Moonspear boys doin' the twist.

The hare that dangled from her jaws had been a hard won kill. For as much skill Liffey now had traversing mountain cliffs, she was not so familiar with ones covered so thickly in woods. She was used to mountain passes with open air, but these were lined with trees that blocked her view and made her paths more difficult. She was used to the ups and downs of mountain travel, and the twists and turns of moving through woods. To combine them both, even as subtly as they were in some places, was a new challenge.

Fortunately, Liffey was a lover of challenges. And in the end, her determination paid off, as evidenced by the bloodied, brown rabbit between her teeth. Her chin was lifted with pride as she carried her prize towards the den she now shared with @Rannoch. She could think of no one better to share this with, and to spend quality time with thereafter.

The delightful mix of Liffey's scent and the blood that clung to her kill had roused Rannoch from the den that they had deemed as theirs. Though the Lambda had still been relatively far away when Rannoch had smelled her, he quickly pulled himself out of the cave so that he could greet her when she did arrive. In the time that it took her to return home, Rannoch had sat himself down on their doorstep as he waited. 

When Liffey did come in sight, Rannoch rose to stand as a goofy grin settled upon his dark lips. "Liffey!" he greeted, his voice a mixture of affection and pride as he watched her approach. The last time that they had hunted together, and the subsequent times that they had patrolled jointly, Rannoch had assumed that she hadn't been the best at hunting. But, before his very eyes, was evidence that rejected such assumptions. 

In a manner that was light, he teased, "Since when did you learn to hunt?" as his tail waved happily at his haunches.

Liffey's lips turned up in a grin as she spotted Rannoch outside the den, calling her name in greeting. For a moment, all she could think about was how ridiculous it was that he was so damn handsome. And even more ridiculous, he loved her. She dropped the rabbit at his paws before reaching out to plant a kiss upon his muzzle in greeting.

"For the record, I'm a perfectly decent hunter when you aren't around," Liffey retorted as she settled onto her haunches, smirking at him, "It's a lot less fun though." Given the choice between a successful hunt without Rannoch or a failed hunt with him, she'd opt for the failure every time. Hunting really wasn't her thing anyway.

"How're you feeling?" she asked, narrowing her eyes shrewdly as she looked him over. He seemed to be doing better with each passing day, but that wouldn't stop the Blackthorn from worrying over him at every opportunity.

Rannoch returned Liffey's affections in splendor as he reached out and covered her pale muzzle with multiple kisses. Even though this exchange was relatively new in the grand scheme of their relationship, it felt right to the Iota. 

As he pulled back from their momentary embrace, Rannoch felt a smirk fall upon his dark lips as she defended her ability to hunt. Though a witty retort hung on the tip of his tongue, the yearling found himself agreeing with Liffey when she mentioned the enjoyment that she felt when they hunted together. "It is a lot more fun when we go together," he conceded with a wave of his tail. "But, then again, everything is more fun when we're together." Rannoch's time in Moonspear had proven to him how much he needed Liffey by his side. 

"Honestly, it was pretty stiff this morning," the Iota admitted as he recalled his condition earlier that day. "But, the more I move it, the better it feels." To demonstrate his point, Rannoch reached forward again and nudged her cheek in an attempt to both comfort and reassure her that his words were truthful. "But, I don't think moving around is the only thing that's helping me," once Rannoch had pulled away from her touch he smiled at her and practically melted at the sight of her beautiful face, "I think that being with you are the remedy that I've needed this whole time." He felt his cheeks blush as he shared his feelings, but, despite this, he continued his thought, "Being with you has made me feel like the healthiest wolf alive and I'm so lucky that you've stuck around with me."  

