[Jaykobell]

It started to sink in just how afraid and insecure Azazel was of males. Izotz found his confidence sinking a little when his display didn't really seem to put the Sailfin at ease, and as she even managed to shrink to the ground even lower than he had. Her words and reactions were also plenty enough for him to understand that this wouldn't be an overnight change, for sure. If he weren't careful, he would probably end up saying something wrong to her. Something simple to him could become something terrifying to Azazel, whom seemed to read what he was saying mostly as orders. Orders sounded a little strong, although the concept was vaguely similar. He had to take charge, but he wasn't abusive with the whole thing.

Thinking quickly, the Frost tried to think of a position that was even more submissive than just flopping straight on the ground. Thinking quickly, he was reminded of things he would do as a hatchlings, and what some of the others would do. Slowly, the Frost shifted his weight and he ended up rolling over on his sides and then up onto his back. Now facing the Sailfin upside-down, Izotz wasn't sure just how much trust-inducing the position was, but you had to be pretty fearless to expose something as sensitive and easily-damageable as your stomach.

"Well, there's nothing else you can call me, really," Izotz replied about the name with a light chuckle, now talking with the Sailfin upside-down with his hands and feet curled up, much like a dog asking for a belly-rub. They were also moving back and forth, much like a dog paddling about in the water; his body was entirely relaxed and never once did his movements hint at any sort of aggressive or harmful behavior. "You call me Izotz, and I call you Azazel. Right?" He would probably feel bad or uncomfortable if she ended up calling him something like master or sir or something equally formal.

"Well, by staying with her, you'll have someone to guide you around so you can go places around the mountain. She'll show you all the pretty places we have around here. If you like animals, we have little ones like rabbits and fish, too. We hear birds in the morning, too. You won't be trapped inside the den all the time, don't worry." Considering saying things vaguely would freak the poor Sailfin out, Izotz tried to focus on telling her happy, positive things. Maybe mentioning to her that she wouldn't be stuck here constantly as a slave would help her ease up a little. Despite Izotz knowing that Azazel's confidence wouldn't build in the lapse of this single conversation, the hopeful dreamer in him hoped he could at least give her a good image of him.

"Hmm, if you put it that way, though... Tell me, then... What would you like to do, right now?" Izotz asked Azazel, tilting his head slightly while still upside-down. He wouldn't drop the position unless he got the feeling she was ready to at least trust him on a sort of fake trust; where she would know that, at the very least, he wasn't here to hurt her. "Never mind what I want, right now; what do you want?"

[Kallile]

This time when Azazel looked at him it was a look that in the most pathetic way possible mixed fear and confusion as the big male turned over on his back with his feet curled up in the air. What…was he doing? This was entirely new behavior for a male that the Sailfin had no idea how to appropriately respond to. Slowly she turned her head to the side and the rest of her body followed in a slow wave motion that brought shoulders, abdomen, hips, and finally tail to one side before she too pushed herself onto her back. The shackle was still clutched in her hands above her as she looked at Izotz right-side up from their very upside-down positions. “Y-you can call me whatever you want. But I…”

She paused, the very words ‘sir’ and ‘master’ wanting to spring out next. “But…I can c-call you Izotz i-if that’s what you want.”  She stammered. Part of her wanted to watch the female for fear that this was all one big plot and she would leap in and rip apart her exposed belly at any moment. Her head bobbed slightly as Izotz told her little, childish sounding things about how her days from now on might go and yet…they did comfort her a little. Going outside was not something she usually got to experience, but again it was hard to trusts the words of males. Her father and his “friends” had taught her that males as a general rule liked to break spirits. Azazel wouldn’t let hers get too high.

“I…like birds. And animals. I think.” She admitted sheepishly. She wasn’t really too sure about well…any of those creatures. Other than they were seen in the same line as her and were therefore something to be crushed for sport. If nothing else she liked the idea that they were something of kindred spirits.  Her grip on the shackle had been slipping some and though she still held onto it dearly the death grip had loosened. This changed in an instant when Izotz asked his question of her.

It wasn’t out of fear but rather the shock of being asked….and the instant heartbreak that she had no idea what she wanted. No one had ever asked or cared, so she had never had to bother herself with the idea that her opinions mattered. She just had to be quiet and do as she was told and everything would be over quickly with limited incident. Her knee-jerk reaction was to say she wanted to go home but there was nothing further from the truth. It wasn’t “home” that she wanted, it was the idea that she just wanted to be somewhere safe and familiar. Which, realistically, was back with her father.

