Now that Steele and Ember were allowing wolves into the pack, Azul could appreciate the finer things of the pack. He could possibly even explore his own lands a bit. Curious as to where his own paws would take him, he started on his venture to seek other wolves. His thick white coat blended in almost perfectly with the setting around him. The snow fell heavily to the floor, covering it in a cold blanket. Slowly he moved about the land, humming to himself. He hadn't stopped until he heard two voices a rather good distance from where he currently stood. His eyes looked over the land, searching for the wolves. He was not completely certain who they belonged to, but when he heard a softer voice, he smiled. He knew her sound very well. His tail curved over his back slightly, resting on his spine. But her voice was agitated. This worried the alpha, but before he would intrude into their conversation, he paused and waited.

He sat on the ground, hiding in the snow covered bushes. His golden hues watched as he listened. There were two males, one he had met and the other he had not. Steele or Ember must have accepted him. Soon the unknown male would be leaving, placing Lucy alone with Marrok. He had saved Marrok from the irritation which was Steele at times. Although the male was rather rough around the edges, the midnight brute was extremely useful. With a shake of his head, he released his mind of those thoughts and back to the wolves before him. He stood up, cleared his throat, and approached them through the branches and brush. "Why hello Apprentice Lucy and Warrior Marrok. How is your day going?" he asked with a smile. As he looked over the wolves, he could not help but to stare at Lucy. Her coat was beautiful, almost perfect.

As the first one turned to her, with a flurry of white falling loosely from his back with the movement, her ears flattened against her skull in discomfort. She could feel his eyes roaming over her pelt, feel the change in the air as her presence was realized, and whether his intentions were pure or not, it made her skin crawl. She had only met but a handful of his kind, and ever since her enslavement after her father's murder her opinion of them was not relatively high. Of course, for every wicked, there was one noble; contrary to his followers beliefs, Silas was not heartless, nor was he a poor king. He ruled with fangs bared and a shrunken soul, but he lead his pack to prosperity and gained more than Lucy's trust during his time as her father. So yes, he was noble in her eyes, for there is not much braver than a man who overcomes his darkness and learns to love. As the one named Marrok continued with his introductions and formalities, and as her thoughts slowly fled to Audric and the many smiles they shared, she realized that the only male since her family's death she had been comfortable with upon their first meeting was...Azul.

A smile slowly crept to her lips, bringing with it a light to her face as her expression brightened with Marrok's generously shared hospitality, yet her spine remained rigid in a most awkward position. "Greetings to you as well, Marrok. I am sorry to decline such an offer, but I would much rather learn my home in solitude. Thank you, though..." This male was of average height, standing quite a bit taller than herself, of course, but his entire body was wrapped in muscle. His fur was an interesting mix of brown and russet; a rusty color, touched here and there by delicate wisps of cream, and his eyes were, in few words, incredibly sharp. This brute with the tongue of a king and the stature of a warrior was indeed wise, which only caused Lucy's stomach to twist tighter in fear as she remained still in his shadow. The other, however, left with little more than a slew of words and an empty farewell, keeping his own eyes at bay as if the very sight of them would unleash further embarrassment as they watched over him. She felt at a loss as he expressed his sorrow, calling out with much softer words before his tail disappeared behind the leaves and the many hidden shadows they cast. "I am sure we will meet again, Damon. Do not fret on my behalf, and take care!"

She turned to the older warrior with some hesitance, dropping her gaze to ground and lingering on its bare patches of frost before meeting his own of gold and tarnished brass with the most sincere grin she could manage, though it grew eerily crooked as her scar interfered. Before long, and to her surprise, a rather familiar scent tickled at her nose, causing her head to turn in time to watch its bearer approach. Her muzzle and its forced line softened as she caught sight of his ivory fur, what muscles that lined her back eventually releasing their unpleasant grip, and she bowed low as he broke free of the trees and their free-growing bumbles.

"Alpha Azul," her eyes traveled up to his face, feeling a warmth press against her cheeks as they found his had already been trained on her, and spoke with a change of voice as light and as coy as a dove's feather on the breeze "Oh, my day has been lovely, thank you. I stumbled across Warrior Marrok just before you arrived, as I was walking the edges of the territory in hopes to become more acquainted with its lands." She paused with the beginning of a somber smile at the corner of her lips to lean back on her haunches, the coat of a doe's that draped effortlessly from her shoulders alight in the sparse columns of the sun's glory that filtered through the birch and its mess of twine.

"What brings you here and away from the camp? I hope nothing of dire importance, for I would hate to interfere with your duties."