Liffey frowned when he admitted to feeling still, but relaxed as he continued. She supposed that was a common affliction when one remained sedentary for long periods of time, which Rannoch certainly had been. So, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing that he felt this way. As his commentary morphed from standard wellness update to emotional declaration, the Blackthorn felt her worry melting into affection. Her pulse quickened as he spoke, and she shortly found herself unable to say a thing in response. All she could do for a moment was stare at him with love in her eyes and draped across her expression, until finally she stood and stepped forward to smush her head gently into his broad chest.

"Are you sure you're real?" she asked quietly, truly wondering in that moment. It simply didn't seem possible that someone like Rannoch, with all of his love and tenderness and strength could exist. Even more impossible was the fact that he felt this way for her, of all wolves. She nuzzled against him and breathed in his scent, checking to make sure that he really was real and not some perfect figment of her imagination.

Rannoch watched in silence as Liffey moved forward to clear the distance between them. Once she was well within the realm of his personal space, and as she pressed her face to his chest, the once-gentle tempo of his heart intensified, and his breath caught temporarily in his throat. Rannoch only recovered from his crippling infatuation when she spoke after a prolonged paused and quickly, her words were met with a soft smile. 

"You know," Rannoch mused after a pause of his own as he brought his nose to her forehead, "I was wondering the same thing about you." He kissed the silky platinum hairs tenderly before he continued his thought. "I don't know what I ever did to deserve a woman like you."

In his solitude, Rannoch had been much more self-critical of how he had treated certain situations. He had blamed himself for his own attempted assassination, and he was still working through the guilt of abandoning the Vale. Even though he had been reassured that it was all fine, it did not make Rannoch feel any better about it all. Of course, this was something that the former Alpha heald behind his smiling facade and he intended to keep such self-deprecating thoughts from anybody and everybody. 

As far as anybody was concerned, he was fine. 

Such negativity had been shooed away by Liffey's presence, as it always was, and such an absence allowed the large wolf to embrace their exchange fully. Without thinking, as emotion and confidence in their relationship decided his every word, he added, "I can't wait to grow old with you." 

Liffey smiled at his words, shaking her head with a soft laugh. His response to confirming that he was real was to say even more that made her feel as though he wasn't. She reached up to graze her muzzle against his jawline, tipping her head until her forehead was pressed against his cheek. She was unaware of his dark, self-depricating thoughts, otherwise she would have better understood how exactly it was that her presence here was healing him. Instead, she simply thought he was being his usual, sweet self, and was unsuspecting of anything deeper.

Rannoch's final comment made her laugh, and she pulled away to give him a wry look. "You seem to be wishing our lives away pretty quick there," she commented playfully, "There are a lot of other steps between now and then that I want to experience with you first."

Rannoch laughed softly at her remark. But before he could continue their banter, she elaborated, and his heart melted instantly. "I'd prefer that, too," he confessed. Though they had technically been together for quite some time, they had only scratched the surface in regards to what they had experienced as a couple. 

With a smile, Rannoch asked, "What steps are you most excited to encounter together?" before he reached forward and kissed her pale cheek.

Liffey hadn't meant to start it. She hadn't even realized she'd done it until he stepped closer and placed a kiss upon her cheek. She'd at first only meant innocent things - waking up at his side each morning, watching the stars every night, caring for him, supporting him, and simply just getting to look at his handsome face every single day for the rest of her life. She wanted as many of those days as she possibly could have, and that was all. But his touch, his nearness. Suddenly, the young Blackthorn's mind was drifting to other things. Things she had never done before, but had learned enough about to understand sort of the logistics. Things that instinct could teach her the rest. Or, so she assumed.

Problem was, Liffey didn't really know how to... initiate this... even after she already sort of had. She had no words of seduction - no idea how to give him that look that said it's business time. Truth be told, now that she had it on her mind, the idea absolutely terrified her. She lifted her eyes to his, but held his gaze for only a few seconds before she looked away, laughing nervously. She was being ridiculous. He was still hurt. How did she expect him to... Even... Oh god.

