An Elven Druid came over with a tray of cake squares, and offered them to the kids.
"Did you want something specific? I know that Skadi just joined us, so she isn't familiar with our favourites. Why don't you all explain them to her?"
All four behemoth boys began speaking at once.
"{ The best one is the double chocolate chip one. }"
"{ The best one is the vanilla bean and lemon one. }"
"{ The best one is the carrot one with the cream cheese topping. }"
"{ They're all wrong. The best one is the red bean and sesame. }"
Skadi laughed. "{ I see that there are many different options. Perhaps I will have to try them all, so I know what ones I like best? }"
The Elf nodded, and separated one of each flavour onto a plate for her. The Behemoths eyed it enviously, then absolutely demolished the rest of the platter the moment that the Elf set it down for them.
Seraphina rolled her eyes. "{ The boys are true gluttons. That's how they got so large already. We're the same age, and they're already so much larger than I am. But they don't appreciate roasted meat the way that a dragon does. }"
Skadi nodded. "{ The Owls love meat too. But I can't eat that. }"
Seraphina laughed. "{ Oh, my brothers can eat meat. They just like vegetables and sweets better. There really isn't anything that a Behemoth won't eat if they have the chance. But they only go for meat if there are no other options. }"
Skadi tried the treats one after another, and found that there were no bad options.
Each of them was an excellent snack, better than any of the foods that her mother had prepared for the kids. She was always so stingy with the treats, saying that they needed to be more responsible to the Forest, as if mixing the ingredients to make them taste better somehow took more food.
The people of this place seemed to take great joy in their food, and Skadi saw that it was also a chance to socialize and discuss training methods, as well as tips for better pleting their tasks.
They took care of this place, much the way that the Forest Lord took care of their forest.
So, they actually had a lot in mon.
Then, a set of fluttering wings caught her attention, and Opal landed atop Leo's head to greet their new sister.
"Good afternoon. My name is Opal Karlsdotter, the youngest of your big sisters. It's good to see another Fae type sister in the team. We've got all sorts, you see. But now there are two Fae on the team, so we're in the lead."
Skadi giggled. "{ We're very different types of Fae. But don't the Elves count as part of the team? }"
Opal shook her head. "They live here, but I'm talking about the beasts bonded to Karl. We've got Hawk, the Dark Fire Phoenix, flying over there. Then, Thor, whose kids you've met. Then Sister Rae, in the black robes. She's a Blood Destruction Demonic Spider. Sister Cara, the Chaos Badger, you already know. Leo is a False Island Giant turtle, if he didn't tell you already. Tian is the super fluffy Stonefur Divine Fox. And somewhere around here, we should have Remi. She's a Naga Matriarch.
Oh, there she is. Sometimes she gets all distracted working on Alchemy projects and forgets to e out to greet people."
Remi slid over to them, and wrapped their new sister in a four-armed hug.
"{ Wele, Sister. I can tell already that we're going to be good friends. }"
Skadi had no idea how the Naga could know that. But Remi could sense the love of plants, the magic in the young Forest Lord that could grow them more effectively than anything that their Druids could do, and her innate need for order.
Order was helpful. Order didn't forget what ingredients she needed, the order that they went in, or the exact quality that was necessary for the Alchemical recipe to have the desired effect.
An Order related sister was a great addition to the group.
For her part, Skadi had no idea what Alchemy was. It wasn't something that anyone in her family did. They had healing magic, and plant growth magic, so they were never really short on anything that they needed in the Fae Forest.
All the creatures revered the Forest Lord for the power that it had, and their innate skills were incredibly powerful.
"{ You have powerful forest skills? What can you do? }" Remi asked, hoping that the new sister would be an asset to the Elves working her reagent fields.
"{ Well, I have [Epic Plant Control], which is great for growing things, and [Greater Regrowth], the area healing spell, and [Forest Protection] the defensive barrier. Plus the [Forest Lord's Blessing] passive skill, which increases healing and reduces damage taken.
That one I didn't have before. It only activated after I was bonded with Karl, and Sister Cara cast a bunch of spells on me. }"
Remi took a second to understand what she meant. "{ OH! Sister Cara nullified the debuff that were on you from being weaker than your siblings. I read about it in a book. Only one White Stag bees the Forest Lord, the rest bee regular Divine Stags.
Though, that's kind of a bad name, isn't it? Since you're a Doe, not a Stag? }"
Skadi laughed. "{ I asked my mom the same thing, and she told me to shut up and stop over thinking things. That's just what we're called. }"
Remi shrugged. "{Well, we can make up a new name for you, if you want. Or we can just call you a Forest Lord, since you're the Forest Lord of this place now. There isn't anyone here that will pete with you for the spot, so it's yours by default, right? }"
Skadi shook her head. "{ We still have to be strong enough. But I think that I will be very soon. As soon as you reach Supreme, you can take over the position, though usually, you still have your parents watching over you, unless something bad happened. }"
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