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He helped the kids? That sounded like fun. Raquel could honestly say that she liked kids. Most of them anyway. She hoped that some day, after becoming a female Alpha and finding a mate that was her equal - or better - that she could have kids. She didn't mind what they were, but she would probably prefer having two boys. Or an older boy and a younger girl. She'd say so he could protect her, but if she ended up anything like her, she wouldn't want others helping her - or need it. When Darren went on to speak about some races he used to participate in, she raised a brow. She didn't picture him as the racing type. When he told her he had a Beta to look after the parts that he was no longer to do any longer. Then he told her he didn't get to drive often, so today was pretty special. "Well i'm glad I could help," she told him with a smile.

When the road became empty, she noticed the mischievous glint in his eye, followed by a smile. When he told her he hoped she liked to go fast, Raquel smirked. "Fast is fun," she replied as she settled back into the chair, looking forward to it. As they picked up speed - some real speed - she couldn't keep the gleeful grin off her face. This was fun. She rarely got a chance to do anything like this. The last time it happened was with Jackson about 3 years ago. He could be an idiot on the road. He loved the thrill the speed gave him and so did Raquel. Jackson had never wanted to take her, but she'd refused to budge from the seat and threatened to follow him all day every day until he caved. It was fun to threaten her brother. But he had given in that day. And Raquel had loved every second of it.

Raquel was slightly disappointed when they had to slow down because the town was close and she glanced across at Darren. She could tell her had enjoyed that. When she looked away, the Italian restaurant, 'Tino's Little Italy' came into view and she sat up a little straighter. She'd never been here before. To be honest, without someone being with her, Raquel wasn't allowed to leave pack lands very often. The last time she had left for a long period of time was before she had moved to America. If she was honest, from what she could remember, she had had a lot more freedom when it was just her, Lark and her mother in Britain. Though, other than her pack mates, no one knew she had lived there. She only had a small British accent and unless her emotions were really heightened, barely anyone could notice it. Even Ollie frequently forgot she had an accent at times.

They soon pulled into a car park and Darren came round and opened her door. She smiled up at him and got out. He offered his arm and she didn't even hesitate to rest her hand gently in the crook of his arm before they walked into the little restaurant. They were quickly escorted to a table and given menus after they had taken their seat. When they asked what they wanted, she ordered a Penne Beef Ragu with grated cheese on top and a glass of Sprite. Once Darren ordered, she said, "thanks for bringing me here. I don't get a chance to leave very often," she flashed him a smile.
 
Darren ordered a Rigate Alfredo topped with mozzarella and grilled chicken along with a glass of water. Having cut sodas out a long time ago, he honestly didnt drink anything else aside from water, milk, orange juice, and occasionally sweet tea. He leaned back and got comfortable in his chair before looking around. The place had not changed since his last visit a couple years back. the walls were mosaic designs of Venice and other popular towns of Italy. Many of the walls had old decorative farming tools and various old style cooking utensils mounted on them with decorative olive vines making their way around fixtures and rails. A soft recording of various italian songs played in the background as waiters and waitresses made their way to various tables.

After their drinks were given to them as well as a loaf of bread with a side of olive oil for dipping, he took a sip then looked to Raquel with a curious gaze. "Hey Raquel, I remember when we spoke before you said something about not being in your pack for much longer. What did you mean by that? You really plan on leaving?" he asked her before taking another sip of water. He didnt know what reason she had for wanting to leave the pack, not many wolves really did unless it had to do with school or something. Perhaps that was the reason?
 
Nodding in thanks when their drinks were served, she took a sip and looked around the restaurant. The place was nice. It wasn't a big place and Raquel quite liked that. It meant it wouldn't get too noisy in here if the place was full. When Darren spoke to her, however, she turned her attention back to him. He wanted to know why she wanted to leave. She didn't answer for a moment as she leaned back in her chair, studying him before she gave a soft sigh. "Well," she started slowly, "yeah, I really plan on leaving," she told him, pressing her lips into a thin line for a second before continuing, "I am honestly hoping it's soon. I love my pack, don't get me wrong. My family is there and so is Ollie, but i'm not going to get anywhere by staying there. I suppose the best way to describe me is ambitious. I have plans for the future. And it's not to go to college and get a degree," she told him and watched him, gauging his reaction.

