Majesty arrived at Wapun Meadow before Erika did. He did not mind the wait. It gave him time to think about what he would do for her when she arrived. He went to a nearby spring and bathed himself in the cool water. It was around sunset, but it was still fairly warm. Unfortunately, it had rained earlier that day, and the it was still mostly overcast, so it would not be a very beautiful sunset. Still, every once in a while, the red-gold sun would peek through the clouds and cast its light on the multitude of flowers and hills of the meadow. He got out of the spring once he was thoroughly soaked, even dipping his head into the water, and found a nice grassy hill to lie in to let himself dry off.

In a little while, he was dry, though still slightly damp, and he went and rolled around a patch of wildflowers to get their scent on his fur - a kind of natural cologne. Then he lay in the Meadow and looked around. It was then that he noticed, a little farther on into the meadow, a group of pronghorns standing around, eating grass and taking no notice of him. Perfect, he thought. Dinner. With a smile, he rolled onto his back, front paws tucked against his chest, and smiled. This was a date. With Erika. His Erika. Ma Belle, he thought, and smiled again.

Majesty had accidentally dozed off at some point, lying on his back with his paws splayed out. He snored lightly and smiled in his dreamless sleep. Something stirred him awake, though. At first, in his groggy, half-asleep state, he wasn't sure what it was, and rolled over onto his belly to see the world right-side up. And then he spotted Erika standing there and watching him, and smiling. "Ma Majesté," she said.

He grinned and stood up, shaking grass from his fur. "Erika, Ma Belle," he replied, coming towards her. "I hope you did not find trouble on your way here, and that all is well with the Mountain pack. I may not like Jinx or her way of thinking, but I wish no ill will on any member. I was a member once, after all."

He leaned down and gently, teasingly, nibbled at her ear, and something compelled him to whisper into it, "I missed you," in a painfully seductive voice that he did not recognize as his own. And then immediately afterwards he mentally scolded himself. Stop it, hormones. This is our first date. I'll have absolutely none of that.

He cleared his throat, gave her a lick on the nose, and smiled. "Are you hungry, Ma Belle? Does wild pronghorn sound good to you? I will catch one if you like."

Majesty smiled at Erika's responses to his touch, happy that he could do those things to her. He was happy she didn't pull away. He was happy in general. When her stomach growled, he grinned in amusement. "I guess I have to catch one now," he said, "lest someone becomes grumpy with me."

He turned to face the pronghorn, who had become skittish once Erika had entered the Meadow. That would make it harder to hunt them, but he didn't mind the challenge. He decided to go after a female, whose horns were small and less deadly than the males', and scouted one out. The one he decided on was on the outer edge of the group, and seemed somewhat oblivious to him, which was good. Though he knew she would run the moment she noticed him, so he would have to be careful.

He dropped into a crouch and got as close to the group as he could. When they all lifted their heads at once, he quickly rose and sprinted after the female, who turned and darted away with the rest of her group. He charged after her, hoping that his stamina would win against her speed. He could run quickly, of course, but most prey animals could outrun their hunters - it was built into them to be sprinters.

It took a while, but eventually, the group tired and began to slow. It was then that Majesty lunged forward and sunk his claws into the female pronghorn and dragged it down. The rest of them scattered to the wind, and he dragged the now dead female over to Erika. He paused before offering her the first pick of what to eat from the creature. He always said a small prayer of thanks, and if Erika gave him a funny look or questioned him about it, he wasn't sure what he would do. He needed her to accept this silly habit.

After a moment, he bowed his head and said, "Gods and Goddesses of the Earth, I give thanks to you for this sacrifice so that Erika and I may nourish our bodies, minds, and spirits. May this creature find peace in her soul and wander the Summerlands undisturbed for eternity. So mote it be."

After the prayer, he looked nervously up at Erika, wondering what she would say in response to it...

Majesty sighed in relief and drooped his shoulders a bit. He had never been particular to one religion or another, and even though he prayed before every meal, that was less of a religious thing and more of just a way of thanking the animal he had just killed. He had seen their suffering and knew that they felt pain just like he did, which is why he never hesitated to kill his meals swiftly and as painlessly as possible. His mother had instilled in him a great respect for nature and all creatures of the Earth, and this respect had never left him.

This he told Erika. He spoke about his mother, and how she had been a Naturalist and a Healer, and how he had learned to regard all animals with respect no matter what kind of animal they were. "Thank you," he said. "For not judging me. Not that I thought you would. You are... better than that. Which is one of the reasons I love you." He smiled gently at her and bumped his forehead against his hers affectionately. "Now. Let's eat. Ladies first, Mademoiselle." With a wink, he sat back and waited.

Majesty waited until Erika had taken what she wanted for the moment, and then bent his head down to begin feasting. As they dined, he watched her, while trying to make it look as if he wasn't watching her. She truly was gorgeous. Her black fur was silky and shone brightly in the fading light of the sunset. He tried to think of what to say, but could not come up with anything. In the end, he simply said, "Thank you. Thank you for giving this a try - being with me, I mean."

