After the sudden return of her sire from out of the blue and the confrontation she'd had with her father, Satira just felt... confused. Feelings of doubt and worry clouded what would otherwise have been a happy and exciting moment. But the little wolf-dog girl had been burned by her father's abandonment too many times to safely let down the walls around her heart. She didn't like feeling like a cynical, suspicious person, but she also didn't know how else she was supposed to protect herself from getting hurt by the ones closest to her again. It was an awful catch-22 that she didn't see any way out of. Gods, life really sucked sometimes.

When Mojito left to go get settled in to Valta, Tira had wandered off on her own, not really sure where she was ambling to. She didn't want to go back home right away and have Ciná trying to interrogate her about what just happened, so she avoided her den in the falls for now. Instead, the young fae walked the edges of the rapids, following the serpentine rivers as they cut their way through pack lands. Heavy thoughts plagued her. She didn't like her mind right now, stacking up problems that she didn't want to have to face. With no plan in her mind, Tira's speckled paws eventually led her all the way back to her mother and uncle's den. Asla had always been a rock for her to use as her foundation and she owed much of who she was to how her mother raised her. Even if she didn't have the answers for her problems, at least maybe she could be another set of ears for her to vent to.

Approaching the den cautiously, Tira kept her ears open for the sounds of her mother and uncle within, not wanting to interrupt them if they were otherwise indisposed with one another. Not hearing anything lascivious from inside, Tira gave a soft bark inside to see if her mother was around, then stepped back and flopped onto her haunches on the soft grass while she waited to find out if Asla was home. If not, she might just go back home and pray Ciná wasn't there at the moment.

"Satira"

Asla had decided to hunt on her return trip home to fill Valta's larder. The small blonde fae had nabbed a brace of fat rabbits that would most likely be eaten by the pack tonight or the following morning. They were best when they were fresh. It wasn't easy to turn a rabbit into jerky due to how greasy they were. That was funny because they were also quite lean. Rabbit was just a strange meat.

With their legs hooked into little slipknots, carrying the rabbits back to the pack was easy. The blonde and grey fae had to keep her pace slow due to the one accompanying her. Nao, whom Mojito had been so upset over, had been freed. The man was now free to join Mo in Valta. Aslatiel didn't care who anyone loved. If Mojito was happy with this Nao, then that was good enough for her. Both of their lives had been tough enough and she hoped that both men night find some happiness at last.

After depositing Nao with Mojito, Asla was moving towards the kill den when she happened to catch sight of Satira sitting outside of her den as though waiting for her. One brow arched and Asla changed course, moving along until she came up beside her daughter. Instantly she could see the serious expression on Satira's beautiful face. After shrugging off the brace of rabbits, Aslatiel seated herself before the girl, one paw moving up to cup Tira's cheek. "What's wrong, love?"

"Aslatiel Indarra"

Satira should have guessed that her mother would be out and about doing things for the pack, given how industrious she was and how much she hated having idle time on her paws, but it still came as a surprise when she suddenly heard movement to her side. She turned with a start to look up into her mother's amethyst eyes just as Asla's paw caressed her cheek in a maternal manner, inquiring into what was wrong. Tira suddenly felt a little guilty. She certainly hadn't purposely made her expression seem like anything was wrong, but she supposed her inner thoughts were making her mood sullen. A daughter should be happy her father had come back home. Sitting here feeling anything but happiness made her feel like a bad daughter in turn.

Tira's folded-over ears drooped a little, her shoulders slumping as she collapsed into herself, letting the weight of those tumultuous thoughts and emotions pull her down. "Dad's back..." she told her mother simply, her voice monotone and uncertain, betraying her mixed thoughts on the matter. She didn't know why she felt the need to tell her mother this; no doubt Asla already knew Mojito had been planning on joining Valta, right? Her mom knew everything that happened around them. Tira's blue eyes dropped down to stare at the ground between the two women, a sigh slipping across her lips. "I think I'm supposed to be happy about that, but..." The girl's words drifted off as her voice died. She didn't want to speak how she was feeling, as it giving words to the emotions would make them that much more real and make that guilty feeling all the more worse.

