With the war now over and behind them, things were changing in Helidos. Rose, a dear friend of her own, had taken the place as Alphess in the late Quinn's place. Another dear friend. She would miss having the small female to speak with, and she felt if given the chance they might have become closer. But fate took her from the world leaving behind her mate, children, and pack. Another mated pair had been separated, Beta Marrok and Beta Juno. Marrok, from what the Autay had learned, died in battle against Erenyx's female warrior. Juno, was now being held captive in Erenyx. Helidos lost many other wolves, including their only healer. But the wolves were starting to heal again, accept the new adjustments and order. They would be alight, and Helidos would return to its former glory. Azul was still here to offer his guidance and wisdom, he would train Rose to be the best Alphess she could possibly be. They truly had nothing to fear anylonger in terms of war, for both packs would need time to recover.

But now winter had come to the lands, the air chillier than in the fall and snow now fell to the ground. It was beautiful. And here in the Eden's Hollow she could only describe it as stunning. White covered the floor of the forest as well as above the bushes and tall blades of grass and weeds. Most flowers were not blooming, but those that were, were truly gorgeous. The trees above, who's leaves had fallen, their branches were lightly clothed with the white powder, and the light trickled wonderfully through the winding branches. A few icicles hung off of those bare structures of wood, their shine reflecting the sunlight making the seem to glow. Against the scenery around her she felt so out of place, yet fitting. Winter always made her feel young again, like she had no age to worry about. She was five years old now, yet she felt just like a two year-old maiden who was in search for the right male to give her affections to. Sticking out her tongue she caught a small falling  piece of semi frozen water, feeling as it dissolved quickly on the warmth of her muscle. Smiling softly she began to trot through the forest, her tail curled above her back in sheer happiness as she frolicked in the winter wonderland.

With her pelt now slightly laced with white, Elsbeth decided to rest for a while. Heading towards a tree, who's roots still stuck up slightly from beneath the powder, she lay besides its trunk. Curling her body into a small little ball she rested her tail over her nose, shielding it from the coldness of the air. A small song of a bird, it's chirping adding a source of cheerfulness to the desolate Hollow. Perking her ears she listened to its voice as she closed her eyes, letting the beauty of nature surround her. The feeling of soft snow landing on her pelt and the song of the bird gently lulling her into a peaceful sleep. Alone she lay, a mass of light brown against the trunk of an oak. And surrounding the two beings a world of white. Forgotten was the dangers of the cold, but here in midday it was the warmest it would get. She would wake soon, and with that the sounds, scent, and touch of winter were blocked out as the darkness of sleep surrounded her.

[Sorry, I was getting around to this anyway. It's kinda long >_> Enjoy the cheese.]

In the weeks since the death of Quinn and losing the war, things within Helidos had begun to settle, much like the snow had done around the lands of the pack, and indeed in most of the places surrounding their territory as well. Images of the bloodshed and wolves who had departed to the Other Forest would sometimes play in his mind, so that the new stillness and silence seemed eerie and out of place to the brute, too peaceful. But if his life would stay forever like this snapshot in time, he could get used to it. If anything, it would become boring, comforting in its familiarity and constant presence, but tedious. He supposed that was why twists and turns in life were important. In his younger days, he would've been delighted at the snowfall and would ecstatically jump and frolic about among the white flurries, enjoying the surprise gift of something to play with until the realisation set in that the snowflakes were only a sign of bleaker times ahead. No joy came to him now as he surveyed it all with his golden eyes, padding forward with no spring in his step. He had seen it all before and deep thoughts occupied his mind, putting him in a serious mood. These past few months had been troublesome and many wolves in the pack were no doubt still struggling, only keeping their tongues tied about their problems to keep the mood and strength up among their packmates as they all pulled together. He wanted to help them all despite how impossible that would seem, as putting others before himself was in his nature. It was also the beginning of a new reign, and Eclipse was surprised to see his friend Rose as the new Alphess. He wasn't always great at accepting change but he knew she would try hard to prove herself and she had the guidance of Azul should she ever need it. He had faith in the little white fae to bring the pack together, but it would still be odd to get used to the new order. Hopefully they would be safe for a while as both rival packs had to recover and the remaining packs didn't exactly have a reason to strike them. Helidos could concentrate on building themselves up again. He made a mental note to see Rose soon to formally congratulate her on her position and see if there was anything she needed from him; she would need extra help now that both of the Betas were gone.

