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Violet blue eyes flicked back towards my imprint, meeting the gold of her own as she spoke about this friend, features forming a scowl as I offered a wolfish huff of sorts that was neither manly nor particularly adult, though in this moment I hardly cared. Why it bothered me so much I didn’t know, she was allowed to have friends, I had friends, or...friend really and even then if I wasn’t teaching Vidar to talk I wasn’t entirely sure he couldn’t find better company, even with his unattractive appearance. I liked to think he stayed because he enjoyed my company and yet if past records are anything to go by there are actually very few who seem to willingly enjoy my company. Even Heyel seems intolerable and he’s my own damn Father- that however, is an issue I do not wish to address in this moment. My rather glorious tail flicked in mild agitation as she spoke of this Orca fellow, stupid name for a boy really, didn’t he have any other friends he could visit? Ok, so maybe I’m a little.....overprotective but can I truly be blamed. The ONE time she goes out without me and she gets herself abducted by an idiot, a male idiot, sure he says he thought he was helping her- whatever, he liked what he saw and made off with her as far as I’m damn concerned and for as logn as I live I will seek to prevent myself from EVER feeling the way I had when she was taken. The world feel apart and I’m not strong enough for that, not a second time. So I’m the jealous type? Shoot me. I only want her safe.

Her? I felt both eyes lift in surprise, ears pricking forward. Her friend was a girl? Well, that changed everything! I felt a smirk tug at my perfect features, lip curling upward in pleasure as my tail flicked against the earth before brushing against her own blackened hide in pleasure. She could have all the lady friends she liked, hell, I even encouraged it as long as this Orca didn’t want to take her on crazed adventures without my consent. I scowled at her last words, shooting her a slightly wounded look. Was I so transparent? Probably, not surprising, something else I can’t do well, then again when it comes to emotion I have never been the most skilful artist. I huffed once more, offering a somewhat wry grin in her direction as I returned the tease.

"You can have all the female friends you like darling and.....no, it wouldn’t matter if she was a boy- much."

I added wryly, one paw reaching up to bat at her again as I rolled casually onto my side, pawing playfully at the fur along her shoulders as I chuckled, easily deflecting the conversation away from the fact that even the mention of her in the company of another male was enough to insight my wrath to levels better not discussed. Ridiculous, maybe, but I can’t help it, not anymore, when it comes to my Andromeda all bets are off in the metaphorical sense. I’ve waged a one man war with all of Iromar over her and I’d so again. She is everything. She and them, my children, born from her. She is my soul and heart all in one, I cannot breath without her and I feel I have every right to be jealous at the thought of another man even looking at the beauty of my soul. It is for me and me alone. I just need to make it official. Sure I’m not supposed to take a mate, but I’ve already violated that rule, why not go the whole way? Besides, how much longer can Heyel live for? Eventually the Assassin Guild, or whatever you want to call it will pass to Malina and I am entirely sure I can knock her down if she has a problem with my extra-curricular activities. Hell, I could probably knock Heyel down too but......there’s just something about him that makes some part of me- bow. One day....one day.

The conversation drifted back towards the children in question, my opalescent eyes resting against them as I lay against the den floor, paws pressed against Andromeda, feeling the heat of her frame within the very tips of my claws as she spoke, ears flicking towards her as the early sun through shafts of light onto the white of my pelt, setting it aglow even within this gloom and illuminating the Angel Mark on my shoulders before drifting across to linger on the boys, lighting there dark pelts, setting there own Marks aflame. I eased myself upright once more, eyes resting again on Starfall, my fears hardly put at ease by his Mother’s words. A Prophet? I didn’t want a Prophet! I just wanted a....a healthy boy. I’d been thrilled at his birth. Hell I would have been thrilled if she’d given birth to kittens that day as long as she had survived, my joy at her still breathing eclipsed only by the fact that she had given me sons. Sons. What every male hopes for. So I’m an honest guy, so what? I would have been a bit disappointed (more then a bit really) if she’d given me daughters. I had no interest in girls, they would only grow to be healers and Mothers and nothing more. With sons....the possibilities were endless- and I’d been given two. It was merely unfortunate that Isola had also had a boy, a true heir to replace me once more, after all, before Achilles I only had to wait for Isola to die or step down and Diveen, just as Trenus before it, would have been rightfully mine. With Amaterasu gone and only producing daughters even so and Aaliyah unfit to lead because of Tobias and there half-breed children I had enjoyed the privileges of Prince once more, my own sons standing to take everything after me. They were the true Princes of Diveen- if not for Achilles. Damn Isola, damn Kane, couldn’t they have had a girl? Why does Fate hate me? Maybe something unfortunate would happen to my nephew. One day, one day my boys would know their birthright.

Even so, that is hardly the conversation at hand, Princes or not the matter still stood. My son, my perfect son was...damaged. Can I do nothing right?! Why couldn’t I Father some normal child? Why did he have to be special or gifted or....anything!? What’s wrong with being abnormally good at hunting or running or stealth? Why couldn’t he be an exceptional speaker or abnormally gifted lover or something....manly? Why did he have to be infected with this....mind disease? Dreamwalker? I didn’t understand and things I don’t understand tend to frustrate me all the more. I didn’t hate him, or what he was I suppose, not deep down. It just- scared me. Her own Mother had died because of this, i saw no honour in having fathered a child who was going to be lost in the world of dreams. She continued on, my eyes resting against him as he slept and Stella spoke, my mind turning slowly over these things she said. Maybe in her lands this was something to be revered and praised and some egotistical part of myself was mildly impressed that somewhere out there i might well be hailed as a god for having sired this child, yet even that part was overruled by other fears. Maybe he was a King in one land but here? Here he was....broken. Just another way I’m not like my own father, the perfect sire, he Fathers gods and heroes, I father sleepwalkers. I didn’t mean, not really I was just, afraid and frustrated and confused.

