Seaside Moors Mama said don't give up, it's a little complicated

Frayed were his nerves, uncertainty growing to a concerning size. He wondered if he would be welcome, wondered if he wanted to see—he didn’t know what he was supposed to be doing, how he was supposed to go about these things. It was so new still and he couldn’t help but feel as if he was overstepping boundaries; nevertheless, he could not keep his curiosity from getting the better of him. With a fish—an offering—clasped loosely between his jaws, Aningan sought out his Beta’s den. When he was just outside it, he called out, “@Erzulie?” in muffled tones.

she had just put the little ones to sleep, nosing each of their downy heads. a blink of mismatched eyes gone wet. they were indeed in her very heart, but the coming of her daughters had been colored by the chaos marking her first sons.
they had all come back, erzulie told herself in silent desperation. the loa would bring them to rusalka again.
she could not dwell on it for long; aningan's voice sounded. a smile of relief and she was unfurling from the denmouth quietly, stepping lightly over her brood.
"hello, aningan. dey are just sleepin', but put your eye on dem if you be wantin'."

When Aningan caught sight of Erzulie, he offered a wag of his tail. But when he was invited to take a closer look, he hesitated, suddenly uncertain. Slowly, he took a few steps closer and set the fish at the mouth of the den, before tilting his head whilst trying to make out the puppies; he was quiet the entire time, staring at them for a long time until, finally, his eyes shot back up to meet the mother’s. “They’re so small…” he all but whispered, not wanting to wake them. “Are they supposed to be that small…?” Had he done something wrong to cause them to be so tiny, or was this normal? Concerned, he shifted his weight back and forth, trying to momentarily distract himself.

for a long time aningan gazed at the babes he had fathered, and erzulie watched him curiously. however, she did not speak until he had looked back at her, eyes questioning. "oui, poppyseed. dey start small and den grow large. perhaps dey will be as large an' strong as you one day." 
she slipped closer, nudged his broad shoulder reassuringly. "what do you t'ink?"

Their size was normal, they were meant to be that small. So, so small… when would they grow larger? He wondered when that day may come, when they would no longer be as tiny as they presently were. Would they truly reach his size someday, or would they take after Erzulie? There were so many questions clouding his mind, whizzing around and branching off to create even more; a never-ending supply of inquiries, although no more seemed to want to leave his mouth. But one did leave hers, taking him by surprise.

What did he think?

His gaze drifted over their sleeping forms, taking in the sight before him. What did he think? “I think…” His voice drifted off, an already-whisper turning into sheer silence. “I think I want to watch them grow. I think… I think I want to know them better.” Now and in the future, when they could think and speak for themselves. But most of all, he wanted to keep them safe—to grow Rusalka for them, for their futures.

the first time, she and rosalyn had been resolute in their determination that they alone raise the little ones. this year, erzulie found, she had grown softer. aningan was their leader, and while rusalka was small, it had been stable as of late. 
this time, she would not move between aningan and the little wolves.
therefore his involvement was not only warranted, it was wanted, and the harlot sighed a soft sound. "i was hoping you would want to be dat," she murmured. "dey will only be better for having you around."

The woman’s words comforted the boy; this was what he wanted so badly, what he longed for in his childhood. This would solidify his familial status, ensure his family existed. The young leader smiled—

—his home, his family.