"All of them," Liffey answered finally, trying as hard as she could to push the thought from her mind. She was too nervous, uncertain, and seriously this was terrible timing with his injuries no matter how much her body yearned for it - whatever it truly was. She looked at him again with a smile, leaning forward to press herself gently against his chest.

As Liffey fell silent to contemplate their future, Rannoch was blissfully unaware of where her mind was wandering. Unlike Liffey, Rannoch had yet to feel the instinctual pull of his blossoming sexual maturity. Given his age, it was only a matter of time before Rannoch would begin to feel such yearnings and he would soon find himself in the same position as Liffey. 

When she answered him, he felt a wave of profound passion overcome him, and he quickly adhered to her embrace. Rannoch sighed with content and brought his nose to her cheek, as he thought of where their journey together had brought them and where it would go from here. In his reflecting, a thought stuck out from the rest and compelled him to consider it at length. 

When Rannoch resolved what he had debated, he opened his mouth to begin to speak. But as he attempted to usher forth an opening statement, Rannoch found himself suddenly fearing what could potentially happen in the following minutes. His jaws snapped closed at his sudden anxiety, and he licked his chops nervously as he took a moment to assure himself that it would work out.  
​
"Hey, Liffey," he began clumsily as he attempted to combat his nerves, "there's something I've wanted to talk to you about."

Her sudden smoosh had succeeded in breaking the heated moment of tension between them, but Liffey found that her heart continued to pound as she pressed her chest against his. She felt him wrap her into his embrace and she sucked in a steadying breath - one that was far from steadying. His wintery, evergreen scent filled her nostrils, making her feel almost light-headed. The want did not subside, and soon enough she was beginning to consider how exactly to go about proposing the idea of this form of.. ah.... exercise.

Rannoch, thankfully, distracted her with his voice. She pulled away from him a few inches so she could blink curiously up at his handsome face, which was contorted with uncertainty. She swallowed thickly and canted her head - the only prompt she gave him to continue as her throat had run fresh out of actual words.

Even though Liffey did not speak, Rannoch caught her nonverbal prompt to elaborate. He swallowed strenuously, unsure of where to begin his long-awaited proposal. As he attempted to arrange his jumble thoughts into comprehensible sentences, Rannoch studied Liffey's face. She was gorgeous, that much he had always been aware of, but for whatever reason, her beauty was all the more stunning at that moment. Finding logic was all the more difficult for Rannoch given how distracted her felt by Liffey's grace. 

With his heart racing, Rannoch opened his mouth to speak. "Can I call you Liffey Frostfur from now on?" he blurted, his face falling in horror as he realized how ungraceful that had come across. He had been practicing his dialogue for his engagement for quite some time, and even his roughest versions had never been that bad. His ears flattened, and he ducked his head with evident embarrassment. But even with his crippling fear of his messing it all up, he knew that he had to continue. 

"I-I mean," he stammered as he attempted to realign the proposition, "Well, that's what I meant, but, I wanted it to sound a lot better than that," he admitted nervously, his words ending as he bit down on his lower lip. Fuck, why were words so hard? 

In an attempt to calm himself, Rannoch exhaled slowly, and he reached forward to nudge her cheek. With his nose pressed against the pale fur, he inhaled and felt instant comfort in her scent. "I've loved you for so long, and it only feels right that we take this next step," he admitted, speaking into her fur as his nerves began to calm. He pulled away then, his expression soft as he attempted to gauge how she was taking all of this.  "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me and the most constant source of love in my life, and I'd do anything for you. I want to keep you in my life, and I want you to be my wife." They had never really titled their relationship before, but, this felt right to Rannoch. In case she wondered, he added, "I asked your parents about this a while back, and I got their blessing," he smiled at the memory, recalling the way in which Finley had received it. She hadn't been shy about her feelings about him. 

Feeling much more comfortable in his dialogue, he admitted, "I was going to do this in a much fancier way, but, we were talking about our future together, and you looked so gorgeous, and it felt, well, perfect... that is, until I messed it up." He chuckled, his face hot.

