[star478]

"Ah....N-not right at this moment. Maybe later?" Leo said with a blush when Brayden put his arms around Leo. Leo wanted to stay in Brayden's embrace a little longer, but Damian's--the Alpha's--cabin intrigued him. A haven for those pregnant? Did that include him, a human, as well seeing as he's, well, pregnant? Only one way to find out.... "The Alpha's cabin intrigues me. How/why is it a haven for those pregnant? Does that include me now despite being a human? Well, a human....tansitioning to a werewolf if I remember correctly from earlier."

[SRuiz]

"Not necessarily a haven, but the safest of the safe. An Alpha is quite a dangerous beast to fight, even among the best of hunters. They are capable of reducing a platoon of beings apart alone if trained enough. They get really protective of their own pack especially, which includes you now." Brayden did joke about the springs of course as he had more than enough time to relax with Leo hopefully. Instead, he led the way towards the exit with a bright source of light peering through. "His place, places actually, have a lot of interesting topics if you're into reading."

Brayden led them up the stairs as the cool breeze crept through. They were in even more colder territory being closer to the mountains. What probably seemed like a brief minute or so to Leo were in actuality close to 30. The magic of the cave to those that knew it were vast. Humans could take the same path and be lost for days, years in fact if they weren't with something supernatural. Among the large amount of snow stood a large cabin, three stories exact. Brayden's feet plowed through the thick snow as he led Leo towards it.

[star478]

"I see," Leo said and followed Brayden towards an exit. "That means if my family does try to kill me and/or the babies, both you and him will protect me, correct?"

Leo had to squint a bit as they neared the light before emerging back out into the winter night, now closer to the mountains than they were before.

Once he cleared the spots out of his eyes, he looked at the cabin in awe.

"Woah....," Leo said in awe. "It's bigger than even our cabins!"

Leo then looked over to Brayden, remembering something he had said on the way here.

"What readings exactly?" Leo asked. When Brayden didn't reply but instead began going towards the cabin, Leo had to quickly run after Brayden....well, as fast as the snow would allow. How much longer he'll be able to run period is yet to be determined.

[SRuiz]

Brayden nodded.

"That's exactly what it means, though you're mine and that's my priority more so than it is his." He was a bit oblivious to his words, so instead of reflecting on them, he turned to see Leo attempting to trek through the snow, something he should have known to be a bit difficult without the right equipment for a human at least. He brought the other man up into his arms, carrying him across the field as he neared the house. With them being in the cave for so long, no doubt noon was now in it's wake.

"He has a library and beastiary. I know the dragons had intrigued you a bit. Perhaps reading up on them while I fix lunch or something would be interesting?" He simply opened the door, setting his mate down to the warm room as he looked around. Damian of course was there as they were all heading in the same direction, but if he had already left was to be determined as his scent lingered here and.there granted it was his house for the season.

[star478]

Leo chuckled.

"Of course it's your priority," Leo said with a blush. He blushed even more when Brayden picked Leo up. He wanted to snuggle right there in Brayden's arms....but thought against it and blushed even brighter. "Th-thanks." He could have made it, but he won't protest help from Brayden. Not one bit.

"Uh, yeah," Leo said as he was set down inside the cabin. "That sounds like a good idea."

He then placed a hand on his belly, suddenly realizing, for what seems like the first time, that he was hungry. Starving actually.

"Lunch sounds like a really, really good idea too," Leo said then chuckled more to himself than anyone else. "Show me to the library and I'll read up on the dragons more while you fix something to eat."

[SRuiz]

"Sweet" Brayden merely pointed upstairs as he made his way into the large kitchen. "Just merely go up the other flight and it's practically the third floor."

He opened the cabinets, examining what was available before opening the fridge and large freezer. He grinned when he stared at the blood of fresh beef resting under the thin plastic that kept it bound. He would make steaks and perhaps some kind of desert. With an appetite Leo displayed already, he was certain the male would not turn any of it down. He rinsed off the pans and pulling out pots for vegetables to go with it, beginning to let the ideas play out into his mind for a well crafted scheme that would perhaps make culinary artists blush.

[star478]

Leo blinked as he watched Brayden point upstairs before heading into the kitchen.

"Uh...okay?" Leo said and turned to face the stairs. Shrugging, thinking that it was alright since he's now a part of the pack and thus Damian wouldn't mind, he began to make his way up the stairs to where the library was.

On the way, he passed the bestiary Brayden had mentioned earlier but went right past it with naught but a glance.

