With only six days left before the expedition was set to depart, though it still felt like a long time from Vahn's perspective, he found himself feeling strangely tense. Things had been going 'very' well lately, as the amount of time he was able to spend with the girls had caused him to feel almost irresistibly placent. Since he would spend tens of hours every day fighting to the 'death', this feeling was even more prevalent, causing Vahn to believe that it was his 'instincts' telling him something was about to go down. Thus, just as he encouraged the girls to talk to him whenever they felt something was 'off', Vahn had waited until after dinner, when everyone was still gathered together, to bring up his concerns.
After sending the children into another room, with Anubis, Mona, and Preasia to look after them, Vahn adopted a serious expression, saying, "My intuition is telling me that something will happen very soon, likely during the expedition, but possibly before. If you feel anything is abnormal, please tell someone as soon as possible. We may find ourselves in a War between the Alliance's and Enyo's forces very soon, with the entire City wrapped up in the conflict. At the same time, our other enemies may be maneuvering to take advantage of the situation. Though you're all much stronger, never forget that there are 'always' stronger enemies in the world...never drop your guard, and don't try to deal with a situation by yourself. We're all in this together and, to protect everyone's happiness, we need to support each other. There is nothing wrong with having secrets, but don't keep anything that could endanger yourself, or the others within the Manor...please..."
Though he had been preparing himself for the possibility of losing one of the girls, Vahn knew it would be a painful experience, one which he genuinely didn't want to go through. If they lost their lives doing their best to protect others, holding true to the beliefs they shared together, that was one thing. The worst possible oute would be, like in the case of Tina from the Divination, that they ended up falling into a scheme and suffering a tragic fate. He might be able to move on if they died in battle, especially if they fought hard, Vahn knew part of him would 'break' if they ended up falling to a scheme. Whichever group managed to pull it off...he wouldn't stop until they, and anyone remotely associated with them, were pletely annihilated...
Hestia, having managed to claim the 'throne' of Vahn's lap for herself, could feel the 'pain' Vahn was going through just thinking about the possible loss of a loved one. She gently squeezed his hands, which were loosely wrapped around her waist, and smiled radiantly as she addressed everyone at the table, saying, "Everyone here is family, regardless of the circ.u.mstances you may have e from. I believe in each of you, as you've shown me the strength of character possessed my mortals, something we gods could never hope to aspire towards. Remember that, even if fate may influence your life, each and every one of you is in control of your own destiny...if you feel as though you cannot bear the burden on your own, there are numerous people that will happily shoulder that burden with you. I sincerely pray every single time you all enter the Dungeon, that you will return safely to this place we have turned into our home..." Toward the end of her words, Hestia brought her hands together in a gesture of prayer, using the opportunity to sincerely request 'fate' to be kind to her family.
With the serious 'plea' of Vahn, followed by the guiding words of Hestia, everyone at the table adopted a somewhat solemn appearance, nodding their heads in affirmation. Afterward, Ais raised her hand slightly, drawing everyone's attention to her as she hesitantly said, "Lately, unless I'm with Vahn, I have been having dreams that seem to relate to my past...I keep seeing visions of my mother and father, even though I can't remember the latter's face. Also..." Turning her head to the side, looking in the direction that many of them immediately understood was the Dungeon, Ais continued, saying, "I feel like the Dungeon is calling to me...like someone very dear to my heart is waiting for me..."
Though others might be somewhat surprised by Ais' words, there were a few within the room whose expressions didn't change much. Chief amongst them was Loki, who knew the most about Ais' background, with Riveria also adopting a more thoughtful than confused expression. As for Vahn, he knew that Ais' fate was directly tied to the Dungeon and he knew there were important revelations waiting for her deep within. He had also seen Ais' [Hearts Desire] and, after talking with Loki and Riveria about her past, he knew there was nearly a thousand-year 'gap' between the time Ais should have been born, to the present. She had many secrets that only the Dungeon would be able to reveal, one of the only reasons he didn't outright use the [Fate Severing Knife], even though it only had one use, to sever her fate...he wanted her to get the answers she sought and, even if it hurt her greatly, all of them would be here to help her recover.
Firming his resolve, Vahn returned an encouraging smile to Ais as he said, "Thank you for sharing that with us, Ais...I promise, no matter what it takes, I will help you find the answers you seek. If you want to try and get a better understanding of those dreams, you can try to take a nap with Preasia. Though the memories may be buried deep within your subconscious mind, you may be able to find some answers within her Dreamscape...is that okay, Preasia?" Without any delay at all, Preasia's face bloomed with a smile, saying, "Of course. I feel my ability exists to help people with exactly these issues. Whenever you take a break from your training, please e by the pagoda, Ais. I will do my best to help you, just like I will always do my best for everyone else within the Manor~."
Having the support of both Vahn, the boy she loved, and Preasia, someone she was actually quite fond of, Ais' troubled face transitioned to a happy smile as she said, "Thank you...!" Her smile brightened up the whole room and, almost as if the solemn atmosphere from before had been an illusion, everyone was infected by Ais' happiness. They all began to talk about things they could do to help each other and, for those that were very close to Ais, they promised to help her find out why the Dungeon was calling out to her. Since they would be going into the Dungeon on the expedition in six days, there was a chance they would be able to find some of the answers very soon...
Once the meeting had e to an end, many of the girls transitioned towards the orb while most of the mothers went to spend time with their children. Vahn, though his mind had been eased a little by how open and caring everyone was towards each other, decided he wanted to relax a bit more. Instead of making his way into the orb with the girls, he divided his body into two parts, one to go kiss all of his children good night, the other following behind Fenrir to her icy chamber. He didn't miss the fact that she had a small smile on her face, nor that her tail was very slowly moving from side to side as she led the way.
After reaching her room, which immediately caused a layer of frost to spread across his skin and clothes, Vahn hugged her from behind and, perhaps influenced by the other girls, took a deep breath of her midnight blue hair. Fenrir's fur became progressively 'fluffier' as Vahn nuzzled his face between her two large ears, getting a little carried away as he lifted her body off the ground slightly. She just let her legs dangle without resisting whatsoever, the small smile on her face growing progressively larger as time passed. Though she eventually said, "Master, let's lay down...
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