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Tallulah had been staying in and around Eowyn for some time now, tending to move along the path that brought him between various oasis, the underground water system in the caves that Eyphah's clan lived in, and the ocean. He had to make sure that there was water around at all times since he was a water dwelling creature. It was his need for water that brought the Merkorian to the oasis today. He'd sank into the water with his clothing still on, knowing the desert sun would dry it out quickly enough. Once in the water he let his eyes sink closed, enjoying the feel of the water and the breeze, quite relaxed and contented at the moment. That contentment was thrown though when he heard a sound like an attempt at a roar before something smacked into his back.

Turning slowly he looked down at the strange pup that had run into him, head tilting to one side, "What in the world?" He murmured turning himself around so that he could look down at him, "What are you? I don't think I've seen anything like you before in Eowyn." He mused, pretty certain that nothing like this had ever been seen in the area, at least not to his knowledge. Reaching out he carefully picked up the fluffy creature, looking it over. This one looked as though he had come from a much cooler climate, making Tallulah wonder if he was lost. Maybe he belonged to someone who was traveling the area?

Pushing up to his feet he started to look around, still holding onto the little pup, when he spotted the one that he guessed the creature belonged to. He found himself starring at the Dovaa, a curious look on his face. He looked... familiar, didn't he? Where had he seen him before? The question seemed to swirl around in his head for a moment before he caught the scent of the bright eyed Dovaa when it seemed to click, "Ahhh... Nehelini?" He murmured, starting forward toward the boy.

Tallulah smiled as Nehelini came rushing over to him, wrapping his small arms around his midsection, and the Merkorian couldn't help but he wrap one arm around him in return, "It's been a while, little whelp. I am glad to see that you are doing well." It had been some time ago since the boy had returned to his family, to his uncle and brother, and Tallulah had missed him. Leaning over he set the pup down alongside Nehelini now that he knew the creature belonged to him. A pup from Aisko? How long had it been since he'd travelled there? Not since his hunts for Aiskala, which was some time ago.

"It's a cute little creature, I am sure that it will serve you well once it's older and stronger, provided you train it well." He didn't have a lot of personal experience with pets himself, but he'd seen various two-legs traveling with them. He hoped that this one learned how to protect Nehelini since he knew he wouldn't be able to do that himself forever, especially now with the little whelp growing up. It would likely be like with little Khehora whelps, he'd want to strike out on his own and get stronger. A thought that almost made Tallulah chuckle since the thought made him seem a bit too motherly, something Eyphah would be sure to tease him about if he could read minds.

Ah yes, speaking of which, "I am sure that Eyphah will be interested to see that you're back as well, though you just missed him. He was with me for a bit but caught wind of a big group of Gaili and you know how he is when it comes to a good fight." Of course poor Nehelini knew, he'd gotten dragged around on hunts before by the Diabi Khehorian after all. Giving the little whelp a once over Tallulah said, "Come, sit with me in the water, you look a little flushed and I don't want you to end up with heat stroke."

Turning to look over at Nehelini at his squeaked out question he gave him a smile, "Hm? Oh, Eyphah? Yeah, he's way to excited when it comes to fighting and the Gaili are quite an intimidating breed, he went to clear them out with a lot of excitement." It was something allowed him to just soak in the oasis and enjoy himself, it also allowed him to run into Nehelini in this lucky manner. Lifting a hand she reached out to stroke the little whelp's hair, having missed him being nearby.

"Hm? Never learned...? Oh! Swimming." He said, giving the oasis a thoughtful look, "This one isn't the biggest of the oasis out here but I think there should be enough water to at least show you the basics." He said, stretching out before he headed into the water, turning to hold his hands out to him, "Come on, take my hands." It would be fun, to finally get to teach him how to swim. How long ago was it that they had made the promise? It was when they first met, back when Nehelini was a tiny little whelp, meaning that it was probably time that they saw to his first swimming lesson.

Tallulah laughed, "No, he really hasn't." He'd always been quite a determined hunter sort. It was a good thing though, it had kept both Tallulah and Nehelini safe on many occasions in the past, especially when it came to the threat that the Mara had proven themselves to be. Eyphah was one who was out there hunting them down mercilessly. Giving a soft laugh at what Nehelini said next he nodded, "Yeah, still just as kind and no, nothing of huge note. A few tussles here and there. The Mara are still about but they don't travel in the same numbers they used to. The damage that Eyphah did must have helped as you don't see them in groups bigger then three these days." He hoped it was that their numbers were dwindling and not that their scouting parties were just smaller.

