[ToxicShadow]

The last place that Lolita expected to be today was out in the middle of some exotic forest where there was a huge waterfall and strange rumors floating around about it being some sort of romantic place. Yet, she was standing smack dab in the middle of it, the sound of rushing water coming just some few trees away. As usual, her mate wasn't all that far away, either, probably scoping out the area. Where she went, he went, even if he tended to stay out of her line of sight some of the time. What made such a thing particularly strange was that she was holding on to some brightly painted wicker basket which her daughter had presented her with. She'd been told, "This is what you carry the eggs in, Mother." While Lolita was interested in the holidays and such customs of this world, she hadn't a clue as to why a basket was needed to hunt eggs, as she had been instructed to do.

Earlier within the day, over breakfast of Haruka's creation, her youngest daughter, Himea, made a request of her and Kurohi, her mate. Himea wanted to hunt for Easter eggs, as she had called them, but had already made a promise to one of her older sisters, Mei, that she would spend the day with her and was unwilling to break such a promise no matter how much she wanted to hunt for eggs. Apparently, today was her only chance to get some of these prize-filled eggs, so she asked her mother and father to take her place. "Certainly you and Daddy can find a tonof eggs, being such good hunters as you are." It was probably those words, coming off similar to a challenge, along with the adorable batting of eyelashes, that convinced Kurohi, even if the task seemed unfit for him. In Lolita's case, she agreed because she wanted to be a good mother and partaking in a custom of this world seemed like a delightful idea. It wasn't as if she had anything special planned out for the day, anyway.

Regardless of how they got there, though, there was no turning back now. They'd aleady signed up for the task and they couldn't avoid it. "So, these eggs can be found anywhere in the area..." she said aloud, seeming thoughtful. They could be hiding anywhere, but where would she start to look? Maybe the needed an attack plan. "Kurohi, do you see anything?"

[MillietheWarrior]

(Human form ref)

Much like his mate, Lolita, the last place Kurohi imagined he’d be today was near the waterfalls, forced to ‘hunt for eggs’ that had absolutely no value or purpose whatsoever, and corralled into spending time in an alleged ‘romantic area’ with Lolita. He wasn’t adverse to spending time with his mate at all, but he was adverse to being made to do things he didn’t want to do. But over breakfast (Some kind of fluffy flat bread things that were called pancakes; ridiculous human food creations) his daughter had requested that he and his mate go out and look for ‘prize-filled eggs’ for her. Kurohi had instantly scowled and been against the idea, but even he, as dangerous and powerful of a demon as he was, was not immune to his daughter’s puppy-dog eyes. And well placed compliments. So with a begrudging heart, he’d trudged after Lolita, mostly keeping to the trees and keeping on the lookout for any signs of danger (His ‘family’ called him ‘paranoid,’ but he liked to think of himself as ‘prepared’).  

Currently, Lolita was standing near the falls, with Kurohi perched gracefully on a branch of a tree near the water. The spray coated his skin, and the fire demon recoiled from the water, growling under his breath as he leapt down and landed silently beside his mate. “I don’t see anything,” he grouched, shaking off his shirt to rid it of the excess water. “Tell me why, exactly, Himea needs these eggs? This is a giant waste of time. It would be better spent training the children. Hayate is far too slow, and Himea needs to work on her close combat skills. Finding these…‘eggs’ is a worthless pursuit. They don’t even have any value or purpose.” Folding his arms over his chest, Kurohi did a rather good scowling impression of his son when the little white-haired half-demon decided to sulk (Which was rare).

-----


(Human form ref)

Nearby, Hayate rolled his eyes and leaned against a tree, looking characteristically bored. Most of the things his sister (or sisters, depending on what was going on) dragged him into typically ended up with one or both of their parents finding them, and then punishing them with extra training sessions for whatever mischief they’d caused. Hayate considered that highly unfair, since he was always an unwilling victim of his sister’s ‘schemes,’ and he’d much rather be at home, reading a book, or making cookies. Or something. Anything but this, he decided, rolling his gaze toward his sisters and frowning. “We can’t spy on them,” he informed them coolly. “Mom can sense our death clocks…and dad is…well, dad is dad. Nothing gets past them.” He snapped his fingers and idly played with an electrical blue flame that sprang from his fingers, watching it dance around. “This is stupid. Can I go home now?”

[ToxicShadow]

Lolita gave her mate a sideways glance when he landed beside her, a half smile appearing on the visible part of her otherwise masked face. "Because she is a child, I imagine. Regardless of how powerful, clever and mature she is, Himea is still full of child-like wonder and curiosity." As per usual, it was the respawn fairy speaking from experience, reflecting on things she had already gone through with her older daughters. Honestly, there was probably a deeper meaning to it, but Himea hadn't bothered to explain all that much. In order to sway her mother, it wasn't required. "I know she's interested in the customs of this world, seeing as you and I are entirely inexperienced in it and are less than helpful in answering all of her questions regarding it. We may be of other worlds, and she and Hayate have that lineage, but they are of this world, no matter how you look at it." They were conceived, born and raised within it, despite the oddities of their parents.

