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The Christmas season was now in full swing and Persy was full of Christmas spirit. It had been a long time since she had felt this good. The female had dedicated all that she had to her family, her youth, her time and her life to them. When the last of them moved out, being the adults they now were, Persy had taken it hard. She had spent a huge amount of her time inside and not dealing with the outside world. Empty nest syndrome, as some people called it, had hit her hard.

Then next thing her life was thrown into a whirlwind again. Her frail but powerful Nyx was now going to have children of her own and Persephone would be a grandmother. She was apprehensive about the whole thing at the start. The red head had been very young having her first litter and this had made the whole experience more difficult for her. Nyx had been told she would never have kittens and as such Persy was sick with worry for her daughters health. But the fates were with her family and although Nyx was close to death during birth and look a long period of time to recover a happy family was born. Persy had done all she could for Nyx and Jijiro as they transitioned into their new parenting roll and the two had taken to parenting like fish to water.

Her long tail flicked side to side contently as she walked, her arms filled with various shopping bags. Most were filled with clothes and food for her grandchildren, who Persy revelled in spoiling as well as Christmas gifts. As she walked through her old home and squinted as she spotted a familiar face. "Dracal?" the female called out, her ears perked up with curiosity. It had been far too long.

Persy walked over to her adopted son, her breath showing in the cold winter air. The christmas season was in full swing and her and all of her children had their winter coats in all of their full glory. Her fluffy, well groomed tail flicked side to side in contentment as she strode over to him, carrying to many things to really move very quickly. However Persy was always a graceful cat and looked unburdened and graceful even carrying everything she was carrying.

"Hi Dracal" the female said softly once they had approached each other. "It's been a long time. It's lovely to get to see you before the holidays." The female had certainly aged since the last time the younger cat had seen her but she had done so gracefully, or so she believed. The only real show of her ages were small grey strands that had started showing in her hair, which she found amusing rather than bothersome. We all have to age so why not revel in it? "Time marches on Dracal" she said with a smile, her eyes sparkling, youthful as ever. "Thank you. You've grown up to be a strong cat. I always knew you would."

Persy smiled. "Lets sit down here and relax for a moment shall we? That way you can finish what you're drinking as well before it gets cold." Always an observant one she had noticed that Dracal had a cup with a warm liquid, coffee maybe? The female sniffed. No cocoa. This would give them a chance to talk and a chance for him to finish before being laden down with bags while helping her.

Persy couldn't help but smile. "You're certainly more than welcome to come along. I think the fathering will be rather small this year though. Kieran is off on work and the rest of the kits have long since left the house. Nyx and her family may come over but they have yet to spend a real holiday together as a family so I would rather not impose myself on them for the full day." There was no sadness in the older females voice. She was proud, so proud, that all of her kits were independent and strong and living their lives. It was how it was meant to be. And although it could be a bit lonely for her she knew that for all her mistakes she had made with raising her families in the past, that she had done her very best and they were all out in the world doing whatever it was they did best. "I think Nyx is very happy. And I'm sure you will find the perfect mate for you as well someday. You just have to be patient." she said softly.

Persy laughed lightly as the togyer spoke. "I wouldn't worry too much about me Dracal. I'm pretty good at keeping myself warm!" As she spoke the female wrapped her large furry tail around her. "However it is still a good idea to not stay out here too long, getting a cold this time of year is always terrible!"

The red-haired female smiled softly at his words. "It will be nice to have you around for a holiday for a change, unless of course you have somewhere to be." she added, her ears twitching slightly. Although Persy would always love having her adopted son over to visit for the holidays she was aware that Dracal, like the rest of her children, was grown now and that he might have other plans for the holidays. Other cats this would bother deeply, feeling lonely or abandoned by her kits, but instead Persy was proud. If they all had their own lives she couldn't have raised them that badly now could she? Others would possibly disagree though. "It's funny Dracal I feel you just...know. Like you meet the right cat and everything makes sense. At least it did for me." she added with a small smile. Kieran wasn't around often anymore and although Persephone was upset by this she was already so grateful for all the time she had already spent with her mate. She nuzzled him in return and smiled, signing softly.

Persy smiled softly. "I don't think you really understand the relationship between mother and child, adopted or not Dracal." she said, ruffling the toygers hair softly. "It's my job to worry about you. It doesn't matter if you're an adult now I will always worry about you." The female purred softly in response to her very affectionate child.

The red head smiled at the idea as well, her tail flicking in a relaxed way from side to side. "It will be a lot of fun. The house can feel quite empty now. Not that I mind of course. It's much better for it to be empty because all of my kittens are doing well rather than having it full because I didn't do my job as a parent. Of course there are many who would believe I did a poor job as a parent anyway, but the past is the past." she said, her voice tinged with sadness. She had tried so hard to keep her family together and yet there had been so many bumps in the road. The female often wished she could turn back time and get a second chance at some of the challenges life gave her. With Kieran gone she also secretly wondered if he had never truly forgiven her. "Patience is important. There's no point in forcing something that's not there." she added with a smile.

Persy smiled. She knew that once the toyger she raised had gotten an idea into his head there was nothing she could say to stop him. Well, she thought, not having to look out for cat’s trying to attack me is always a good thing. “Well I’ll make sure not to worry then Dracal. But don’t forget that I’ll still be looking out for you all the same. You’re still my son after all.” the red head said with a smile, ruffling his hair slightly as they spoke.

Her tail flicked softly as her adopted son spoke. “Of yes of course. And so many memories happened there as well. Years and years of memories I wouldn’t trade for the world.” Persy nodded, often glad that at least one of her children understood how much she had tried. “I was very young when I had my first litter, younger then you are now Dracal, in fact. I was a kit trying to raise kits. No wonder there were so many bumps in the road huh? It was all worth it though. All my kits survived and are out living their lives.” She smiled and got up, brushing some of the snow that had landed while they were talking off her. “Okay let’s go!”

Persy giggled. "You will always be my son Dracal and so I'll always want to look out for you. Simple as. Nothing will ever change that." she said with a smile. "Not even your stubbornness! But yes watching out for each other sounds like a good solution!"

Persy gratefully gave some of the bags to Dracal. She had bought far too much stuff and the bags had begun to ache her arms slightly as she had carried them. It was nice to have a bit of help. "Well I certainly tried my best. I'm sure you'll find a cat that's just perfect for you in every way. But every cat has it's faults Dracal and part of love is embracing faults as well as the parts you love. Gosh knows that Kieran had to embrace a few with me." she said with a giggle.