Morrigan had been considering for several days now as the summer days reached their peak, creeping ever closer to the birth moon of some of their children. One of them in particular had made efforts that had not gone unnoticed, and when the Greyflood had finally shared her thoughts with @Talisa she had found her wife of course had simply been waiting for her to come to realization on her own.

She had fretted more than once about saddling any of her children with such responsibility without them coming first to ask her, but she'd been thinking the wrong way. It was them who needed to ask, of course. Khal had been enough to show them that. Some children needed a push to learn to fly. And so after a brief discussion the pair of Queens sat outside the entrance to their usual abode as Morrigan chuffed for @Fearne, hoping he was nearby.

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Fearne has found relative peace and contentment. Life has a pace to it that he can follow along day after day, month after month. Like everything else there is a pattern that Fearne begins to see and begins to move in. And the deeper he can fall into this the more connected he begins to feel with the world around him. At times it's like he can see everything from above them all in the clouds of the peak. In truth he enjoys the reliability of life right now, he enjoys having to worry less over his family succumbing to death, to the wanting jaws of destruction.

There is a crackle in the back of his mind that comes up when his Mummy's voice sounds out. Something different, the world shifts. Fearne is resting along stretch of tall deciduous tree line in an area cleared of pine needles when he heard the summons. He rolls to his feet, he dusts himself free of the dirt and quickly comes to answer. "Hey Mummy." He greets, leaning over to brush his face on Morrigan's cheek. "Mama." Without missing a beat he twists to rub his cheek across @Talisa's.

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Talisa had been on the wavelength of making @Fearne heir for quite some time now. Occasionally having dropped hints to @Morrigan that they were going to need an heir eventually... and while she could've just outright told her wife her thoughts, she also knew that she did not want to put her tribute in the spotlight. Fearne was a wonderful son with the biggest heart ever known and being a leader was a big responsibility and it would require a lot of strength. The kind of strength that was mental, emotional as well as physical — while she knew that he was capable of all of these, forcing him into being all of them at once was a lot.

Just like Morrigan, they simply did not with to push the rank onto anyone without them asking. Even when their son moves into the clearing she feels her posture lighten and her eyes water, nose wrinkling as she expressed every little fleck of love that she had to give into this one moment. My boy, she issued when it was her turn to get some mother-son affection. While she moves to rub her cheek to his, she does well to issue a kiss quickly to the very bottom of his ear that was now almost fully covered by his long and beautiful mane.

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Her gut twist at @Fearne's greeting when he appears, finding it all too easy to imagine him still as that gentle boy she'd watched the northern sunrise with. Before them now stood a man nearly grown, knowing they were about to offer him both burden and potential blessing. "We wanted to ask you something, dear," she tells him as she returns his affections.

She steps back to observe him once more as he greets @Talisa, "We want to be very clear that you can say no," she began, her expression serious as she attempted meet his orange and purple gaze. "What would you think of taking up the mantle of Heir? Your efforts have not gone unnoticed." She wanted to be clear he wasn't being offered this merely out of relation.

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Ask him something? Fearne could almost feel the air twist around in time with @Morrigan's gut. He at once is ready, overly willing, to do what is asked of him before even hearing the question. There's a current of electric loyalty, of love, that bends him to them both. A glance given to both of the strong woman that have made his gentle and kind soul. And who continue still to guide him, to help him grow. We want to be very clear that you can say no. But why would he ever want to he thinks. He's not fully anticipating the magnitude of what they want to ask him.

To be heir of the Summit. He must be a strange prince, he's never felt the pull of a throne nor the true weight of a crown. He has always lived his life as his own- not outright exclusionary but never feeling the magnitude of his station, of his family. Not letting himself feel it. "Me?" Are they sure? "But, I'm not ... like Isla." But wasn't he? Fearne was not weak, he was not a fearful child. What else was Isla down to her core but brave and strong?

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and we would never ask you to be. Talisa's response to @Fearne's question came without hesitation. There had never been any moment in her life where she wanted any of her kids to be like another. Talisa wanted him to be Fearne and that was all. To always stay true to himself and to not bend to someone's desires to be anything less. What we are looking for in our Heir is integrity, resilience and empathy. Each of these things, we both feel, you have shown on more than one occasion. You have the makings of a leader, even if you may not see it yourself. There were so many things that made a great leader and these were only three examples that she saw in their child every day. Things that made up a good leader because it is a leader's job not to lead but to listen to those that look to you for that leadership. Just as she instilled on any of her children that while @Morrigan and Talisa were the heads of the Summit, they would always turn to their members first and give them choice rather than demands.

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Integrity, resilience and empathy. Fearne does not doubt his mother's assessment of his character but there's something still so strange to him when he begins to think of Fearne the Heir. He is capable, whether or not he realized it before now could not be said. But he was- he could do this and wasn't scared to try. But there's so many others he imagined in the role before him. Equally as capable. The mark of a leader- the title and responsibilities. While he's thinking he's staring deeply at @Talisa specifically - looking deep down into his Mama's warm and sure expression. She was just as great a leader as Mummy or Isla. Even when you held them all up side by side and saw how different they all were.

"Okay. I'll do it."

@Morrigan

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The were few who had truly known the truth of Illyria's leadership, and if @Fearne was to be among them, it was time he witnessed it. So when he questioned what made him worthy of the title, it was @Talisa whom Morrigan turned to, the true leader of the Summit. Morrigan was the sword, but Talisa had always been the shield that truly guarded them all. She was the true Queen in all but title. Morrigan was merely a glorified champion.

Her silence punctuated everything Talisa said, to show that it was not those who sought glory who deserved it most. Their place was merely to bleed, and thus Isla was better placed as her own spearpoint. Their son seemed to find the truth he need in her words and accepted the proffered responsibility with all the nobility and grace of Talisa. "Have faith. You will be excellent," she assured their now newly name Heir. "Now, shall we let the others know or would you like to take the day?"

Whatever his answer, Morrigan would acquiesce, trying not to linger on the target that would nevertheless now be placed on their gentle boy. exit morrigan via fade

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Here we go. He thinks to himself, he readies himself. There's an extra weight to the responsibility he will take on. There's expectations he may have to face. His mothers support and believe in him but that does not mean the rest of the world will so willingly see the value of Fearne as a leader. "I'd like to ask you guys a few things, and can you get me up to speed on what I need to know about the politics?" Forest loving Fearne did not readily stick his nose out to find things out himself. "Then we can tell everyone." He wanted to be ready. As ready as he could be.

( fade exit )

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Regardless of whether @Fearne accepted it or not, Talisa had all her belief in the fact that he would make an excellent leader. He was compassionate and kind, would know how to hold fast and look at things from every point of view rather than just one. But between @Morrigan and herself they had been discussing it offhandedly for a while and were only just now getting up to officially asking him. While she expected him to want to take a moment to consider it, he accepted it in full. Not wanting to rush into telling everyone but rather wanting to know the more minute details. Of course, whatever makes you comfortable. The words unspoken but on her lips regardless as she walks and talks with the two of them, filling their son in on every little thing that she could. exit talisa

^{ART BY CUSH, CODE BY CALA}