Valley of Gold We'll sleep when the morning comes

Private for @Hawthorn Melonii <3

Near the outskirts of the gilded valley, the grass thinned and dwindled nearly to nothing. Reverie lounged along the borders, feeling more exposed than she had in some time — but it didn't bother her. Not here. All she felt in this moment was the clarity of freedom, a notion she'd dropped somewhere in the valley snowmelt so many months ago. She'd thought then that she could not have both, that she could not be both free and loved.

But she'd been wrong. For once she was happy for that.

Reverie shifted, aware that she would need to return to her daughters soon. Dusty Rose was with them, but even so, she never liked to be away for long.

The mountains had not been his favorite. They were cold and treacherous, both things he tried to avoid if he could. He couldn't deny their beauty but to him, that wasn't enough. He had found a valley that was warm and welcoming. The grass had been soft and abundant. He wouldn't mind staying somewhere like that. Not alone, though, which was why he still searched. 

This place was better but all he could see for miles around him was red sand and he knew if he went any further out there, he would regret it.

Sun glinting off golden fur caught his attention, and his dark maroon gaze fell on a beautiful wolf. They were the most beautiful wolf he had ever seen he was pretty sure. His loneliness might play a factor in that observation, but he didn't care. Hawthorn carefully closed some of the distance between them, smiling as he called out to the other wolf. A playful, curious yip to get her attention without seeming like a threat.

A playful yip caught her attention; it almost startled her, but not quite. Reverie glanced over and was pleasantly surprised to find that a beautiful man had showed up on her doorstep. Then she looked up, just in case it was raining men. It was not.

But hey, she'd caught one anyway! She stood with a friendly sway to her tail, falling into a bow for a moment before she pranced away in clear invitation. Play with me! If he followed, she would lure him further into the valley with the siren-song of sunlight playing across her gilded hips.

Her response was better than he hoped for. He expected a wary interest maybe. Interest was all he was looking for but he was delighted for the invitation to play after a welcoming bow of her head. The sun bounced off her perfect hips as she turned and danced away from him, farther into the valley. It was warm here and she was pretty, promising him some fun if he followed.

Of course he followed, picking up his speed to catch up to her and playfully nip at her side if he caught her. The ground was soft and forgiving under his paws as he ran. He grinned, his eyes sparkling as he watched her every move.

She let him catch up to her, but only for a moment — only long enough for his teeth to find her flank, and then she was darting away in a flash of pale gold. For a time she would keep herself just out of reach, flitting here and there like a butterfly on the breeze. But Reverie could never resist the lure of speaking with a pretty man, so after a time she slowed to a halt.

Still she didn't let him so close, hopping back with playful dancing steps if he tried to close the distance between them. Her tail swung freely, a banner of porcelain and burnished gold. I like you, Reverie called out sweetly, glancing once over her shoulder before she continued. A smile lit her features as she spoke. But if you want to stay, my husband needs to like you, too.

She took a few prancing steps back. He's around, She added playfully, and if the man didn't stop her she would turn away to disappear into the tall grasses.

She was fast. She let him catch up to her once only, and she allowed his teeth to find her soft fur. She smelled really good too. He was instantly infatuated with her. He chased her through the grass, switching directions with her but never getting close enough to touch her again. It only made him want her more, but he figured she knew that. 

He stopped a few steps after she did, lowering his front half in a play bow, his tail wagging slowly above him, grin on his face. He watched her lovely tail wave back and forth. She said she liked him, and that made him chuckle. Good, because I like you too. Apparently if he wanted to stay, her husband had to like him too. He nodded. Fair enough. He was in desperate need of a place to stay and the idea of getting closer to her made his heart beat faster in his chest. The fact that there was a husband for him to play with only made the deal sweeter. 

She said he was around, then took off again. Hawthorn followed eagerly.

This time Reverie left the man in the dust, though his final words replayed in her mind as she dashed through the tall grasses in search of her husband. @Dusty Rose was never difficult to find — and their girls, too, were nearby. She greeted him with a fierce kiss, murmuring coyly, You should go see what I found.

With those words and a subtle gesture in the direction she'd come from, she would sweep the girls away and into a game. But of course, Dusty Rose could never turn his back to her without finding himself on the receiving end of a mischievous nip to his haunches. Reverie didn't think she would ever get tired of that.

What she'd found? The look Dusty Rose leveled on her suggested he was not at all interested in what she'd found, except for maybe as a toy to sink his teeth into. But dutifully, he picked himself up and gave his coat a perfunctory shake, only to yelp when teeth combed violently through his fur — and uncomfortably close to his manly-bits. He swung around to scold his wife, but conversely, seemed to be in a much better mood when he did trot off to see what she'd found.

And alright. He sorta got it when he laid eyes on the guy. He was pretty in the way that rocks sometimes were, and sure, Dusty Rose felt a strong, draconian urge to put him in a pile and sleep on top of it. But it still bugged him he'd been sent off to find this guy with a slap on the ass and a 'go get 'em, tiger'.

He had better things to do, alright?

The coywolf stood stiffly in the tall grass, waiting for the man to make his move. They were gonna fight, he was pretty sure. And, if they got close enough for him to determine just how close this guy had gotten to his wife, Dusty Rose might just be out for blood.

He followed for as long as he could but she was much faster and before he knew it, she was gone, leaving him alone and disappointed. He though he was going to get to meet her husband—that she would take him home. But maybe she was just toying with him. It happened more than he cared to remember. 

Still, he waited just in case she came back. But she never did. Someone else came, and he was adorable. Hawthorn wanted run his nose through his fur. He probably smelled really nice. He wondered if this was the husband and if he maybe wanted to play too. Regardless, Hawthorn took a few steps forward, still a little unsure. He hadn't said anything yet. If anything, he looked a little annoyed. Hawthorn wagged his tail, his ears falling submissively. He stared for only a moment and then he was letting his front half drop into a play bow, his tail waiving above his head.

Oh — so he wanted to play? So did Dusty Rose, but there was a vindictive cast to his features even as an extra bounce found its way into his long lope. He closed the distance between them, his posture commanding mainly because the other man's was not.

Up close, he circled him like a shark, coming close once or twice before he lunged — delivering a sharp nip to the ass, if the stranger wasn't quick to get out of the way or otherwise retaliate. It was nothing wounding; only a harder version of the rude farewell his wife had given him a few minutes before. The message, however, was not go get 'em tiger but, What are you gonna do about it?

He smelled like Reverie. Not by much, but it was there. It incensed the coywolf as much as anything could, filling him with a cold, distant fury that could be easily transmuted to gentle violence, if not properly stoked.

Submission annoyed him, but it took the wind out of his sails.

The other wolf came closer, seemingly interested in playing. He circled Hawthron a few times then nipped at his ass while back there. He took that as flirting and grinned after jumping up in surprise. He jumped towards the other man and if able, would nip playfully at his jaw. He did smell nice; he could pick out the woman from before plus the man's own scent—they mixed nicely and in a way that made Hawthorn's clueless heart flutter.

He tried to dance away if he was able but wouldn't go far. He only wanted to put space between them so he could turn around and try to seductively brush himself along the other man's body.