It was mid day, Deathbelle was taking a cat nap in the stream of sunshine that fell through the swiftly changing leaves of the trees above. Soaking up the sun eased her aches and soothed her nausea, so she had taken to sleeping on her patio when the sun hit it just right. She sighed contentedly as she drifted in and out of consciousness. Her pregnancy had been announced, and just in time as she was no longer just kind of chunky, she was visibly pregnant.

Her small frame exaggerated the growth of her belly, and though she still had 3/4ths the way to go she was obviously with child. Her body spread out over the patio, her form supported on a couple gazelle posts. She yawned heavily as she repositioned herself, allowing the other side of her to face the sun as she gently drifted off again.

GOT AN ANGEL ON MY SHOULDER But the devil always won... With his den dug and the entryway cleared Harbringr stepped back to examine his work. Yes, yes, this would do nicely. Satisfied with his new home he slipped out the entrance of his den and shook the dirt into the autumn air. Some of it clung to him still, having mixed with his sweat but he paid it no heed. Perhaps there was a good place in Ashen's realm to wash himself off before night fell. He certainly didn't want to go dragging mud back into his nice clean den. Harbringr set off to explore the territories his sister had claimed as home. He'd need to get to know them eventually so why not start now? He hadn't gotten far before he noticed the empress curled up on her patio in the sun. Oh… he shouldn't. Hari quickly crouched down in the leaves, tail wiggling with excitement as his limbs bunched beneath him like a big, silly puppy. His mind tussled with itself back and forth until his immediate desires won out and he sprang forward seeking to pin Belle's tail beneath his paws as he crowed. "I claim the most beautiful tail in all of Ashen! Bwhahahaar!"

Most wolves seemed to be settling into their places within Ashen well. Everyone was working on their dens and making the Empire their home. Deathbelle was closing in on completion of her own palace, though she needed more work done to the nursery. Her thoughts were occupied with her growing brood and she wasn’t fully aware of the wolf now stalking her. The pregnant wolf stretched yet again, but almost died of a heart attack as her tail was suddenly trapped in place by a heavy weight and a loud voice in her ear. ”Sirius!” She squealed in fright before taking in her black and white marked brother.

With her heart beating like mad and her breath coming quite a bit faster she exhaled her frustration in an indignant snort. ”How dare you, Hari” she chastised him, removing her said beautiful tail from his grasp. ”It won't be the most beautiful with you crushing the fluff.” She said wounded, as she tried to fluff her tail back up. Zee was so much better at this.

Sirius! the Titan was in his den, grunting and heaving as he enlarged the space inside, so it was big enough for the brute to actually turn around without hitting his head. Only Sirius would think it was a good idea to built into the rock face, and chisling and heaving out stones was hardly an easy job. He dropped the one he had just plied free, and shot to his den entrance, and out the door so fast he almost tripped. With a snarling growl on his face, he covered the short distance between their dens in a heartbeat, arrived at the scene, and aimed immediately to tackle the white wolf to the floor, before he could even register that A; he knew the man and, b: Deathbelle’s earlier fright was already gone and she was fluffing her tail like nothing was wrong. All the Titan knew was that his Empress had squealed his name in fright, and he would do anything to keep her safe. "Speech"

THE WOLVES WILL CHASE YOU IN THE PALE MOONLIGHT Drunk and driven by a devil's hunger... Hari stumbled back at his sister's shriek, caught off guard by the high-pitched tone, his ears flipping back. Ow! He hadn't expected to catch her so unaware's but then she was in the middle of the pack's territory. The odd's of a threat getting this far in was extremely unlikely. He glanced at his sister, embarrassment making his ears burn. "Ack, forgive me Belle," he reached out to lick the mud off her tail. "That was stupid. Just seeing you bathing in the sun like that made me think back to when we were puppies and I just couldn't resist." He'd always been a little brat, being the youngest, and that meant tracking mud everywhere and seeing how much he could get on siblings, parents and servants alike. Movement caught Harbringr's attention and he looked to see Sirius charging right at him. He didn't think much of it, muscle memory and training took over as the stimulus for battle presented itself. In an instant his defenses were set and he sprang forward, seeking to meet Sirius half way so they could spar far enough from Belle so as not to endanger her. Hari had been meaning to have a good morning workout and here was his chance! Oh daddy, had Sirius always been so big? Harbringr charged nearly head-on but a step to his right and whipped his head up seeking to latch his jaws around Sirius' throat, his upper fangs on the left side of the mans neck and his lower fangs on the right. His goal was a simple hold meant to startle the other male and limit his airflow enough for Harbringr to get an upperhand. Hari had no intention of seriously hurting the other. He simultaneously threw his left shoulder forward, seeking to slam it into the crease where Sirius' right shoulder joined his chest, hoping to hit with enough force to temporarily jar the joint. Harbringr vs Sirius for Dominance Round 1 of ? Age: Over 1 year Size: Large Build: Medium Fight Skill Level: Advanced

She hadn’t intended to act so violently, there was little reason for her to have, maybe it was the pregnancy making her much more jumpy. Either way, Hari was quick to apologize as he realized his mistake. He began to reminisce and she couldn’t keep angry with him for very long. He had always been a pain in her butt, but she loved him all the same. Him and his upbeat carefree attitude, she wasn’t sure how he kept a smile on his face so easily after everything that happened to them.