"I actually want to become an Alpha," Raquel told him honestly, "I've wanted to for quite some time now. I suppose saying that to a real Alpha makes it sound silly. But I really want to become one. I want to lead a pack, help them, teach the young. Create a place where wolves safe and that they won't be judged from where they came from and won't have to worry about whether their Alpha will be lying to them like my pack will be worrying about when Justin becomes Alpha.. And then, hopefully, find my mate one day. Someone who will be willing to stand beside me instead of expecting me to fade into the background," she told him, completely honest.

She watched Darren for a moment and sighed, "but I suppose that sounds silly to you. Probably just sounds like an idle dream that'll never come true," she planned to make it happen though. It wasn't something she was going to give up on. She was determined to make it true some day.
 
Darren listened as she spoke of her dreams to become an alpha. For a strange reason, he somewhat expected that to be her reason for leaving. He wasnt sure if it was her independent way of acting, or the way the held herself against Justin, but he felt that she didnt belong as a Beta where her seemingly natural ability to be an Alpha would be wasted. She went on to say how he being an actual Alpha, he probably thought it was an idle dream and silly to think about. He let out a small chuckle and shook his head, fixing her with a gentle smile, a look of genuine admiration in his eyes.

"Why on earth would I think that? I think you'd make a perfect Alpha. Let's face it, you're selfless, smart, honest, willing to go against those who are selfish without batting an eye. Who in their right mind would think you wouldnt make an amazing Alpha?" he said to her in response, his voice was genuine and his gaze unfaltering.

"To be honest, I have always wanted to start my own pack. Not just inherit one. I always thought that if I could start from nothing and build up my pack, that I would be worth my title of Alpha. It's funny how plans can change like that huh? Now I do whatever I can to prove that I'm not just some 'worthless pack leader'. To be honest though, I wouldnt change anything. I am proud to be leading my pack. Its just... stressful I guess." he gave a small chuckle as his eyes drifted to the table, "To be honest, its tough running it on my own... and I know itll be easier once I take a mate... but she isnt going to be of my pack. None of the women that are my age are interested in leading. They just want the perks of being the leaders mate. They have no ambition, no drive to lead others, they just... want the title I guess."

"I need someone I can count on... someone that I can happily call my equal. Someone who can love the pack as much as I do, while at the same time loving their mate the same way. Heh, now I sound like some guy off a cheesy romance flick. Sorry if I bored you" he said with an apologetic smile to her. "To tell you the truth, whoever ends up becoming your mate will be an insanely lucky wolf. I cant help but feel a little jealous."
 
Darren quickly told her that it wasn't silly, that she'd make the perfect Alpha. Raquel felt pride swell in her chest as she listened to him saying why he thought she would make a good Alpha some day. She had never thought herself as smart or selfless. Actually, she thought herself selfish to be honest. But she wasn't about to say that. When Darren went on to say he had always wished to create his own pack and not to inherit one. She liked that. It told her that he didn't like to be given things that he could instead earn. He went on to say that he liked leading his pack, but it could be stressful. His gaze drifted away and she looked down at her hands which she had placed on the table.

But when he spoke about a mate, how she wouldn't be of his pack, she looked over at him again, shifting so her elbows leaned on the table and her head rested in her hands. The girls in his pack sounded like the females in her pack. Wanted status but not responsibility. She hated those types of people. And they wouldn't be below back stabbing, lying and cheating to get there. It was disgusting.

He explained his ideal mate and she couldn't help but notice his desires for a mate was exactly like hers. But then he apologized and she shook her head quickly. Then when he said anyone who ends up being her mate would be lucky, she smiled. But then he told her he'd feel a little jealous and her eyes widened slightly and she blushed. she ducked her head, feeling a little embarrassed. "Uh, no, um.." she quickly shut up when she realized she wasn't forming coherent, English words. She glanced up at him under her lashes a little while later. "Um.. Thank you.. The same goes for you," she told him before she looked over at him again, "You're an amazing Alpha. You only want the best for your pack and your learning what ever you can to do that. I'm going to be a little envious.. Your mate will be very lucky to have you.." she told him, feeling flustered by her confession.
 