“I…” She froze, her body curling uncomfortably into a sort of crescent as she began trying to fold into herself. It would be rude and ungrateful not to give him an answer. He was literally giving her the biggest opportunity of her lifetime—she couldn’t disappoint him. How angry one might get to be told an unsatisfactory answer after such openness…Azazel didn’t want to know. “I….I want to go back outside.” Her mind didn’t think to add on something else, such as ‘to look at the stars’ or ‘to meet my denmate’. Outside meant no boundaries; outside meant no confinement or uncomfortable closeness to this strange male. It was a glimpse at real freedom—the chance to escape if things got too scary. Her brother’s words to mind them rang in her head though; no, she couldn’t run away from them. She had been indirectly told not to. But…he had asked what she wanted. And right now that was to be back in the open air where the moonlight might enlighten her situation more accurately.

[Jaykobell]

It surprised Izotz to see Azazel adopt the exact same position as he had. He couldn't begin to imagine how insecure the female had to be in that position, considering it was worrying to be on your back for any Paragon because of the stomach that was suddenly completely defenseless.

Regardless of the position, though, neither leaders did anything to scare or harm the Sailfin. Izotz remained in the same position, the two of them now looking at each other strangely right-side up despite being upside-down. Slavica remained a little ways away from Izotz, sitting down and watching the scene quietly with attentive eyes. Internally, she was wondering just how long Izotz would keep up this stupid, childish charade. That grown hatchling had obviously no intention to warm up to them any time soon, and to her, the Frost was just wasting his time.

Even though it felt like Azazel was going to call him Izotz strictly because that was what he wanted, the Frost figured it was a step in the right direction. Even if she called him by his name only out of an "order", he figured the Sailfin would still get used to calling him by his name over time. If so, his name wouldn't be as awkward it was currently. "There you go. That's how friends call each other," he praised as he beamed a smile at her, and as he did his hardest to be as non-threatening as possible.

The Frost beamed up when Azazel replied to him in a more personal fashion, when she clarified that she liked birds and animals. Although she seemed a little uncertain about her answer, the fact she'd voiced it out was plenty enough for him. "See? There you go! We have a lot of little animals hanging around, and the birds are especially chipper in the morning when they wake up. Some of the views themselves are beautiful too." It might sound silly, but just flying up to a higher part of the mountain and taking a look down was a breath-taking thing on its own.

When Azazel reacted to his last question, Izotz was almost afraid he'd managed to break his own efforts with a single question. It took every last ounce of willpower he had to keep himself from bouncing up and telling the little female that everything would be okay, that she didn't have to answer if she didn't want to. Thankfully, everything turned out fine when Azazel did give Izotz an answer, albeit a strange one. Still, considering the Sailfin had never been able to go anywhere, from what he could understand, the request suddenly wasn't so silly anymore. "Outside?" Izotz echoed, tilting his head slightly to the side. "All right, then. If you want, we can go outside together. I don't want you to get lost or injured or anything." That, and he did have a feeling that she could easily just end up running away. If they lost her the very first night, what would her brother say, if he ever made it back here?

[Kallile]

She took all his words to heart, not really sure what to make of his praises and calling them friends. This…was a very different method than any of her other masters had ever used. Normally she could pick out the game they were going to play at and she would shape herself to fit the mold they wanted her to fill. But this male…she had no idea what his game was or how to play it. More than anything that fact made her insecure; the mystery of it all only because she was too cautious to believe she was truly without shackles anymore. Truly free.

She gave an awkward nod of her head at his question, then her face seemed to fall again into that deep seated fear. He had…thought of letting her go outside alone? To mention they would do so together implied he had considered her request as a solo one. Another first on this terrifying night. “I…I couldn’t go alone…” She answered quickly as she snaked her neck back closer to her body. The meaning was very clear—it wasn’t that she physically could not walk herself outside, but that she wasn’t allowed to go alone. She had let the thought cross her mind of being able to outfly them, yes, but never of being allowed to walk out of here unaccompanied.

She remained where she was, statue still, waiting for Izotz to get up.  She had been taught to never be physically higher than a male, and to get up now and wait for him would only be saying she saw them as equals. She simply couldn’t, not with the nasty tempered female still there to witness something so brash and brave. Though truly, Azazel hadn’t even thought of it as a physical possibility to get up before Izotz did. She watched him carefully to take any cues that he was moving to right herself and remove her belly from this exposed position.

