Sylar finished cooking and practically rushed over, a bowl in his hands.
"I'll feed her." he said, trying and failing to hide his eagerness.
Aeron glanced at him, clearly amused, then he nodded, "Okay, just be careful about the temperature."
Sylas scooped a small piece of meat, blew on it carefully, and checked the food temperature.
Ardis food was simple, just some tiny pieces of meat boiled or roasted over the fire and chopped into small pieces.
Ardis accepted the food, swallowing it happily.
As she was eating. A sight caught her attention.
Astra was approaching.
And beside her stood Sorin... carrying four tiny fox cubs in his arms.
Astra beamed as she introduced. "They are your brothers, Ardis."
Ardis froze as her pupils widened.
'Fluffy. Cute' she thought as she looked at them with sparkling eyes.
Sorin knelt down and gently put the cubs on the floor. They yawned, blinked, as they curiously looked at Ardis.
Ardis slowly slithered towards them, cautiously but filled with curiosity.
Astra watched the scene with a warm smile. "They are already one spring old. Soon, they will start their learning."
'Learning?' That single word snapped Ardis's attention away from the cubs.
'Learning?Again?' She thought.
'Do I really have to go to school again?' she thought, horrified. She had barely escaped the stress of the exams in her past life. 'Was this world seriously going to make her study too? '
Astra noticed Ardis staring at her with wide and conflicted eyes.
"Don't worry, little one," Astra said gently, assuming Ardis was simply curious. "You will also go when you are one spring old."
'NOOO!' Ardis internally screamed, the sound echoing dramatically in her mind.
On the outside, she stayed perfectly. After a moment, she forced herself to calm down. 'Okay...maybe it won't be that bad.'
But then another thought hit her. 'Wait ...What do they even learn in a primitive era?'
'Plants?Animals? How to not get eaten? How to hunt? How to... climb trees?'
She stared blankly at the cubs who were rolling around.
'Am I really going to spend my childhood learning how to survive nature?'
She had already died once.
She would really not prefer to repeat the experience. 'Because what if one day she could be in an exam hall trying to figure out which berry is poisonous. '
Ardis wasn't the type to overthink things. The moment the word learning bothered her, she pushed the worry aside.
'She still had a whole year, ' she reminded herself firmly.
Her attention drifted back to the four fox cubs. Their fluffy tails swayed restlessly, practically begging to be touched. Ardis felt an overwhelming urge to reach out and brush them.
But she hesitated. 'Can I? Sould I will they bite me'
Before she could decide, one of the cubs toddled over and gently patted her side with his tiny paw.
Ardis hissed in surprise, a soft, startled sound escaping her.
Astra's eyes lit with delight at the sight.
"They like you already," she said warmly. "Let me introduce you all properly."
Sorin sat beside them, pride shining from him like sunlight.
"They were excited the moment I told them about meeting you," he added.
Ardis looked at the bold cub again. He nudged her with his head, then flopped down and used her long body as a pillow.
Feeling his warm little weight, Ardis relaxed and lay flat, happy beyond words.
Sylas who had only moments ago been feeding her, pouted dramatically.
"Look at her," he complained. "She's already closer to them than she is to me. They just met and she's already cuddling them."
Astra chuckled. "They're just children, Sylas."
"She's curious," Aeron said as he returned from discarding the leaf that served as Ardis's plate.
The second cub hovered nearby, staring at Ardis with wide eyes. He seemed curious but hesitant to approach. And the last cub, clearly the shyest, crawled into Sorin's lap and peeked out from there.
Astra gathered the cub in her arms and smiled proudly.
"Now, let's introduce everyone. The one I'm holding is the eldest, Saro.The one using you as a pillow is Savin. The one over there staring at you is Aren.And the shy one on Sorin's lap is Aros."
Ardis nodded.
"If only Varos and Kaeris were here," Astra said with a soft smile, her gaze drifting over the warm, lively scene in front of her.
Aeron's smile faltered for just a moment at the mention of one of the names, Kaeris.Their beast forms were natural enemies, and perhaps that was why the two of them had clashed from the very first day they met.
'A smiling fox would suit him better.', Aeron thought dryly.
"It might take another month if all goes well," Sorin said, gently patting one of his sons on the head.
"Mm. I just hope they don't forget to bring me some pearls," Astra added with a playful smile. Beneath the light tone, however, was a quiet wish for their safe return.
"How could they forget?" Sorin chuckled, only to pause when he noticed Ardis staring fixedly at the fur skirt wrapped around his waist.
Her small amber eyes were full of curiosity.
Sorin's smile deepened. "Do you like the skirt?"
Ardis nodded slowly, her little serpent head bobbing with interest. The fur was deep black, patterned with scattered white spots.
Sylas leaned in with a mischievous grin. "Do you want to wear one too?"
Ardis hesitated, but eventually gave a timid nod.
Before Sylas could say anything else, TWACK! Sorin smacked him on the back.
"Brother…" Sylas winced dramatically. "She was curious, and lessons are learned through experience, right?"
Ardis tilted her head, utterly puzzled by the brothers' exchange.
"Don't worry," Sylas said quickly as he rubbed his back, not wanting her to misunderstand. "By tomorrow, all the children will have fur clothing. Yours will be cute, I promise."
Aeron simply shook his head with a helpless sigh. Astra, meanwhile, let out a small laugh, her eyes sparkling as if the thought of Ardis in a tiny fur skirt was amusing her more than she wanted to admit.