Shallows Edge And papi says he got malo in him

RE: A double rainbow stretches through the sky.
For my darling and most beloved @Reyes

Askan wasn't one for lazing about all day, but he was a little reluctant to go against @Pietro's instructions. Stomping around wasn't going to help his paw heal any faster, if anything it would just make him all the more cranky and irritable. Still, he couldn't believe he'd lost a nail to that damn root. Who did that? And who could've imagined that it hurt so damn much! Askan grumbled as he rolled onto his side, splayed out in the safety of the leaders den, try as he might he couldn't get comfortable, he was too restless. He'd had enough rest for one day, with a grunt he pushed himself to his feet and shuffled out of the den into outside world.

The Edge Lord had no idea what he was going to do next, maybe he could limp to the Shallows, see if there was anyone around to grouse to. But before he could even take a step in that direction his attention was grabbed by two colourful smears in the sky. He squinted, wondering if the sudden transition from dark to light had temporarily muddled with his vision. But nope, he blinked once, then twice and the arches of colour still remained.

"Huh." He tipped his head a little to the side, his lips pursing as he tried to remember when he'd seen this before.

Then it dawned on him, it had been with Reyes up by...Pissy El Celio? How times had changed since then.

(This post was last modified: Jul 03, 2018, 02:40 PM by Askan.)

The on and off rain did very little for Reyes’ mood. It might have been nice if the showers were cool and refreshing – instead, they pissed down, made the forest wet, and when the sun came back out, the entire place became a veritable sauna. If he were more prone to complaints, he might have proclaimed he was dying.

Instead, he generally tried to find the coolest places to hide, these days. Near the waterfall itself was quickly becoming a favorite. The wolf was on his way there, quite intent on waiting out the midday heat, when he spied Askan squinting at the sky. Following his gaze, Reyes spotted the rainbow – and snorted. Oh, how things changed in a year. And how they didn’t change at all…

“You do a rain dance and bring the colors down?”

It was funny how Reyes always seemed to appear when Askan thought about him. Was it just chance, or was something truly sappy at play here? Askan didn't have long to consider it as in typical Reyes fashion, he cut to the chase. Moving closer, he brushed his muzzle along the length of his mate's snout. No one was around, this was their own private little slice of the Shallows, the other's knew better than to snoop about. Askan's tongue darted out from between his lips as he kissed Reyes nose.

Only when he'd had his fill did he mull over Reyes' question. Not that there was much to consider.

"Ha, not quite. Not really in the best state to prance about. Figured that'd be more your thing anyway, Mr Moon-eyes." He bumped their shoulders together, an action that reminded him of older times, when they had been less than gentle with one another.

Still, Gabe had been quite moody as of late and honestly, Askan wasn't sure what to make of it. On one paw he wanted to nip the issue in the bud and shove all this bullshit to the side, on the other though they had never been that great at dealing with tangly, complicated emotional stuff. More often than not they just shoved their way through it...or let it fester till they were both hurt. Well, Askan didn't think things had gotten that far yet. Gabe dealt with his moodswings like a champ, it was only fair Askan did the same, or at least tried to anyway.

"Speaking of, look." He dipped his head, gesturing to his front paw. With a little squint he pressed his paw to the ground and stood as a normal, non-limpy wolf would. His nail would grow back and soon enough he'd be back in fine form. "Not bad, huh?" His tail waved behind him, all proud and pleased.

(This post was last modified: Jul 03, 2018, 02:40 PM by Askan.)

On some level, Reyes had been prepared to be in a bad mood with his mate. It’s not like they were fighting – no, that would be much more obvious – but the older wolf’s moods had been mercurial since the spring. The coyotes hadn’t helped, and… Well. He’d felt a bit superfluous lately. Spare leader. The beef, and nothing else.

He hadn’t said as much, of course. Brooded over it.