[Jaykobell]

Izotz would've let Azazel go outside on her own, but again, it was the odds of the Sailfin running off on them that made him insecure. For all they knew, Azazel was playing along, but the mention of going outside was just a plan to escape from them so she could be alone and not be hurt by anyone. Izotz did want the female to think this way of her new home, and he could only hope that Azazel would feel comfortable here soon.

"Oh, don't worry. It's not dangerous outside. The Hive is a very peaceful place, I promise," Izotz answered, not thinking for a moment that Azazel's words were with respect to her being unable to even consider going outside alone without a male accompanying her. Once she was settled and feeling secure enough, she would definitely be allowed to leave her den and walk and fly around; whether she was being accompanied by another Paragon or not. All the words meant to Izotz was that the Sailfin was insecure and afraid, and she didn't want to go outside for fear that something might jump out on her and hurt her. "Come, we can go together."

Slowly letting himself flop back onto his side and then onto all four, Izotz slowly — and again, as non-threateningly as possible — got back up on all four paws. "There's clouds outside tonight, but we should still be able to see some of the stars up there. We can walk outside together," he proposed, tilting his head and smiling innocently at Azazel, much like a little teenage hatchling would; the only betraying factor was Izotz's adult bulk and his generic rumbly male voice, which were two things he sadly couldn't get rid of to make this more tolerable for the Sailfin.

With Izotz playing along, Slavica eventually sighed, her patience running out. The dark Sailfin slowly crouched down until she was laying flat on her belly and curled into a ball, seemingly ready to go to sleep. If Izotz needed her, he could just wake her up. At this point, the supporting leader figured she wasn't needed and that she could basically go about her own things. Acting like an overgrown baby was of no interest to her.

[Kallile]

Azazel remained poised on her back with her feet and hands twitching every now and again as she shivered fearfully. This was all too different. Had he outright attacked her or done something much worse…well, Azazel knew how to mentally cope with all of that. But all this kindness when her brother had delivered her here after he had done so many times before... it was unnatural. The Sailfin wasn’t sure how to mentally prepare herself for all this. There was no ‘happy place’ in her mind to deal with kindness and the silliness from Izotz.

When the larger Frost male got up Azazel froze and watched him fearfully for a moment before slowly rolling over onto her belly to gaze up at him like a newborn hatchling.  She held that pose for a moment, seemingly waiting for him to do something, but eventually she did raise up high enough to walk. Despite this her head and wings were still held as low and close to herself as she could manage. She jumped noticeably when Slavica sunk into a more comfortable sleeping position with confusion further darkening her eyes. She was not coming? It sent mixed feeling through the younger Sailfin.

While females could be equally as cruel, they were a little bit of a security blanket for her. Males tended to watch their tones and actions when in the presence of a female they deemed worth their time. Despite the fact that it had been Slavica who had been openly opposed to her being here, Azazel suddenly felt much less secure knowing it was going to be just she and Izotz outside the cave.

Slowly she inched her way closer to him, slinking like a beaten puppy until she stood a fair distance both behind and beside him. “I am…ready to go when you are.” She clamped her jaws shut to stop herself from saying ‘master’.  If he wanted her to talk like they were friends she would. Anything to keep him content with her.

[Jaykobell]

While a little disappointed that Slavica wouldn't lend him her help in this unusual situation, Izotz didn't say anything about it. Having known the Sailfin for so many years, the two could read each other without words and the Frost knew exactly why Slavica had given up paying attention. Hopefully that wouldn't change Azazel's behavior, despite that fact that he would be accompanying her alone. If her fear of males ran so deep, Izotz himself felt awkward to be dealing with this alone. Of course, he wanted to make Azazel feel right at home, but that wouldn't be done in just a single night and in a matter of a few hours. It would probably take days for the little Sailfin to even feel comfortable speaking to others or other such things that were really banal here.

That said, the Frost waited patiently for Azazel to get up, relieved that him getting up hadn't sent her shaking into a corner. That was a good thing, right? If anything, maybe she felt like he wouldn't hurt her. That was the only thing Izotz could hope, right now, all things considered.

When Azazel made her way behind him, Izotz pondered what to do. On the one hand, leading her out would feel natural to her, most likely, and being behind him would assure her that he wouldn't do anything. On the other hand, he did want to prove to her that he wasn't a heartless, cruel male, and he did want to let her lead the way outside. However, with him being behind her, she might be afraid that he would use that as an opportunity to jump at her from behind when she least expected it. While Azazel listened to him, she listened solely out of fear, and that wasn't what he wanted.