Watching the brute leave left Marrok with a smirk plastered on his face. The male intrigued him just as Esmerelda did, though he certainly didn't have some of the same thoughts about him as he did with her. Glancing his amber eyes back to the lovely female before him his smile wavered a bit. Let down as to not show her the bounties of the territory didn't harm his pride bad, but he still would have liked to show her around. Looking back over her frame tastefully her noted the intricate designs in her fur, waves of grey, brown and onyx pulled him in, letting his eyes melt into her fur. They pulled him in, fooling his eyes into seeing certain colors only to be lied to as her small body moved in the light. Entranced her almost missed sensing Azul approach, which caused him to pull back and address Lucy. "Don't fret miss, I do hope you learn to love this land as much as I do, for what little I've seen of it." He spoke, his words strong yet soft at the same time.

Turning now to Azul his posture changed as his maw dipped and his shoulders led him into a small bow of respect. The alpha's white coat made his stick out amongst the group of brown and sable, it only further emphasized his importance of the pack. Standing tall and proud before him Marrok instantly felt smaller yet felt stronger next to him, like some of his greatness rubbed off on him. One day he wished to help further serve such a great wolf, but he didn't know how. "Greeting Alpha Azul, its my sincere pleasure to see you again. My day is going very well for I have met several wolves including lovely miss Lucy here. I went hunting as well and brought three rabbits back to the clearing." He said hoping it would impress the massive male.

Then as the female spoke he saw an invisible connection between the two, interesting he thought to himself. Lucy was indeed beautiful, she had a good form and was very polite. Any male would be lucky to stand next to such a fine fae, Marrok wished that someday he too could be as blessed.

He looked to the wolves, smiling as they seemed to have gotten along just fine. It was good to see members of the pack learning to live amongst one another. It made his heart beat faster, knowing he had not failed in this. He looked to the fae who spoke to him first. His eyes worked hard to keep them from staring as she was very beautiful and her coat was perfection in its natural form. Her voice was as soft as an angel's, filled with glory and love. Although he could not pin point his feelings for the fae, he knew he did care for her. "It is good to see you two have met, possibly become friends?" he questioned as he looked to them both, but back to Lucy with her last statement. "Things in the camp are fine, as far as I know. Warrior Ember, Beta Steele, and Caretaker Creek have been busy doing duties for me so that I may rest and relax for once." His eyes looked to the male, smiling and nodding his head, "yes, very good Marrok. They will be a great addition to our kill pile. In a few weeks time, we will be approaching spring and there will be better kills to be had. I hope I can count on you for aid in the hunt." His golden eyes looked to the other with respect and honor. He was proud he had such a good working and brave warrior in his pack. "How are you taking to the lands thus far?" he questioned them both as he rested his rump on the soft piles of snow behind him.

Her rosy skin flushed further with warmth as Marrok spoke dear of her, her eyes averting from the male's bronzed gaze in abashment as her smile, coy and slim, floundered before leaving her cream-touched muzzle all together. His words were hardly flattering, yet their ring was so unusual - so unfamiliar - that her unseasoned ears only heard the manipulative hiss of a male coiled to strike, for such of an innocence long lost had only heard one voice speak kindly to her in all her years bathed in murder and darkness - but, of course, there was another, wasn't there? Azul's. Yes, his was different. Everything about him was, but what was it that...drew her closer to him, to his eyes of blissful summers and deep-dwelling secrets? What it that sent her heart aflutter like the wings of a robin within her chest when she found him near? Oh, how ridiculous she was acting, and she knew it, too, and yet, did she try to stop it? Her sun-kissed pools of molten gold and amber circled mindlessly in the turned up soil at her toes, following the endless pattern of the frost's dainty tip toes across the thawed forest floor before lifting to his, serene and smoldering, and held that gaze before a smile returned to lift her lips.


"Oh, yes," she sent a bright flash of teeth in Marrok's direction before continuing, gaining confidence with each passing breath shared. "I would certainly call mister Marrok a friend." She shuffled in place just briefly before leaning back, setting her haunches gingerly upon the ruffled leaves and dried auburn grass without so much as a sound, looking up in time to meet the handsome stare of her Alpha as he did the same. "I'm glad you've finally had to some time to yourself. The lands are beautiful, as I thought they would be, and yet they still exceeded my expectations. Even in winter they are so breathtakingly full of life. If you don't mind my asking...how did you find such a place?"

