Welcome to Gaia! ::

He was patient, more than any wolf had any right to be. He trusted in the divine timing of things, in his mate most of all, and knew that her heart, however far, would not stray for long… (something within him dropped, a very subtle sinking which might have suggested that that wasn’t entirely forthright; even if he insisted upon willing it into being)… Still, the physical distance between them had been growing for weeks and Dul’virith, far from perfect and acutely aware of the circumstances being unique and familiar, was getting worried.

Of course, he had no right to be worried. He never had the right to be. Yet here he was anyway.

Pacing before the brambles and their guardians, eyeing The Veil which dumped into a ‘beyond’ that the Ethereal had no interest in, at least, beyond what activities his mate got up to, was exactly how Dul'virith spent his final hours apart from Na'ira. He could sense her impending arrival, as if the tether that bound them were corporeal, growing shorter and shorter despite being worlds apart.

With every passing hour he breathed a little quicker, anticipating her scent; sweet and supple and soon to fill his snout once more. He would embrace her with not an ounce of judgement in sight; knowing this to be her way of living. Then he would ask to know all about her travels, for he was indeed invested and curious in her ventures -- even if they troubled him at times. If she were hungry, he would feed her, not because she couldn't feed herself but because that was his way. He enjoyed providing, serving, and adorning as well as adoring.

Love was a funny thing. It required patience, sure, but also an incredible amount of restraint. While he had no desire to control her, a part of him would have if he could. All this was, on some fundamental level, his way of overcoming that urge all wrapped up in the guise of protection. He moved with no ill-intent, but love wasn't always an easy road to navigate.

And Dul'virith was far from perfect.

She was close... growing closer still... a thought crossed his mind, one that considered the children they parented together, but it was pushed aside the moment The Veil seemed to stir. Was it her?

A flash of color broke through the veil. Pinks and greens and blues the first to breech until, thankfully, a sea of reds, oranges, yellows washed in. The tiny voice that whispered his unwanted truths gave a silent cheer, proverbial arms and legs spread akimbo for it had been proven right. There she was, just as he had anticipated. He'd had known it in his bones and would have put seashells and shanties on it if he had had a friend to bet with in that moment... And he would have worn his elation like a badge of honor, wielding it like a ‘best husband’ award for the trees and rocks and mountains to admire, if not for her cry. Had he been too consumed with his own egotism, however novel it was, to recognize distress in the air with which Na had been carried into Irithlly upon?

Of course he had. I’m so sorry Na’ira…

They came together with the sort of synergy to rival that of magnets, but the connection was heavier than he expected, and it faltered his footing. Between words he whispered her name and sent apologies into the feathering of her ears. His ecstasy fell away, he became soft enough to listen but stronger of support, offering as much of his shoulder as she needed, the warm glow of Lux’s power enveloping them both in pulsating light. He would rid her of every pain she had ever felt and all the pain she’d ever come to know, if only he could. At least he had been blessed by a healing God. He was closer to that goal than most.

Dul’virith let her speak with that soft, sun-lit face pressed up against him. Her smell, as he had hoped (but now wished came under different circumstances) filled his nose with all that Na was and all that Na had come to meet with beyond the veil. She was unable to see the flash of recognition in his eyes, but she’d know, for he knew exactly who it was they discussed. A lump in his throat gathered. He had hoped Mai’s absence had just been a fluke… And just as he was nearly about to slip into worry himself, he found himself meeting Na’ira’s gaze.

A moment of pride threatened Dul as he stared into her, feeling her terror and knowing the fear better than anyone else… but he swallowed it, transmuting what would have risen from the ashes of accusation into a blazing reassurance.

“Strength is a shared bond between you both, and none possess more strength of will than the pair of you.” He was no master of masks but, instead, a master of hope, so although his heart beat quickly, the fear of the unknown his most aggressive enemy, he would not be shaken of optimism.


As Lux was his beacon, he would forever he hers.


“She is like her mother. By virtue of your parenting, she will survive any trial with grace.” He soothed in that way that lovers do, not to patronize or coddle, not to minimize but… to inspire. A small smile crested his lips as he looked towards the veil, staring as if he expected the young she-wolf to come sprinting through it at any moment. Without leaving the spiraling, flickering cosmos, he whispered. “If she is caught in the world beyond, she will make it every bit an adventure worth having. Just as you would, my melethel.”

When will alone could not force Mai into existence, he broke free of the veil's allure to gently press foreheads once more. With eyes closed, he sighed.


“What can I do?”

Felyn