She found herself looking for him. There was no particular reason she could think of really. She just wanted to see him she supposed... check up on how he was doing. Recently she'd been thinking about him more and more, no matter how hard she tried to push the thoughts away. In all truth though she was a little bit scared of this feeling. She had never felt anything like this before and didn't know what to call it. It was like a feeling where you got excited and nervous at the same time when you thought of them. She found it hard to explain.
As she walked, she thought of quite a few things really, how she was finally beginning to accept that Laika was really gone no matter how much it hurt... she wouldn't be surprised if Laika was even dead, and the thought of that seemed to tear her heart to pieces. She also thought of her children and how she had mostly let go now... the pain was dulled now, although it would never go away. Still she felt like for once she finally had peace on that topic. Her heart felt a little lighter.
Unaware of Spring's trek to find him, Heston was sunning himself on a nice flat rock. He wanted to be out of the snow for a moment, to try and feel warmer than he actually was. His eyes were open as he soaked up the rays, but he was thinking deeply. He was reviewing his most recent lesson with Natashe. He was getting better at French, so she told him, but he still didn't feel like he was there yet. He didn't want to share his secret endeavor with Spring until it was much better, he wanted to be able to hold a semblance of a conversation with her. It wouldn't be nearly as impressive to rattle off a single phrase and then go "Uh, no, that's it."
He was repeating the words to himself, glancing around at the area and naming the things he saw. Sky was the easiest for obvious reasons. He hoped that one day he could actually speak this language to Spring...and maybe when he could do that he wouldn't feel so scared of being so attached to her. He wondered if she'd notice his and Natashe's sudden bonding time, and what her sister would say when asked. He was sure the woman could manage to hide the true story behind their meetings, it would be easy enough to say that they had just become friends. That wasn't a lie either, for he was obviously coming to know the female better as their lessons went on. His mind was fully occupied, lips twitching unconsciously as he spoke the words in his head.
She eventually found him on a nice flat rock seeming deep in his thoughts. As Spring began to make her way towards him she wondered what he was thinking about. Was he thinking about her? No... of course not. He was probably just thinking about hunting or something like that... still the thought that he could be thinking about her set off butterflies in her stomach.
"How ya doing Heston?" She questioned as she got closer, sitting close to him. "I was wondering if you wanted to do something today... hunting, patrolling, just talking maybe ," she shrugged, then quickly added, "of course only if you're up for it."
He was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't hear Spring approach. Her voice from nearly right beside him startled him so that he leapt to his feet. His fur rose on his back, not in anger but in surprise, as he turned to gape at her with wide eyes. "Shit...You nearly gave me a heart attack." He panted, laughing already. Her comment about doing something together would have made his heart beat faster, if it wasn't already racing.
"I'd like to not die, mainly, if you'd allow me that." He joked as he sank back to his haunches beside her. "Were you sneaking on purpose, or am I just completely oblivious?" He shot her a small grin. "Don't answer that, not sure I'll like the answer." He smirked at her for a moment, before pulling his eyes away and finally addressing her question.
"Whatever you like, Spring, now that I can breathe again. So long as you promise not to try to kill me anymore today, alright?" He was still grinning, he found the entire situation funny if not a tad embarrassing.
She laughed whole heartedly as surprise fell across his features and she actually found it to be quite cute. "Wow, you know I'm gonna just have to tell you that you were pretty oblivious," she teased him, despite Heston not wanting to know the answer.
"Well I suppose we could go fishing as long as you don't lose your focus again and fall in with all the fish," she teased with a smirk not letting go of his obliviousness too easily as she found herself enjoying teasing him.
He laughed, shaking his head. "No, no you weren't supposed to tell me, remember? Now my ego is bruised and my manhood is shamed. See what you've done? I'll never be the same." She mentioned going fishing and he rose easily to follow her, nodding his head until he heard her gentle poke.
He gasped loudly, stopping in his tracks. "So mean today!" He shook his head, eyes wide. "I am just so surprised at you, do you treat all your members like this? It's a crime, Spring. A crime. I am offended, and I won't be forgetting anytime soon." He narrowed his eyes on her, a devious grin rising on his face. "I just hope you're as sneaky trying to catch fish as you are trying to catch a Heston."
She rolled her eyes playfully, with a laugh at his sarcasm. "Oh no... your poor poor ego... wait since when did you have an ego? You never told me!" She teased him with a laugh and a playful nudge, a twinkle alit in her eyes.
"A crime you say? I'm just being honest with you." She replied sarcastically with a happy wag of her tail. "Oh and Heston I wasn't being sneaky at all with you. So you just wait and see me catching all those fish," she chortled.
She laughed at and he flashed her a grin, she reached to nudge him and he reacted to the touch as if it had been a shove. He jerked to one side, feigning a stumble. "And now you're beating your pack members? Kicking a man while he's down, literally? Shameful, miss, shameful." He huffed, shaking his head.