But suddenly, the little lightbulb turned on, and the Frost had an idea what to do. "Don't stand behind me like that," he pointed out gently, looking over his shoulder back at her. "Stand next to me. I said we could go together, right? It's not going together if you're standing behind me," Izotz added with a smile, in which his awkwardness ended up showing. His instinct was also dying to just use his tail to gently drag the Sailfin closer to his side, the same thing a parent would do with their hatchlings. Still, he had to stop himself; if he touched her without warning, he was certain that would send the Sailfin flying into a corner.

[Kallile]

Azazel stood very still, watching the Frost as if he may turn and strike at any moment or the ‘sleeping’ Sailfin behind her might pounce and pin her down. At Izotz rumbling voice she gave a little hop and quickly slunk her way up to his side obediently. Once there she froze and refused eye contact with him for a long while—being at equal standings was not something she was ever invited into and she did her best to show him that she would still obey him and regard him as being higher than her even given the opportunity.

As she moved the shackle she held clattered in her claws. She gave a look to it, knowing she would only draw more attention to herself if she continued to walk with it clutched in her hand. Reluctantly she relented it to the cave floor, reaching back out to carefully touch it a time or two before turning her head in Izotz general direction. She shifted uncomfortably, her eyes still drifting from time to time back to the object that was both her prison and her security blanket. She felt utterly exposed without them.

“Now I am ready.” She said softly, looking towards the dark sky and soft moonlight that was just outside. She had, of course, known that it was cloudy…but she wasn’t going to dare point out that she had been flown here. To correct the male on her knowledge was just…she could not bring herself to do it. She should never correct anyone, she should not know anything they did not already.

[Jaykobell]

Azazel moving to stand next to him was done out of obedience, and it showed. Izotz would've preferred a different reaction, but at least she could tolerate to be next to him, even if only because he'd asked her. They would eventually get there, right? Hopefully. The more the Sailfin would get exposed to nice things, the more she would open up. At least, that was Izotz's assumption, and he hoped that he was right in assuming that.

He watched and waited quietly as Azazel seemingly had a small internal fight about the shackle. She seemed unsure about leaving it behind, but at the same time, she looked like she didn't want to bring it along. It didn't matter to Izotz; if she wished to keep it as something that was familiar to her, he wouldn't take it away from her. Still, if he had to be honest, he didn't like the Sailfin hanging onto that shackle. From her brother's testimony, it would bring her nothing but terrible memories, and nothing worth remembering or being happy about.

When Azazel confirmed that she was ready to go, Izotz nodded. "Let's go outside, then," he prompted as he slowly started making his way towards the exit, sometimes glancing down next to him to make sure the Sailfin was still walking next to him. For all he knew, she might take this as an opportunity to slowly and subtly slink back to walk behind him.

Once outside, he lead Azazel to the small cliff that protruded from the den. Down in the clearing, there were a handful of Paragon still hanging around — although none were flying up above — even though it was already late at night. One might also notice the torches that were alighted here and there; the ones that weren't asleep often kept their torches burning to go about their activities. It created an uneven display of lights, but one that was still beautiful to look at.

Sitting down on the edge of the little plateau, Izotz looked up at the sky, which was mostly cloudy. "Ah... I guess tonight is cloudy. Maybe it'll rain tonight or tomorrow," he mused as he looked back at Azazel, hoping she was still following him and not having an anxiety attack. Or worse yet, that she wasn't trying to make her escape. "Sorry we can't really get to see anything," he added, turning back to the sky. "But I can see just a few stars shining, though, so it's not a complete loss."

[Kallile]

As they walked out side by side, Azazel kept everything tucked as closely to her body as possible to avoid any accidental brushings with the big male beside her. Her feet here kept closely under her body as she slunk along, her wings clamped so tightly against her body that it seemed as though the razor edged blades might slice through the scales if Izotz were to even so much as breathe too deeply. But she managed--making it outside without incident and without punishment or torment of any sort.

Once in the open air the female seemed to take a few quick and deep breathe of the crisp night air and relax ever so slightly. At least, her wings were no longer held quite so tightly against her sides. At least out here she had the option to make a run for it if things got too scary--she wasn't trapped in the small den with that terrifying female or even scarier male Frost. And even though he still stood close beside her, he didn't feel quite so huge against the night sky as he had in the cave.

