While not her initial goal, the moment Alula saw her brother her eyes went wide with the thrill of the hunt as she wiggled and pounced almost instantaneously to give Tarn-kun no chance to react. Uta looked away however missing the tiny chaos about to ensue, that most likely would come their way regardless if the siblings got too rough and started their 'im telling mom' commotion. But there she goes, she could feel the question coming on before he even thought of stringing the words together to ask - she knew him so well after all these years.

"Would pomegranate make for better, appropriate art medium for them?" Why that was on his mind was just a lingering thought that emerged when he mulled over what were 'dad things' and what 'things' would dads bring. It would seem silly to anyone else but this coming from a PI tom, and Uta for that matter - since bringing a skull for kits to play with someone had to screen his bad ideas to keep him from accidentally uncovering someone uncle and bringing the bones into camp. He didn't exactly even give this courtesy to his other PI litter, missing one of many chances for trial and error that could've made the difference today but, that's just his life story with him. He was learning though, there was a good chance instead of 'pomegranate' he would've said 'blood of the fallen.'

Alula-nova-kun gently play-bite her brother thrice over his shoulder and back as she held her grapple, ears folded back and intent on proving she would win this round against her brother.

Uta nose wrinkled a little and he turned his gaze away to the kits, at the mere mention of citrus - such a common tom to hate the smell of citrus like so many others - it guaranteed she would be right about the kits.
"And here I thought you said torture was off the table" he mused with a smile and reciprocated an affectionate nuzzle back, but he gave thought to the rest of her sentence. "Prey is still scarce, perhaps I could bring a less favorable prey lizard or a harmless garden snake? ... I could try the coast again, the fish don't swim that close to the shallow end, and the seagulls tend to get in the way, but could always just drown one of them. Or pluck their feathers." He shrugged a little and raised a brow of interest at the less violent, but humorous thought.

Alula-nova-kun proceeded to make a point to dramatically 'charge' up her bite as her brother flailed, the struggle instinctively fueling the thrill of the hunt in her as she chomped down her final blow. She squeaked an open mouth mew as her victory screech.

Uta had also heard the speculation and father and son were meant to participate in a potential scouting till it was mostly scrapped leaving them uninformed of the details but they could piece it together rather easily. It did interest him to know that others were being creative with their 'hunts' as well, and made his mind want to wander on the thought of what they might look like but tried to refocused less he forget his inquiry for her.
"Well then we'll have to change that - Tarn-kun and I do have an upcoming patrol later for the coast and they're clearly dying to get out of camp." he glanced at kits and their mock fight. "We'll have to bring back a feather or the whole wing for Alula-nova to see too."

(oh yes, feel free c: )

Alula-nova promptly jumped up and pranced around her brother pretend-dead body for the whole camp to see or just their parents who she now noticed in the distance talking. Her paws tingled to ran up and gush to them but she had a feeling she shouldn't interrupt this time and it would be way cooler of her not to, as to not ruin the moment. Instead, she sat with her nose in the air, asking herself 'are they looking this way? just keep posing' and pretending not to notice them after staring directly at them for 5 seconds.

As he didn't mind not bonding he hadn't thought of them not 'being around each other a whole lot' and seemed surprised she had already noticed. Man he really had to step up this parenting thing, he thought their time with them would decrease from here once they were out of the nest and off being busy with whatever tasks someone else had for them. Huh, what a lot of effort.
"Yea, a picnic sounds nice - is now the time to give them fermented berries?" asking every question except the main one, 10/10.
/ The youngling won't be young forever /
"I suppose that's true," he didn't see them growing up as a bad thing at all, he was kinda waiting for it to not be held to some standard of being a parent anymore or any of the fall out with it. "Although, it will be interesting to see them grow up." At least that much was true, he knew better than to lie to her.

