Namid had finally gotten the girls to take a nap, through much hassle and promises she would rue to keep on her part. She knew that her pack mates were more than willing to watch the girls, but most of them were busy and she had no real reason to go out anyways so why make the trouble? Still, after they had settled down Namid had found herself in the precarious position of needing to use the restroom. Ismena and Lunette had both been curled up comfortably against her stomach, and it took much teeth gritting and slow movement to allow her to weasel her way out from behind them. She didn’t think she had ever walked so quietly in her life.

As she’d passed on her way to a more private place, she’d paused at the burial site of both Anthem and the little boy that had been still-born. There hadn’t been a day that went by that she hadn’t gone out to pay them both a visit, to talk to them and quietly mourn the loss. While she felt such joy in her life from both of her girls, she still felt the heavy loss of the child that could have been in her breast. And, to make matters worse Aleister had disappeared again. Of course this wasn’t new news, he’d been gone for almost a month already, but it didn’t disappoint her any less. He’d seemed to genuine when he’d come back in saying that he wouldn’t leave them again that she’d wanted to believe it, wanted to believe that he’d had enough of his parents in him to not want to simple abandon them again, but it seemed that it hadn’t stuck like she’d wanted it to. The part that really killed her was that she knew what she had to do if he’d show up again. It would truly kill her, break her heart into a million pint-sized pieces that would be scattered into the atmosphere, but she knew she’d have to reject him. The Cove, even though it was the safe-haven it was, didn’t take kindly to moochers or wolves that abandoned them. Especially not frequently, kin or not. He would have to learn, have to visit the school of tough love that both parents would dish out. Perhaps he would go out and learn, go out and better himself and then, if he wanted to come back after that change, maybe they would accept him. Until that time, Aleister Vuesain was not welcome as a prince of the Lake.

Returning from her little venture out, she saw a large, dark body poking out of the birthing den. Her tail flagged for a moment, auds slamming forward and the beginnings of a maternal growl beginning in her throat before she processed who it was. The growl was quickly cut-off and masked as a cough, posture relaxing before she realized that he was speaking. Right into the den. Namid panicked, afraid that he would wake the girls. If that happened, there would be no peace for either of them. “Draven, Draven please quiet the girls are sleeping. It took me a great battle to get them that way, too,” she whisper yelled to him, mismatched gaze wide and pleading. Then, her sight trailed down to what he was holding. “Did you catch that yourself?” she asked quietly, impressed and quite pleased that he was making such leaps and bounds within their borders.

The reaction that stemmed from Draven seemed extreme to her, the instant bowing of his head, lowering of posture, and deflation of his ears. She could practically hear him chastising himself mentally, and a small frown came to her lips. She hadn’t meant to sound chastising in the slightest, and she wasn’t angry at him. For all intents and purposes she should have been inside the den upon his approach, but when nature called one definitely answered. Perhaps she would have made it in time had she not been so lost in her own thoughts. Ultimately, however, she hoped that the poor boy didn’t twist himself over thinking that he had done something wrong when it was no fault of his own.

Still, at the mention of his catch the boy’s demeanor changed into a much more content fashion. She took a mental note to praise him more often, and now that the children were older perhaps she should take the time to get to know him a little better. Even if their meeting was by chance, Draven was still a part of the Cove and she would be lying if she said that she didn’t feel some sort of maternal protectiveness over him being the same age as her own children.

She was rather shocked at his mention of having a brother, as they hadn’t really spoken of his life before they had stumbled upon him. Most of the time had been spent allowing him to heal, and she hadn’t wanted any extra stress put on him if his past hadn’t been the best. She knew better than to encroach too much, as this was just the first stepping stone, but she was still pleased that he was feeling comfortable and well enough to begin to speak of it. “Well, there are certainly plenty of fish in the lake for you to hone your skills on. I am sure with a bit of practice you will far surpass his teachings in time,” she said gently, murmuring a thank you as she bent to take a bite of the animal. “Do you have any hobbies or skills you particularly enjoy?” she inquired, tilting her head curiously.

The bright smile that lit up Draven’s face seemed to spread to her as well, the woman easily affected by the moods of others due to her enhanced empathy. Boy, was this kid a wind-mill of emotion. But, she found she didn’t mind as she wasn’t too far off herself. She liked him smiling, liked the joy she saw there instead of the cowering she had seen earlier. Of course, she preferred that on everyone but it seemed to fit him better she decided.

Taking another bite of the salmon, finding it almost gone sadly, she watching in quiet amusement at the thoughtful tilt of his head. Every moment she began to question if he truly wasn’t one of her own brood, for despite the dark pelt that none of her children possessed, his mannerisms were perhaps the spitting image of her own. Draven was a smart boy, a boy who tried very hard and she suspected wasn’t rewarded enough for it when he was younger. The fact was certainly a shame, and something she aimed to fix while he was with them.

"I..I think I might like to learn more about healing. If you would be willing to teach me of course." he finally decided, shocking her with his answer. Quite honestly, she hadn’t expected that from him. He hadn’t seemed like one to have an interest in the healing arts, despite the caring nature he let off to her. Though, she supposed she still didn’t know him quite as well as she thought she did. While Namid was a good judge of character, she was far from perfect and made mistakes sometimes. “I would be more than happy to teach you. Though, I will say that I am not as adept in the art of healing as my brother is. Neha is currently with him in our allied pack down the mountain, likely learning more than I will ever know. Sometimes I wish I had listened to my mother more when she was trying to teach it to me,” she chuckled good-naturedly. There were a lot of things she’d do differently if she could go back in time, but she’d long since learned to put those thoughts aside. One couldn’t change the past, only make the present and future better.

Namid’s brows rose as Draven’s eyes suddenly averted, embarrassment flush in his motions. She was baffled as to what she’d done now to cause him some distress, feeling as though she needed to walk on egg shells to spare his emotions. Still, she knew very little of the boy’s life before his time with them and, even if she didn’t like to pry, she couldn’t help but feel there had been some emotional trauma that he’d suffered. Like he’d been judged and ridiculed for everything he’d thought or said, and just the prospect of it made her blood boil. This child, she could see potential in him. See it in his gentle fern eyes and seemingly caring nature, however bashful it was. She wanted to see him flourish, and under her care she was confident that she could preen him to do just that.

She waited quietly, expectantly, for him to speak again. His nervous jitters were even beginning to give her anxiety, but she pushed the feeling away as quickly as it had come. Opened jaw once, her auds flicked forward in preparation, jaws closed and she blinked. Opened a second time, auds straining, ready for it. Closed again and an awkward cough fell from the boy’s lips. A small, encouraging smile twisted onto her lips. Baby steps she assured baby steps. "Do you think I could...maybegovisithersometime?" he said, jumbling and bunching his words at the end. She stared for a moment, blinking, trying to figure out the mush that had fallen from his jaws. Cutting, taping, ungluing the phrase mentally until it finally came together solid.

“Go visit Neha?” she murmured partially to herself, head tilting in contemplation. She herself had been wondering how her eldest daughter had been doing, wondering how her progress had been and if she was already more adept at the art than her mother. An amused grin broke onto her maw at this thought. She herself couldn’t go with the girls still so young, but Draven was a reliable young boy. It would do him good to get out, and if she got some information about her child out of it it would definitely be a win for both. “I think that is a wonderful idea, Draven. I would love to know how she is doing, and I am sure she would like to know about her sisters. However, I want to examine your leg and do some tests to make sure you are up to the travel. I would hate for you to be reinjured going down the mountain. And do you know the way? I can give you directions and a few landmarks if you do not.”