sunbeams are never made like me

Manea nodded with understanding when Nirvana expressed how it had been a long year and a frown pulled at her lips when she heard that her niece had been inflicted with the same illness that had gripped Alastor and Avacyn. Occasionally she did regret not trying harder to keep her niece close. If she had been here she could have at least gotten the same care that her husband and daughter got while they were ill, but there was no point in second guessing old decisions now. It was part of their culture and way of life to want to explore and experience the world at some point. Usually it was to find their soul mate, but she could also appreciate Nirvana simply enjoying her youth. Perhaps she was even a bit envious of the freedom that Nirvana had to live her life as she wished instead of feeling the weight of looking after the rest of their family like she did. Her smile returned gently when her niece said how she had missed her in return. Manea's feline paw gently ruffled the fur on her niece's cheek before she lowered it again with a soft chuckle.

She grinned as Nirvana asked how she had been and congratulated her on her accomplishments in a tumble of words, following it up with a question of what she had missed. Manea gestured around them with her paw and replied, "Honestly, everything you see here has taken up most of my time since I saw you last." Getting their family established and the pack founded had been her only focus for so long that all of her actions had been geared toward that. "Alastor and I conceived Avacyn and Saracyn not too long after the two of us separated... It wasn't long after they were born that I started to find some more of our family and we lived here on the island for a while as a band. After the long night and the illnesses passed we did some traveling through Boreas and Auster to get to know some of the other alphas and packs, start building relationships and alliances." All of this had been a lot of work and dedication, but to sit here now and know that this was theirs, that they had a place to call their own and live their lives how they wished, it meant the world to her.

Her expression sobered slightly as she added, "Alastor and Avacyn also caught the same illness you did. They recovered, luckily, but... Like you said, it's been a long year." She gave a glance toward her daughter that was off to the side meeting with a few of the pack's wolves about the upcoming celebration and tried to picture what would have happened if she had lost either of them. With their mates and children being so few and precious any loss was devastating. She gave a little shake of her head and refocused her gaze on Nirvana with a small smile. She was grateful for everything she had been given, but that illness and the way the world descended into madness truly reminded her of how easily it could all be taken away. "What are your plans now?" she asked curiously to her niece, trying to keep her hopefulness that their separation might be at an end permanently in check. She would never force her niece into anything she didn't want and if being here in Elysium wasn't part of her plans then she wouldn't make her, but she could hope. "You know you're always welcome here if you want it," she added.

Manea | Temno | Ciemny