The thought was cut short but sudden movement, and Sirius was suddenly leaping for Harbinger's pale form. Belle should have figured her guard would come when called, she hadn’t expected him to be so blind as to attack her brother. They were polite enough to continue the tustle away from her. With Hari engaging she wouldn’t get in the way of a good spar. The Empress watched her Samurai with a stern, and amused gaze as she approved of the sudden bout. She just hoped Seer reigned himself in enough to keep from harming her sibling.

-you can skip belle to spar <3

Harbringer might consider this a game, but Seer would not easily forgive the man for causing fear in Deathbelle. She had called out his name, and summoned him to deal with what had frightened her. For the moment, it mattered little to him that the culprit was a Klein, and blood to her. He might regret that a little when he had time to fully comprehend it. The man did get points for drawing their battle away from Deathbelle, but the guard wasn’t about to go easy on him. He was annoyed that his initial attack had failed, and the battle would begin in earnest. Harbringers teeth flashed towards him, and Seer turned his head, letting the man clamp onto him a little higher and to the side from where he had intended. He still felt teeth connect, but his airflow was free and clear. He let the shoulder slam hit too, grunting at the impact. The titan lifted a paw and aimed to slam it down on the smaller wolf’s toes, shoving his own weight into the shoulder that connected to his own. He wanted to hurt and unbalance the man. He needed to force him to release his grip so that the titan could turn his mostly deeply weapon on the white wolf. Sirius versus Harbringr for Spar Round One of Two Size: Dire Wolf Build: Medium Companion: Extra large companion, Battle Vulture Mutation: Fangs Fight Skill Level: Advanced "Speech"

THE WOLVES WILL CHASE YOU IN THE PALE MOONLIGHT Drunk and driven by a devil's hunger... Harbringr was enjoying himself despite being out-matched. If anything that made the encounter all the more thrilling, the adrenaline pounding through his veins. That is opponent was good-looking certainly didn't hurt even though Hari was pretty sure Sirius was straight as an arrow. Such a shame! His jaws hooked onto the other man's neck, higher and over to the left from where he'd wanted. With a hold in place Harbringr sought to thrash his head to worsen the damage as he tried to get through the other man's thick fur. He quickly threw up his right arm seeking to wrap it over the base of Sirius' neck in front of the man's shoulder blades so he could stabilize himself. The move successfully moving his paw out of contention for Sirius' paw slam. The shoulder slam was a rough bid. Harbringr was successful in hitting his target but the blow was painful to Harbringr as Sirius put his weight behind a retaliatory slam. Pain lanced through his body but he channelled it into gritting his teeth and try to maintain his hold. He was going to have some good-sized bruises after this fight, make no mistake. At least Deathbelle might get a few laughs from him limping around for his impudence. Harbringr vs Sirius for Dominance Round 2 of 2 Age: Over 1 year Size: Large Build: Medium Fight Skill Level: Advanced

Harbringr began to thrash, and Sirius grunted and braced himself in an attempt to lesson the shaking and damage. The other man avoided Seer’s attack on his toes as he made to wrap himself around Seer’s shoulders. That worked fine for the titan. Harbringr had to reach up high to get to the taller wolf, and Seer knew his balance now relied on the Titan. Seer attempted to shove himself forward, in the hopes he would force Harbringr backwards and compromise his balance even further, before shoving him to the side in an attempt to completely knock the man off balance. As he did this, he aimed to get a grip on the mans ear with his teeth, and potentially scrap his fangs along the man’s forehead. Not enough to do anything permanent, just to remind him of Seer’s deadly sabers and draw some blood. Sirius versus Harbringr for Spar Round Two of Two Size: Dire Wolf Build: Medium Companion: Extra large companion, Battle Vulture Mutation: Fangs Fight Skill Level: Advanced "Speech"

And the winner is...

SIRIUS

HARBRINGR must give up by submitting, fleeing or passing out. Totals: Harbringr: 239.55 Sirius: 270.6

GOT AN ANGEL ON MY SHOULDER But the devil always won... Harbringr had been expecting the larger male to push forward but he hadn't quite predicted the force of the other man and as he stumbled to try and compensate he ended up loosing his grip and flipping completely onto his back. As a result the other man's bite missed completely. Hari have considered trying to kick the other man in the groin but at this point he felt it was evident enough that he lost. "Bah! Fine you win." He looked up at the other man not at all disgruntled at the position he found himself in, snug beneath the fanged adonis. A lechivvious grin adorned his face as he spoke. "So, are you doing anything later tonight?" It wasn't a serious comment for as far as Hari knew the other man had no interest in the same sex but he just couldn't help himself. He was having too much fun!

Sirius’s wasn’t playing, despite the man’s light hearted approach to the fight, but by the time the dominance was over, the Titan found his anger had run out of steam. Deathbelle had clearly enjoyed watching the match, and Harbringr had carefully aided him in keeping the fight from the Empress. Of course, by the time his anger was over, he realised what he had done - fighting a Klein without their permission. Of course, Harbringr’s light take on the word left little room for anger. Instead, the man grinned at him, the smile… strange, and Sirius found he couldn't quite identify the emotion behind it. His surprise only strengthened at the words that followed. “Patrol…?” he said, it came out as more of a question then the stern warrior had intended, throw out of loop by Harbringr’s light hearted, almost learest comment. "Speech"