Speaking about her father, Ri'vashi nodded in agreement. "This one's father was many things; confusing being chief among them. He also had a tendency to be completely right. There were several in our fledgling clan who feared for their lives going into the desert, and understandably so. But then, he brought us straight to this oasis with abundant water for our needs, and plenty of space to grow food. As for our current population, our proximity to the trade routes connecting to Orcrest is what brings us most of our members. It may seem counter-intuitive at first, but the fact that we are in a desert makes it much easier to find new lycans. In other places, a new lycan can flee into the wilderness and reasonably expect to survive, but here, fleeing into the desert would most likely end in death. So, lycans have to stay close to sources of water, which means staying closer to civilization. We simply have our scouts watching those prime locations to find those who have recently turned."

As the conversation shifted to herself, Ri'vashi was less certain, and minorly uncomfortable, with her answers. "Well, Ri'vashi doesn't know what her hair has to do with anything, but...she does not have a great deal of time to herself. She needs to be able to fulfill her responsibilities as any time, so she does not drink often. And, um..." Ri'vashi began, breaking eye contact as a hint of embarrassment came across her face. "...she has never had a lover, no."

---

Ahnasha immediately leaned over and put her arm around Rhazii as soon as he started his cries. In this case, she was not going to blame him for causing such a scene. "We don't want to leave either, son. We want to stay here with you, but we also want you to be safe. We have to go and deal with the bad people so they won't be able to hurt you, okay? You'll be here with people you know, and you'll be able to make new friends."

Meanwhile, Newt had not been paying as close of attention as Rhazii, but once Rhazii had started crying, he knew that something had to be wrong. He looked up to his own parents silently, but with enough confusion in his eyes to easily communicate his own fear. Kaleeth was starting to feel a mix of guilt and dread about having to explain to her son that they were going to be leaving him for such a long time. Turning her head towards Janius, she tightly grabbed his hand with a nervous gaze. For this, she would certainly need his help.