Post by malak on Dec 29, 2008 14:40:42 GMT -5
Wooded Terrain
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Heading away from the lake means moving into the woods where trees stand in varying stages of growth. The older trees are taller and reach to the sky while the smaller and younger trees struggle upwards towards that same light. Along the ground are bits of broken tree limbs and different types of shrubs and other vegetation staking their claim on whatever sunlight they can find and keep. Leaves rustle and grasses wave in the breezes that occasionally come through this area, though most of the surrounding air is fairly mild compared to some areas. However, when winter or a large storm hits, this wooded area offers protection to all creatures who can make their way to safety. The flow of melted snow from the south continues down the gentle slope towards the north, emptying into the nearby lake.
=================================== Exits ===================================
[North] to the Lake [South] to the Highlands
[Southwest] to the Grove [West] to the Stone Formations
================================================================================
[IC] Azriel
[IC] Aylin
[IC] Malak
Malak still doesn't know why Aylin neglected to tell him about her brother. The greeting they exchanged when Azriel brought her food certainly seemed to confirm Azriel's story, so despite what he told Azriel, that he could not allow the matter to rest until after he spoke to Aylin, Malak took his leave. He was hungry anyway. It is a couple hours before he returns, fed and calmer. Azriel does not seem to be nearby, or else Malak would just head on again. After all, it's not like he has enjoyed caring for Aylin. He certainly isn't going to fight with anyone for the ability to do so.
Her exchange with her brother was brief. He stashed his kills near to her, he mentioned he had spoken with Malak, and departed. He left her to eatm which she did, ravenously, and curled up in the back of the fallen stand of trees to rest. The female has been thinking quite a bit though her present state is foremost on her mind, overshadowed by Malak's continued presence and Revan's eventual return. LAying there, on her side, back turned to the world, Aylin lounges fitfully, and sighs once, audibly.
Malak can hear the female's sigh as he approaches. He moves no more loudly, and when he spots her, facing the shelter he found for her... If she weren't pregnant, and if he actually /liked/ her, he would be tempted to teach her a lesson about leaving herself vulnerable like that. Even as it is, he feels obligated to mention it. "I did not go through the effort of finding you a shelter so that you could fail to take advantage of the protection it offers you, Aylin." When Malak was stading guard, it was fine, but what could have inspired her to ignore the small exposed part of the shelter and instead face the relatively secure wall formed by the fallen trees?
Who knows? Females are fickle creatures. Aylin's ears cant back when she hears Malak's voice, and if she heard is approach before she gives no indication as such. Slowly, she glances back across her shoulder rather lazily, narrowed and tired eyes searching for the owner of the voice. She can't see to well that way, and instead settles her head back down on the ground where she had it before the interruption. Aylin says nothing to Malak, no greeting, silence from the mouthy female. In her mind, she cues the question of Azriel in 3... 2... 1... Her tail snakes through the grass, rustling it impatiently. Her muscles ache. Her breathing is heavy, worrisome.
Really, is it any wonder that Malak finds Aylin irritating? Really? With a flick of his tail, he says, "Have it your own way, then. Perhaps your /brother/ will be less concerned about your disregard for your own well-being and agree to take over watching out for you while you are in your current condition." The threat is perfectly clear. He will not waste any more of his time helping out a female who seems to not care, in the least, whether she and her unborn cubs survive. If Aylin could be so reckless regarding safety, then perhaps Revan made a mistake in agreeing to impregnate her after all.
There it is, right on cue. If she's irritated at all with Malak's spurn of her and her brother, Aylin doesn't show it. She takes a few deep breaths, and rolls from her side until she's sitting, though she stays in that position for a while, dizzy. She licks hare blood from her dry lips, shudders at the taste, and staggers to all fours. Tired, so very tired. The female turns to face Malak, lifting her head and taking a step in his direction, but.. she faulters, wobbly muscles, and falls back on her haunches and quickly restores her lounging position with a grunt. Do males not understand? So dizzy, achy, unaware of everything except her own body. She does manage this: "Neither you or my brother are under any obligation," she whispers hoarsly, breath coming in short, painful gasps. She eyes Malak with a deadly dark blue gaze.
