up your bum and around the corner // Leander

[Kagerus]

Kagerus

{ and in my dreams I've kissed your lips a thousand times }

As the sound of my voice becomes more memory than present between us, I come to realize that the pounding I'm hearing isn't coming from outside, but from inside. My heart. It's been so long since I considered the other branches of my family that being confronted with it so unexpectedly leaves me somewhat undone mentally; I begin to shiver in the coolness, the wind chilling my wet fur. But none of that is of interest any more as, at last, the stallion before me recovers enough to speak.

She was my grandmother, too.

"...That makes us cousins!" The exclamation is made under my breath, eyes dropping and then finding his again as wonder besieges their depths. My ears flutter impatiently, but then zone in on his words as if my life depends on it; there's a lopsided grin on his mouth, and again it occurs to me how much it resembles my father's. Not so much Rodrik's, and I'm sure that he would have mentioned a son when last we spoke; I have a good connection with my uncle. Still, there remains something of a mystery as to how we are related - though in an instant, Leander is unveiling his secrets.

He spins a long tale, though I drink up every drop of it. There's no real need for me to interrupt, so I don't, content to nod and blink and smile at the correct places, still processing exactly what's going on right now. But when he speaks to how glad he is to have met me, a grin breaks out across my face, wide and bright.

"The Gods have blessed us with this meeting - I'm so glad to meet you." I step forward with the words, exchanging a breath with him such that we are officially, in all ways, acquainted. As I step back, he makes reference to the shimmering leopard print markings which lay atop my coat. My smile takes on a sadder lilt, though I will always cherish the memories of how I earned these same markings. "Yes, I do... I only hope I am living up to her and making her proud."

Eyes cast down in remembrance of she who ties our blood together, I fail to catch the tell tale signs of excitement building up in Leander - but it's of no offense to me when he bursts forth with questions that admittedly need answering, and I quietly remove my grief in favour of enjoying the present. I laugh quietly at his arsenal of questions, flicking an ear to Panthera who, now laying down beside me, has begun to purr in approval of my cousin. I take a moment to collect my thoughts, then clear my throat and answer.

"I met her only once, and it was made possible by the faeries - that is how I acquired the markings. She didn't say anything, but I know that if she could have, she would have asked me to tell you and all of her family that she loves you." I smile tightly, hoping that this won't be too painful an image to bear. "As for Rodrik and Kavi - the latter is my father, and they are both slinking around beqanna in various states of mostly-dead-but-somehow-immortal. Father gained his immortality at an ancient age, and uncle Rodrik is literally a corpse. But they are around, and I can guarantee that if you come to Hyaline, one or both of them will come to meet you."

He asks about his sisters next, and my ears fall back lamely. "I'm sorry, I know nothing of your sisters.. I have two brothers myself, but one - Bergamot - has not been around since before the Reckoning, and the other comes around only sparingly. Khaedrik - he too can be found in Hyaline."

Pausing, I shake my head thoughtfully, still barely processing all that has been discovered this night. "It must be... Crazy, coming back from the Beyond and discovering... This. Us. Me, and everyone else." I try out a smile, knowing that he's excited but hoping he's not feeling other things too, namely fear or uncertainty. "I have children too. Your first cousins once removed, though they can call you uncle - if you want to meet them - if you want to meet any of them - you don't have to, of course. I'm just, well, pretty damn excited."

@[Leander] k well I was writing this and then disaster in the form of a mega post struck and I sincerely apologize because when I was writing it, it genuinely felt like 5 paragraphs max. oops.