The healer remained as still as he could manage, despite his shivering from the cold, as Inna leant in closer to apply the cedar mush to the itchy patch behind his right ear. The dark fur along his back prickled as the female rubbed in the paste with her paw, feeling the warm tingling sensation of the cedar oil against his irritated skin.

The urge to lift his rear leg to scratch at it intensified, to the point where the bridge of his muzzle wrinkled and his mouth watered from frustration. Lorcan knew he could not scratch at it though. The treatment would prove useless if he were to itch the paste away so soon after it had been applied.

Stiffening his jaw and tensing the lean muscles in his limbs, the male forced himself to remain still even as his skin prickled. Casting his golden gaze back to Inna, his left ear – the one not covered in cedar wood paste – perked up at her question. The male shook his head slowly in response. “I don’t think I itch anywhere else..” He answered, before shifting up to stand and turn his head around to inspect the fur further down his body. “No, but it will get most of them.” At least not yet.

“If you see any more, smother some paste on them too.” He added quietly, desperately hoping that she would not find too many more of the little blood-sucking parasites. Standing still and silent, Lorcan allowed Inna the opportunity to inspect him all over, his tail now swaying more contentedly behind him. “Thank you…” He sighed, casting his previous anger to one side, as he glanced across to offer Inna a sheepish smile.  

Lorcan’s body twitched subconsciously, responding to the tickle of Inna’s warm breath on his skin, as she proceeded to check through his fur for any sign of additional fleas hidden away in his thick coat. His left ear perked up at her question before a frown pinched at his pale brows as he considered his answer for a moment. “If there are loads more then I might need another treatment in a few days, but if there’s only a few I should be able to get rid of them with extra grooming.” He explained, meeting her warm orange gaze.

The healer grunted in mild amusement as Inna commented on how miserable he appeared. In truth he wasn’t miserable, he just felt annoyed and disappointed – annoyed that she had pushed him in the stream and disappointed that his flea infestation had ruined their time alone together. Golden eyes blinked in acknowledgement of her apology and his tail flicked once behind him to signal his appreciation, though he remained silent, not willing to completely forgive her until she had made it back to him by treating him with the cedar oil.

Golden eyes glanced back towards the dark female as she inspect his coat for more fleas further down his body, curious to see if she would find anything. His head nodded slowly and his tail swayed with satisfaction behind him as Inna explained that she had managed to apply the cedar paste to the couple of other critters she had spotted. “I’ll be careful around her, don’t worry.” Lorcan assured her, catching her gaze.

Satisfied that the raven had done a good job of treating him, Lorcan finally gave in and thanked her. Although the feeling of the paste drying into a thick crust on his skin was irritating, it did not itch nearly as much as the fleas had. Golden eyes caught the shy smile that traced her lips just before she spoke up and placed a kiss on him. Feeling much better now that his parasite problem had been dealt with and Inna had apologised, Lorcan didn’t feel the need to drag out her guilt any longer. “And apology accepted..” He sighed again with a dismissive smile, before returning a kiss to her cheek.

Giving his pelt a gentle shake – being careful not to remove the cedar paste Inna had just applied – Lorcan stepped forwards to give the dark female an affectionate nuzzle before trotting over to face the direction of the pack territory. “Come on, I think it’s time we head back and get warm.” He suggested, a mischievous glint in his golden eyes, as he gestured with a tilt of his muzzle for her to follow him home.

~fade~