Eventually, practically out of breath (he assumed it had something to do with his pregnancy since he already had a relatively small buldge in his middle that is most definitely bound to get bigger as time goes on), he finally reached the door to the library and, on the other side, was shelves upon shelves--presumably--of books with information that is normally just fictionallized, made up. After he caught his breath, he approached the door and, with a steadying sigh, opened the door and walked in.

[SRuiz]

Brayden literally meant it to be the third floor. The library took up almost everything the floor had to offer, the only possible room left being an office for Damian to do Lord knows what in there, evident by it's tightly locked silver-framed door. Among the second floor lied the various guest rooms and other accommodations. The first floor only bared two rooms on each side while the basement floor had the Master Bedroom itself. It was an interesting place to live in amidst temperatures most foul to humans who could not withstand zero degrees.

Brayden busily worked away for an hour and two minutes. Within that timeframe, the werewolf had crafted meals that would probably serve a small party of friends and family, but creatures like him and Leo had the habit of requiring more. Everything felt perfect for him as he set the table up, almost like he was on a date. It was something he did for his fiancee every once in a while and as he thought about it, he merely reflected on what he had done. It was a mere coincidence of course, at least he would assume. Walking up the stairs, he found his way on the third floor, checking in on Leo.

[star478]

As Leo walked into the library, he looked around in awe. Of course, he saw the silver-framed door and its lock so he decided to just leave it alone. Damian probably had secrets in there he wasn't ready to spill to Leo yet. Probably will never spill them either.

Once he had gotten over his amazement, he remembered why he was here and immediately went to search for the books he was looking for, which was definitely a chore and a half with how big the library was. Eventually, he finally found the books he was interested and grabbed them off the shelf....after a slight hesitation of uncertainty. He then sat on the floor near where he had found the books so he could easily remember where they belong and put them back. Once he got comfortable, he picked up the first book and began reading.

He was so engrossed in the books that he didn't hear Brayden coming up the stairs.

[SRuiz]

Brayden walked around the place before finding Leo otherwise relaxed on the floor with a set of books. While he thought he could leave him.alone for the time being, he did not go through all the trouble of cooking just to let it cool over. He could read when they were done or perhaps take the books along with him. It was not like Damian would truly miss them for a few days.

"I suppose lunch is ready" he chuckled only after clearing his throat.

[star478]

Leo practically jumped, almost dropping and loosing his place in his current book he was reading, when Brayden not only cleared his throat but said something as well.

"S-sorry," Leo stammered as he blushed while he quickly caught the book that almost fell, making sure it was at the correct place he was at. "I get so engrossed in books if I'm interested in it that I not only loose track of time but block everything else out too."

Leo chuckled to himself as he stood, gathering the books up in order to place back on the shelves.

"Give me one moment while I put these back. Don't want Damian pissed at me, the newbie."

[SRuiz]

Brayden chuckled.

"It's thoughtful that you care about order, but none of his books are." It was the honest truth, even for someone as vicious as Damian. "Probably because he knows what he's looking for without the need to look at the alphabets. If it makes you feel less of a noob or something though" he merely teased.

When he was ready, Brayden followed after him towards the dining area. He walked towards the fridge and cabinet to find something suiting for the food.

"Steak sauce? Wine or some other beverage?" He merely asked, making sure he got the right things.

[star478]

Leo blinked.

"Oh. A-alright," he said and set the books on the floor. It was mainly so that he'd remember where they were. That and the next time he'd come here, he'd probably be heavily pregnant. Then again.....He changed his mind and placed the books on a shelf that 1) isn't that high and 2) isn't too low.

As if on cue, Leo's belly grumbled once finished and so he hurried downstairs, hoping that Brayden would just follow this time.

He quickly sat at the table and, not seeing any drinks but seeing glasses to hold the drinks, he waited for Brayden to catch up. While Leo waited, he took a deep breath to smell the food and let it out with a long, hungry sigh.

Leo's question startled Leo, causing him to blink and look to the fridge--the general location where Brayden's voice was coming from. SOmehow Brayden arrived without making any sound. Should probably get used to it. Besides, Leo will probably be doing the same thing eventually.

"Uh, steaksauce," Leo said with a blush. "As for the beverage, a non-alcoholic beverage would be nice seeing as I'm pregnant you know. Don't want to harm the babies."

Leo then smiled as he looked around, finally noticing the table setup causing him to blush a bit more.

"The food smells really, really good," he said. "And I like the table setup. Very romantic."

'Maybe he's starting to get used to me replacing his late girlfriend,' Leo thought to himself. It was definitely a long shot, but at least Brayden didn't treat Leo like he was just some pawn in one big game of chess or something like that. At least, that's what it feels like now coming from his family.