Sighing, she turned to face him. "You might as well just accept it and not complain so much, Dear. It seems like... fun. That's good to have once in awhile. Besides, it's something that will make her happy." Though, as she said this, she had already began to formulate a plan on how they could round up the best amount of eggs in the most painless way for Kurohi. "Why don't we make a challenge of it?" With her presented proposal, a mischievous twinkle came to her silvery blue eyes.

-----


[Mei Human] [Himea Human]

Alongside Hayate, Himea and their older half sister Mei, the second youngest daughter, where hiding. Although, they were making a little more effort in it than their brother. Mei was perched low to the ground behind some brush, her wings of magical essence completely gone, wishing that she could actually see her mother and father-like figure. She gave a very quiet "Shhh," at Hayate when he spoke up, holding her finger up to her mouth and all. On the other hand, Himea was hiding alongside her brother, grabbing onto his hand in a reassuring manner, as she often did, as attached as she was to her sibling. "I told you," she said in a whisper. "Mother wants to spend time with Father outside of just sitting at home... That's why we planned this. Father doesn't know how to have fun." Certainly, even if they did get caught and their father got mad, Lolita would be thankful for the "alone time," with Kurohi - something they hardly had the chance to have.

[MillietheWarrior]

“Childlike wonder and curiosity,” Kurohi repeated with a derisive snort, looking more annoyed, if such a thing was possible. “If she focused more on her training, she could be weaned of that childlike curiosity and wonder. And then we wouldn’t have to do such foolish things. Searching for eggs is highly undignified. There are many other things I could be doing with my time.” Still, for his daughter, Kurohi would do whatever she asked, and however grudgingly he did it, he began searching for the eggs with quiet patience, standing stock still and seeking them out with his senses; each had a small, residual trace of the energy of whomever had placed them there, so they were fairly easy to find. He’d never stoop to scouring under bushes, so he’d leave that to Lolita. “If we had just gone to demon world for their births, we could have avoided this entire matter,” he grouched, still looking as though he’d rather be anywhere else. He turned and shot her a look, though his red eyes softened slightly when he gazed at her. “Fun is a ridiculous human sentiment,” he mumbled, though the edges of his lips did quirk up, however grudgingly, into what could have resembled a smile. When she presented her proposal, his faint smile turned into a dark smirk, and he regarded her with flashing eyes. “Please,” he responded, chuckling. “As if you could challenge me. I’ve already located most of the eggs in the area. If we’re going to test our speed-” He flashed out of view, reappearing scant inches away from her, lips leaning in to brush her ear gently. “-I already won.” He disappeared again, reappearing back where he’d been standing. “Is that what you had in mind?”

--

Hayate, for his part, simply rolled his eyes at his oldest sibling. Their ideas were quite ridiculous, but when Himea tugged on his hand, he obliged by crouching down behind the bushes beside her, still looking as if he wanted to be anywhere else. He was far too like his father, and he merely raised a brow at his sister when she mentioned ‘fun.’ “I don’t see the point of trying to get him to have fun,” he whispered, taking care to keep his voice low, if only for his sister. Being the only boy in the entire family (Minus his dad, but he didn’t count), it could get a bit difficult to be taken seriously, and now, he decided, was one of those times where his sisters just walked all over his opinion. “Fun is just a way to waste time, Himea. We should be training, like dad wants us to. You know you’re really bad at hand to hand combat and fighting properly…and I’m not fast enough.” He scowled slightly, folding his arms over his chest as the flame he’d been holding flickered and died. “I should’ve brought a book. Why did you guys make me come with you? This is stupid.” In a rare display of an age-appropriate facial expression, Hayate pouted, looking like a miniature version of his father when something didn’t go his way.

[ToxicShadow]

"I didn't have a childhood," she reminded Kurohi, knowing fully well that his opinions of child-like behavior were not good ones. However, in relation to her own life, perhaps he would at least see her view, even if he didn't agree with it. "I refuse to entirely rob my children of what I was robbed of. They don't have to live our lives; I pray that they don't." That was one of the very reasons that she refused to have her children within her mate's realm, the demon world. That, and she already had a family prior. There was no way that she would leave them behind. She would rather have her nearly endless life end than to tear away from or uproot her family against their wishes. This world in which they lived, while not her origin, was their home. Unfortunately for him, Kurohi was thrown blindly into their family and became anchored to this human world as well. "They go through extensive training as it is, with both you and I, and even their sisters. If they want to do something else once in awhile, they should."

Growling softly at his putting down of fun, she looked away from him breifly. Even though she never said it outloud and she found herself very attracted and attached to him, Lolita often referred to her mate as a "fun sucker," since he seemed to suck the fun out of everything. The concept of fun was entirely foriegn to him, and that was probably one of their greatest differences. She thrived on having a good time, doing things on a whim because she thought it would be fun and interesting. Such a thing nearly guided her life, now that she finally had the chance to experience such things.

