Dragoncrest Cliffs in a still suburban town

Tags for reference! Anyone welcomed :)

He stuck close to the outskirts the last day or two.

A change of scent hinted to the difference in @Erzulie and so he minded his own. He did not seek her out for tales of skies or darkwaters as he might have been inclined to do only a few days ago.

He had not hounded @Chacal either, despite the nagging loneliness in his belly when he sent himself into solitude — something he reminded himself was for the best. Perhaps he might muster the courage to go find her.

Or perhaps he’d remain on a rocky outpost. A vigilant guardian to the seaside pack.

Erzulie was on the prowl, no doubt sequestered with Merlin or Njord somewhere along the coastline. Rosalyn did not seek her out, giving her wife the privacy deserved, and instead also prowled the border herself. Weeks gone by and no desire stirred within her. Perhaps there was still time, but she knew the truth. And as much as she was relieved, in her weariness, there was a loneliness to it as well. She would not plague her wife's happiness with its shadow but it drove her to walk the shore cliffs, eye set on the distant horizon. She felt old, carved from the stone itself, but shorn and cracked at the edges.

Spotting Eadwulf ahead, she thought to avoid him. Still, the melancholy she knew would fade with distraction, and seeking that push she moved forward instead.

How are you finding the shore? She asked, giving a light companionable smile as she drew near. She hadn't checked in but she felt little need to; if all of Sapphique were a family, then the burden of belonging was shared by all. No doubt many among them had made him feel welcome in the days past.

He recognized her well as she arrived. A woman that would be hard to forget no matter where he went or what happened.

Yet she seemed different this time as they stood on the outskirts. Perhaps because he was no longer a stranger among her land. He felt...a sense of belonging in this. In her smile.

Very well. Honest, and for a moment there was a thin smile on his pale features. Thank you for giving me a chance.

Perhaps a bit softer and more sentimental than he had intended to be today. Yet he knew it was likely prompted by the sudden loneliness he plunged himself into.

A strange response, or at the very least, one that hinted at a history. Have others not? she asked, closing the gap and keeping her smile. Her brow raised with the question, though. She'd be surprised to find it because, by her estimation, Eadwulf had been nothing but an asset in his time here.

You've done well with it, regardless. But no need to thank me. She would do all she could to support Erzulie through this time but she knew having he and the others was invaluable. She should be thanking them, perhaps, yet did not.

Not always. It is the truth, even if it is a short truth.

He had come here to repair himself, find everything he had lost again and again. Yet the longer he remained here the less he wished to find those things. He had found new things here along the coast. New faces, new skills, new interests.

Is there anything more I can do? I wish to rise and prove myself, with your blessing. He did not seek a throne or outrageous title. He simply wished to be respected — trusted — among those he found himself caring for with each passing day. It felt honorable to ask her right out instead of simply trying hard or going about things the wrong way.

To rise and prove himself. It was admirable, and she tried not to let the jaded nature of her recent malaise affect it. Yet still that voice couldn't be quieted. How long before he left, or reached for more, or was taken by yet another tradgedy? It was wearying, but she nodded, acknowledging and attempting to think on it.

You've done well so far. What are your strengths? Do you wish for travel? Are you a hunter, a fighter, or something else entirely? She asked finally. If she'd asked when he first joined, she'd forgotten. But depending on his answer, she began to consider what he might do. The pack was small and recent events had set them adrift in many ways. She had a few ideas.

His head shook softly.

I don't wish for travel. He had grown...comfortable. Situated in his haven on the coast with those he trusted. I have...been taken with the sea and sky. Erzulie and Chacal have taught me plenty. He admitted with a trace of fondness in his voice for the both of them — and for all the help the two had been in his adjustment here.

The sea and the sky. Of all of the answers she'd expected, that certainly wasn't it. It was a great one, and especially gratifying that he had seemingly bonded with both her wife and daughter in this. But it offered her little in what she aimed for; she knew little about either from a trade standpoint.

I am glad you've been able to spend time learning from them. She'd never seen fit to do the same, but did not see that as a failure on her part. They all had interests. I'd been hoping to ask you about something that might draw the pack together, but I do not know much of the skies. She glanced up, then turned her one good eye back to him. Is there anything more interesting than a hunt we might do? Her own ideas were... rather mundane.

Ask him? That certainly felt like an honor he had not earned yet, but he appreciated it all the same and thought on it deep with a hum.

I was told the sea is kinder in spring. Perhaps we can mix that with a hunt. A loose thought. A fishing day or...ah, maybe explore the tidepools. That was the logical offer.

Some humor danced upon the tip of his tongue. Or I could make tales of the sky to bore the pack to sleep under the stars.

The second might be a good follow up to the first. Or an even better trick, once children are here. Rosalyn answered somewhat drily, but her lips twitched with a smile. Once Erzulie gave birth there would be little quiet for them for a time, and if he could truly bore them to sleep, that was a feat worth applauding.

An ocean hunt. That might be doable, she mulled it over. Valravn would be displeased, and by proxy Chacal. But was he too afraid to even venture into the tide pools? There was a slight feeling of frustration then, thinking on it, though it was uncharitable of her. She should have accepted any aspect of her children, but somehow a fear of the ocean was a step too far for her.

How do you feel about the ocean? She had a sudden idea, but didn't speak on it just yet.