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Orion settled down rather quickly, though he was scowling a bit. He seemed uneasy, for some reason...like he felt something or someone was in the area.
Léan seemed to be feeling paranoid, as well. He was still asleep, but he was twitching and tensing up every few seconds. |
Glory noticed them both getting a bit antsy. Gently, she nudged Léan.
"Are you alright?" she asked softly. She still had Orion in her arms, in an effort to keep him relatively calm. |
"Hm...?" Léan jolted awake, blinking tiredly. "...Yeah...why?" He seemed on-edge and was glancing around rather curiously. He finally sniffed the water around him to check for scents. He suddenly looked miserable and lowered his head. "I think my parents are nearby."
Par...ents. Plural...both of them? |
"Both of them?" Glory asked. That was strange. Unconsciously, she curled a bit more around Autumn, protectively. "Are you sure?"
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Léan nodded, chewing on his lip. "Both of them. I had a feeling that when my mother decided to set out to see the twins, she would drag him along even if he didn't want to come..."
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"If we end up going out to meet them, I'm not sure if I can carry both of the twins," Glory replied. She wasn't sure if his parents knew exactly where they were, yet. "I might need you to carry Autumn."
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"I can do that..." Léan stretched his arms and tail out straight and then yawned widely, preparing to get up. "They're close by...near the coral reef."
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"Alright," Glory said. "It's up to you whether we go out to meet them or not."
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"Whether we go out and find them or not, they're still going to find us, eventually..." Léan reminded her, dryly. "We should find them. I don't think it's a good idea to have my father near the shoreline...especially if he comes across Aster or Azilis. He's very territorial and nasty towards other mermen..."
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"Alright," Glory said. "Take Autumn, then, and we can go find them. The faster we find them, the faster we can come back and settle in again." She moved a little so he would be able to pick Autumn up.
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Léan reached down and awkwardly scooped up Autumn from her place on the sand. He was not looking forward to this. He was just hoping that they would find the pair before they came across one of the other occupants of their beach.
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Glory leaned over and gave him a quick kiss.
"Come on," she said. "I'll follow you." |
Léan nodded, worriedly, and hesitantly began to lead the way out towards the coral reef. He was sniffing the whole way there. Archie and Damon were not in the area. Neither was Aster. However, he did smell Azilis and Clarissa...
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Glory had no idea her parents were in the area. It probably wasn't a good thing that they were, because there was a pretty good chance that they would run into Léan's parents.
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Honeydew wasn't territorial, and didn't like to fight. She didn't have a good sense of smell, so she didn't notice that there was another pair of merpeople in the area until they saw them...at which point, her mate immediately reacted.
Betelgeuse's back arched up and he growled long and low, his tail swishing back and forth in an aggressive manner. Thankfully, they were a good distance apart...fighting didn't start. |
Azilis saw them at about the same time, and immediately got in front of Clarissa, protectively. He growled lowly, warning the other pair off.
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Léan heard the growling in the distance, and his heart sank a bit. "...We may be too late," he murmured, sounding even more miserable.
Betelgeuse did not move. He stood his ground, raising himself to his full height in the water. He was a big man who hadn't withered away with age. He had a lot of muscle on him and a few battle scars. Honeydew sighed, attempting to push him along so they could reach the shoreline, where she suspected her children were. "Come on...don't do this..." |
"Unless you hear my mother causing an uproar, it's not too late," Glory pointed out. Clarissa wasn't one to immediately back down.
Azilis, on the other hand, was a bit more cautious than his mate, and didn't make any move to start a fight. He stayed in front of Clarissa, but he wasn't going to start a fight if he didn't have to. |
Léan peered around warily once they reached the coral reef and noticed the distanced confrontation. He shrank away, visibly, at the sight of Betelgeuse. The man still terrified him. Almost instinctively, he covered up Autumn with his arms as much as he possibly could and kept his distance.
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Glory wasn't so intimidated, but she didn't immediately go to try to break things up. She had Orion in her arms, and she didn't want to take him into it.
Autumn, while she didn't mind being held, didn't like being held so tightly. She started to fuss and whimper, trying to push his arm off from on top of her. The noise would probably attract the attention of both sets of her grandparents. |
The noise of a child nearby was enough to capture Betelgeuse's attention. He glanced over, puzzled and still angry, and then froze. Léan's uneasiness towards the twins was dwarfed by what Betelgeuse had in his eyes.
Hatred. Pure, unmasked hatred. He backed up more, hiding between two large stacks of coral, and wrapped his tail around himself, baring his teeth at the four of them and growling. Honeydew, on the other hand, immediately approached them. She seemed a bit timid and didn't ask to hold either of them. |
Azilis heard it, too, but he was more curious than anything else. Clarissa had told him about his new grandchildren, but he was waiting for his daughter to let him see them.
Glory was glad that Betelgeuse didn't get any closer. She held Orion so that Honeydew could see the infant, and then moved aside slightly so she could see Autumn in Léan's arms. |
Honeydew seemed concerned about how Orion looked--especially the color of his tail. The same as Betelgeuse's...her concern was akin to Léan's concern.
She spared a glance in Azilis and Clarissa's direction, seeming to understand now who the two of them were. |
"They're only a few days old," Glory said softly. "Their names are Autumn and Orion."
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"Awww." Honeydew's tail swished back and forth in a cheerful sort of manner. She paused and then gingerly held out her hands. "May I?"
Léan stayed by Glory's side, loosening his grip on Autumn. He glanced over in Azilis' direction, indicating that it was all right for him to approach without words. |
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