"Honestly mean." He returned, smiling warmly at her. "Hey, you're looking at an experienced fisher here!" He said, scoffing at her. "Not quite as skilled as I am at elk hunting, but a skilled fisher!" He cast her a sly look suddenly. "You know once I stole the tail off an elk, just because I could. I can prove it too, I still have the tail. Casmir saw it, he'd tell you. The epitome of hunting prowess." He puffed his chest and raised his head up proudly, smirking at her.
She couldn't stop laughing. Every minute she was around him she felt truelly alive. He made her happy and whether or not she was ready to admit it yet, she was pretty sure now that she loved him.
Her eyes widened at his mention of the elk.
"Oh my god... are you joking? You actually took the tail off of an elk?" For a moment she paused, her gaze brimming with surprise. "How'd you even manage to do that? I mean how did you... how did you grab the tail off of the thing's butt. I mean that's really cool! But how? I mean... how?" She sighed, "still you can do better," she teased him with a smirk.
"You know... I'd really like to see this tail now Heston... I need proof. How about we delay fishing for a bit so I can see that your telling me the truth." Her tail began to wag. "Are you up for the challenge... cause I dare you."
He adored the sound of her laugh, and it only spurred him to coax the sound from her more and more. It was a bright thing, so light and full of happiness. They'd both had more darkness in their young lives already, he needed something good. Something like her laugh. She was surprised at his elk story and, much to his satisfaction she seemed impressed. His chest puffed perhaps even a little further and he smirked at her wider.
"Of course I'm not joking. I said I was skilled, remember?" He, of course, didn't want to tell her that even landing the bite on the elk had been a mistake. Than he, in fact, had been fearful for his life and he clung to the small bit of fluff and skin. Her own teasing made his brow raise and he laughed.
"What, you want me to take the tail off of a fish now? Hardly seems as difficult." Doing that could be done with a badly timed snatch, though really...hadn't that been what the elk tail was in the first place? De-tailing a fish killed the creature though, sadly elks were not the same. He would love to have a story about felling an elk in one go. Even if he'd managed to take it down with just he and Casmir, that'd be a story to be proud of.
She said she wanted to see the tail and he perked up even further, if that was possible. He grinned widely at her, swaggering a little as he walked. His voice dropped to a lower register, flirty as he spoke. "Oh, so...you want to come back to my place, hm? It's a little forward so early in the day but I don't judge." He quickly pulled out of the act, not wanting to insult her, but it was simply a friendly joke. "Kidding, of course, Spring. I'll gladly show you the tail just to see the look on your face when you see I'm not lying. That is one dare that I will easily accept, and win." He turned and began making his way towards his den. "Does that mean I get to dare you to do something as well?" He eyebrow quirked up and he glanced at her, pausing in his steps. "If that's the case, you may want to reconsider my dare...unless you like losing of course."
She was so happy when she was with him, everything felt so light and free, her laugh came easily when they joked around. She liked being near him... and yet because of her past expierence, she found herself still a little nervous to admit why.
Her eyes widened in playful surprise when he challenged her dare, suggesting he get one as well and in order to win she might want to change her dare. Well on that note of course she was going to change her dare! Right now it wasn't at all hard enough... she needed to think of something amazing... extrodinary.
"Hmmm," she began as if in deep thought, "I suppose you are right though, that you deserve a dare for me too. Although... if that is so, I am most definitely going to choose a new dare for you." She decided, beginning to think of what her dare would be. In the meantime, Heston mind as well go though. "You can go first." She told him with a smirk.
I just realized Pyx and the pups share a birthday, funny.
She wouldn't deny that hearing that the cold was especially hard this year was a relief. She didn't enjoy a winter with this much bite, as Amekaze said. She nodded, smiling a little.
"That makes me feel better at least. I was worried I'd have this to look forward to every winter." She accepted Amekaze's answer easily, glad at least to have given the knowledge. She hadn't expected the woman to want it now, and would have wanted to see the princess before administering it anyway.
He hadn't had a time this good in a long while, and while parts of his mind wanted to whisper discouraging things, he was pushing it away. He was focusing on right here and now, the smile on her face and the laughter. He quirked a brow at her as she thought, as if challenging her again silently. He laughed as she said that she would rethink her dare, and grinned wider.
She asked him to go first and he smirked.
"No, no. Ladies first, of course. As always. I am a gentleman above all else."
He insisted that she go first and so she found herself thinking up a dare. What could she make him do... several thoughts ran through her head, but none were just the right one, as some options didn't go to far and others didn't go fare enough. She sighed and then one came to mind. A wonderful dare.
"Okay, fine, I'll go first." She gave a dramatic pause. "I dare you to... swim in the creek for a minute, then jump out and instantly lick a mossy tree five times." She dared, eyes twinkling playfully.