She leaned forward a little as Izotz talked about the stars--her eyes were much more fixated on the activity below them. Other paragon still moved about in the lights that happened to be just as sparsely dotted as the stars above them. They were moving about freely, without the clinking of shackles or other Paragon making sure they got to where they were supposed to be going. She shifted her wings a little, now fully mesmerized by the things happening below her that she was having a hard time understanding. A few even seemed to be less-muscular females....out and about with no escort!

"W-what...are they doing?" She asked barely above a whisper. It was the first time she did not continue to glance back at Izotz to make sure he wasn't plotting a sinister trick--even if her body did not show it her eyes danced with wonder and excitement...even if fear was still very much present. The paragon below--without their shackles, their escorts...without the muffled sounds of struggle or pain drifting up to her. This place was a dream...yes. She had to be dreaming. Why else would she be without her shackles and watching other females just...do as they pleased. No males tailing them for more sordid purpose.

Finally she did glance back at Izotz, fear glinting before she asked a second question. "Are t-they your harem? My n-n-new sisters?"

[Jaykobell]

What looked like a most harmless activity turned out to be quite an interesting turn of event.

Izotz had noticed and felt how insecure Azazel was the whole time they'd been walking from the den to the little plateau. Despite that, the Sailfin had followed him along and without any hiccups throughout the little ordeal. Every little step was a good thing for Izotz, where he hoped that their newcomer was very slowly opening up to this brand new place.

When they reached the outside, he noticed a slight change, where the little female felt just a tiny bit more relaxed — that his guess, though, and maybe she was really just as nervous. He said nothing as the female observed the area around them, looking up to the dens above, and down to the few Paragon hanging out below in the small clearing. Everything felt normal, and Izotz wondered if this was what he should've done from the very beginning: exposing her to the Hive instead of just telling Azazel about it.

With him thinking everything was going just fine, or that they were at least on the right track, Azazel's attention was quickly diverted from the stars to the Paragon below. The first question was harmless enough, but then the second one left the Frost taken aback and utterly quiet.

His harem? It took a few loops for him to register the word. "I... N-no, they're not my... harem," Izotz replied awkwardly, wondering how things could even look anywhere close to that. Despite that, his tone wasn't awkward in a bad way, but solely from the awkwardness Azazel's question had generated. "This Hive is more like a community. I don't... I don't have a mate, and I don't have any hatchlings, either," he went on, but then he quickly realized the last part might just scare the living lights out of the Sailfin. "And I'm not looking for any hatchlings right now, either," he quickly added, hoping the Sailfin wouldn't jump to conclusions before he was done trying to explain everything. "The few Paragon you're seeing below are just enjoying the night. Some of them are more nocturnal than others." The thought of inviting Azazel to join them crossed his mind, but considering she hadn't been introduced to the Hive officially, Izotz thought against it to keep things from getting too awkward.

[Kallile]

While it would have been unconventional, yes, a harem was the only thing Azazel had to relate this feeling to. Perhaps Tovin had left too soon and not explained quite enough of her upbringing...but now Izotz would have to figure that out on his own because the poor little Sailfin wasn't going to have the nerve anytime soon to explain her thought process. At his initial reaction Azazel knew instantly that she had said something out of line and her belly hit the rocky surface of the plateau quickly. "I'-I'm so sorry." She managed to squeal out before coiling into herself like before.

She did her best to comprehend all of what Izotz was telling her. But the ideals of community, of free will and enjoyment....those things were out of reach for Azazel. With nothing to relate them to from experience, the full weigh of what that truly meant was lost. And the fact that they were down there and she was up here...did that leave her as one of them? Or something different? "But..." she began, confusion clear on her face. She couldn't find a way to put her confusion into words, and so she simply acted as 'a good little female' and closed her mouth and mind to the idea entirely.

Instead she turned her eyes back up to the sky where Izotz had originally intended for them to fall and she took in the calm night air. "It is cloudy tonight. B-but the stars are still pret-t-ty." She mumbled feebly, hoping her new master, Izotz...whatever he was supposed to be was not upset with her.

[Jaykobell]

The more they spoke, and the more Izotz tried to make this more tolerable and friendly for Azazel, the more awkward the whole thing got. He'd never imagined the Hive as a harem — especially not his — and even right now, that just didn't seem possible. Not to mention, certain Paragon down there were males, and it wasn't only females that were enjoying the night sky. His understanding of a harem was that it was a single male with multiple females, potentially all for the sake of offspring — or other such things. Of course, Azazel didn't know the Hive itself for what it was, since she'd gotten here only a few minutes ago. The Frost could hope that, in due course, the Sailfin would learn to find this place peaceful and welcoming, despite its imperfections.

