Oh, Baird. She was flattered by his fussing but moved to snuff it out as fast as possible nonetheless; she ran her own nose along him, an exaggerated action with a chuckle. Besides, she didn't want to concern Nivi anymore than she needed to; death was a dificult subject to teach and if they made too much of a show of it, Niviaq feared the girl might grow to fear it above all other things. How funny, Niviaq laughed to herself, to fear another's fear than to fear death itself. "I'm as well as a lady my age can be," she finally relented with a small nod of affirmation. "It's you I worry about, Baird." She raised a brow, a look that told him more than words might: she had some probing to do, some insurance to make sure her son would be okay come the end of spring.

But Nivi was a welcome distraction even if she had not meant to be; her rudeness was endearing, part of the charm of children in Niviaq's eyes. As she rolled around, Niviaq ran her nose along her, unashamed in her habit to check on children though she flashed Baird a sheepish grin nonetheless. But how could she not? Nivi was so excited that it felt improper to turn their conversations serious until she settled. "You don't need to thank me, little one. Why don't we all have one to eat while they're still nice and fresh?" She gave her granddaughter a lick across her forehead, gently nosing her towards the voles before she picked one up herself and motioned for Baird to follow suit.

"How is the rest of your family, Nivi? Are your siblings well?" She felt a bit ashamed that she hadn't the chance to stop in often despite her encounters with Nivi; perhaps she had more of a bias than she had initially thought. "Has your father been behaving?" She peered up at Baird with a grin of mischief before she continued to pour her attention towards Nivi, fussing over her from a distance - she'd give her space for now, at least.