Malak and his brother have never discussed cubs. Will Revan feel the same way that Malak does? Will he want anything at all to do with these cubs, and will he be upset when he learns of the foolish risks Aylin has taken? Should Malak even bother to tell his brother of the cubs, when they are finally reunited? These questions keep Malak from answering Aylin immediately, as he tries to answer them for himself. Because he can't, and perhaps because of Aylin's obvious discomfort, Malak decides to cut this conversation short. "Very well. Good luck, Aylin." He does not wait before turning from her. After all, as she put it, he has no obligation toward her.
His turning causes her stomach to turn, or is that something else? She grunts, a sound that melts into a softer, more delicate noise. Malak will leave. That is fine. Azriel will help her, even if she refuses. "You confuse me, Malak," she whispers, an echo of yesterday, or maybe she's reliving the day again. Another sharpe ripple of pain down her side and another noise from Aylin, pained. Her muzzle touches her sidem and she looks down the line of her body with some surprise and some fear. What's happening? "Az," she whispers softly, wishing he were here instead.
Malak hears her whispering. And while he begins to give in to the temptation to respond snippily, he is cut off by the sound she makes. He turns to face her again in time to hear her second whisper, and it causes him to narrow his eyes. The name has that same elusive familiarity that the other male's scent does, but he simply cannot connect 'Az' with the Azriel who attacked Moonseeker, cannot connect Azriel's scent with those hints of it that he caught down in the meadows. At least, he cannot do so without a while to think about it, but he knows it sets him on edge. And so, it is with the hint of a growl that he says, "I can get him for you." If she asks. It would be far too easy to just do so without making Aylin ask for it. Through this, he does not realize the signs of Aylin entering labor. He only knows that she's in pain, and it seems wrong to just leave her outright.
Her head resting on the ground, what soft moss she can find, she can only her that dull echo of Malak's voice with one ear, her nose filled with the scent of earth and leaves. And something else. Blood reaches her, but it is not the blood of a kill. It's hers. She doesn't request Azriel's presence, she doesn't know how much Malak knows.. or would be able to figure out. She'd rather not put her children in danger because of their uncle. She can handle herself. It's her cubs that concern her most. Even now. The female's breathing is laboured, ragged, and she does nothing but pant for a while, broken by the occasional grunt. She grimaces, silently growling, and with a painful contraction one of her cubs is born... For a moment Aylin does nothing.. lays there, spent, afraid of her body, afraid of being alone. She's still so young. A moment's pause before she bends herself to reach her newborn, mewling and crying to clean her.
Malak should have just kept going. He should have ignored the whispering, ignored the pained sounds, and just left Aylin, as he warned Aylin he was going to. But no, his eyes are on her when the first cub is born, though he is very quick to look away once he, finally, realizes what is happening. Even to someone as violent and vicious as Malak, birth is just... Unpleasant. And now he /can't/ leave. He can't just abandon Aylin while she is actually in the middle of giving birth.
Maybe he should. Maybe he should just leave and go throw up in the bushes and have a nice long drink somewhere. He won't, but he should. Aylin ignores the male, ears slicked back as the pain ripples down her side at the continued feeling of contractions. Her first child, a girl, cries and cries as she's cleaned. Tired and sick, Aylin continues this task regardless of her feelings, something distant in her kicking in and taking over. She's more of a zombie now than she had been. Another ripple down her side, she grunts, stretcing to place her child near her stomach to nurse, already lost on the throws of a second, seemingly larger cub. Ow. Malak is ignored, though she'd love to bite him on the rear and tell him to shove off.
If Aylin did bite him, tell him to leave, Malak probably would not blame her. He might even thank her. He certainly does not try to get too close. He keeps his distance, and though he cannot even begin to ignore her, he does not look at her. He looks anywhere /but/ her. Birthing is not a quiet process, and if anything is drawn by the noise, it will have to get through him before it gets to her. At least, that's the theory. If anything were approaching, he would almost certainly not notice until once it was in sight, with how he cannot avoid listening to everything going on around Aylin.
He'd left Malak to speak with Aylin, and told the male he wouldn't linger, though Azriel was by no means very far away. It doesn't take a fool to hear the noise his sister is making and it didn't take much to get the males large paws quickly moving. Was Malak /killing/ her?! That LIAR. His jaws part as Azriel races in the direction of his sister and where he'd left Malak, a scowl etched into the lines of his face. He spots Malak first, a confused flutter happening in his brain before the males green eyes flit to his sister and large paws instantly hault. WHOA. >_> No SIR.
