Venom tried to put her conversation with Ikigai at the back of her mind so she could just enjoy the time with Chimera and Elysium. It was a very pleasant visit, but she was visibly edgy most of the time. Not by anyone’s fault but her own, she was putting too much weight on future events. Perhaps the offer of flesh and blood would not even be needed. Venom knew better though, Ikigai’s logic was sound. Her mother just feared the sacrifice would turn into a deep regret.

She was right about it creating a strong bond between packs, that strengthening must be worth it all. Venom had to let her children fly someday, Ikigai was ready and willing to spread her wings. The Empress believed it would be for the better. It had to be.

Leading Ikigai towards the area where their negotiations would take place. The akita who served her had already sent word to Manea about meeting here. They had already promised to talk, the alphess wouldn’t be surprised. Venom tried to make herself comfortable, and a heavy sigh left her lips in her body’s attempt to lower the stress brewing within her. She kept her head high, anything less would be a dishonor to Ikigai’s actions and Manea’s position.

Still, her sunset gaze shifted to her daughter and she felt a mixture of incredible pride and heartbreaking sadness. The Princess’s dragon like gaze gave Venom her own courage. If her daughter could be so brave and selfless, so would she.

"Venom"

After she and her mother had spoken, the two took a little time to simply enjoy Elysium's hospitality. The day came to speak to Manea regarding their proposition. Ikigai followed her mother to the meeting place that they'd agreed upon prior. The girl did her best and made herself look as clean and well put together as possible. She braided her long tail in mermaid plaits and placed the silver, ruby and onyx circlet strung between lynx-tipped ears. The girl looked every bit the daughter of an empress.

The pair settled in and waited for Manea. Ikigai caught the look that her mother gave her and smiled, snake-slit eyes lifting at the corners. She was confident that these negotiations would lean in their favor. Ashen would get a strong alliance with a north eastern pack and Manea would receive fresh blood for her pack. Blood that held manty of the gifts that she prized so highly.

X

Manea was always pleased to speak with one of her first real connections in Boreas outside of her husband so when Venom's companion came ahead of her to arrange the meeting she was more than willing to agree. She tried to speculate on what exactly Venom would have planned for her, but she decided not to ponder it too heavily. the relationship between their families seemed to be building nicely and she felt like she could already consider Venom a friend. She didn't think that it was too much of a stretch for them to soon become allies, but she didn't want to rush into the agreement either. She knew that Ashen was the stronger and more established pack here. She felt like there was still much to prove for Elysium to be on par with what she felt like Ashen deserved.

The violet woman put the thoughts aside as she approached the point where Venom had agreed to meet, seeing Ikigai's beautiful form sitting beside her. She smiled warmly to the pair, her tail wagging gently behind her at the sight. "Venom, Ikigai," she greeted simply, but fondly. The young princess had stolen her attention right from the very beginning and that certainly hadn't changed. She was maturing beautifully and getting only more stunning each time she saw her. Manea sat across from them with a curious look in her gaze. "What was it that you wanted to meet about?" she asked, fine with getting right down to business this time.

"Manea Mendacium"

Ikigai looked beautiful and it further broke her heart, like the girl had been born for this moment. Venom didn’t believe that, she would forever be the little girl sitting proudly at her paws. Growing into the beautiful young woman who stood before her now. There was still part of her that was mom, and would never be really okay with saying goodbye. She smiled though, this was Iki’s offering to her family and her pack. A burden freely accepted. Venom could be content in that.

The pair of them sat together for a long quiet moment before Manea appeared before the. All too soon in Venom’s opinion. She smiled politely as the woman made herself comfortable and greeted the both of them. "Hello, Manea. Thank you for coming.” Manea was swift to get down to business, asking about the purpose of the meeting today.

"I wish to revisit our conversation about the future of the relationship between our two packs.” Venom started easily, the easiest part of this challenge before her.