"Satira"

Satira seemed to start as Asla appeared before her, belying just how much the younger woman was distracted. The fae's gazes met and Tira sighed before saying that her dad was back. Aslatiel nodded. Satira then said that she was supposed to be happy about it and the blonde fae shook her head. "You feel however you need to feel. There's no rule book for any of this saying what you must and must not feel." Asla often went against the grain. Her views were often unlike those of the majority. If Satira felt unhappy that her father was here, then she was entitled to those feelings. However, Asla would do her best to smooth things over between them.

Aslatiel seated herself beside her daughter and gave the younger fae an affectionate nuzzle to one floppy ear before releasing a soft sigh. "He didn't have anywhere else to go so I sent him here. Your uncle Azure wasn't very kind to him in the Armada." An understatement. Azure had grown up to be a spoiled, moody prince. The marks on Mojito proved that.

"Just because he's here doesn't mean that you need to pretend that everything is okay. You're an adult. It's up to you to decide what sort of relationship, if any, you'd like to have with him." A grey toed paw was placed lightly upon one of Satira's dainty paws. "Mojito is my oldest friend. He hasn't had the easiest life and it took him a long time to start to accept his differences. I've always had a soft spot for him and I imagine I always will." That paw rose to cup her daughters softly furred cheek. "You are priority, however. So you take as much time as you need and decide what you need to do. Whatever it is, I'll support you." Asla searched Satira's face. "Do you have any questions about him?"

"Aslatiel Indarra"

Satira had always known her mother to be supportive of her and her brother no matter what, so it came as no surprise when the elder fae she looked like a miniature version of rebuked her claims of how she was supposed to feel. In some ways that made her feel better, but in others it just perplexed her even more. It would’ve been so much easier if she just knew how she was supposed to behave and feel and act rather than being lost in this miasma of uncertainty. Tira looked down at her gray speckled paws as Asla came to sit beside her. "It’s not like I’m upset or angry that he’s here or anything. I just… don’t know how to feel at all. It’s like I want to be happy he’s back, but im just… I dunno…" The smaller hybrid fae let out a slow sigh and shook her head. "I don’t wanna get my hopes up that he’ll stay this time…"

There was a deep pain laced with real fear in her voice as she spoke that final statement into reality. That guilty feeling came clawing its way back up her chest again. Gods, she really was such a terrible daughter for not finding any joy in her father’s return, wasn’t she? A muzzle to one flopped over ear brought her attention back up to her mother, the little wolf-dog listening while Asla explained Mojito’s situation to her. How he had been mistreated in the Armada and had nowhere else to go. Tira’s frown deepened. So he had only come here on Asla’s directions seeking refuge, not even because he had wanted to come find her. That made her heart sink further in her stomach. "You don’t have to be so politically correct around me, Mom. You can call Uncle Azure whatever you really think of him," she reminded her mother with a bit of a rebellious smirk. Azure had wanted nothing to do with her due to her mixed blood. He was a cunt and a prick as far as she was concerned—which worked out great, since he could go fuck himself.

Asla concluded her maternal lesson by reminding Satira that just because Mojito was here didn’t mean she had to pretend everything was okay with them. The touch of Asla’s larger paw over her own was what finally made Tira look back up at her mother again, steel blue pools meeting violet galaxies. "I don’t wanna kick him out and I don’t wanna make him leave. Dad has a right to be somewhere where he’s safe and happy too," said the tawny wolf-dog without missing a beat. "I’m just scared that if I try again with him, am I just gonna get hurt again?" Tira looked up at Asla, looking for some sort of reassurance that she couldn’t give to herself. Asla asked if she had any questions about her father and immediately one came to mind so fast she couldn’t stop herself from just blurting it out. "Did he not want to be around us because of me? Do I remind him of his problems because I have his ears and tail and im not a full wolf?" Throughout her life, Satira had come to love and appreciate so much of who she was. But one part of herself that still plagued her mind to this day was her mixed breeding. It had haunted her father, and now she had to wonder if those were the same ghosts of the past tearing apart their relationship now.

