Off My Mind

*Epiphron* · 02-07-2016, 05:29 PM

Losing half of an ear, in all honesty, had been of little concern to her in the long run. A vain part of her knew she looked far more battle-worn than she really was, and that she really preferred to look; but it was nothing at all like losing a family member, to death or to disloyalty. She'd do it again, a thousand times over, if she had to. Physical pains seemed to pale in comparison to emotional ones.

She felt a surge of relief at seeing Azalea's faint smile at her quip. If Adravendis were one thing, it was proud - and far too stubborn at times. At least, too stubborn to apologize for something that had happened years ago, something that was far too muddled with history to matter now.

Azalea's words rung true with her. "You're right about that," she agreed with a soft, faint sigh. The death of Syrinx had seemed to have been the final nail in the coffin as far as the reign of the Adravendis went. Even though Leo ruled here now, it was different; Fiori was different. "I could name the number of Adravendis that I've spoke with in the last year on my two front paws." It was nothing at all like it had been when she was a child.

It was surprising to hear she'd had another litter. Another with Isardis, she wondered? But she didn't dare ask, not yet. The name Tortuga made her fur bristle slightly; they'd had a sour relationship with Valhalla, before Azalea had even left. Still, she didn't know whether the names were the only similarity in packs, or if they had shared leadership at all, and so she would keep her questions to herself.. "I had no idea," she'd comment with another faint smile. They'd both missed quite a bit - hell, did Azalea even know she'd had a second litter? She'd been in Glaciem by then. It was quite likely she'd never found out. "The whole.. leadership thing has outgrown me, as well," Epiphron would admit a bit solemnly. "I like to say I'm too old for it, but I think I'm just too tired for it now. I ruled the pack here, Fiori, for a short while when it was handed to me, but my son Leo's in charge now."

And he was doing a great job. It was not like the pack she'd once envisioned ruling - a great empire, full of physical strength and cunning, but a more humble pack, which she found herself appreciated more with her age. "Only a few of my kids are here, though," she started, noting that Azalea's gaze seemed interested in hearing more. "Leo, of course, and Amalia. I'm not sure if you ever heard about my second litter, but I had a few more," Epiphron would add a small laugh at the end of her voice. She'd never expected to want to be a mother, but it'd happened, and she never regretted it for an instant. She wondered if Azalea did. "I haven't seen Quintus for ages, and Cassius was here briefly, but left again. I've seen Caeto and Isolde enough to know they're living in these lands still, but I don't know where they'd been recently. And Arian.." her voice faltered, just slightly, when she remembered. Not that she'd ever really forgotten.. but actively remembering was still quite painful. "She isn't with us any longer. And it's been ages since I've seen anyone else." Some were dead, some were just gone - she didn't even know where to begin, or if Azalea knew anything more than she did.

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