Less of his dark brown pelt was visible as the snowflakes made it their duty to smother his figure in white, much to his dismay as he had purposely groomed his pelt to be neat and clean before setting off. Veering between the bare trees, he continued on his individual path through Eden's Hollow that only one other had walked before him. The landscape had a simple beauty about it, with bits of colour sticking out from beneath the snow in the form of blossoms and plants. Icy areas glistened under the sun, and it was particularly spectacular with the icicles hanging from the branches refracting a spectrum of light. He could appreciate the scene around him, however when he saw something visually appealing he was reminded of one fae, automatically comparing what was before him to her. It wasn't just her physical traits that made her more attractive, but also how she made him feel that made her much more special. Nothing else he had met before made him feel so free of his past just by its presence, and she had no idea that she had this effect on him. At the thought of her, more images of his lost loved ones flashed through his thoughts, making him shut his eyes and shake his head with a puff of smoky air from his nostrils. It was a common occurrence but he only now noticed the connection, his damned head making him doubt if he should love again because of what happened to the others he'd cared for, that he shouldn’t make himself vulnerable to that again. Yet here he was, following a trail of her pawprints through the woods. Many things tried to convince him that he shouldn't be doing that, but he couldn't fight the emotions he felt. After all that had happened to him, he felt he had a right to be happy and he imagined he could be, with her. Did he not deserve that? Would it be a betrayal to his past mate? Surely not, she was gone now and their relationship was only a fond memory even if he still loved her in some way. The circle of life went on for others around him and he too wanted a part of that, a mate and eventually pups who would live on even after his body failed him, after all he wasn’t a charming young brute anymore. But with everything that had recently occurred, was now a good time to be finding a mate, or should he be focused on helping his pack? He wasn’t sure, but he knew he wasn't getting any younger and the darkness of recent events shouldn’t overshadow what little rays of light could begin to shine through for them.

After days of intensive thought, it was only that morning that he had gained the courage to take a leap of faith and pursue what he wanted, to find her and say how he felt. Eclipse had never done such a thing before and he didn’t know how to approach the task, hence why he traveled at a slow pace to give him time to think, though maybe he’d already been thinking too much. As her scent grew stronger he grew nervous, causing his heartbeat to increase. What if she didn’t like him in that way at all? There was a possibility that she was just too shy to tell him or she was waiting on him to bring it up, but she seemed to enjoy his company. Maybe it was only in a friends way though, he honestly couldn’t tell. Gazing at the fresher prints that marked the ground, he could see from the nature of the tracks she had romped through here and he imagined her enjoying herself in the snow. It brought a small smile to his maw. Only a minute later, his orbs fell upon her form beneath an old oak. He hadn’t spotted her initially as she was rather well dressed in the cold powder that fell around them and she was curled up so tight that he’d mistaken her for a rock. She must have been sleeping there for a short while before he discovered her. Now that he saw Elsbeth, she was all he could see. Everything else suddenly became insignificant and he felt calmer than before. She looked so innocent and perfect sleeping as she did, her nose shielded by her tail. The more he’d gotten to know her the more he learned that she was strong as well as caring and sweet, the sort of sweet that wasn’t overpowering but was completely genuine in the moment. Nearing her location, his paws crunched through the snow quietly before he stopped by the Eurasian fae's side, noticing the enticing scent from her heat but he currently wasn't interested in it. “Here you are. I’ve been looking for you… not for anything really serious... well, it is important. But what brings you out here to sleep alone?” His nerves had returned and he gulped quickly as a slight panic started. This was very awkward, but he would try to act as if nothing was up. Resting his body beside hers, he extended his muzzle to carefully flick away the snow on her coat with his nose, the distant song of some feathered creature providing another momentary distraction.

