Mr. Responsible

Bane stared up at the hulking, scarred red dragon who loomed over him with a mixture of irritation and fatigue. The dragon was far more interested in the little bundle of white and yellow darting in and around his ankles to bother himself with his human bond's radiating disappointment.

"Tell me again what your plan here is," Bane prompted, his voice flat.

::It's simple. Zaolta's all grown up now. She knows me as the fun friend who likes to play chase. I need to prove to her that I can be a responsible adult who's also a good partner for different kinds of games. Fun, adult games. So I raise up one of her kids, convince her I'm a good dad, and boom! Zaolta swoons. We get together. Baneo, one. Every other male alive, zero. It's a flawless plan. You can thank me later when Jaeros also swoons.::

Bane maintained a neutral expression as he digested his bond's master plan. He'd known that Baneo had fallen hard for Zaolta from the first time they'd met. No one else had ever gotten his fifteen foot tall sadist to frolic the way the zippy little red runner had. He really should have paid more attention to just how focused in Baneo became on Zaolta. Though to be fair to himself, he'd been distracted by a certain handsome daemon with captivating eyes. One like a sun-lit ocean, all sparkling deep blues, and one the rich brown of the earth. A deeper brown than his russet hair, like fine strands of a sunset.

Focus.

Bane cleared his throat and looked down from the smug expression of his bond to the newest addition to their group.

"Your charge is currently running for the forest, Mr. Responsible," he said.

Baneo's head whipped around and a short blat of surprise erupted from his throat. True to Bane's warning, the white and yellow runner had given up on her game of climb the red mountain and instead spotted something of interest in the shadows of the forsaken forest. Only a select few were allowed to traverse the forest beyond the designated paths, and even then, safety was no guarantee. It was definitely no place for a hatchling.

With one bound, Baneo launched himself into the path of the escaping hatchling and spread out his claws to block her escape. She skidded to a halt and looked up at him with the guileless delight that only youth could attain.

::Hey! Woah! We don't go there. That's a bad, scary place,:: Baneo said.

Bane switched his attention to the violet dragonness sunning herself on the grass nearby. Baaki had been observing the exchange ever since Baneo returned from wherever he'd run off to in order to acquire his new charge. She did not seem overly surprised by this development, which left Bane with the sneaking suspicion that she'd been in on the plan in some way. Oddly enough, that gave him some comfort.

"Watch them, would you?"

Baaki inclined her head to the request.

::Of course. Her name is Tasiza, by the way. Tasiza Selamputo.::

"Tasiza," Bane repeated, testing the name on his tongue. "Wonderful. Well, I'd better get her registered. You two can figure out getting her fed and settled. And baby proofing the dragon ledge."

Bane turned toward the Warren. The massive cavern with its vine draped tunnels stood at his back, beckoning him back into its shadowy embrace. He'd just come from there not ten minutes ago. With a sigh, he headed inside.

"This is going to make my job infinitely more difficult," he muttered under his breath.