Golden hues looked over the two wolves. He smiled and nodded to Marrok as the male left their presence. Once the male was gone, he looked to the fae, smiling warmly to her. "Yes, the land is very beautiful in the winter. You should see it when the flowers bloom and the woodland creatures come out to socialize. Feeling the summer sun will be good. Finally get to run and explore more of the lands." As he spoke of the land, he continued to smile. He looked down and then up to her eyes once more. "Well, I was born here. It was a long time ago. My parents were the Betas of the pack, so I know of higher ranking things from just watching them. I grew older, started my training and had real potential for getting a high ranking position within the pack. I was the best of my litter, like my father was before me. There was a night... A dark night where the moon could not be seen," he paused for a moment and then looked back to the fae. "The Dagger Pack attacked and killed our alpha along with many other wolves. I killed the Alpha of the Dagger Pack, avenging the one we lost. I watched him take his last breath. Then we went back to the pack with the news. The Alphess did not take it well... She ended up fleeing from the lands, along with many other wolves. I was appointed the Alpha and others decided I was not yet fit, so they left too."

Azul looked to the fae, trying to bring his smile back. "I found Kenai and then Steele. others Started to cross the border and here we are now." He smiled at her and looked over her form once more. His eyes seemed almost glued to her, while his nose caught traces of her scent. Although it was soft and pure now, in a few weeks time, it would increase in stench. Her coat was stunning, even in the thick of winter. Nature had its grasp around Azul and it was pulling him in close to Lucy.

The glow to his eyes as he watched her was peculiar...and yet so warm, so inviting. They really were beautiful; those pools of fiery chestnut and copper, their center alight with a hearty joy and their edges crinkling as his smile touched them. His words were touched by pride as he spoke of his lands, sparking a brightness to the very air around them, but before long that light was gone, swept away by a shadowy veil that with it threatened to spill upon his tongue a poison Azul had since kept at bay; sorrow. His voice resisted the darkness that she could see in his eyes, but Lucy had to wonder how long this sadness had been festering within him, tearing at his soul. He, too, had a past tainted by murder, but he was far stronger than she in that he faced his demons. She had run from a pack that had needed her guidance, turned from those who had slaughtered her father, their king, and her brother...even after losing Audric still she flees, as if rage was completely nonexistent within her. She would accept the branding of the name 'coward' on her hide, but she would not - could not - return to that forsaken land of carnage; for it was no longer hers; it was a monster's. He with eyes as black as death and a coat dipped in blood, the soulless bastard that enslaved her and brought the reaper to her door, and even with the strength of a thousand she couldn't find it in herself to face him again. Her lips twitched as her Alpha fought to find his smile, her legs - in his rarest moment of innocence and weakness - aching to move her closer, and refusing to allow her gaze fill with pity she instead looked to him with reassurance and a certain flicker of understanding.

"Azul - Alpha Azul, you are more than fit. You are more fit to rule than too many kings I have met, for you rule with kindness and greet with a smile despite the power you wield. You are wise, benevolent..." Handsome. Her gaze shot to the ground at her feet, her breath hitching in her throat and her cheeks reddening with with a rose flush. "Forgive my boldness. You are just...so different. I, too, lost my birth pack. All that I knew was taken from me, including what strength I had. When I came here it was more than just discovering a new start or wiping clean another slate; this place is a haven, and with it I found an ease I haven't felt in far too long, and I have never truly thanked you for this." Her eyes found his as her smile returned, a sigh slipping from her lips with a soft huff as it grew wider across her muzzle.

"Azul, what of your family? Your parents? They left with the others?"

He listened to the beautiful fae speak. Her words were like honey dripping down the bark of a tree just as they flowed from her sweet lips. He had never told any of the wolves his story, not even Kenai one of his closest friends. But even in the truth of all he said, he believed she gave him too much credit. He could not help but to smile when he looked at her, even when he spoke of such hard times in his life. "My parents, well, my father is still alive. After my mother died, he decided to wander. He knew I was able to protect and fend for myself now. If only he knew what this place was like now. I bet he would be impressed." As the Alpha spoke of his father, his smile grew larger than before. Trying to ignore her compliments was a hard task, especially when he wished to give her a whole lot more right back. He had never truly been interested in a fae like this before. Perhaps it was the season or the fact he genuinely liked Lucy. He didn't know the reason for a fact, but he knew he wanted to more about her. "What of your past Miss Lucy?" his eyes smoldered as they stared into hers. Hues of gold and amber merging with one another as he looked into hers and all over her coat. Muscles relaxed almost completely as the large brute lowered himself to the ground. He rested on the grass and small patches of snow, still looking to the fae. "I wish to know more of you, if you don't mind."