Regardless of her mental fussing and name calling, a shiver ran down her spine as his lips brushed against her ear and she immediately batted playfully in his direction, though he was already long gone by then. Despite being somewhat embarrassed by that turn of events, her pretty face twisted with a scowl. "You may win in a contest of speed, Sweetheart, that's undeniable, but I have a few good advantages, too. You're too 'dignified,' to go where you need to go to find all of the eggs, you have a distaste for water, and I am one creature which you can lose track of if you're not careful. Plus, I am your female and might just cause quite the distraction." With those words, her scowl turned into a mischievous smile, as it was pretty obvious what she was getting at.

The last sentiment might have been odd to be proud of, but it was true. Lolita's general ensemble may have been modest, for what it was, but there was no denying that she was visually appealing to the opposite sex and some of the same sex, too. This undoubtedly put Kurohi at unease from time to time, that she was well aware of, but he was equally aware that she was loyal to him. Plus, she'd become incredibly much less of a social butterfly than she had previously been. The best part was that even he couldn't deny that she was very "distracting," which was his polite way to put it.

"Exhibit A!" Looking around for only a moment, the fairy made the decision to check under a low brush and, behold, she found an egg! Only, to retrieve such a thing which was deep inside the little branches, it required her to be on her hands and knees. Wearing the dress, heels and mesh stockings as she was, this likely created too much of a view, though with only Kurohi looking, it didn't seem to bother her in the slightest. Of course, she was only like this for, probably a very distracting, moment before she uprighted herself and placed the bright orange egg in the basket hooked around her arm. She brushed back her long hair from her face with a satisfied smirk. "That alone can be distracting, and something you wouldn't do. I might play dirty if I have to in order to win a challenge against you."

-----

Try as Mei might, from the distance they had stayed back, she couldn't hear or see anything that was going on with the fairy and demon egg hunters. She and Himea alike wanted to creep closer, but knew fully well that the consequences would only come that much sooner if they did. Making a frustrated face, the older sister slumped to the ground. "We need a chance to move in, but if we do it now, they'll definitely catch us. I bet they haven't even started looking for the eggs." The pair was notorious for their banter back and forth if they disagreed on anything. It took them forever to get anything done when they started with different views.

"It is not!" Himea protested, her voice as loud as she could manage while it was still at a whisper. For once, she crossed her arms and pouted, too, right back at her brother. "Fun isn't a waste of time, Hayate. You like reading and making cookies, and those things are fun. Daddy likes fun too, but his only idea of fun right now is training." The last thing Himea wanted right now was to resume training. They trained nearly every day, unless their mother had other plans for them that took up all the available time, and even if she needed to practice close combat, this was important to her, too. She could train any other time.

In all reality, there was no sense in trying to convince her brother, because he was so much like their father, but Himea had to state her opinion - much like her mother. Sadly, Himea didn't like arguing with her brother, though, which always made it especially difficult if they had different views.

"I have the feeling that they will turn this into a contest," the older sister cut in. "In which case, it will be very interesting to see how things pan out. You wouldn't want to miss that, would you, Hayate?"

(And suddenly, my posts are way too long. I did NOT mean for that to happen. xD;)

[MillietheWarrior]

Kurohi didn’t comment on Lolita’s lack of a childhood; he hadn’t had one either, and he was no worse for the wear. His childhood had been spent in bloodshed and violence, but it had made him stronger and more powerful, and that he did not regret.  “They could still use more training,” he muttered grudgingly, although he didn’t protest the allowance that their children have a more varied childhood than either of their parents had. He knew his mate had a few problems with some of his world views (they butted heads often enough when it came to the children and how they should be handled) and he also knew she found him somewhat exasperating. But Kurohi had always been a opposed to change and despite having a mate and a family now, he was still as anti-social and difficult as he’d always been (although he really did try to be better, like when he suffered through Himea’s tea parties or was forced to bake cookies with his son).

Sighing, he refocused on the ‘problem’ at hand, and turned back to watching Lolita with a faintly disapproving scowl on his face. He hated when she tried the ‘distraction technique’ on him, as it was rather annoying and embarrassing to know that she was right; he was distracted by her easily, but he liked to think he did a very good job of hiding it (except maybe where Lolita was concerned; the psychic and emotional connection they shared gave her way too much information about the inner machinations of his mind). His scowl deepened and he folded his arms back over his chest as she kneeled down, rummaging around the bushes before popping back up with an egg. As much as he hated to admit it, she really was distracting, especially with those damn stockings and short dress she always insisted on wearing (It drove him crazy because he knew that other men could see what he saw; that wasn’t okay with him).

The moment she had straightened up and placed the egg in the basket, Kurohi flickered out of view. He only reappeared a second later, scant inches behind her, and reached forward, arm and fingers brushing along her waist as his lips settled beside her ear. “How dignified do you really think I am?” he whispered, lips tilting in a dark smirk as he reached beneath her arm, fingers skimming along her sides, as he gently settled his cheek against hers, head turning slightly so his lips could brush her skin and…promptly dropped two brightly colored eggs into her basket. In the next moment, he had reappeared in front of her, arms still folded and smirk still in place. “You sure you want to turn this into a game?”

