Chimera did his best to spend time with each of his pups one-on-one, and today Elara had been his pick. The troublesome, adventurous girl had a lot of spirit. A lot of fight. He was a proud father and he liked fire in his girls. She needed to obey the rules, however. In time, he knew she'd get it.

Today Chi brought the girl to a big pile of small, dried palm trees. He'd already removed the branches and made them mostly even in length. There was twine and netting as well. The man eyed his child, letting her take in the scene before he asked, "So what do you think we're going to do today, Elara?" He hadn't told her why they were out here, just that he needed her assistance with a task of great import.

"Chimera"

El has spent the entire walk with her father practically vibrating with energy, all but bouncing on the tip of her toes with every step. an outing with Chi! a one-on-one excursion, just the two of them, with no annoying brothers and sisters getting in their way! take that you guys, she thinks smugly to herself, eyes aglow with triumph, today i’m Daddy’s favourite. luckily for the size of her head, all thoughts of favouritism disperse when her gaze settles on the group of palm trees Chi has brought them to. they’ve been stripped of branches, and an assortment of materials lay strewn across the ground. now well and truly curious, El tilts her head first one way and then the other, squinting as her mind begins to churn. “hmm…is it a trap, Daddy?” she inquires finally. "Speech"

Elara considered before answering with a bit of question in her voice. Chimera chuckled and gave a half shrug, half nod. "I suppose you could say that it's a trap, yes." The brute motioned to the pile of supplies with one big paw. "We're going to build an enclosure for ducks."Yes, ducks.

Now that he was no longer in the business of slavery, Chimera needed something to keep track of. Something to keep himself busy. Ducks were well suited to island life and the estuary was full of various species, so the Ashen King had decided to raise waterfowl. That wasn't all. Chimera had the idea to eventually breed and raise cattle once he could obtain enough supplies for fencing.

Taking up one of the long poles, Chi began to show Elara how to properly space the saplings using a small piece of bark to measure the space between. He allowed his daughter to dig the holes for the posts, then he pushed them down into the earth. They both patted the soil down hard around each post.

"Chimera"

El blinks in surprise, before childish excitement lights up her face. her eyes go big, a grin splitting her chubby face in half and displaying twin rows of sharp teeth. “ooh, ducks! can i have a duck, Daddy? pleeaase?” the thought of a pet of her own, one she can take personal responsibility for - it appeals to her possessive nature, especially when it’s something she can lord over her siblings. why, she already picture the envy on Phobia’s face! for the next while she works alongside Chi in relative silence, wanting to impress him. every hole is carefully dug and spaced apart, scrutinised with uncharacteristic focus. as she works she tries to picture what the enclosure might look like, wondering what kind of supplies a duck might need. “will there be a pond, Daddy? and lily pads?” oh, she hopes there’s lily pads! they’re so pretty. "Speech"

Elara lit up at the mention of ducks and asked if she could have one of her own. Chimera chuckled and gave the girl an affectionate lick to the top of her head. "You and your siblings can take care of all the ducks. You can even name them if you want, but remember... we're raising them for eggs and for food." He didn't want the kids to be upset if suddenly their favorite duck was gone. It was the way of nature though and it was something that they'd have to get used to.

The pair worked together to place the posts, tamping the dirt down firmly around each one. Chimera then set about unrolling a big length of fence that he'd happened upon. With ties and hooks, the giant man attached the mesh fence to the posts, even going so far as to cover the top. It was a relatively large enclosure and would hold quite a few ducks. Elara's hopeful tones requested a pond and the brute chuckled again. "If we can find some more fence and can make the enclosure bigger, I'll build you a pond, love." He would make sure that there were lily pads too.

"Chimera"

El steps back to admire their work, something warm and content settling in her chest. this is something she and her Daddy did together - and now, whenever she lays eyes on it, she’ll be reminded of the fact. “i’ll take really really good care of the ducks,” she vows, face uncharacteristically solemn. “you’ll be so proud, i promise!” now that Daddy’s king again, she’s a princess! and that means taking her princess duties seriously. well…as seriously can be expected of her. leaning her head against Chi’s shoulder, she lets herself savour this moment: one-on-one time with her father and the simple carefree delights of childhood. "Speech"