ORIGIN

There was a restlessness in him that Leon couldn't yet figure out how to soothe. He'd been nearly oblivious to everything going on in the tunnels lately; he'd heard rumors of the dragon that emerged from Monoceros and fled to Polaris, setting the room ablaze. The bear had since decided to keep a great distance between himself and that room, and had been keeping an eye on Makyna, too, ensuring that she didn't go running headfirst into danger like she had a habit of doing. Not that it was bad - she was far too gallant for her own good, and if anything was going to give him anxiety and premature balding, it would be his darling putting herself in a situation in which she could get hurt. It was a constant reminder of how important she was to him. He'd never forget, no; it simply pushed the fact further and further, and every day he remembered how she told him about that one Gembound dying at the hands of the yeti, and he feared that he would lose her like that.

He wanted to do something for her. Make a declaration of his love; he wanted to stand on the highest point in Maji Walezi and shout it to everyone, he wanted them all to know the artifact of his feelings, and that everything he had done, he did for her. He was thankful that they had chosen not to expel him as Cancer had been - and he was desperate to let them know that his feelings were real, and he had come back for her, because she was all he ever had and all he ever wanted. Above and beyond all of that, he wanted her to know. Saying it was one thing, but... How could he get it across so that she could truly appreciate the lengths he'd go to for her? (Sure, maybe attacking and nearly killing a rival suitor could be construed as "effort", but Leon chalked that up to mostly teenage angst. This was different. This was grown up feelings.)

Leon simply couldn't think of a way he could do that - until he did, at which point he decided that he needed to share this idea with somebody that could maybe try to set him on the right track. And while he didn't necessarily share a close relationship with this person in mind, she was probably the most likely to view him without judgment. Usui had seen what Leon was capable of, and though the bear had saved his life, that debt had been repaid when the lion sat on the jury and chose not to have him banished. The only other he could think of with the skillset he needed was the wolf he had seen few times before, the wolf he had seen sharing a close relationship with others, the wolf that he could tentatively call a friend and feel assured that she wouldn't scold him for his feelings. Granted, she had seen him storm out of the truth or dare game, but wouldn't anybody after being the target of that awful charade?

Maybe she would understand. He hoped she would. The bear sighed and wandered through the jungle, and he called out, hoping that she would hear him: "Arkrael? Are you here?" Orange eyes scanned the trees for any sign of her, and his powerful nose sniffed and huffed, eager to catch her scent in the air. Besides, she was a girl, unlike Usui. She'd have the perfect advice. "Arkrael!"

Water splashed all over as the she-wolf dove into the crystaline pools. Jaws peelednopen wide as they made to snap up the closest fish. They struck home, sinking into the scaley flesh and gripped tight as she kicked her paws to pushe herself to the surface. Slowly she dragged herself from the water, water droplets being blown away from flaring nostrils as she filled her lungs. A pleased hum escaped Arkrael as she padded away from the pools, a flopping fish caught in her teeth. It all seemed peaceful within Eridanus, not a single thing causing a disturbance and shenwas at ease.

Having already did her rounds about her home Arkrael had settled with practicing her fishing. Fish held an interestimg taste. Nothing like the cave rats or rabbits that took up home in Eridanus. With a quick shake of her body water went flying in all directions. It was in this moment of solitude did her thoughts trail to the buck that seemed to always steal away her thoughts. A smile graced over her features as she seemed to bounce a littke further from the pools and settled down to feast upon the snack she had caught.

It had been a couple weeks since vazi asked her to be part of his herd and even so from the fight she had encountered with the fhree headed beast. Her shoulder was nearly healed. She knew it would scar, leaving splotcHES of fur missing from her shoulder to bare the puncture wounds where Kerberos bad bit her. She had agreed to join his herd, but there was still nothing comparable to enjoying the solitude and peace she felt being on her own and doing as she pleased. Nothing except Vazi being by her side at least. There was not a day that went by that Arkrael wished the stag to always be around her.

By the time she has finished most of her snack a sudden voice rose, reaching her ears as she heard her own name be called. Audits twitched as she lifted her head up and slopped her tongue along her maw to clean off the remains of the fish. "leon?" She hummed to herself thoughtfully. It wasn't often that the familiar bear came around, even far less often that he sought her out. She rose to her paws and instantly began her way towards the bear that was calling out to her. Curiosity gripped at her entirely as she tried to think of what Leon would have need of her.

