[Night of the 23rd July] Finally seeing her (Dristan/Mary)

Dristan was silent but ever watchful and then he saw from a nearby shadow something emerge and smiled realizing it was Balthazar. "Hello old friend." He whispers and watching him sniff at him and then rubbing against his leg feeling the cold and crouching down gliding his hand along the shadowy creature. "It is good to see you again as well. I have missed you." He whispers and then watches Balthazar run into the house and slowly stood up now. From the same shadow she appeared and his heart leapt and the pain of longing pulled harder and the way she was dressed.

Feel her hand cupped to his cheek his eyes close and his heart felt as though it would jump right out of his chest. The way she ran her fingers through the coarse hair of his beard gave him a sensation he had never felt before always being clean shaven up to this point.

"My beautiful shadow....I had to go away. Find myself. Somewhere cold and to put myself through hell to find myself." He whispers as his hand comes up and caresses her on his cheek as his eyes slowly open. "It is good to see you."

"Indeed it sounds so yes that we needed to find ourselves." Dristan shifts the mandrake leaf in his mouth to a better location rolled under his tongue. There was definitely a change to Mary and he was noticing it just like himself not just physically but his eyes had become a dull green not the vibrant anymore. "Yes you did warn where I did not. Sloth told me of my father's death and in grief and anger at my family I left to find myself. To be able to deal and eventually combat the demons with my family and that includes you." He whispers gazing into her eyes.

"We are currently in Garmisch near the Austrian border upon the mountain. The south side. Her and I are going through an archaic animagus training. She has just started hers where I am two weeks in now. I just recently felt my second heart beat." He continues. "She is there safe and sound with our trainers. I have been allowed to come see you and Teagan and Matilda and then I must return to finish my training before school starts." He looks down when her hands take his and he felt more complete and so relaxed and happy right now feeling her hands to his and then he noticed the rather large and old ring upon her finger.

"A very beautiful ring."

Dristan paused for a moment when he realized that Mary already knew of Sloth and for a brief moment he felt anger but...he was able to let it roll away. "I went to the parks to confront Wrath and to get back my darkness. I could not cope. Instead Sloth appeared and told me of my father's passing and even told me that it was Lilianna that killed my father but I know this not to be true. I have learned though that we are gateways for the demons but we must die for them to come into our world."

He stops when he felt her stroke his temple and his eyes fully lock to hers. "Not just me but you as well with these changes my beautiful shadow." He whispers and gently he caresses her cheek. Oh how he had missed her terribly.

"Christina our trainer has assured our training will be complete before school starts. The timing of the moon and storm with her is very accurate. What Lili and I are becoming.....as Christina says is that Dristan and Lili are to become the Black Wolf and the White Wolf." He nods. "I feel that I have to much to make up for with my family. After here I plan to see them and at least spend the day before returning. Maybe even take them with me. Let Dmitry have personal time with Lili while I spend alone time with Teagan, the babies and Matilda." He smiles. Definitely a balance was found in him.

He felt her squeeze his hand and he smiled for her as he lost himself in her eyes.

"I can stay as long as you need me to." He whispers.

Dristan nods to the notion that it was fitting that he was to become the Black Wolf and Lili the White Wolf. When he was first told by Christina he definitely understood the dynamic of the colors one black and one white. Ying and Yang if you will. He was pulled from his thoughts with Mary's question. "Yes hers still lies within as does mine. The training...helped me understand that that our demons magnify our natural darkness within all of us. Wrath stated she held my darkness at bay. But it is a lie as was Sloth's words of Lilianna being my father's killer. You can never truly keep darkness at bay."

Dristan follows Mary inside after she took her hand and sat down on the sofa in the sitting room right next to her and listened to every word that Mary was speaking. Amazingly her analogy made so much sense to him and it was the best way it was every put how he himself could love Teagan and Mary equally. His eyes never left hers as she continued in regards to Exo and deep down for a moment he felt pain but also an understanding. One he came to during his training that she loved Exo and not himself.

He was preparing himself to hear what was coming next but then what was said completely knocked him side ways and all over the placed and his eyes widen and for the moment he was completely speechless. She loved him....wait did he hear her right? She loves him. His eyes still locked to Mary's but she would see the emotion of how much he had always loved her return to his eyes.

Her smiles melted him and he could not contain himself and smiled. "I love you Mary." He whispers and felt her lips touch his in a light kiss and one he definitely returned and leaned back just a bit and gazed deeply and lost himself in her eyes unable to speak right at the moment.

"Oh forgive me....you mean Raven. Yes the rather large dog is still with her and follows her everywhere she goes it seems." Dristan chuckled. His mind and heart was still reeling from her telling him that she loved him and that would definitely take him time to figure all this out because of what understanding he had originally come to terms with at their last meeting.

Her kiss always amazing and he would never desire for them to ever stop. He did laugh a bit when she said that his beard was scratchy and watching her rubbing her face and just laughed. "Agreed. I will make sure the next time I am clean shaven and showered. This visit was a...I needed to see you." He speaks truthfully. The way her pale green eyes staring into his and he loved every moment of it. "I do have a better understanding of the demons but there is much more to learn." He whispers.