I shook my head, unwilling to hear anymore of this. How could it be good? He was damned to a life of needing to be protected and from what she’s saying it seems Guardian is damned along with him, forced to protect his older brother for the rest of his life because he has no black in his eyes? Hell, I’d never really looked. I made a note to look at my sons gaze properly the next time he was awake before I sighed once more. Maybe some logical part of my mind should have considered that such things were merely stories, that they weren’t entirely true, yet when was I ever given to be logical before I spoke? Words quite yet- hard, frustrated, confused as I turned my gaze to her own.

"I don’t want him to burn into wolves minds for heaven’s sake, Stella! I just.....I just want him to be....normal. Can’t you just make it stop? Can’t you just tell him to stop sleep walking or dream talking or whatever nonsense this is?! Maybe where you come from this is something good, but here? Here he’ll be labelled a freak or a fool or damn broken and I won’t....have that. I won’t have him growing up being rejected because they think he’s crazed or not- good enough."

I looked away. Not good enough. I’d spent my life under that title and I’d make damn sure neither of my sons ever did. I spent an entire existence being compared to the one wolf I could never, ever be. Being the first son, the heir, as Starfall is to me....it isn’t easy and maybe, as unfair as it is, I was just hoping that my own son, my own first born would prove to be...perfect. To learn he wasn’t, or at least, not in the way I wanted was hard, ridiculous really, I had the same stupid expectations Heyel had for me, ones I could never live up to, ones Starfall could surely never live up to, not now and I hated myself for it, I resented my own child for it because he just had to be different. I didn’t want different I just wanted......normal. I just wanted him to be happy. That was all, deep down, that was all I needed to know. That he was happy.

"Let’s not talk about this anymore. There’s nothing wro-."

I didn’t manage to get the words out before I was assaulted, Guardian having woken up and managed to make his way across the den to launch himself at my form. I snorted, mildly annoyed at the paw prints he left across my pelt before I lowered my muzzle, allowing him to lick at it before I returned the gesture, my own somewhat larger tongue sweeping across his entire face as he squealed with joy, bringing a wayward grin to my face. He was cute, I’d give him that, in a small, annoying, puppy-like way. Honestly I adored them, yet more often than not I hardly knew what to do with them, some part of myself terrified I’d break them if I moved to quickly, my form becoming rigid and still for fear of accidently crushing him as I lifted one paw ever so softly to bat at him- much to his utter joy. Hmm, so easily amused. I grinned, pleased that I could at least do something right, my sons laughter causing my own tail to wave as he laid himself across my limbs, a proud grin at having not broken him for five minutes touching my features as I looked back to Andromeda, child-like myself, seeking her praise for this effort.

"I think we could all go out today if you want, son. I don’t see why not. I could even sure you how to hunt things, are you old enough to hunt things?"

I looked warily back towards Stella, did they still drink milk? Were they old enough to actually chase anything? I was going to have to be around more. Lips parted to speak again when I saw Starfall move from the corner of my gaze, frowning at the way he lifted himself up. What was he doing?

"Star?"

My head tilted slightly, confused by the way my boy stood before he began to tumble towards me, eyes wide and yet unblinking, looking and yet- not. What the hell was wrong with him?! My heckles raised involuntarily, body growing ridged once more in unease and wariness, eyes flicking to Stella and back again, waiting for her to do something. Guardian spoke, his high little voice almost unheard through my own shock, his words forgotten as Starfall himself spoke in the latina, words smooth and easy yet...odd. His eyes? What the hell was he talking about his eyes? Mountain? Why was he calling me that, time for what?

"Starfall that’s enough, stop it! There’s nothing wrong with your eyes."

I snapped, voice commanding, authoritative this time, attempting to block out the fear that mingled loosely with it as the boy came forward and I shifted back. Back. I was afraid of my own son, or more so, what he was doing. I’ve seen wolves look like that before, once, once a long time ago when Aaliyah’s green-eyed demon tried to attack me. He didn’t see me, he saw nothing, Starfall saw nothing. I pulled upward and onto my feet as the boy moved to go past his Mother, moving to go past me.

"Starfall stop. Don’t you dare take another step. Stella, what the hell is he doing?!"

I barked, frustration and fear leaking into my form, why was he coming near me? What did he want? Why wasn’t he answering? Guardian lunged in the moment, tackling his Brother to the floor and ending this ridiculous tirade as my eyes widened in surprise and shock flicking from my son to my imprint and back before I simply turned and stormed out, jerking with relief back into the early morning sun and air, moving to sit off to the side and just....breathe.








AZRAEL

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"6 years ~ No Mate ~ Soul of Andromeda ~ Heyel x Zeivah ~ 41in 177lbs ~ Sire of Starfall & Guardian ~ Diveen "