i'm not like them, but i can pretend

Alastor had suspected that his cheeky comment about what Manea had put into founding her pack would earn some sort of reaction from the girl, and Nirvana's bewildered and confused grimace of disgust brought a bellowing chuckle from the dire brute, joining her own laugh with one of his own. He was all too happy to nudge her shoulder back with his, careful not to knock her over with his excessive size or bulk. Nirvana wanted to meet Avacyn and Saracyn. "And you will! They're just turning into young adults, so they'll need to get to know the rest of the family some more." There would be no doubt that she would meet her cousins as soon as she came into the pack proper. Avacyn and Saracyn were both such bold personalities, he didn't imagine either would avoid meeting their cousin—least of all not his little princess. She was just like her mother, that Avacyn...

Nirvana's genuineness brought a rare smile to Alastor's dark lips as he regarded the smaller woman with obsidian eyes. "I'm glad you made it through okay also, my dear," he replied. He knew how much Nirvana meant to Manea, especially in the wake of her sister's passing on her birthing bed. Knowing that her niece was alive and well would do wonders for his wife. She explained what she had been doing over the past year, to which Alastor nodded his head. "Your aunt and I have been doing much of the same. We had our twins, then began scouting lands suitable to build the pack. We made connections with a couple packs, started a few scraps here and there. Gathered the other roving Mendaciums about." Really, the last year had been spent in nonstop preparation for the achievement of Manea's ambitious goals. Alastor still found it hard to grasp the notion that he was a father and a leader of any actual substance now, and not just some manic wolf having a good time at someone else's expense or misfortune.

The next thing Nirvana said made the smile slowly slip from Alastor's features. She had caught the mysterious illness during the Long Night as well. "Avacyn and I contracted it as well," he said, dark eyes growing distant as haunting memories returned to him of fireflies and glowing ooze. "She began to sprout mushrooms. I was vomiting up glowing... I don't even really know what it was. Manea and Saracyn thankfully were fine, and we both got through our sickness unscathed." The prospect of Nirvana seeking out trouble brought a wide, toothy grin from a mischievous looking Alastor, who turned that grin towards his niece-in-law. "Now you're speaking my language!" he laughed. "We've had a lot of changes, yes, but you know what hasn't changed much?" He smirked and leaned in closer to the girl, as if going to tell her a secret, and added, "The family." Once Nirvana saw Manea, Poe, Naraca again, it would feel like old times for the Mendacium clan.

"Alastor Mendacium"