Heron Lake Plateau came back again to make it clear that he never said it would be demand

@Minori

reuniting with his family had initially bought some level peace back into his life. or so he had thought. a fool was he to think that holding his son would piece together things as they were before. the chaos was only beginning. takara was here with her troublesome child. higoro had managed to slither into the circle. minori spoke about moving away yet again. oh chaotic indeed.

issun has taken a few days to chew over all this. now he scouted our the area in search of his once lover.

She had not seen Takara in some time though Orochi's scent remained and the sweet scent of the woman she loved wasn't faint enough to say she was gone again. Even so she was worried and the reason she was moving quickly on a search around the area was because she hoped to catch sight of the chocolate furred woman who kept slipping away. Instead she found Issun and she paused, ears perking and tail swaying once due to old habits before she glanced away, though this time there was just sadness, no anger or true hostility. "Issun....how is your day going?" She asked softly, turning her gaze so it fell upon his.

the soilder never ceased to confuse him. everytime he believed she would come at him with one emotion she would do so with an entirely opposite one. minori approached as though nothing had ever happened between them, like she was actually happy to see him. it only lasted for a moment, for she quickly looked away. there was a hollow look in her eyes, much like the look he held now.

i’m ok, he stated quickly. this wasn’t the time for small talk. questions needed to be answered. minori, a heavy sigh escaped his lips before he continued. minori what are you doing out here? winter will be here soon and you are out here with deku in these wetlands. his son and a few others. faces without names, old friends and enemies. and why do you allow higoro to be so close to my son? why was he here at all? didn’t she witness what he had done to him? how he beat him to the ground, how he stood over issun’s bloodied body. now she allows this snake to slither near their son? no, he could not bare the thought.

Oh....straight to business then. She licked her maw wondering why it bothered her so much. Why should she give a damn about the man who came and went so easily from her life? Her temper flared as his words came across as judgemental, like he was saying she was a bad parent for doing what was nescessary to survive with her two boys. Her nostrils flared as she tried to swallow down the bitter words almost succeeding until he brought Higoro into the picture. Her eyes lifted and she stared directly into his gaze, a growl rising and then dying out in her throat. She had no time to fight with someone who continued to act faultless. "The son you abandoned?" she asked her voice toneless, flat, empty. She snorted and shook her head "I am surviving, recruiting. Planning a future that is more than temporarily joining a place that always goes wrong. Higoro has stayed, Higoro has helped me take care of our sons even though he makes it clear he hates you and Deku" she clamped her jaws shut tight, preventing herself from saying more. Her gaze drifted away again, looking at him made her so mad and it hurt more than she felt she could handle at the moment. "what are you doing Issun? Deku is a child, a child who has a profound capacity for forgiveness. I do not. What are your plans? To continue invading my family as if you didn't do a single thing wrong? Are you planning on leaving us again?" she asked him these questions in the same toneless voice, not seeming mad or anything else except genuinely interested in his plans and why he was back again.

abandoned was a harsh way to put it. the words stung. issun could comfort himself with many different things to describe his absence. abandon wasn’t one of them. as much as he didn’t want to admit it, minori was right. he had left his family with no warning.

but it didn’t matter what one called it now. the fact of the matter is he was back. ready to be the father deku needed him to be. and by god higoro would not be part of that picture.

i don’t care what he has done in my absence. his eyes narrowed and his ears flattened on his skull. you’ve said it yourself: he hates him. that’s a fact you cannot gloss over. i won’t sit back and watch my son be cradled by a man who despises him.

another sigh passes through his lips. invading your family? don’t speak like i haven’t done anything for deku. for you. yes i disappeared and i will hate myself for that until the day i die. but i know better now. i’m here to protect my son, to care for him. to love him. something higoro couldn’t do. from now on i will stand by his side. you will not stop me from doing so.

Her eyes narrowed and ears pressed back slowly, the more Issun spoke the more pissed off she got. She bared her fangs and growled softly, a noise of frustration not threatening intent "He doesn't cradle him. He helps me feed everyone and keep watch so that i have more time to take care of Deku. He is loyal to me, he has proven that he regrets his mistakes and so far he's made up for them. You have no say in whether he stays or goes Issun" she spat his name out bitterly, like speaking to him was now a task she had to fight through. After a beat she gave a harsh laugh "Why do you kid yourself Issun? What have you done for us besides break my heart and cause Deku a lot of confusion and pain? Oh, you stuck around for a few weeks after he was born. Then you vanished for months. I took care of Takara, Deku, Orochi and everyone else in Shadewood alone. You are here now and I won't turn you away because Deku loves you but keep pretending your so much better than every other man who hurt me and i swear to the stars I will beat you down. I am forming a pack shape up and help me or continue acting like an immature yearling, see if I care anymore" she finished and regarded him coolly, her heart hammering painfully inside of her chest. She hated him, she hated him for promising not to ever leave, not to ever hurt her and he had, he had left and he had hurt her many times over. "You are the father of my child but you ceased to be anything more the moment you lied and then ran away like a coward. This is my family. Takara is mine. Orochi is mine. Higoro and deku are mine. You have no claim over anything anymore. For Deku's sake why don't you just drop the act and fucking shape up" she spoke in a voice that was surprisingly empty of anger, she sounded tired again, exhausted emotionally from another fight.

how he wished he had anything more to say. the need to prove himself and defend what little dignity he had left boiled over. but what could he say? what happened, happened. issun ran and there was no good excuse for that. minori was left to care for the family and higoro managed to sneak his nose into it.

issun closed his eyes and flattened his ears. a harsh whistle blew through his teeth. words could not redeem him now. action would save him. but how long would that take?

looks like they were starting back from square one.

i will. he looked up at her with narrowed eyes. for deku. i promise you that.

She didn't believe he wanted to make up for what he had done to her for he had run away and avoided her for the longest time. She did believe that he wanted to make his absence up to Deku, she believed that entirely and her gaze softened, tail giving a slight sway "I know you will" her tone wasn't cold anymore but warmed over just the slightest as she met his gaze briefly and exhaled slowly. "Everything I do is for them. Deku and Orochi. Takara and Higoro. Whether we like one another doesn't matter. We are family....you all are my family. If you really mean well then help me give Kamiki another shot. Help me make a home where Deku can grow safely and where we won't...we won't have to suffer and leave again to start all over" her voice wasn't steady, it wasn't strong but instead she was vulnerable. She was offering him another chance, another way to make the home he always wanted and a way to make up for what he had done to her and to Deku and to himself. She was admitting she still cared in a way, admitting she didn't hold as much against him as it had seemed as of recently.