Heron Lake Plateau as scarlet flowers lust for the dew of morning

@Quixote!

The arrival of spring had washed away nearly all signs of winter: previously naked, clawlike branches were resplendent and newly adorned in vibrant shades of green, while waterways that had been muddy and turgid with mountain runoff now shimmered sapphire blue in the sun's scintillating light. The last grey slush had finally melted and dried up, revealing fresh carpets of grass and wildflower blooms through which birds and insects of every type crawled and flitted. Life had returned to the Teekon Wilds, it seemed, and as the newly re-crowned alpha female took a moment to appreciate the changing of the seasons, she inhaled the perfume of honeysuckle on the cool breeze and felt the warm embrace of sunshine on her back. She had waited for this. Winter had seemed to drag on forever, dark and endless, and the return of warmth and color was a change so welcome that she couldn't even find words to describe how it made her feel. So she said nothing; instead, she just soaked it in and enjoyed it.

The one thing that was missing just now was her mate. Since her heat had arrived a few days before, she hadn't been able to get enough of his presence. It made her clingy, needy, and nearly mad with lust, though she didn't think he minded that last bit too much! It was such a beautiful day. Why wasn't he here with her? She felt such a sudden and overwhelming need for him right now that she began to trot toward the outskirts of their territory, soft whines slowly rising in volume until she was sending up low howls for him.

I went into ramble land, oops.  Like 2/3 of this is him off being a doofus on his own, so don't mind me.

And with Alill having left (who he worried about only because of what happened with Towhee), Qui had felt like there wasn't any danger with anyone remaining interfering with Raven's heat -- he was pretty sure he'd gotten his point across to Rye, and every other guy was family.  But that made him a little bit more concerned about the borders.  If Towhee was spending more of her time with Phox's pups, then he totally had to make sure to pick up whatever slack where he could so no strangers got any ideas.  It wasn't like he wanted Raven patrolling right now, despite her (finally!) stepping back up to alphaship beside him.  But y'know what, other than the fact he'd maybe be a little sleep deprived by burning the candle at both ends, it was gonna be a good week.  A good season from now on, he hoped.  It definitely put him in a different sort of mood that was definitely unlike the grim man.

In all honesty some of his behavior was probably more befitting a bird than a wolf.  If he had to leave to pretend to be all focused and responsible (he was not entirely focused), he felt like he should bring back a gift for Raven to apologize for his absence.  Food was an obvious choice, and another time he found something for her herb cache.  But uh.  Now what?  Impressive bones and antlers didn't just appear out of nowhere, so that was off the list...  The patrol he'd gone out on hadn't found anything amazing and he'd totally failed trying to catch a fish... And now she was calling and he was a damp penguin without a pebble or another goofy feathered metaphor.

He did have a bit of a secret weapon.  Maybe.  He was only like 50% sure.  Qui had found what was maybe more useful plants growing in a nice little patch just the other side of the river, but he was planning to go compare to what she had stored to see if it did match or if it was just some kind of unique looking plant that stuck out because he was desperately trying to find something.  So he could very well end up looking like a dunce, but he'd play that card if he had to.  And his logic was kind of fleeting at this point too, because yeah.. That's the other side of the river.  You know.  Out of the territory.

After dancing indecisively in place for a moment, he moved to intercept, hurriedly trotting along to find her.  And really, it didn't take long -- they were pretty well magnetized to each other, and as soon as Qui spotted her silhouette he was running over to meet her with a happy whine and a wildly waving tail.  He was buzzing with a sort of anxious energy, nuzzling and licking her face like he hadn't seen her in a day or two.  On a normal day he was quite happy to spend a good chunk of time in her company, but right now she was positively addicting.  Why'd he leave her side earlier, again?  Oh yeah, pretending to be responsible.  So, patrol is over? he said with a lopsided grin.

