Combinations

Still smiling a little at Molly, Coven let the topic die. He occupied himself with trying to keep his tail out from under Molly's paws. He sighed contentedly and closed his eyes for a second, just relishing the warmth and energy that was running through him. In a few minutes, he'd probably have to go warm up Molly again, but for now - at least for him - the wind blowing in didn't feel so cold. Finally, he opened his eyes again, rolled up onto his back to stretch, and just smiled up at the female from there. He felt like such a pup today, but it was totally ok with him. Unfortunately, it did look kind of strange from anyone's perspective than his to see him in this almost loopy state.

As they both fell silent, Molly entertained herself with trying to pin down his tail with her paws. However, he was doing a wonderful job making that task impossible for her. Soon, however, she stopped pawing at him and yawned softly, the noise just as high pitched and soft as it had been that morning. When he rolled over and looked up at her, however, she started to giggle softly. He looked hilarious, and her tail wagged as she nipped at his chin and looked down at him. This was probably the only instance where she'd ever be able to look down on him like this, since in any other position he towered over her, so she enjoyed the sight and well, it made her laugh, too.

Coven's ears still pricked in interest at the noise Molly made when she yawned. At least this time he knew what it was and was able to laugh understandingly at the sound.
It was a very interesting sensation to have Molly on top of him yet again, but he kind of liked it, too. It was very freeing to not be fighting someone else to be on top. Relaxed and smiling calmly, the wolf stretched out his neck and licked her chin, mellowing out a little. "Tired?" he asked, half-jokingly because of the petite sound of her yawn, which fit her so well, and half-seriously because she was so sick right now.

Molly smiled as he laughed because of her yawn, tilting her head to the side slightly. When he stretched his neck out to lick her, she wagged her tail lightly, licking his nose in response. When he asked her if she was tired, she could tell it was a joking and serious question at the same time. She smiled, liking the fact that he could be fun while still obviously caring how she was doing. She shrugged, trying to decide whether or not she really was tired. "I'm a little tired, I suppose. I haven't done this much activity for a while." She said softly, resting her head on her paws. Now that she was sitting still, the cold are began to affect her more directly. She shivered slightly, surprised that she hadn't realized it was cold in the den before now.

It was so sad to him that this was all the work and fun Molly had been able to have for a while. It hardly got a speck of energy out of him, but it had conversely taken a lot out of her. Rolling back over, Coven crawled over next to Molly and curled around her in a way that was becoming so much more natural now. "If you want to sleep," he declared with a grin, moving his muzzle into the fur on her neck, "just give me a topic, and I'll talk about it until you're bored into sleep. If you don't want to sleep, you're responsible for figuring out what to do."

Molly smiled as he moved to curl around her, and she leaned against him, resting her head on his paws as he spoke and nuzzled his muzzle into her neck fur. "Well, I know almost nothing about you. I've told you a lot about me, but you haven't told me anything about you." She said, realizing that he really had shared barely anything about himself, where she was constantly explaining herself and telling him about her past. She wondered if there was a reason he hadn't told her, whether it was a sensitive topic or not. She then mentally kicked herself, realizing that she probably shouldn't have brought it up. After all, he would have told her by now if it wasn't a sensitive topic or anything like that, right?

Coven lifted his head and shrugged a little, not knowing what she wanted him to tell her. He really didn't think anything about him other than what Molly could see was important. It wasn't like he hid anything from anyone, though it was always convenient when enemies didn't know exactly where he was coming from.

"What do you want to know?" he asked, showing Molly that he was willing to answer whatever she wanted him to answer, but he just didn't have any idea where to start. It wasn't like he was going to give his life history, unless she really did want to sleep.

