He’d taken a few days to digest the information after speaking with @Rook, but the pair of them had come to an agreement. It was, as far as the Leader could determine, a relatively good one and he was excited. Or, at least, his heart wanted to be. The medicine man’s head was determined to get in the way of that, insisting things may very well be too good to be true – they really shouldn’t get themselves worked up before speaking to anyone else about the matter. After all, Veho and his partner had no way to create a puppy between themselves; they’d need a third participant in this.

Truth be told, he did have a wolf in mind.

It took some time, however, to put the pieces together in his mind, to figure out what he wanted to say. Once the alpha had finally put that together, he set out to find the hopeful guardian, steps determined as he followed her sent across the border and outside of Grizzly Hollow. Something about that settled his nerves, a bit, and he carried on in silence until the other wolf came into view. Announcing himself with a short bark as to not startle his packmate, he veered towards Oula before he spoke.

“My friend! I have been looking for you. There are things – I would wish to discuss, have you a moment of time?”

As the pair of wolves drew together, Veho allowed his posture to relax – alpha as he was, he considered the female to be a friend. As he did not exert dominance over his own beta, he did not seek to do such a thing to someone he considered dear. That he came with some very interesting information was beside the point, as was the question he begged to ask, but there could only be one thing at a time.

Once they exchanged a friendly greeting, his tail wagging gently in a mirror image of Oula’s own, he took a moment to gather his thoughts and consider how he might want to approach both topics heavy upon his mind. The good news first, he decided, and hummed softly as he bobbed his head, indicating the female make herself comfortable. This wouldn’t be quick – the lord himself took a seat in the snow, thick bushy tail wrapping itself around his paws.

“I come with two matters in mind – the first, pack business, though I will admit to a hint of my own personal happiness in my ability to share good news. The second is more personal, but that can wait until Grizzly Hollow matters are seen to.”

The man cleared his throat, giving himself another moment to collect his thoughts. “When Rook and Quil left Grizzly Hollow, it was to grieve and to search for Cinder, Quil’s missing sister. At the time, it was indicated that Wacipi and I were interim leaders – and while Rook has returned, Quil has not yet. To further…complicate this matter, Wacipi is not as interested in pack welfare as the founders were, and we have come to confrontation. She has thusly disappeared, though my partner informs me she is not about to return. She has left Grizzly Hollow.” He gave a small huff as his lips twisted into an unreadable expression; while they had not gotten along, it was still strange, to lose a pack member. A first, so to speak. “So I come to you, second in rank, and truly the female I trust most, to offer you the position of leadership. I have always thought you quite capable since the day we met, and you were able to fetch a bee hive from a high-hanging branch, and your creativity and dedication would not be amiss.”

He could not blame her for her surprise – Veho had felt much the same when the weight of Grizzly Hollow had been rested upon his shoulders. Only the unwise or the untested would be only excited about leadership with no sort of worry. It spoke to the woman’s character, and gave him a small breath of relief that she’d not snap up the role in a power hungry fit. He hadn’t pegged her for the type, but he’d been wrong before. This life had taught him to expect the unexpected, especially recently.

As Oula worked through the information piece by piece, he reached forward to bump his friend’s muzzle gently, trying to remind her she’d not be in this alone. Even if he wasn’t to be her equal, they were companions now, and he’d not let a packmate suffer needlessly, especially when he had the power to help. “I am very glad to hear you will take up the role,” he murmured quietly, pale silver eyes studying the woman’s face. “I know you. I trust you, your character, and your judgement. Truth be told, I was getting ready to ask if you’d challenge Wacipi for her position – I suppose the Ancestors have a strange way of setting things right in the world.”

The man’s lips twisted into a wry grin as he shook his head, casting a brief glance skyward. He might wonder after the grand plan, if he ever thought he’d get a glimpse of it. Fortunately, Veho was a patient man, and did not spend his energy worrying after it. “You know you can always rely on me, yes? As pack, and as your friend. I will do my best to help you with the role, whatever that entails.”

“A challenge, yes,” the man agreed with a bob of his head. “But a worthy one. And one I hope you will come to enjoy.” It had taken him some weeks to settle into the position as thane of Grizzly Hollow, but now, now it felt right. He would not change it for anything. Even a decision from @Rook that the man was ready to retain his position would be met with some disappointment, even if he would offer no resistance. Loyalty and love would always outweigh his selfish desires – he had no reason to believe otherwise, at least.

Veho might have even left it there, distracted by the good news and (relatively) simply transition when his companion piped back up. Ears flicked forward before he ducked his head sheepishly. If a wolf could blush, his cheeks would have gone a silly shade of pink as the second matter quickly came back to mind. This had been something he’d been rolling around for days, perhaps longer. It might have been easier if he hadn’t needed to ask @Oula to step up as leader – but perhaps it was more simple this way, knowing that she would not feel beholden?

Ah, he was talking himself around in circles.

So the medic drew in a long breath, trying to sort his words carefully before opening his mouth once more. “The second matter is a much more personal one,” he said, glancing back up with much more hesitation than he had before. “As you are aware, Rook and I are involved with one another, and as current alpha, it is my privilege to…start a family, if I wish. Which I do wish – it was very important, growing up. But such a thing is not possible between myself and my partner, so I-- Erm. Yes.” Veho coughed, ears falling against his skull. Never did he stumble over words like this! “I suppose I wanted to know if you’d ever given thought to being a mother.”

If there were ever a time he wanted to sink into the earth and disappear altogether, it was this very moment.  Failing that, Veho would have been satisfied to explode into bits of silver fur; at least it would save him from the embarrassment and shame threatening to burn him up from the inside out.  She was too still and he could not stop shuffling, looking from his paws to his friend, finding the sky and the forest floor, and--  Oh.  Rarely did he regret opening his mouth, but it appeared this was one of those times.

“I--!  Ancestors!”

Did he really come off so rudely?  Veho’s head snapped upwards, pale eyes ringed with white as he stared down his counterpart, the very tip of his tail twitching uneasily as it gave his general discomfort away.  Technically, yes, but he would have never dreamed of phrasing it that way.  Even as a friend, the Whitebark wolf was too important to think of in such terms.

All he could muster was an unhappy cough and a small shrug of his shoulders, and the leader forced himself to press on.  He’d brought this upon himself.  “I am asking you to be a part of my family,” he replied – that didn’t sound so bad.  He could have given himself a pat on the back. “I--  As I said before, I think you are honorable, and noble, and I—“ A pause.  “—am not actually trying to butter you up, though I feel I am doing a terrible job of explaining myself.  I suppose, in short, the answer is yes, though it is not as simple as that.”  It couldn’t be, if there were puppies involved.  They would need a mother, at least for a few months, if nothing else.