burn it up or just chop it down

Dirge

The anger that flared in Osiris churned in Dirge for a moment. A flicker of a flame in his eye that was there and gone in a blink; he couldn't bring himself to be angry over the challenge. Concerned, curious of the finer inner workings of things, but not angry. That concern only grew to see it consume his son even behind a sturdy restraint. Truly gone was the naivety from the youth in his children's faces, and though they were still young they were most certainly no longer children.

"If cooler heads prevail, perhaps," he conceded, though he didn't know. Hydra may not have even wanted him to come back, but he knew she was as angry as she was hurt by all. As for himself, Dirge wanted to see Arcturus return; they needed all the able bodies they could get against the apparent threats of the wilds, and he had much trust in Hydra's brother.

His mouth felt dry; he gestured for Osiris to come with him.

An explanation was warranted.

"In time you will come to understand the many workings of the world," he explained loosely. "Your mother and I have done our best to shield you and your siblings from the harsh reality of things, to do better than our own parents. The world outside this mountain can be quite idyllic, but it is also very cruel when it desires to be. Its nature is very fickle, I suppose," and it went without saying that so were they. Tenacious, but fickle, ever bent to their own whims.

"We taught you all to think for yourselves, to be more than just tooth and claw. Your uncle was not afforded the same as openly as you, nor your mother and aunts. Your grandfather saw to that in how he led and raised his children and though it has lent to us our prosperity here, it also gives little room for those of a more thoughtful, gentle nature. I feel he was hardest on his boys, and though they learn..." his head bobbed almost uncertainly; how to describe? "Sometimes it is that headstrong, toothy nature that rears the ugliest of heads in anger and stress. It steals that thoughtfulness away. I had hoped we were past that by now, but know there is more to this than just ambition."

His gaze went to Osiris, trying to read him.

"You're right to be angry with him, but do not let it consume you." It was a pointed statement. "Now more than ever we must keep a level head, or it will tear us apart. Such is the way of the world, and I've seen lesser things turn family on one another."