While her home was always in twilight, Moliira always knew when it was in the material world.  And right now, it was time for breakfast.  She and her mate sat for a time in silence, enjoying the toasted bread with honey, smoked venison, and the fruit she had never seen.  One of her human followers had brought it, calling the yellowish juicy fruit a 'mango'.  It wasn't until after the drow had taken a drink of tea did she speak.

"Krys, I'm sorry I haven't been spending as much time with you as I should…  Things get away from me at times.  Things are different here though, better I think.  I feel a bit freer," she said, a smile crossing her face.  Moliira had almost been afraid to approach her mate, knowing well of the tortures her other self had inflicted on Krys.  But she had told herself that she had been foolish, and she missed being close to him. 

So she had found a place in her realm that overlooked the ocean.  It was calm here, and there was a few birds circling overhead.  Maral'hal was a place she felt more at home than anywhere, a place shaped by her mind and will.  As a goddess of the wild places and storms, she felt it suited her perfectly.  "What do you want to do?  It's a new world for us, and I want to make the most of it," she added.  Their past had been a tumultuous thing, and Moliira wanted to make sure that it wouldn't continue here.

It had been an odd few months as he came to adjust to the life of a Goddess’ mate, but he had preferred that over being a captive of deranged version of her completely. There had been times where he had missed her presence and would be left to his own devices, but Krystopher also knew that her position was one of great importance so he didn’t allow it to bother him too much. Instead he would choose to explore this realm of hers and become familiar with it and its people. Times like these were what he enjoyed best however, for he at least got to spend sometime with her. When Moliira broke the silence, he had cutting up his venison and was about to take a bite out of the meat when he paused and looked to her.

“I can’t blame you, Moliira. You are a goddess now, and with that comes a lot of responsibility on your part.” He let out a brief chuckle before taking a piece of meat and plop it into his mouth and drew himself some tea. “Trust me, I know things have been rough as of late and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t bothered by it sometimes, but I understand that duty comes first. At least that’s the impression I get from the other times I came into contact with the divine touched.” He didn’t want her to feel bad for not spending time with him, and he surely had held nothing against her.

“Hell you were tracking all over just to find me, and I know that was no easy feat, so relax yourself.” He took some more quick bites of the venison and bread before taking his cup and coming over to her side and leaned forward against the table. “If anything, you do need to stop and smell the roses every now and then. All this work can’t be good for you, dear.” He schemed to himself for a moment before a smug smile came over his face while sipping his tea. As soon as he placed it back down on the table, he spoke out his clever little plan. “How about this, we go out for a run? Not to particular on where we go, probably just far enough for you to be away from the hustle and bustle of your duties, even if to escape them briefly. I just don’t want you wearing yourself down or worrying about us, love.”

Her posture relaxed when Krys expressed his understanding.  Her mate had sought power for nearly all his life, but Moliira wondered if he had ever thought of the consequences of gaining that power.  "You're being honest with me, and that is all I can ask for.  My mantle here is heavier than it was before… but I am still glad for it.  I don't feel as restrained," she said, a smile lighting her face.  The drow pointed out a creature emerging from the woods, a wolf with fur the color of midnight blue.  "Creatures like I would not have been able to shelter before.  She is a creature of the deep woods, a shadow that protects wild places," she explained.  The wolf watched the pair for a few moments with silver eyes, then slipped back into the woods.

His forgiveness was what she needed to her, and Moliira finally let the fears go.  It was long past time, and her mate was right.  The idea of a run sounded perfect.  "Well, it hasn't been all work.  I've still had my fun," she said, a wicked smile crossing her face.  Quickly she described what had happened on the Mo'mey Steppes, how she had helped a group of orcs, taken out some poachers, and left a group of mercenaries in utter shock.  "I wish that you could have seen the looks on their faces when I summoned the ents, and they helped me take the orcs back their harvest," Moliira said, with a laugh, clearly amused.  Most people didn't get to see walking trees, let alone live to tell the tale.  Once they finished their meal, Moliira spread the leftovers in the grasses, knowing her creatures would enjoy the treat. 

Then she stepped towards Krys, pulling his face to hers for a long kiss.  The simple contact was refreshing, and feeling his arms around her was grounding.  It was what she needed.  "Come on.  I want to show you something," she said after they were done.  Shifting into her lupine form was second nature now, and a great silvery wolf stood in the grass.  Her stormcloud eyes sparked with amusement and impatience as she waited on her mate.  Moliira took off in a full out run as soon as Krys had shifted, a silent dare for him to keep up.