When she asked what he was thinking his eyes returned to hers. "I am thinking about many things honestly. How can we combat the black suits and save Lili. How unbalanced I was. Hoping that Matilda's adoption goes through, Teagan and the twins, I am always thinking of you my beautiful shadow and your safety, school is around the corner. So definitely a lot and more. But...it is becoming easier. With what I went through recently I feel I can handle so much more. My thinking has changed so much.....even coming to the understanding that I do enjoy the moments when it is quiet and staring at the shadows and understanding why they call to me. They represent you and seeing them brings me comfort is the best way I can put it. But also they are my way of knowing what is to come in my next life."

Dristan leans his face into Mary's hand when she strokes his face and smiles. "I have heard. I was told you were trying to help me when I was in the coma." His eyes slowly open once more. "While a part of me would love to have a complete bond with you I feel and please do not take this wrong Mary but I feel I am not ready for that right now." He whispers and speaks the truth in regards to be completely bound to her. Now the tug to the beard that was definitely something new and an interesting feeling to say the least and truthfully he enjoyed it.

"The demons are greater but they will take more time to try and resolve. At this time I still no very little except the whole gateway thing and they intensify our darkness. Now as far as anything else I do not even know where to begin to even understand how this all happened. So I am thinking tackling this group should be taken care of so that we are not blind sided. The polyjuice is ready we just need to formulate what all needs to be done once the drop off happens and I will give you the same promise I gave to Lili I will not do this alone." He nods.

As she leans back against him and wraps his arms around her Dristan's eyes slowly close not out of being tired but feeling very content right now. This is what he truly missed. Mary being in his arms and feeling her against him. "Then I will always make sure to speak to the shadows for you my beautiful shadow."

As Mary turns in his arms Dristan's heart started to beat faster. Not out of fear but out of desire and her pressed against him as his arms tighten around her. He was definitely a lot stronger from the training and she would feel that strength as he held her so very close to him. Her kiss to his neck causing his body to react as his eyes fluttered and a light groan escaped his lips. Her teasing driving him insane and then her fangs. His body shivered, her light scrapes causing him to tilt his head so Mary had better access to him.

"I want you so badly.....I need you so much my beautiful shadow." His voice a mixture of pleasurable groans and growls.

Feeling her fangs and desiring so deeply for her to bite him felt like it was a maddening eternity.

There it was, what he was longing for, for so many weeks now. Mary's bite deep, so much pleasure and euphoric. Dristan was completely lost in everything he and his body was feeling and experiencing right now, only what he could experience with Mary....his beautiful shadow. At first his grip was tight and as she fed his body relaxed as he was gently pushed onto the couch and she was on top of him. His eyes fluttering then closed and truthfully a part of him wanted her take all of him right then and there. That thought was always there when she fed from him.

Feeling her stop and her fangs being removed then that delicious lick of her as she was healing him which drove his fire even more, all of it did. So much more now that he lips, her silken lips were upon his once more and the kiss he returns to her was deep and with so much need of her. He had been away from her for entirely too long. His hands gliding up her back to her shoulders to cupping each side of her face.

"Yes a thousand times better." Dristan smiles and gazes up into her eyes and he could see she was looking down at him and seeing the differences that he had brought forth in himself and he had to admit he was liking what he saw with Mary and her changes. "Yes a lot easier. I did try to see with my training how long I could go without being near and seeing you and it got to a point that it became very unbearable. I understand it is the bond but I also feel as though the bond has intensified my feelings that already are there for you. But I came to a lot of realizations in Germany. You do not need to worry if my heart is hurting anymore. I assure you that I am very understanding of everything now and everything about me is finally after all these years balanced. Though I do have to go back to Germany." He nods.

"Lili will be there with me so I will keep an eye out but I am thinking that if Dmitry goes with me I am going to give the both of them much needed alone time so they both can develop their relationship. I want her to be able to experience life and finding herself and to help her realize that I can not always be there. She has to be able to stand on her own. Part of the training for her to find her balance."

When Mary pulled on his beard again man he loved it and laughed. "Well maybe I will keep it after all. It has kind of grown on me well metaphorically anyway." He chuckled. "I worry of speaking to Minerva about the demons and that it may cause me to lose my position at Hogwarts but at the same time she does need to be made aware for safety reasons so in the end the decision is hers."

"Matched yes and I agree there is so much more to growing and to be done before the end of our paths." Dristan sits up now and his hands gently lay upon her hips as he never takes his eyes from hers. "As I have learned when I left everyone went well the family fell apart. That can never happen again. But at the same time it concerns me. What if I abruptly pass away...what would my family do...just fall apart as they did? I think a lot of work and love needs to be done and issues addressed and resolved. They all need to be able to be strong without me." He sighs not liking the fact how the family fell as it did when he left.  "Lili.....she did make arrangements with you and promises as I understand.  I can not defend the fact that she broke them with you.  There are times that I find myself not understanding her.  Thus why I am truly hoping this training will give her what she has been seeking to bring her balance."