The second, a boy, squeals just as the first and Aylin does the same. She ignores the cries, cleans the young male, and noses him in the direction of her stomach. Two is plenty. Two is just fine. The pain eases slightly, but Aylin is restless. She stands, leaving the cubs huddled together, and paces back and forth, back on forth, uneasy, sucking in air. Drugged, deep blue eyes flit toward an uneasy Malak with a grimace, but heavy pawsteps distract her. Azriel's approach is noted and she takes a step toward him. But when he skitters to a halt, back ups in /fear/, Aylin opens her muzzle and lets lose a vicious snarls directed at brother dear. JERK. The action causes her to reel slightly, and she returns to her cubs and drops her hindquarters, propping herself up with her forepaws. Didn't she say two was enough?
Malak spins to face Azriel when he crashes into the area. What bothers Malak the most, though, is the snarls coming from Aylin's direction. Because no one is allowed to anger Aylin until she's ready to tear an animal to shreds but him, at least while she's in the middle of giving birth. He jumps to be directly between Aylin and her brother, and, forcing himself to keep what composure he actually has, he growls, "This is not the place." Whatever had Azriel rushing in here, eager for a fight, it /will/ wait. Of course, Malak does not realize what Azriel assumed about the reason Aylin was obviously in pain.
Green eyes settle on his sister, the snarl slipping right over his head, but its Malak who is instantly in his face that causes his muscles to bunche and teeth to grit. He stares the younger male in the eyes for a breif moment, and for once Azriel keeps his cool, nothing but a twitch of his lip and a thick grunt. If only the male knew the workings of Aylin and Azriel's sibling "love" then he may understand. He rotates his gaze back to Aylin, ears twitching and /NICELY/ moving past Malak the male actually drops his head as if in quiet apology for being late AND pissing her off. Before she settles down for round three he manages to give her a light head bump of comfort before eyeing the two cubs and the third coming and more tactifully skittering to the opposite side of the area. Malak can watch that side, he'll watch this side. Was Azriel a little squimmish? Possibly. XD He glances over towards the male, a quiet look of thanks before his features shift and his gaze moves elsewhere.
Malak's intrusion on Azriel is noted with an ear flick as Aylin settles back down on her side, and she gives both males a decidedly nasty snarl. Love you. Azriel's headbutt is returned in kind before she slides to her side again, and finally, finally, finally after way too long that is nescessary for this, her third and final cub, a girl, is born as the other two. For a while she doesn't move, leaving the cub as is before she manages to drag herself up again to clean her and place her with the others. Slowly the pain eases from her side and her breathing slows, one ear flicking to Azriel. She grunts, lovingly, thanking him for his presence. Malak is eyed cautiously, but for now she says nothing. Tired -.-
The thankful look from Azriel is either not noticed or ignored. Malak remains on guard until Aylin and her cubs, all three of them, are reasonably quiet. Then, finally, he looks at the female, and the three cubs at her side. Two girls and a boy. Or, more accurately, two nieces and a nephew, all looking quite healthy and well. He has nothing to say, though, apparently.In fact, he is about to do what Aylin has wanted him to do for some time. Leave. He wants to check the lake, see how much the water may have receded.
An ear twitches back to the grunt and Azriel lets his head swing in her direction for a moment, green eyes looking over the cubs as well. His whiskers twitch and he frowns gently, He has neices and a nephew ... Malak and Azriel where brandnew uncles. Taw. The male however isn't about to leave and so he glances up to Malak and as he does so stands to move closer to his sister, sliding down to his belly and tucking his paws under his chest. The male will be here for awhile. Tail twitches back and forth as his green eyes flit around the area and finally back to Aylin. "Get some rest Aylin," is all the big brother rummbles.
Malak's corner is quiet, and when Azriel speaks her ears twist his way. She smiles very lightly at him, the ghost of a muscles twitch before she picks up her head to eye Uncle Malak. Aylin doesn't know what to think about Revan's brother, but she does drag herself to all fours and lightly pad his way, and reaches out to touch her nose to his shoulder in a silent and gentle thank you. That's all he gets though before the female turns tiredly back to her demanding children and eases to her side to allow them to nurse. Quiet, for a time, before a low and warm purr rises from her chest. WTF?! Purring? Lawdy!
The thank you gesture is apparently accepted by Malak. At least, he responds to it with a think smile. Then, though, he begins walking toward the north. He couldn't leave Aylin alone when she was giving birth, but he most certainly can leave her now, in Azriel's care and with her cubs.
