the will of water

Don't mind Akhlut's hormones.

...even I can never rival the water's strength. Akhlut's eyes fell shut as the woman's words called to his own love of river, stream, and sea, and her next words made him wonder if she'd ever seen the ocean. They weren't far from it, but he'd known so many wolves who'd lived just the other side of a mountain range who had never even considered that such an expanse of water and wave and ocean could even be that the dark wolf wanted instantly to usher her to his seaside home. A selfish part of him, the boy who still had boyish urges and demanded instant gratification, wanted to have her all to himself. But the selfless part of him, the man who now led a pack, who was determined to give to it everything he had, wanted to coax this woman to Horizon Ridge as another to add to it's numbers. She appeared young, strong, and healthy, with a quick tongue and, behind it, a quick mind. If having her in Horizon Ridge also meant he could see her every day, well then, it was an added benefit.

"You wouldn't know it," he acknowledged. "I and a few others have laid claim to Horizon Ridge, beyond the rainforest, near the coast. It's a beautiful place, overlooking the Sea." There, and he'd lain the bait. If she knew of the Sea, surely its beauty and power would tempt her; if the word was a new one to her, then he would be delighted to show her the ocean's grace. He fell silent, for she'd taken a few steps closer to him, and he wished to breathe in her scent and learn it well enough to know her anywhere. For if she didn't wish to accompany him to Horizon Ridge, he still wished to seek her out. Unlike his mothers who had followed their hearts, Akhlut was a male of two strong lineages who wished to follow his most primal urgings that told him that this yet unnamed woman would be a suitable mother for his offspring. He did not know what told him this, except that they were of an age and she was beautiful in her wildness, and drawing her into Horizon Ridge was not even, apparently, a prerequisite. The most beautiful birds should never be caged.