---


Hayate rolled his eyes, annoyed at his sister’s attempt at ‘logic.’ “Yeah, but those things are different. Making cookies keeps us fed, and reading is educational,” he informed her primly, reciting the words that his father had grudgingly told him made his hobbies ‘acceptable in the long run.’ “And I like training. I’m almost as fast as dad now. It’s for our own good, Himea.” Her pout didn’t affect him as much as it would’ve affected their parents, so he did nothing more than scowl right back at her, white hair falling into his eyes. At the sound of his older sister’s voice, Hayate jerked his head towards her, scowl still in place. “We shouldn’t be spying at all,” he muttered, then conceded. “But…I guess I wouldn’t mind seeing mom and dad have a contest. Dad will win though; he’s much faster than mom.”

He crawled on his hands and knees until he was sitting next to Mei, and gazed up at her with a wide-eyed, child-like look that was very age-appropriate, but rarely seen on him. “How can we get closer? Mom will sense our death clocks…and dad will just sense us. Don’t you have some kind of magic fairy cloaking powers or something?” The fairy thing had always eluded Hayate; being the only male in the family, he had a hard time understanding their powers, powers that he himself did not have, although his own were rather unique. For all he knew, Mei could be a secret fairy ninja and have super amazing cloaking skills. It was possible.

[ToxicShadow]

Unable to restrain herself, Lolita giggled, amused by Kurohi's oh so obvious feelings and his antics. Altogether, he was using more sensual tactics than she was, which was partially surprising, though very pleasant. She didn't necessarily expect him to go that route, as he tended to be somewhat stiff in that department, at least outside of their privacy. Though, this was as good as privacy as any, she supposed. It was out in the middle of the forest where they had met after all, where he'd bitten and marked her as his own before either of had any clue as to what was really happening. Even after having their children, their mating and loyalty happened under very unusual circumstances.

Kurohi was smirk was pleased, as he knew he was winning, but Lolita returned a smirk equally as pleased as his. Her strange motivation worked - he was no longer complaining about hunting for eggs. He was just gathering eggs in the heat of competition to prove he could win. "Oh, lets see," she mused, as she looked in the basket to confirm just how many eggs he had come back with this time. "We have four eggs now. Not too bad, when over half of them came from someone who hates this whole idea." Being that turning the egg hunt into a contest made him actually want to find more eggs than her, she was definitely prepared for the competition, even if she would inevitably lose to his speed. Being that it was Kurohi, and this stood only for him, she wasn't all that concerned with losing. Because he was her mate, he was hers just as much as she was his, she held her pride even if losing a contest of speed.

She came closer to him this time, smiling. "Rather I'll lose or not, competing against you is too fun to pass up. So let's see who can gather the most eggs!" Announcing her declaration, she settled the basket on the ground and soon vanished entirely, unable to be sensed in most ways, Kurohi only able to tell she was in existence because of their special link. He hated this abilities of hers, making him uncomfortable outside of his typical senses, but for this task, she felt that she needed to employ it.

Just as soon as she vanished, her fingers brushed gently against his neck and she pressed her mouth against his in a breif kiss - minor payback for his torment, before taking off. This was soon followed by a very audible splash from the direction of the waterfall.

-----

Little Himea wanted to protest against her brother even more because, much like their father, he didn't understand the true concept of fun. It didn't matter rather something fun was practical or not, though it could be practical. "Daddy only really tells you those things to make you feel better about doing them as opposed to training. He'd rather you train, even if he deems them acceptable in the long term. Besides, cookies are not proper for means of being fed." They were yummy, but very poor when it came to nutritional value, which was why their mother prevented them form eating too many and prevented Hayate from making too many by keeping many of the baking supplies in high shelves.

"Himea," Mei scolded the sister for talking this time, which caused Himea to frown. It was obvious that she blamed Hayate and his difficulties of understanding the point of fun for getting scolded. "Even though Kurohi will win because of his speed, I'm sure mother knows that, too," the older sister continued to explain. "It's probably all a matter of making him hunt for eggs when he didn't want to in the first place."

"Exactly!" Himea agreed, perhaps a little too excited for her own good, clasping her hands over her mouth. Speaking too loudly would not only get them caught, but the last thing she needed was to accidently spew fire, which had happened on more than one occasion. Mei fixed her with a look, and she nodded quickly, silently agreeing not to talk anymore.

"Actually, I have an idea." Mei, much like her mother, possessed the ability to vanish, become unseen and unable to be sensed by those around her. The best part was, because the other half of her heritage came from an immortal mage, she was a good spell caster and was able to manipulate magic well. "Just give me your hand, and you take Himea's hand," she instructed the two, offering her hand out for her brother while Himea promptly secured his other hand.