================================================================================
Heading away from the lake means moving into the woods where trees stand in varying stages of growth. The older trees are taller and reach to the sky while the smaller and younger trees struggle upwards towards that same light. Along the ground are bits of broken tree limbs and different types of shrubs and other vegetation staking their claim on whatever sunlight they can find and keep. Leaves rustle and grasses wave in the breezes that occasionally come through this area, though most of the surrounding air is fairly mild compared to some areas. However, when winter or a large storm hits, this wooded area offers protection to all creatures who can make their way to safety. The flow of melted snow from the south continues down the gentle slope towards the north, emptying into the nearby lake.
=================================== Exits ===================================
[North] to the Lake [South] to the Highlands
[Southwest] to the Grove [West] to the Stone Formations
================================================================================
[IC] Azriel
[IC] Aylin
[IC] Malak
Malak still doesn't know why Aylin neglected to tell him about her brother. The greeting they exchanged when Azriel brought her food certainly seemed to confirm Azriel's story, so despite what he told Azriel, that he could not allow the matter to rest until after he spoke to Aylin, Malak took his leave. He was hungry anyway. It is a couple hours before he returns, fed and calmer. Azriel does not seem to be nearby, or else Malak would just head on again. After all, it's not like he has enjoyed caring for Aylin. He certainly isn't going to fight with anyone for the ability to do so.
Her exchange with her brother was brief. He stashed his kills near to her, he mentioned he had spoken with Malak, and departed. He left her to eatm which she did, ravenously, and curled up in the back of the fallen stand of trees to rest. The female has been thinking quite a bit though her present state is foremost on her mind, overshadowed by Malak's continued presence and Revan's eventual return. LAying there, on her side, back turned to the world, Aylin lounges fitfully, and sighs once, audibly.
Malak can hear the female's sigh as he approaches. He moves no more loudly, and when he spots her, facing the shelter he found for her... If she weren't pregnant, and if he actually /liked/ her, he would be tempted to teach her a lesson about leaving herself vulnerable like that. Even as it is, he feels obligated to mention it. "I did not go through the effort of finding you a shelter so that you could fail to take advantage of the protection it offers you, Aylin." When Malak was stading guard, it was fine, but what could have inspired her to ignore the small exposed part of the shelter and instead face the relatively secure wall formed by the fallen trees?
Who knows? Females are fickle creatures. Aylin's ears cant back when she hears Malak's voice, and if she heard is approach before she gives no indication as such. Slowly, she glances back across her shoulder rather lazily, narrowed and tired eyes searching for the owner of the voice. She can't see to well that way, and instead settles her head back down on the ground where she had it before the interruption. Aylin says nothing to Malak, no greeting, silence from the mouthy female. In her mind, she cues the question of Azriel in 3... 2... 1... Her tail snakes through the grass, rustling it impatiently. Her muscles ache. Her breathing is heavy, worrisome.
Really, is it any wonder that Malak finds Aylin irritating? Really? With a flick of his tail, he says, "Have it your own way, then. Perhaps your /brother/ will be less concerned about your disregard for your own well-being and agree to take over watching out for you while you are in your current condition." The threat is perfectly clear. He will not waste any more of his time helping out a female who seems to not care, in the least, whether she and her unborn cubs survive. If Aylin could be so reckless regarding safety, then perhaps Revan made a mistake in agreeing to impregnate her after all.
There it is, right on cue. If she's irritated at all with Malak's spurn of her and her brother, Aylin doesn't show it. She takes a few deep breaths, and rolls from her side until she's sitting, though she stays in that position for a while, dizzy. She licks hare blood from her dry lips, shudders at the taste, and staggers to all fours. Tired, so very tired. The female turns to face Malak, lifting her head and taking a step in his direction, but.. she faulters, wobbly muscles, and falls back on her haunches and quickly restores her lounging position with a grunt. Do males not understand? So dizzy, achy, unaware of everything except her own body. She does manage this: "Neither you or my brother are under any obligation," she whispers hoarsly, breath coming in short, painful gasps. She eyes Malak with a deadly dark blue gaze.