It didn't tAke long before her eyes settled upon the bear and she awed for a moment on now big he had gotten. It has been a good while since last she saw him and he certainly had grown. She set him with a kind and friendly smile as she strode right over to him. "It's good to see you again Leon," She greeted pleasantly as she moved to sit just in front of him, curling her tail about her side. He was certainly not a close friend as they had not spent a lot of time around the other, but Arkrael always found a contentment to be in his presence. Why that was she honestly couldn't tell anyone. She wanted to ask how he was, what he had been up to since the last they saw each other, but she could tell on his eyes he was on a mission. Whatever it was he had called for her so Arkrael would hold off on idle chitchat for now. "I hope all is well. What brings you Eridanus, my friend," She kept her friendly, relaxed smile even if she were bubbling with curiosity to see what it was this bear needed

"Speech"
'Thoughts'

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Tags:
OoC: ignore typos ormother weird things. Making post on tablet

The bear raised his head and sniffed curiously at the air, trying to catch the wolf's scent. Maybe she had passed by here recently, or purposefully left a marking as an act of defining her territory. After all, this was where she lived, and Leon would be kinda screwed if he couldn't find her here. He wasn't really looking to cover the expanse of the caves in search of the wolf. So, it was a skip in his heart when he suddenly spotted her advancing from among the trees, and he heard her voice rise over the gentle hum of jungle birds and the rustling leaves in a soft gale. A pleasant greeting. The nervousness in his heart stilled, if only for a moment as he nodded and took a few steps towards her, greeting the black wolf with a smile and a dip of his head. "You too, Arkrael." He answered, half tempted to just call her Ark, but he feared the nickname would have been reserved for closer friends - they were still but acquaintances.

Leon mirrored the canine as she folded her haunches; he sunk down onto his rump, settling in the loam before her. "I ah... need some help." The bear sheepishly scratched at his cheek and huffed. "I mean. It's kind of a long story. The last time I saw you was at that game," Leon began, gesturing with his paws as he fumbled around an explanation. He'd definitely need to explain what had happened - so much had transpired since then. Even still, mention of the game made heat rise to his cheeks, embarrassment at the memory of his lost temper. "which I apologize for, I don't think I got to do that before. I'm really sorry." He laughed nervously. "Eh... anyways, there was this whole... thing..." The bear wibbled his paws around - the situation was wishy-washy at best and he didn't want to relinquish too many details. "with Makyna and Cancer. He left Maji Walezi, and it turns out he was being kind of a jerk to Makyna, and we... are... kind of... dating..."

It was such a weird thing to describe. It felt like everybody knew what had happened, so actually trying to explain it to somebody was just... alien. Leon cleared his throat. "She really means a lot to me, and she knows it, but like, I want her to know it more, you know? I really want to do something to prove it. Like I want to show her how much I really care about her." Speaking of Makyna made his voice tremble with giddiness. "I think I want to make something for her. And I think I have an idea of what, too. But I just... you're the only person who I know has the magic to make something perfect enough for her. Besides, you're a girl too, and I mean, I'm kind of dumb, and if you could maybe give me a hand through all this, I would... really appreciate it." Leon finally laughed and rubbed the back of his head. It was true - Arkrael was both talented and knowledgeable in the fields the bear needed help in the most. He just hoped that she would spare him the time. "Do you think you can help me?" He blinked down at her with a nervous smile.

An apology was not something Arkrael had ever figured she'd be receiving at the moment. She only offered an understanding smile with a curt nod towards it. She did not believe he really needed to apologize considering the reason to his anger. Had Arkrael been in his paws and she had a rival that made a scene over her regardless the topic she probably would have acted similarly. With that being pushed to the side Arkrael pushed her ears forward to listen as Leon continued to speak. A grin tire across her features when she heard the bear and lion were finally a couple and the way he seemed giddy about it made her own heart feel giddy. How many times had she got flustered with giddiness when she had spoken of Vazi to Tamelyn? She shook her thoughts and focused on the bear once more.

His words seemed to grip at Arkraels interest and when he finished explaining why he was there and inquired her about assisting him Arkrael couldn't help but wag her tail. "I would be honored to assist you," She answered as she shifted the way she was sitting, allowing her posture to relax into a more at ease one. "What do you have in mind?" All of her focused was directed in him as she eagerly awaited to see just what this bear wanted created for his lover.

It was warming to know she would be able to help someone with such a task. Creating an item for another to give away to express their undying love for the other seemed to sweep Arkrael off in a whirl of thoughts. From the ideas of what she could possibly be asked to create down to the idea on how the requester would be bestowing the item to their beloved. It all seemed romantic and enthralling and Arkrael was not ashamed to express her joy in knowing she could at least help in the matter.

