A surge of warmth overcame him, and somehow, with a familiar pang, the baby recognized it as coming from the great spotted creature with criss-cross marks on its muzzle, speaking softly and tenderly to him. Mother came to mind, and he tried fervently to imitate the concept, "muh... ter." He could see the other creatures again, but better because they weren't quite so enormous. "Eee... tan. In nee-ah! Keenah." Welcoming. Home. Warm.

The big glowy thing cried out, vanishing mysteriously down the cliff; how did it do that?! He leaned softly into the big warm thing's preening, chirping rapidly and contentedly. Then, with bright and awake eyes, he looked up at the big spotted thing called "Eee-tan." "Yew?" Pensively, unsure of how to respond, the baby simply burbled out whatever sounds came to mind: "uh... rae!" Then, ever-hungry for more affection, he stretched his neck as far as it would go, tapping the side of his head against Eythan's neck.

The hybrid was, admittedly, a little shocked by the slight nod toward him, considering him to be a good child. A derisive little part of his mind cackled, claiming everything against that, but he shoved it down for the better. Eythan was a little more focused on listening to the itty bitty lump beneath him, begging and whining for more attention and babbling out some random syllables. Well, hopefully that was a name, since he repeated it, "Uh-rae?"

Out of the corner of his eye, the weirdest of the three hybrids flashed and then up and jumped off the edge of the cliff. Delightful. Fun. Perfect. He nodded toward Skeena, pretending like he wasn't somewhat weirded out by the glider-hyena-alien(?), agreeing quietly, "I'll... keep an eye out. For you, for... uh, Vinea... for Giggle, for Uh-rae." Feeling a light thumping against his neck, he nuzzled the pathetic little attention-hungry neonate. Caves, he was already in love and spoiling this baby rotten.

@Giggle

Giggle listened, quietly, then leaned forward to again nuzzle the child. It seemed to have already imprinted, like a bird, on Eythan--and that was, she supposed, okay. She was its mother, yes, but she would be a mother figure to it regardless.

"Uh-rae," she repeatedly softly, despite the natural roughness of her voice. "That's a very pretty name." She sat, slowly, glancing about for Vinea to return while at the same time, thinking for a beat.

This was a special moment. One that needn't be sullied by lots of words, or explanations, or declarations--just a family, warm and together. Yet there was something that needed to be said.

"I want all of you--no matter how angry siblings may get with one another, or their mother--to always be loyal to one another. Family comes first. Always. If one of us is in trouble, the others help. No matter what, all right? We're all we have in this world; we survive together." It was softly-said, gently, her eyes still lingering on Aure and what this meant.

But it was thought-out, too, and deeply so; they had to ensure that their survival, above all else, was ensured. That their loyalty to one another, their bond, their "pack" for lack of a better word, would stick together against all that life might throw at them.

Giggle gazed absently at Aure, thinking of how they would raise the little one, what they might teach it--and remembered, then, everything that Eythan had yet to learn. I have much to do, she thought to herself.

________________

ROLL THE BONES

@Vinea

The little adventure was quick for the rather enormous, strange beast. Nowadays, Mother's den seemed to be a hop, a skip, and a jump away from any place. When Vinea was younger, smaller, he had been unable to get anywhere with his gangly legs and oversized gliders. His best bet, then, had been to climb up on the ceiling and slowly make his way to where he wanted to go. But, those times were long-past. Now, he could simply push off from somewhere and glide to the other end of Canis. It was a lovely luxury. He wished that he could fly (perhaps someday!) but he'd live with it now.

Entering the shroom-lit den, Vinea cooed and marveled at the sight. It was home, much smaller than he remembered it being; seeing it made him realize that he had grown a lot since hatching. I mean, he was nearly double the size of his own Mother, and most certainly larger than his sister. As to his brother, he didn't know. The strange creature's luminescent markings pulsed with glee as he found the rats. Settling down onto his forelimbs like a deer, he waved his tail and scooped the rats up into his mouth, stretching it a little so that he could fit both into it.

Then, he was off again. This time, it was without gliders, since it was difficult to glide upwards, as it were. Vinea simply loped up the path, but would not arrive for a few moments.

@Skeena

The little baby began to echo their names, and the hybrid's face lit up. "That's it, that's it! Yes, yes! Mother, Moootheeeer," she drew out the word, "Eythan, Eeeeeyttthaaaaan," and then, to her great glee, "Skeena, Skeeeeeeeeenaaaaa."

Her ears perked up, as she heard what she took to be his name, repeating, "Uh-rae?" and then, with a nod, "It fits!"

Her head turned, then, to Mother, radar-like ears pointing to her to listen. "Always!" she agreed, "No matter what, we're family."

@Giggle @Vinea @Auré

"Uh-rae," the tiny baby cooed, preening at the attention he was receiving. Unaware of the food on its way, Aure snuggled deeper within his blanket's chest fluff, nearly vanishing beneath it. Closing his eyes, he fell asleep nearly instantly. Here, the little one had just emerged, and he was already sleeping off all of the information he had taken in. Of course, he'd nap for as long as he was allowed to, by either his newfound family or his own surges of energy.

;exit Aure

Giggle peered, for a moment, blinking.

Then--warm and content--she curled slowly up around her newest cub.

Once Vinea arrived, she'd try to feed him; for now, he could rest. She lay her head down beside him, keeping it up only enough to speak to Skeena.

"Always," she echoed, her tone approving and as warm as she felt. "Rest with us, if you want. Your brother will be back soon."

The hyena then closed her dark eyes, settling herself in a coil around Aure, her jaw now resting on stone. How strange it was-... He was alive, now. The child of Aza'zel. Of her bone king. It was bittersweet--but oh, so sweet. How she missed him. Family. As Skeena said; as she herself had said.

They were all family.

________________

ROLL THE BONES

exit Giggle
@Vinea @Skeena

Aure was a very pretty and... fitting name. It seemed the little one had taken to the first syllable of their own father's name, unintentionally making his own name. The conversation fell quiet, save for Skeena's gentle words of encouragement to the child. Eythan took this time to peer down at the little one as his breathing slowed and he snuggled deeper beneath soft white feathers and fur. Caves, Aure was adorable.

Eythan's ears flickered forward and his head tilted upward as the Bonecaster spoke again, reinforcing the idea of family and incidentally making the gryphon a part of it --- whether or not he liked it, he supposed. "We survive together," he nodded, gaze trailing from Giggle to Skeena. Taking the unspoken cue to scoot, the hybrid stood as carefully as he could --- not disturbing the little one --- and backed up so that the hyena mother could snuggle with Aure. Quietly, Eythan put a little distance between himself and the rest of the gang, settling into a loafing position toward the far wall of the cairn.

Soon, he inadvertently fell asleep. So much for a family dinner.

;exit Eythan

As soon as the alien-hybrid finished loping up the jagged path up to the cairn/birthplace, he noticed that everyone who was supposed to be eating had fallen asleep. Had he really taken that long? No, that couldn't be it. Regardless, Vinea was still (wide- and) bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. He forced his luminescence to dull down a little for the sake of letting his family members sleep, and carefully deposited the dead rats on the floor. Setting his jaw and its many splits back into place with several yawning motions, the hybrid scuttled over to his much smaller sister.

"Psst, you wanna go look for some shiny things in the bones?" Then, regardless of her answer, he'd go back down the path, eager to see what treasures awaited his claiming.

;exit Vinea