Willow Ridge singing dreams inside my head

Backdated to 3/8 for @Kaeruka only.

Scully had been determined to continue being exactly himself, rather than putting on a show to ensure his connection with their newest member as he'd more likely have done in the past. Despite his fondness for play and continued struggle to control his temper, the Archer was maturing. She couldn't know it, but his approach to his relationship with Kaeruka was evidence of this.

As such, he continued to shamelessly flirt with @Moore, @Queenie and Hagar, but it didn't mean he wouldn't go out of his way to make Ruka feel special in what he hoped to be a more profound way.

Today, the attempt had been made in the form of a gift left tucked at her side as she slept. It was a stone he'd found in the river, larger than his paw and polished smooth by it's current. It was a deep gray, as many rocks were, but the erosion had revealed a marbled streak of bright and vivid pinks that cut through it's center. It laid flat upon the dirt floor of the Ridge's cavern, and atop it rested a single, lilac-colored wildflower.

Resting alone beneath the skeletal cover of a willow not far from the namesake ridge, he reflected on the trinket, hoping for the umpteenth time that it had been to her liking.

There was a certain warmth that engulfed the communal den and made waking up that much harder to do today. After some convincing, though, creamy lids finally peeled open to reveal chartreuse eyes still riddled with sleep. A salmon tongued rolled from parted jaws as a yawn escaped, the exhaled air causing the delicate flower tucked at her side to slip from its resting place atop the river rock and drawing her attention. Blinking curiously, Kaeruka shifted carefully to avoid smashing the flower beneath her back leg while leaning in to nudge the former pedestal with her nose, inhaling the familiar cologne lingering on its surface. Scully.

The newest member found the corner of her inky lips curling into a sheepish grin, her cheeks warming beneath the surface. If there was one thing the silvered Archer was good at, it was making sure she felt special. There was a heavy sigh of content that flared the woman's nostrils as she nosed the rock closer to get a better gander at it between her paws. Its surface was smoothly polished with not a single blemish to its name, pawing it gently at a loss for how stunning the marbled streaks stood out against the darker grey surrounding them. It truly was a one-of-a-kind gem in her mind and quite possibly her new favorite.

Carefully clenching both flower and stone between her teeth, she slid out from the den and into the glaring sunlight, taking a couple of moments to blink the brightness away before adamantly seeking out Scully. Luckily her nose didn't take as long to jumpstart for the day, swiftly picking up on his scent and following its trail not far from the ridge itself. Once his dark silhouette began to appear beneath the narrowed boughs she paused in her steps to delicately place her gifts at her feet, tail wagging happily at her rump before calling out to him with a short bark.

Laying on his side, Scully stretched his legs out to their full length, limbs shaking from the effort as his spine extended and a yawn parted his jaws and curled his tongue. The sun filtering through the skeletal boughs had put him at ease and had him close to dozing off, though every scampering squirrel had caused him to stir and made sealing the deal difficult. Heavier paws moved over the ground, and this time he lifted his head, ears swiveling to pinpoint the sound.

Her bark urged him to look over his shoulder, and catch sight of Ruka peering back at him. He grinned upon seeing her, and was swiftly on his paws and moving to greet her, lethargy banished from his body.

"Mornin', treasure," he hummed in greeting as he neared, brushing his nose along her muzzle once close enough.

The corners of Ruka's inky lips curved into a wide grin as she watched the man make his approach, a slight shiver coursing its way along her spine in response to the gentle caress of his nose along the length of her muzzle. Nothing a quick shake of her pelt couldn't fix before greeting Scully. "My, my. What a handsome sight this is in the morning." She spoke softly in return, taking advantage of his closeness to affectionately nibble at his cheek and travel toward the scruff of his neck before pulling away to give the tip of his ear a playful nip of its own.

"I woke up to the most wonderful thing today." She started, pondering how long she could make a guessing game out of the gift the silvered wolf himself had bestowed upon her that lay neatly tucked at her paws. "Can you guess what it is?" A mischievous smirk replaced the former grin on her maw.

Scully smiled crookedly as she complimented him, leaning into her returning touch and clicking his teeth back at her impishly when she went for his ear. He adored such playful affection, and his wagging tail made that clear even as he attempted to retain the same measure of relative aloofness that she was. The Archer knew how quickly he could go from playing games to genuinely being wounded, his emotions could strike him so. Yet, like each time before, it was all too easy to give in far more than he held back.

She brought up his tokens, but he feigned mild surprise rather than promptly admitting to their coming from him.

"Oh? What's this junk, more from that secret admirer of yours? Whatever are we going to do about him?"

(This post was last modified: Jun 16, 2022, 12:43 AM by Scully.)

By now it was beginning to be made known that her favorite method of adorning the silvered archer with affection was by giving his ears the gentlest of tugs. Ruka hadn't the slightest clue what it was about them that drew her so, but nonetheless, the appendages rarely went without the touch of her teeth. The smirk upon her maw only increased in size in response to the impish clicking of his teeth whenever she made a motion toward his ears.

Of course, their budding relationship wouldn't be what it was if there wasn't always some form of a game to be played. It kept things interesting and lively between them. Today was nothing less as his mildly feined surprised and aloof words in regards to her junk and secret admirer earned both a playful eye-roll and scoff from the tawny woman. Kaeruka took a moment to recline onto her haunches, settling comfortably before Scully. "Hm, they do say one wolf's trash is another wolf's treasure." She teased, moving a paw to hide the trinkets from his view as if he was no longer entitled to their beauty, and brought them closer to herself.

"I know what I'm going to do about him." She spoke softly, meeting those pale silver eyes of his with a coy smirk. "I'm going to find this dreamy secret admirer of mine and keep him close after I thank him for surprising me with tokens. Maybe even thank him with a kiss." At this, all seriousness was whittled away with the wriggling of her brows.