Riddle Heights i will make you queen of everything you see

@Kyna

The shadow did not get much alone time with the strawberry blond anymore. Two of their subordinates had disappeared, which meant Greer was running more patrols and hunting more. With a growing child they could not afford to be short food or have the borders unmarked, for he feared intruders would waltz past them and interfere with their small group. More specifically, his daughter, who had seemed to catch her father’s itchy paws and was almost impossible to keep confined within the Heights. Not unless someone was watching her, which was either one of her parents or the inky Iyes, who was an excellent aunt to the little Archer.

She was also who Greer had asked to watch the little fox while he snuck Kyna away for a few hours, for they had both been confined to the pack territory for too long.

“Come,” he urged with a cheeky grin after he’d finally managed to convince her that Revon was being watched. After his cruel joke the shadow did not expect her to believe him without a bit of coaxing, for he had nearly put the new mother in a state of panic.

Leading his scarlet mate over the rocky terrain he watched her anxiously, curious as to whether she had figured out where he was taking her yet. His tail swayed gently behind him, a small grin pressed against his dark lips as his insides buzzed with both excitement and worry. Would she even like the surprise he had for her? His ears twitched as doubt began to gnaw hungrily at his thoughts, consuming him and weighing heavy on his shoulders.

Eventually the rocks opened up to a small clearing, a broken stump tucked to the side, a reminder of their first meeting all those months ago. He turned to her, silver eyes widening as he waited for a reaction, the tip of his tail twitching nervously.

Come.

She had half a mind not to, quite frankly. It was not that Kyna was practically worried about Revon – not in this instance, anyways, not when she’d witnessed one of the older wolves actually take her daughter under their proverbial wing – but because her mate was such a cheeky little shit, and it seemed unfair to reward Greer after the nasty little prank he’d pulled on her the last time the alpha pair had sought a bit of solitude away from their adult responsibilities.

The redhead narrowed amber eyes; really, she did consider the possibility, two or three times, even…but to deny Greer now meant to deny herself that bit of freedom as well. Even if she was still a bit (just a bit!) sour, revenge was not worth it, not at her own expense.

So her mate said come, and with him Kyna came. She kept pace easily, slender legs enjoying the stretch as he led her outside of Aurora Heights, over rocky crags – but he didn’t take her far. The woman blinked, a bit surprised this was as far as Greer intended to take her, when she noticed the weathered tree stump he slowed near, and her eyes widened.

“I can’t believe it’s still here…”

And then—

“…you remembered.”

A wild dissertation appears!

There is a rabbit's nest nearby. +1 Health

Of course he remembered.

Kyna had been the only wolf worthy of being remembered.

Every moment they spent together, every place they visited together… it was all permanently stored away in the back of his mind. The shadow had always been apprehensive about meeting strangers and never cared for trading names. He had a tendency to forget them, along with faces, unless they had been of use to him. Even then it was a little hazy, for the Archer couldn’t be bothered to remember wolves he did not plan on encountering a second time.

The strawberry blond, however, had been an excuse.

He couldn’t stop thinking about her. Their first meeting had been a little strange, for Kyna had been small enough to shove herself into the hollowed trunk and Greer, the selective mute, had somehow managed to coax her out. From one conversation they had decided they were going to be friends, even though the shadow had avoided acquiring friends like the plague. Over time they continued to meet, each time pursuing a different location as both of them shuffled over the map. He remembered the rock pedestal he had found her on, surrounded by wildflowers, along with the flat plateau they had watched the aurora on. Every moment he had spent with her was etched into his memory—there was no way he could forget. Especially not when this stump was the reason why they were now mates.

“‘Course,” he mumbled in response as he touched her cheek with his nose before sauntering over to the hollowed trunk and plucked something from Kyna’s old hiding place. Two rabbits; his and hers. The Archer nudged it toward her with a shy grin pressed to his dark lips, his silver gaze fixated on his scarlet wife. She had made him soft but he did not mind. There was no other place he’d rather be.

He was too good for her.

Her smile broke across her face as did the sun from the horizon, light spilling over every feature with that simple, single word. Of course. Of course he did. Kyna did, especially when she passed as she ventured out to hunt on the rocky slopes. It was a passing thought, the stump where she met her partner, and she never considered bringing him out to it. She was a silly, sentimental girl – her recent hunt with Pyriel had reminded her quite starkly of such – and did not expect anyone to share them.

She should have known.

Greer was hers because Greer was unlike any other wolf in all of the forest. The world, even. This one, and whatever came after it.

It was then that Kyna realized her eyes were stinging, her heart squeezing tight in her chest at the very thought of the caring that went into this. Her tail swish behind her as she approached, drawn towards her mate with a magnetic force. Pink tongue flashed out, grazing over his cheeks, his crown – what a perfect, perfect wolf. Perfect for her.

“What did I do to deserve this?”

What a lucky queen was she.

A wild dissertation appears!

Was it too much? Worry gnawed aggressively at his chest, causing the shadow to doubt his actions. Even when his home had been beneath the willows Greer had always felt more at home with the scarlet wolf. She had been an escape for him, even when he refused to acknowledge others and kept to himself. The thought of leaving his birthplace had always been in the back of his mind, for he had wanted nothing more than the explore the lands of Lore, but it had been Kyna who had given him the push to do so—even though she had never asked him to leave. It had always been his choice. Which was why he had fled to the north to join his sister. It was not until the distance increased between the shadow and his flame that he realized he couldn’t stand to be apart from her.

