There were no words to describe the joy I felt when I saw the faces of my children light up when their eyes found me. In that moment I was reminded of how truly young they still were, virgins to the horror that life could often be. They had yet to watch beloved friends and family fall to the hands of war, bloodied and cut down in the prime of life. It was an unfortunate sight I had often witnessed in times past, and I surely didn't wish for my dearest children to ever witness such a scene.

Pushing the horrid memories of battle out of my head, I forced a smile to pass my lips and settled my gaze to my precious twins. Reaching out to them, I pressed my muzzle gently against their own in way of greeting, so unbelievably happy to still have them with me. Unlike their mother, I could always count on them to still be there when morning came, or when darkness fell upon the land of the Edge. Selfishly, I wished for them to always be at my side, but I knew well that they each had their own lives to live.

When we had all calmed and I had asked my question, I watched with genuine interest as both Laila and Luken thought deeply about my question. It was wonderful to see that they would put so much effort into coming up with their best answers, rather than spitting out the first thing that came to mind. Although this would seem a minute thing to others, it caused a swelling of pride in my chest.

Laila was the first to speak. Turning my head to focus solely upon my dark daughter, I listened, and gave a firm nod of my head as she explained her reasoning behind her want to become a warrior. She had certainly given this thought even before my arrival. I, too, had chosen to fight for a higher cause; for family, whether we shared blood or not. Even in my younger years it had been apparent in Gassul, and even more so after I had learned to accept the elven race in Vallhea, namely Bran.

Next, my dearest son speaks, only strengthening my feelings towards the twins. I wasn't sure that I could even beat their answers, the fact nearly causing a chuckle to escape my throat. I was thankful that they were very much aware of the threat that warriors were presented with, but I was still somewhat uncomfortable with the thought of them following in my footsteps. They were my children after all, my own flesh and blood, and I couldn't bear the thought of them falling in battle at the hands of an enemy.

Exhaling softly, I gave a firm nod of my head. "Very much so, Luken," I reassured the youth, and then straightening up, I exchanged a glance to each of them. In all of my years, I had grown keen to catching on to suppressed feelings, and I was not blind to the ones hidden by my own children. I wasn't entirely sure just what they were hiding, but a part of me suspected that it had something to do with their absent mother. Her disappearance had affected us all, yet none of us seemed to want to bring it up. I wanted to reassure them that she would come back some day and things would return to normal, but what was normal? Would she ever come back and settle at all? She had left me alone to tend to our children, and while I did not mind, I couldn't help the feeling of absolute betrayal.

As hard as it was, I forced the thoughts away. I needed to focus on my children and the answers they had just given me, and as the newly named Winglead, it was even more so my duty to teach them something of their desired rank. Plastering a smile back onto my face, for it had slipped just moments ago, I pressed on. "Laila, Luken..." I started, "You were both blessed with big hearts from day one, and my words could never express how proud I truly feel of you both. One day, you will make remarkable warriors. This I know." Lifting my head a bit higher, my smile turned into something more playful, almost mischievous. "How much do you two know about fighting, anyway? Perhaps it is time I test this."