Although he couldn't relate to whatever it was that was so sentimental about kits he suppose it must be like the day he called 'that one' his friend and meant it even when no one else was around, and the feeling that stirred his chest when he said he didn't want to fight anymore cause he was his friend. Why did he have to mean it and make him miss those fights, those thrills and why did make him pause so? It must be like that. It must of been like the day Accalia confessed to him and everything spelled disaster, so many reasons and excuses to pick from he wouldn't even have to make up why he didn't want a mate, why he didn't want to love. But she always meant every word, every action, and that day vulnerability stirred emotions in his chest again. Making him afraid of losing someone again. Maybe on day he'd realize he'd be afraid to lose the kits too.
( b r u h i got to at least write a mini paragraph on them falling in love oml it'd be adorable)

(o o f i feel that, mobile be so finicky im hoping the tapatalk app makes it easier or at the very least when i zoom in i dont accidentally reload/misclick etc.)

"Moons?" he clicked tongue, "Well I suppose age makes a finer wine." Uta mused hoping a carefully made batch could last, he heard of better success with twolegs objects some could even keep water out and buried under soil and rocks and keep a good enough seal, not to mentioned twolegs had abundance of salt and that was another endless potential and possibilities itself.
/ I love you and you are a wonderful mate... /
It caught him off guard like nothing else, suddenly looking at her as if it was unwarranted. But why? Why did it make him ashamed like it wasn't his best? Like he could do so much more but for some reason he was just, like this? Why was he still so selfish and incapable of change after all this time?

"No, it's nothing compared to you." he soften his surprised look into one of admiration, "I never thought I'd meet someone who makes me try as hard to change as you do." 'again' felt like the word being left out of that sentence but that didn't make it any less true. To even love someone near, half, or at all was a feat in it's own, but she was on the same level as him. "I promise I'll do better" he kissed her forehead, something so innocent and yet so intimate at the same time funny how it was of favorites ways to show affection.

(this gonna make that break up hurt a lot more hnugh /hold back tears)

He took those words in quietly, leaning on her. He didn't know why she could drag out this motivation to change from no where. From somewhere, deep within he long since considered a void of nothing where things go to disappear and stop existing never to been seen again. This moment of just being here was nice, of doing nothing.

"They're restless" He turned his head and once again thought of the kits. "You know they want out of here - the camp, the territory" he expanded on the notion.

"They want to see so much," he leaned back a little and seemed to look off in the distance as he thought about what he would do. "Maybe I don't have to take them to see all the clans but even to meet their half-siblings would still take me all over the place and give them a general view of them all given how spread out they are." He finally let the intentions slip it wasn't just a simple visit one clan or going to be a one-day back and forth kind of trip. "I guess even in the most efficient route it would take a few days, and I don't intend to ask permission but if the kits missed any of their training..." He let on he was fishing for answer to that, because the only concern he saw was that might be noticed and get on Regulus' or their mentor's bad side. Not a thought was given to any of his older kits, their mothers or any other ex-flings he had scattered out there or how Accalia might feel about it.

Ah, there it was, 'they become fully trained' - it was logical he couldn't argue with that. It would be less of a hassle but 6 or even more moons of begging and consistent bothering was not something he would look forward too, but he could suffer it if the latter option was too reckless to drag the kits in. Course he didn't fully see the risk in things, since when was he afraid of a little danger? But he also had to play protector of these kits and that was not in his habits yet and couldn't risk accidentally letting them getting themselves killed. On one paw, they could always have more kits, but on the other paw she might not let him if he couldn't protect this litter. Alright, fair, checkmate; just like that it was decided.

"True, don't say I didn't warn you when they get even more restless and start bothering you for the next half or full year if we're really unlucky." he chuckled, he had faith their kits were strong and would far excel the norms and be full hunters before they were even full grown and hopefully by then, they would be out of their hair fur with all this nonsense but who knows?

(oh thank you i try xD)

Uta purred seemingly in agreement to her response as their kits ran up.
"Yeah mom we're borrrrred!" Alula-nova-kun participated in the whining, knowing they could get their father to agree to nearly anything without hesitation but mother knows best and unfortunately for their fun need she was a blockade, although for their safety she was probably the only thing standing the way between them and bad decisions that could lead to early greeting of lady death.

Alula-nova-kun took her brother's address as a sign for them to whisper talk into an agreement on what they wanted to ask rather than the more obvious avoidance but ah to be young and oblivious.
"Oh, okay this is our chance, he doesn't say no to anything and she can't object" the sister now also misinterpreted their mother's passiveness as a once-in-a-lifetime dream ticket to do whatever they want and huddle whispered as if their parents were right next to them.