what's this feeling that I'm feeling

attn @Osiris but open!

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Returning home from the stones, once her first thought had been to show West—but ever since Altair had uttered that word... Well, that was all she could think of. Whether he said it or not, well, Leta had to see him, had to know and to understand... what the feeling within her was. If Osiris felt anything like it, if that was what the word had meant, if that was what he wanted—

and was she his girlfriend? 

Again that funny feeling, not unpleasant to endure as she marched after his scent... a woman very much so on a mission.
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Osiris had had a successful hunt. After scouring The Nameless Mountain's lowlands, he had caught wind of a rabbit's burrow and followed the trail to the source. Upon reaching his destination, Osiris found what he was looking for—two adolescent rabbits sleeping, naive to the threat looming outside their home. He waited for them to emerge, and when they did, he made quick work of the first. Unfortunately, the second fled, and Osiris followed in hot pursuit. In the end, he won the race—the rabbit fell quickly once Osiris had managed to catch up and unbalance it. 

Knowing that his siblings would be born soon, Osiris sought @Hydra to give her one of the rabbits. She, above everybody else, needed the extra food. So when he found her, they took a moment to talk and catch up—he asked how she was doing, and she asked in turn, they spoke about the borders, and he wondered how his baby siblings were doing. Hydra assured him that everything was fine, and he felt some of his anxiety lift. Osiris had been worried about the children. He was concerned about losing any more family, especially since his mission had become a total bust. 

It had been a tiring morning—and equally rewarding. Once Osiris dropped off the rabbit in the cache closest to where he had met Hydra, he made his way home to the den he shared with Leta. Osiris flopped onto his side and exhaled deeply. The mid-afternoon sun felt great on his fur, and he took a moment of peace to enjoy how it felt fully.
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Leta inevitably made her way toward where they both rest their head at night, his trail going that way. She slowed when detecting Hydra, certainly not wanting to infringe on a moment between the two... but as she arrived, there was no sign of his mother nearby. He must have visited, because her own scent in their area was not terribly strong. Her eyes found him, and she softened as she saw him resting on his side. Things had been hard for him, since...

Her resolve almost left her, but when she remembered Altairs words she seemed to find some of her spine and trot toward him. “Hey, sleepyhead,” she murmured, not wanting to shock him too terribly, “how's your mother doing?” She started with. Yes, ease him out of his sleep... she needed all of his attention, for her next question.
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Osiris lifted his head as he heard Leta approach. "Hey, you," he greeted sleepily, his tail gently thumping against the ground. His tiredness was evident, but the excitement of Leta's presence was enough to counteract and keep him awake. 

"She's as good as she can be now," he replied as he rolled onto his belly and pushed himself to a stand with a grunt. "She looks like she's pretty close to giving birth."  he elaborated as he steadied himself. 

 Or, at least, that was what Hydra had told Osiris. 

"I can't wait for them to be here," he said after a pause; she knew about his anxiety surrounding his sibling's birth, and she was likely able to pick up on his anxiousness.

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By this point, Hydra had relegated herself to higher reaches. Leta thought to check in on her, too, but knew it was a sensitive time. Once she had tried, but got the sense that Hydra did not wish to be found... that Osiris could was testament to more than simply his skill, but Hydra's own trust in her son. And Leta, as she looked at him and noted the pause, feeling she knew the reason behind it... Leta had that same trust. 

She settled in nearer, forgetting for the moment her reason for coming at all. “You are going to be an amazing big brother, Osiris, once again,” Leta started with, “and they are going to be sooooo safe because of you, and just, love you so much,” she continued on, “I just know it,” she encouraged, and then said, “and I will help too, in all the ways that I can. Be there for them, and for you,” her tail waved as she looked to him, a soft smile on her features. 

Leta had almost forgotten the reason she had come. Almost. But it lingered on the tip of her tongue then, and she practiced a dozen different ways to ask him about what Altair said... but it did not feel right, with his present worries. She did not want to give him yet another thing to worry about, or even question... And to her, it hardly felt like a question, it felt like some natural thing. 