When she became flustered by his own confession, he couldnt help but smile a little. He meant every word that he said, it wasnt every day you come across someone like her. Of course he had his crushes, girls that he had admired before, but they were either just far fetched puppy crushes or they turned out to not be how he had thought of them, so that feeling never really stuck. However when it was her turn to confess her envy, his own face succumbed to a blush as well, he brought a hand up to nervously run through his hair as he replied;

"Oh shoot, I'm nothing that special, hehe..."

A minute or two passed and soon the waiter arrived with their food, placing the plates in front of them. His stomach gave a low growl as the scent of the dish came to his nose, and he truly could not speak until he took that first bite. It was delicious, everything fresh and the chicken tenderly cooked. He gave a happy sigh as memories of coming here as a cub came to him.

After a bit, he got the courage to talk once again as he looked at Raquel, "By the way, to be honest you didn't upset me when you asked about my dad. It's just... been some time that I had really gotten to speak about him. Well, about either parent. I honestly appreciate you asking." he finished before taking another bite of his food. After a minute, he became curious about a certain detail, and he looked up and asked;

"Feel free to let me know if I am crossing a boundary, but I have been curious. If you are planning to leave the pack soon, why do you waste your time lecturing Justin? I mean, I saw you a lot today scolding him, but he doesnt really seem to care all that much. Why do you do that?" For someone like Justin, he just didnt seem like the kind who changes just because someone scolds him, so he was curious as to why she kept doing so. Was it just her Alpha like attitude trying to get him to straighten up?
 
When Darren blushed and ran a nervous hand through his hair and told her she was nothing special, Raquel smiled. It was a relief to know she wasn't the only one to be flustered by such a confession. She liked that. It made her feel more comfortable. Their food soon came and she smiled. Hers was placed in front of her and she glanced at Darren for a moment before she took a bite. It was delicious. The beef was tender and the pasta was cooked to perfection. The silence between them was comfortable and she enjoyed it as she continued eating her food. A couple minutes later, Darren spoke again, saying she hadn't upset him when she asked about his dad. She couldn't help but give a small sigh of relief at that. He explained it had just been some time since he had spoken about them.

Raquel gave a gentle smile when he said that he appreciated her asking. "Well, i'm glad I didn't upset you or asking, then," she told him before she took another bite. But a minute later, he asked why she bothered with Justin, that he had seen her scolding him a lot today. She thought for a moment.

"I suppose I should probably say it's because I hope he could change if someone steers him in the right direction, but..." Raquel shook her head slightly, "there's no hope for him. He's useless and I am definitely going to be gone before he becomes Alpha. He'll make my life misery if I don't," she said with a shrug, "but, the reason I tell him off, is mostly because I can," she chuckled, "he acts great around Alpha Bryce, but without him - well, you saw. He's always given me grief and to be honest, yesterday was actually the first time I could do that. I figured out that that was the reason he always made sure I couldn't go to meetings or anything," she told him and took another bite.

"It's childish, but Justin deserves to be put in his place some times. And if i'm the only one willing to do it, why not?" Raquel said and sighed before she took another bite of her meal.
 
Darren listened to her explanation about hoping to change Justin by steering him in the right path, but that was obviously not going to work. He was a selfish, self centered Alpha in his eyes, and nothing short of a miracle would change that. He admired how she tried to change that, but even with her qualities, in the end, she was still a Beta, and the sad truth was, if an Alpha didnt want to listen to a Beta, they wouldnt. It was probably a good thing that she was leaving, considering how Darren had seen Justin glare at her, it was safe to say he would not be kind to her.

He ate the last few bites of his lunch and leaned back with a satisfied smile. His thoughts drifted to what else he could do. Training the cubs was really the only thing to do today, and the rest of the pack were off doing their own thing. He just wondered how long she would be gone before her parents would notice her absence. He figured her father did not know about this, and though he liked Darren plenty, was probably not too keen on him spending time like this with his daughter.

"Hey Raquel, how long will you be able to hang out today? I mean... I-I dont want your parents to worry. But i-if you can still hang out... I'd love to spend more time with you" he said nervously, his hands nervously fiddling with his silverware as he did so.
 
Raquel finished her own lunch not long after Darren and she grasped her drink and took a long drink. But then he asked her how long she'd be able to hang out today. She glanced over at him as he spoke, saying he didn't want her parents to worry, but if she could, he'd love to spend some more time with her. Placing her drink back on the table gently, she waved him off and leaned back in her chair. "Nah, it's fine. I've probably got until around 7 or so," she told him with a smile. She watched as he fiddled with his silverware and she could tell that Darren was a sweet guy. Nervous and unsure, but definitely sweet.

