I want to be little again

Listening to Avacyn speak, it was clear to Alastor just how physically and emotionally taxing this whole ordeal had been for her. Avacyn seemed weak, like she hadn't been properly cared for in a season, which was not far from the truth. The failed pregnancy had left her drained and frail. It made Alastor's fatherly instincts kick in hard and all he wanted to do was go fetch a meal for his little girl and cuddle her until she was whole and fully recovered. Alas, as fanciful as he was, Alastor knew that cuddles only went so far as a medical remedy. He just hoped she wasn't beating herself up too harshly over this mess. He knew his Avacyn, and he knew how much she was her own worst enemy. The last thing he wanted to see was her keep kicking herself while she was down. That he would not allow her to do, not if he had any say in the matter. The cuddles would continue until her mental state improved!

While he contented himself with holding her, Ava answered his question that she would be. Meaning she was not okay right now. Alastor sighed; he expected as much, but what else would he expect? The great dire wolf listened quietly while his daughter told him how she had felt unwell for almost all of the pregnancy, how she had brushed it off as nothing, and how it had ultimately turned out. Each word sent a pang of pain piercing through his heart. Although a degenerate and a monster, Alastor had a tender spot for his children like no other, and knowing his little girl was in pain and he was helpless to heal her was the worst agony he had ever felt. The ebony brute breathed another heavy sigh and continued to cradle and stroke his daughter's back while she tucked her face away in his thick fluffy fur. "I wish I could take this pain from you, my Ava. Nothing bad should ever be permitted to happen to you." If he had the means to, Alastor would have gladly bore the anguish she felt tenfold to spare her.

He leaned his neck down to gingerly nose and nuzzle at the top of Avacyn's forehead and the back of her scruff. "I don't give a damn about traditions or duty, or ranks and expectations. I'm just glad that I'm not burying my perfect little girl." Alastor placed a gentle kiss atop Ava's head, just between her white-tipped ears. "We can fix anything else together as a family, but I can never have another Avacyn." Alastor's children were his most precious treasures in the whole world. Nothing could ever compare to how paramount they were to him. Not Elysium, not the Ancients, not anything. "Can I get you something to eat or drink, sweetheart?" he asked, brushing his nose against her ear as he spoke softly into it. He didn't know the last time Ava had eaten anything, but she would need all the energy she could get to make it through her road to recovery.

"Alastor Mendacium"