Walk the Night in the Valley

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Ah, so she hadn't stuck around in Valhalla as long as she had thought - she hadn't been there to know where to go as a child, and had wandered off on her own. That explained a lot - she hadn't given her specific instructions on what to do when the pack went to war, but she had stayed out of trouble herself. "The Matthias own the territory, and our families are close. If you ever want to visit it's near the heart of the south." She would explain a bit, giving Odette another place to check out should she want to do a bit of exploring or meet some new wolves. It seemed like she was enough of an explorer to run with the information.


The woman was surprised though, that the girl didn't believe that she was someone that the alpha would miss. She had told her she was family - but it was then that Chrysanthe realized that the girl had little family to call her own. How was she to measure the meaning or the bond without much prior experience? Perhaps she could give her a bit of insight then. "I'm glad you left when you did, war is no place for a child." She didn't want to scare Odette, but there was no way to pretty up the answer to her question. "It can, very much. But you can grow from any experience." She would see past this injury and learn to live with it, of that she was sure. "This will heal with time." At the very least it would be a little less garish than it was now.


Finally, it would seem that the woman would ask the right question, and she couldn't help but smile as Odette's eyes lit up at the chance to tell of her travels. Chrysanthe was more than happy to listen for a bit, and she would take note of those that Odette had met as best she could. Meili she knew - the woman was an excellent hunter and a good friend of Gael's. As for Aurora, she had some ties with Ludicael that she would have to strengthen or cut off herself - but she knew that many of the wolves there were good natured. If she met up with the woman in question she would thank her for taking care of Odette - even if it was just for a little while.


"Patience Odette." She would nudge the girl slightly as she hung her head with thoughts of her lost family. Perhaps if she just kept waiting, they would return. The snow rogues were all about family, weren't they? Friction... the man had been scarce since she had failed his daughter - the alpha wondered where he was now. After meeting all of these wolves, Chrysanthe would worry somewhat that the girl would grow restless within Valhalla. Maybe there wouldn't be enough to explore, or she would want to meet wolves that she was unacquainted with... but the girl silenced most of her worries with a nuzzle and a kind, sincere statement that no child would bother lying about.


"If you're hungry, we can hunt for something here, this Valley is good hunting ground. You're growing up not getting fatter - promise." She would tease, her lips pulling into a slight grin. The girl was lovely, she took the best traits from either of her parents, hadn't she? The alpha blushed slightly though, not expecting the compliment - as she was rather sure she was done growing and only looked a bit fluffier and a bit more mangled since they had last met. And yet Odette had seen something in her change, and she thought it was pretty. It was enough to pull a sheepish look onto her Aunt's face. "Thank you dear." It meant quite a bit coming from her.


"Odette, my niece - I want you to know something, alright?" She would not let Odette go on thinking that she was some far off barely thought of family to her. The woman had a lot of it - more than she could constantly stay on top of - but she would do anything she could for each and every member. Odette was definitely no exception. "You're already my niece, but would you... like to be my daughter?" It was somewhat of a big step - and she was a touch nervous that she would break the bond she had with this girl if she didn't ask her correctly. "Gideon and I don't have children yet, and I'm not trying to replace your own family - but I want to teach you how to hunt and fight, and for you to stay with me in my dens and come to me whenever you need something." An aunt, a sister, all of those things would do - but there was something different about her relationship with Odette that she knew was there but had yet to act upon.


There was no guarantee that she would be good at being a parent, especially with Odette nearly old enough to make all of her own decisions. Yet she wanted to try, and try she would if it was something that the girl wanted. "It would make you an Adravendi too." She didn't have to drop her old last name if she had one - only add Adravendi to what she already had.