[MillietheWarrior]

Kurohi rolled his eyes, though his smirk was still in place, indicating he wasn’t actually annoyed, despite the front the put up. Where his mate was concerned (And grudgingly, where his family was concerned as well - all of them, even the ones that weren’t directly of his blood) he actually found it difficult to be upset for long. They always had a way of diffusing the situation, or managing to coax him into doing something he didn’t want to do, whether by sneaky means, or their feminine wiles and pouting expression. He wasn’t immune to puppy-dog eyes (from anyone, although he found them slightly creepy on the older girls) and he often found himself giving into their demands after being blasted by a well-placed pout and trembling lower lip. When his mate disappeared, he growled slightly under his breath; Lolita knew he hated that particular power, but thankfully, their emotional and psychic link allowed him to track her and keep tabs on her whereabouts. He couldn’t pinpoint her exactly, but he knew she was in the immediate area. He felt the phantom touch of her lips on his, the light, grazing feel of her fingers against his neck. She was the only one he’d ever allow close enough to touch him, and the only one who’d ever done so; while he was used to it, to a degree, the feeling of someone else touching such a vulnerable spot made him tense. His muscles jerked, as though he wanted to lash out, but he knew it was his mate, and that idea was the only thing that kept his instincts from reacting violently, even as she pulled away from him. His head whipped to the side when he heard a splash, and instant panic flooded over him; could she swim? He’d never asked her. He should’ve asked her. Flickering from existence, he appeared just beside the pool of water, watching with a feeling of dread as the powerful falls sent massive ripples through the water. ‘Lolita,’ he sent through their link, trying to push his feeling of annoyance and fear for her well-being into the words so she’d understand why he was upset. You’d better not be in the water. I agreed to hunt eggs; not play in the falls.

----

“Cookies do too have nutritional value,” Hayate argued, annoyed that his sister was taking a dig at his beloved cookies. “You could live off cookies.” Which wasn’t strictly true, but Hayate wouldn’t complain if he could give it a try. He gave her a smug look when she was chided by their older sister, and turned to Mei, focusing his unyielding attention on her. “Mom is good at being sneaky,” Hayate agreed, peeking over the tops of the bushes but unable to see a single thing. When Mei offered him her hand he looked at it skeptically. “Do you actually have ninja powers?” he questioned suspiciously, before his other hand was promptly snatched up by his sister. He scowled at Himea, but nonetheless placed his other hand in Mei’s. “You’ll be able to make us un-ninja again, won’t you?”

(Sorry for the delay. These a-holes started playing their bass, so I had to go find batteries for my TV’s headphones. Living in the ghetto is fun. -___-)

[ToxicShadow]

Whomever had the crazy idea of hiding eggs in the pool beneath the waterfall, Lolita was thankful for. Albeit, it wasn't often that the fairy decided to take a swim and it was definitely a skill that she learned outside of her home world, outside of the compound, but it was an ability that she possessed, regardless. In order to cover all bases, she had no other choice but to learn how to stay alive in the water. Secretly, the fairy even pretended to be a mermaid when she did, her long hair billowing around her as she twirled around in a way that was impossible outside of the water.

While she didn't respond to Kurohi's concerns with actual thoughts, it was nearly impossible for her to hide her feelings of joy as she swam deep down, beneath the surface of the water, eyes wide open. Though, she really did try to conceal her feelings, keeping Kurohi on edge and in his place. The scene laid out around her was strangely beautiful, but her primary concern were the specks of bright colors all along the bottom, keeping her under the surface for longer than a human would be able to take. Were she a human, she would have drowned herself by staying under. Before she resurfaced in a spectacular fashion, she'd gathered an armful of eggs, having to strictly use her wings and legs to propel her through the water at the end. When she breached the surface, she was still unseen, though she created quite the splash as she rose into the sky. Airborne, she revealed herself and her haul of eggs, smiling, even as her dampened wings strained to keep her afloat without appearing to be as difficult as it was. She was good at masking how difficult things really were for her, able to take hardships and pain with more ease than most.

She landed gracefully beside her mate, wet clothes and hair clinging to her form, glancing down at the eggs clutched in her arms. At some point prior to jumping in, too, the fairy had removed her mask. It was one of those rare occasions, which Kurohi was aware of, certainly, in order to avoid one of her greatest treasures from being ruined by the water. Behind her, her wings fluttered consistently, in order to dispel the water droplets that desperately clung to them. "I seem to have some advantages," she said,  her smile verging on brilliant. "Though... I'm sorry if I scared you..." For that, she felt a little guilty, but she was far too pleased with the number of eggs that she had managed to get from her dive.

-----

Smiling in a knowing way, Mei nodded her head in response to the disbelieving Hayate. "Yes, your big sister does have ninja powers and, yes, I can 'un-ninja,' us whenever I want!" Once his hand was securely within her own, she made use of the respawn fairy's innate cloaking ability, uttering off a spell at the same time, which transferred her ability enough to mask both of her younger siblings. "If you try, you might also learn this ability, even if you take after your father. Himea should be learning it soon, too."

This, at least, Himea knew, although she hadn't originally wanted to tell Hayate about it, because she thought it unfair if, in the end, he couldn't do it. She may not have told him, but she often felt guilty that she and their four sisters seemed to have so many fairy related abilities, while he was left unknowing and seemingly without the ability to harness them all. Lolita had hypothesized that it may have something to do with gender, as Hayate was the first son to be born to any respawn fairy, though, even then, she didn't believe it true. Instead, she favored the theory that he just took much more after his father.

"We have to keep holding hands, huh?" The youngest sister asked, and Mei confirmed it. "And neither of them should be able to sense us this way... At least not easily."