"How about you though? You went home to join your tribe, does that mean you have been learning magic then?" He asked in a curious manner, "And wasn't it the Aiskala tribe you were joining? Are you alright in all this heat?" He asked, looking the boy over closely, as though checking for any sort of heat stroke. Aiskala were susceptible to heat and he wouldn't want the poor boy collapsing! Maybe it was best that they got him into the water to make sure he was cooled off he thought to himself.

When the boy was suddenly thrown off balance by the pup that seemed to want all Nehelini's attention on him Tallulah gave a chuckle, "Seems the pup doesn't want to share you with old friends." He said, then motioned to him, "Come on, I am sure you can both use a dip since you're both cold weather types now."

"I am glad to hear that, I know at times that I can find myself overwhelmed by the heat... but then again I am also Merkora, one born of the sea, so the dry air and heat are something I still have issues with." Even after the long amount of time he'd spent in Eowyn he still risked getting dried out, something that made all of the oasis that he visited that much more important to him. That Nehelini was alright with it all was a good thing though, something that made the Merkora quite happy since it meant he might not have to fret as much over him.

Giving the pup a glance he said, "We will keep an eye on him too. Animals seemed to be born with a more inate instinct when it comes to swimming, but one never knows." He didn't want anything to happen to Nehelini's pet after all, best that they looked after him and made sure that he was kept safe as well.

"That sounds like a good idea, traveling in damp clothing helps to keep the heat at bay." He said, giving Nehelini a once over before he walked over to his pack, digging into it, and got out a ribbon he had in there. With the trailing bit of yellow cloth in hand he returned to the younger male's side and set to work carefully tying back his hair, "There we go, we don't want your hair to get in the way or getting all knotted up while you're swimming." He told him, giving him a smile. When he'd first become a Merkorian he'd had trouble with his hair, as well as how awkward his new hands were, but he was figuring things out since then and wasn't too terribly bad at braiding these days which was quite helpful given how much hair Tallulah had.

"I fret too much? I didn't know that such a thing was possible, if anything I think that I fret just the right amount." He told the younger man, giving him a smile. As far as Nehelini was concerned he didn't think that he could be too careful. The boy was still small, especially compared to a Merkorian like himself or Eyphah who was even taller then Tallulah. Due to this he felt the overwhelming need to look after him, to protect him, and to keep him safe. Likely the fact that he'd spent so much time doing just that when Nehelini was little added to his desire to tend to him. The boy was getting older though, so pretty soon he probably wouldn't need Tallulah to look after him, much like a little one leaving the nest he thought to himself idly.

Tallulah gave the little pup a thoughtful glance, steering his thoughts toward him for a moment then nodded, "Perhaps we can think of a name for it in due time." He agreed, giving the little whelp a smile. They should likely focus on the swimming lessons before they went about figuring out names for Nehelini's pets he thought to himself. It was a dangerous things, swimming. If done wrong there was a chance that Nehelini might be hurt, as such he wanted to look after him and keep him safe.

Tallulah took a few steps backwards into the water, his eyes on Nehelini, and once he was there he held his hands out to him, "Just take my hands, I won't let you get hurt, little whelp." He said in a gentle and reassuring tone of voice, wanting the Dovaa to know that he was safe with him.

Tallulah gave a bit of a chuckle when the boy fell into his arms, "See? That goes to show that a bit of fretting isn't a bad thing." He said in a joking manner. He wasn't about to let the boy get hurt after all, wanting nothing more then to protect him as long as Nehelini was in his presence. That he was so off balance in the water showed that he really did need this sort of training. He could be hurt if he wasn't trained to swim well and soon, something that Tallulah didn't want to allow! No, he'd make sure the boy got the lessons he needed, "Don't worry, little whelp, soon enough we will have you swimming like a fish! That way you won't have to worry about when you slip."

Giving a bit of a laugh the merkorian gave a nod, "That sounds about right, you just need to get used to your growing body is all. It's something that everyone goes through, a sort of gangly age. Even we Merkora go through such a stage, we call it the Orakoir stage." He told him, stroking his hair gently, before he leaned over to inspect the wound on Nehelini's foot. It wasn't much, just a little ding, and with a little breath of magic blown across the wound it was no more.

"Come on now, we can let your little pup show you." He said, continueing into the water, leading Nehelini. He only went in to the point where it would be up to the boy's chest, then made a motion, "The first thing we will do is have you float on your back. It will help you to just get comfortable in the water." He explained, helping Nehelini to get into a back floating position, one hand hovering just under upper back.