Krys had never wanted to burden her any further than she probably already was. If anything, he wanted her to relax as much as possible whenever she did have some time to herself. While he knew next to nothing about being a god, there was the burden of having to be a leader that he could relate to quite well. “I can imagine. The transition you took from when you recently took power back home, and then to come here and be bestowed even more power, I would think that a weaker mind and resolve would led to madness.”He watched Moliira’s finger in wonder before shifting about to see where she was pointing to. The large wolf had been one that he hadn’t seen before, and it wasn’t too long before she had disappeared into the wilderness. “Did she come with the realm, or did you find and bring her back here?”, he asked just as he was turning his attention back to the drow.

He didn’t truly know how much she had been be stressed over their time apart. He didn’t think twice about how she felt guilty, letting it loom over her head. Had he known, he would have tried to squash it as soon as possible. Still, nothing could be helped about it now but they could press on and make sure that the future was freed of such mistakes. He stood and listened in kind to her adventures out into the mortal world. “Can’t say I feel sorry for them since they deserved. I wish I could have seen their faces too. You’d probably scarred the fools for life”, he chuckled softly.

When they finished, he waited for her to get ready when she drew him, his arms wrapped around her body with a slight tightness as he returned the kiss. It felt as though they hadn’t embraced each other in ages and he hadn’t really thought about it until, but he had missed it dearly. Another curious look was thrown at his lover, his interest peaked over what it was that she planned to reveal to him now. While he would have rather continued to enjoy in their affections, he nodded and obliged. “Oh, alright dammit”, he said in a playful groan before releasing her. Moliira shifted into her wolf form and he did the same, complementing the she-wolf’s silver color with that of his wolf’s ebony color. He growled in accepting her challenge before taking off in full speed behind her.  Just because she was goddess didn’t mean that he would simply roll over and let her be victorious without making her work for it.

There was a smile of relief on her face, Moliira was glad he could understand what had happened to her here in these new lands.  And she was very glad to have Krys at her side once more.  "Thank you, love.  You understand, and that helps me greatly," she said, her voice soft.  It was rare for a drow to find a mate that they truly cared for, and Krys went above and beyond who she had hoped to have in her life.  The fae-wolf watched with calm eyes as Moliira explained.  "Her den was near a farming village, and she had no wish to be hunted down.  So she asked if she and her cubs could live here for a time.  But she wants to find a place to guard, that would be safe for her and her cubs.  I know a place, I just need to restore it," she said, nodding to the she-wolf before the creature slipped back into the woods.  She grinned before kissing her mate, her toying with the mercenaries had been a great deal of fun. 

His good natured grumbling only piqued her good mood, and Moliira didn't even wait for him to finish shifting before springing away.  While her lithe form would win out over distance, Krys had her in the short sprint.  It wasn't long before he caught up to her, but Moliira had the advantage of knowing where they were going.  She led him deeper into the gloaming, skirting along the edge of the forest and heading for the foothills.  There was a place she had in mind, far from any of her followers and the residents of the realm.  She led him through the foothills, and took an abrupt turn, weaving through the trees.

It was a large grove hidden by ancient pines, and the stars were clear overhead.  There was a soft breeze blowing through the area away, making the tall grass wave with a musical rustle.  Tiny blue and white flowers dotted the grove too, lending it a pleasant scent.  There was also a small creek winding through the meadow, clear and cold.  It was where Moliira came when she needed to think, or to shut out the rest of the world.  And it was this place that she chose to share with her mate.  Her sides were heaving from the mad dash here, but Moliira was in high spirits.  She took a quick drink from the creek before speaking to her mate.  "My quiet place.  Not even the clergy know where this is.  But now you know where to find me if I disappear," she said with a mental chuckle.

Moliira needed to stop and smell the flowers sometimes, both of them had realized that though it might have been awkward to speak of it, but they couldn’t just tiptoe around it. Krys had thought that it would stress her out, but he should have known better.

She was a tough woman that had her plate overfull a lot and yet she always found a way to bounce back. He was a lucky wolf to have her as his mate. But he also knew that he was good to keep her grounded when things got a little too chaotic for her to handle. Such thoughts went through his mind as he raced with her through the thicket.  

It was good exercise for him since he had gotten a bit lazy during his stay in Maral'hal, likely to the point where his dear old brother would have thought he was being a fatcat. Rolling his eyes, Krystopher managed to catch up to Moliira but the problem would be where their destination was. He didn’t know but she certainly did. Eventually they reached a peculiar grove, one that he was sure that he hadn’t crossed into before and brought his racing pace into a slower trot around it. His breathing quickened as he observed her quenched her thirst at the creek. Coming over to her, he licked at the side of her face before nuzzling it. “It is a good spot. Don’t worry, I won’t tell. I rather fear whatever punishment you could come up for me if I had loose lips”, he spoke with a wolfish grin across his face.

