Cadenza was much conflicted, after Pride had informed them that Doru, one of Alek's children, had hurt a child. They had been avoiding the child, not wishing to bring back bad memories until they could gather the full story. Indeed, Cadenza had been intending to leave to search out Doru.

Erasmus had found the dragon first, however, and informed them of Doru's confession to his vampire parent. How Doru did not think his actions justified, even if he had a reasoning and felt provoked. And more than that, something the their deer-dad had not told them: Doru had been hurt. A burn scar, according to Erasmus. Which sounded right, if this child had fire magic in part, as plans for Eridanus suggested.

And also, more quietly, Erasmus had told them that Doru had been thinking on this because he was having a child. A great grandchild should have brought joy, and it did, but Cadenza also worried. It was a drone child as well as Doru's child, Erasmus had mentioned, though they had added in confusion that it was not, apparently, Hive even if it was Order. Cadenza had not known there was a difference.

They hoped Alek's attempt to join Chaos Forge had gone as expected in their mind... Which was that he had not joined successful, after thinking it all out. For all their son was a water predator, he was adrift and searching for purpose more than anything else. He would not wish to be pitted against his family, let alone his own grandchild, for Alek truly loved family. And Alek was such a compassionate soul, as Erasmus proved.

As they spotted September, the fawn that had been attacked, they approached for the first time, wing-walking over slowly, not wishing to startle the child. "Hello, September. I am Cadenza. I wished to speak with you, if you had a moment," their musical voice was soft, gentle.

Just because this child had hurt Doru, did not mean he had also not been hurt. They had both hurt each other. Cadenza was not a creature well suited towards conflict of any kind, yet their deer-dad seemed to think this was their responsibility. Perhaps it was?

They did not know. Each gembound was their own responsibility, they thought, though parents had responsibility for their children when they were young, if a different kind of responsibility.

@September

crickets and creatures will come in the night
keep my back from the reaper
who's hunting or running, you gotta decide

He was out on his own for the time being, waiting for when he and Pride would go traipsing through the caves after some fire breathers and destroyers and ask them to temper it for them. It seemed a little foolish to him to go up to a dragon to burn just a little bit of the forest at a time but what did he know, huh?

In the meantime, he was practicing magic, wind and fire both, blasting rocks with streams of air and spattering them with char marks until everything got stronger or he got tired. He stood back from his last cast, the air still violently whipping past him, breathing heavy. But a glimmer of white in his periphery had him turning his head to see the dragon that approached. And immediately, by the look of the pure white, the antlers, and the familiar gem placement, he knew what he was dealing with.

"Hi. Yeah sure, its about, uh, what's his name...Doku, right? Doku? Doru? Dono? I don't remember what Pride said. What do you want to know?" He turned to face her fully, lifting his head and trying to look impressive and also a little frustrated (that was easy, considering frusteration followed him like a stormcloud.)

september

@Cadenza

"Doru," Cadenza gently informed, not minding the child's demeanor. This was a child, really, and it was clear as day from the fawn that he was still young-minded. Doru did not have that excuse, for all that he'd had his own 'reasonings'. Yet, Doru had self-acknowledged to Erasmus that his actions were not justified.

"I apologize for what you underwent at the claws of Doru, my grandchild," Cadenza spoke, kind and sad all at once. "I have an update on that matter, as well as a question, I hope you do not mind." For such a large being, Cadenza was very soft-spoken in their own musical way.

"I was going to seek out Doru, but Erasmus, Doru's parent other than my own son, Alek, visited me. According to them, Doru came to see Erasmus and had confessed to doing something he could not be free of, hurting a child. He admitted that he felt provoked, yet he also acknowledged that his actions were still unjustifiable according to Erasmus," Cadenza explained.

"He also had a burn scar that he suggested was from the encounter. I..." Cadenza paused, not sure how to word their statement exactly. "I do not want to diminish his crime, but you have both hurt each other, from the sound of things. Is it true that you also attacked him?" they inquired, voice gentle, not accusing.

"You are not in trouble, September, I simply wish to understand the situation better," Cadenza softly added.

@September

crickets and creatures will come in the night
keep my back from the reaper
who's hunting or running, you gotta decide

She was already throwing a bunch of names at him that he really couldn't care to remember. The sooner this could all get cleaned up, the sooner he wouldn't have to deal with them anymore (although he didn't have anything against Cadenza, she seemed nice enough).

He scoffed. "Oh, so now he feels sorry for it?" He shook out his mane and snorted. "Didn't seem so when he was attacking and DRUGGING me! Did he mention that he drugged me? That happened. Wasn't fun."