"Ollie was totally excited for me to go on this date," she paused for a moment after she said that and blushed lightly before she continued on, "so if my parents are wondering where I am, he'll cover for me," she told him and thought of her excited Ollie had been for her and knew how he'd hound her for every little bit of info tonight. "I should introduce you to him some day. I just know he'll love you. And there aren't many people who are actually capable of disliking him. Though I will tell you now, he can be pretty full on. And he may just try and paint your nails," she told him and laughed softly.

She looked down at her and Darren's finished meals and then looked back over at Darren himself. "So, what else would you like to do today?" she asked with with a tentative smile.
 
Seven huh? That was perfect! That gave them about four hours before they even needed to make their way back home. He thought a moment about what to do that was in or near this town, then an imaginary light bulb went off in his mind. He thought back to the old territory that his parents had reign over whenever they had first some here to Wyoming. it had only been a short few years before they changed territories, but he still remembered it pretty well.

She went on to talk about her friend Ollie once more, and the way she explained him made him sound like a pretty cool guy. Wait, paint his nails??? Is he... oh so his door swung that way. Not that there was any problem with that, Darren just didnt know. He couldnt help but chuckled a little bit before he replied;

"He sounds like fun, definitely someone worth meeting if he has you as a friend. Though I may have to decline painting nails." he said with a chuckle as he finished the last of his drink. The waiter came and gave Darren the tab, which he promptly went to pay, covering both the meals as well as the tip. She went on to ask him what else he would like to do, and a smile came across his face. "Come with me" he said happily. He led her to the car and opened the door for her. Once they were buckled in, he made his way to the nearby forest near the edge of the county. He parked and opened her door once more and backed up a few paces before saying, "This is the old territory that my parents had when we first got here. They ended up moving to your county when they met Alpha Bryce, seeing it as a good opportunity to have a neighboring pack. I havent been here in years, so I thought I could maybe show you around my old stomping grounds."

With that, he made his way behind a large group of trees. There, he proceeded to change out of his clothes so he could change into his wolf form. He closed his eyes, and slowly he began to change his form, fur slowly growing over him as his body changed into the form of a Grey Wolf, only twice the size of a normal one. He gathered his clothes in his muzzle and made his way back into view. He looked at Raquel, his hazel green eyes now a golden color as he patiently waited for her to change as well.
 
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Raquel couldn't help but grin when he said he'd like to meet him, but would decline having his nails painted. She couldn't blame him. Ollie constantly tried to paint her nails and more often than not, it would result in nail polish all over their faces, clothes and arms instead of their designed place. She remembered it had once gone all through Ollie's hair and he made such a fuss. Wailed like a banshee as he raced to the shower and got in, clothes and all. Raquel had laughed so much her stomach ached and she had gotten a stitch in her side. Ollie hadn't been too happy with her for a couple days after that.

When the waiter came with the tab and Raquel started to reach for the money she had in her pocket, but Darren paid the whole thing before she had a chance to even get it out. She gave a soft sigh, but didn't protest against it. It wasn't worth it and she hated making a scene. He told her to come with him and she quickly followed him to the car, smiling in thanks when he opened the door for her and she slid inside. It didn't take long before they stopped and looked around, curious as to where they were. She got out, muttering, "thanks," to him as he opened her door and she looked over at him as he explained where they were. His old territory, huh?

He said he would like to show her around and she grinned, "sounds fun," she replied just before Darren went and hid. When he came out, he was a wolf and Raquel beamed at him. His wolf was gorgeous. But that wasn't what got her excited. It was the prospect of going for a run in her wolf form. She held up a finger, "stay there," she said with a grin, "and don't look," she laughed softly and scooted around the other side of the car. She quickly pulled off her earring and bracelet and then stripped off her clothes in record time and put them in the car quickly.

