Once they were outside, Azriel helped Dahlia mount Storm before he got on . It was the first time Dahlia would be riding a horse with someone else since she was a child, and part of her was excited for the thrill of not having to lift a finger and still enjoy the ride.
"Hold on tight." Azriel whispered into her ear before kick starting Storm. He started off fast but the speed slowly descended as they went on ahead.
"I thought you would go faster than this." Dahlia started the conversation.
"I planned on it but then opted for a more romantic ride… Do you like it?"
"I do." Dahlia closed her eyes as she leaned back and rested her back on Azriel's chest.
Aside from Storms hooves crashing on the rough terrain and the occasional chatting from the two, the woods were silent.
The calming rythm created by the whooshing of the tree leaves against the harsh wind, the glowing moonlight casting a spotlight on the two, and the minty fresh air in the atmosphere that made each breath magical were exactly what Dahlia needed to relax.
While she was getting sold and having her life snatched away from her, Dahlia had lost all hope of ever finding her mate and at one point she lost the will to continue living but with a fortunate turn of events things were looking up for her. The evil that was planned against her ended up working in her favor.
"What are you thinking about?" Azriel asked after noticing Dahlia had been silent for most of the ride.
"Life." Dahlia replied with her eyes still closed, "I'm just thinking of everything that has happened in my life this far and how fascinating it is that I met my mate in such a way."
"How did you think you'd meet your mate?" Azriel asked, wanting to know more of her life.
"For a while now I had given up on the idea of finding my mate. It just felt so unreachable for me so I decided to face reality and stop dreaming."
Azriel wanted to ask her what made her give up on finding her mate but he decided against it. 'I'll take things slow.' He thought.
"How about you? How did you think you'd find your mate?" Dahlia threw his question back at him.
"I didn't think about it because it wasn't something I could control. I guess my reasoning was weather or not I found my mate, I still had a duty to perform as alpha and in the end my responsibility comes before my emotions."
"That sounds lonely." Dahlia whispered.
"It was, but atleast I found you."
Dahlia understood the undertone to what he was trying to say. If he didn't find his mate on time, as alpha, he would be forced to marry anyone else for the sake of the kingdom. She was just glad to have found him before he gave himself to someone else.
"I shall be going somewhere tommorow and won't be back until a week later."
"A week? Is everything okay?" Dahlia craned her neck back to face Azriel.
"Everything's fine, there's just some disturbance at the boarder that needs my attention."
"Alright… Thank you for telling me." Dahlia spoke as she settled herself back on his chest and closed her eyes.
"Well it wouldn't be nice of me to just leave without saying a word," Azriel smiled, "We're here."
Dahlia opened her eyes to find that they were at a denser part of the woods with less trees and rocks. "I thought we were heading to the cliff." She asked, wondering why he brought them there.
"I have something else planned." Azriel got down and helped Dahlia down too, "Do you know why we use horses despite being wolves?"
"...For transportation?" Dahlia was confused by the perculiar question Azriel was asking her out of the blue.
"Thats partly true, although wolves are faster than horses… It's because we're getting weaker. As time passes, most wolves lose the patience to wait for their mate, the end up with other wolves and the most common option, humans. As a result of that nine out ten babies born are unable to shift into wolf form. We're getting weaker and only pure blooded wolves are able to shift so we just end up adapting to the human way of living."
"I get it now..." Dahlia ahed. She knew that there was a decline in the number of wolves that were able to shift but she didn't think it was as a result of interbreeding with humans.
"That's why I brought you here," Azriel continued, "Why don't we run through the woods together?"
"What…" Dahlia twisted her eyebrow in confusion, "What?!" She exclaimed once realization of what he meant dawned on her.
"We're just running around in our wolf form, nothing serious." Azriel chuckled at her exagerated reaction, "I'll turn back while you change so don't worry." He walked toward a tree and hid behind it.
"O- okay." Dahlia replied once she was sure his back was turned to her and he wasn't peeping.
With hastened movements, she took of her garments and set them gently on the grass . "I'm shifting now so you do the same." She called out to him from where he was hiding before shifting.
A few bone cracking moments later, Dahlia was in her wolf form with her white as snow fur dancing with the movements of the wind.
Shortly after, a shadow emerged from behind the tree Azriel was at and a domineering black wolf stood in his place. His thick dark fur was a striking contrast to Dahlia's pale one.
They stared at each other for a brief moment, taking in their wolf forms until Dahlia took a step forward and started running through the woods with Azriel right on her tail.
Dahlia who hadn't shifted and ran freely in a while was so excited and filled with a large dose of adrelanin that she ended up overtaking Azriel most of the time.
They ran and chased each other through the woods for as long as their strength allowed them to until they collapsed on the grass, panting and trying to catch their breath.
By the end of their long night, the two said their goodbyes and parted ways, prepared not to see each other for the next seven days.