"Speech"
'Thoughts'

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Tags: leon
OoC: boop

The bear was ecstatic to hear her accept his request for help. He wasn't sure what he'd have done if she didn't - maybe go to Usui, but she was certainly his first choice. And for good reason too. Leon smiled, happy that she seemed to not care about what had happened before and was simply happy to help. But what did he want to make for Makyna? "Well..." He trailed off, thinking. The bear had an idea in mind, but he wasn't sure how to execute it or if it could even work at all. "Makyna likes to wear these flowers in her fur. It's really pretty, but you know flowers, they wilt and die after a while. I'd really like to find a way to give her flowers that won't wilt." The bear suggested and scratched thoughtfully at his cheek.

Glancing around the clearing, he quickly took notice of a collection of small flowers in the grass nearby. Leon leaned over and plucked one, holding it up to Arkrael. "Is there... A way that you can preserve them? Like in crystal? And then maybe we can make a crown for her." He suggested, gesturing with his paw around the little flower he held. This one would be too small for the crown, but maybe Arkrael could practice on it. He blinked and held it out to her, before an expression of worry crossed his face. "Do you think she'd like that? That isn't lame or anything is it?"

Arkrael listened with the utmost interest as Leon spoke. The idea of preserving a flower was rather intriguing to say the least. Her eyes studied the flower Leon had displayed to her and for a moment she pondered on just how she would do such a thing. She smiled towards the bear at his last inquiry and she gave a slow shake of her head "It is not lame. I actually quite like that idea! And I am sure she will enjoy it just the same." She dropped her gaze back down to the flower in his paw before she moved to grasp it from him and set it down in front of her. "Alright, let me see if I can get something you will like..." She took a moment to pause as she began to focus on the task at hand.

As minutes ticked by a noticeable frown began to mar across Arkrael's features. The magic her stone normally hummed with just did not seemed to be cooperating at this moment. She turned her multi-colored eyes up towards the bear with a sheepish grin. "This may take a moment. Perhaps you would like to gather up the flowers that you wish to be part of this gift you're wanting?" She offered as she gave a nervous flick of her tail. Of all times for her magic to just simply ignore her it had to be when someone was asking for assistance.

"Speech"
'Thoughts'

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Tags: leon
OoC: DON'T YOU DARE NOT ROLL AGAIN

Leon felt a bubble of pride as the wolf smiled and approved of his idea, certain that Makyna would like it as well. He could just imagine what the finished product would look like: a beautiful crown of pristine flowers preserved in glistening crystal, and maybe he could use the new magic that he had discovered to make it light up, too... no, that might be a little too much. A crystal flower crown was plenty, wasn't it? Still, he felt like he needed to contribute to the gift somehow. As Arkrael focused on summoning the crystals to preserve the flower, he focused too, both on the ideas rolling around in his brain and on the flower that she was trying to manipulate. After a while, it seemed nothing had come of her magic. He flicked his eyes up to her and licked his nose before nodding.

"Oh, yeah! I'll go gather up some flowers. You keep trying!" He encouraged and pulled himself to his paws. He'd nearly forgotten about the little treasure he had brought with him back to Eridanus - the shard of opal that he'd found in the fern trench and baubled. Leon had dug up a root and tied it (sloppily) into a little bracelet that held the shard. It probably wasn't very secure, but it would do the trick. For now, the bracelet was tied onto a handful of fur just below his armpit, discreetly hidden from view until such time as he needed it. After they were finished working on the crown, he would give it to Arkrael as a thank-you gift. For now, though, the bear was intent on finding those flowers.

Leon bounded away from her, venturing deep into the woods in search of a patch of just the perfect flowers.

Watching the bear go about his way to find the flowers he would wish to use for the gift she would help him craft for his lover. She let out a soft hum before she turned her gaze down towards the flower that lay just before her paws. "Alright you..." She grumbled as she shifted how she was standing and narrowed her eyes at the flower once more. It wasn't long before she began to feel the gentle vibrations of her gem that was soon followed by the light hum that always seemed to accompany the reaction of her gem coming to life with magic.

A soft smile curled at her features as she watches a small translucent gem slowly begin to form around the flower. It wasn't the most pretty of gems with it's dark tone of yellow that seemed to blend with some green. She knew for certain that would not be an appropriate gem to use as it not only swallowed the flower entirely, but it just did not look at all appealing. At least now she could do it though. She would make sure to concentrate on the type of gem that she summoned around the actual flowers Leon brought back to her.