She easily shifted into her wolf form - a pretty wolf with dark grey, tan brown and white fur. And bright amber eyes. She stepped out from hiding and looked over at Darren before she shook out her fur and stretched. It was good to be a wolf again. She hadn't shifted for quite a while and it was a release to change. Walking over to the other wolf, she noticed she was a couple of inches shorter than Darren. "So?" she asked through her mind link, hoping Darren had opened his to allow himself to hear and speak to her. All wolves could do it without thinking about to those in their packs, but other wolves, they had to allow to other to hear them and speak to them. "We going?" she asked him, shifting on her paws lightly. She wanted to move. She hadn't done so as a wolf for so long.
 
Darren waited patiently as she made her way to the other side of the car. He had caught a glimpse of her stripping, and quickly focused his attention elsewhere. If wolves could blush he would be beet red at this moment. He looked back when he realized she had shifted form, and was mesmerized by the look of her wolf form. She had a beautiful wolf form he had to admit. She excitedly asked if they were going to go, shifting her paws in excitement. His human mind chuckled a little before he replied;

"Try to keep up" he said just as he took off into the woods, an old trail that was difficult to find if you werent looking for it leading him onward. He didnt need to look back to know she was there, he knew she would be able to keep up. Trees blew past them as they went along in full run.

Darren loved being in his wolf form, the feeling of pure wild freedom, that he could run for ages without tiring. He just felt... right in this form, like he was meant to be on four legs and not just two. After a bit more running, he slowed down into a large clearing in the forest. The trees created a sort of dome around the clearing as sunlight filtered through the branches. A line of small cabins were seen along the border of the dome, about six in all, and ahead of that were three rows of tables, next to which were a number of grills.

Beside that was an old jungle gym, much too rusted to play on now, but back then would provide hours of entertainment to young cubs. A larger clearing in the dome was used for larger field games like football. He sat down as he caught his breath, looking over at Raquel.

"This was our main housing and gathering area. These cabins were once used for camping tourists, but were abandoned a while back like a lot of camp sites. We fixed it up and lived here for about four years."
 
When Darren challenged her to try and keep up, Raquel's tail wagged. Mere seconds later, he tore off and Raquel leapt after him, her legs carrying her quickly over the earth and quickly catching up with the male wolf. She stayed close behind him, following him without question. She enjoyed the feel of the wind in her fur and the heightened senses her wolf form gave her. She always felt comfortable as a wolf. She remembered when she was a child, Lark and her mother had an extremely hard time keeping her in her human form. School had always been torture for her and the flight to America had been agonizing. She knew the importance of not showing normal humans her wolf form, but she had found it terribly hard to stay as a human as a child. Now, she had much more control over her desires, but that didn't mean she liked going as a human for extended periods of time.

When they slowed to stop, Raquel sat on her haunches, tongue lolling out the side as she panted softly. But she was content. Happy. She looked around, studying the cabins, the grills and jungle gym as well as the large field to play sports. So this was where Darren had spent his time as a child? She looked over at him when he spoke, explaining the place had been abandoned before they had fixed it up and moved in, living here for about 4 years. She nodded and looked back at the area. "It's nice here," she said to him, "seems like you wouldn't have gotten many outside visitors then. Perfect place to shift freely," she glanced at him again before she stood up and wagged her tail lightly.

She padded closer to the area. She nosed open a cabin door that was slightly ajar and peered inside. This one had two bunk beds, a small kitchen and a small bathroom to the side. It looked like it had been cosy before the spiders had made it home and if she listened - rats, too. Snuffing at the thoughts of the large rodents, she stepped out of the cabin and looked over at Darren. "Do you like it where you are now or would you prefer to move back here?" she asked him as she walked toward him, her amber gaze curious.
 
Darren watched as Raquel nosed open one of the cabin doors. Nowadays it probably housed nothing more than spiders and mice. From the looks of everything, it had not seen another resident since he and his pack lived here. Though it just came to show just how well hidden this old place was. He had to admit if there was something he loved the most about here, is that it was easily guarded. Granted it was much smaller than their new territory, but the pack had grown since then so it fit them well. Raquel made a comment about getting a lot of opportunity to change and his wolf form let out a humored grunt.

"You can say that. To be honest, i am pretty sure more people were in wolf form than human form at a given time." he replied to her as he began to pad around the old cabins. He looked back at her as she asked him if he would ever want to come back here, and the question had made him stop to think.

Hmmm... did he want to ever come back here? Darren had never really thought of it before. To be honest, he had a lot of memories in this place, though he was more than happy in his new home.

