[ P ] a fritz family outing

Nephele had never known what it was like to be part of a community before. She had been born into a cult and her existence was considered a privilege. Each month was a blessing until the day the three headed god finally claimed more than just her eyes. Here she was a citizen, a member of society and most importantly a member of the Fritz family. It made her feel a little emotional attending a celebration and a little frightened. The fervour of the crowd reminded her of the ritualistic ceremonies of her natal pack. She had to push down her anxiety and let herself enjoy the day with her wife and pups.

As they ascended the path she pressed herself close to Kylar, stuck on her like glue. She felt the heat of the torches that lit the way and the smell of burning wood was a little overwhelming. Her ears pricked when she heard a cheer erupt from above them and she realised they must be close to the bonfire. “Stay close,” she gently warned the children, not wanting any of their little noses or paws to get burned.

Her lips parted in awe when she heard the crackling of the great flames and felt the heat that blazed from its core. She had never been around fire before. “It’s so warm. It feels like the sun," she spoke out loud in wonder.

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Kylar Fritz
ruby-red outings and sunset icecream

"Looks like it too," Kylar murmured as the heat of the bonfire warmed her face and fur. It was almost a little too much and, gently she pressed her nose to Nephele's left ear before swooping it up the edge jerking her nose to the right, a gesture to motion that she wanted to move a little further away. In tandem, the pair scooted back a couple feet to where the temperature was more comfortable.

Pine nettles and moss pressed against the underside of Kylar's paws as she looked at the blaze. "It's like a monster that had just been tamed, like a bear that cannot leave its den. Hear it's roar?" She mused as the scent of smoke and meat brushed by with the breeze. Kylar had developed the art of explaining details in the context of non-visual items. Orange and yellow meant very little to Nephele.

Bears, however, offered the same mental imagery as this blaze.
To Kylar at least.

A black-tipped ear twitched as he children began to explore. For a moment, her gaze panned to them, brow furrowing as her expression seemed to say behave or else. Out of the two, she was more prone to a harder brand of discipline.

Easing her shoulder into her wife's, Kylar smiled lazily. "Strange to think we've been here a year already."

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Nephele was attuned to each touch and guiding nudge that her wife gave her. She trusted Kylar's eyes as much as she would trust her own had they still been there. With gentle encouragement she felt her nerves settle and she slowly adjusted to the stimulus surrounding them. She reminded herself that this was a celebration and not a ritual. Fun and not frightening.

Kylar's explanation of the fire delighted Nephele and caused her hackles to raise like goosebumps upon hearing a scary story. She leaned over to brush her head against Kylar's shoulder. "You'll protect me from the sun-bear-monster, won't you?" she asked, not seriously of course. She was playfully flirting with her brave and amazing mate. Something that rarely happened given to how prone to flustering she still was, but here it was unprompted. She at least had waited until the children wandered off to have some fun of their own so as not to embarrass them.

"I know. I wasn't sure at first with the war breaking out, but I'm glad we stayed. I've never been happier than with you and our family," she sighed softly, eager to snuggle up beside the bonfire and stretch out like a pair of contented cats warming themselves in front of a fireplace.

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Kylar Fritz
ruby-red outings and sunset icecream

Kylar couldn't help but snort softly and laugh at the mention of the oh-so-frightening sun-bear-monster. "Of course!" Black-tipped ears twitched as she puffed out her chest and straightened her shoulders. "I am your knight in shining armor after all, it's my sworn duty to protect you." She tilted her muzzle up as if she had the ego of a paladin recently blessed by the gods. And, even though it was a show for her delightful wife, it hadn't been that long ago that Kylar had longed for this ruse to be a reality. Oh so slowly, Kylar had begun to let go of military life. And, in the end, she was better for it.

Not because she had lowered the bar for herself but because she had stopped pursuing a life that would always make her feel less than for being different and living with a disability.

All theatrics aside, Kylar truly was glad that they had made a home here. It was ineffably large and the notion of a King or Queen ruling over all of this land was still mind-boggling to the tawny wolf. But it also meant more freedom, more decentralization. Adamh cared not about her garden. He'd never come bursting into her run-down cottage and demand that she leave.

"Finding Luca, Willa, and Anthe made all the difference," Kylar murmured warmly as she settled onto her belly and leaned against her wife.

It was a tad bittersweet that they would never be able to birth pups or experience pregnancy, but it would be a lie to say that they could never "have pups of their own". Luca and his sisters were theirs, blood relation or not.

And she would lay down her herbs and pick up her sword if anyone argued differently.

