Duck Lake what it is, is not exactly clear
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All Welcome 
she pulls herself from the lake, moving only a few meters away from the water's edge before shaking out her pelt stiffly. it's no longer so hot that frequent dips in the lake or creek or required, but she'd glad for the coolness all the same. the bank she's pulled herself up to has only a small, oval patch of dirt; the rest is surrounded by a thick swatch of reeds. the line most of the bank on this edge of the lake, home to the ducks that give this place its name. 

had it been spring, she would have searched for some of the nests that provide such easy snacks; but they lie empty, now. instead, she pushes through the reeds, her path easily distinguishable by the swaying fronds and occasional ducks that are frightened out onto the lake, honking their alarm all the while.
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the reeds did betray her presence, as did her scent, floating over the breeze. he'd come here, too, for some solace—and he could still have it if he walked on by, ignored her. he could. and part of him wanted to, desperately.

but, damn him, he approached, chuffing as he slipped through the reeds headed toward her. adi lifted his head above the swaying plants, a faint smile curving his muzzle. kaisi ho, dawn? he asked softly, once she was accustomed to his being here.

would she ever be accustomed to his being here? apart from their tryst in the mountains (and that had been fueled by lust) they had an uneasy peace between them. a peace, sure. . .but quite uneasy.
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something had shifted, when she'd finally returned to her father's bones. it seemed small, at first, like one of the pebbles her step had loosened as she had descended. and yet, she found, as it fell it gained both momentum and size, and she found a distinct difference in the way she felt. 

when Adi's head popped up above the reeds, she felt a little spark of happiness. that in itself was not new - it was ever occurring, but oft overshadowed by resentment, shame, guilt and all the other complicated things she'd come to feel. those things still came, reflexively, but dulled, diminished, and her muzzle twisted into a mirror of his own smile. 

"I'm - good." not fine, not alright. good. and while she still did not understand where his words had gone, or why, she had come to learn what the simple things meant. she stretched out to stick her own head above the reeds. "kee-kaisi hoo, Adi?" the words felt heavy on her tongue, jumbled, but she forced them out anyway.
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she tried, bless her, and the smile that lit her face warmed his heart. theek hoon, mera jaan, he responded, settling into the easy drawl that had marked the beginning of their past relationship. it was almost as if things were as they were.

almost.

h-hunting? aditya managed, canting his head in query. or just. . .just for a wa. . .a walk? either way, he'd like to join her, and he kept his body language calm and reserved as he spoke to dawn. adi didn't know whether she actually wanted him around or if the smile was an act, something to put on because she felt she had to. it had been a lot of acts, lately.
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"walking," she confirms, though that might just as easily turn to hunting should some prey make itself available. ducks had never really been her forte, however, and so she doubted it. 

she shifts her weight, her rear limbs having been slowly sinking into soft mud. "join me?" she asks, similarly wary of false fronts and this new, blooming feeling that begins to feel something like completeness. she wants to trust in it, though; wants to trust in the hope that that same happiness she felt at Elysium is achievable, and will come again.
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haan, he answered readily, nodding in turn. he moved closer, so that they were more on the same plane, padding through the reeds. aditya found himself lost in his own thoughts for a little while and was silent, his burly shoulders and chest thrust out, clearing a path for him. 

after a few minutes, he glanced over at dawn, looking shy, reserved. tum khush ho? he asked, each word hesitant, but not so hesitant as — you happy, here?

adi didn't expect her to answer completely honestly. he wouldn't, were he in her paws.
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his question, however simple, brings an echo of her father's words to mind. morningside is not a place; but a people. "the here doesn't matter. but the what—with Stone, Brook; our children, I am happy." she's glad he's here, still, though she had not expected him to leave after the birth of his children; his love for them is all apparent. and then, somewhat hesitantly herself, she asks, "and you? are you happy?" she reconsiders her answer then. is she happy, in the same way she was on the Plateau? the answer is no, but she does not think that is attainable again, after all that's happened. this, she thinks, is the closest she'll get; and with that, with him and their pups, she's content.
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it's true. happiness wasn't about the where, necessarily, so long as you were surrounded by loved ones. a smile stretched his muzzle as she spoke, and he nodded without hesitation when she asked him the same question, drawing nearer if she'd allow it.

haan, aditya replied, his eyes warm and slitted, catlike, as he grinned over at her. bahut khush hoon.

at least in this moment. but that was all they had, right?