if he allows it. Another, happily sigh is released before she says, “As for prey, I enjoy impalas the most. Luckily, they are relatively common and I always find it satisfying to feed on one after chasing it down.”

They were long-legged, gracefully, almost regal creatures and Haydée had always enjoyed feasting on them. Emerald eyes brighten as she offers Eltrys a small, playful smirk and declares, “My turn. What is your favorite food? What do you like to do for fun?” Eyes search his face as she asks, wanting to get him better so that, when she has figured herself out, they might do things… together.


"Haydée Kedieo"

When he asks if she has thought about his proposal but didn't finish the question, she catches the question and answers him with fumbling shame and fading dismissal about working on herself. He tries not to let it make his chest rip asunder. He can wait. Would he pursue her until his dying breath? That doesn't seem very... respectful of her wishes.

She asked about the fighting.
"Taking it on hasn't been easy. But I've won every spar so far, surprisingly even against Saga! It makes me wonder if they were going easy on me." He chuckles dispassionately, perhaps hoping to hide the embarrassment of feeling proud of his accomplishment as he examines the rocks between his paws.

But he's intensely interested in her favorites. His gaze never lingers away from her face, her ears, her petite nose. The way her chocolate fur seems to have been soaked in cherry blossom teas. Gazania... He had never heard the name before. He loves how her eyes sparkle at her remembrance of them, what they remind her of.

"You'll have to point them out to me next time they're blooming." He remarks. Impalas are good common meat around here, Excellent. If she had said caribou or ptarmigan, or even beluga whale he would have set off to get her this prize as soon as he could. He's aware of their fur brushing together. Was she feeling faint?

"Well, I'll be sure to get you an Impala until you get sick of them. Every day I'll bring you one to enjoy with you. Well... As long as the population allows it of course." He chuckles, his low voice eager to please her, and growing lighter with the turn of the conversation. She's leaning on him, he shifts to provide more stability for her, pressing his body into hers, allowing her and welcoming her to sink into him.

Suddenly she turned the questions to him! His paws drew inward and his nose cast back to the rocks between them.
"Oh... I... My favorite is caribou. It was a treat when they were migrating close to the temple. They'd come by every spring." He was stumped for what he liked to do for fun. Everything had a purpose, but none of those purposes was because he enjoyed them. "I admit, I don't know what I like to do for fun." He gives a half laugh, "Heh, maybe I've never had fun at all until..." until he saw her exuberant smile and infectious enthusiasm he longed to see again. He looked with his glacial eyes, hopeful to her greens. Remembering the day they met, the day she led him to Lazuli Falls and he was greeted by the pack. "I think... it would be fun... whenever we do anything together." He said finally. He longed for another kiss, but wouldn't move for one until she did.

"Would you like to return to your quarters?" He asked warmly, not wanting the moment to end but conscious of her stamina, not wanting her to overdo it.

"Speech!"

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