The Dawn of New

Thankfully, she accepted his reassurance and off they went. For a brief moment she thought to remind him of the line he had spoken not long ago, convincing her to join him and enter the ranks of the Vale. It was a line he dared not to forget, and so reminding him was fruitless in itself; he already knew. Perhaps she had not realized that it was she he would most greatly desire to share his den, regardless of whether or not he had a partner. Though his affinity lay only in two wolves - Lham and Xi'nuata - he could not bring himself to touch Lham in any way. The physical contact that she repeatedly inflicted upon him caused a myriad of sensations; numbness, an electric stun, guilt and reverence. He was not pure enough to touch her, she was a Goddess, and he was in no way worthy of sharing her space.

Xi'nuata, however, was on his same level of existence. And though she reflected innocence, she was not holy. He could share in her contact and not reel back at the crime he may have committed. She was no pious spirit that he could not handle. And so it was only she that he would wish to nestle with him, if only to ensure that no harm would befall her in the moment she lingered outside of his grasp. No, he could not take a partner, because he could prize no other as he could Xi'nuata.

They moved in unison and began to descend the mountain. His steps were jagged in each attempt not to lose his footing; he was not necessarily built for the mountain slopes, not as specialized as she. She seemed to move with ease up to him and hum her approach to his blind side. Raheerah gave no response, which was among the best of reactions one could hope for in approaching him where he could not see. At her touch, he stiffened; unable to see, he had not expected it, but he knew it was her and his shoulders and spine relaxed. If only to stiffen further, for she unfurled her tongue and led it across his cheek as she again reminded him of his promise.

Raheerah flicked his single eye to her, unable to see much as she was on the wrong side; only a vague tan blur on the edge of his vision. The touch had sent his skin crawling. An ever familiar electric shock, but he did not recoil; it caused his chest to tighten, and his stomach to grow uncertain, reactions he had only endured at the touch of Lham or the first time he had taken a life. The beast sent it to the depths of his mind for now and continued to move down the mountain's edge, dismissing the touch with just a volcanic rumble in his chest. He pushed the thought aside in favor of the sadness that resonated in her words, intrigued by the presence of such emotion. "Haave I displeeeaased yoou?" Raheerah huffed, turning his gaze back to the path before him.