I enjoy your rambles! :D

Quixote was many things, but above all, he was dedicated. He was possessed of a sense of responsibility that drove him to patrol their boundaries almost incessantly, and her heat had perhaps only driven him to greater lengths to keep intruders out. A receptive alpha female of a thriving pack was low-hanging fruit too tempting for wandering vagrants to resist picking, after all. But as long as Qui had his way, that would never be a problem for the Redhawks. His profoundly remarkable sense of responsibility, however, had robbed her of his presence, and in her current hormone-drunk state, that was just completely unacceptable. She felt a thrum of electric energy run through her body at the sight of him running to greet her, enthusiasm etched in each line of his face, splashed across each angle of his body.

...Which was looking really good right now. Like...damn. Fine AF. She watched him approach with appreciation, her interest clear in the expression of her face, and her tail took up a frantic waving of its own as he drew near. She closed in, positively vibrating with excitement, and covered his face with licks and kisses.

"Yep," she answered lightly, her voice bright. She gave him a sidelong glance, catching his eye with a coy gleam in her own, and flashed him a grin. Then she darted in and landed a light nip on his shoulder before springing away, bouncing around in a circle before coming to a stop some feet away. There she stood, poised to either attack again or flee, her whole body quivering with thunderous energy, lightning zinging through her veins.

And for this post I'm sick, so if I make no sense LMK and I can edit. D:

If he sat back and looked at things objectively, he'd probably find it weird just how these two years were different.  What had last year been spur of the moment and shadowed by the fact that they were acting without permission, but this year there was none of that uncertainty, and it was relatively freeing.  They'd grown as both individuals and a couple and now in the quiet moments when it seemed all the worst for the pack had passed, they could actually enjoy themselves.  Which was part of the reason his brain was totally not thinking that cerebrally right now.

Then I'm at your command, he said, somewhat cheekily, even as it became obvious she had some devilish scheme in mind.  She was a goddess to him on a normal day so what did that rank her as now?  Whatever that'd be, he was more than content to be wrapped around her paw and doing her bidding.  He had to be the luckiest dude around.  And Raven was far, far too enticing to not chase.  When she nipped at his shoulder he grinned and turned after her, staying in place a moment before he pounced after with a playful growl.  If she didn't run before he got there, Qui would nip at her hip, expecting there'd be some sort of retaliation 'cause gotta keep things interesting, right?  But hey, if she didn't let him make contact, he'd be following along after her like a good little shadow.

I'm on mobile and my fingers are frozen (it's in the low 50s here, what the heck!) so please bear with the terrible shortness! Didn't want to keep this held up any longer.

His comment seriously turned her on and a heated gleam entered her eyes, her grin becoming something more than merely playful. He turned to face her with a grin of his own, a moment of indecision stretching tenuously between them with deliciously frenetic tension. There they lingered, two figures caught in quivering suspended animation, for only a matter of seconds before he suddenly sprang toward her, taking the bait. A wild cackle burst from her lips as she spun and darted away, relishing the attention and the thrill of being pursued. She was fast, but couldn't really outrun Quixote. That was perfectly okay, though, because she had no intention of doing so. Just had to wait for the right moment to make her next move...

Pshaw! It was just condensed awesomeness. :P

She had him hook, line, and sinker on a normal day, so how could he even resist a chase, let alone that laugh?  Grinning like a fool, he pursued.  For his issues and screwed up inner complexities, he was still a pretty simple guy: he loved her, he'd give her anything she wanted, and since one of those things she wanted was him, he was more than happy to oblige.  At least this year, their fun and games didn't seem like it was going to be interrupted by him faceplanting into a mud puddle.  So far, at least.  This could all be some sort of great conspiracy to lead him to said mud puddle and dunk him on in, but it'd probably be harder to find.  The world outside of his narrow focus was just a blur anyway.  This was all for and about Raven -- his Queen, Goddess, or any number of other titles he could think of -- she deserved the best in the world, and he would do his damnedest to give her that.

There was always the question of when she wanted to be caught.  It wasn't like Quixote was gonna give up, but he sort of rubberbanded behind her a bit as they ran to start, gaining and losing distance until he finally lunged forward to nip at her hindquarters with a playful growl.  He'd get more creative if she kept going, but for now he didn't mind the chase -- or the view.