Molly looked up at him patiently as her question, or topic, sank in. When he finally spoke, she sighed softly, hearing him ask her what she wanted to know. She could think of a few questions, but although she wanted to know everything about him, she really wanted to know what happened between him and Chaos. "What really happened that day with Chaos? I know it's not important, but I'm just curious." She asked, looking up at him curiously. "I know it's a terrible thing for me to say, but I'm sort of glad you gave her a beating. She deserved it, and well, Blitz is too nice to put her in her place sometimes." She said, instantly regretting the words. She hated speaking bad about the other pack members like that, well, except Inferno, and her ears flattened as she realized that her thoughts had actually been spoken out loud. "Oops, I didn't mean to say that out loud....I...uh...Well..." She tried to explain, but failed to make any excuses for why she thought like that about Chaos at the moment. She always did her best to see the good in others and defend their behaviors, so it was unusual for her to say something negative like that about Chaos. Even when she had been describing Chaos picking on her, she had said that it was her fault in the first place, not Chaos's.

Coven grinned at Molly's faltering attempt to take back her words. It was almost a proud grin. Unlike Molly, Coven not only felt no hesitation in saying what he thought, he also never worked extra hard to see the good in other wolves. Like Chaos, for instance. She did deserve it, in his opinion, and the only remorse he felt in hindsight about the fight was that it made Molly have to deal with Chaos more than usual. It was obvious that Molly really did feel bad about saying that, and Coven knew she really cared about trying, so he kept his obligatory chuckling to a minimum.

"Well, I had crossed the rapids into Silverlight with the intention of speaking to the alpha," began Coven, frowning a little to himself that he was leaving a slightly important detail out about his intentions (though the frown just looked like he was focusing on remembering), "and ended up running into Chaos. So I was trespassing, technically, and Chaos was not happy...though I don't really think it would have mattered what I was doing; she looked really pissed from the start. Anyway, I asked her to take me to Blitz, she wouldn't, I decided to go on my own and probably said something a little goading, she attacked, we fought, Blitz showed up." The wolf looked out the entrance of the den the entire time he spoke, trying to remember. The details really were kind of hazy, as he really hadn't thought much of the ordeal after it happened. He did remember that it had really been a great fight - Chaos was crazy. "That's it. I'm pretty sure Blitz hated me for a while there. It's only been since the night I found you in the rain that we've been on good terms. A lot of it's my fault, but it's some proof that Blitz can be mad when he wants." The black wolf gave a little half-smile at the last part of his story and looked down at Molly before casting his gaze back to the snow. Strangely, he felt a little worried at what Molly would think of the story. A lot of what had happened had been his fault - though Chaos did actually strike first, while Coven had no intention of getting into a fight with her - and Molly did love to love her pack mates. He didn't at all like the burden of caring what Molly thought, but it was there anyway now, whether he liked it or not.

Molly's ears flattened as he chuckled at her attempt to take back her words. But soon he started talking about what had happened, and she listened silently, her head tilted slighlty to the side as if to signal that she was really listening carefully. When he finally finished speaking, she looked towards the entrance, letting his words sink in. Yes, a lot of what he said sounded like they were his fault, and it didn't sound like he was telling her everything. She frowned slightly, wishing that he trusted her enough to tell her the whole truth. But she didn't let it bother her for long, and she looked up at him, tilting her head to the side curiously once more. "Do you trust me, Coven?" She asked softly, once again not meaning to say her thoughts out loud.

She looked away quickly, trying to wish the words away as quickly as they had come. But they had been said, and she looked out at the snow, listening for his reaction as well as avoiding eye contact at the same time. She too worried about what he thought about her, and she didn't know why. But his opinion was very important to her, and she hoped that he trusted her and didn't look down on her.

The wolf sighed deep and continued looking out at the sparsely falling snow. He was completely serious now as he pondered what to tell her, what he actually felt. It took a minute of thinking and unraveling his jumble of thoughts to finally put together what he felt into words. "Yes, Molly," he replied at last, looking at her face, though glad to find her own eyes were averted. "I trust you." Yes, in many ways, he trusted her. He trusted that she would take care of him if he needed it, that she would be loyal to the pack. The black wolf knew deep within himself that after everything he had experienced and after so long - more than half of his life - alone, he would never be able to trust anyone completely. And as for Molly, she was so new to him, so different. He knew that right now he didn't trust that she would accept him as he was in his entirety. Still looking at her, the wolf almost asked her why she had asked, especially since he wondered if she felt that he was holding back (it was just a tiny piece...surely she hadn't caught it?). Coven kept quiet, able to hold his tongue better than Molly. Her hesitation to look at him worried him enough that he wasn't about to speak for no good reason.

