Silent Moon Plateau your love is scaring me

She was home. Finally the princess of the Heights had returned to the mountain, where she belonged. For now, at least. Until she made the decision herself to leave the mountain behind, not because she’d been forced to leave by an intruder. He still didn’t know how she had been lured away from her home, but that didn’t matter anymore. As long as she was safe and out of harms way that was all that mattered to the shadow. Details could be hashed out later after the Archer had settled back into familiar territory. Not much had changed in her absence, but she had been gone for almost two months. The firefox had also grown in those two months. He feared part of her childhood had been stolen away from her, but she appeared to be okay. A little shaken and underfed, but unharmed otherwise.

A blanket of darkness washed over the mountain as he slunk away from the dens, his mercury gaze following the array of lights dancing overhead. It was strange to see the borealis so late in the year but Greer did not question it. Instead he began to distance himself further from the dens, his paws acting on memory. He headed further north, toward the plateau where his mate used to reside. Back when they were children; careless. He knew that he would get a few moments to himself at the plateau. The shadow was trying not to smother his daughter after her return, as he knew that was the last thing she needed. He needed to stop watching her as though she was going to disappear.

He slumped against the smooth stone, his nose pointed to the sky as he watched the waves of green illuminate the night sky. There was only one thing missing, however…

The first thing she had to do was see Revon again, with her own eyes. Getting messages from family was one thing - seeing the almost-yearling was another. It was very hard to remember not to smother the girl with worry; as it were, Kyna was almost shaking with worry (with relief) when her daughter returned, kissing her face, her ears. It was so good to see her again.

And she spent some time, just near - as much for the fiery queen as for the sake of her daughter - and then, it was time to give Revon space. The last thing she wanted was to drive the young Archer away. So she hummed, and disappeared in the night, allowing Revon her peace, and thinking perhaps she might visit her father's gave, to tell him the news.

She found Greer instead. A far better alternative. Kyna crooned.

"What are you doing out here, all alone?"

Her knight in shining armor - the man who saved the day.

The monadnock had been nice, but it paled in comparison to the towering mountain he now called home. Plus, the rock in the north had been missing a particular scarlet wolf, which made it impossible to stay. Just over a year ago he had left his sister in the north to pursue his mountain girlfriend and a life together. He had intended to bring her back north but Greer knew that the scarlet moon princess was better suited for the rugged terrain of the mountain. She wouldn’t be happy anywhere else—her time in the Bend had proved that.

Her familiar scent washed over him as she approached, embracing him. With his slender maw pointed to the sky he glanced over his shoulder in her direction, a crooked grin sprawling across his dark features as she closed the distance between them. He was a little surprised to see her out on her own, but he figured his mate was doing the same thing he was. Trying not to smother, or overwhelm her. Wait for Ky, he hummed in response as his tail thumped against the ground behind him, his mercury gaze fixated on her russet frame. A single brow raised as he threw her a questioning glance. And Ky?

It was hard to be anything but glad when Greer embraced her like this.

Kyna allowed herself a happy sigh, closing the gap between them. She brushed her shoulder against his, pushed her snout beneath his chin. Her orange tail swayed lazily behind her. “Just getting some air, I suppose.” They were of the same mind – but she didn’t quite want to talk about it. Palpable relief was what it was. Speaking of it felt like inviting something wicked back into their mountain home.

So she pressed into his warm weight instead. Greer’s presence alone felt like enough to smooth some of her frayed nerves. Weeks felt like months felt like years – when had they last spent time like this? She sighed, and opened her mouth; but for the first time in a long time, Kyna had no idea how to put her thoughts to words. What she wanted, what she needed, what she thought of her mate taking care of the wolf who’d spirited Revon away.

“Leadership suits you.” Ugh.

No, that’s not what she’d meant to say.

Just getting some air. Greer knew the feeling all too well. The air atop the mountain had felt thick since Revon’s disappearance; uncomfortable. For days—weeks—it hadn’t felt like a home to the shadow. But now that the scarlet Archer was home and the mystery of her kidnapping had been solved Greer felt as though he could actually breathe again. Kyna’s presence also helped with that. She had a habit of making everything better. It had been that way since they were young and (mostly) naïve. Nothing would change that. Not unless she decided she wanted nothing to do with him anymore. Until then Greer would remain at her side, whether it was at the helm of Aurora Heights or as loners elsewhere on the map. He would never leave her side.