He had run this story through over and over in his head because he just knew, as soon as Pride said something about talking to the family, that he would get questioned. His side of the story. So, he told it as he remembered.

"Alright here, I'll tell you what happened. I hatched. Let it be known that during our whole exchange, I still had my own chrysalis shards at my hooves. First thing I see is this big scary dragon thing so what do I do? Warning sign - just a gust of wind! And he took that to mean I was attacking him for some reason. Started going on and on and on about how I shouldn't attack first, there's dangerous people, magic and stuff, I don't know. And I'll be honest, I was a little rude about it because I wanted to hear about magic and he was just trying to lecture me. But I seriously don't think that warrants a scratch. Sucker punch was more like it!"

He took a second to breathe before continuing. "And then I started feeling all loopy! Like the world was spinning and I was feeling like. Super happy in a really bad way and it freaked me out so much. I could barely stand, and he was just fuckin standing there lookin' all superior and telling me that he was teaching me a lesson! So I fought back, I defended myself! And he told me that I'll "learn nothing and be nothing" and then fuckin flew away!" He was seething by the end of his tail, those words ringing loud in his ears and making his blood boil once again. "I mean, who tells that to a kid that literally hatched less then 10 minutes before? I don't really remember what happened after that, I kind of curled up and passed out for a while until the loopiness was gone. But yeah. It sucked."

He snorted again and tossed his head back. "So no, I didn't attack him first. I gave a warning signal. And he didn't like that."

september

@Cadenza

Cadenza listened to the child vent. This child had a more violent temperament than the gentle dragon could truly understand. Perhaps unkind beginnings had done that. Yet, perhaps not.

From the sound of it, September had cast first but did not seem to recognize that. Cadenza was not going to argue on this point though, or any other point. They simply listened. "I didn't say you attacked him first. I only meant to inquire if you had both harmed each other," Cadenza gently informed the fawn, not a correction but a simple, calm statement.

"Should one not be able to regret their actions?" Cadenza wondered, genuinely curious as to what the child would say in response. "It would be a very harsh world if everyone sought revenge," they added with a quiet sadness to their tones.

After that question, Cadenza would pause.

"I do not think Doru will attack you again," Cadenza stated, with a certainty that they would quickly explain. "He has been thinking on his actions because he is having a child of his own. He would not wish to create enemies that follow his own child, I am certain. And... I do not wish the child to fear for their parent, once they hatch."

Cadenza falls quiet. "I am sorry, I fear I am asking a great deal from you. If Doru will not attack you again, will you agree not to attack him? I understand that you have been through a traumatic event. You have already left a physical scar on him, can that not be enough? I... do not like violence, and I am greatly saddened my grandchild did such a thing, and that you were hurt. But I also wish for my great grandchild's happiness, and I worry about how Doru gaining an enemy will affect that child, an innocent as much as you were."

They hesitated. "Violence bringing forth further violence... It is a vicious cycle, and the ones who care for both sides will get pulled into things. I am sorry I am asking so much from you, I can see it was greatly distressing," Cadenza bowed their head, genuine as ever.

@September

crickets and creatures will come in the night
keep my back from the reaper
who's hunting or running, you gotta decide

September shrugged, tail flicking behind him. He figured that was true, Doru was well within his abilities to regret what he'd done. He just hoped that it fuckin ate at him, that it wasn't a passing regret. "Well fine, he can regret his actions. But that doesn't magically fix everything." Because those words still pulsed behind his eyes like a promise, the injustice still burned heavy in his gut. September wouldn't forget it, oh no.

His head snapped up sharply to look Cadenza in the eye as they began to apologize, over and over again, and propose, what September considered to be, the most ridiculous proposition he'd heard in his life. And that included burning down Eridanus. "What, like you want me to forgive him?" He didn't give her a chance to respond. "No. Out of the question."

The fawn huffed and continued. "No offense, but I don't care that you don't like violence. Someone should have taught your grandson better. He made an enemy when he hit and drugged me. Actions have consequences and in my opinion, he hasn't faced any. He gets, what, a stern talking to and a pat on the back? For attacking a literal baby?" He scoffed. "I'm not out to kill him or anything. But I made a promise to him and to myself - that when I'm old enough and strong enough, I'll show him that I grew up to be better!"

It was with passion that he finished his speech and he seemed to mildly deflate afterwards, having said that last bit that felt like such a raw, genuine part of himself. That the experience had genuinely hurt him and it wouldn't feel right again until it was resolved in his own way. He didn't want to say it, that the words haunted him, that the weakness he'd felt that day still made him want to curl up and hollow himself out. But the anger and passion and raw confidence did the job for him.

september

@Cadenza

"Of course it does not fix everything," Cadenza softly agreed. "I would never say it did."