"Satira"

Asla listened to the unease and apprehension in Satira's voice as she shared her concerns about the return of her father. Mojito wasn't entirely to blame for all of it. "Keep in mind that I took you and your brother away. Mojito didn't have a choice in that. He's been scrambling to keep up ever since." The blonde fae sighed. "I'm not saying that he's free of blame in this. He could have come with us had he wanted to. For his whole life he's been so unsure of himself and his family made him feel that way. It was hard for him to leave a place where it felt as though he'd gained a bit of acceptance."Yes, it sounded as though Asla was defending his actions, but no one knew the hybrid man like she did.

Tira spoke of her uncle Azure and Asla flashed a toothy grin. "I love my brother but you're right. He's capable of being a raging cunt." It wasn't a secret. The world knew. Mojito had been at the receiving end of that cuntiness and had been bitten in the face and almost enslaved for it. Asla was only glad that her father had seen reason and had decided to give both Mojito and Nao into her care.

Satira continued, pain and fatigue in her blue eyes. The young woman shared more concerns with her regarding the return of her father. Asla wished she could just wipe all of the pain and doubt away, but hardships made hard wolves. Tira did say that she wanted her father to be happy and safe, so that was a step. When she began to doubt herself though, Aslatiel shook her head. "Never doubt yourself. You're absolutely perfect and I'm not just saying this because I'm your mother. You're lovely and sweet and kind. You're intelligent and witty and you can hold your own, despite your size. Blood didn't make that. YOU made that." Again Asla squeezed her daughters paw. "Your father still doubts himself, but he's never doubted you. He loves you more than anyone has ever loved him."

A sigh pulled from Asla and she gave her blonde head another little shake. "Whether you decide to give him a chance or guard your heart, I'll always be here for you and I'll support your decision." Leaning forward, Asla bumped foreheads with her sweet child. "But if you don't let yourself try, then you'll never know what could have been. Maybe give him one last chance? If he screws up this time, he won't have anyone left but himself and his own misery." If Mojito ran or disappeared again, even Asla would cut him off.

"Aslatiel Indarra"

Her mother gave her a swift reminder that she had taken her from Mojito when she was very little and Satira did her best to hide the grimace those words brought her. She didn’t regret going with her mother and living their lives the way they had as nomads, but it had deprived her of a chance to grow up in a stable environment surrounded by family. What would life have been like if things had been different, she wondered? How would she be different?

She thought over Asla’s words, how Mojito’s family had made him feel lesser for being different and the struggle that had caused him with his self-confidence. Tira could definitely understand that. Her family had mostly been accepting of her canine heritage, but she had been made acutely aware of how different she was from everyone else from the day she was born. How much more difficult would her life have been if her family hadn’t been accepting of who she was?

Satira's questioning of her identity was sharply cut off when Asla squeezed her paw and insisted she never doubt herself. The little wolf-dog's eyes snapped up to meet her mother's gaze, listening quietly while the blonde woman she mimicked in appearance listed off every admirable trait she could see in her child. Emotion tightened up Tira's throat but she managed to keep tears from her eyes as she offered Asla a trace of a smile. Mothers always knew how to make you feel better about yourself. Floppy ears folding back shyly, Tira leaned forward to meet her mother's affectionate head bump, her fluffy tail tagging behind her.

"Thanks, Mom," she said. A simple response, but one so heartfelt and genuine. "I... I think I wanna give him another chance. Just one. I don't want to not have him in my life." As much as this might hurt to be wrong again, Tira didn't want to imagine not having him in her life at all now that he had come back.

"Satira"

Satira thanked her and Aslatiel chuckled. "You're welcome, love, but you didn't need me." A foreleg wrapped around her daughters shoulders as she scooted forward to embrace her. "You're smart. You would have figured it out." A soft kiss was placed in the center of Tira's forehead. "You and your brother are my greatest accomplishments." She was sure that she'd told the girl this many times, but it was true. Asla was so, so proud of her children, especially Satira who was so much like her and yet very much her own wolf.

"Aslatiel Indarra"