“Don’t worry love, I won’t spoil the precious moments you are able to have here. And I won’t bother you as much if I have a feeling you are here except for with good reason.” The black wolf playfully tackled her slightly, careful not to knock her off her feet before crouching down with his hind quarters high in the air and wagged it around. “Of course, I will be a bother now. And I know proclaim this spot as my own” Tilting his head, Krystopher gave her a mischievous look before backing away. “Or, you could always come and try to take it.”

It took her mate a bit longer than she thought it might to catch up to her, but Moliira knew he had needed time to relax.  They had spoken a little of the torments her other self had inflicted, and the drow had resolved to give Krys as much time and space as he needed.  But it seemed that his sense of humor hadn't suffered.  She chuckled and grinned.  "Oh, I'm sure I could come up with something quite creative, and quite certain to make sure that you would never do that again," Moliira said, a slightly sinister note to her voice.  But there was playful in her eyes, she knew that she would not hurt him.

She crouched a little closer to the ground to brace herself from Krys' tackle, but she quickly realized that his whole heart wasn't in it.  At least not yet.  It had been too long since they had riled each other up.  "Oh really now?  You're going to have to defend it," she said with a grin full of mischief.  She circled him for a moment, seeking her opening and waiting patiently.  But Krys hadn't lost his sharpness, even during his recovery, and Moliira realized she would have to make her own move.

When she launched herself at Krys to knock him off his feet, she aimed for the spot just before his hindquarters.  Headbutting him there was be enough to throw him to the ground, if she had thrown her full weight into it.  But it was only enough to stagger her mate, given that he enough enough time to brace himself.  "Hmph.  Methinks you've been relaxing a bit too long, heavier than I remember," she said with a sly grin. She had decided to poke just a little fun at Krys anyway. 

He might have chuckled at her response, but when it came down to Moliira, he knew that she was as dangerous as she was beautiful. He didn’t need to learn that lesson for he had multiple times throughout their complicated relationship. They had been everything from friends to blood pack mates to enemies to lovers. “Believe me, I’ll keep my mouth shut and locked before I see whatever you’d have planned.”

Krystopher wasn’t about to come at her at full force even if she was a deity now. A part of it was because it was simply for fun and another was because he had hurt her in the past and there was still a part of him that held some guilty for what he had done to people in his past, especially her in his insane quest for power.

“Oh, I gladly intend to, Moliira.” It was her move, he watched her with keen interest, never letting her out of his sight as she stalked him. Digging his nails into the earth, he waited for her approach and was admittedly surprised at where she chose to strike from. He remained standing, though he was moved a couple of inches away by her headbutt. Giving her a bit of a glare, he dropped it and laughed at her. “Hey now, what do you think you are saying? I’m haven’t been completely lazy, you knucklehead.” WIth that, he ran up to her to give her a pounce and licked her face. “Okay may I have been at times, but for the most part, I have kept  working to keep my body strong and fast, or would you like to see it for yourself?”

Not waiting for her answer, he decided to take things into his own hands and shifted back. Shedding off his clothing, he stood before her proudly naked. “See?”, Krys said before sticking his tongue at her. “Most of the time I’m running around your realm and interacting with the inhabitants, but I do get a little, teeny slothish at times. Just a little bit.”

She grinned at the glare, it was good to just let go and be a bit playful.  Though she did growl and swat at him with the lick to her face, Moliira wasn't truly angry.  It had been a long time since she had been able to muster anger against Krys.  And now, he was just being playful.  His reaction elicited a raised eyebrow.  So it was this kind of game now, was it?  Well, it was much more fun when two played at it.  She slipped back into her drow form, though she remained clothed, at least for now.  Crossing her arms, she looked him up and down, pacing around Krys and scrutinizing every exposed inch.  "Hm.  You haven't been quite as lazy as I thought.  Perhaps a bit of fat though here and here," she said, poking at his stomach and pinching his butt. 

With a final slap to his buttocks, Moliira nodded.  "No, I think you pass inspection, love.  But perhaps you should check me as well," she said, a wicked look in her eyes.  She shed her own clothes, knowing the glade was private, knowing it was masked away from anyone who might stumble in.  She knew her body was lithe and sinewy, rather than curvy and lush.  But she considered herself a ranger, first and foremost, and she had more than a few scars to prove it.  That being said, Moliira was proud and somewhat vain of the curves that she did have.  "See anything you like?" she said, with a smile of challenge.