He had done right in staying away from them, preferring to keep to himself and only watch over them when Ash asked him to. None of his littermates remained and now it was just him and his mother…along with Ash and the three new lives they created together. Yuka was more comfortable watching from a distance, feeling that his face might cause a fright in the young children. He knew that was not how they wanted to remember him by and so he did his best to never show his face. If one accidently stumbled upon him, the shadows would welcome him into their arms. There had never been a situation where the man had needed to intervene on behalf of the children. They had never called for him or had caused mischief like his siblings had when they were younger. The russet faced boy was thankful for this, not knowing how he would actually handle a confrontation should it arrive.

Lucky for him, that day came sooner then he hoped. As soon as he heard the whining of his little sister he had the urge to role his eyes. However, as soon as he thought of how annoying she was, he was once again reminded of Malia and how she had slipped through the ice, frozen…and drowned. The remembrance caused the man’s eyebrows to furrow, knowing that if Nineva actually needed something urgent, he would in no way deny her. It was his duty – not just as a training Guardian but as a brother – to ensure the safety of his little sister. The Thorben was well aware that these children meant so much to his mother and mentor. He would so nothing to jeopardize the family they had created. Perhaps when they got older, they would be more understanding towards his deformity, but for now, he was fine with staying away from them.

However, Nineva would have none of it. After calling out to him, for what was probably the third time, the gray man stepped out from the shadows, his head tilted towards the shade and away from his little sister. Coarsely he spoke to her, "What do you want? You least you can do is pronounce my name correctly. YUka." He remembered a time when he was younger when Inali would practice with him, often commenting on how bright he was and how proud of him she was. The thought of his mother figure caused his teal-flecked amber eyes to soften, remembering that he too had the same trouble when he had been younger. Yuka and @Inali’s recent reunion also made his heart feel slightly lighter, even though he would never admit it to anyone. He was, in all actuality, not a murderer. Nevertheless, the mere intention of wanting to kill someone who had loved him so much would never fail to haunt him. Yuka was not sure if he would ever forgive himself for what he did. But maybe by attempting to show the same kindness to his new siblings, he would be able to redeem himself. Only for her.

He wasn’t overtly fond of children, especially if they were going to continually badger him. Nineva moved to get a better view of his face, which was completely useless, only due to the immense darkness that covered his face. He was thankful that he had the trees in the Caverns to help him with this: covering his deformation. It was like nature understood him. It always had the need to cover up what was ugly in the world. Luckily, it had worked out for him perfectly. The child was smart, however, and it seemed like she had picked on quickly to his disdain for pronouncing his name incorrectly.

Babysitting was not something Yuka enjoyed but he would do it for his King and Queen. The Thorben could understand why. The children were extremely tiring but he was assuming that they were worth it, as Ash nor Nari had disposed of them. Nineva’s question amused him but he remained, mulling over the right way to answer the question. The guardian stared at the child, his mouth opened, "I cannot be here all the time. I have other duties that I must attend to in order to keep you all safe." He remained where he was, not daring to move his face into the open. He knew he was hideous and he did not want the child to run back to her parents and tell them what a heinous freak he was. Clearing his throat, he rumbled to her, "What is it that you do for fun?" He remained quiet, his amber teal-flecked eyes looking towards the child.

When she answered his question, he couldn’t hold back an eye roll of annoyance. As a child, he had also stuck with the rules and had done what his parents asked. As a result, he had been the outcast of his litter, ignored and shunned for his preference of rules. Then Malia had gone off and gotten herself killed and eventually Titan had left the nest.  If anything, it proved to him that those that followed rules would be the most loyal. It seemed like Nineva already had half of her rump outside the borders. She will learn in time. We are her family and that is what she will need. His amber teal-flecked eyes watched her, perplexed at how blissfully innocent she could be. Not even he could remember a time when he had been so. Yuka had always been a dark child and that darkness had only grown in him as time went by.

His ears flickered forward at her innocent question, unsure of how to answer that. He had always wanted to do what was best for the pack since he could remember. The Thorben remained still as he pondered the question addressed to him. Looking down at the child, he tried to explain it in the best way possible, "Your duty is the job you must perform so that the pack can be…good and happy. I guard you, our mother hunts, and father looks over all the lands to ensure that we are all happy. Each decision they make is for the well-being of the pack. And that is the duty of everyone in the pack: to ensure the peace and happiness." Something most of their past members had failed at. Snorting softly and choosing to ignore the princess’ last question, as he didn’t want to answer it, he moved on. "You know you’re nothing like the woman that mother and father named you after?" Yuka decided that it would be safer to use the terms ‘mother’ and ‘father’ in front of the children. He felt like he was cheating the kids out of an experience that Yuka never had the pleasure of having. That was something he never wanted to occur.

He remained silent and vigilant, his amber teal-flecked eyes pinned on the girl but observing the area around them. He never wanted anything bad to happen to them and that was a fact. He had answered the question to the best of his ability and it was probably the most Yuka had ever spoken in his lifetime. The Thorben did not like to vocalize his thoughts normally but he could not take an education away from Nineva, especially since Ash had offered so much of it to Yuka. None the less, the Hervok male had made it clear to him that the true learning experience came from the real world, and that was the place that Yuka was hesitant in going to, in fear of rejection.

Of course, Nineva seemed to be the curious one and she continued on, asking more questions than the last time. The russet-hued creamy man sighed in response, rolling his eyes at the princess’ questions. Why had he agreed to do this? Right…so that Narimé and Ash could have a break to do who knows what. At the thought, Yuka winces internally, pushing away thoughts about them. His attention returned to Nineva, a bitterness welling in his chest. It would be so much simpler if she could just accept his words and move on, but of course, that was never enough, for anyone.

To her first question, he answered simply, "Yes. You were named after our aunts; Nina and Eva. They are father’s sisters." He remained silent for a moment, his thoughts wandering on how to answer her last question. An idea occurred to him and he once again felt a bitterness well up within him. Perhaps if he did this now, it would save him grief in the future and she would no longer want to speak with him. Clearing his throat, he continued, "I guard you so this doesn’t happen." And then, he gave her a full view of the other side of his face, torn ligament and all.