"Venom"

Manea arrived, the purple fae moving into the space and making herself comfortable. She greeted the pair of Ashen wolves and Ikigai smiled, the red winged corners of marbled eyes lifting. Her mother began to speak and Ikigai would remain silent, sitting a step behind and to the side of her mother. She could still see Manea's face clearly and was curious to see how the horned fae reacted to the proposition that would be given.

As a new pack it stood to reason that Elysium would need allies. Strong allies. Who was stronger than the Empire? No one. There were many packs affiliated with Ashen and the majority of them were capable. There was much that Ashen could offer Elysium, but they needed to offer fair compensation in return. Especially for the price that Ikigai was willing to pay.

Okiku Ikigai Ōritsu Abraxas

Manea's gaze lingered on Venom as she spoke, though her eyes would occasionally shift to glance back at Ikigai who was sitting just a step behind her mother while she sat curiously and waited for the truth of the meeting to reveal itself. Soon enough Venom explained that she wished to revisit the relationship between their two packs and the future of it. Manea's brows lifted with pleasant surprise and she gave a small nod in agreement. "Of course." She was genuinely surprised to have Venom bringing this to her instead of the other way around, but she was pleased regardless. Having allies in their corner was something that she definitely wanted for Elysium and Venom was someone she respected greatly, even beyond the fact that Ashen was a large, established pack with several other strong allies. "I would be honored to consider any offer you have for me," she told them, glancing to Ikigai again as she wondered to herself whether there was a specific purpose for her poised daughter to be here other than to see how a diplomatic exchange could go between two packs. She was happy to have Ikigai here regardless, but it did make her wonder.

"Manea Mendacium"

Their pleasantries were oddly swift and to the point for the weight of the meeting that Venom was feeling as the two leaders got started. Manea didn’t have any hesitation in beginning their talks, this meeting needed to happen during the trip regardless. The Empress figured she would at least make the talk on her own terms, even if they were on Manea’s land.

The negotiations could have gone on forever really, Manea immediately asked after Venom’s offer but the Empress wasn’t ready to bring out her final offer quite yet. Her second word to Manea wouldn’t be an offering of her eldest daughter, she would look weak and desperate to gain Manea’s loyalty. She didn’t want the woman to feel like a vassal either, unable to offer a deal good enough to garner the price of blood.

"Forgive my boldness in your home, Manea.” She requested with a small dip of her head as Manea tried to rush through. "Before I answer your question I need to know the inverse. What would the Monarch of Elysium give to be allied with Ashen?” What was it worth to have the backing of Boreas’ most influential pack?

"Venom"

She waved away Venom's apology with a small smile. "Be as bold as you'd like. These are serious negotiations, of course, but you're still a friend in my home. Speak freely." Then Venom went on, asking her instead what she would give to have Elysium allied with Ashen. It was a difficult question and one she had a firm answer for. She knew that Elysium would have the most to gain from the partnership since her pack currently did not have any firm alliances, but what price would be worthy of earning an alliance of such a large and well established pack? Surely there had to be something that Ashen could gain from the deal as well that Venom would find a suitable trade. There had to be something she wanted or she likely wouldn't have considered it to begin with.

"I suppose it depends on what Ashen's needs are and what you find valuable," she mentioned while still trying to decide what to offer. She didn't want to suggest something that wouldn't be equal to what Elysium would gain in the trade, but she didn't want to sound like she was begging for this partnership either. "We have a fair number of fighters that would come to your aid should you ever need it. We also stand in the opposite corner of Boreas from Ashen so I could offer a different vantage point and keep an eye on other packs and their going ons for you if you'd like. Our mountains are sure to hold a different plethora of resources than your islands do so our trade would be very diverse." The problem was that she still didn't quite know what all Venom was offering so she didn't know how far to extend her reach or how many cards to show.