"Speech"
'Thoughts'

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Tags: leon
OoC:

Now, how many flowers, and what kind of flowers? They had to be absolutely perfect, because they would be preserved for all of eternity in the crystals summoned by his canine friend. It wasn't so much a matter of thinking of what kind of flowers, as it was actually finding them. He figured that seven flowers would probably do the trick, and they had to be in nice condition, too. No missing petals, no chunks taken out of them or browning of the petals that tended to happen with dying plants. They had to be absolutely perfect!

Leon nosed around the grass, peeking around trees and over small hills and into divets. He searched for several minutes, wandering further and further away from Arkrael until finally he had spotted a splash of colour in among the green grass. They were a pale lilac purple, and the blossoms were about as half as big as his paw; each flower had a countless array of petals blooming from a yellow center, and as he cautiously wandered among the flower patch, Leon eventually decided that they would be a good flower to use for the crown. Not only were they fairly large, but they were colourful too, and though he knew purple wasn't necessarily her favorite colour, maybe Arkrael would be able to summon a blue crystal to offset it...

With that decided, the bear delicately plucked the flowers from the ground, grabbing them at the stems near the soil and uprooting them. Some of them came easily, sliding clean through the soil between his teeth. Others required some yanking and pulling, and he had accidentally managed to bite the blossoms clean off of two of the flowers. When it was finally said and done, the bear had gathered ten flowers, each in acceptable condition. He scooped them up in his jaws and headed back to Arkrael, trotting into the clearing in which he'd left his friend.

There, he caught a glimpse of the practice crystal she'd made. It was a deep murky yellow shade - very unlike the colour he had in mind for the crown, but Leon merely delighted at the sight of the successful crystal formation. He dropped the flowers before her and grinned, plopping back onto his rump. "Oh, that looks great!" Leon praised, poking at it with his claws before looking back up at Arkrael. "I was thinking, we could weave the flowers together using their stems... and then you could form a blue crystal over it to preserve it. Think its possible?" At this point, Leon had already grabbed a couple flowers and began to weave them together; his paws were far from nimble, but at least he was a little more dexterous than Arkrael when it came to handiwork.

The bear fell silent for a moment, scooting closer to Arkrael so that they could share their workspace. As he wove each flower together, he shifted it to the side so that Arkrael could try to use her magic on it. Hopefully it would go off without a hitch, but considering how carefully they had to work, Leon expected there would be a few bumps along the way.

Leon's voice quickly drew her attention up and the wolfess offered a small grin. Yes, it had worked, but the coloring was still not very appealing. She hummed deeply as the idea of a blue crystal was given and she dropped her gaze towards the murky yellow gem that sat at her paws. Of course she would keep the thing, no matter how unappealing it was. It was still a creation she had made and thus she would add it to her collection. Her thoughts carried off as Leon had sat to start weaving the flowers. She would have offered to help, but the most useful thing her paws could do was rip the flesh of an enemy. Or dig up a hole. Weaving flowers, or working with anything with her paws, was not something she had managed to ever accomplish. Perhaps if she practiced it some day she would be somewhat decent at it, but she was not about to practice in front of a friend and with items he so wished to present to his lover.

Once the weaving was done Arkrael shifted closer and glanced to Leon. A bit of nervousness suddenly set in and sent a chill down her spine and it was all she could do to keep the sudden emotion hidden. The braided flowers looked lovely sitting there in front of Leon and with her gem not quite cooperating with her this day was a little nerve wracking. She would feel terrible if something went wrong and the weaved flowers were damaged. Leon would have to go find more and do even more weaving, so Arkrael definitely hoped with all her being that this would go smoothly. "Alright...here goes," She murmured as she turned her gaze down to the wreath of flowers.

Heterochromia eyes watched intently as her gem slowly came to life and just as slowly beautiful blue crystal slowly began forming up from the ground, wrapping around the flowers and into smoothed edged designs as it finally sealed itself at the top. It had worked slowly, but at least it did not destroy the wreath Leon had so patiently weaved. She turned a grin towards the bear as her tail brushed through the grass and ferns she sat around. "Is this to your liking? Or shall we make another and try again for a certain shape?" She wasn't sure if it was what Leon was looking for, but she would have no qualms trying again and molding the gem to how Leon would most prefer.

"Speech"
'Thoughts'

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Tags: Leon
OoC: I just assumed the weaving had been completed your last post XD. God dammit Rae! YOU'RE A MASTER. STOP GETTING BARELY Successes XD (I'll leave the design of the crystal shape to you)