And here he was, quite ready to be Broody and Dour, and there Askan was, spry as a moonstruck pup. Damn him. Damn him and all of Reyes’ weaknesses. Ears cupped forward at the banter and he reached over, nibbling on the man’s ruff as he spoke. “Nah. ‘m sick of all this rain. Some sun would be nice, dry things out.” He was a desert boy, after all.

Upon Askan’s bidding, he glanced down, observing the paw in question. Looked fine to him. Not that he was a healer, but still. He nibbled on Kana’s ear this time. “Didn’t know you had it in you to follow a healer’s orders…” he snickered, tail giving a small wave behind him.

Which was to say, ‘not bad’.

In all honesty Askan wasn't surprised. He remembered the summertime in the Field quite fondly, images of Reyes splayed out like a lizard in the sun came to mind. Anyone else and it would have been an unflattering look, but Reyes...man, he pulled it off well. That seemed to be a skill of his, turning the undesirable into something very tempting indeed.

Askan huffed at his mate's next words. Anyone else and he would have gotten snappish, defensive, but Reyes was right. More often than not his ego didn't allow him to take it easy, to admit that he was actually hurt. But in this instance his injury had been too obvious to ignore, he couldn't have limped about without at least someone noticing. If he tried he knew that it would have likely resulted in Reyes just yelling at him, so as annoying as it had been to cave and see Pete it had been worth it in the end.

"I have been known to behave, from time to time." He quipped, grateful for the veiled compliment. Though in his humble opinion he-almost-always behaved appropriately. Wasn't his fault other's couldn't' do the same. Not that it mattered now, banter was banter. "In fact, I think I've been rather good, haven't tried to drown your sister yet." There was a smile in his voice and on his lips. Askan wouldn't even consider doing that, as annoying as she was, family was family.

(This post was last modified: Jul 03, 2018, 02:40 PM by Askan.)

Ah, yes. Reyes’ infamous lizard pose. If he’d known what his mate was imagining, he would have quite agreed – as far as he was concerned, those little guys had the right idea. Find a nice, hot rock and soak up the sun until someone blocked it. But he couldn’t read minds. He could read smiles and enjoyed that instead, pressing one large shoulder into Askan’s as the younger wolf clapped back. It should have annoyed him, the not-quite-threat… But it really didn’t.

Marisol could be a right pain in the ass when she set her mind to it.

“Not sure she knows how to swim,” he agreed mildly, settling on grooming Askan’s ruff. Then his jaw. Then his ears. “I’d have never heard the end of it, though, so I suppose I appreciate your restraint. I think the spring looks good on you, mi amor.”

For all that Reyes had been an utter crank pot, well. Askan seemed to be doing brilliantly. It was hard not to bask in his glow. “If only we could have spring without so much damn water.”

Askan leaned into his mate's touch with a content rumble. Considering how tense things had been as of late he'd sort of missed this, little displays of affection here and there that reminded him that he was wanted, loved. Maybe he'd felt a little....not neglected but-it didn't matter now did it? Reyes was here and despite Askan's teasing words he seemed to be enjoying his company. It was a pleasant change and Askan was more than happy to keep this trend going.

Apparently Reyes wasn't done yet. He'd always had a way with words, when they'd first met they'd been callous, intended to wound and mock, but now they were so much softer. For the most part anyway, they both still had their grumpy moments. When he spoke like this though...ooof, Reyes had Askan hook, line, and sinker.

"Glad you think so." As to what he was referring to, he'd let Reyes figure that out for himself. Intsead, he twisted to give Gabe a quick kiss on the nose. If he kept this up there would be more to follow, probably.

The conversation turned to the weather and Askan huffed in amusement. He had a feeling that Reyes' prickly mood was-in part-due to all the rain. He'd been pretty bitchy during winter too, but for one reason or another, the wet weather really got under his skin.

"Give it a couple of months, I'll be the one bitching about the weather soon enough." His gaze wandered skywards and he studied the streaks of colour with pursed lips. He looked back at his mate as the beginnings of a grin worked its way onto his lips."Think you'll still love me when I'm as cranky as you?"