Still, they could make promises and such and that would be all fine and good, but would it be better to have something more significant solidifying the tie between them? She glanced briefly toward Ikigai, her thoughts still turning in her head. "I do also have three children now," she said as she brought her aqua gaze back to Venom. The love she had found in Alastor made her hopeful that her own children would find something similar for their own partners one day, but she understood that in her family that was a rarity and more of an exception to the rule than anything else. "I would like to ensure that they end up with wolves of high caliber and strong bloodlines one day... If that is something that you are also concerned about."

"Manea Mendacium"

Manea gave her permission to speak as freely as she desired. Venom did go on as she was asked to, posing the question in reverse. Sussing out what Manea was willing to offer her to begging with. There was much more than just herself or Manea’s life on the line here. Decisions now could potentially affect the coming generations for untold years. Venom’s heart clenched as she thought about Ikigai sitting behind her now, awaiting a decision to be made.

The Elysium Monarch entered negotiations with ease, keeping herself back as she started vaguely but with high tact. She spoke easily about adapting to Ashen’s needs. The usual agreement of alliance, a promise to aid in a war like situation. Potential valuable trade between their northern home and the island pack of Ashen. Those were both high points. Venom did value both of those assets.

She finally finished. Her mind slipping to places that Venom had already been, she spoke of the three children that she had now. It was a not so subtle way to admit she would have no problem in arranging the future mate of her own children. Venom could no longer avoid the prospect, or as Manea spoke, the eventuality before her. This would be Iki’s burden. "A fair answer.” Venom replied at the end of Manea’s spoken word. "Though I am torn on the morality of such practices I can not deny the potential value such a decision can bring.” Venom replied carefully, still feeling the clench in her heart. "Such as bringing two packs closer together. I don’t know that there is much else that can create such a strong bond faster.” She spoke softly as her tail almost reflexively uncurled from her paws and swung back to lay on Ikigai’s paws. A tiny revelation of mother seeking strength in the moments she gave away her child.

"Venom"

As Venom spoke, focusing in on the offer of the arranged pairings of their children, Manea was beginning to put the pieces together for what actually brought Venom here with Ikigai beside her. It wasn't a coincidence that her gifted daughter was here as they brought up the topic of packs and the ties that could bind them together, but Venom seemed quite reluctant. So perhaps this wasn't the Empress' idea after all and it made Manea all the more curious. Still, as a mother she could certainly understand Venom's hesitance and could also agree with the uncertainty over the morality of setting up such arrangements on behalf of their children. Still, if she had the chance to ensure that her children had a chance to meld with wolves with so many obvious and strong gifts then she would at least like to give them the option.

She nodded in agreement, but paused for a moment as she gave a quick glance to Ikigai before looking back to Venom with sincerity and seriousness in her gaze. "I hope you know that I wouldn't make that kind of offer to anyone I didn't trust. I wouldn't allow my children to go to just anyone. I also hope you know that any of yours that join my family will be treated as such and I will cherish as if they were my own." Her soft spot for Ikigai in particular was already very obvious. Her and Venom both had similar protective natures when it came to their children and for that Manea respected her. "I also wouldn't want to force any of them into something they didn't agree to," she mentioned with her gaze lingering curiously on Ikigai, wondering what the girl had in mind.

"Manea Mendacium"

Now they would get to the real meat of the discussion as Manea was the first to speak about potentially offering up their own offspring in a part of interpack dealings. Venom didn’t know that she would ever really find peace in the decision when she had to let go of her dear daughter. Manea truly seemed trustworthy, and displayed her worth to be considered for such a huge display of trust. The woman was perceptive, and Venom didn’t miss the glance towards her polite daughter sitting slightly behind her. There was no coincidence and her heart tightened.

Manea spoke the words that she needed to hear though, as she mentioned how much trust she would need to have in someone before she offered up such an incredible oath. More than that was her dedication to one that would reciprocate. If Ikigai remained here she would be treated as if she were the monarch’s own child. Iki would be cherished and that was the most difficult part. How could she say she cherished her own child when she was going to send her away?

