taltos had wanted to embrace peregrine the day that his daughter's body had been exhumed from the waters, the opinions of the willow and atticus be damned, but in the ensuing conflict surrounding kaskara and her accusations, he had not seen fit to press himself forward in such a way. the remainder of the days since had been spent in quiet contemplation, in the continued stocking of the caches — they grieved, but life could not end for them now.
but as the moon flickered into being over the horizon, lasher lengthened his stride and began to search out peregrine, gait carrying him unbidden toward where the little one had been buried. his maw gripped the stems of a half-dozen damp lilacs; he would place them upon the earth of her grave, but not until he had found his panther and lent whatever comfort peregrine required.
Peregrine slept beside his daughter's grave. He hadn't fallen asleep here on purpose and, upon waking, he would curse himself for not being nearer to his family when they all needed each other so badly. For now, however, he remained blissfully unaware of his surroundings or his waking strife. He did not dream. He simply drifted, his breaths slow, steady and deep and his leonine body motionless in the moonlight.
His left ear flicked when Lasher approached and Peregrine surfaced from slumber like a monster rising from the deeps of the sea. He shook off sleep like water, wincing slightly as consciousness rushed in and brought harsh reality with it. At least the sight of his companion distracted him, even if Peregrine could neither feel joy nor smile these days.
"Taltos," he said softly, his eyes threatening to brim when he saw what Lasher brought in his mouth.
lasher came to him, then, brushing his muzzle against the panther's as his throat tightened with the horrible memory of the tiny body that lay beneath the earth scant inches away. two of the lilacs bruised with their connection, and the sweet fragrance filled the air — he recalled that mary beth had been laid to rest surrounded by lilacs. with a glance to the devil, taltos lay down his flowers, their gentle purple standing out against the raised loam that formed osprey's last resting place.
he breathed silently for a moment, but in the next he was alongside peregrine, seeking to draw the pain of the other into himself with gentle preening, a soft, low hum vibrating briefly in his throat, the sound of grief restrained. but presently his own eyes filled with tears, yet he did not pull away. he would be that which peregrine needed in this moment.
Seating himself, Peregrine allowed Lasher to continue his ministrations as the Alpha male himself stared at the bunches of fragrant flowers. Something twinged in his breast. "No one ever brought her flowers before. I mean," he continued, looking up at his companion's face, "that's something that she will never get to experience now: romantic love. She will never love or be loved that way. She will never have a family of her own. She will never grow up..." His voice gave out then and he just stared solemnly at the fresh grave again, the pain suddenly unendurable.
unsure of how to respond, taltos lay his murkwater gaze silently upon osprey's grave. peregrine's voice was raw with tears; he was right in this, for his daughter would never know the beauty of romantic love. she would miss much. his tongue was fairly tied; lasher eventually returned his attentions to his lover.
meeting the anguished emeralds that shone in his direction, taltos breathed in the fragrance of the lilacs. she was very loved. her life was full of vitality and emotion. romance she may not know, but your love she did, and that of her mother, and her siblings. he could not claim that osprey jr had lived fully; he was quite at a loss for what to tell the devil, but sought not to convey this, not at this moment.
and so he leant into the plush dark velvet of peregrine's shoulder, silent once more, lending whatever support he had in every facet of his being.
Peregrine drew in a shaky breath, his chest hitching in a silent sob. When Lasher leaned into him, he leaned back. This intimacy contained no edge of sensuality or lust and the Alpha male was glad of that. He realized he was incredibly lucky to have someone like Lasher in his life, who gave of himself so freely. He briefly mused on the fact that theirs obviously wasn't a solely physical connection either; this moment was powerful evidence of that.
He wanted to express his gratitude to his companion but he had a difficult time finding the words and those that did come to mind didn't feel right. In the end, Peregrine simply pressed his nose into the side of Lasher's neck, closed his eyes and breathed a quiet, "Thank-you."
peregrine did not need to thank lasher; the earthen wolf was content, fulfilled, to be the one to whom the devil turned for his emotional and physical sustenance. and so he was silent, enjoying silently the feel of peregrine's muzzle, the press of their bodies next to one another, the entanglement of their mutual hearts. love was not a word lasher took lightly; to worship, to serve, to enslave oneself to the witch was quite different from what he deemed to be the most precious of emotions.
siku he had loved, and now it seemed his heart would open with such a chasm again, for one who was not witch but man, his own grief weaving a fine gossamer web that ensnared lasher and endeared him to the panther completely. turning his head, the delta ran his tongue gently along the bridge of peregrine's muzzle, sated in their closeness and in the moment's lull.
"Come," he said quietly, rising slowly onto all fours. He gazed at Osprey's grave for a solid minute, then skimmed his nose against Lasher's shoulder and motioned for the ocher subordinate to follow him into the nearby trees. Once they were in the cover of the forest—and out of sight of his daughter's moonlit grave—he turned to Lasher and begged in a quiet, husky voice, "Can you help me forget, Taltos? Just for a few minutes."
it was the mark of true grief when such sensation drove one into the arms of another to pursue other distractions, and peregrine was quick to succumb, as lasher had desired he might. his own inner fire had been stirred from its banked ember simply by the nearness of his beloved devil, but it was an emotion the delta would have gladly put aside.
now he followed the panther into the shadows, murkwater eyes meeting with quiet verve the jeweled gaze of his leader, his lover. the man needed no bidding, and saying little, he drew close to peregrine, beginning a slow lash of his tongue along one smooth jet flank.
