[ToxicShadow]

"Ah..." Nitidus knew that question would have come up at some point. Of course, she didn't blame him for not being around, really. She'd made her own choices. As she prepared to explain, she found all of the kids' interest peaked as well. Heh. They'd never really heard the full story as to why he was gone as much as he was, especially when their other grandmother, whom apparently knew him very well, was around just about everyday. "He left...when I was equivalent to a fifteen year old human, before any of the... mess...picked up. Perhaps you've heard of that stupid war? He was sent to fight, without much of a choice. The way he explained it before he left was that, sometimes, one had to take responsibility and take a hit for everyone else. Because he was going, one of our friends wouldn't have to risk their lives. I was both happy and terribly sad to see him go, happy only because he pampered me so much as a child it was annoying by then. I was still young and ignorant enough to find freedom from that little annoyance something to be happy about. I didn't feel that way very long..."  How so much Zelosis had wanted a daughter, Nitidus ended up being his dream come true.

There was only a small break, which she forked a few bites carefully into her mouth, chewed and swallowed before pressing on. "My older half brother, Validus, watched over me for a time in his place. So did the Elder woman from his homeland, Kay. My full blooded brother, Viaticus, well, he left a long time ago. He didn't find himself worthy of the family or something. But, anyway, I went off on my own. Even as a child, though Father didn't know it, I was friends with Strages and Ente. Strages, their father. Once Father was gone, I stayed with them and their mother, Akaona. She's the grandmother they grew up knowing." She glanced around at Aeron, Crozel and Adra. Yep. They were still listening...
"As for everything that happened while Father was away, he never heard any of it. I don't want him to... Something bad would happen to them, he and Strages, if they fought. Besides, it was never my father's decision, and worrying him isn't something I want to do. He and I are, perhaps, more alike then we seem." Of course, Zelosis never told her the bad stories from his life previous to coming to this world, but she saw it in glimpses. There were tons of scars permanently etched into his back that he couldn't always hide, most of which looked as if they had come from a whip. Some sort of self sacrifice must have been put forth for such to happen in a royal family. Then there was that demon, Af, that was let loose in their home... When he fought and bound himself to that horrible creature, the conditions of the binding being that it could only attack him and as often as it pleased, it wasn't hard to see her father's intentions.

[Mojave]

Grey listened to her daughter, though she struggled to keep her features unreadable. She felt that stab of guilt again, of never trying to find Niti, of never trying to be a part of her life. True, Niti may have rejected her. But she would have preferred to be rejected by her daughter rather than leave her to grow up without knowing her mother wanted to be a part of her life. Instead of responding to the answer, she filed the information away; she'd figure out what to do with it later- if there was anything to be done about it.

This time, she turned to her grandchildren. "Um... what have all of you done so far?" She was referring of course to any school, work, any interesting events in their lives.

((I'm running out of steam. xD; Sorry!))

[ToxicShadow]

Without a reply directly to her, it became Nitidus' turn to listen to what her children would say, even though she raised them and knew what they did.

It was silent a moment, before Adrasteia took it upon herself to be the first one to speak. If she was one of the siblings that was going to be staying with her grandmother, it was probably best to let her know a little about herself. "I don't suppose that I have done anything terribly interesting. I'm the oldest sister, though my siblings seem more achieved than I..." Being honest was hard sometimes, and she knew that she really had done very little with her life. "Usually, I'm just Crozel's model or going to work with him. I know the basics of what he does. I find looks to important, though I don't mean it in a shallow way. Anything new he wants to try for his career as a beautician, he experiments on me. I've been studying in my free time, though I don't know what I really want to do. I like social events, parties and what not..." Yes, she'd just leave that one there. She wasn't a crazed party girl, but she did like to have fun. She liked it far more than being cooped up.

Crozel was up next, following up what his sister said, "As Adra said, I work as a beautician. Most of my time working, I've been on call, working in the homes of my costumers. Just very recently, I've purchased a smaller salon that I'm remolding and will be located in. I have yet to find any partners, however, aside from when these two help me out." He gestured toward his two sisters, and then chuckled, "Like any brother, I tend to be protective over my sisters."

Aeron spoke up, after deciding that her brother was finished. "I really haven't done enough of one thing to accomplish something. I've worked with Crozel and I've been his model before. I've also worked with our other sister, Cryptic, who is a mechanic. I picked up a lot from her, though I'm not an expert like she is. I spend a lot of my time just trying new things, since I'm not sure what I want to do. I love reading, though. All sorts of stuff. There is a lot to learn and experience from reading and studying, so..."

"Yes, I forgot to tell you about them," Nitidus jumped in, to give her mother some brief information on her remaining grandchildren. "Cryptic is a mechanic what works on everything from cars to helicopters...Anything that my father brings her, and whatever the lady of the house brings her. She was placed in charge of all major mechanical issues. She still lives with us, though we couldn't get her away from her work to come visit. And my other daughter, Reiley, she was sent to live with a friend of Yanora, the lady of the house. I heard that she actually brushes elbows with my father quite frequently, when he volunteers to work in a cafe for Yanora. She works there too, I believe."

And there, they were getting closer and closer to what the grandchildren had come here for. It wouldn't be much longer before Niti would make her request...

[Mojave]

Indeed, things seemed to be coming to a close... Grey wondered why it felt so. Maybe they were going to leave soon- she kept her face straight, but under the mask, she felt depressed for she didn't know when she would see her family again. However, she didn't know what was about to happen, so she pushed the loneliness to the back of her mind and focused on a response.

She had let each of her family speak without any interruptions, though she couldn't help but smile as they told her what they had done in their short lives. Oh.. she had more grandchildren..? Well that was nice, disappointing that the others hadn't come to visit, but then again, she deserved a lot worse. She was lucky these three had come with Niti to see her and she wouldn't dwell on the past.

It seemed she'd made up her mind subconciously... she knew she had messed up in her past by not communicating with her family. While there was nothing she could do about her past, she could atone for it by being the best grandmother she could be to Adrasteia, Crozel, and Aeron. Weather she could form a true bond with her daughter would remain to be seen as Niti seemed to have her life planned out- without room for her.

Finally, she had formed what she wanted to say to each of her grandchildren. "That's all very interesting." She began, "However, I notice the three of you say it's not much but I have to disagree. For ones so young, you're already well on your way to figuring things out." She turned to Adrasteia, "You sound like you'd be a great party planner, or.. well any occasion." She would have suggested studying here, but they had all mentioned studying, so she would save that for last. Next was Crozel, "I'd like to come visit your salon sometime. If I ever find a reason to doll myself up, you're my first choice. And I'd like to know more about how you decided to become a beautician and how setting up shop went for you. I hear it can be difficult to start your own business." Lastly, she turned to Aeron, who she felt she would enjoy the most. "Seems we're kindred spirits, being bookworms. Though you are much more adventurous than I as I don't really tinker with much besides books." She smiled, looking at them all in general now. "As for studying, you're all welcome to return here anytime; the library is stocked with plenty of books in every subject. I'm starting to believe that if was published, there's bound to be at least one copy here somewhere."

She turned to Niti now, unable to hide her shame for a split second. She shook her head and smiled at her daughter, "I don't blame them for remaining at home and work..." She didn't want to continue with that thought as she didn't want to upset anyone here. "Though it's nice to know I have more grandchildren, it means I wasn't the mother of depression and gloom afterall. I'm glad to know that my family is growing and prospering."

(Been over two months, I'm bored with the story and I don't really want any more characters anymore. Sorry~)