July: Since when do blood mages have to be scary?

When Zabeth and Kanna both left together, leaving Kikira and July both alone without anyone to talk to besides unresponsive eggs. Senyen didn't count as someone to talk to, since she ignored him when at all possible and was short with him when it wasn't possible to ignore him. Ever since he realized she didn't even like him-- thought herself too good for him, or something-- he'd been enjoying trying to annoy her to make up for the bad attitude she gave him, but today she was being unusually unresponsive and boring. He couldn't play with any of the kittens or cublings or whatever the adorable little bundles of fur were called, either, though he had asked many a time, and he expected the poor things would have been the better for it. The cavern guardians wouldn't let him. Gods, the cavern guardians weren't even very friendly! Maybe he was annoying to them, too, like he was to Senyen.

Ah, well. That meant there was only one thing for it. July heaved himself up, gave his erstwhile mate-- bleh, he didn't even like calling her that anymore, but calling her his "fling" sounded really bad, and calling her "the mother of his children" sounded worse, and was a mouthful, besides-- a jaunty grin and a mocking bow, and toddled over to see how the tiny little blue dragon was doing. She glared after him briefly, then went back to ignoring him. Like usual.

Hopefully Kikira would be friendlier! Though he looked rather morose, at the moment. July would have to try and do something about that, if he wanted decent conversation.

"Hello!" he announced himself cheerfully, plopping down next to the little clutch of five eggs-- ah, no, six now! That awful little spider-witch had returned the fifth and brought a sixth, marked with a rune thing on its shell, just like she had returned July and Senyen's eleventh and added a twelfth. Zabeth had accepted guardianship of the sixth egg graciously enough, but July kept giving his "extra" offspring wary looks, half-certain it was going to hatch some sort of monster, or something.

"Hello," Kikira said quietly, not looking up from his contemplation of his own clutch of eggs, chin resting on his forepaws. He looked oddly forlorn, like that.

July thumped his long tail on the floor lightly. They'd been introduced, briefly, when he'd won the flight, so he didn't feel the need to introduce himself again. He was a memorable character, and Zabeth probably talked about him, anyway. Besides, jumping into conversation was much more interesting. "Looking forward to being a dad?" he asked cheerfully.

"I don't know." Well, that was an honest answer, at least. "I'd like to think so...."

"Nervous?" July grinned sympathetically.

"No... just uncertain, I guess."

"Mind if I ask why?" July asked, curious. He was excited, himself, and what nervousness he'd had about raising a hatchling-- since he was, of course, taking one home-- was easily allayed by the certainty that the family would help. Zabeth had done a great job of raising its huge collection, after all. The only thing July was dead-set on doing himself was training his own kid in his blood magic, if it bred true. He liked the idea of making more not-scary blood-mages.

"I travel with my family," Kikira answered slowly. "I call nowhere home. I want to raise my children... but they need something more than that. Zabeth said I could stay with it and its family--" July was officially impressed at Kikira, Zabeth's mate, of all people, being brave enough using the gender-neutral pronoun, "--but that would mean leaving my own. I don't know what to do...."

July scratched at his neck thoughtfully with a forepaw. "Well, I don't see what's so wrong with a traveling lifestyle, myself, but if you think so-- why not invite the whole family of yours? The more the merrier, I always say."

"They can't stay in one place," Kikira said. He sounded awfully miserable for someone about to be a dad.

"How come?" July asked curiously.

"Work," Kikira sighed.

July stared at him. "Then... don't work. Half of us at home don't work. I do, but that's just because I get bored, and I get destructive when I'm bored. --I'm probably going to make such a rotten father," he laughed at himself. He could just imagine getting his offspring into all sorts of trouble-- well-meaning trouble, of course, but trouble none-the-less-- or, worse, having his own offspring scolding him for getting into trouble, himself!

"I'm not going to tell them to drop their traveling just so I can have some sense of ease when I want to stay in one place," Kikira said, flattening his long ears and utterly ignoring the opportunity for mirth. "It's selfish."

"There's nothing wrong with being selfish," July commented idly. He was a pro at it. Most people were, even if they didn't want to admit it. "Don't worry so much, man. Things'll work out, whether your kid hangs out on the road with you or you share your time around or whatever. You'll love him no matter what, yeah?"

Kikira answered only with a little grunt, but it was with a surly reluctance that proved July had made his point. Feeling smug, he grinned down at the little guy. "Come on, maybe when Zabeth's back you can come with me for a race around that room you guys had the flight in. All this sitting around with eggs is making my rump hurt, I don't know how mothers stand it! Heck--" He looked around. "It's big enough in here for a good air-chase!"

"Thanks," Kikira said with a bit of a smile.

"Any time," July grinned, back. "So tell me, you got any names figured out for those baby birdies of yours? Me, I've got plenty for mine, but I doubt I'll get to give them any of them-- Senyen's just being possessive, if you ask me."

Kikira actually chuckled. "Not really... Zabeth might, though."

"Bet it's got so many weird names in its head that it could name every kid in this room," July chortled. "Hey, while we wait, why dontcha tell me about this family of yours?"

That perked him up even more, and July listened contentedly while Kikira enumerated and described his huge and, like July's, quite unrelated family. It passed the time well enough, and kept the conversation going-- without July dominating it all, himself!-- until Zabeth and its feathery bond got back.