"Exactly," the older sibling agreed as she rose from their hiding place, starting to lead them closer, where she could sense the distant death clocks of Kurohi and their mother. Luckily, it seemed that both had been too busy to even realize that they had been nearby. "Just don't let go, or my magic wont continue to work on you."

[MillietheWarrior]

Kurohi scowled as he glared down at the water, contemplating jumping in after her. But even if he did, he’d be unable to find her. Even beneath the surface, she remained invisible and all he’d get for his trouble was an amused Lolita and wet clothes, and he didn’t want to deal with either. So he settled for glowering down at the pool of water, waiting for her to resurface. As the minutes ticked by, his worry began to intensify; even he couldn’t hold his breath forever, and he doubted Lolita could hold hers much longer. She might be some kind of immortal fairy, but she wasn’t immune to drowning, he was sure. ’Lolita!’ This time his mental command was sharp with annoyance, and he watched as the water surface rippled and split apart, splashing into the air as his mate rose from the pool. He couldn’t see her until she turned visible, but when she did, his scowl intensified. “Being able to hold your breath is not an advantage,” he grouched, though obligingly, he was holding out the orange basket for her to place her eggs in it. Competition it may be, but he didn’t mind letting her win. Lolita was the only one he’d ever allow to have that satisfaction, and he found that she was, usually, much more even-tempered when he gave in in regards to their spats, or differences, or even now, in their little ‘contest.’ His scowl softened slightly, and he turned away, looking as nonchalant as possible. “You didn’t scare me,” he told her roughly. “You know how much I hate that power of yours. I wish you wouldn’t do that.” He sighed, shoulders rolling slightly. “All right. How many did you get? And did you really have to go underwater to get them?”

---

Hayate squeezed Mei’s hand slightly, scowling at the ground. “I don’t think so,” he muttered. “You and mom and Himea and everyone else but dad have all those cool powers. But I don’t. It’s cuz I’m a boy. I won’t be able to have ninja powers or fly, or sense death clocks, or do anything you and mom can do. It’s not fair…” He had a lot of abilities that his father possessed, but so far, he’d only managed extreme speed and his control over his lightning-like fire. His father promise he would have a dragon of his own, much like the Dragon of the Darkness Flame that Kurohi controlled, but Hayate didn’t think it was true. He didn’t have all the cool abilities his parents and siblings had. He could just run really fast and set things on fire. He followed after Mei silently, sullenly staring at the ground. He didn’t feel like spying on his parents anymore; he didn’t like being reminded of all the cool things he couldn’t do. Mentally, he wanted to go home, but on the outside, he suffered in silence, clinging to the hands of his two sisters’ as they crept closer to their parents. “This is boring,” he whispered. “They aren’t even doing anything cool.”

[ToxicShadow]

With Kurohi holding out the basket for her, she immediately dropped the collection of eggs that she gathered within it and began inspecting them.  "Um, I think I gathered seven total?" Yes, there were ten brightly colored and oddly patterned eggs, and three of those were Kurohi's spoils.  "You seemed pretty worried," she mildly combated. Though she was sort of teasing him for it, it was rather sweet that he had worried about her. The topic of their aquatic abilities had never come up before, so it stood to reason that he could have worried about her. "I wouldn't have jumped in had I not known how to swim, though. I'm not suicidal, silly."

Taking a few steps away from him, she twirled around gracefully several times, throwing some of the water off of her figure. When she stopped, she replied to his other questions, "Being able to hold your breath for a long time is a pretty good talent. And, yeah, it was necessary to gather eggs from the water, because you wouldn't really want to go there." Unlike him, she had managed to have fun swimming, but that was something else he just wouldn't understand. "You didn't run off and get even more in that time, since you just waited for me. But don't you dare think about forfeiting." She seemed to sense that he was willing to just give her the win without fighting for it, but that wasn't challenging. If anything, the thrill of challenging her mate was something she loved, which was why she was actually glad that they both had dominant sorts of personalities.

Something else occurred to her then. "We've never taken Hayate and Himea swimming!" Upon this realization, she deeply frowned. "It's necessary to know how to swim in case something bad happens." They had both trained them to fight, to use their abilities, but had never taught them something as basic as swimming. At that point, she felt a little like a failure.

With Mei's careful guidance, the three managed to sneak up close enough to their parents that they could hear the conversation, unaware of what Hayate was feeling. Himea on the other hand, she fully understood, and that only served to bring her mood down, too. Out of her siblings, even though she was a girl, she adored her brother the most. They were the same age, they trained together, they even looked similar, both with mysteriously white hair that neither inherited from their parents. She couldn't do much to comfort him, all she could do was squeeze his hand tightly. "I could never run as fast as you, and I can't control fire at all. I only spit fire when I get too loud." Himea couldn't even summon her own weapon yet, which most of her sisters had already perfected by her age. The only things she could do was fly and sense death clocks in a short range. She wasn't that great at fighting yet, at least she was always reminded by their father that she needed to practice close combat and that her hair just got in the way of things.