"And now look at us! We have a home, an herb garden, a little clinic. It's so different than what I expected." A wistful smile found her lips. "But so much better too."

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A delighted girlish giggle bubbled upside the tiny wolf as her mate leaned heavily into the role of her protector. She felt her cheeks flush with a heady warmth and the wild butterflies were once again free to dance in her belly. She couldn’t deny that she found such words very appealing. Bashfully she lifted a paw up to her lips, covering her dreamy smile. “You’ve stolen my heart again,” she hummed, wondering if it was possible for a heart to be stolen several times a day because if it was then Kylar was a notorious thief.

Nephele knew that her beloved wife had trouble with her leg, but she never doubted her strength or courage. Kylar had already saved her life that day almost two years ago and cemented herself in the role of knight without trying. She gave Nephele a reason to live and helped discover who she was, which was not a runaway sacrifice, but someone worthy of love and life. It was these little moments that she cherished the most when they had little dates together. It was hard being mothers to three lively children, but they made it work and still find time for each other.

She snuggled into Kylar’s warmth, curling her back into Kylar’s belly so that she was the little spoon. “I didn’t know it was possible for me to help like I do. I thought I was the one who would always need help, but… I’m helping. It feels good. I feel like I’ve taken back what they stole from me, Ky,” her voice dropped to a whisper when she spoke of her family. She hadn’t broached the subject since that night over a year ago when she’d opened up to Kylar.

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Kylar Fritz
ruby-red outings and sunset icecream

A shy smile found her lips and she lifted a paw to conceal them, her girlish giggle like music to Kylar's ears. And Kylar couldn't tear her eyes away. Not from the dark ears that twitched anxiously or the eyelids that concealed the tragedies of Nephele's past. Every star upon Neph's brow, every whisker, every tuft of fur out of place was perfect, and Kylar drank it in with ruby-red eyes. She stared, shamelessly, because she could -- because maybe she could look at her beautiful wife with so much love and intensity that Neph might still feel it. If Kylar was going to be the only one blessed with sight, then by god she was going to use it to drink in every detail of her wife's face, to capture every moment so that not a single second was wasted.

"You've stolen my heart again"
"Only so that I can protect it," Kylar murmured softly, timbre sinking lower as she leaned in to press a soft kiss to Nephele's lifted paw. Her nose would then delicately draw a line up to Neph's cheek so that Ky might kiss her there.

Her heart beat madly within her chest and she was reminded of those times upon the beach when they would return from a long day of swimming. Physically, they had progressed slowly -- but Kylar preferred that. It made everything (from the smallest kiss to the softest brush) a moment, something to be cherished.

Be it from embarrassment or sleepiness, Nephele snuggled in closer and Kylar wrapped her injured foreleg around her. Poorly healed fracture or no, she would serve as Nephele's knight. No matter where they went, if Kylar was there, Neph would be safe. Kylar would make sure of it.

And as Nephele spoke, Kylar couldn't help but feel her heart break. Tears stung and she swallowed, trying not to let one fall. They were happy tears, yes, but they were also... bitter. Angry that Nephele had been forced to endure so much. There was no revenge that could give Neph back her eyes, that Kylar knew and so she had given up her vendetta. Still... she sniffed slightly and pressed another kiss to Nephele's head, this time to the base of her ear.

"You spend most of your time protecting me I swear," she murmured. "And Anthe takes after you so much. She is strong just like her mom, and Willow took all of your subtle mischief and concentrated it." Out of the two of them, Neph had the more impish sense of humor. Of course, it only came out in short, subtle bursts... such that Kylar could never see it coming. "You help everyone around you, Neph. You genuinely make everyone better. I..." And she wrapped Nephele closer into a hug.

"I would be lost without you."

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@Nephele

If she could stay wrapped in the protective bubble and warmth of Kylar’s love forever she would say she had found true happiness. Nephele had found within her wife her best friend and the missing piece to her heart. The two broken pieces fit together perfectly as if they were meant to be. It had been a slow romance, one that bloomed slowly, but beautifully like a flower waiting for the right season. Nephele knew in her heart that she would never love someone like she loved Ky. This was her life partner, the one she wanted to spend all her years with. "Only so that I can protect it," she murmured, kissing her softly on her and making Nephele giggle again as her nose tickled her all the way up to her cheek before kissing her again. She took the chance to lean over to whisper secretively in her ear. “Yours is my most precious treasure,” she confessed, smiling shyly at her beloved.

