Event Finished monsters calling home

@Thoth

Ulrich was still gripping Luca to his chest when Emma made her appearance, and they were both disgruntled at the least. Neither were ever really happy to see each other and for their own fair reasons; genetic memory was great for passing down history, but a lot of history between them was terribly negative.

Nicolas had done the social equivalent of tapping out, backing down from the conversation. On some level, Ulrich didn't blame him. Nobody wanted to get in the way of two feuding sea monsters.

"You let him shift? On land?" Was the first question out of Ulrich's mouth. Usually they stayed human looking when on land, especially closer to the city so neither of them would draw excessive attention. Not as if their regal dress - or at least, what little clothes they did wear - and their demeanor didn't already do that. Luca was too inexperienced between his human and true form to go running around willy nilly with it.

"Yes, of course. We were at the beach and he wanted to explore the festival." Emma huffed. "It also wouldn't hurt to tell us when you're going to disappear for weeks on end. He misses you, you know."

Luca was oblivious to his parents' bickering. He was too enthralled by Nicolas' hair, almost leaning right out of his father's arms to try and grab a pinch.

@Thoth

Emma, who had more or less overlooked Nicolas at this point, was immediately drawn to his sidestep away from Ulrich's side. She sent a scathing glare his way; really now, Ulrich had already gathered cronies on land? Really?

He could go anywhere without minions, could he? She quickly nodded towards the man, her mouth set in a tight lipped frown. "And who is this?"

Luca made a disappointed squealing noise when Nicolas stepped clear out of reach, clicking his little claws in the air.

"For god's sake, Nicolas, just give him some of your hair." Anything to make this whole ordeal easier. "This is Nicolas. He's a human guard, so there's no breach of contract." In case that was what she was accusing him of. Why did he need to attend this festival, anyways?

@Thoth

Nicolas hadn't offered anything helpful. He hadn't expected him to, anyways, but the situation wasn't so great and he didn't want it to get any worse by chiding his bodyguard for refusing to give up a chunk of his hair. Luca's claws were like large shears, cutting through sheet metal with ease. A bit of hair was child's play; in fact, to the child, it was probably exactly that. He was playing.

Emma didn't seem too happy with his answer, though it was true. There was zero breach of contract if Nicolas was a human, and so she'd have to live with it. She just huffed, reaching out to ease Luca off Ulrich's chest and away from his guard.

"Well, I do hope you feel a little more at ease, then." She had a sharp tongue, part of what attracted Ulrich to Emma in the first place... Then her lineage surfaced and that was the end of that.

He didn't answer. He just made a faint hum of acknowledgement, handing Luca over without complaint.

"I'll be visiting shortly."

@Thoth

Emma grumbled something in their native tongue, then gave Luca a gentle pat. "Say bye to daddy. He'll be coming over to visit soon."

The crab gave a whistling shriek, followed by a few clicks of his claws. Emma turned on her heels and promptly disappeared into the crowd with their child in tow.

A little disappointing, it wasn't like Ulrich hated his child. In fact, he had a certain love for Luca that he'd yet to show for anything else, really. But he definitely didn't love Emma and he was more than glad that she was gone.

"It was a mistake. A very costly mistake." He turned back towards Nicolas, but he most definitely looked worn down. Yes, he'd had enough festivities for today. Without another word, he began walking again. Back towards the beach and the house that floated just off the dock.

"I've had enough of this for today."

@Thoth

"You can be, if you wish. It doesn't make a difference. I'll inform you whenever I go to her home; it'll be your choice." He honestly just didn't want to deal with it. Nicolas was right, he wasn't at all equipped to deal with their sort of politics.

Emma posed a danger to him; she could kill him if they decided to get into a scuffle. But the same went the other way. He could just as well slay her if things got physical, but neither did so because they had a child they needed to figure out what to do with. Luca was the heir apparent, and it still needed to be said where his alliances lay.

Too many questions for one day.

Ulrich just wanted to rest.