Biting her tongue, Leta pressed closer to him. Almost possessively, she drew a foreleg over him and said, “we aren't gonna lose this. We can't,” and though they had things ripped from them before, it felt now as though it would not happen again somehow. And Leta was not going to lose another moment to wondering if that would happen, not when, as she looked at Osiris, she saw her future right there. With him, with his family too, and West was here... 

“I have such a stupid question,” she said with a laugh then, looking away and rising to all fours to dart a few steps off. “Uhm, well, I feel like, well,” she fumbled, not knowing how to start this, “well, I have also been... in a little bit of a daze. Mostly focusing on... improving, becoming stronger, but... I realized that... maybe I may have missed something else that matters too,” she fought for control over her tongue, and at least was able to get this much out. “Like, maybe, uhm, the fact that... well, is it a fact??? Did you... are you my boyfriend? Do you... did you... want to be... I...” 

Her expression read as "Jesus take the wheel of my life" as she looked to him, then away, again holding her tongue before it could say anything else stupid like that. Cards on the table, sort of, right?
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Leta met Osiris's concern with praise, and he felt suddenly bashful as he listened to what she had to say. His ears splayed, and his lips curled into an awkward grin. Truthfully, he didn't know what he had done to deserve her. What warmed his heart the most was when she said that she would also be there for them; Osiris knew that she would be a great role model for them, too. "They'll be lucky to have you, too," he added, his tail gently swaying behind him. "I haven't met somebody as willing to learn as you. I think that's an important ambition for them to have." Osiris could have gone on and on about how her kindness and heart, but he knew the world outside to be a cold, cruel thing. It was a delicate balance they all had to navigate; sometimes, kindness was a weakness.  

When Leta drew upon him possessively, Osiris perked. He loved being near her, but she moved with such purpose that it caught him off balance this time. Osiris looked at her intently and nodded in agreement as she spoke. "No," he agreed, pressing his nose against her forehead. The moment was brief, though, as she stood and danced a few steps away. He stood, following her lead. 

Osiris followed as Leta tripped over her words, and soon enough, she arrived at the root of her nervousness. She wanted to know if he wanted to be her boyfriend. Osiris swallowed hard, feeling his throat pinch. This wasn't the way that he wanted it all to play out; he had been slowly building up the courage to say something. 

Still, despite the circumstances, he couldn't deny her. Osiris would have been a fool to reject her for the sake of his ego. 

"I'm glad that you said something," he acknowledged, taking a step towards her, standing taller than before. "I ... have been thinking of ways to bring it up. I've been talking to my family about how to go about this." Truth be told, they were already acting as though they were in a committed relationship. They just lacked the proper titles. 


Osiris knew that he had to do this properly; he had a plan. "Yes, of course ... but, uh, can you excuse me for a second? I have something for you." When she agreed, he retreated into the den. He rooted around in their nest until he found a stone. It was small, delicate, but had strings of ink wrapped around it. Somehow, it reminded him of her. 

He brought the present to her and presented it at her paws before taking a step back. "I ... found this for you," he said, meeting her gaze as he took a step back. "It reminded me of us, and I figured that you would like it, too." 

"I wanted to ask you by giving this to you, and I was building up the courage to do so." Leta had been brave, and Osiris was proud of her. Now, it was his turn to be brave. He sucked in a breath. 

"Leta, will you be my girlfriend?"

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Leta listened, smiling. She would definitely be joining his siblings-to-be on their lessons, that's how much she enjoyed learning. And Hydra's instruction... that was important to her, too. She was the strongest woman out there, and while Leta was unsure she would ever be as capable as her... she would become capable enough to defend them all. 

Her ears backturned as he followed after her, and Leta listened as he mentioned his happiness that she had said something. Or, gladness. She looked back to him now, and as he mentioned speaking to his family about it... Leta was both horrified and greatly pleased. It was one of the things she loved—

Whatwasthat?

Yes, she thoroughly enjoyed that about him, his closeness to his family. She could understand why, and felt loyal to them for seeing all that they had created within their family but also... all that they had rebuilt here. Something to come home to; somewhere safe.  But horrified because she had been the topic of conversation, and now she wanted details... no, no she did not, better to not get those, right? 

