taltos knew better than to arrange himself in such a cliched manner, but his heart fluttered within his ribs with anticipation. he had found a little gully in the centermost part of the kingdom, one that surely would be ripe with fairy-violets in the springtime, but for now was protected from heavy snow by virtue of interlocking pine-branches overhead.

the scent was heavy with the fragrance of the crushed green-needles, and at late noon he lifted a shuddering muzzle and called the silver man to his presence, compelling him with promise of the admission he had withheld before.

the silver alpha emerged with proud elegance; lasher's breath hitched in his throat, but he drew strength from dante's presence, from the earth and the trees roundabout. for a long moment he was silent, and then his throat grew parched with lack of confidence; he must speak now, before his nerve was lost.

i have a great deal of affection for you, taltos spoke softly into the air between himself and the other. if it is not reciprocated, and if it never shall be, that is all right. i merely thought that you should hear my thoughts.

for a short moment, lasher feared dante's ire, but in the next he had calmed; the man was a logician, and gentle. he would not act so.

lasher was quite surprised at dante's revelation — he had not suspected that his intentions would be well-received, let alone returned. trepidation gnawed at him, and the niggling sensation that he was wrong wormed pervasively into the back of his mind, but a glance into the warm face of his alpha dispelled the haughty doubts and he found pleasure and validation in dante's eyes.

so joyous was he, quietly, that he did not analyze the tone with which the silver male spoke; he was not careful in his next gesture, which was to reach out tentatively with the edge of his muzzle, to brush the sterling fur of dante's shoulder, should the other accept.

..............

dante did not pull away; the gilded male seemed to welcome lasher's touch. the beta realized then how starved he had been for masculine touch. with the willow, he had found his manliness easily come by; he was her virile and passionate lover. with one of his own sex, taltos found surrender in allowing the other the reins of their interludes. it was why he sought such men as peregrine, as dante.

dante. he felt the fiery clasp of the name upon his tongue; lasher could not answer for a moment, so aswim were his senses with the alpha's nearness. you did not strike me as one who appreciated such affections, came his quiet answer, a smile unfurling upon his maw.

he spoke of his uncertainty, and lasher found himself headlong usurped by the expression upon dante's vision. his heart cautioned him to be careful, but taltos was past the danger impressed by his psyche. so vulnerable was the silvered one! the beta was quite flattered that it was him to whom dante spoke of such things, and presently his words flew from him, breathless and low.

i could show you, if you like, the man proffered, standing back from the other now. giddiness pounded in his belly, but he managed to show none of this upon his face; who knew if the man would accept?

but accept he did; and thricely lasher found himself stunned. it is no trick, he breathed, tentatively gliding closer to the silver male. had he known that dante was innocent of knowledge regarding his intentions, lasher would have been racked with shame, but his alpha seemed receptive, curious; good qualities to the earthen servant.

and so ever so softly he reached out to preen the opposite shoulder before him, but this time his caress lingered, sweeping upwards toward the hollow of dante's throat.

he lids, which had fallen to half mast, widened to display the brief confusion writ in his murkwater eyes, but suddenly he understood: the other was nervous. from his throat came a low and reassuring croon, but the doubt that had subsided beneath his delight surged to the fore, and he did not press his affections upon dante again.

instead, he eyed the other with consternation, the expression spanning a moment before he spoke: is this not what you wish?

ah! and here was the rub; lasher retreated a wounded hamlet, though not yet reeling from deception, for there was none here. the swampwater of his gaze found and held dante's — he drew a breath that shook only slightly. i suppose i was vague, my friend. for that i am sorry.

and so he straightened, drawing himself up to his full height, and squared the line of his slender shoulders. i have developed feelings toward you that ... are not platonic, he clarified, rather stiffly, and though he hoped dante would not react badly, taltos braced himself for the rejection all the same.

it was not spurning that came; it was the gentle uncertainty given to love's overwhelming clasp. while part of lasher wished for dante to have given an answer, so that they would not hang in some purgatory of unrequited affection, but this .. .this was enough. i will take whatever reply it is you have to give, dante. i would not demand such an answer from you.

and it was true; he would not. taltos recognized that he was quite an oddity when it came to romance; he had the capacity to encompass several with his love, while others clung to the tried and true way of single pairings. but he had never been compelled in such a way, and thus he would not manipulate the silver man standing so bare before him to choose. he had spoken out of an inability to keep inarticulate, keep silent, the depth of his affections.

at length, he smiled wanly toward his companion. he wished humbly, in his heart, that they could remain close in friendship, despite the pallor that his admission had cast over their relationship. however, if dante could not, or would not, maintain the facade, lasher knew he could accept such gracefully, if not with a degree of quiet pain.

it is not a skill, to love; there is nothing to perfect. it is only a feeling, one free of denial. and lasher was silent.