When the bough breaks.....and tempers flare!

Yes, there is much argument AND angry shouting, for the manimals are a touch pissed at the thought that THEY can't take care of human children!! Finally, it is the older, greying Duke Dredrick who brings a semblance of order to the rapidly heating discussion......by slamming his gaunleted hand THROUGH the table!

The Duke is mad....and more than a little insulted about something.

"I...WILL....BE ....HEARD!" the Duke grinds out at the startled group of adventurers. He leaps ahead of anything anybody has to say about his actions, because his sense of......honor has been insulted in the extreme by some of what has been said.

The elder D'Honaire storms over to Astra 1, and pins her with a steely glare. The amazon warrior finds herself VERY uncomfortable right then and there.

"I'ver heard what you've been saying for the past few minutes....as well as your sisters and my sons," the enraged Duke whispers harshly. "I heard, but I find it extremely hard to believe what I heard what you said!

"But...." Asra 1 protests, starting to grow angery. The Duke rides over her, verbally.

"YOU pretty much insulted your host, Lord Fred and the Pack by saying it wouldn't be right for them to bring up infants that YOU have GIVEN up ANY claims on." Dredrick says. "In essence, you were saying that THOUGH they still have knowledge of what it means to be human......and though these manimals are people.....though no longer exactly human......that they were unfit, BECAUSE they were not human."

"While I have objections to the manimals raising my children," Astra 2 says quietly at the side. "It wasn't due to the idea that they were unfit. Rather, it was due to the fact that I have a pretty good IDEA who wants to keep his children, RIGHT?" Fred 1 and Fred 2 nod silently, with or without the aid of their respective Astras, the D'Honaires were GOING to have and raise their children.

"AND, my DEAR sister," drawls Astra who is....not really smiling. "Need I remind you.....about the little fact that of the approximate three hundred MILLION human beings that USED to be on my world, only a FIFTH remain?! And of that fifth, I shan't remind you of the fact that their plates are more than full of a helping of problems asssociated with the collapse of basic services and such? Things like food....shelter? Things like no longer having a Lord or whatever to protect their lands? It's them and maybe a handfull of people against Minerva knows WHAT?!"

"I'd apologize," Fred 1 states. "Not only did you speak out of disrespect.....you spoke out of sheer stupidity, Astra 1."

"I'm glad now that you're not going to marry my son," whispers the Duke, so only Astra 1 can hear. "That way I don't have to worry about the disgrace you'd bring upon the D'Honaire name. My twin brother did more than enough in that department!"

Astra 1 looks at the faces that are glaring at her.....looks over what she said.....and felt....small. She looked at herself, and....didn't like what she saw. She couldn't deny it, for her closest "sister"....the one who had for all intents and purposes had been her up to gods knows when, was looking at her in pity....and disgust! What had she experienced that she hadn't?

A issue to discuss later, if her sister was willing, but right now.......

"I....appoligize for what I said," she says barely above a whisper. She hangs her head in shame, for she feels.....shame.

Fred's scowl instantly lifts, as well as the other manimals' scowls.

"Apology accepted!" Fred says gaily. He then chuckles at the surprise looks he garnered from the quick turnabout.

"Remember," the manfox says with a grin worthy of the fox form he wore. "Manimals are EMPATHIC! Meaning I can feel when an appology is heart felt or not!"

"Her applogy may lack....elegence," smiled Alicia, tail twitching in satisfaction. "But she makes up for it in sincerity."

Astra 1 looks up, and has....a look of thanks, because she sees in the eyes of the manimals that they have forgiven her for what she said. She swears that she shall not blunder like that again, if she can help it!

1. "I have a counterproposal," Astra says. "One which I think that will satisfy all, and it takes care of a possible problem that a certain shadow town could cause."

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