Hearthwood River up on a hill, across a blue lake

Ah. There it was. The perfect chance to rid himself of the awkward. "But I hate thinking," he whined brattily, flicking his tail once and allowing a smile to cross his maw. And, subsequently, allowing a bit of mischief to spark into his eyes. "What you need to work on is cheering other wolves up. Because, to tell you the truth, you kind of suck at it." Hey, this wasn't a meeting, and there weren't any wolves to save face for, so what the hell.

"I hope you know that I am absolutely going to take every single advantage of that 'call me out in private' thing," he added, as a side note. He'd just shamed himself - acting like a complete (playful) douchebag was the only way he could think of to protect his masculinity. It was all in good fun, and he hoped Lachesis understood that. After all, he was immensely, overwhelmingly grateful for the white-pelted man.

On a slightly more serious note, the mocha wolf perked his ears, recalling something that he'd spoken about with Lach in their last conversation. "Oh! There's also something really important that I've been meaning to talk to you about." Perhaps if he continued talking and talking like a moron, his alpha would forget that he'd just cried like a heartbroken pup. "I've decided that I want to become a Guardian." The sentence was spoken with surety and pride - his chest even puffed up a little bit.

There are several fresh rabbit tracks in the mud. Hunt Opportunity

sorry for the wait, the SOW hid u from me :c @Aytigin
leader dem 1/3 discuss potential roles with subordinates

The ghost rolled his eyes at the male’s statement, his lips falling into a soft frown. “I’m not trying to cheer you up,” he snorted in response, his shoulders rolling into a shrug. It was painfully obvious that the ebony male did not enjoy thinking, for his words lashed out without regret, spilling into the air without a second thought. “Just trying to be honest with you, ‘cause I’d rather not see you leave,” he added with another shrug—something he was exceptionally good at. Lachesis had never been the one to comfort others. Instead he shied away from sympathy and empathy and all the other -athy’s. The blue-eyed dove he had spent most of his early years with had been the one who reached out to others, using her kind words and soft voice to sooth their troubled minds. Mostly his. Even Lilya had been good at comforting the alabaster leader. He, however, had never managed to grasp the concept. He was just good at applying herbs and treating wounds.

“I wouldn’t expect anything less.” He laughed. It was the truth. There was little the leader could do to change the ebony male’s behaviour. Regardless, he wouldn’t stop trying.

His ears twitched as the swarthy male’s tone changed, his expression growing more serious. He blinked. XIX didn’t even know Aytigin was capable of being serious, so this was a first. Please don’t let there be a woman in his life, he thought quickly to himself, for he did not know if he would be able to handle mini Aytigin’s running around next spring. If he even allowed it.

Something unexpected came from the mocha male’s mouth, however. His lips curled into a soft smile and he nodded to show his agreement. “Good, I’m glad to hear that.” And he was. XIX had not wanted to rush the male into finding a role within the pack, for he knew pack life was still a new concept to him. He was glad to hear that Aytigin had come to the conclusion himself. “I think that’s a good fit for you. Just watch your tongue with strangers, alright?” He offered his subordinate a quick wink to show that his words were in jest. He truly believed it was a role that the casanova would be good at—as long as he applied himself and worked hard at it. Which Lachesis believed he could.

stick with those who stick with you