Trembling slightly now, Peregrine twisted around to nibble at the other male's ocher ear and nose at the fine bones of his cheek. Still Lasher gently coaxed the fire in his loins to grow hotter and hotter until, suddenly, a powerful lust drove him to roughly draw away from his companion.
He didn't go far, though. Peregrine swung himself toward Lasher, then began to nudge the other male, a nonverbal command for him to turn. When the other male's flank was nearly perpendicular with him, Peregrine pressed his chest against it, then reared onto his hind legs. His forelegs wrapped awkwardly around Lasher's ribcage before he sidestepped to position himself against his companion's hip.
Then, because he really didn't know what he was doing (or if he really wanted to be doing it), he paused uncertainly. He remained mounted at his strange angle for a moment, then slowly slid back onto all fours, his leonine body still pressed against Lasher's. Moving unhurriedly now, he preened his lover's ears, neck and shoulders, his ears pricked in case Lasher commented on his reticent behavior.
he turned, surprised and breathless by peregrine's intentions. he had given the devil pleasure for some time now, but this was odd. different, in a salacious way that set lasher's form afire, his ribcage swelling with lustful breaths in the panther's embrace. but the other stopped himself, and the giddy sensations sweeping taltos' body soon ceased. leaning into peregrine's caresses, he gave a low sound of pleased ardor, though what he truly craved was the leader's complete domination of his earthen body.
lasher had no commentary, merely swung his muzzle back to gaze at peregrine with a mixture of muffled desire and understanding. he let his eyes fall meaningfully toward the juncture of flank and hip on his lover; he would still provide peregrine with that which he had given thus far, if the ebon male wished that. but his features were soft with love, with open invitation to be used or to grant whatever it was the devil needed.
Instead of pausing again and overanalyzing the situation, Peregrine simply did what both of them wanted. Perhaps because of his crazy need or maybe due to the taboo nature of their coupling, it was only minutes before he grew motionless again, though he didn't immediately move away from his lover. Instead, Peregrine bent his muzzle toward Lasher's ear and whispered simply, "No homo. Taltos..."
in the next moment, peregrine had swept taltos into the needed embrace, and the witch's servant trembled lustfully in the devil's arms. steadying himself beneath the interludes of the panther, he gave a low sound of encouragement to his lover. peregrine needed no bidding, however, and taltos soon lost himself in the fiery glissade of sensation that lapped at every inch of his being.
peregrine, he responded in a voice that fluttered beneath the husky tones of his devil, beloved devil. his body was sated, and forelegs shook with exertion and the sweeping ecstasy that had consumed them both. he sighed again, contented, unable to keep a smile from curving his lips.
He withdrew a few feet and sank to his haunches, gazing almost speculatively at his lover. He felt peculiarly heady for the experience and said lightly, "That was not much different than being with a woman, honestly. It was... amazing," he admitted a bit tentatively. "You were amazing. And that was exactly what I needed," he added with a soft sigh.
After a moment, he shuffled nearer to Lasher, tucking his head against the other male's. He liked that Lasher was his lover. He knew he was selfish, though, and that their relationship only seemed to go one way. Lasher didn't seem to mind; he seemed happy to offer the Alpha whatever he wanted. Nor did he seem bothered by Peregrine's request for discretion, even secrecy.
Yet the swarthy leader simply couldn't linger on these thoughts, nor could he even worry about his emotions following such a taboo act. With their fervor played out, his mind immediately returned to his daughter and whatever joy, guilt or whatever other emotions he might have otherwise experienced following such a tryst, he knew none of it. He felt only an onslaught of fresh grief.
"Come with me?" he said and found his feet. With Lasher presumably in tow, he led the way back out of the trees and back toward Osprey's grave. Although he felt a tremor of guilt for bringing his lover here, the sight of the flowers quelled it quickly. He sprawled himself beside the plot and invited Lasher to join him, then laid his head near the spray of drying, moonlit lilacs and somehow found his way into a restive sleep.
he gave a low sigh at the emptiness that followed peregrine's warm departure, but it was soon remedied by the affections lavished upon him, and he raised his head to return them eagerly and with the full-fledged attention of his heart. woman or man, the pleasure is the same, he whispered, pressing close to the dusky hues of peregrine's pelt.
content to serve, for years if the man so needed it, taltos was vibrant with joy that he was so desired, though he banked the bright emotion for the moment. turning, he followed the panther through the moonlight back to the child's grave, watching for a moment as peregrine reclined among the loam and the lilacs. settling himself near, lasher laid muzzle across forelegs and soon followed suit, utterly satiated and touched that peregrine would bring him so near.