Slumber had claimed the dark king, his injuries severe enough it kept him from moving very far at any point. Niru did the hunting now, feeding him, watching over Orion when he wasn't hunting. Now, the boy was gone on one of those hunts, and Carcino slept in the backmost corner, wrapped against his girls as they too slept, taking shape, becoming mortal creatures as he and his kin were. Precious lives. His daughters.

A shuffle of pawsteps. Cancer was used to wanderers passing through his cave. He slept on. Closer, they came, then past, towards the throne. The throne. Anyone could see his girls from there. Normally, Niru took vigil there, during his watches. Now, it was left unguarded. Cancer finally woke.

The cat sat up with a groan, armor shed to reveal a new number of grotesque injuries, all new from the dragon's onslaught. He winced, then got to his feet, slowly but surely climbing up onto his crystalline walls, built bit by bit to protect his daughters as they grew. Once upon it, he glanced to spot Leon, somber in his arrival. What was he doing here?

"I saw you at the battle of Raheerah." He spoke, without greeting, without moving. "You rescued a newborn in the midst of the flames. Did it survive?"

The bear was just as subtle as Carce was about this meeting. Neither wanted a fight, not after Raheerah's mess. Not after everything else. A straight remark, and he'd simply exhale, as if dispelling the statement- he'd suffered worse, and would surely suffer worse again. Leon wasn't here for war stories, though. He followed up with a hesitant question. Amaria? Had she not been home since...? He stiffened, visibly, then side-stepped back down the wall, crossing the floor evenly but on tender muscles.

"She's not been through here recently, no." His tone gave away his tense concern. "Didn't she report before the battle? Surely Calypso would've called council beforehand?" He didn't care if Leon knew of his meetings with the girl. He didn't need to know, though- and so, the cat kept it to himself. Such enticements would only sour the occasion.

"She's not a child, I'm sure she's fending fine for herself." Still, he couldn't quell that gut feeling... had something happened? Had she run into some other trouble whilst they'd been busy battling dragons? Had she been amongst the flames? Surely not. He hadn't seen any other spotted kin. Amaria didn't own armor. She'd never risk it. Not as an Animal caster, not without some back up. The cat sat back once he reached Leon's space, ears pinning back, expression doubtful despite his optimistic words.

Leon sparked a whole new kind of worry in Carce as he denied Amy's being at the council meeting. She'd have at least made an appearance. She hasn't skipped them on purpose before... As far as he knew, at least. He'd always ushered her to be loyal to the Maji, to trust in the cause he'd initially set out for. He couldn't live that dream- but that didn't mean his family couldn't. The bear went on, though, and his mind turned to focus. An admission. An argument.

Once, perhaps, Cancer would have been furious with Leon, perhaps make fun of him in spite. Now, after everything he'd been through, Carcino didn't care about by-gones. They both cared for Amaria, and Leon had Makyna- he certainly wasn't competition this time. This time, an unlikely friend in a desperate time of need... more desperate with every word the bear spoke. Carce sat back, reeling at the idea that Amaria, the sweetest cat he knew, might've fallen victim to Raheerah. His expression became grim. Why would she go to Polaris? Why risk a run-in like that? Why risk the flames?

"Take me there." His tone was quick, alarmed. "Show me." There was no malice. No blame. His expression wasn't hateful or angry- just concerned, almost fearful. He stood, ready to go, but hesitated.

A shoulder glance. His daughters' fort. The image of their sleeping forms beneath their glassy shells. Silence followed, tense and doubtful. Did Leon know? Had either of them told their kin? How would he react? Slowly, agonizingly so, he turned his gaze back to the bear, stiff and defensive.

Cancer continued to look between the bear and his twins. The two multi-colored crysali amongst dull, gray and black stone. He considered his options; a part of him wanted to chase Leon away, protect his precious creations as if they were his alone to covet. Another part of him, a smaller, more affectionate, proud part, wanted to show them off, to show Leon he wasn't a monster after all, but a caring, dutiful father. Yet another part of him wanted to ignore it, ignore the bear's comment and make for Polaris, leave this to become a forgotten moment in the days to come- but he knew it to be a fruitless fear. So, begrudgingly, he chose to be proud.

"Cure." He stated, walking towards the pair with a certain stiffness to his gait. "The other is Remedy, by another mother." He turned to Leon with a sharp expression. "It was a chance accident, but a happy one for all of us." Don't you dare spoil it, his gaze said as he regarded the bear carefully, studying his expression. "...Amaria was... She was so excited to..." He trailed off, then sighed shakily, coming to sit beside Cure's chrysalis and placing a gentle, protective paw on the glassy blue shell. His next words were wet with greif. "...we were going to raise her right. Give her the life we never had... the kind none of us got to have." They were going to be good parents. Whatever that meant, he'd do it. No exceptions. No cut corners. No argument.

"...she has to be okay. She can't be..." He found himself stiffening at the thought- if Raheerah had done anything to hurt Ammy, to hurt the mother of his children... the only love he'd never known pain with... he'd... "I can't lose her, Leon." He looked at the bear with a harder expression than ever worn with him before- as serious as a heart attack and three times as drastic. "She's the only one who never stopped believing in me. She's always had my back. I can't lose her." His voice dropped into a dire, hoarse whisper. "She's all I have left." He had Bevy's friendship, in secret, but it wasn't the same. Amaria had never cared what the Maji would think. She'd always found time to find him, always found the lighter moments in his darkest days. He'd once thought her a child, new to the world, so delicate and fragile. Now, he saw only a beautiful, wonderful woman- full of grace and kindness. He dreaded the thought of losing her.

In his chest, an anger swelled. Raheerah. If she's lost to me, if she's gone forever... if he's broken her beyond repair... I'll find him. I'll End him.