Molly was surprised when he said that he trusted her. She didn't think that he really did trust her. But she didn't question him further. Instead, she slowly turned her head, looking up at him curiously. "I trust you too. I wish I knew more about you, though. You always seem to be thinking about things, but it's not really common for you to share your thoughts. I wish you did sometimes...." She said softly, this time forcing herself to keep eye contact with him. Her ears were flattened slightly to the sides as she looked up at him, her eyes glued to his, as if trying to read his thoughts. She didn't know why she was so curious about him, but she was, and she found that it only made her want to know more and more about him. What he was thinking, what he was feeling, and so much more.

Coven gazed back at her with a slight tinge of remorse, hope, worry, and resolution in his searching eyes. Molly trusted him, too? That and the fact that she sincerely wanted to know more about him meant more to the male than he could possibly be able to express, because unfortunately, he was discovering that he compulsively held back more than he ever had thought before. "I'm sorry I don't share as much as I could...but I think I want to," he explained slowly, grateful to Molly right now for expressing exactly what she was thinking. He was serious about his desire to change, if just a little, to please Molly in a small way. She had been so open with him; he wanted to return the favor. It didn't occur to him, even as he looked right at the female, that there were a few other reasons he was becoming so interested wanting to get close to her.

Molly's eyes searched his, reading the confused emotions as well as the obvious desire to change. When he said it out loud, she smiled, licking his nose affectionately. "Hey, that means we both have things to work on. You need to be more open, and I need to stop worrying so much." She said, smiling at him as her eyes held his, grateful that he was in fact desiring to change and be more open with her. It was a small step, but she hoped that it would lead to more, and she hoped that he would slowly grow better at expressing his thoughts instead of keeping them from her. "Coven, you really are a good wolf, regardless of what you think about yourself. I wouldn't be alive if it weren't for you." She said softly, her ears flattening slightly and her eyes staring up at his, showing just how grateful she was. He had saved her life, and no matter how much he tried to play it down, she would always be grateful to him.

Molly's friendly lick got the black wolf to smile and perked him up considerably. Yeah, he was beginning to see that it could be quite possible to get to the point of trusting her completely. That was a long road, as it should be, but the journey so far was worth it already.

"Thank you, Molly," he told her, dipping his head and flattening his ears a little, as Molly had done, to show just how much that meant to him. That was a phrase he had never had directed to him, or anybody he knew, ever in his life. Coven couldn't believe that it really had been almost death for her just a few days ago. How different everything would have been...even him in a way if that had happened. He was grateful as well that he'd helped Molly out; he would have missed out on so much.

"Can you tell what I'm thinking this time, or do I have to explain?" he asked, positive that for once she would easily be able to read from his expression exactly how glad he was that they were able to have a conversation like this.

Molly smiled as he was obviously grateful for her words. But she hadn't said them to make him feel good, she had said them because they were true. She stared up at him as he lost himself in his thoughts, and she couldn't help but smile when he finally spoke. Even she had to admit that even when he didn't share his thoughts, she could almost always tell what he was thinking. She laughed softly, licking his cheek affectionately and nodding slightly. "I can tell that you're happy and you seem to be enjoying the fact that we can talk like this." She said softly, still smiling at him. "I'm glad we can talk like this too." She said, leaning against him and nuzzling her muzzle into his chest.

Coven didn't reply but just sighed contentedly as Molly leaned into him. The white wolfess seemed to have him down pretty well, but he had resolved anyway to help her out when he could. It would be an interesting experiment, but it would be a nice challenge with potentially good results anyway.

