Birth had taken a lot out of Ikigai. She was a delicate thing and the trio of pups had come so very quickly in succession. Rest had been the name of the game for quite a while. Long enough that the pups could run and romp. Visitors had come to see the pups but Iki hadn't had much strength or desire for conversation and so visits were short. Now that she felt mostly back to herself, the pale lady was ready for one conversation in particular.

"Don't go too far," Iki told the triplets as they began to bound through the grass around the lake. She had sent Tanuki the Akita to ask Alastor to meet her here. There was something very important that she wished to share with him. It would likely be an emotional conversation, but it was one that the Ashen princess felt needed to be had.

"Speech"

The late days of summer were truly the dog days, hot and humid, but the cooler climate of northern Boreas helped keep the dark brute from overheating in the afternoon sun. Though he usually kept to Alias Island these days, he could not refuse Ikigai's summons out to the lake Elysium owned. Besides, he liked the lake, and water in general. A swimmer at heart, maybe one day he'd teach her children how to swim in one of the lakes. That thought played in his head as the gargantuan brute crossed the bridge over to the mainland and climbed up from the shores to the lake, spotting the alabaster woman and her three lovely little children playing around the shore. A little smile played on the corners of the Mendacious man's lips as obsidian eyes watched the new family for a moment. Gods, he was such a sucker for puppies! Even if they weren't connected to him by blood, Alastor felt almost like a grandfather to them just as he felt like a father figure to Elysium's pale princess.

Padding up with heavy footsteps on the pebbly beach to announce his presence, Alastor came to sit alongside Ikigai. The new mother looked tired but happy, a look he knew well from the numerous litters he and Manea had had. "The little hellions aren't giving you too much trouble, are they?" he teased with a rumbling chuckle. The hulking brute sat and watched the three tiny wolves playing around on the lake shore for a moment. Little Kintsugi, Damira, and Dominus, all looking more like their mother than their father. Thank the Ancients for that. "Motherhood suits you well, Ikigai. Have your mother or father come to see the little ones yet? I know I'd want to be the first in line to see my grandchildren if my own offspring ever decide to give me any!" A surprisingly lighthearted laugh left the giant brute at the prospect of being a grandparent. Hell, some days he still caught himself surprised he had a family of his own at all!


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
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Alastor soon came to join her on the pebbled beach, his heavy steps alerting her to his approach. The pale woman gave him a happy, albeit tired tailwag accompanied by a smile as he seated himself beside her. His comment brought a soft laugh and Iki shook her head lightly. "They're perfect," she informed the man. Though children and very full of energy, they seemed to realize that Iki was feeling under the weather. She was recovering and the constant reminder from their father put the trio on their best behavior for her.

The black and red giant's next question brought Ikigai's brows together for a moment and she shook her head. "No, they haven't." It was no secret that her mother had taken ill. And her father... ugh. Hattori didn't care about anything other than himself and his image. That led the conversation right where they needed it to go, however.

Ikigai leaned into Alastor's large shoulder, wrapping one slender foreleg around his own. "You're the only father that has ever given a damn about me," she informed him, and not for the first time either. "I love you, Alastor. More than I love my own blood father." With one dark gloved paw, she directed his gaze out towards the romping puppies. "See that little boy? His name is Dominus Adrastos Mendacium." Iki gave the man's arm a loving squeeze. "To thank you for all that you've done and to remind you just how much you mean to me."

"Speech"

Alastor gave a content rumble in his broad barrel chest while Ikigai doted on her children, watching the three pups happily at play, reveling in their innocence and wonder. Even if they weren't related to him by blood, Alastor felt like a grandfather to the pups. It was no secret that Ikigai had been like a daughter to him in many ways; why shouldn't he consider her family his family too? "They surely are," he spoke in agreement. Alastor adored puppies. These ones he adored especially so. When Ikigai mentioned that neither of her parents had come to see their biological grandchildren yet, that brought a small frown to the dire brute's lips. "Well, that won't do. I'll have to give them quite a scolding and get their butts over here pronto to see your lovely family." Alastor knew Ikigai was estranged from her father, but he had thought at least Venom would come to see her grandchildren. To hear even she hadn't been to visit felt wrong, especially when Elysium and Ashen were supposed to be close.

Alastor felt a shifting beside him and glanced down to see Ikigai leaning against his side. He offered the smaller fae his side to support herself, even sliding his foreleg closer to hers as she reached to hold onto him. Ikigai flattered him by calling him the only father that cared about her, earning her a bashful smirk and chuckle from the Mendacium brute. But her next declaration touched his heart and soul as much as both twisted, corrupted parts of him could be touched. She loved him as a father and more than her own blood. He didn't say anything while she pointed a gloved paw to one of the boys running about. Then she gave the boy's name. Dominus Adrastos Mendacium. Al's expression froze, his eyes slowly widening as realization gripped his mind. She had named her son after him. The squeeze to his arm brought Alastor's wide-eyed stare down to Iki, his mouth parting to speak, but no words came out. Again and again his mouth closed and opened, but all sounds died on his tongue. Again he looked out to the boy that carried his middle name also.

It was too much to process. Alastor's eyes began to mist over the longer he watched the pup at play, the gravity of what Ikigai had done to honor him smothering him with emotions he couldn't begin to grapple with. He had never imagined himself worthy of anything being named after him. He was broken, damaged, degenerate, corrupted. "Ikigai..." Alastor choked up, swallowing down the lump in his throat while he struggled to find words that came close to how he felt about this tremendous honor. His free paw came up to wipe away the moisture in his eyes, a stuttering breath escaping him while his tail whipped back and forth behind him, betraying his conflicted emotions. "I'm sorry that your father failed you so miserably. But I'm very grateful that his failures allowed me to be a part of your life." Again Alastor choked up, blinking back a few fresh tears welling up in the corners of his abyssal eyes. "Thank you for seeing me as someone worth naming your son after."


"Alastor"

Warning: Alastor is an explicitly mature character for violent and sexual content. Read his threads with caution.
As his mate, Manea may enter any of Alastor's threads not marked Private.
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