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Khyan and Idalie are visiting Satriya, View Infected to see. current thread takes place a few days after the infected thread.

You're here for a reason but you don't know why
3-2-3 OC

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Speech Emotional Actions Thoughts

The pyramid was a curious sight.

From the volcano, Khyan had seen its peak countless times rising above the horizon, but he'd never cared enough to ask about it, let alone visit. Standing before it now was different. The sheer scale of it stole his breath away, ancient stone stretching toward the heavens in a way that made him feel impossibly small.

Yet there was something—someone—far more capable of taking his breath.

She was brighter than the sun itself, sweeter than honeysuckle in bloom. Idalie.

Oh, Idalie.

Khyan had hardly left her side since arriving. The few times he had wandered off were only to hunt for her, though traversing the endless dunes proved far more difficult than expected. The shifting sands dragged at his paws and sapped his energy, so more often than not he settled for helping where he was needed and keeping a watchful eye on Tyra whenever she wasn't beside the healer or Amon.

Now he carried a freshly caught Crested Screamer in his jaws as he made his way back across the dunes. His tail waved proudly above his hips, confidence evident in every step despite the lingering heat that seeped from the sand into his pads.

His nostrils flared, drawing in the countless scents woven through the territory. Wolves. Old trails. New trails. Strange scents he couldn't place.

And that odd deer-looking thing.

Except it was far too bulky to actually be a deer.

What was it?

Could he kill it?

What did it taste like?

Would it be chewy?

Il mio sole!

The words emerged muffled around the bird hanging limp from his jaws.

The sun had long since disappeared beyond the horizon, yet the sand still held the day's warmth. His gaze swept across the sea of gold until it found her at last.

Immediately, his expression softened.

There she was.

His darling.

His warmth.

Like sunlight on a bitter winter morning, she chased away the cold that settled deep within his bones, the kind left behind by harsh winds and lonely nights. Amid all the gold of the desert, she was the only thing his eyes truly sought.

Idalie did not like all of this sand.

The pyramid was beautiful and the decor sublime, oozing royalty from every nook and cranny. Gods, they called themselves, and their home was a testament to it. Idalie wasn't sure about the divinity of the wolves leading here, but she could very well respect the beauty of this land.

Except for the sand.

It was all in her fur and between her toes and had rubbed her paws all sore and Idalie was completely and totally over it.

She tried to be as unobtrusive as possible in this place, quiet and seen but not heard. Out of the way unless someone needed something from her, glued to Khyan or Tyra's side until Khy wandered or she was ushered away for hovering.

His voice caught her attention and suddenly the discomfort eased. Idalie's tail began to wag as she rushed the rest of the way to his side, her paws only sliding a time or two on the loose terrain.

A happy whine slipped from her lips as she wove herself beneath his chin, bathing herself in his presence. "Khy," she said, playful complaint in her voice as she leaned into him, "I hate this sand. It is everywhere." In common tongue, because it seemed a language better for complaining.