Cadenza was quiet as they listened to September's speech. They were not given a chance to respond initially, but for once they knew what they would have said. But they did not interrupt. For all Cadenza was asking, he deserved to be listened to.

"He did not get a 'pat on the back'. He was told he would have to live with his guilt of this, not comforted. And, did you not leave a burn scar on him, as well? Is that not enough violence already?" Cadenza sounded stressed, but not in an angry way at all. No, instead they sounded so very sad, depressed by the thought.

Cadenza contemplated his words. "I was not asking you to forgive him, at all. His actions were unforgivable. I was asking you to consider his child, more than anything else." Cadenza sighed, melancholy.

"September, there is more than one way to be better than another. Morally, for example. One way is to simply move on, prove that he is not worthy of remembering, without ever forgiving him. It is a part of your past that cannot be removed, yes. But you have already hurt him physically. Do you have to hurt him more, especially now that he will have a child dependent on him that may be dragged into this conflict? Are you the better gembound if you do that? I do not know the answer to that, it is no accusation." Cadenza spoke, voice musical and concerned, both for this child and Doru's child.

This was not a healthy way to approach life, they thought. But this was not one of their children. "I can only voice my thoughts. I cannot make you listen, nor would I force you to do anything. Yet... Please consider the ones who will be affected other than your enemy by your grudge."

@September

crickets and creatures will come in the night
keep my back from the reaper
who's hunting or running, you gotta decide

The more and more they talked, the angrier he felt. Did they not get it? Were they not hearing him? Why was she even advocating for Doru's child when DORU had been the one to ATTACK A CHILD?! He guessed it was familial bias, which was making every one of her attempts to sooth his temper and stem his need for a grudge fall on deaf ears.

"Like I'd drag his kid into it. Unlike him, I don't find a habit in hurting kids. Maybe he should have thought about future kids before making enemies." He stared at her, hard for a moment, but there was a moment where his gaze softened. "Look, you seem nice. I guess. But you're not gonna talk me out of this. Your grandson was there for the first minutes of my life and fucking ruined them. And I gotta carry that shit. I find that a lot worse then a little burn mark. Being the "better Gembound" means proving him wrong. That I will become something."

He turned towards the rock, feeling heat rise in his stomach again, and this time it was physical, magical, real and he tried to bring it up, belch it out, but it wasn't strong enough, not yet. He coughed and a flicker of flame fluttered in the air. "Shit," he spat, turning back to Cadenza. "I'll find him again someday. And we'll fight proper. He owes me that much."

september

@Cadenza

His words were contradictory. He would not drag a child into it, but Doru should have thought about their future children before attacking him. It worried Cadenza. But they did not comment on it, because they had done this child a great wrong.

"I did not wish to diminish your suffering, which was greater for affecting your mind and life irreparably. I apologize if I have made you feel as such," they mournfully spoke.

Cadenza nodded. "A fight... I understand your view. You deserve to feel catharsis, he does owe you that. If you truly feel that is necessary, I hope the fight helps," Cadenza sadly agreed. They did not think this would actually help. They were unsure if Doru was even a fighter, magically or otherwise. Alek and Erasmus's description had been of a child that preferred words.

Would this child find catharsis in a fight where the other could not truly fight back, having never trained for battle, for all that Doru was indeed at fault?

Cadenza did not think so. It sounded dissatisfying, even if Cadenza did not understand violence. But, that would have to be something the child learned on his own. "Just... please do not kill him. Do not turn a battle into a war," Cadenza bowed their head in acknowledgment.

"That... is all I wish to say. If you ever wish to seek me out, I am here in Orion usually, but I understand if you would rather not," Cadenza informed September softly.

[Exit Cadenza]

@September

crickets and creatures will come in the night
keep my back from the reaper
who's hunting or running, you gotta decide

Finally, they relented and September felt himself relaxing minutely. The conversation had grown tedious and repetitive. But now, it seemed, they'd reached an uneasy understanding, which was enough for him. He turned back to the damaged rock he was still practicing on, this time focusing his magic more into the flames in his stomach. "I'm no killer," he grunted, before expelling a small jet of flame from his mouth instead of a few sparks. It rained over the boulder, adding further char to the surface.

He glanced at them and shrugged. "Yeah sure. See you around, I guess." He had a feeling Doru might seek him out if his grandparent told him of this conversation, but at this point, September didn't mind or care. Let him come. He wasn't ready yet to find him, but if he came looking, the fawn wouldn't be caught off guard again.

Unless Cadenza had other things to say, he'd continue practicing against the rock, summoning streams of air and fire, controlling it carefully in preperation for the upcoming missions.

*exit

september

@Cadenza