Standing at the Edge of the World

Almost as soon as he'd settled himself down on the cool, damp grass, the downy fuzz of a young child thudded into his chest like a poorly aimed punch. Rumbling fondly, the titan folded his forelimbs a little closer to his body and trapped the bundle of energy against his breast. Amethyst fluff mingled with dense ruby hairs, and he set himself to the task of harassing the child with his parted jaws. Closing them lightly around any limbs that got too close, and knocking the girl about with clumsy swipes of his muzzle. He missed spending time with the little ones, and even in uncertain times such as these he found solace in wasting away the hours wrestling with a pint sized opponent like little Ava. The susurrating of cool blades beneath the paws of an approaching body drew whiskey hued eyes upwards and away from his littlest cousin. Ah, there was Imperia. Her gaze was just as hollow as he remembered, expression stoic to the point of disinterest. She had shown, at least. He flashed a quick grin her way, a lopsided curl of the lip to reveal pale fangs accompanied by a gentle dip of his head. Quick on his cousins heels was a delicate blonde morsel, and her scent was familiar from its tendrils having mingled with those of his cousins. Bold as ever, his gaze travelled her form in search of something noteworthy that might prompt further investigation. She was decidedly plain, but perhaps it was something within the confines of her skull that had drawn Manea or her husband to accept the little doll into their home.

Satisfied with his assessment for now, he returned to the impatient child in his arms and pinned her beneath a massive forepaw. While Manea launched into her even-keeled speech, detailing her plans for the family to rise to power once again despite their most recent setback, he entertained Ava with a quiet, gentle mauling. He noted just how busy his cousin had been recently, building ties with a few of the local packs and establishing bonds that could help them maintain their hold over a kingdom in the future. She truly was suited to her role as Matriarch, despite the shortcomings of her mother in the past. The failures of the estranged woman who'd sent their family teetering dangerously over the precipice of all out chaos had not stuck around to taint Manea. Elysium, huh? he folded his paw over Ava's torso and pinned her there for a moment so he could pay attention to the proceedings for a moment without risking the loss of a few whiskers from inattention. Impy, curt and succinct, agreed and vanished into the trees soon after. Naraca, of course, readily accepted the offer of security among kin- no big shock there. The petite blue and grey girl, however, was a wild card to him. She had been present at the challenge, and had followed them all the way here, but she seemed to cling closer to Alastor than anyone else. Even in her acceptance of Manea's offer, she turned to the man instinctively at first. Interesting..

And then all was silent, and there was a tiny set of fangs chewing on his toes. "I wouldn't want to be anywhere else, Manea." he rumbled fondly, and released his grip on her offspring. Curling that forelimb back down and around the child, he waited for Ava to pounce again.

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