With his birthday having passed, Grimshaw wondered how his siblings were doing down in the Hallows lately. He knew that Artorias had recently become Aegis, and even more recently Briar had moved down there to be his Queen. If it was his birthday recently, theirs were right around the corner if not already and so he wondered what it would be like to visit them.. maybe catch up a little. Artorias had welcomed him to visit anytime, and Grimshaw was now interested in taking that offer. Having been in the Armada for some time, Sirius was willing to let him take the trip home for a short time with the promise of returning to his duties as soon as he could. There was only one problem, however, and that he hoped to solve shortly.

Without the aid of the boy next door, which he wasn't sure if Sirius knew about or not yet, Grimshaw wasn't sure how the nights would go for him. It would be a long time with no sleep if he couldn't talk Malachai into coming with him. After speaking with Sirius and getting the approval, Grimshaw hurried to Malachai's den for the night. He wanted to spend the night here anyway, eager to get a restful night of sleep for his journey in the morning. His heart hammered as he approached the den, excited and nervous to ask him to come. What if he said no? He knew that he had duties of his own around Ashen and would respect him for staying if that were the case, but he so desperately wanted him to come along and not only for the restless nights he was sure to suffer through without him, but also because he just wanted to be around him.

Poking his head through the entry of the den, he quickly followed with the rest of his body and realized that Malachai's scent was stale. As his silver eyes adjusted to the light he took a few memorized steps to the bed and relaxed, waiting for the man to finish with whatever had him busy and away from his den.

"Speech."

Malachai was not exactly having a good day. Panic had just managed to get under his skin today, he was feeling stiff and to top it all off he'd just lost a rabbit. Malachai wanted nothing more than to curl up and sleep off his bad day, if he was lucky maybe he'd even get to have a nice quiet night with Grimshaw. That thought buoyed his mood for a moment when he caught the other boy's scent.

Malachai pushed himself roughly into the den and headed immediately towards the furs they used as a bed and curled himself around Grim, burying his face into the other wolf's shoulders with a tired grunt. "I just want to sleep." He said gruffly, slinging a forelimb over Grim's side and squeezing him tighter to his chest.

"Malachai Cain Klein"

Art by Cebochka

CODE & ART © SKELLE 2022
"Speech!"
One minute he wasn't there, the next minute he was wrapped around him and pulling him close. Grim lightly smiled, the familiar warmth filling his chest as Malachai wrapped around him. He could tell that he was tense though, so his smile didn't last long. Besides, he wasn't sure if he wanted Malachai to know exactly how much he enjoyed this. He wasn't even sure if he even knew how much he did. The man followed the embrace with short words, causing him to frown in the same moment he was smiling. Shifting underneath the man's arm, Grimshaw rolled to face him and pressed himself close as if his neediness would somehow tempt Malachai into talking for a bit, or at least listening.

"Okay, but can I tell you something quick first?" He asked softly, tucking his forehead up underneath the man's chin and nuzzling into his throat. He might not be having a nightmare at the moment, but he'd be lying if he said it wasn't his favorite position. He understood that Malachai wanted to sleep, and really he did too... but he was leaving suddenly in the morning and awkwardly wanted to tell him, if not invite him along which he couldn't get out of his mind. He hoped that he would at least listen, then they could both peacefully fall asleep together.

every second i'm without you i'm a mess

CODE & ART © SKELLE 2022
"Speech!"

A different day, a different night, and Malachai might have been thrilled to listen to anything Grim had to say, but tonight his mind was already starting to drift into numbness. He was so tired. He was jostled slightly as Grimshaw rolled to face him but Malachai curled himself to bury his face in the other boy's chest. He could feel his limbs getting heavy but still Grim spoke. Malachai did not give an answer, just grunted, a low noise that was at least to him a sign of his annoyance but no doubt could have sounded like assent if that was what the listener wanted to hear. Malachai would never claim he was a particularly empathetic wolf, but under normal circumstances, he would have taken a bit more care for his friend.

Though he could not know it now, tonight would be the reason Malachai would learn how to be a little less selfish, but for now, the young man just wanted to rest.

every second i'm without you i'm a mess

CODE & ART © SKELLE 2022
"Speech!"
Malachai pressed into him and Grimshaws chest fluttered, forelimbs reaching upwards to hold him against himself for a change. Toes moved through Malachai's dark fur along the back of his neck until finding a comfortable place to rest, though when the man barely grunted into him as a response, Grim frowned. How could he listen like this? Whatever he agreed to he'd never remember if he was already half asleep and buried into his chest. He wanted to keep his toes running through the mans fur, enjoying the way it felt between his claws but wanted the mans attention more. Bringing his paws back down he tried to lift Malachai's chin a bit to get the man to look at him or at least agree to listen. "Just listen for a minute, it's important, please?" He asked as he stopped himself from allowing his paws to wander along Malachai's jawline..

every second i'm without you i'm a mess