Rukeewei replied with a rather enthusiastic nod. "Oh, I did not even realize how many things I took for granted before. Sleep was one of the first casualties, but there is so much more I never even thought about. Even just...living normally is different, especially with raising Breton children. Adult Humans have troubles with sickness in the marsh, but it is even more dangerous for young ones. When she was pregnant, I was having nightmares about protecting our children from dangerous people, or...animals, and those sorts of things, but I didn't even think about having to protect them from just food, water, and dirt."

Smiling, Rukeewei reached over and put a hand on Ariel's shoulder. "It's a good thing your sister is so talented, Sabine. She figured out how to mix a bit of potionmaking into our cooking to improve their disease resistance, and it doesn't even affect the taste enough to notice. They still get sick more oven than the average Argonian hatchling, but I don't really have to worry about them anymore."

Meesei, by this point, was nearly through with her plate of slugs, but was in no hurry to rush the rest of the meal. Although, she would probably need another glass of wine before dessert. "I personally never experienced that stage of parenthood. Although...I do wonder if I will get a taste of it with grandchildren..." She added with a sly grin towards Sabine. 

[hr]

"Ah, see now you assume I know more than I do. It flatters me that you think so highly of me, but I hold no such powerful position among Daedric Princes. I do not know what Molag Bal intends to do for the next era or two, and he certainly would not tell a, well...former mortal." Hal-Neesa answered, entirely unfazed by the tone of gro-Tagnud's accusation. "I do not serve him for some foolish sense of loyalty for a being that sees me as little more than an insect, I serve him as an exchange for the knowledge I desire. He gives me authority here because he acknowledges my competence. Truthfully, even I would be annoyed if he made another attempt for Mundus, but if you were hoping that all of the power Vile has been collecting would just...disappear into the void, then you are going to be disappointed. The very moment Vile is defeated, both Hircine and Molag Bal are going to be scrambling like starving dogs over a fresh carcass to consume every last drop of power they can get their metaphorical hands on. With your plan, Hircine will be physically closer to Vile at that point, but some portals to Coldharbour would even out the distribution a bit. Like it or not, this invasion is going to reshape the balance of power among the Princes. In fact, if you refuse to open any of my master's portals, then [i]most[/i] of that power is going to go straight to Hircine alone." 

The growl in Ri'vashi's expression had not entirely gone away at any point, and now it just became more evident as she glared at the vampire. "And Hircine would be a much better steward of that power than Molag Bal. Not once in Tamriel's history has Hircine threatened our world. Even if you tried to interpret lycanthropy as some sort of 'attack', which Ri'vashi would say is ridiculous, Molag Bal nearly destroyed our world. Hircine will never be that kind of a threat to Tamriel, no matter how much power he has. It goes against his nature."

Neesa simply shrugged. "Indeed, perhaps you all do trust Hircine more than Molag Bal. It's a logical conclusion to make. The 'Lord of the Hunt' is, without a doubt, a much less intimidating title than the "Lord of Domination'. If given power, he will certainly try to dominate something with it. Maybe Tamriel, but more likely another Daedra. The Princes are always bickering and fighting among themselves, you see, so it is actually rather difficult for them to get enough power and time to make any attacks against Mundus. The kind of power that, say, Hircine might get from defeating Vile alone." Her eyes settled on gro-Tagnud, then Teroiah in turn. "Maybe you trust Hircine not to decide to hunt your nations, but I am merely suggesting that you could prevent one, single Daedra from claiming that kind of [i]potential[/i] influence by spreading it out a bit more evenly."