I suppose it was to be expected, her snarl, so I kept myself at only the mouth of the den, seating myself in such a way as to allow a retreat should her hormone consumed mind apparently fail to recognise me for who and what I am. In the hours and days after birth a female is….altered. Rank, position, hierarchy….none of it matters to her. I have seen this change before, seen it do things both great and terrible and yet I suppose this is nature’s way of ensuring the survival of the pups that feed from her now. I have seen Omega females tear into wolves far above their rank as fearless in their presence as any Alpha male and indeed even I am not so egotistical that I see myself above the laws of nature, I respect her space, yet that does not mean I will forfeit my right completely, indeed, they are born of my blood too and it would seem, though irritated as she is, part of Ava seems to…settle slightly upon this realisation of my presence, another of nature’s intriguing little things, her rather protective state of mind, as is often the case, recognising myself as the Father of those beside her- accepting my presence as well she should. I shifted forward only slightly more, respecting her authority in this moment, content to linger only slightly within the den, allowing me view without intruding to far upon her space while living one side of the entrance clear should she wish to exit for any reason and also providing myself with space to turn should she decide to maul my face. Honestly though, hormones or not I will be thoroughly displease if she does that.

I continued to allow my gaze of violet to rest upon the children born to us this day, eyes roving across the dark and light forms, resting once more on the boy of total white. Hmmm, apparently fate has a very funny sense of humour, though provided his eyes are not the violet of my own unique bloodline then he can easily be passed off as a throwback to grandsire Castor. How much I believe in any life after death is a debatable thing and yet, some vague part of myself hopes that Eris, Castor, hell, even Arsenic with her one eye and vile temper have some way of looking upon such children, seeing the perfection of the combination perhaps the most successful bloodlines within Moladion, though indeed I debate the success of Jaidah to this day. Even so, I am entirely sure the addition of my own blood has diluted the….taint of the other side. Never will I admit it of course, not until the day I die and yet, some aprt of myself is willing to acknowledge that Ava was right. Some blood simply desires to blend and it would seem that perhaps she has created something…..beyond the norm. Telling her that though, will only further encourage her and I have no desire to do that. I pity their upbringing as it is, though indeed I am well aware that while they may not be raised…..as I would desire, they will at least be raised in tradition and that alone I can except. I raised my gaze once more, meeting her own as she spoke, naming the children as I allowed my eyes to rest upon them in turn.

Ayal, the girl so like Ava it was slightly…distressing. I frowned slightly at the name. It has…many meanings though indeed I am hoping she intend to name her after the more traditional calling meaning deer or buck….a bit masculine, but then Ava always was. Then again I suppose I would rather that then her having named our daughter after Ayal the Night Demon. Typical. The next she spoke of was the white boy, Anselm- protector of God. Yes, a good name, that one I like. She moved lastly to the boy of white and grey. Eden. An old name, traditional and easily approved off by myself, not that I was actually asked I suppose. My jaws parted, about to speak on this choice of names when my ears laced back, the sound of another moving outside capturing my attention as the scent of…one of Azrael’s boys permeated the den. Ah- the healer, the eldest and adopted one. I shifted slightly, prepared to see him off, having no desire to see Ava further enraged when the damn girl just about knocked me over, aggression and a need to protect leaking off her in waves as the gold of her gaze seemed to glow with an utter fury before she launched herself forward at the sound of his voice.

Ah good, then I can explain to Azrael why his son no longer has a face, that will go down so well and yet really, it is as I said before, it is an act of nature, in some it is….fierce and it would seem that in Ava it is truly powerful. She does not choose to send Meryl away- she has no choice at all, her body commands it and yet I have no desire to see the boy ripped apart for today, my own lithe form twisting, paws scraping at the earth as I lunged out after her while she snapped like a rabid dog, my own toned, powerful frame leaping to force my way in between Ava and her target, my own low growling rumbling with irritation in my chest before I moved forward, aiming to press Meryl back with my own body, shielding him from Ava while seeking to move him away at the same time, to remove the source of her agitation- to protect her and them, my children, because I have to, because that is my instinct. I spoke easily enough as I sought to drive the boy back further, my teeth well concealed behind my lips, seeking not to harm of spook him further then Ava has already done.

“She is well as you can see Meryl, I have seen many, many births and I assure you that all is fine. She forgets herself, think nothing of it, but go now. I will watch over her and believe me, I will not save you again if you come back, once is a mistake, twice is stupidity. Go on, off with you.”

I can’t be too harsh with my own grandson now can I?