He smiled at her then. "Every day I wake up and am excited for the next time I will see you. I feel like a pup again." He chuckled, and then a serious question flashed through his mind. He had no idea how to bring it up, though. This was only their first official date, although in normal wolf society, that wouldn't matter in the slightest. Wolves became mates and... well - mated - as soon as they were able to. It was instinct, so he wasn't sure what was holding him back now.

"Speaking of pups..." he began tentatively. "Have you ever thought of... having a family of your own? I'm not suggesting anything. Not really. I'm just curious as to whether you've given any thought to your future. You... don't have to answer." To be completely honest, he was quite shy about the subject. He was a virgin, and just because his natural instincts made mating easy to understand and easy to do, it didn't make it any less nerve-wracking thinking about it.

"But... When I saw my face after my imprisonment, zose dreams disappeared."

Majesty lifted a single eyebrow in Erika's direction. He knew exactly how he wanted to respond to that statement. Exactly. And yet, the gentleman in him made him pause. He cleared his throat awkwardly. And then he said, his voice and octave lower than normal, "Again, Erika, Ma Belle... I am not necessarily suggesting anything at all with this response, but... What on Earth makes you think that those dreams have disappeared?"

He stared at her, though he tried in vain to keep his stare from revealing what sensual thoughts flashed through his mind. "Please trust me when I tell you that all wolves who see your face and flee in fear or shun you are not worthy of your time."

His ear flicked - the one that had gotten half-bitten off by the bear attack a few weeks earlier. It had now scabbed over, but it was still an obvious wound. "Do you see my ear?" he asked her. "I do not let this wound - this disfigurement dash all hopes of me being with y-- with someone in the future. So why should your disfigurement stop you from dreaming of one day having pups?"

He had been about to say "you" just then. "I do not let this wound - this disfigurement dash all hopes of me being with you in the future." But he had stopped himself. He hoped she had not caught his slip-up. He knew he might be pushing a little too hard, and he blamed that on his instincts to produce offspring. But he truly did love her. She had forgiven him for leaving the Mountain when no one else had. She had agreed to still be his friend. She had willingly accepted his love for her, and returned it in full. He knew - even now - that she was the one. There was something about her he could not let go of. He wanted so badly to say these things to her, but he was so afraid of scaring her away. So he said no more.

And simply waited.

Majesty smiled for a moment at her response, hoping he had made her feel better, but then realized a moment later that he had lost her. She was deep inside her thoughts all of a sudden, out of reach. And she looked... bothered. "Erika?" he pried gently. "What is wrong, Dear One? I have lost you to your thoughts. What are you thinking?"

Now he truly was afraid he might have pushed too far. Had she put it together and realized that he had been talking about them having pups? What have I done? he asked himself. I am going to lose her now. Before I even got a chance... He sighed, waiting for the inevitable, the words, "We cannot be together." He waited with his eyes closed, feeling his throat constrict with emotion. He was going to lose her.

Majesty sighed, half with relief and half with sorrow. So she was not rejecting him. But she was afraid for their future. "I can understand your worry," he said quietly. "I have the same worries every day. I worry our relationship will be found out, and I worry about your... health if it was found out. I am putting us both in danger. Are you sure you really want to be with me? What kind a relationship would we really even be in if you stayed at the Mountain and I at the Isle? That is not a relationship."

His words were a bit harsh, though he didn't mean them to be. He merely spoke the truth. He had to say what was on his mind, or he would explode with the emotions he was holding back. He took a breath. "I know we just started seeing each other. I know sometimes you may feel as though I am coming on too quickly. I don't mean to. It is just..." He looked up at her, into her eyes. "You are precious to me. I would die if something happened to you. What you decide is up to you, but regardless, I will always love you. And if anything ever happens to you, I will go against every belief of non-violence I have and slay every member of the Mountain Pack if it means saving you."

He was serious. Dead serious. And he needed her to know that. He did not look away. He needed her to know... everything.

Majesty felt hopeful at her words. "Does this mean you'll come live with me?" he asked. And then he immediately said, "It's... it's all right if you still need time. But I miss you, on the Isle, when I wake up in the morning and you're not there." He shook his head, feeling foolish for saying such a thing. "Sorry. I know I probably sound like an idiot..."

He decided right then to just stop talking. She would respond however she would respond and there was nothing he could do about it. Either way he would be with her. Though the hope in his chest tightened into a knot in his stomach at the thought of her saying she wouldn't come back with him to the Isle. He needed to get this sorted - just for his own peace of mind. This situation - having to travel so far just to see her for a few short hours - was driving him crazy. And it wasn't safe, especially for her. If Jinx or any of her wolves found out... No. He would not think of that now. He brought himself back to the present, ready to receive her answer.

Majesty was saddened by her words - of course he would be - but he understood. And he loved her enough to wait. He told her this quietly. He told her that he would wait as long as it took for her to be alright with leaving - even if she was never okay with leaving. He told her that she was worth it.

He nuzzled her softly along the furless, scarred half of her face, and then pressed his entire head against it and held it there so that, from afar, it would have looked as though their bodies had meshed. "I love you, Erika," he whispered. "Ma Belle. I will be with you always, no matter what happens."

He wanted - needed - her to believe him. Sometimes she was the only thing keeping him from completely doubting himself and his skills as a leader. She kept him steady. He needed her with him. He needed her in order to know that he was whole. And he would do whatever it took to keep her.