Stonewatch Timbers You Painted Pictures on the Fields

@Reyes

Maybe—just maybe—it wasn't an owl like Cottongrass had hoped it was. Because it didn't take long for Reyes to catch onto the fact that they weren't alone, and the change it brought was palpable. Gone was the quiet, buzzing energy of the night. What replaced it was something far more unpleasant and intense. And with nothing else left for him to do—Cottongrass froze in place. He froze with his neck twisted over his shoulder and he didn't dare move.

Whatever eagerness he usually carried became a sense of morbid curiosity while Reyes shuffled forward, the older wolf already on his feet and ready. Quiet and serious the duo gazed into the darkness of the nearby treeline. And it was Reyes that growled, breaking the dead of night while Cottongrass could only awkwardly stare. He listened to the huffing of Reyes' noise while the older wolf scented the air. But before he could react, before he could even think of reacting—

Abrupt and startling confusion smacked into him. Because what did Askan have anything to do with this? And why did Reyes stop acting all tough? His ear twitched and he looked at Reyes from the corner of his eye, the tension in his body giving way to sheer bewilderment at the sudden turn of events. Didn't any of them know they were about to get eaten by a very big and horrific monster of the woods? Before he could open his big mouth to speak the pieces fell into place.

Oh.

Ooh.

He watched as Askan appeared, the Selwyn practically materializing from the darkness before them in all of his tired and grumpy glory. Cottongrass wasted no time in pushing himself up until he was sitting. His tail wagged in an excited frenzy in the snow. And an absolutely obnoxious grin spread across his features the moment Askan settled down on the opposite side of Reyes.

"Askan!" He chirped, all too loud and upbeat for such a late hour of the night. And with all the grace of an overeager puppy, he clumsily pressed into Reyes' side and leaned over to push the blunt end of his muzzle into Askan's fur. He pulled back a moment later and settled down on his stomach, wriggling and squirming all the way.

"We think there's a, uh, an owl in that tree over there!" He continued to bark all while swinging his muzzle in the general direction of one of many silhouetted trees. And unable to help himself he kept glancing at Askan and Reyes from the corner of his eye. Because all of his friends were there and that meant it was a party! An owl party because those were the best kind of parties if you asked Cottongrass.

He kept on wriggling and squirming away, as pleased and happy as could be in that moment.

Out of the oleaginous shadows came Askan, but he did not slink or creep. Instead, the tired wolf all but dragged himself to the pair, plunking down with a yawn to make even a bison proud. The older wolf couldn’t help a small snort, leaning over to nuzzle his mate’s ruff. “Then why did you get up?” he asked softly, licking the crown of the man’s head but once before allowing him to settle. Damn heat leech. Wasn’t he the one who usually made fun of Reyes for bitching about the cold?

Whatever, he’d let him have it.

Ignoring the stupid grin likely sprawled across his muzzle, he lifted his chin enough to allow Cottongrass to press in, too. Shit, if he didn’t like the loner so much, he wouldn’t have even thought about considering it. But Askan was happy, and so was the little white wolf, and frankly, the delta couldn’t be assed to move the happy little cuddle puddle.

After a moment, he twisted just enough to brush his muzzle against the yearling’s. “Hush,” he rumbled quietly, silver eyes flickering towards the tree in question. “They won’t call if we keep yappin’.” His ears pressed forward as he searched the shadowy shapes, waiting, waiting… And eventually, their patience was rewarded with a soft hoo- hoo- hoo-hoo! in the distance. His tail began to wag. “Let’s name it.”

@Askan -- You're up.  Maybe we can wrap this thread up in another round in favor of a new one?  :D

Sounds good to me

Askan didn't expect such a lively or earnest greeting. Sure, he knew that Reyes would be glad to see him in his own way, and in turn wasn't surprised by his displays of affection but the same couldn't be said for Cottongrass. Kisses and nuzzles from his mate were one thing, but why oh why did Cotton feel the need to do the same? He supposed he should be grateful for the fact that he didn't try to plant a kiss on his nose as well. That would have been...weird.

He thought it was pretty obvious why he was out here, but apparently his partner needed help putting the pieces together. Yawn. Fine, whatever. Shivering a little, Askan wiggled even closer to his mate. If they both kept squirming around in this cuddle puddle Reyes would be at risk of being squashed by the two of them, not that the Selwyn really cared at that point. He was getting comfortable, and seeing as he'd been left all alone it seemed as though it was only fair."Was cold, couldn't sleep."

Really though? All this fuss over a bird? He could see why Cotton was getting all excited, because he was well...Cotton. But Reyes? Askan arched a brow. Didn't he know better? Wasn't he supposed to be more mature than this? Oh boy, this was the man he'd decided to spend the rest of his life with. Wasn't this something he could have told him earlier? Ah well, it wasn't so bad. It was kind of endearing really, like how his sister's went through a phase of being really interested in butterflies. Except Reyes' thing was owls.

Another yawn forced it's way out and Askan smacked his lips, getting sleepier by the second.

"Yeah well, you guys can do that. I'm gonna just...close my eyes."

I'm game! @Reyes

If Cottongrass were to be honest, he sort of stopped listening to the soft tones beside him a while ago. Reyes had shushed him and he actually listened. Askan continued to grumble about being tired and cold like a grumpy puppy, and he found it cute in an abstract way. But otherwise his mind was elsewhere, entranced by the soft hooting that almost came on cue. Because who didn't like owls? They were cool like Reyes' scars or the way Tumblebelly had fearlessly slayed dragons. And if Cottongrass were to make a list of all things awesome, owls would be on the top without doubt.

He stared into the distance with his jaws open in awe, unable to get a glimpse of the illusive bird but still content. It wasn't until he remembered his friends did he close his mouth and come back to the present.

And when Reyes suggested they name the owl, Cottongrass fell silent for all of one second while a million possibilities came to life behind his eyes. But he immediately deemed it too hard to think of a clever way to smash their names together without it sounding like complete gibberish. So he moved onto the next best option. Which was, of course—

"Party Owl!" He blurted out, yellow eyes shining like stars as he whipped around to face his friends. "Their - their - their - their name is gonna be Party Owl 'cause three wolves make it a party!" Cottongrass barked, chest puffed up because he was all too proud of himself for coming up with that. His tail wagged away hard behind him and he couldn't stop smiling even if he tried. Because it might've been the sleepiest party in the world, but he didn't mind. Not when he had his friends there to keep him company.

To no one’s great surprise, Askan settled back down against his shoulder to go back to sleep. He might have rolled his eyes, but he really didn’t mind, he found. His mate was welcome to cuddle up close – for all that he did not approve of public displays of affection, he found he did not mind that Cottongrass bore witness to the soft, heartfelt emotion the pair of males shared. It was different, somehow. Cotton wasn’t the public anymore. He’d call the yearling a friend, but it felt a little different than that. He didn’t quite have the word for their relationship, but he cared about the kid. Trusted him enough to allow him to see it, anyways.

Reyes was content to remain silent while his mate dozed off and his friend decided on a name – perhaps he shouldn’t have been, for the white wolf settled on ‘Party Owl’. It was difficult to resist the urge to snort, but somehow he managed. Instead, he just nodded and hummed. “If that’s what you want.” It was kind of Cotton’s owl to start with. He huffed quietly, nudging the white wolf’s cheek. They could sit and watch the Party Owl for some time now. That was fine.

Fade.