Astrid had been worried from the moment one of the lionesses had gone from den to den searching for a familiar, a bird that seemingly hadn't returned from a hunt. Normally, such news wouldn't upset her, but she had become oddly suspicious of Freyja, who seemed self-satisfied and had little or no comment for her since her grandchildren had been born, and Astrid knew it wasn't from sudden warmth of character.
She watched the lioness dart off, frantic, and turned to see a rather familiar streak of dark fur rounding the corner, his steps high.
Curious she quickly followed after him, taking note that he seemed to be carrying something much like one would a trophy.
"....Helvegr? Is that you?" She spoke gently, not sure what kind of mood he was going to turn on her with.

Well, there went his good mood, the tiny male huffed, dropping his recent catch on the ground and turning to face Astrid, "Well it can't be anyone else, can it?" His voice came out clipped, but he wasn't quite sure how to ever react to Astrid. His grandmother had told him she was no better than a prey beast, but from every instance he'd seen her, Astrid had been nothing but kind to him. But he supposed in a pride such as this, he could see her faults from another perspective. She was too nice to be a Reaver as she claimed to be, and she never seemed able to bring anything home the way his mother would.
He made a valiant effort to offer a small smile, but it looked more like a pained expression, "Are you looking for something?"

She could help but bristle slightly at his tone, and she made an effort to peer over his shoulder, "I just... noticed you are carrying something, and wanted to know what it was?" She took a hesitant step closer, but realized what she was doing and started to boldly walk forward, reminding herself that this was her friend's son, and if she were afraid of a mere cub, what kind of woman could she be? She got just close enough to spy the object at his feet and she went cold down to her toes, the small bundle of feathers resembling she'd just had the pleasure of having described to her. Instantly, her features hardened, "Where did you get that bird?"

Hel blinked, taken aback by her harsh tones, and he quickly stepped over his prize. "If you must know, I caught it trying to eat a mouse. It was slow and stupid and I caught it." He stared her down, intent on keeping it written all over his body, "What's it matter to you? You can't have it."

She wouldn't be afraid, she reminded herself, and she glared right back at him, "I ask, child, because someone's familiar has gone missing, and your prize resembles the poor creature she was looking for." She had every intention of taking the bird to be returned to his owner, though she had no idea how she could explain its death, not without outing the cub in front of her...

He wrinkled his nose, quickly shoving his prey out of her line of sight. "If it is, than it is. There's no taking back what's been done to it, so why not let me keep it?" His grandmother's words came drifting into his head, a line she had once fed to him about how befriending food was a waste of time when one could merely eat it and be done with it. He had no intention of giving up what he'd won, as he had every intention of giving it as a gift to her, to show how capable he was as a hunter already. She certainly lavished him with praises much more than his mother or this friend of hers ever did.

Astrid was stunned. "Do you not care about the feelings of the lion who's friend you may have taken?" She spat, clearly getting upset with the younger cub and praying she comes off more angry than hurt, though she can hear the waver in her own voice. She puts her foot down, mentally, and steps towards him, "You are going with me to return the bird at once, and you will apologize to her for taking her friend. Is that clear?"

Hel snorted outright, "Aunt Astrid, we have to eat, and I have to hunt, it's my nature as a lion. Why would I waste my time with an apology I wouldn't mean, to appease someone who can't grasp the basic concept that weaker creatures are food?" While she was still shocked from his last statement, he picked up his prize and headed onward in the direction he had been pointed towards, holding his head up high though, deep in the pit of his stomach, he wondered if this was really alright. But his grandmother understood him best, so maybe she knew what was best for him as well. She certainly knew more than this simpering lioness who stood behind him, in any case.

She watched him head off, fighting back tears. She couldn't help being a feeling mess, and how could she explain this to Freya? Her son was odd and cynically dark, certainly, but this was darker than usual, even for Hel. She turned on her heel, intent on finding Freya and letting her know what kind of beast her grandmother truly was, when the lioness from earlier came crying on her shoulder; her friend had finally returned, and the evidence of a very ruffled bird perched on the nearest shrub was shame-faced as she explained all that had transpired to cause her lateness, a story she has had to repeat a few times in the lionesses' determination to seek forgiveness from those she had worried.
As the bird spoke, it half-fell on Astrid's deaf ears, her thoughts still reeling from the earlier conversation. She had sighed with relief that he had been innocent, but his defense of his actions was anything but pure in his way of thinking.

Freya had to know.

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