Rougaru had fears. As much as the wolf tried to deny them, even the carnal creature tried in vain to hide the glimmer of fear behind those fierce yellow eyes. The silver bay stallion did his best to remain aloof, unchanged and undaunted. But deep down, there were fears that kept his already crowded mind wandering in the abyss of the shadows. Many fears were those common to leaders, worried of those that had instilled their care into his own. Grier, Pidgeon, Calypso, Monster, Vanya and the foals, all of them were under his care and it was their safety that he held close. It was his responsibility to keep rouges at bay, prevent challengers and in turn ensure that their life was lived in sustainable ease and bliss. The wolf was quick to remind him that it was their shared fierceness that kept most challengers at bay, but even trouble could appear in the form of those he was sworn to protect. Valka had proven that just as Celestria before her, she was determined to be free of command. While Celestria had done her bidding to gain favor, Valka had only wished for freedom, of which Rougaru was secretly glad to give her. He was not devoid of emotion as much as he might appear to be. He had not missed the sweat stained patched upon her shaggy form or the near constant manner in which she hide among the shadows and waded through the cool surf. She was not built for the humid weather that made the jungle herd sleek and thin skinned even in the short winter months. Her proposal, while infuriating to his own pride, was one he gladly accepted for it prevented him from ruining a kinship with his lifelong ally.



However it was Zjeena that he and the wolf feared for in earnest. The years of battling with Liland had worn her tough skin deep. Like a mad creature the gray stallion gnawed at the shallow wounds upon her heart until they burned with a fever that festered until finally she fell. For a time Rougaru feared that the kind hearted stoic mare that he had come to love and adore with every fiber of his soul was lost to the depths of darkness that not even the wolf could retrieve her from. He had feared that the whites of her eyes would forever hold venom upon all she gazed upon. Even when finally she returned to him, there is still a scar upon her skin, something far less visible than the multitude of scars that littered his own body. However even in her hidden wars, she carried herself with pride.



Ears flicker atop his thick cranium as the silver haired stallion let his soft eyes settle upon the tawny colored queen. He had feared her loss when the twin foals she bore for Liland began to fade away. He had not missed the desperation in her eyes as she watched them fail to adapt to life beyond the comforts of her womb. He had stood by silently, letting her mourn their still bodies in the silence that she needed. He had watches, and every ounce of his body waited for her own to follow the foals into oblivion despite the ache of his own heart. He knew that even the love shared between she and Monster might not be enough to pull her from this lull. Each day she spent her time wandering the shores, her head low bent and dishearten. However the foals that appeared at her side one morning were like a deep drink of fresh water amid a sea of ocean salt. He had seen a fire renew itself within her, a drive for life restored and he found himself thanking the gods and whatever other fates had seen fit to intervene. No longer did he fear her suffering, but instead looked forward to the years of peace that were surely upon them.



She met him with soft eyes, the dark amber that made his heart beat a strengthened rhythm. The warm smile upon her lips beckoned him closer and he finds himself drawn to her side. Instinctively he reaches for her, whiskered lips teasing the straying strands of her salt and pepper mane, inhaling the sweet aroma that belonged to no other. His Zjeena. She cast a sideways glance towards the small formed nestled in the dense foliage at the base of a sheltering tree. His own emerald green eyes travel to the slumbering bundles, his smile softened. ”Alastor and Sybil… unique names… the defender and the prophet if my memory is correct. No better names for such rare and unexpected gifts.” he mused, warmth in his words as he blinked silently at the quiet bundles. He would meet them properly soon enough but for now he savored the moment to be alone with their newfound mother.



His muscular frame presses against her own, savoring the sleek softness of her tawny golden coat against his own and the electric current that came with the touch of their flesh. A soft sigh of relief escapes his lungs as the chocolate colored stallion gazed into her own. ”I have no doubt that you will impart into them the wisdom that has made you who you are…. Their mother. I shall do what I can to do the same… as their father… if you will allow me.” he murmurs rubbing his thick skull against the gentle slope of her neck.