The candle lights flickered slightly, disturbed by the wave of air that followed as he moved through the still cave, their orange glow glittering across the many pools surfaces showing nothing more than inky depths and hiding what lurked beneath the shimmering tops, only the sound of the various fish and the dripping of water accompanied his light footsteps. Carefully he picked his way through the various pools, his stride sure and steady as he moved along familiar paths. Despite the beauty of this particular cave few members seemed to visit it which made the cavern a great hiding place when he simply wanted to avoid others; namely his ever demanding children and Alexander, whom he'd left sound asleep within his chambers oblivious to the storm coloured males departure.

Reaching the large pool he lowered himself down onto one of the large rocks that surrounded it and glanced down into the waters, seeing nothing but darkness. Having been here enough he knew that if he wished to see the fish and the crystal lined walls he would have to light the rest of the candles but he relished in the darkness, in here he was invisible, nobody important, not a father, not a friend, he was simply him. Relaxing into a slouch his mind drifted into a happy pace, pleasure for peace and quiet ran through his body and without thinking he began to hum the tune Jay had done rarely when the strange male felt like playing the part of father.

Lyrics to the tune sprung to mind, their sound soft and flowing. Little one, so brave and strong, so lost within the world for far to long. Sleep now with the stars to guide you, sleep now with the moon to hide you the words came out without thinking, a hushed whisper as if speaking them too loudly would cause disaster, a wave of nostalgia shattering his happy moment and longing for his long dead father filled him, an hole in his heart amongst many that could not be repaired. Damasu. Anata wa sudeni ushinatta mono wa hoshī he scolded himself, his words a low whisper and lined with the pain that wrapped itself around his chest.

Further he fell into his own thoughts, the sound of splashing and dripping water eventually drained away as he completely emerged himself into memories of his childhood. It was in a way, a form of self harm for nothing good ever came from remembering those times, only pain and loss. The deeper he delved into them the more he considered the fact that he was no different from his adopted father, he was distant and sometimes uncaring towards his own children, only scolding them when they do something wrong and working in a manner that minimised the amount of contact he had with them. To others it may have appeared that he didn't care for his children but that wasn't his case; he loved them as much as the emotion frightened him and wanted the best for them and him being within their lives wasn't a good thing; his influence was poor and trouble followed him closely at times.

Because of his distant stance in raising his children Miwa had turned out to be quiet a work of art, even from his perspective the girl truly had a malicious and frightening streak in her and refused to listen to others advice. Even after the foolish girl almost got herself and two of Naniko's kids killed all he could do was scold her while knowing nothing he said was being taken aboard. Aoi... he knew little about his second daughter, for his children’s psychotic mother had raised her until she had died and even after the young girl sought him out and joined Anathema there was a wall between them he wasn't sure he could cross and whether he wanted to. So lost in thought he almost missed his name being spoken, slowly he blinked to clear away the thoughts that haunted him and lowered his head to see where his most puzzling daughter stood. Smiling warmly, an expression he showed only to those he cared for, he waved a hand for her to come forward. Hey trouble, everything okay? he asked wondering why she had come to find him at such an hour.

Keeping the smile in place he waited patiently for Aoi to make her choice; always skitterish and jumpy the girl was and it often annoyed him, but right now he found it more amusing then anything. It baffled him why the girl was the way she was; Miwa was a reckless, strong minded one like the rest of his family and yet the little one before him was always quiet, always shy and incredibly skinny and feeble looking. Scooting over on the rock he made space for the small girl and he looked down upon her fondly as she seated herself beside him. Inclining his head slightly he listened to her speak and when she finished he allowed himself a moment to choose his words carefully, as to not provide her with vague advice and truly consider the matter at hand. Shifting may seem hard and scary at first he began explaining, his voice soft but easily carrying within the chamber.