"He would be. I'm sure of it." She smiled up at him, her eyes sparkling as their golden gleam burst and her fur bristled with delightful shivers. That stare of his; how it captivated her, how it ignited its flames across her skin already burning with numbing heat. What was he doing to her? This had never been her intention; to fall for one of those most wicked, but Azul was different - so very different. She knew the season that had so quickly come upon them must be driving him mad, like so many others, and yet he took not a single step toward her. He did not blame her awakening scent for his impurest thought, nor show any sign that any such thought festered within his mind, unlike those most vile individuals that did little more than cheer as she was bent before their brothers once ago. His heart was so kind, so befitting of a true Alpha, and yet his kind were too rare to find even once in a lifetime for some. Her cheeks flushed pink as he asked of her to share her own past, rolling the thought of keeping her once most forbidden secrets locked away as the should be over in her head, as the guilt of yet another knowing of her weakness prevailed even in the midst of the first she had trusted since the very occasion. Of course, his welcoming smile all but drew the very words from her lips.

"My history is rather dark, Alpha, and has since kept behind sealed doors, but...I suppose opening them now is for the better." She paused to lower her haunches to the ground, leveling her head with Azul's at he lay flat in the glory of a spring's afternoon. Her grin had faltered since speaking, but her voice held strong and carried softly on the sweet gust of lily and blossoming grass as she continued with tired eyes. "My father was an Alpha. A king, as his subjects called him, but he was not as worthy of the title as you. He was a tyrant and a murderer, and his people grew tired of his damnable and aging mind as their forces outgrew his own. I was to take his throne once his time had come and his soul passed on to the Other Forest - or wherever it was it was bound - as he trusted me like no other for his own reasons, but before my birth he and his Guard- a wolf far more tainted than he - created a hierarchy where females were to be no higher than dirt to trample. My pack despised me for this, for seizing the position as Alphess as my lesser sisters were punished for pleasure, and therefore despised my father. Outrage plagued the lands of my family, and there was one whom led its way as it consumed even life in its wrath. I was there; when they snapped. When they...they killed him. Him and my mother, my brothers...I was not in my right mind to look to their faces as they did. Two males I did not recognize took everything from the nothing that I had, but I will never forget his eyes. The one who slit his king's throat before me. I will never forget his face as he bent me to his will." Her face was turned from her Alpha's by now, her eyes closed as they swam in her shame. Humiliation ran hot through her veins, though she dare not stop now. Her breath puffed from her nose as it escaped the constricting grasp of her throat, peeking at Azul with a slithered gaze as her muzzle fought to keep its feeble smile.

"They kept me with the others after the kingdom was cleansed of its death, betting with their brothers over who would be the first to father my pups. I birthed none, to their disappointment, and was punished for my infertility, but to me it was a blessing. I would sooner be beaten than to watch them spill my children's blood when they were born weaklings. I was freed when the next winter graced our land, bringing with it cover in snow and frosted mist as I ran. I found your border shortly after. I remember thinking, when I could smell you on the wind, that after so long of darkness I could finally be saved. That I could finally find my savior."

Azul listened to her story as if she was a great elder, giving him advice on things to come. His eyes looked to her face, focusing on all its beauty. he could not pull away from her, not here and not now. He could see the whole story played a part on her emotions. They caused her joy, fear, sorrow, and desperation. Not only did this make him care for the fae even more, but it caused him to become very angry, to think that any brute could treat such a beauty this way. She was kind and fair, yet she was affected by such tyranny. But controlling his anger was easy. For now he would hope to come across the monster that scarred such a wonderful fae. Azul was not violent by any means, but given the chance to straighten that individual out, he would take it in a heart beat. Being the largest wolf in the pack had its perks. But he would ignore it for now. There was no way that kind of monster was anywhere near his land, his border. As he looked over the fae, he smiled. Her words lightened his heart, looking at her, he lost control of his emotions. Rushing to his feet, he moved to her, pressing his nose to hers. When he looked to her with his bright golden hues, he gave up thinking with his mind, completely following his heart. "Lucy, I promise nothing will ever happen to you. I will not allow anyone to harm you." Azul pressed his cheek to hers, licking it twice, before laying beside her and resting his head over her neck and shoulder area. He breathed slowly, plotting his next words carefully for her. "I care for you Lucy. I have seen many faes in my years, and none have caused me to feel this way for any of them. I always figured I would end up alone, living by myself. In these five long years, I have done just that. But I don't think I want that life anymore. I think I am ready to find love."