She could feel the soft thump of Ky’s heart as they nestled together, injured foreleg gently cradling her. Her ears twitched at the sound of sniffling and she realised she had done it again. Gosh darn it. She had a bad habit of bringing Ky to tears especially when she didn’t mean to. The base of her ear flicked when lips brushed against the soft fur and gently kissed her. Nephele felt herself glowing with warmth when Kylar praised her so sweetly. It was convincing enough to silence the inner critic that always wanted to drag her down. Hearing how Kylar saw pieces of Neph growing within their children made her want to tear up, but she didn’t want to end up weepy during a celebration. “It’s all because of you, Ky. You gave me that strength, showed me what love really was. When you found me I was like a broken bird that couldn’t fly, but you healed my wings,” she whispered, reaching with her fore paws to very gently hold Kylar’s injured leg against her chest.

“I would be lost without you too. So let’s stay together always,” she sighed happily, even though they had already made that commitment she liked reaffirming it and promising it again.

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Kylar Fritz
ruby-red outings and sunset icecream

"Yours is my most precious treasure," Nephele whispered as though the other festival goers might hear and find such information scandalous. It brought a smile to Kylar's lips, cracking her wide open and painting her in love and joy so obvious that it required no translation. She pulled Nephele in just a little bit tighter, her giggle light and girlish. With the pups off playing, Kylar truly felt like she was three again and meeting Neph for the first time.

And this brought happy, heartfelt tears to her eyes. Although Kylar acted like the tough knight in the relationship, she was the biggest crier. Thankfully sweet, soft Nephele was always there to brush them away and kiss her until she forgot what even caused them.

As Kylar's paws cradled against Nephele chest, Ky buried her face in the black and white fur of Nephele's nape. "So let's stay together always." "Let's," Kylar whispered, nuzzling in even deeper and drinking in the herbal scent of her wife. It may have been tinged by smoke but it was as comforting as ever.

And intoxicating too. Subconsciously, Kylar's nose inched back to the base of Nephele's ear where she gently nipped the base, gaze half-lidded.

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@Nephele

A delighted squeal was squeezed out from the tiny nurse when her mate’s embrace grew tighter. Her giggles joined in with Kylar’s feeling like a pair of teenage lovers rather than adult women still utterly infatuated with each other. If only they were somewhere more private without the risk of the crowd watching them, Nephele would be tempted to be a little more affectionate with her beloved, maybe a lot more. The warmth of the fire and the touch of soft fur pressed against her back. It was their most romantic date since their wedding. Between running the clinic and raising three puppies both women had had to make do with sneaking time for each other in the early hours of the morning or later at night when the pups still slept. She didn’t ever regret building their family, but she needed this night. A night where she could have Kylar all to herself for more than a few minutes.

She felt Kylar nuzzling into her neck, tickling the delicate nerves and making the butterflies rise to the surface again. Nephele felt a warm blush touch her cheeks and a contented smile played on her lips. Let’s, she agreed, burrowing deeper into her fur and making Nephele squirm with how ticklish it was. The nip to her ear signalled to her just what her wife was feeling. She giggled, feeling very naughty at what they were getting up to in public. “Ky, You’re so naughty,” she playfully teased, unable to stop herself from giggling.

She leaned her head back to plant a kiss on Kylar’s cheek. “Tonight. When the kids go to sleep,” she whispered in a promise, grinning mischievously. They were definitely going to continue what Kylar started later, but for now she was content to nap in the security of her knight’s protective embrace.

- Fade via snuggles

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Kylar Fritz
ruby-red outings and sunset icecream

Everyone is distracted anyway, whispered the devil upon her shoulder. The fire is so warm and the food is on the other side of the pyre. Half-lidded eyes peered over Nephele's ears for only a moment to confirm her hedonistic musings. With the firelight casting a warm glow over them, Kylar felt cool with her face and chest hidden by Nephele's shadow—and yet so warm. It was an internal blaze, one that brought her to nibble at the delicate skin by her mate's ear. The devil danced as her heart rate began to rise, her paws sliding just a little bit lower in order to savor the gentle curves of Nephele's sides.

“Ky, You’re so naughty,” her wife giggled and Kylar's smile became lopsided if not slightly pained. "The crowd be damned," she murmured, nuzzling into the black and white fur. Of course, it could not be damned objectively. Their pups played off around the bend and this was not the kind of romance they would ever be privy to seeing.

Still... it was so painful to abandon a mood so perfectly set.

A soft whine left her throat as Kylar pouted, playing the colicky child as she flopped onto her back, exasperated by fate and its wiles. "Do they sleep? I'm beginning to wonder if it was just a phase." Gone were the days when they were wee little potatoes that only slept. Now they were teenagers eager to explore the world.

- exit kylar -

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@Nephele