"I like where I am now. To be honest, I wouldnt change anything. Our new territory is safe, close to a good town, a great place for our cubs to grow up. I guess if anything, this would be a good territory to reclaim should something happen to where we are now." he replied to her as he leaned back to stretch his front legs.

Thinking again, he got up and began making his way to another trail. After he was sure Raquel was following, he weaved his way along the grown over path until the came to a more open spot within the forest. In the center of this area, sat a large boulder surrounded by smaller ones, the largest boulder had a large trunk leaned against it almost like a walk path, which Darren went up immediately.

"We called this the Howling Rock. Every full moon we would come here and howl together, a group activity that we all enjoyed. This was where the cubs learned to find their howl, and as each one found theirs, we would join in. These were some of my favorite times growing up."
 
Raquel loved the sounds of what Darren said. She would've loved it here when she was younger. "Sounds fun," she murmured quietly and watched as he padded around the old cabins. She sat down and watched, curious. But he paused at her question and she flicked an ear as a fly bothered her. The last part made her feel slightly uneasy. "Well, I hope nothing happens to where you are now, " she said honestly and scraped a paw along the ground gently, watching as her claws left trails. When she looked back up, Darren was pushing himself to his paws and Raquel followed suit, figuring they were going somewhere else.

She followed after him without hesitation, weaving along the trail behind him. she looked down at the barely there path. It was now covered in grass, leaves and weeds. But she could just tell it had once been a path. They soon came to a small clearing and a large boulder sat in the middle, surrounded by smaller ones.

Watching as Darren went up the make shift ramp, Raquel canted her head for a moment before she followed him, walking up the trunk and onto the boulder. When she was beside him and listened as he spoke to her. Howling Rock, huh? Fitting. "Sounds like it was fun here. It would have been fun to spend my early childhood with a pack instead of just my mother and Lark," Raquel said lightly as she looked around. Then a thought occurred to her. He probably had no idea what she meant. She gave an amused huff and gave him a side long glance. "Ah, I lived in Britain, England, with only my mother and Lark until I was 6. Hadn't met my father or Jackson - or the rest of the pack before that. When I was 6, Lark and my mother decided I was old enough to stay in my human form during the whole plane ride. I was a terror of a child. Hated staying human," she explained. If she was human, she would've laughed.

She wagged her tail slightly at the memories of when she was a young child. Lark had constantly chased her around the house whilst Raquel had knocked everything over in her young wolf form. Neighbours had often questioned whether they had a dog as they had heard all sorts of dog-like noises.
 
So she lived in Britain huh? He honestly would not have guessed that considering that he never heard an accent from her. So Jackson and Lark were not actual twins? Now was her father her biological father? Strange, they all had a similar resemblance to one another that it was Darrens first thought to say that they were all related through blood. Guess you learn something new every day.

"I was just born a couple states from Wyoming, Being an only child, I didnt really have anyone my age to play with except for James. Even then he was four years older than me so he would go off and do all his own things when he got the chance. Cant even tell you how often I had to end up entertaining myself. Of course the majority of my time was spent in my wolf form. Hated walking on two legs." he said to Raquel. Had he been human at the time, he would have chuckled a bit. He was not about to tell her about his imaginary friend that he had till he was twelve. Some things just never needed to be revealed.

As they sat at the boulder, the sun peeked from behind a cloud that had been covering it. He looked up and closed his eyes, letting the warm light pour over him, warming his fur.

"Aside from that, I swam as often as I could. I loved swimming, still do. I could take you to the lake I swam in as a kid. That is, if you arent afraid of soaking your clothes a little bit" he said to her with a humored glint in his eyes as he looked at her.
 
Raquel looked across at Darren again as he seemed to think of something after she had told him she had lived in Britain. Then he went on to say where he had lived and how he had often entertained himself as a kid. When he said he hated walking on two legs, she shook her head lightly in amusement. Up until she was 6, she had had no one her own age to play with. Only Lark who had been 10 years older than her. Not exactly the most willing partner to play with. Well, until she was about 3, when she grip onto her legs in human form, arms wrapped around, screaming in frustration until Lark caved. Okay, so Raquel really wasn't a very good child. They had often called her Monster for good reason.