I feel the same about your posts! :D

They continued like this, Romeo chasing his Juliet, for some moments before she felt a light nip land on her hindquarters. Her nerves were afire, and the spot where he touched her tingled and burned in the most wonderful way. She didn't keep running, but she didn't stop either. Rather, she spun in a sudden turn and, with a playful snarl, retaliated with a nip to his shoulder. Nothing serious, nothing painful -- only a sharp kiss to lure him closer, draw him further into the web she wove around them. She laughed and eyed him devilishly, backing away from him slowly and wordlessly inviting him to make the next move. It was a dance as old as time, choreographed by only the most primordial of instincts, yet there was beauty and necessity and undeniable joy in it.

Quixote often liked play, not that many outside his family would have likely guessed. And on any ordinary day he'd drag out any games just for the joy that hanging out with Raven brought him. It meant he could forget that he could forget that at times he felt like they were barely avoiding the world doing it's best to make things fall apart around them.

But that was a normal day. Perhaps it had been wasted by his silly seeming responsibility.  Now the longer she danced just out of reach, the more he desired to catch her, to bring things to the conclusion they both wanted as he was caught in her inferno. As she pulled away again, he drifted towards Raven again with a low hum.

Qui's mind see-sawed between between wanting to show his own strength (certainly he was too amazing to refuse, so his lizard brain said) or to let Raven have the power over him, making him but a toy. Hell, in the end he really didn't care, either was good in its own way.  It was probably why he whined needily before darting forward to try to close the distance, to make it so there was none. If he could have just enveloped her entirely, that would have been his aim, but he'd settle for being close enough to run his teeth through the fur of her nape -- to encourage surrender, not demand -- with a slight arch to his tail and a show of regality he often didn't bother with. He was the alpha male here -- despite idiocy, misfortune, and generally feeling a bit out of place on a good day -- so if he wasn't already her mate, he would totally be the one she would have wanted anyway. Right?

I enjoy this thread. They are so cute together. <3

She dangled him on her string for a time, and, patiently, he allowed her her dancing game of keep-away. Reason and doubt were all swept away in the winds of love and desire, and she gave voice to those emotions in the shrieking yelps of laughter that bubbled from her lips each time he ventured close enough to touch her.

But all dances must eventually come to a close, and soon enough theirs did too. A grin, a flash of chartreuse eyes, a well-timed leap, and the space between them vanished as the world faded away and the presence of her mate became all she knew. She pushed her muzzle into the plush fur of his neck and nibbled, trailing a line of sharp kisses up his throat and along his jawline. The fragrance of his fur, the warmth of his body, were all that mattered to her now. Oh, sweet stars, how did she ever catch the eye of this splendid creature? In a sky full of stars, he was the sun and she but a little comet caught in the pull of his gravity, burning up in the heat of their combined passion.

And then there she was, and she was simply intoxicating.  He burned for her.  Raven was the center of his world and from her all the goodness and love bloomed.  Her touch drew out an amorous growl, and he tipped his head up for a moment as she reached his jaw before looking down again, preening from the crown of her head to the base of her ear then down her neck.  My love, he rumbled between kisses.  As he moved his touch got slightly more intense, hungry. Quixote pressed even closer, nibbling along her spine and silently imploring her to turn, but even if she didn't he'd be there shortly.

Her blood was fire in her veins and her heart sang at his touch as she relished the nibbles and kisses he ran down the length of her body. She wanted to scream at him to take me now! but could presently find no voice save that of her eyes, which simmered with heat and desire as she watched him. She'd never wanted anything as badly as she wanted him right now, and as he moved further rearward, she all but quivered in anticipation as she forced herself to remain still.

Unlike last season when they were nearly strangers, there was deep love and familiarity between them now and this was clear in the way they moved together. Their thunderstorm of need, through which lust crackled like lightning and instinct rumbled and crashed, was gentled by the friendship and trust that they shared. In the end, Raven lay breathing and euphoric in the sun-soaked grass, blinking sleepily and grinning at the man she loved. Nothing else in the universe mattered at that moment. Nothing could touch the joy that filled her at the sight of him just now, in the wake of what they'd just shared.