Malak and his brother have never discussed cubs. Will Revan feel the same way that Malak does? Will he want anything at all to do with these cubs, and will he be upset when he learns of the foolish risks Aylin has taken? Should Malak even bother to tell his brother of the cubs, when they are finally reunited? These questions keep Malak from answering Aylin immediately, as he tries to answer them for himself. Because he can't, and perhaps because of Aylin's obvious discomfort, Malak decides to cut this conversation short. "Very well. Good luck, Aylin." He does not wait before turning from her. After all, as she put it, he has no obligation toward her.
His turning causes her stomach to turn, or is that something else? She grunts, a sound that melts into a softer, more delicate noise. Malak will leave. That is fine. Azriel will help her, even if she refuses. "You confuse me, Malak," she whispers, an echo of yesterday, or maybe she's reliving the day again. Another sharpe ripple of pain down her side and another noise from Aylin, pained. Her muzzle touches her sidem and she looks down the line of her body with some surprise and some fear. What's happening? "Az," she whispers softly, wishing he were here instead.
Malak hears her whispering. And while he begins to give in to the temptation to respond snippily, he is cut off by the sound she makes. He turns to face her again in time to hear her second whisper, and it causes him to narrow his eyes. The name has that same elusive familiarity that the other male's scent does, but he simply cannot connect 'Az' with the Azriel who attacked Moonseeker, cannot connect Azriel's scent with those hints of it that he caught down in the meadows. At least, he cannot do so without a while to think about it, but he knows it sets him on edge. And so, it is with the hint of a growl that he says, "I can get him for you." If she asks. It would be far too easy to just do so without making Aylin ask for it. Through this, he does not realize the signs of Aylin entering labor. He only knows that she's in pain, and it seems wrong to just leave her outright.
Her head resting on the ground, what soft moss she can find, she can only her that dull echo of Malak's voice with one ear, her nose filled with the scent of earth and leaves. And something else. Blood reaches her, but it is not the blood of a kill. It's hers. She doesn't request Azriel's presence, she doesn't know how much Malak knows.. or would be able to figure out. She'd rather not put her children in danger because of their uncle. She can handle herself. It's her cubs that concern her most. Even now. The female's breathing is laboured, ragged, and she does nothing but pant for a while, broken by the occasional grunt. She grimaces, silently growling, and with a painful contraction one of her cubs is born... For a moment Aylin does nothing.. lays there, spent, afraid of her body, afraid of being alone. She's still so young. A moment's pause before she bends herself to reach her newborn, mewling and crying to clean her.
Malak should have just kept going. He should have ignored the whispering, ignored the pained sounds, and just left Aylin, as he warned Aylin he was going to. But no, his eyes are on her when the first cub is born, though he is very quick to look away once he, finally, realizes what is happening. Even to someone as violent and vicious as Malak, birth is just... Unpleasant. And now he /can't/ leave. He can't just abandon Aylin while she is actually in the middle of giving birth.
Maybe he should. Maybe he should just leave and go throw up in the bushes and have a nice long drink somewhere. He won't, but he should. Aylin ignores the male, ears slicked back as the pain ripples down her side at the continued feeling of contractions. Her first child, a girl, cries and cries as she's cleaned. Tired and sick, Aylin continues this task regardless of her feelings, something distant in her kicking in and taking over. She's more of a zombie now than she had been. Another ripple down her side, she grunts, stretcing to place her child near her stomach to nurse, already lost on the throws of a second, seemingly larger cub. Ow. Malak is ignored, though she'd love to bite him on the rear and tell him to shove off.
If Aylin did bite him, tell him to leave, Malak probably would not blame her. He might even thank her. He certainly does not try to get too close. He keeps his distance, and though he cannot even begin to ignore her, he does not look at her. He looks anywhere /but/ her. Birthing is not a quiet process, and if anything is drawn by the noise, it will have to get through him before it gets to her. At least, that's the theory. If anything were approaching, he would almost certainly not notice until once it was in sight, with how he cannot avoid listening to everything going on around Aylin.
He'd left Malak to speak with Aylin, and told the male he wouldn't linger, though Azriel was by no means very far away. It doesn't take a fool to hear the noise his sister is making and it didn't take much to get the males large paws quickly moving. Was Malak /killing/ her?! That LIAR. His jaws part as Azriel races in the direction of his sister and where he'd left Malak, a scowl etched into the lines of his face. He spots Malak first, a confused flutter happening in his brain before the males green eyes flit to his sister and large paws instantly hault. WHOA. >_> No SIR.