"Ready to sleep /now/?" he asked, now becoming unsure whether she actually intended on sleeping. He personally wasn't ready for her to go to sleep just yet, but it was becoming more difficult to tell whether resting was going to be doing her any good or if sleep was what she really needed. Either way, he enjoyed that she got to be next to him during this healing process. Her gorgeous coat that contrasted so strikingly against his own ragged one was becoming more and more appealing to him; he just couldn't seem to keep from rubbing the side of his face across it. Did all wolves' fur feel like this? His certainly didn't, and it was a shame.

Molly couldn't help but smile as he asked if she was ready to sleep. Her response was only a soft, high-pitched yawn and a nuzzle into the fur of his chest. She sighed softly, resting her head on his paws and leaning into his larger form, her body relaxing against his warmth. She did need to sleep, especially after their play session earlier that had tired her out so much. She only needed a little sleep, maybe just an hour or so, but it would definitely do her a lot of good. Soon she was asleep, her little form curled up against him as she slipped into dreams. She was getting better slowly, and most of it was thanks to Coven's close care and well, his warmth. She barely felt the cold anymore, mostly because she was completely surrounded by his warm, black body.

Coven rumbled an almost-laugh in his throat at Molly's yawned response. He let Molly adjust and then curled up even more around her, laying his head over her shoulders to shield her even more from the cold. Not in the mood to sleep, the male just closed his eyes and listened to the snow and sounds from outside while thinking about all he'd learned about Molly and himself just this morning.

Molly slept soundly for nearly half an hour before the nightmares came. They usually did every time she slept, almost without fail. She wasn't sure where they came from, but they haunted her sleep, making her tremble and whimper slightly as she pressed herself harder against Coven's side. But they seemed to be getting worse, and she suddenly jumped, gasping and waking from the terrifying dream panting and trembling with her eyes wide in panic.

Coven had noticed her trembling and recognized it from before. It was obviously worse this time around though...and then she woke up tumultuously. "Hey," he said softly, cautiously licking one of her ears in concern. There was something destructive haunting Molly, and it was probably hindering her in ways beyond just that of keeping her from sleeping. Without wasting his breath on the rote 'are you alright' question, Coven continued to try to soothe the white wolfess, caressing her cheek and forehead with his tongue as well, hoping that her shaking and panting would calm soon. Though he was intensely curious about what was going on for her, he didn't ask and kept to his task. This was something he wasn't intruding on just because he was curious.

Molly trembled and panted, her eyes still wide as he tried to soothe her. "No...no...no..." She whimpered, shaking her head slowly and blinking to try and clear the terror from her mind. "C-C-Coven?" She asked, blinking up at him, her eyes confused and disturbed from her dream as she turned her head to look up at him. She was calmer now, now that she realized that Coven was beside her. When she looked up at him, she felt safe, knowing that he was watching over her. Her breathing slowed slightly, and her eyes grew slightly calmer as she looked up into his.

He looked back at her in concern, but stayed silent and reached down to lick her muzzle reassuringly as she seemed to process where she was and that things were ok, here at least. Though this was her business, Coven felt that someday it could help her to talk about it, but he wasn't sure it was going to be right now. She just needed to calm down and relax again.

At that moment, another stressed sound reached the wolf's ears, but this time from outside. He twitched his ears at the sound and looked intently out the door, half-rising to respond but not wanting to leave Molly, especially now.

Molly continued to relax as she looked up at him, grateful for his soothing touch. The sounds outside the den made her flinch, but her eyes widened in panic as he slightly rose to leave her. But as he seemed to hesitate and then decided to stay, she leaned against him, needing to be selfish right now. She was still trembling slightly as she pressed against him, her ears still flat against her skull as she buried her face in his fur. She was still terrified from her dream, even though she knew she was completely safe inside her den with him. But the sounds of fear and panic from outside made her tremble more, almost as if she believed that her dream was really coming true.

That sign from Molly was all Coven needed to decide to stay with her. The other pack members were rushing about and handling whatever was happening, so it was safe to say things were getting taken care of. If they were needed, someone would come. And then Coven would get to hear about what was happening. Until then, though, he felt justified focusing completely on Molly. Lowering himself back down and wrapping himself around the little female, he asked softly, not demanding that Molly answer, "What is it?"