The slew of emotions that ran deep through her Alpha's eyes in turn sparked another upon his tongue, though this with which his words were strung was one of far more strength. That stare of otherworldly fires, his smile; the embodiment of bliss, and his passion, his allure, how they sent her body reeling. Her heart all but burst once he stood, his steps rushed, as its relentless pounding against her chest ensued with newfound vigor. His touch was fleeting, it's remnants lingering as his skin's warmth tickled at her cheek, but soon it's effects enveloped her entirely as his scent, closer than it had ever been, invaded her senses. She could just vaguely feel his fur brushing against her own, just remotely pinpoint through a film of numb the heat of his neck's creviced bend at her back, but in all else she lay frozen. What was it he said? Love? It couldn't be. Never was this word spoken to her, never. Even her brother, her Audric, wouldn't dare utter such an accursed word beneath her father's eye. She was anything but loved, anything but protected or cared for, and yet here was Azul; a king of immaculacy, looking at her, touching her without leaving pain in his wake, proving her wrong.

"Azul," the word was no more than a hushed mutter; an exhale of breath as the silence around them drowned all feeble sound, yet with it came a courage that thawed her limbs and shocked her quieted heart alive. His body was circled around her side, his legs awkwardly curled against her, as there was not much room for one of his size to lay in comfort next to one of hers. So she twisted around, making room for those ivory paws that took up more than her head would, and rested her chin against the flat of his chest so that his neck stretched along the length to her face. His warmth embraced her with welcoming arms, cooing in her ear sweet pleasantries as she pressed against his fur. He smelled of cedar spice and the crisp of the air before it rains, the sinews of a warrior's muscles flowing with smooth ripples beneath the flushed skin at her cheek, his towering shoulders obscuring all but white and the glow of spring's fresh sunlight from her sight.

"Oh, Azul," she spoke again, her voice muffled as her lips moved against his fur, her whiskers fluttering at his collar bone. "You were the first male that did not hurt me. After so long...you were the first to not think of me as weak. I knew when you met me at your border that your pack was different - that you were different. I knew that I would find more here than I was seeking. I want to be with you, Azul. I want you to be happy." Her eyes closed as she shuffled closer into his side, swallowing back any doubt that had snaked into her mind.

"I think I'm in love with you."

Feeling her move closer to his body, he smiled. He was elated. There was not a single point in his life which made him feel more joy than he had ever experienced in his life. Not ranking up in his pack, not defeating the Dagger Pack, not becoming Alpha. None of it. Smelling her scent so close, it was intoxicating. As he took in her scent, he closed his eyes, trying to get every bit of it as he could, remembering it for what it was. Beautiful. Perfect. There was not a fae in the world who smelled as divine as her. Nuzzling into her body, he rested his head on her. As she spoke, he could hear her clear as day, as long as feeling her body vibrate from her words. It was a sweet humming feeling. He curled closer, trying to get as much of her against him as possible. "Lucy, every second that I spend near you, around you, I am happy. I am the happiest I have ever been. My bounty is as boundless as the sea, my love as deep; the more I give to you, the more I have, for both are infinite. Without you, I feel almost lost, unable to think about anything but you." He cleared his throat, lifting his head from her back. He scooted his body, closer to her face, so he could look into her eyes. Those gorgeous honey swirled eyes. Azul waited for the perfect moment, hoping she would stare deeply into his own. "I do love you Lucy. With everything I have to give. Lucy, will you do me the honor of becoming my Alphess? Will you love me until our time to enter the other side of the forest has come?"

A shiver; a racking tremble of delight, one that rolled over her shoulders and their deep angled discs as it tiptoed down her spine. She dared not fight its force as it came and instead embraced it - relishing in its afterglow - allowing its rippling jolts to continue their sweet torment as they traveled along her body, aware that her Azul would share in its glorious hum. He had shifted so that his face was at hers, his nose of rough leather brushing against her own as he stilled, the mingling breath between them heated and thick as they stared. She matched his gaze with one just as fierce, though her guard would falter with the crumbling of their smolder and golden embers as his own would intensify with his longing. He lay against her, their fur intertwined as a blanket of snow and earth, both calming those chills that sent a chatter between her bones and unleashing them as he held her in his unbearable and yet oh so lovely vice. His words invigorated her pride, sent a smile to her lips, though she refused to allow it spread too far, for at the edges of her mind she knew she was not as perfect as he made her out to be. But, was that not love? Two pieces must be broken in order to fit together as one of perfection.

"I will. I will love you until I have no time left to love, and forever after that day comes. My Alpha - my Azul, I love you."