His ears twitched at her words, a flicker of amusement tracing his dark features. Leadership had never interested the Archer. Not until he met Kyna and they discussed their future together. He was more comfortable in the shadows, laying low and keeping to himself, rather than taking charge and monitoring subordinates. Even his own siblings had seemed dumbfounded by his position in the pack. Greer suit Ky, he mused in response as he pressed his nose to her cheek, Ky suit leadership. Greer was just along for the ride.

It never ceased to amaze her that Greer continually upheld his role as the Better Communicator within the couple. For all the talking she did (or tried not to do), he still said wiser things. Made better points. All of that was enough to make a girl’s heart flutter.

The redhead hummed softly, pressing her muzzle to the male’s side. He said that, but it wasn’t true. Greer handled leadership affairs as much as Kyna did…while Revon was missing, perhaps even more. She was frayed, upset, hard to handle – he went and finished the job. “You don’t give yourself enough credit,” she hummed softly, “but I would say we are a well-matched couple, yes.”

Kyna hummed again.

“You take care of things. Always. I like that.”

Greer still found it difficult to accept praise, even when it was from his mate. His ears collapsed against his skull, his mercury gaze avoiding hers as she hummed into his dark fur. They were a well-matched couple—that he could agree with. That was due to two years they had spent getting to know each other. There was no wolf that knew Greer better than his scarlet mate—not even his siblings or (now deceased) parents.

Did he take care of things? He had accidentally taken care of the dark yearling their daughter had returned with. The shadow hadn’t meant to toss him off the mountain, despite initially wanting to. While he still felt sick to his stomach when he thought about what had happened part of him felt relieved; powerful, even. Which only made him feel sicker. But the negative feelings would pass quickly. Their daughter was back—that was all that mattered. Not the stranger yearling that had lost his life to the mountain.

He offered her a soft smile as he rested his chin atop hers. Greer take care of Ky, too.

Kyna and Greer did not come to be paired by her ignoring her silence – she could not read him like an open book, but her meaning had not been lost on him. The hint. And he did not feel the same conviction about what had transpired; sometimes Kyna wondered if their positions were reversed, if she would have taken the same action. (She was quite certain though, given her lineage, she would.)

If she had taken the action instead, if she would shoulder the same burden.

It was a failing of hers, really – she had returned to her status as a wallflower while Revon was missing. And there was some truth that one alpha had to stay within Aurora Heights; it was the first time in a year she’d really missed the freedom that being a subordinate or a loner had allowed her. It was something they’d have to talk about, later. There were years to come, after all…and they only had one daughter. They did what they must.

And that was important to her.

Kyna hummed softly, pleased when Greer left the confines of his own skull once more. She stilled, enjoying the strange embrace. “Of course. There was never a doubt.” Her ears pricked forward, something flickering in firelight eyes. “My favorite part. Are you going to take care of me now?” Now that everything was right in the world again?

He did not doubt that his wife would have acted the same upon seeing Revon at the edge of Aurora territory with the dark stranger that had fed them lies in the beginning. Although he doubted she would have asked questions. Kyna had an infamous fiery temper—one of the many reasons why he adored her. She wouldn’t have allowed the loner to disappear off the mountain without a few scratches, or his life. The only thing that mattered was Revon’s safety and that she was back where she belonged. If she wanted to part ways with the mountain Greer wanted it to be on her accord, not at the paws of a stranger.

He drew away from her as she spoke, pools of mercury seeking out her soft, amber stones. During their younger years he had always imagined Kyna as a part of his future, whether it was at his side or miles apart. They had always made the distance work, even when he had left for the north. There would always be an invisible magnet between them, pulling them closer when distance pushed them apart. The previous year he had succumbed to the pull (thanks to a gentle nudge from his older sister) and sought her out, as the thought of another male wooing her in his absence made his stomach churn. This time he did not have to worry about that. It was only him and her, just as it would always be.

Maybe, he teased as he nipped at the base of her ear affectionately, his willowy legs unfolding from beneath him. He took a step back, his chin angled to the side as he studied her, a crooked grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. If Ky want, he hummed, his tail flicking behind him. The ball was in her court now.