El…probably isn’t the best daughter. at least, not where Aliana is concerned. for all the time she spends with Chi, soaking in his attention and trying to impress him, she barely seems to see her mother outside of mealtimes and such. it isn’t that El avoids Mama, exactly. they’ve just never been very close. and ordinarily, El would be quite happy to let this distance lie, undisturbed, between them. but this morning she’d woken from a rather upsetting dream, in which Aliana had disappeared rather suddenly. just…vanished into smoke right before El’s eyes. and when El woke to find morning light streaming in from the den, she’d sat up in bed with a hollow feeling in her chest, feeling a strange, unaccountable sense of loss. so now she finds herself lingering in the mouth of the healer’s den, a small handful of flowers clutched between her teeth. maybe, if she just catches a glimpse of her mother alive and well, it’ll settle this uncomfortable itch beneath her pelt. as much as she likes to pretend otherwise, El is still a child - and sometimes children need their mothers. "Speech"

As a mother fifteen times over, Aliana was not unrealistic in her expectations for her children. All she ever wanted was to know her babies were healthy, happy, and that their needs were met. Everything else was icing on the cake. She had never had the delusions of grandeur that all of her children had to love her outwardly or even that some wouldn't naturally gravitate towards their father, and that was perfectly okay to the clouded queen. Her children were their own beings, after all; living, breathing creatures with sentient thought and unique personalities. She wouldn't change any of them for anything and loved them all the way they were. That included Elara, who seemed naturally inclined to Chimera's favor over her own. The pup was an absolute daddy's girl, and in many ways that warmed Ali's heart to see her husband being such an idolized father to their pups. It was easy in that mindset to not worry over the lack of interaction her daughter seemed to be fine with.

As Ashen's primary healer and caregiver, Aliana's work never stopped. From the moment she was up and the kids were out of the den, she was either out gathering supplies or creating medicines in her apothecary. Ashen was a large pack and the head of the Empire, after all; medicines had to be ready at all times. Today, she had been out gathering fresh boneset and marigold to prepare some cold medicines for the coming winter and was returning back to her apothecary workshop with a wicker basket practically overflowing with the plants. But as she neared her working den, she noticed the monochrome form of Elara sitting in the mouth of the den, waiting with a bouquet of flowers in her jaws. Ali tipped her head curiously and approached her, having to tilt her head upward to look at her rapidly growing daughter who now stood over her, like so many of her children did.

"Hello, sweetheart! Is everything all right?" she greeted El, looking her daughter over to make sure she wasn't injured or ill first. Such was her way as the doting mother.

"Aliana Klien"