Before she could continue, however, she heard their mother mention swimming. "Swimming?!" And there, the poor child got too excited, too loud, loud enough to be heard even with Mei's best efforts to conceal their voices.

[MillietheWarrior]

“It’s not the swimming part I was…worried about,” he admitted, still not looking at her. “It was the breathing part.” Rolling his eyes, he canted his head towards her, his smirk turning into something softer, that might resemble a smile. “I’m not forfeiting. As if I’d do that.” Although the idea of allowing her to win was still appealing, because she was more inclined to ‘cuddle’ when she was happy. Kurohi would never, ever, ever, EVER dare to admit that he enjoyed cuddling because he made a big fuss when she tried to hug him and be affectionate, but really, he did. No one would ever know though. Under pain of death. “You know I enjoy a good challenge.” But he was still holding the basket out on one finger, still looking as though he could care less, despite his words. He could flicker away in the blink of an eye and gather all the eggs he’d located earlier, but it was easier to let her do it, and she seemed to find joy in it. If she was happy, then so was he, although he’d never let on.  At her sudden outburst, Kurohi actually recoiled slightly, so surprised that he nearly dropped the basket of eggs. If it hadn’t been for his quick reflexes, he might’ve splattered them all over the ground. “Swimming?” Kurohi repeated, scowling as he recollected his wits, and embarrassed that he’d lost them to begin with. “I don’t think it’s that important. When faced with a situation where it is needed, they will adapt.”

Hayate was close with Himea, despite always thinking she was ‘girly and dumb and had cooties’ (Because despite his advanced intelligence, he was still a kid). She related to him the most, and they spent the most time together. They looked similar, and even though he had other big sisters, Himea was the one he felt the most kinship with, and spent the most time with (even if sometimes it was grudging on his part). “Yeah, but you’ll get cool powers eventually. Lots of them. And you can fly and stuff and you have wings. I don’t have wings. But I don’t think I’d want girly fairy wings.” He stuck out his tongue at her, indicating just what he thought of having ‘girly fairy wings,’ but was startled so badly he nearly bit it in the next second when she shouted. He immediately snatched his hands away in surprise, body jumping slightly as they suddenly became visible.

Kurohi didn’t miss the sharp cry of ‘Swimming?!’ that was, undoubtedly, his daughter’s voice. With a faint, self-suffering sigh, he turned just in time to see Hayate, Himea and Mei appear out of thin air. Hayate looked surprised, and Himea, who had been the one to shout, looked surprised for a different reason. With the orange basket still dangling from his hand, he rolled his gaze towards Mei, the oldest and the one who should have been keeping his kids out of trouble. “And who’s idea was this?” he demanded, his scowl slipping onto his face. “Himea.” His voice was stern and sharp as he turned his gaze onto her. “If you were going to be here anyway, then you could’ve gathered the eggs yourself. I don't appreciate being tricked into doing things when you were perfectly capable of doing it yourself."

[ToxicShadow]

All Lolita managed to get in before the children revealed themselves entirely was, "They're aren't like puppies that just adapt when you throw them in head first." The idea of "sink or swim," didn't sit well with Lolita. If one wasn't a strong enough swimmer, even if they could swim, then they could be very susceptible to drowning. Only she had mastered flight directly from the water and, though she wouldn't admit her weakness to anyone, even she could only last for a few minutes before the weight of the water on her wings would ground her. By all means, fairy wings were a lot like butterfly wings in structure, and nearly useless when wet. Even those of her children which inherited feathered wings, those feathers weren't exactly water proof like the feathers of water foul.

Mei couldn't entirely meet Kurohi's gaze when it shifted to her. Though she was the oldest out of the three, she was the youngest up until Himea and Hayate were born, which didn't put her much older than them, despite her mature physical appearance. Occasionally, she retrained the mischievousness of a teen or a child. Himea, gulped when her father pinned her with his gaze, and her primary defense was, "But Momma likes when you two do fun things together! Daddy, you like training more than anything, but Momma likes fun things! And-and I really did promise Mei I'd spend the day with her today." In the end, it was the older sister that agreed to go along with going after them, putting their original plans off for the day. "Things just... ended up this way..." She frowned, before adding. "Hayate just got dragged along." At least, maybe, she could save him with those words.

While Kurohi was playing the critical parent, and probably sulking on the inside that he'd been dragged out here with the turn of events, Lolita didn't have it in her to be upset, especially not after hearing her daughter's reasoning. "Well, no matter why you're all here, you're here now." Her typical smile turned from its usual way, to her very warm, motherly expression. They were here, they were safe, and didn't cause too much trouble, and it seemed like it was for a good cause, if she could say so.

"Maybe we should hunt eggs like a family?" she suggested, her gaze shifting to her mate as their daughters eyes lit up at the idea.

As exciting as that idea sounded, though, Himea also had other ideas. "Um, maybe we could swim, too?" Himea suggested, in turn, although she noticed the corner's of her mother's mouth turn down slightly.