His ears twitched at her words as he accepted her kisses graciously, his tail sweeping along the stone. Their lives had changed significantly since they arrived in the heights and claimed it as their own. There were fewer moments to themselves, as between Revon and the rest of their small pack, they were constantly on their toes. He wouldn’t change the way things were, even if it had not been in the forecast when he was nothing but a small shadow. Happiness was a strange concept to the stoic leader, but with Kyna it weighed heavily on his back, nearly suffocating him. “What Greer do deserve Ky?” He countered with a soft jab to her shoulder, his ears folding neatly against the back of his skill. 

“Listen.”

Kyna didn’t have to even think about it. As soon as her mate asked, she knew. It wasn’t anything like charming good looks – though she’d grown rather fond of the rugged edgelord she’d called her friend – and it wasn’t anything so foolish as the thrill of slipping out to meet a boy. When she was young, the wallflower had very little to say; but it turned out that no one had really been listening. That changed when she met the Archer.

She had no idea just how life-changing it would be.

Her tail swung behind her as she pressed up against the wolf, side-to-side as fire met smoke. The gift of rabbits were temporarily forgotten as she nuzzled into his cheek, her pink tongue flicking out across the underside of his handsome muzzle. “You came with me to my mountain. Even though you had your own…rock.” The monadnock was impressive in its own right, but she’d never call the large stone structure a proper mountain. But Greer had a home there, and that was the important part. He’d seen enough in her to follow her back south. “You gave me Revon.” Kyna hummed happily. “What else could a girl ask for?”

A wild dissertation appears!

His ears twitched as she spoke, her voice soft and commanding, and Greer obeyed without complaint. Listen. It was what he did best, for his lips seldom moved and words rarely surfaced from within his chest. Except when he was with his scarlet moon, for she was able to lure a few broken sentences out of him. After their first encounter at the stump they were now sitting next to Greer did not think the young Argyris would have such an impact on his life. However, it was when he realized that he actually wanted to see her again that the shadow realized she had already impacted it, for he was not one to pursue a second interaction. Rather he shied away from them, refusing to remember names unless they belonged to his pack, for he did not deem strangers important.

Except for the girl with fur that rivalled the morning sun and eyes of liquid gold.

The brush of her fur against his sent a shiver down his spine, silver meeting gold as he listened patiently to her words. Yes, he had followed her to her mountain—their mountain—because he could not imagine a life without her in it. The rock had been more of a home than the willows, and while he thrived alongside his sister Greer knew that it was not where he was supposed to be. Not unless Kyna was with him. And he knew she would never leave the mountains behind. It was where she was supposed to be. No matter how badly she wanted to be with him the Archer knew he could not separate her from them. His rock, as Kyna correctly put it, paled in comparison to the mountain they called home.

Revon. Greer did not think he could love anything more than the scarlet moon at his side, but he had been proven wrong with the birth of his daughter. Their daughter. “Ky gave Greer Ky,” he murmured back, his teeth nipping affectionately at the tip of her ear. “Revon. Mountain, too.” His smile widened. “Ky Greer-home. Always, always.” 

For a man that often opted not to speak at all, Greer certainly had a way with words. It made her feel all warm inside, as if he’d lit a thousand flames within her chest. Her ears fell back and she allowed a soft whine to fall free, tail wagging back and forth as she pressed back into the older wolf. She pressed their muzzles together, their shoulders too, until there wasn’t a distinct Kyna or Greer anymore, but simply the entanglement of Kreer. Aurora Heights. Their family.

“Yes. Greer is Kyna’s home.”

Even if they never had found their way back to the mountain, even if she never had her pack, she would always have a home in Greer – and she always would, no matter what came their way.

“Come.”

Further into the wood.

Let me love you.

Fade out soon?

A wild dissertation appears!

if this works for a fade feel free to archive <3

Oh, how things had changed for the shadow. A few visits to the mountain and clandestine meetings with the sunlit girl. An unlikely friendship that had blossomed into so much more. It was a life he’d never envisioned for himself. Never wanted. That was until the fiery girl sauntered into his life, captivating him with her warm, illuminating personality. Her unspoken understanding of his desire for silence. Even in their younger years she had never pushed him to converse. She had clipped her own words, speaking only when necessary so that she did not bombarde him. She listened, to his physical cues and his broken speech. Never once judging him, or questioning the way he spoke. Accepting it. Accepting him.

It was a strange feeling. To love someone so much. Knowing that he would do anything for her, no matter the consequences. Putting someone else’s needs first, without hesitation.

He wouldn’t change it. Especially when the reward was Revon—and the possibility of more. Their own kingdom in the mountains. A legacy.

He hummed in response to her words, the corners of his mouth curling into a soft smile as he pushed his nose against her cheek. Come. He recoiled, reluctantly pulling himself away from his scarlet mate as he unfolded himself from her. Without hesitation he complied, his shoulder pressed against hers as he followed alongside her.