And then he asked to be excused, and Leta made to follow him, confusion on her features as she watched him walk away. To herself, Leta thought with wide eyes, way to leave me hanging! Hello! Talked to them and they said.... or, no, no, IIIII said...!! What a cliff hanger! She stood there, paw hovering, but he had only gone into the den, not very far at all, she could wait... and soon enough, out he came with a stone in tow. A stone she couldn't properly see until he placed it down. 

As he described it, it only seemed to grow more beautiful. A little weepy eyed, Leta seemed to stall for a second as her brain windows hard rebooted; and then she looked to him, a wet smile on her face. Sure, they had acted the part, but the words had never been said. And Leta couldn't very well act like a girlfriend herself in not knowing she was one, either, and now... 

“Yes,” she answered softly, and then a little louder, “yes!” taking a step toward him and pressing her nose against his own. This time, not stumbling in the process; her limbs complied with her will, and she moved to press a kiss against his muzzle to boot.
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"Yes," Leta answered, and Osiris's heart began to soar. He had never felt anything like this; it was a sense of completeness, as though there had been a piece of him that had been missing. "Yes!" she then repeated, taking a step forward. As their noses touched, Osiris felt his heart slow, and his emotional baggage began to unpack. This was not the end all be all to his troubles, but it helped lighten the weight of the past few months. For the first time since returning, Osiris felt like he had won. 

Osiris pulled away briefly to take in the moment; the wetness of her fur, the shine in her hazel eyes, and her smile. Anything felt possible when she looked at him the way she was. 

"You make me so happy," he breathed, closing his eyes and pressing his cheek to hers. "I'll do anything for you, Leta, to make you the happiest woman in the world." Osiris never told a lie; he would uphold his vow until the end of time. 

He kissed her then, pulling back so that he could nose her every so often between his pecks.

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She thrilled at this all, the unexpected (for her) development that he was, in fact, her boyfriend... well, as of today. Officially. 

And to his words, Leta laughed. “You do enough,” she breathed. Osiris made her very happy, too; it was a big part of the reason she wanted this, wanted him. He made her feel... worthy, and capable, and strong... but also safe. And his family, too, and their support of her. “You make me so happy too,” she echoed with a wave of her tail. He seemed lighter, somehow, and she felt it too. Like she could fly. 

Leta giggled to feel his kisses, and tried to return them tit for tat even while her cheeks burned. He was kissing her! And... she was kissing him! Her boyfriend. 

“Actually, you know what would make me reaaaal happy?” She asked, looking thoughtful... but a grin broke that expression as she waited for his answer.
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“Actually, you know what would make me reaaaal happy?” Leta asked. Osiris pulled away and tilted his head. He knew that he could not read her mind, and so he asked, "What?" 

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“A stag hunt,” she said, knowing it was his favorite. “We should see if there's any nearby. We don't have to take 'em down, but we can maybe suss out where they're at if they're nearby,” her tail waved. It felt celebration worthy to select one of his favorite things, and by proxy something she thoroughly enjoyed too because he did. And they would get to adventure around home together. “Come on, boyfriend,” she prompted, though paused to take the gift he had given her and put it back into their den where it was clearly visible. 

That done, she raced out to lead the way with a grin plastered to her features.
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"A stag hunt," Leta said. Osiris smiled, knowing that she suggested it because it was his favorite. He leaned over and gently nipped at her chin as a boyish smile spread across his lips. "That sounds like a good plan," he agreed, pulling away as his tail began to wag. Osiris hadn't been confident that they'd be able to bring a stag down by themselves, so he thought that tracking one down seemed like a better plan. 

Osiris lept after Leta when she prompted him. "Coming, girlfriend!" he replied, his voice lifting happily. Whether or not they ended up finding what they sought, he knew that it would be a good time regardless. 

Leta was his girlfriend—it'd take a while for Osiris to comprehend that one of his dreams had come true. He chased after her, still in disbelief.

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