Placing his arms behind him he leaned back onto them, Firstly, you little missy are not eating enough and your sister is eating to much... he grinned at her so that she knew he wasn't scolding her; yes the girls weight concerned him but it was her life and he wasn't gonna dictate how she lived it Shifting is a matter of practice, once you have done it enough it stops hurting and become a lot easier. As for Secui, I have no idea why you taking on that form would result in hurting anyone blue eyes narrowed onto the little girl slightly Who told you such a load of rubbish? he asked, genuinely curious to find out who had enough balls to mess with one of his little girls.

Shifting his weight around slightly he turned his body towards the small girls, arms open awkwardly in his way of asking her if she wants a hug or something... comforting and explaining things to his children was still incredibly awkward for him and he doubted he'd ever truly get used to it.

At the young girls explanation he rolled his eyes, not the least bit surprised that one of Beyaz's brats had decided to fill his daughters head with a load of misleading rubbish. Saigai is just as much as an idiot as his father and you should know better than to listen to either Beyaz or Saigai; or any of the crows for that matter his voice was filled with the humour he felt regarding the girl's naivete, but he managed to squash the despite to laugh, not wishing to offend his ever skitterish daughter. What that aho of a crow was most likely trying to explain is that Secui forms are bulkier, in combat having more weight and power can give one an advantage; but that doesn't necessarily mean size wins, often speed and skill are of greater importance then how big one is and how much muscle they have the explanation wasn't his clearest and he knew he'd gotten a little sidetracked with the combat stuff, fights being of more interest to him then the subject of shifting. The point is, no matter what form you take you are still you he nodded, satisfied with his simpler explanation.

Uncertain he held his arms open awkwardly, not really sure if a hug was appropriate or if the child would even allow such contact between himself and her; unlike Miwa, Aoi had been raised by her mum and at times it felt like his daughter was a stranger to him, mostly because she somewhat was. Regardless he wanted to try his best to be there for her now that she was living with him, if she needed someone to listen to her, he'd be there, he would defend her and try to give her the world if she asked for it; both of his daughters were equally precious to him, they were family, something he himself had never had growing up and something he had longed for for so long. Shyly he smiled, the expression growing warmer as the fragile rust coloured girl called him 'dad', the one word warming his heart and shaking his emotions greatly. As she snuggled against him, he wrapped his arms around her thin waste, frowning slightly at how slim she was before lowering his head to rub his cheek against hers.

Yeah, I figured he answered, his voice a soft whisper, a dark grey hand stroked gently down her back, Don't worry squirt, I ain't going anywhere he reassured her, squeezing her tightly for a second.

Aoi pulled away from him but remained close by. Even with Miwa he wasn't all the comfortable with skin-ship and playing the role of a father; even after many months he still didn't see himself as a dad, nor did he have a clue to what he was meant to be doing, blindly acting out a role that was thrust upon him and hoping that he didn't screw up for his two daughters sake. It was terrifying for him at times, knowing that what he said and did could effect his kids so greatly, that they looked to him and seemed to think he had all the answer, when at the best of times he barely managed to keep himself in one piece. So far he'd simply been answering this kids questions, sticking to small talk, unable to strike up conversation completely on his own with the girl; so strange she was, he didn't understand what she was thinking, nor did he have any idea where he interests lay. Although he was somewhat sure that Aoi held no interest in fighting and weapons, leaving his choice of subjects slim.

Just as he racked his brain for something to say, yet again the young girl saved him with a question. Pausing he considered her words; Miwa had shown an interest in medicine, learning blades and combat as a hobby instead of a path, he'd known the headstrong girls choice of tier for a while, but this was the first time Aoi had indicated any interest in a particular tier. Well, I guess we have many animals here. Crows and horses being our main stock he thought allowed, running a mental list of what livestock the pack currently possessed With the completion of the stables, all our livestock has been moved over there, so I guess they really only need to be let out to graze, fed, groomed, stools cleaned out. The basic things he responded, having only truly worked hands on with crows before, he was clueless with all the other animals needs. For a start, you can pop down the stables and see if you can lend a hand and you know you are free to help out with the crows he smiled at her warmly; the thought of Aoi involving herself in a project he had started warmed his heart, a strange feeling, but not a bad one. There are also a few communal horses who still need training, so you could start working with them he thought aloud.