A lot of things had happened lately to put the bear on edge - a lot of terrible things that had left him scarred, emotionally wounded, almost empty. But there was always something better waiting for him. There was always a light on the horizon, and for that reason, Leon had persisted.

Tomorrow was the day.

They had waited so long to finally be able to come together in union - officially. They hadn't really known what to call it, the ceremony, until somebody had mentioned at one of the meanings that it was a wedding. A wedding for Makyna and him. Back then, so many things had stood in the way of the ceremony. The rumors of the war would not allow them to relax, not even for a second, for fear that the Bonebound would succumb to the Merrymen. And then Raheerah, who haunted the caves and ignited anybody that set foot in Polaris, a constant threat. The dragon had already taken one dear to him.

But they had defeated him, in a way. And the war was no more than whispers, a myth on the wind as something that may have been, in another life. They'd cleared the way for the ceremony and finally it was time. In the wake of all the recent destruction, this would serve as a reminder - not everything was of depravity in this cave. There was good. They would come out of this stronger, united in their passion.

A few of them had already started to set things up in preparation for the ceremony tomorrow. Leon had something of an idea for how he wanted it to look, but for the most part, he was leaving it up to Makyna - it was mostly for her, anyways. He wanted all of Origin Cave to know of his love for her, but he wanted it to be perfect. He wanted it to be for her. The bear couldn't wipe the smile from his face as he sat near the lagoon before a pile of rocks that he had collected, intending to illuminate them so they could string them up with a vine (somehow) and decorate the cave.

One by one, the bear plucked the stones between his long claws and used his magic to immerse them in light, humming quietly to himself one of the many songs he'd heard Makyna sing before.

@Makyna @Clover @Bevy anybody else ??? ???

Clover had come back to Pisces, her light feet crunching in the snow, hesitant and a little bit afraid. She had crept away with Vazi was asleep, because she had remembered her promise to help with a wedding that she had heard of, for what felt like ages ago, and she wanted to keep her promise. She wanted to help, even if she might not be able to attend. She felt like she was sneaking away from the golem that would attack when it would realize she was gone, and she was admittedly a little scared of what Vazi might do if they found her gone when they woke up.

But....she couldn't contain her excitement. A wedding! How beautiful and lovely! Oh, how she wanted to go and see it with her own eye! And with the snow? Oh! How such a sight would sit in her mind with such amaranthine beauty, if she would be so lucky as to attend.

She saw a great, scarred bear sitting by the lake, humming a sweet song as they patiently made one rock at a time shine like a star, and she walked towards them shyly.

"Hello...." She said timidly, bowing her head, Vazi's potential anger in the back of her mind. She vaguely remembered seeing them before, but she couldn't place it. "My name is Clover. I...I'm here to help with the wedding? I can make pretty lights and I can sing, and I...." She blushed a little. "I would really like to help.

"This is how I speak."

flight was euphoric for the adolescent eagle. his feathers were now brown and grays rather the creams and browns. large, hefty feathers replacing young, soft feathers - for better to carry his weight as he soared. and so he did, above all to the highest peak he could in the cave. his wings gave a beat, as azurite lenses looked about. above, he noticed a large creature, brown in color, lighting something up as he began to tentatively place items in certain spots. he wondered what the large beast was doing, so he circled around - but kept the altitude. soon, the creature of light appeared. his mother, clover, and a smile came to his beak as she spoke to the larger beast about how she could help in some ways. he wondered, for what could she help out with? he'd just have to investigate.

the eagle then lowered in altitude, slowing in momentum as he landed next to clover's legs. he looked up at the bear, of which he hadn't a clue was bear, and then back to clover, where the smile just couldn't dissipate.
"hello mom, how have you been?"
his voice growing older, as his body was. he flapped no longer useless wings for a moment, hopping a few feet closer to the large beast who seemed docile enough.
"and hello to you, i don't think we've met. i'm ambrus."
he offered his name without much hesitation, timidness not in the eagle's nature.

