"Sköll's fine."

Well, that was that. She had a point and when it had been made, it dawned over Angier as though he had been smacked in the face with a branch covered in still-green pine needles. In a sound of annoyance she made her leave and the Lyall followed after her, very much like a scolded cub following in her shadow. In all truth there really was a reason why he constantly brought up the middle-born Archer in conversation, and a good one too. There was so much Angier saw that very few did.

Sköll Archer was a second-born, and just like Angier had been all throughout his youth, the boy had been bullied, picked on, and cast aside while his siblings garnered their mother's attention. Angier empathized with him, something he had not done with any other. He had known about Morganna's encounter with the rattlesnake, but Skana had been there to protect her, guide her, look after her... Asriel, as far as Angier was concerned, was the embodiment of perfection, and plainly very much like Borden was as a yearling. The black-and-gold-furred prince was confident and arrogant and, with the likes of Guiness to look up to, the boy had done nothing but thrive. He, too, had a brother to pick on and interrogate in order to feel better about himself. Sköll, he liked to believe, was very much like him, and the Leader had taken almost every opportunity to direct his mate's attention to her middle-born son, just to be sure that he was not overshadowed.

With his head held low as they strolled back to the den, Angier stared at the back of her head with the corners of his mouth turned downward. The yearlings had a choice, she had said, just like how he had made his own decision to leave Bertram Valley in search of his brother. If the three young Archers wanted, they were capable of fending for themselves. They, after all, had a well-rounded upbringing with a Medic, Herbalist, Advisor, and a Guardian to teach them all they needed to know. If anything, at this point in time, Sköll was no longer like him. The thought made him wince and while he reconsidered what Elettra had said, he held his tongue, never to utter another word about her children and how he still longed to shelter them as though they were his very own.

(Applause.)