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That was something Turan's younger sister wondered at times as well. Oh how she would have loved the freedom of flying through the skies like their parents! But that was not how it was to be and Liberty for one was content. Yes, it was something occasionally wondered -did birds ever breed wingless of their kind?- but never a thought that brought the cheerful blue, red, and white female down. Merely a subject for pondering, now and again.

Today such thoughts were far from her mind. She did not need wings to rise high into the sky. Not with the great height of many of the trees about the Realm. It was high in one such tree that the mostly blue female lounged, her tank-top shirt bearing the marks of her constant tree-climbing. Again, not something that Liberty let chain her ever free thoughts. Worry was but a prison that kept kitsu from enjoying the freedom they all possessed at heart.

Red feathered crest and white to blue bangs and tails shifted in the breeze blowing at this height as golden eyes looked out over the pond. Such a pretty day, all the life springing to life around them, as if every little thing were finding their own freedom. Beautiful.

Golden earrings jingled as the dark ear that bore them flicked at the sound of someone approaching. Two someones. Dark nose sniffed the air and Liberty smiled recognizing the otherworldly sea breeze that always accompanied her mother's presence. Red paws flexed gripping the branch beneath her. They came. Liberty's maw broke into a grin.

Raven wasn't the only child of Crow and Valefor to bear the mark of a demon. Two long, wickedly sharp purple horns curved up from behind her mask. Unlike the nubs on Raven's head, they could easily be used as a weapon, along with the sharp bone hooks that protruded from Alcyone's back.

Alcyone had left the Place the second that those spines had begun to bud. She hadn't wanted to be around her sisters when they broke through the skin of her back, raw and agonizing.

It was almost impossible to tell Alcyone's true feelings, with a smiling porcelain facade moulded around her face. She had wandered the woods for several long weeks since she'd hit her teens, and something in her eyes and grown colder and harder. Still, she was happy to see Turan and Libby, and they were the first ones she turned to upon arriving in the glade.

"Yo," she greeted her family. Her voice was not harsh, nor was it bright and affectionate. It simply was. "Glaw gonna show?"

The rest of Alcyone's family might have wondered about the long, dark scratches that covered her body, as though she'd been torn by thorns. Some of her feather-scales were torn, and her paws and tails were filthy with dried mud. It was obvious that Alcyone hadn't been lazing around. Firm, whip-cord muscles rippled every time she moved.

Alcyone knew she wasn't pretty. She was a wimgledd bird, barbed and dangerous. But Lord Knives had taught her to embrace who she was. Delicate pinions would have looked odd next to her solid, battle-scarred frame.

Valefor bobbed her head, ever bird-like, her posture displaying her pleasure at seeing all of her children and her mate despite the mask she wore. Her eyes rested first on Crow and she went to him, hooking one of his wings with the "thumb" curl of her own and brushing the side of her masked face affectionately along his neck.

Then her eyes drifted from one to the other of her children, her gaze lingering meaningfully for a moment once locking with that of her masked daughter. They would speak privately later... she was going to see to that.

Finally her eyes rested on Raven, standing next to her father, and she disengaged from Crow to go over and "preen" her. "Your eyes are bright with conviction, dearling..." she murmured softly, keeping the moment and the words spoken between them unless Raven decided to share them with the rest. "Would you speak of it?"

Turan waved up at Libbie in the tree rather enthusiastically before darting over to Alcyone and all but bowling her over in an effort to snuggle with her. Turan may technically have been the eldest of the brood, but she'd always had a special bond with "big" sis Alcy, and the masked sibling's long absense and infrequent visits had taken a toll on her. Not that she'd ever have let it be known outright, as she'd done her best to seem as happy and upbeat as ever.