His words were intended to be a joke but in all honesty, Askan was reaching out, hoping for a bit of reassurance. He knew full well that his temper had gotten the best of him as of late and had pushed him to make decisions Gabe didn't approve of. But Reyes knew what he'd gotten himself into, right? Maybe, deep deep down Askan was a little worried about that.

Perhaps he’d been giving Askan too much of a hard time lately. In truth, it was likely himself that had been given the hard time – for one was always the harshest critic of one’s own self – and it had been directed outward when he wasn’t so vigilant with himself. The winter made him cranky because the cold weather made him tired so damn fast, made his joints ache in a way that made him feel utterly ancient. But this spring had left a strange hollow in his chest, something that neither he nor Askan could fill – and Askan’s recent rash of Alpha Decisions made without any consultation had only poured salt onto the wound Reyes had dug in his own flesh.

Defeat and rejection were often self-fulfilling prophecies, it seemed.

And somewhere, in the back of his mind, was that black bird with sharp eyes and a heart full of green. A shadow of a memory, but one Reyes never forgot – one he should have, attempting to start a pack again – and one he didn’t, anyways.

The wolf continued to groom as he thought, eventually realizing that Askan’s idle chatter was not that at all – he expected an answer. Reyes gave a soft hum and withdrew from the chore he set himself. “What makes you think you ain’t that cranky already, pendejo?” he snorted, resting his chin on his mate’s shoulders. “I liked you even though the first thing you did, after I rescued you, no less, was rip open my shoulders. I have a thing for cranky and dangerous. So fight me.”

But he knew Askan wouldn’t.

Askan knew better than to expect an outright yes or no. His brows drew together at Reyes' little poke, come on he wasn't that cranky, was he? If anyone else had that he would have no doubt be offended, would have put on a great show of it, huffing and puffing till he was blue in the face. But Reyes knew him better than anyone else could,  not being once to mince his words if he said that Askan was cranky then it was probably true.

"Hmph."

Reyes was never going to let him live that down, was he? It wasn't his fault Reyes was being an annoying prick, that there was a bit of a mix up in communication. Gabe had a point though. Anyone else would have no doubt run for the hills after an encounter-or two- like that, but Reyes kept coming back time and time again. Like he couldn't get enough of it. Askan hardly considered himself to be dangerous, but if that's what Reyes was into...Askan coughed. Had he believed in witchcraft, the Selwyn would have assumed that Reyes had some sort of magical sway over him, that he'd been bewitched. But the reality was far simpler than that: Reyes just got him. He saw Askan for what he was and accepted that, liked it even.

"That's not how it happened." He corrected. "It was a few days after we met and you were being rude."

Slipping out of his mate's grasp he circled around to tug at his mate's scruff. Though he was mimicking their second encounter, this little moment was nothing like that. He recalled the taste of blood, the look of absolute scorn on Reyes' face and then the regret. Askan would never allow his temper to get the better of him like that again, though even he knew it was far easier said than done. Reyes then claimed that he wanted to fight, but it wasn't going to happen. Not today at least.

Pulling away, it was Askan's turn to lean against his mate.

"I love you." Askan found himself saying. Not because he had to, rather it felt right. Like he should have said so sooner."Don't ever change, you hear?"

“You were rude first.”

It was an immediate snap back, regardless of the truth behind it. There was a 50% chance Reyes had instigated it. He supposed it didn’t matter, though, because he was the insane one who’d come back even after getting bitten by the ungrateful whelp.

And here they were.

The heart was a very strange (and insufferably stupid) thing. He supposed it was probably a good thing he’d been blessed with his mother’s endless patience – a trait he rather suspected only he knew himself capable of, for he often did not chose to exercise it. As was his right, of course.

“You couldn’t make me change if you tried,” he responded, a bit sleepily, and laid his head against Askan’s bulk.

They both knew nothing was further from the truth – but that was the beauty of it, really.

Fade.