Unaware as to how long she had been lying beneath the oak in the woods, she probably could've slept through till the next day. At first a peaceful darkness just surrounded her, lulling her into a state of peace. Her shoulders, back, and sides softly rose and fell as her lungs drew in each breath. Her nose was saved by her tail from the soft bite of winter, allowing her to find more warmth in the snow around her. But as she grew deeper and deeper into sleep silhouettes of light and dark began to form, a soft murmur of words and mixed voices coming out soon later. As the figures began to become more defined she realized they were wolves, different sizes and different shades. She supposed this was to be according to their actual coat color, just not necessarily brown or tan. Looking down and around she realized that she too was one of those figures, one with the pack of wolves as they slowly began to surround her and three others. A wolf, a male by the size and build of it, slowly approached her. His eyes golden, the only color upon his pelt. She found herself walking towards him, nuzzling into his chest and pressed against his side as they walked towards the other two wolves. Around her she noticed that only the eyes of the wolves had color, and they looked familiar. The male, who now wrapped his tail around her own, his nose dipped down to sniff the fur along her neck, his own almost reflected her own color. And they looked so familiar, full of love and joy. The Lead Autay then found herself doing the same to him, publicly expressing her affections for the wolves around to see. This male was hers, and she wanted them to know it. Softly a voice came into her ears, seemingly coming from the male beside her, "'Here you are, I've been looking for you...'" What did he mean, she was right there with him? The voice continued although the dream faded away, her eyes fluttering open as she lifted her head to look around.

Her eyes fell on the Warrior she had grown quite fond of. His dark brown fur covered with the snow that fell gently and steadily to the ground. A shy smile took over her jaws and her eyes gleamed with happiness as he continued to speak. Something important? Here eyes narrowed in confusion for a moment before she shrugged and let him get comfortable before he went on more about it. She watched him as he gulped slightly. He seemed nervous, but she couldn't quite tell. Loosing up her tightly curled body she answered as he walked around her, settling himself warmly at her side. "Nothing actually. I was merely just enjoying myself on a walk and decided to lay down for a bit, I hadn't meant to fall asleep. So thank you, my warrior, for saving me from dying of coldness." A sight sigh escaped her jaws as he began to brush away some of the snow laid out on her pelt. She unknowingly shifted herself closer to him, their pelts mixing together as she gently rested her head on his muscled shoulder. His touch felt so nice and gentle, identical to the male in her dream's. Softly she breathed in his scent, one that she loved. The two hadn't shared such a close moment like this before, never had they been pressed against each other like she made them be now. But she loved the feeling of being curled up at his side. She slowly began to nuzzle his shoulder affectionately, her voice soft, a few notched above a whisper. "I would ask why you are out here, but given your words I think it was to find me? What is so important, Eclipse?" Elsbeth didn't move away, she stayed contently at his side, fully aware of how his scent would linger on her own. She almost wanted it to be stuck to her, and there was no one else she would allow to claim other than he. They might have not known each other as long, but he had managed to make her fall in love with him, even though she still thought of Sam every now and then, wondering how he was fairing. The black brute would always hold a place in her heart, but Eclipse was slowly filling that gap of needing someone to just be there. He had taught her so many things, and in the process won the prize of her heart. She wanted to tell him, tell him of her love and feelings. He wasn't the youngest male out there, and there certainly more handsome ones in the general opinion. But she found everything about him alluring. His eyes gleaming brightly from his mahogany pelt, he muscled body strong and fit enough that he was, at one point, an Elite of the pack. His nature was friendly and loving, sometimes almost puppy like. He made her smile and warm inside, he was all she needed to complete her life in Helidos. She pulled her head away, eyes looking up at the brute curiously and softly as she waited for him to tell her what he wished to. Her ears were lifted and perked, awaiting the sound of his masculine voice drift into her ears.

[I know Elsbeth is now deceased, but I wanted the thread to have some closure.]