"I am definitely looking forward to seeing Teagan's reaction about the beard well after she is done turning me into a punching bag for what I did. And you are right. The date of our wedding needs to be set. A night wedding.....definitely and I need to get on the details for it for her. Matilda's adoption should be done soon and I am looking forward to taking her to get her wand. But most importantly showing her the paperwork stating that legally she will be my daughter and she has a family that loves her dearly." He smiles. "I do not want to lose any of them. Dmitry is also growing into his own. I will try to be the father that he wishes."

Thinking on the Headmistress, Mary was right he needed to get in contact with Minerva. "I will write her and let her know of the situation and also show that the training has given me the resilience to the demon within." Then her question about him registering himself caught his attention. "By law I have to register. Why you do you ask Mary?"

Dristan was silent. He had spoken to Christina about this briefly and the old woman honestly cared neither way. As he was told there were benefits to both sides and in the end it was up to the animagus themselves. As Christina had repeated over and over during the training....stop listening to your head and listen to your heart. It will always be who you really are. He looks back into Mary's eyes and locked to them and listening to his heart as he was trained. "No I will keep it secret. Be damned the penalties. Me becoming an animagus gives us an edge against the ones that desire to harm us. If I register they will know what I am capable of doing. I know already what information they have and to keep this one secret I can only imagine their eyes fighting us and I become the Black Wolf and end their lives."

For that brief moment there was that darkness seeping out just a bit and Dristan held such control of it and fell silent still looking into Mary's eyes. "You always need to keep your best hand secret from your enemies and only reveal it if necessary. So my answer is no I will not register but at the same time I will tread carefully as well so that the penalties will not be used against me. Azkaban garb would not suit me in the slightest."

Her smile told him everything and indeed the training of balance was now complete. "Yes the secret must remain as so." He whispers and there was that wicked smile, one that had not been seen in a very long time. "If you could only see my dreams as of late beautiful shadow." His answer to her stating she would love to watch him rip their throats out as the Black Wolf. Then the grin fades. "But we must do this carefully. The potion is ready. Lili is not. She needs to be balanced for all of this to work. She is the one they want....fine. But we need her focused and not off the wall." Dristan would leave that there for now and hoping deep down this training would help Lilianna.

"Caught? Me? No worries on that. I learned from the shadow herself how not to get caught." His eyes dancing in hers. "The old woman was right. The training would bring out the true me." He grins again and leans closer to Mary and nips at her neck teasingly. "Feels good to be myself finally." He whispers and lightly kisses her neck and leans back gazing back into her eyes.

Dristan fell silent and closes his eyes. Take the plunge from the cliff or keep the balance that for the past several weeks he had worked so hard to achieve. Listen to your heart Black Wolf. It will never lead you astray. Slowly his eyes open as Mary lifts his chin and his eyes lock to hers and the desire yes was there but the answer that came forth was from his heart. "I will not deny that I long to be completely yours yes. But the one thing my training has taught me and that is to follow my heart no matter the consequences. I am happy and content with what you and I have and that is where it will remain. I love Teagan and I will do nothing to harm her in any way. I will decline your offer and be the man she deserves. Upon my death I am yours. That it where this all should remain beautiful shadow." His words spoken directly from his heart without worry or concern.

"As for Lilianna she will find herself and I dare not push her anymore then I already have. She needs to find her own path whether that places me with her or not. In the end she is family and I will always do what I can for her and protect her the best I can and also support all her decisions even if I disagree with them."

Feeling Mary's thumbs glide across the back of his hands this right here what was between the both of them was more than enough for him. He did laugh at the Azkaban comment. "No place in this world or the next can ever contain a shadow." He whispers gazing into her eyes fully.

Dristan was completely amazed with himself at the moment. Yes the old him would have said the hell with it and jumped right off that very cliff and just went with it and for him to say what he did to Mary the training had indeed worked and for the best. Her words to him filled him and his eyes danced with the praise and he did not smile or anything of the sort but knowing he had her praise meant to him that he had learned a very hard and valuable lesson.

When she spoke of Lilianna honestly he did not like the idea of her getting punished but yet she did place herself into Mary's world and though yes he wanted to protect her it was a boundary he knew that he could not overstep with Mary. Just as he had to learn there were consequences with any decision that was made. The decision he had just made with Mary he knew that Mary could have gotten angry with him and he could have been punished but that is the whole point. The balance he now achieved he understood with every decision there were consequences and if you can deal with those then do it. Most importantly and he understood this very well. Mary could never show any weakness. If she ever did that would make her a target in her world.

When her eyes locked to his he melted. Feeling her enter his mind he did not resist and once fully insides he loved it and her kiss intensified that very feeling and emotion as he slowly was pushed onto the couch and the way she took her time exploring him and the way his body was now, her lips and tongue. His body reacted as it always did to her. His groans of pleasure and the release of a growl letting her know how much he loved her attention to him. Then he felt her Kiss and that was it he was completely lost at this point. The pleasure was indescribable. The euphoria was better than sex. Deep down there was that want once more to let her take as much of him as she desired without a fight.

"Mary....." He groaned and growled in pure pleasure.