"It is especially hard for those of us that are winged to swim." Which was the obvious reason that she was upset with herself for not already trying to teach her youngest children how to swim. They needed to be self sufficient in every way, but teaching children alone was dangerous for some. "It's dangerous, because it could damage our wings if we are not careful." Ah, that was the last thing Kurohi needed to hear after she had dove into the water, stayed there for so long, and flew with her dampened wings all without him being aware of any of it before hand. With herself, she was just about as reckless as ever.

[MillietheWarrior]

Kurohi continued to pin the oldest of the three children. Mei was not his daughter but close enough; even if she wasn’t of his own blood, she was still like his child. And older, irresponsible child, he decided with a mental sigh, silently rolling his eyes. Giving up, Kurohi’s gaze softened, if only a little, when he gazed at his children, and he mumbled something under his breath that sounded like ‘The first battles I couldn’t win,’ and gave up. “All right. Fine,” he conceded. “I suppose I don’t mind all that much.” His eyes shifted to Himea. “It isn’t that I like training ‘more than anything.’ It’s that it is essential for survival. You should know and understand that, Himea.” And she still needed to cut that hair of hers; it was too much of a liability in a fight. But he didn’t bring it up now, because he didn’t want his daughter to pout and grumble about him for the rest of the day. “I don’t know why you don’t want to hunt eggs, since you sent your mother and I on this errand, but if it is so difficult for fairies to swim-” And here he pinned Lolita with an annoyed stare, conveying exactly how he felt about that information after the fact; he would’ve dragged her out of the water himself if he’d know, wet clothes be damned. “-then it would be best if you learned. I will wait on the bank, in case you need assistance.” his eyes shifted to Mei. “Perhaps you would do well to learn. Unless you already have?”

Hayate scuffed his foot against the ground, listening even as his father dressed down his sisters. He didn’t say a word; the idea of going swimming had sounded fun, until he discovered that it would only be because his mother needed to teach his sisters to swim. That wouldn’t be fun for him. He didn’t have wings, so he didn’t need to worry about drowning because of them. So what was he supposed to do? He didn’t want to gather eggs; that was Himea’s idea, and it sounded boring. But if he loitered around and did nothing, his father might think up a training exercise. Slowly, he crept towards his mother, waiting until everyone was preoccupied with talking amongst themselves before reaching up to tug at her hand. “Mom,” he muttered quietly, looking lost. “What will I do while you’re teaching them to swim? I don’t have wings…so…” He kicked at the dirt, scuffing it with the toe of his shoe as he swung his mother’s hand idly in his, gazing at the ground.

[ToxicShadow]

"I do know that, Dad, but..." Himea wanted to express that she didn't feel it was necessary to train as much as they did. It was for their survival but, in comparison to other children, seemed incredibly extreme. Of course, in their family, she was also entirely aware that there were hidden dangers, and she didn't hate training. She loved spending time with her parents and siblings, training all together, but she still had other interests, which was most about the world around her and the customs and traditions which their family knew nothing about - all things that most of her family couldn't teach her. In her defense, it was true that her father tended to avoid things that most people found fun, but she didn't want to say anything more about it.

"I think your daughter's statement was true, not all that long ago, Kurohi..." Lolita added in, unable to help herself.

"I already learned, when I was little. Mother taught me, and Hikari and Haruka even took time off from their training to help Karrin and I." Mei replied to Kurohi, finally willing to meet his gaze. By all means, she viewed him as a father figure, although things had been sort of complicated at first. It was a surprise to everyone when their mother came home announcing she had a mate, which they immediately learned was the same thing as a husband in this world's common terms, only with more strings attached. She and Hikari were the most receptive to the idea of a father, while the others didn't seem to have much of an opinion at first. They didn't mind, of course, and they welcomed him, but they didn't start calling him "Father" from the get go. Growing up with only a mother and her sisters, even to this day, she wasn't all that sure how to interact with Kurohi when it came to parental interactions. "But I'd like to help, since two teachers are better than one." She'd already learned the dangers of getting her wings wet everything and was a fine enough swimmer as any.

When Hayate approached Lolita with his questions, the mother realized that she made it sound as if it was only important for the girls to learn to swim, which she immediately felt bad for, since that wasn't the case or her intention. It was only especially dangerous if having wings, which was something she more or less wanted to express to Kurohi.  Her gaze softened while gazing down at him and giving his hand a gentle squeeze, before smiling brightly. "Oh, sweetheart, you'll be learning, too!" Immediately, the knelt down and scooped her child up into her arms, hugging him close as if squish all of his insecurities right out of him. "It's a valuable thing to learn, and it's a lot of fun!"

As this happened, Mei was already removing her shoes, followed shortly by her mask. She had hesitated for a moment with the mask because, even though Kurohi had been apart of their family for quite enough time now, he'd never seen her without a mask, and she was well versed in the typical traditions of a respawn fairy. With the reasoning that Kurohi was her father, though, she thought that it was fine. Even her mother had her mask already removed. Immediately afterward, she helped Himea with her shoes, while she tossed off her own mask thoughtlessly.

Lolita was tempted just to jump straight into the water with her son but, instead, she moved and set him down comfortably near the water's edge. "You're shoes, too, Hayate. It's more difficult to swim, the more you have weighing you down, and I don't want you getting hurt."