Moonspear washed away in a tide of longing

“It seems that way because your mother and I did what we could to keep you and your siblings out of those affairs,” he rejoined gently. “You deserved your childhood, not the stress and burdens that the world can offer. It’s for the same reason we keep your younger siblings close and out of those talks.” Though he was certain that they all had picked up snippets of it, and that went almost without saying that the prior year had been wrought with burdens that this year had not.

At least they weren’t in the throes of a famine this time.

“You and Desdemona were right not to seek those wolves out,” he went on, “your mother has her own allies that are more willing to go and seek them out in a more… clandestine way. I don’t know what information we’ll get from that, but time will tell. It’s my hope we won’t have to find ourselves tangled in their business or them in ours.” He wasn’t entirely sure why he felt compelled to share such information with Osiris, but the boy was sharp. There was no doubt he had known Moonspear to have visitors over time, and ones that did not stay.

There was always the chance that Osiris would not find this pleasant too, given his own venture.

Was it wrong to use them? Perhaps, but Dirge would have rather sacrificed them than his own.