@clover
@leon

From the tunnel it was a short scurry out into the blindingly white open, and Barnett half hopped, half flopped through the snow, looking a bit like a weasel mid war dance. The cave was enormous - though all of them were, to something so small - and bitingly cold, water and snow covering the ground. I... ah remember this, ah think. The numbat slowed at Booker's voice, whistling jauntily. Well then, guess the body'll know how not to fall in the water, eh? Tone dripping with sarcasm, Barnett chuckled at Booker's responding grunt of annoyance, dropping the subject quicker than a toxic mushroom. Besides, it isn't like it's a strong memory - I can't feel anything off of it. Benign, at the most. Booker shrugged and lay still in the back of their shared mind space, and so Barnett traveled on, enraptured by the thick layer of fluffy snow that coated the ground. He was distracted enough to almost miss the gathering of creatures - until he heard them speak, of course. With a tiny, startled screech, the numbat scrambled for cover, ducking behind a rocky outcropping with a clatter sure to raise attention. Cursing under his breath, Barnett sighed, glanced up to the heavens for patience, and peered out from behind the boulders, eyes widening. An absolutely enormous bear sat nearby, along with some sort of bird with talons much too sharp to eat anything but, well, things like him. And there, in the middle of it, was Clover. Barnett choked back a shout, wincing and flailing his hands frantically, almost ready to rush in and try to be - what was the word? Heroic, as Booker had so foolishly done one too many times - but when the bird spoke, it was as a child to a mother, and the numbat relaxed, sighing. Guess weird families kinda happen in the caves, huh, Books? No response, but Barnett didn't bother worrying over the scribe, instead trotting out from his hiding spot, passing by the eagle and coming to a stop next to Clover, waving up at her with a grin. "'lo, Clover!" The mention of a wedding seemed to snap Booker back to attention, and Barnett simply repeated what he did, huffing. "Like I said before, I'd love to help with the singin'. Ah can make refreshments too," he offered, mentally grimacing at the slurred accent.

Before the bear could reply, two things happened that just about took her breath away. Her Ambrus had appeared again! With a cry, she knelt down to her beautiful bird, who was growing up so fast and kissed them and nestled them and felt her heart wrench in her chest. She missed her bird so much!

She was so proud of her lovely bird, offering such a polite introduction to the large bear, looking between the two. "I've been doing well, my love. Vazi is....very adamant a host." Her eye fluttered down to the snow, remembering when the two deer had talked here not too long ago, and her voice was quiet. "I should have listened to you two and left when I could have. He is not very nice anymore. Have you...have you seen Vicktor? Oh, do tell me they are alright."

Some rapid movement off to the side caught her attention and she saw a very flustered but grinning Booker, making her brighten up again. "Why, if it isn't Booker! My friend, I am pleased to see you again! Where is your lovely son, Diot?"

She smiled at the group that had centered around the bear, feeling right at home again with such wonderful company. It was as if all of her captivity under Vazi had never happened. "Booker, this is my lovely eagle, Ambrus. Ambrus, Booker." She grinned. "My! Are we all here to help with the wedding?"

"This is how I speak."

The bear was happily minding his business, hard at work baubling the little rocks when he caught sight of the pearly deer approaching him. Leon twisted his ears and looked up at her, curious orange eyes watching with a warm smile. Of course his smile only grew when she told him that she was here to help - decorate, sing, and whatever else they needed. Oh that was great! Makyna would be delighted! "Awesome! I think I've seen you before, you were at a Maji Walezi meeting weren't you?" The bear blinked, rolling forward onto his paws. They were quickly joined by a few others, and Leon turned his gaze to the eagle and the little numbat.

"Nice to meet you, Ambrus! I'm Leon! Are you here to help too?" Oh, they would need someone with wings. Bevy had wings, but she was frightfully small and he feared the decorations would be too big for her to hoist. The eagle and deer spoke hushedly so he focused on the numbat, smiling widely. "Excellent! We can use all the help we can get!" He laughed and pushed the baubled pebbles towards them. "First things first! We need to figure out how to tie these to a vine and string them up. I'd like the little lights to kinda cross overhead and along the walls." The bear spoke, gesturing to the cave ceiling and walls.

@Ambrus

he embraced his mother's loves, snuggling back into her as she did him. he was happy to hear she was -- wait a second, what was that? vazi isn't nice to her anymore? ambrus's heart sank and his stomach swelled with animosity, or was it nausea. he wanted to go and find that vazi, rip his head from his neck, and feed upon it. his anger was readable within seconds as he looked from his mom, to the bear, to the little rat thing that appeared as well that mom named booker. ambrus then looked to clover once again, speaking in hushed tones.
"if he hurt you, you let me know."
his tone was soft in an off putting way. as if, he took too much pride and amusement out of avenging his sweet sweet mother's feelings. ambrus wouldn't have it, no one would be rude to his creature of light. he couldn't even bear to force a grin right now as leon spoke, informing everyone of what he'd want. but loving mother wouldn't want ambrus to be rude, so he straightened his posture even more, turning to booker as he spoke.
"nice to meet you booker. you as well leon,"
his body motioned back to face leon.
"whatever you need help with, i'll do whatever it is. i could string them to the ceiling."
he said, gesturing with his right wing toward the cavern roof. he then inched a bit closer to clover, bracing up against her leg, and half way searching for bruises or cuts. hell hath no fury like ambrus when one harms his mother. and while this meeting was to be joyous, he couldn't help but to feel the negativity weighing heavily on him. why hadn't he been there to protect her, as he said he would be? never again, the eagle would make sure of that.

