Brennen's soft-spoken acceptance of Nihlus' offer lessens the weight balanced across both their shoulders. A warm twist in his gut reminds Nih that luck found its way to him when Brennen chose to love and, more importantly, trust him. His mouth mouth finds its way to Brennen's crown as he considers this, basking for some time in the warmth of a faithful and fulfilling relationship. No matter whether Brennen chose to see others while the two of them made a home on Heim, Nihlus felt the intimacy of his lover like a weighted cloak upon his back, keeping him safe and careful when he would otherwise be reckless. A strange image, to be sure, but a good one.
He plans to see Jesper as soon as he can. Within this moon cycle, with luck; given that such time had already passed, Nih can't afford to wait much longer. Despite having never sworn into the brotherhood back when he'd been a royal pain-in-the-ass Tundra dweller, some remnant of that brotherliness yet became him when he considered his and his husband's cohorts.
"In that case, lover, I will grow as big and strong as I can." The place where he'd been grooming Brennen with an idle gnaw of his teeth receives a firm kiss as Nihlus straightens, a grin stretching his countenance. "The better to protect you with, my little." His tail snaps at the other's rump. "You'd be surprised how many monsters I fend off so that you can get your beauty sleep. And my, how it's paid off," Nih leers, eyes glinting even more than their glow usually allows. "You get more beautiful every single morning."
Just then, Lhoire comes galloping from yonder hills with a stifled whinny. Nih perks his ears at the approaching tempest, chuckles amassed at the gates of his lips. With sides a-shudder, Lhoire halts before her fathers and sends her weight back such that she may angle her teeny-tiny face to the earth to facilitate the spitting-out of her prizes. When she straightens, Nihlus throws his head back in a mirthful guffaw. There on the Nerinian highline, between two Ischian men and their daughter, sits a pile of feathers so large that Nihlus fears his daughter had resorted to murder in her attempt to re-feather her wingless father.
"Lho, I don't even want to know where you got that many feathers," he chuckled in delight, bumping the filly with his nose to send her stumbling with glee. "I think daddy'd better sleep with one eye open if you're so intent on your mission. He'll wake up one day and be plucked bald!" Nih tosses his smile in Brennen's direction, thoughts of politics and queens and skirmishes forgotten for a moment. Perhaps, in the end, the fun they all have together represents the true reason why Brennen chooses to love the undeserving, underwhelming Nih. But these thoughts, too, fall by the wayside as, standing abreast with laughter, the little family thrives. The good times warranted the abandonment of worries.
Nihlus
that's all I want
@[Brennen]