Before Venom could speak Manea mentioned that she couldn’t agree to anything that their children had not agreed to. Ikigai was close enough to her second birthday she was long old enough to make these decisions for her future. Venom had made a similar huge decision at her age. "I can say the same, Manea. I would love any child placed in my care, and would have an incredible amount of trust to give one of my own.” Any of the woman’s offspring sent to her would be treated just as her own. Offering this deal showed the strong trust that Venom would be putting into Manea’s paws. A soft sigh slipped errantly past her lips as she looked to her daughter. "Ikigai?” She asked softly for her to finally speak. This was where her devotion should be displayed, to show Manea that she had offered herself for this role.


"Venom"

The pair of women spoke, going back and forth and Ikigai listened intently. It surprised her a bit that Manea offered up the idea of children first. The young woman was pleased by it, however. It showed that they were somewhat on the same page, or at least all headed in the same direction. The only problem was that Manea's son was too young to be joined with her. What could they do in that case? As Ikigai thought, her mother spoke her name. Well, it appeared it was her turn to take the floor.

The pallid princess stepped forward, giving a nod to Manea as she sat beside her mother. "As two strong, female-led packs, I believe it would be in both of our best interests to join forces. Not only with words, but with actions. With blood." Now was her true test of loyalty and faithfulness to the Empire. "I am willing to offer myself in union with one of your family members." She knew that her unique attributes would be appealing to the purple woman. "Perhaps in turn it can be agreed upon that one of your children will be united with one one of the Empresses future children." Iki had no doubt that her mother would recover from Hattori's abandonment and would reproduce again some day.

"It would be my honor to be the catalyst that ties our families together." Ikigai respected Manea and she knew that Manea had strong feelings for her as well. She had no doubts that she would be well cared for in Elysium and it made offering herself up as tribute easier than it may have been otherwise. The young lady's snake slit eyes rested upon the purple woman's face as she waited for Manea to process the offer being made.

"Ikigai"

Manea dipped her head gratefully as Venom agreed to love any child that landed in her care and that it did in fact take a lot of trust to make this kind of arrangement. Then Venom turned the attention to her daughter and as Ikgai stepped forward, as poised and well spoken as ever, it solidified Manea's theory that this wasn't Venom's idea at all. She turned her full attention to the young woman and she spoke quite confidently about the benefits of joining the two female-led packs which brought up a fact that Manea hadn't really considered before that moment. She thought about the other alphas she had met so far—Chimera, Sirius, Artorias... the only other women leading packs she could think of were Theory and that bitch that bested her in the challenge. She had not made contact with all of the packs yet so perhaps there were more out there, but she did appreciate Ikigai's thought process around joining together their packs with this in mind.

Joining them together with blood was certainly a strong statement and Manea was not entirely surprised with Ikigai offered herself as the one to be joined with one of her family members, but she was already pleased by the offer. She would never want to pull a child away from Venom, especially not one that clearly meant so much to her, but Manea's fondness for the fair girl and all of the lovely gifts she was born with made her incredibly excited to see what a union with her family would produce. She gave a nod and a glance to Venom when the counter offer of having one of her children united with the other woman's eventually and of course her mind went to little Fia. She didn't know how soon Venom was looking to have more children or if she even had a possible suitor to take the place of her traitorous former mate, but in was something Manea would certainly be open to discussing in the future.

Her aqua gaze settled on Ikigai again with a soft smile as she offered herself as the binding force between their families, endlessly impressed with the lady's poise and tact. She considered the woman for a moment, certainly not taking the offer lightly in any way, but a small grin still tugged at her lips as she spared a glance toward Venom to tell the Empress, "You have raised one hell of a woman, Venom." Chuckling softly, she looked back to Ikigai and dipped her head. "It would be an absolute honor to welcome you into my family. I know this can't be an easy decision for either of you and it is incredibly selfless offer you've made." She considered for a moment who she could offer to Ikigai as her future partner and she hummed softly to herself. "My son, Saracyn, only just crossed over his first birthday... While I'm certainly not opposed to waiting until he comes of age for your union, I can't say with certainty that he would agree to such agreements. He's inherited his father's... fiery spirit." She smirked a little and thought some more.