Zoning back in to focus on Elsbeth and ignore the sounds around him, he gently snorted to remove the snow building up on his snout from what he'd brushed off of her fur, which he'd removed a good majority of already. She seemed dazed at first, as if she had been awoken from a dream or just a deep sleep. It was quickly replaced with bashfulness and confusion as she realised what he had said about needing to speak with her, but she was calm about it. He smiled slightly and dipped his head as she said that he had rescued her from death by hypothermia, pressing closer to her in response as she also shifted towards him. He knew that it was unlikely she would be quite so vulnerable to the cold since her pelt was sufficient enough and she had curled up tight, but he would still make an effort to keep her warm. It seemed like he wasn't disturbing her from anything, as she'd only been on a walk, so he felt better about approaching her at such a time. When she placed her head gently on his shoulder he felt even more at ease, the space between them growing smaller and his urge to tell her why he was there growing ever stronger. This closeness with her was something he had craved and it just felt so right with her curled up at his side. Perhaps, as she initiated this cuddling, she did feel the same for him? He wanted to nuzzle her cheek but he refrained until he knew for sure if she felt equally about becoming his future mate. As she lay against him now, he stopped removing the snow from her pelt and cleared his throat quietly as he pondered how he should word his expression of his feelings. He had considered rehearsing a speech beforehand, but even though it had helped him think of some good things to mention it just hadn't felt right. The right words would only come out when he was with her and could confess purely from his heart, or so he hoped. But as he began to string a sentence together, she spoke up once again, very softly as she also nuzzled his shoulder. Eclipse's heart seemed to stop for a moment, puzzled about whether to slow down as he almost wanted to close his eyes and exhale a small sigh at the relief her nuzzling gave him, or to speed up as his nerves wanted to return since she was encouraging him to speak. With it all, his mind just went blank as he simply breathed in her individual scent which he had become attached to and just enjoyed her touch. Either she was fond of him, or she was very good at teasing him to think so. Or she was a puppet to her hormones which made her more affectionate at this time, possibly a combination of any of those possibilities. A wind picked up and blew some of the snow from his pelt, making it spray in a fine mist around them and it jolted his mind back to the matter at paw, as he didn't want them to get stuck in some bad weather. The dark warrior braced his body against the chill, sheltering the fae nestled beside him as her orbs looked to his expectantly.

"Yes... I came to find you, to tell you about something that has been developing for me personally. The thing is, Elsbeth, I have lived in Helidos for half of my life and I know you have only been in a relatively small portion of that. But in the increasing amounts of time we've spent together, and even on the day I met you, I felt at home with you, hence why I acted like a bit of a fool. I have had a rough time, losing my family and everything I held dear, but you came along and made me feel like myself again. It's as if all the bad things that kept weighing me down were just a bad dream and finally I have woken up, and the sunshine upon opening my eyes was so glorious with you stood beneath its rays. You bring a new light to my life, that I now actually look forward to the next day, if only to spend more time with you. We have learned things about one another and trained together, and I enjoy every moment. Your fur is so vibrant and so beautiful and within you you're so caring, there really is no other fae I can think of that would be a better mother, not that I'm jumping that far ahead..." He paused to catch his breath, which hung like fog in the frigid air that was still filled with slowly descending snowflakes, unaware of how his tail had tenderly wrapped itself protectively around her. "I'm just trying to say that I can imagine myself growing into a grey old brute with you alongside me, as my mate. I never thought I would find myself in love again, and I had been convincing myself that it was wrong of me to do so, but I cannot feel guilty for things any longer. I know it may seem quite sudden, because I'm not one to make my interest in a fae very obvious. After all that I have experienced I'm very aware of how nothing lasts forever, and our lives are prone to unexpected changes, so I believe it is best to grasp a chance at happiness while it is there. Rather than 'falling in love' with you, as if it is some lucky accident, I'm full-heartedly leaping. I want to love you and look after you, keeping you safe and sharing a den together, to learn more about you each day. If I am so privileged that you feel the same way I do, will you be mine?"

*I'm assuming Elsbeth agreed on becoming mates and confessed some of her own feelings for Eclipse, and then the two had continued cuddling together before returning back to the pack. They were yet to reveal their partnership and be made official mates up to the point where Elsbeth passed away*