[SRuiz]

"You'll find that alcohol doesn't bother the supernatural as opposed to mortals" Brayden merely chuckled. The kids would be alright no matter how much he drunk liquor and smoked, if Leo was into those kind of things. Still, he would respect his mate and settle on the Ginger Ale Damian had in the cabinets. Picking up the steak sauce and glasses of ice, he made his way to the table. "Thanks. Glad you like it. I was in the mood I suppose."

He twisted the bottle cap open, pouring the drinks into the glasses before taking a seat, staring at the knife and fork, uttering a few words of prayer to himself before eating. He was raised human, so there was no need to turn his back on his former life, no matter how long ago that was. With that in mind, he cut into the medium rare meat a bit slowly, raising it to his mouth as he ate it slowly to savor part of the blood.

"So what were you reading?" He merely asked with a clear mouth.

[star478]

"Oh. Well, I'm still new to this," Leo said as Brayden poured the ginger ale for him.

Leo tilted his head to the side a bit at Brayden's actions before shrugging. Brayden can do whatever he wants. Doesn't mean Leo will copy all the time.

Leo grabbed his knife and fork, poured some steak sauce in an empty spoy on his plate, cut a piece of the steak off, dipped it in the steak sauce, and then ate it.

"Mmm. This is good," Leo said once he had an open mouth. As he was cutting his next piece of steak, he answered Brayden's question, "Oh just some books on the dragons. The real dragons--that are reclusive--are definitely different from the dragons portrayed in fantasy novels and movies."

[SRuiz]

"It's okay. It was something I merely thought to toss in if you were wondering why I would even suggest such a thing" he chuckled nervously. Perhaps there was a book on parenting in that library. He felt like he was doing bad a bit in effectively bonding with his mate and possibly children. "I'm glad you like it."

"I see...I only read but a few. Apparently one of them was so large that when it died, it became a mountain as opposed to returning. I think it's a bit funny how even the supernatural and mythological of figures still can't comprehend dragons either. I suppose we're a step-up to the fantasy and fairy-tale stories though." He drunk the neverage a bit before returning to the meal at hand, cutting into the steak to eat more of before toying with the mashed potatoes.

[star478]

"I see now," Leo said in between bites of food. He was so hungry--thanks to the babies inside him--that he didn't bother to say anything until he was full, which took the rest of his first plate plus a second plate. Once he was finally full, and thus the babies were happy, he leaned back in his chair, rubbing his still fairly small--but noticeable if you look at it hard and close enough--belly.

"I might go back up to the library and look for books on werewolves, seeing as I'm transitioning into one," Leo said. "I don't want to feel like I'm annoying you with all of the questions I still have."

'Plus, I want to look up a few things I want to find out for myself,' Leo thought to himself. 'If I still have questions afterwards, I can still ask him.'

[SRuiz]

"Of course" Brayden merely said. The male was not annoying him to say the least, but he would oblige once more. "I'll tend to the dishes once we're done. I hope you've room for desert."

He finished his meal down with the ale, getting up to carry their dirty dishes off. Brayden returned with chocolate muffins. It was the.best Damian had to offer and he just merely worked around it, adding a few additional sweets and spices to give a nice ginger taste to it.

-----------

Trevor rested in his bed as the door slipped open once more. The figure merely sat in the seat before whispering the slumbering male awake.

[star478]

"Dessert?" Leo asked and watched Brayden disappear back into the kitchen only to return with muffins. "Ooh. Muffins. Yum. And chocolate too. I could use some sugar."

Leo grabbed one and began chowing down, unaware of the figure back in Trevor's room. As he ate the muffin though, he (Leo) did end up gently and tenderly rub his belly wondering how the babies were enjoying the food and how much faster they'll grow after the feast he just had. And how much faster the transition to being a werewolf will go.

[SRuiz]

The figure merely whispered a few words to the male who otherwise seemingly knew who the exact person was. Trevor was almost instantly brought off the medications he was heavily fueled on, the male seemingly going into a form of trance before slowly drifting back off to sleep.

-----------------------

Brayden began to clean immediately. When he was done, he thought it perhaps it was time to leave Damian's cabin and brave the cold again. He would have to return Leo back to the hospital eventually. That was if the other man wished it. He could choose to say "screw it all, I'll just run away from the madness" for all Brayden knew. Hopefully he was not in that category. His family was important to him nonetheless , so perhaps they would have some better alone moments later on.

((I've got nothing at the moment lol. Want to advance a bit to the next day, later on or so?))