The unfortunate reality was that females were typically favored in their selection of pups from their litters to the number of males in her family were typically fewer. Her brother was far too old now for someone as young as Ikigai and already had his woman that he was quite attached to. That really only left one more option to offer her. "I have a cousin that has grown up with me like a brother," she began, looking between the two women. "His name is Poe. He is taller than I with black and red coloring, impressive horns, and—ironically—unique eyes not too dissimilar to yours. He is a quiet and stern man, but I often make my judgements on others with how they treat and care for pups and he is one of the most sweet and caring caregivers I have ever seen. I think that he would make for a wonderful mate and father. I do believe he would agree to the arrangement if it suits you both. Perhaps I could take you to meet him, if you'd like. Though... If you would prefer to consider Saracyn I might be able to convince him." She paused for a moment before adding, "Additionally... I have been trying to fill my higher ranks for some time. I have a position available for my diplomat and head of external affairs. If you're interested, Ikigai, I would like to offer it to you should you find either of my men acceptable and join Elysium." She looked between the two women, waiting to see if it would be a worthy enough offer for Ikigai's paw. She wished she had another child closer in age to Ikigai that she could offer, but the timing of things was not in her favor this time.

"Manea Mendacium"

Venom wondered if Ikigai would ever cease to amaze her with the pride and grace she wielded so naturally. She truly was made for this position in life even if it made Venom’s heart ache at the thought. How had she been blessed with such an amazing daughter? Had fate known how deeply she would hold to her heart to demand a sacrifice such as this. Even as Iki spoke Venom ahd the urgent desire to stop her, to shut her mouth and pretend that this meeting had never happened. To pretend that she could hold onto her baby for the rest of her life. She was the Empress, she should have whatever her heart’s desire was.

The thoughts were selfish and dishonorable and she knew it so they would never be voiced. She tried to cling to the feeling of pride in her brave daughter instead of the pain in her heart. Ikigai bridged the gap between Manea and Venom in more than one way, and as she had to Venom alone her words weaved a contract neither party could deny. Iki would be joined to the Mendaciums, and Manea’s youngest could be brought to Ashen when the time came. An even trade, a binding of blood and culture.

Manea took the words just as Venom did, with a small amount of awe and pride. She spoke as much as well, commending Venom for her incredible daughter. Venom twisted so her dual toned eyes could beam at the young lady. Pride like she had never felt swelling in her breast. It very nearly blotted out the heavy ache. "Thank you Manea, easy this is not.” She admitted softly as the monarch went on to speak of the potential suitors within Elysium. Her son was a little young, and not very likely to agree to such an arrangement. There was another man, as close to Manea as her own brother, who was brilliant with puppies if not quiet and stern.

Venom wondered if Ikigai would ever feel any kind of love in this union. The Empress thought herself in love once, and part of her wondered if she had been betrothed to one of Sirius’s how her life would have turned out. She wouldn’t have the children she did now, so no matter how badly Hattori had hurt her, she couldn’t bring herself to regret her decision. She hoped Ikigai would be able to say the same.

Already Ikigai would be offered a high ranking position, and it was the first sign that her daughter would find her place here. She had been training as a diplomat nearly her entire life, so Venom could hold out hope this was the path they were meant to walk. "It would please me to meet my future son-in-law before this trip has concluded.” She added at the end, wondering if it would also be prudent to have Chimera take value of the man who would be her daughter’s husband. It was all so surreal. "As well as your youngest.” The deal was all but sealed now and Venom tried to embrace the numb feeling creeping into her limbs. She was going to have to say goodbye. The thought struck her harder than any physical blow, but she withheld her emotions. Tears would do no one any good.

"Venom"