When Darren raised her nose to the sky and closed his eyes, basking in the sun, Raquel glanced over at him. He seemed completely content just taking in the sunlight. A few comfortable moments later, Darren spoke, saying he used to swim a lot. When he offered to take her there, if she was fine with getting her clothes wet, Raquel instantly tensed. She quickly looked away, a sliver of a memory coming to the front of her mind.

She had panicked, arms thrashing in the water uselessly. Terror seized her, threatening to release the stale air that was already in her oxygen deprived lungs. If she exhaled, she would inhale in reflex. She knew that. Then everything would be lost. She'd truly be dead.

Raquel shook her head to clear the memory, hoping that Darren hadn't seen the terror in her eyes. She quickly blinked it away and looked across at him. "No, it's fine. Maybe another time," she told him lightly, trying to play it off like she hadn't just remembered a part of the most terrifying moment in her life.
 
Darren couldnt help but notice her tensing up at the mention of swimming. For a second she seemed to have gone into some kind of trance, as if she were remembering an old memory, and by the looks of it, not a good one. She shook her head and tried to play it off as casual, though he could read the fearful look in her eyes like she were an open book. Something must have happened as a kid to make her act this way, because as far as he knew, Raquel was not afraid of much.

His eyes were curious, though apologetic at mentioning it. Had he have known, he would not have brought it up as an option. He of course had his fair shares of fears, but he was wondering what happened to her to turn her against water. Had she never learned to swim at all?

"If... you dont mind me asking... do you... not like to swim? Or did something happen? I understand if I am crossing a boundary, so let me know if I ever am" he said to her as he scraped his claws along the large stone nervously. He was greatly enjoying himself with her, and was hoping that he was not ruining his time with her.
 
Raquel saw the curious, but apologetic look in his gaze and she knew she hadn't hidden it as well as she would have liked. Drats. At that moment, she prepared for his questions. Nobody in her pack realized she was scared of water. Swimming had never been a major pass time within her pack, so she was easily able to play it off when anyone asked if they wanted to swim. She rarely had flash backs from that day, so they didn't notice anything. But she did today. And Darren had noticed. She blamed the memory on the fact that she had had so much fun today, she had let her guard down a bit. She sighed under her breath and glanced over at Darren again.

It didn't take long before he asked if she didn't like to swim, or if something had happened to her. But he quickly said she didn't have to say anything. She watched the man for a while before she hunched her shoulder a little bit. "If you don't mind.." she started, "I'd prefer not to talk about it right now," she hoped he wouldn't get upset over that fact. She stood up and instead of taking the make shift ramp down, she jumped off, landing with a soft thud. She looked up at him, amber eyes bright, almost pleading. "I've never told anyone about it - nobody knows.. And, well... I'm not entirely sure how to tell you," she explained to him quietly, "but.. I will try and tell you about it some day. When i'm ready," she promised him earnestly.

"Though.." Raquel said slowly, "if you want to know, you will need to continue going on dates with me," she watched him for his reaction, her tail wagging happily. If she had been human right now, she would have had a huge grin on her face. Okay, so sometimes she could be audacious. And at that moment, she was. So be it. She wanted to go on another date with Darren, and that was just her unique way of saying it. Raquel just hoped that he felt the same way as she.
 
As he kind of expected, she was not quite ready to tell him what her issue was with water, but he respected that she was not ready. She went on to explain as she came down from the boulder that no one knew about her fear, and that it would be difficult to explain to him. He let out a silent sigh of relief that she would be willing to tell him at some point, so at least that told him that he didnt ruin their date. She had obviously perked up when she told him that if he would ever know, he would have to take her out on more dates. He planned to do so anyway whether he would be told or not. If he were human, he would have smiled and chuckled at her comment. Instead, he made his way down the boulder, landing in the same fashion she did and padded over to her, gently brushing up against her and letting his muzzle just lightly brush against her own as he walked on ahead.

"Dont worry" he said teasingly, There will be plenty more dates after this"

He knew she was being audacious, and you know what? By god he was going to be so as well. He liked to be the one to tease every now and then, and he saw this to be the perfect opportunity. He looked back at her, his golden eyes shining with amusement as he sat on his haunches.

"Its getting close to the evening, I think i should start taking you back so your folks wont miss you." he said as he gave his coat a good shake. Immediately he sprang to all fours, his tail stuck out as he looked at her with a competitive gaze. "Race you back" was all he said before tearing off for the path once again.
 
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