This is a shameless cheer up bc we really do be in the worst timeline right now. I never posted the official part, but Varn was very feral as a cub, and regularly terrorized whoever (not Viskar) was watching him. Ashvin has many ankle scars from a tiny Varn’s teeth.
UPDATE 7/21: Names changed to reflect a lore update!
Anyway, Rosalind is also a tiny terror. Nice little cheer up post under the cut. No picture bc lazy.
“And she’ll need to eat again, so you’ll need to find a broodmother for that,” V’kai spoke, looking at his little brother, “Are you sure you can handle this, Varn?”
Varn just scoffs. “Of course I can. She’s just a cub.” He walks over to his niece, messing with her fur with a paw. “What’s the worst she could do?”
Ashvin almost looks amused as V’kai bites his lip. “Okay. Okay, yeah. Send a messenger if you need anything, we’re just going to the Trading Center-”
“I got her! Go do whatever you need to do, bro, Uncle Varn’s got this!” With one last worried glance, the King and his consort walked away, leaving Varn to look at Rosalind. “So, uh, is there anything you like to do?”
She doesn’t answer. Those wide, vacant, yellow eyes stare through him as if they see every wrong he had ever committed. “Earth to Rosie?” Varn moves a little closer, trying to convince himself that no, the cub wasn’t dead. She was just fine when her parents were here. “Hello?”
There’s still no answer. He reaches out, touching her face, and then, she looks up at him, a sparkle in her eyes. “There you-” His reassuring smile was wiped off his face when tiny little claws dug into his ankle, the cub’s low growls irradiating the air. He rolls on his side, bringing a back paw up to try and remove her, not wanting to seem overwhelmed just yet. After all, some cubs are just like this. Some cubs are weird. That’s okay. He was a weird cub. He can handle a small, four month old cub. She was barely old enough to begin weaning. “Let go,” He speaks, stern, trying his best to emulate Ashvin’s gruff, angry voice. “Rosa, you need to listen to me.” Her growls grow in volume, and now, her teeth join in the death grip. It’s clear she doesn’t plan on listening, and his kicks grow harder as he tries to separate her from his leg. “Rosalind!”
————
When Ashvin and V’kai return home, the sun has almost entirely set, and the first thing they see is the broodmothers of the pride looking into their cave, clearly amused. “What’s going on?” Ashvin’s voice cuts through the crowd, and the lionesses part, leaving just enough room for the pair to walk through.
Varn is curled up in the corner, clearly terrified. V’kai narrows his eyes, watching as Rosalind tears into some very expensive blankets and decors. “I thought you could had this, bro.”
“V’kai!” The young lion is up in a heartbeat, running forward and skidding to a stop as his older brother and brother-in-law just stared. “Oh, spirits, am I glad to see you, even Ashvin... There is no way that that... that thing is a cub! She’s been terrorizing me all day and biting and growling and scratching.”
If there was a camera watching, Ashvin probably would have been staring right into it. Instead, he looks at his daughter, who is still tearing into her blanket, and huffs out a few words. “Rosalind. Stop.”
“Okay, Daddy!”
She toddles over, happy as always. Ashvin gently strokes her head with a paw, before allowing her to climb on his back and get comfortable. Varn’s jaw is slack, and V’kai simply grins as he pushes the younger’s mouth closed. “That... that’s not the Rosie I watched. The Rosie I watched was a demon-”
“Goodnight, Varn,” Ashvin grins, and Varn, for once, has absolutely nothing to say.