The second, a boy, squeals just as the first and Aylin does the same. She ignores the cries, cleans the young male, and noses him in the direction of her stomach. Two is plenty. Two is just fine. The pain eases slightly, but Aylin is restless. She stands, leaving the cubs huddled together, and paces back and forth, back on forth, uneasy, sucking in air. Drugged, deep blue eyes flit toward an uneasy Malak with a grimace, but heavy pawsteps distract her. Azriel's approach is noted and she takes a step toward him. But when he skitters to a halt, back ups in /fear/, Aylin opens her muzzle and lets lose a vicious snarls directed at brother dear. JERK. The action causes her to reel slightly, and she returns to her cubs and drops her hindquarters, propping herself up with her forepaws. Didn't she say two was enough?
Malak spins to face Azriel when he crashes into the area. What bothers Malak the most, though, is the snarls coming from Aylin's direction. Because no one is allowed to anger Aylin until she's ready to tear an animal to shreds but him, at least while she's in the middle of giving birth. He jumps to be directly between Aylin and her brother, and, forcing himself to keep what composure he actually has, he growls, "This is not the place." Whatever had Azriel rushing in here, eager for a fight, it /will/ wait. Of course, Malak does not realize what Azriel assumed about the reason Aylin was obviously in pain.
Green eyes settle on his sister, the snarl slipping right over his head, but its Malak who is instantly in his face that causes his muscles to bunche and teeth to grit. He stares the younger male in the eyes for a breif moment, and for once Azriel keeps his cool, nothing but a twitch of his lip and a thick grunt. If only the male knew the workings of Aylin and Azriel's sibling "love" then he may understand. He rotates his gaze back to Aylin, ears twitching and /NICELY/ moving past Malak the male actually drops his head as if in quiet apology for being late AND pissing her off. Before she settles down for round three he manages to give her a light head bump of comfort before eyeing the two cubs and the third coming and more tactifully skittering to the opposite side of the area. Malak can watch that side, he'll watch this side. Was Azriel a little squimmish? Possibly. XD He glances over towards the male, a quiet look of thanks before his features shift and his gaze moves elsewhere.
Malak's intrusion on Azriel is noted with an ear flick as Aylin settles back down on her side, and she gives both males a decidedly nasty snarl. Love you. Azriel's headbutt is returned in kind before she slides to her side again, and finally, finally, finally after way too long that is nescessary for this, her third and final cub, a girl, is born as the other two. For a while she doesn't move, leaving the cub as is before she manages to drag herself up again to clean her and place her with the others. Slowly the pain eases from her side and her breathing slows, one ear flicking to Azriel. She grunts, lovingly, thanking him for his presence. Malak is eyed cautiously, but for now she says nothing. Tired -.-
The thankful look from Azriel is either not noticed or ignored. Malak remains on guard until Aylin and her cubs, all three of them, are reasonably quiet. Then, finally, he looks at the female, and the three cubs at her side. Two girls and a boy. Or, more accurately, two nieces and a nephew, all looking quite healthy and well. He has nothing to say, though, apparently.In fact, he is about to do what Aylin has wanted him to do for some time. Leave. He wants to check the lake, see how much the water may have receded.
An ear twitches back to the grunt and Azriel lets his head swing in her direction for a moment, green eyes looking over the cubs as well. His whiskers twitch and he frowns gently, He has neices and a nephew ... Malak and Azriel where brandnew uncles. Taw. The male however isn't about to leave and so he glances up to Malak and as he does so stands to move closer to his sister, sliding down to his belly and tucking his paws under his chest. The male will be here for awhile. Tail twitches back and forth as his green eyes flit around the area and finally back to Aylin. "Get some rest Aylin," is all the big brother rummbles.
Malak's corner is quiet, and when Azriel speaks her ears twist his way. She smiles very lightly at him, the ghost of a muscles twitch before she picks up her head to eye Uncle Malak. Aylin doesn't know what to think about Revan's brother, but she does drag herself to all fours and lightly pad his way, and reaches out to touch her nose to his shoulder in a silent and gentle thank you. That's all he gets though before the female turns tiredly back to her demanding children and eases to her side to allow them to nurse. Quiet, for a time, before a low and warm purr rises from her chest. WTF?! Purring? Lawdy!
The thank you gesture is apparently accepted by Malak. At least, he responds to it with a think smile. Then, though, he begins walking toward the north. He couldn't leave Aylin alone when she was giving birth, but he most certainly can leave her now, in Azriel's care and with her cubs.