"Don't worry," Izotz went on after Azazel apologized, the little Paragon curling up into herself. "I'm sure it'll be easier tomorrow morning, when everyone else will be awake and around. You'll make a lot of friends, I'm sure," he added as he tried to smile, even if it was awkward. He had his doubts and he hoped that Azazel wouldn't misunderstand his use of the word "friends". He only meant it in the most innocent of ways, just in terms of her making acquaintances and getting to know others better. That was he started reconsidering his decision to room her with the Paragon he'd thought of. The Frost found himself wondering what kind of personality would help Azazel fit in better, or more easily: someone brash and extroverted, or someone quieter, and with more patience and understanding? Perhaps something that had a mix of those two specific personalities would help.

Izotz was left in a daydream, lost in his own thoughts, when he heard the Sailfin speak again. It took the Frost a few seconds to register her words, but once he caught on to them, the white Paragon also looked back up at the sky. "Ah, yes. They are still beautiful. Have you ever seen a full moon, or a crescent moon? They're quite beautiful as well," he asked, hoping the question would help ease Azazel into a friendly conversation between them.

[Kallile]

The smaller female did best not to look Izotz in the eye anymore, instead staying focused on the stars. His word choice had been a bit of a double edged sword….”friends” were not something she had typically enjoyed in the past. All her “friends” had been very focused on one specific part of her and had no real interest in her feelings. By the same line of thought, all her father’s “friends” had been largely kept close with business deals. But she had seen friends before…she had seen females group together and offer each other supportive words and kind smiles. She had seen males patting each other on the back after a hearty laugh. She knew what friendship was supposed to look like; sadly her life had never included it.

She didn’t respond at first, just stared and wondered what her brother had meant. The things Izotz and Tovin had both talked about and told her were things she had always been denied. Would she really end up liking them? Or was this just another manipulative plot of Father’s to keep her tightly under his control. Her body gave a noticeable shudder at the thought.

“I h-have seen a full moon before. It’s so b-b-big and bright.” She commented back, hoping the small talk would keep Izotz appeased. He always seemed to get so upset when she talked of other things and asked him questions…perhaps this was the best way to go and just stay with general topics that he brought up. “I have heard about the…crescent moon. They are supposed to look like a human thumbnail, right?” She added, hoping he would be happy with her answers. Upset males, I her experience, had very short tempers.

[Jaykobell]

Seeing the Sailfin keep staring at the stars relieved Izotz ever so slightly. If something could at least give Azazel some sort of relief, maybe that would help the Sailfin interact better. After having asked his question, though, Izotz immediately went back to thinking about what to do with Azazel's denmate. To the Sailfin, the Frost probably looked like he was deeply entranced by the stars, but it was actually the complete opposite.

His original choice had been Careen, a sweet and caring Paragon, but also one who was very friendly and out-going. She was also somewhat touchy, meaning that Azazel might get insecure with her if she got touched too suddenly or too often. Careen like grabbing hands and patting, and maybe that would stress the Sailfin. He closed his eyes as he tried to think of a good female that could understand the Sailfin, but also ease her into a clan lifestyle, without being too lenient, but without being too strict, either. He could usually think of these things fairly easily, but having seen how anxious and nervous Azazel was made the decision all the more difficult.

Izotz snapped back to the current topic when Azazel answered his question, but it wasn't so much her speaking to him that got his attention: it was the terms she'd used. "A human thumbnail?" he echoed curiously, turning his head to look down at her. He wasn't unfamiliar with humans: the Hive actually had quite a good bit of knowledge about them, it just didn't go anywhere close to them. However, there was this one pair of Paragon that came from the human area... Actually, beyond that pair, there were more that came from there as well. His head went back to the denmate dilemma, but soon struck off the idea considering the only Paragon that came from the human culture that he knew of were all males. Same cultural history or not, he couldn't get Azazel to stay with a male.

But for now, he would just try to keep the conversation going. "Well, I guess that's as good a description as any," he answered with a small awkward smile, but only because of his current absent-mindedness. "That is what it looks like. So I understand you come from a human-populated area, right?" He couldn't remember Tovin mentioning if they came from a very human-populated area, or if they had been wild Paragon roaming somewhere other than this plain. Perhaps this topic could shed some more light on Azazel's background.