@clover
@booker
@leon

Barnett blinked up at the doe, smile unwavering, even, perhaps, growing a bit at her honest kindness. "Diot's shacked up back in Eridanus, takin' a bit of a break. 'e's been helpin' me with makin' a burrow, so ah figured he deserved some free time," the numbat explained, layering on Booker's drawl, dislike of disguising his voice fading a bit due to who, exactly, he was talking to. At the introduction to the massive bird, the tiny Gembound turned to face him, tilting his head up, up, up to stare at a wickedly curved beak and pinpoint accurate eyes. Barnett tried to shake off the very strong feeling of being prey. "Nice to meetcha, Ambrus. Family o' Clover's are friends o' mine," he assured, nodding, before turning back to the absolutely enormous bear, leaving the mother and son to talk. Being pinned with a bear's gaze was only a little terrifying, but mostly the guy was kind of adorably happy, obviously enraptured by this whole wedding business. The numbat gave him a miniature salute, grinning. "Leon! Pleased ta make yer acquaintance." Barnett's attention was very quickly captured by the offered shining rocks, and he hummed, scratching at his chin idly, tilting his head to and fro to get a good look at the objects - not an easy task with one eye, so he fairly bobbed in place. "Well, I reckon Ambrus could help fly 'em up to the ceilin', but first we oughtta tie 'em." Barnett tapped at his belt in example, thin vines woven together to form a makeshift loop, holding his teacup in place by his hip. "If we can get enough vines, we could wind 'em together, and weave the shinies into it? Then tie it all off at the end. That way the lights won't fall out, ah think," the numbat offered, whiskers twitching as he experimentally ran a paw over one of the baubled pebbles.

She saw the worried look in her beautiful bird, and it yanked at her heart. She didn't want to worry them, that wasn't the point - she was glad to see them, glad to be with friends, glad to be....glad to be away from Vazi. She knew it was only temporary, but she wanted to cherish this while it lasted.

Softly, so that Booker nor Leon would hear and worry too, she said, "Vazi hasn't hurt me, my love, and I doubt they ever will. It's who they do hurt that I worry about. A white cub, a little hungry lion, without a name." Clover drifted off, remembering the scene where she met the poor thing, broken and beaten down, then snapped back to the present.

"I don't want you to see Vazi, my love, do you understand me?" She said, her voice unusually stern. "I don't want what's happening to the lion to happen to you." She kissed her Ambrus with a worried sigh. "I couldn't bear to see it happen to you."

Then, with a semi-forced smile, she said to both Leon and Booker, "I will make more lights - But, if you are tying the stones together, wouldn't it be lovely to make a net of them to preside over the ceremony up high? Like the stars in Orion. And some of them could be long strings that could be on either side of the wedding pair. It would be a lot of work....but it would be so lovely, wouldn't it?"

She paused to look at a particularly lovely stone right next to her Ambrus and pursed her lips to try bringing it to life, nestling her bird next to her leg as she did so, for comfort. She closed her eye, breathing all of her stress and worry out of herself, letting her body relax and the magic flow easily. The stone she picked out started to shine with a delicate, soft-spoken light right at Ambrus' talons.

"This is how I speak."

With the introductions out of the way, he briefly noticed Clover and the bird speaking quietly before their full attention had returned to the bear. Leon straightened up and listened to their suggestions, nodding. Ambrus could fly up and secure the vines, and maybe Booker could help tie the rocks into the vines - his little paws were probably a lot more dexterous than Leon's. Clover had a suggestion of her own, causing the bear's grin to broaden even further. "That's a great idea, that would look so magical!" He nodded. "I think we should do both, we could have vines with lights along the walls and then a net across the ceiling with lights, and we could have them hang down where Makyna and I will stand-" The bear rambled on, pointing all around the cave.

It would be a lot of work, but he felt the four of them might be able to do it. Especially with Clover's light magic - he watched and grinned as she baubled another rock - he was certain they could get the decorations up in no time. "Okay, I'll go find some vines. Ambrus, do you want to come help? Clover, you can keep lighting up rocks and Booker, maybe you can gather some rocks for her while we're vine hunting." Leon laughed. He rolled to his paws and took a few steps towards the rolling warrens. "There will definitely be some vines or something over there, we can rip them down just be careful to keep them long as possible." He added as they walked.

@Ambrus