Turan had her own set of horns and feather-scales, but even though she'd taken her own share of judgements along with Alcyone when they were younger, Turan lacked the fierce independance that had caused her to depart and try to struggle through things alone. Sweet, loving, cuddly Turan had sought comfort in her mother's fur and feathers and honestly hadn't been out so much since those days past. Surrounded by the love and utter lack of judgement at the Place (well... aside from Adelais, but his judgements weren't precisely meant to be mean... he just didn't bother with sparing feelings), much of the sting from those emotional wounds had long since gone. Though they hadn't entirely disappeared.

"Alcy~ when are you coming ho~ome? I miss you." The same sort of music that underlied Valefor's voice had come out in Turan's more and more as she grew, some hint of the Aeon's cry that was the cry of a hawk and the tolling of a bell at once. She also seemed to have gotten stronger; not so pronounced as Alcyone's, but it was there, along with a great deal of their mother's mysticism. She even had a hint of that otherworldly scent, though it was oddly tinted more by the smell of forest than of sea, though the salty flavor was still there. She was surely as strange as any of them; it was just less visible.

They were all there! Joy swelled beneath her blue chest fur and laughing at her sister's call Liberty leapt effortlessly from branch to branch as she made her way down. The freedom loving femme was fit & trim, but lightly so. More like a gymnast or swimmer than a true fighter though she had trained a bit on occasion with Atae and Zell. Which between everything else the two did really was not often at all. Still it was enough between that, long walks, and her favorite activity of tree climbing to keep her well in shape.

She giggled as Turan attacked their fellow Zanarkand adventurer, noting how her sister was soiled and scraped -frowning slightly inside at that while marveling at the fit toughness of her at the same time. Sure, Libby had let her shirt get a little torn up but she herself was ... well not immaculately but decently groomed. Pausing to nuzzle her father with a happy purr she gave him a bright and loving smile & a wink before bounding over to her only 'free' sister and head-butting Glaw's shoulder playfully. "Hey you! What've you been up to? Flying yet?" Not a hint of jealousy, only happiness for what she considered would be a source of great joy for her sister. Golden eyes glanced too at Alcyone then back, silently acknowledging the concern she had glimpsed in Glaw's almost orange eyes about their sister's state and saying 'later' about doing or saying anything about it.

Playfully she nudged Glaw towards their father, nipping at her sister's 'arm socks' as Bryna called hers & tugging them up a little. "I want to hear everything." Golden eyes glanced with love at each of her family. "I want to hear everything about everyone."

Valefor curled a wing around her distraught daughter in gentle affection, continuing to "preen" gently at the hair on the back of Raven's head as she pondered those brief words. It was a common thing, honestly, to be uncertain of your place, or of what you wanted, at the age the girls were at. No longer children, and wanting their own place, but only barely adults and not really knowing what to do about it.

"This veiled heart, does it speak anything to you, dearling? Perhaps the answer lies with the question." Following your heart was not as easy as it sounded... but once she herself had started doing so, she found her life was filled with far fewer regrets. She glanced back to Crow, stretching a tail back to brush his paw. No... there was nothing left to regret in the here and now, except perhaps needing to spend more time with her mate.

Turan continued to cling to Alcyone, a bit more deperately perhaps than she would have acknowledged even to herself. She smiled brightly at the compliment, wagging her tails. "You're pretty too, Alcy." At least she thought so. "Except..." She frowned at the series of scratches and tears across her combative sibling's body. "Doesn't that hurt? I can Cure it! I've been practicing." Not that she could string together too many spells before having to rest, but one little Cure shouldn't be a big deal.

Alcyone smelled of more than grave moss and stale mud, as well. She smelled of forest and plain, hard work and travel. Turan could tell she'd been busy, and not particularly stationary, either. "I guess it's not really your style, is it? I just like being around people, I guess." Truth be told she was sort of tired of just staying there... "The little brat" had commented to her once that her hiding away wasn't healthy. She'd asked him what he meant, because it seemed like he was hiding away too. He'd replied that there was no where else he'd rather be either. It had gotten her thinking. Would she rather be somewhere else?