And with his feelings out there, all Rannoch could do was wait. Though he was confident, there was still a feeling of nervousness he felt, knowing that she could reject him there and then.

Leave it to Rannoch to be thinking of only romance and grand gestures while Liffey struggled with wanting to get railed. Heat rose to her cheeks as he spoke, her brows lifting in surprise. His proposal was abrupt, and awkward, and not at all smooth. But it those things were so perfectly Rannoch that Liffey shortly found herself drowning in the intensity of her affection for him.

She stayed quiet as he spoke, her heart hammering in her chest. Truth be told, she'd begun to consider herself his mate ever since they'd confessed their feelings to each other. It had never really felt like they needed to say it out loud - their actions and their love for each other affirmed their status for them. But Rannoch had always been one for words and gestures - it was one of the things she so loved about him. She was touched by every word, and briefly overwhelmed that he had even asked her parents for permission. But in the end, she could only smile when he spoke of how he'd "mess it up", shaking her head as she planted a kiss upon his muzzle.

"Liffey Frostfur," she said, trying the name out for herself, "My fur does look rather frosty. Frostier than yours, actually." Liffey glanced around at her silver and white pelt before looking back at him with a mirthful smirk. The pretense was dropped after a beat as she decided to put him out of his misery and give an actual answer. "You, Rannoch Frostfur, are perfect, and I love you with my whole heart. I give you permission to call me Liffey Frostfur from now on," she had to stifle a chuckle, not wanting him to think that she was teasing him when she totally was, "Actually, I insist upon it."

An unexpected wave of emotions overcame Rannoch as Liffey leaned in and kissed him. Though she had said nothing, her actions spoke volumes. He pulled back from the quick embrace, tears formulating as he watched Liffey with nothing but love in his eyes. When she did begin to speak, Rannoch felt his heart skip a beat as she examined out her new name; to him, it was perfect, and he nodded approvingly as he hoped that she liked it as much as he did.

She went about answering his request in a manner that Rannoch had become accustomed to, adding humor where she could. This was one of the many aspects of Liffey's personality that Rannoch had come to fall in love with and acting to his usual character, he joined in on the banter. "You should have seen the rest of my family," he advised with tears still in his eyes. She was taking him on a thrilling ride, and despite the pleasantry of the moment, he couldn't forego the emotions riding on the decision that was about to be made. 

Rannoch blushed when Liffey complimented him, the rapid beat of his heart increasing as she answered him. Her answer, which has been said with a few simple words, solidified their commitment to one another through an official union.

Rannoch felt a level of euphoria that he had never experienced before, and because of this intensity of the moment, he allowed his tears to fall freely. "Liffey Frostfur, you are the most perfect woman in the world, and I am so honored to be your husband," he admitted with an enormous smile. He felt a need to be touching her then and there and because of this urge, Rannoch pressed himself to her so that their cheeks met. "I will love you forever, Liffey Frostfur," he said, meaning every word of his proclamation, "nothing will ever tear us apart." 

He was so damn cute. Liffey's eyes began to swim with happy tears as she watched his reaction to her words. Her face had begun to hurt from the intensity of her smile, but it was clear that there would be no relief any time soon. It felt as though she would never be able to not smile again and as wonderful as it was to feel so unbelievable happy, she did hope that her face might get to relax again eventually.

For now, Liffey simply nuzzled into his touch with a growl that came almost like a purr from her throat. She shut her eyes as he embraced her, soaking in all of his warmth and affection and pouring all of hers into him. As euphoric as she felt, his last comment made her pause, albeit only briefly. The cerberus came to her mind, and she pulled herself further against him in a move that would be only cuddling to him, but was something a bit more possessive to her. She kept it to herself though, and her smile never faltered for a second as she murmured a quiet agreement into his fur - her mate's fur.

"Nothing."