Out with her sisters. Especially Alcy. Not that she wanted to stay away from Valefor as much as she did, either, but... Turan had always loved exploring and adventure. Hiding so she wouldn't have to face the uneducated judgements of others on her appearance, or because she didn't want to go out alone, or whatever excuse she came up with wasn't going to get her anywhere. And it certaintly wasn't what she wanted. Adelais might seem like a brat... but even if he wsn't that easy to get along with, she'd developed a sense of respect for him. There was an awful lot going on in that head of his.

She glanced between Alcyone and Liberty, ear flicking as a thoughtful look passed over her face. "We need to find an adventure to go on sometime. Like we used to."

Golden earrings jingled together as the ear they were on moved at Glaw's pawing. Giggling Liberty grinned to hear of her sister's tales, shking her head to 'get it away' from her. "Sounds wonderful. Maybe you should paint them. Hmm.. but that's a lot of stuff to lug around. Maybe photography! Oh that'd be grand when you can fly, which I'm sure will happen with practice." Okay, so Libby could get a little enthusiastic. She laughed warmly, keeping a glance out at the rest of their family in a kind of silent way of keeping tabs. "Footloose & fancy free -I've been just fine. Wouldn't mind meeting some more kitsu that don't live at the Place or over through the door where Zell & them live, but I never seem to get around to it." She laughed. "Always seem to find something interesting to do not far from home I guess."

Black ears flicked to Turan & Alcyone and she gave another grin. "We should! We really should! Maybe all of us could go!" Playfully she flopped down on her back in front of their father, waving her paws at him and grinning in a teasing manner. "Think all us girls could cut a swath through some male population somewhere, Daddy?" It was like time apart did not exist. Libby sure was not going to let a little thing like that come between them.

Crow had been in the middle of a stretch when Valefor's tail grazed his paw, he gave his mate a sheepish grin, followed by a soft chuckle. The male had not heard what passed between mother and daughter, if Raven chose to confide in him, that would swell his heart with joy. If not, he trusted she had her reasons. Plus, there was some things, only a mother could understand. He too shared Valefor's longing to spend more time with each other. Perhaps he could surprise her with another picnic one day soon. He shook his head, no, that had been done. He needed to come up with something better.

His musings, were cut short by the sudden flopping of his daughter, Libby. A wide smile, spread across his maw. It was near impossible to see because of his mask, but the delight shone brightly in his golden eyes. He leaned down, and nuzzled Libby lightly, before batting at her waving paws. He tilted his head to the side, pretending to think about her question. Acting however, was never one of Crow's strong points, and soon he chuckled again. "Libby my dear, i believe the five of you, could cut a swath through the entire population, should you set your minds upon it" he chuckled, a grin playing on his features. He watched each of his daughters in turn. He truly thought they should all go on an adventure together. He felt it would bring them closer together, and he didnt fear them getting hurt. They could all take care of themselves, and who they couldnt defend against, Alcyone certainly could.

Raven, fell into her mother's embrace, and enjoyed the preening. Her ears drooped slightly, her mind turning over her mothers question. She had a fair hunch as to what her mother meant, about not knowing your place, not knowing where your place was. She however, wasnt so certain. Nor did she know how to explain the off feeling in her body. She looked to Glaw, and Libby. "Happiness...it comes so easy to them" she said softly. "I feel like the black sheep of the family..." she said at length. She also felt like the baby of the family. Except she didnt have anyone to look after her. She didnt have any of the super tight bonds that some of her other sisters had. Libby, Turan and Alcyone, they had a bond. Glaw got along with everyone and anyone. As did Libby. She felt secluded. The odd one out.

Maybe it was that, that veiled her heart. That uncertainty. That longing. That lonliness. That...jealousy.

The thought of being jealous of her sisters...it didnt sit well with her, and she felt instant shame moments after. Her ears drooped ever further, and she seemed to shrink a few inches in size. That might only be in her imagination though. Shame tends to make one feel smaller.