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Olruggio knows, in a peripheral sort of way, that he's not the most Alpha of alphas.
It's not something he's ever examined all that closely, because he's been busy for…. about as long as he can remember, and ruminating on designation of all things isn't exactly high up on his priority list. Especially when it's competing with 'keep his mate and four pups fed and housed' and 'keep said mate and pups out of trouble.'
Both tasks are a hefty undertaking on their own. Four apprentices is a challenge for a small atelier to support. Qifrey's educational stipend helps, but not nearly enough. And four girls all aged twelve and younger is a handful. To say the least.
If he's not traveling to meet with patrons or working on a commission, he's attending tea parties served with mud cakes and puddle water or sitting still under the threat of an eleven year old's wrath while his nails are polished.
Olruggio could not say for the life of him which task was more tiring. At the very least, any of the girls were more likely to show him a bit of mercy should he fall asleep during their activities than a patron would. Well. Except for Richeh. She took after Qifrey in that way. She had his exact same pout-
The point was. Olruggio was very busy. And very tired. He didn't have much time to dwell on how he stacked up against other alphas. He had four black holes disguised as little girls to feed, an atelier to keep afloat, and a mate who deserved semi-regular offerings gifts when he could manage it.
Still, the thought hovers somewhere in the back of his head when he slowly drifts towards consciousness in the pseudo nest Qifrey has put up in the sitting room (which, he still needs to ask about because apparently he's missed a lot during his latest business trip) and realizes the girls have all woken before him.
Specifically, the girls are awake before him, and have decided he needs three new lopsided braids in his hair, judging by all the giggling and tugging happening over his head. There's a plume of mischievous pup in the air like honeyed milk and the first thing that pops into Olruggio's mind is 'my father would have tanned my hide for a stunt like this.'
…Which is a bit of a useless thought, considering he hasn't spoken to the man in nearly half a decade, but naps always make his thoughts a bit funny.
Coco and Tetia are the loudest. He can't hear Agott, or smell her, which likely means she's still asleep, or just a captive to Qifrey's vice-like idea of cuddling. In which case, he silently prays for her and her circulation.
Richeh is awake, and close, but she's much better than the other girls at keeping quiet. She smells just as pleased as the other two, though. But she's also worse at braiding, so Olruggio has to fight a wince at whatever impressive knot she seems to be working into a patch of hair near his ear.
He listens, and waits, patient as scale wolf on the hunt, until one of the girl's hands gets close to his jaw.
Olruggio snaps his teeth and growls playfully, causing a domino effect of shrieks and squeals around him.
"He's awake!"
"Scatter!"
"Ah!"
They all try to run but the blankets are thick and difficult to untangle from, so they're more or less left to wriggle away clumsily, like overfed brush buddies.
He blindly reaches out and flails until he finds an ankle in his grasp and pulls in a madly giggling pup. Tetia, he confirms with bleary eyes.
"Wha're yeh up to, eh? Barely morn, and you wains 're already causin trouble," he bemoans with a playful growl.
Tetia wriggles and squeals, face flushed from laughter and also a bit from practically dangling upside down in his lap.
"O-ollyy! It's almo-ooh-st-it's almost noon!"
He chuffs and rakes his fingers down her sides, causing her break into a fresh peal of laughter, as is fitting for her crimes.
"Brats," he accuses without any real heat. "The lot of yeh."
"Ha! H-aaah, n-no we're not, O-Olly!"
"No? Could 'ave fooled me. Doin me up like one of yer dolls in my sleep. Brats!"
"Tetia!"
Richeh dives in for a rescue attempt, and though she is still far more slight than he or Qifrey likes, her dead weight flop onto his stomach still makes him wheeze.
She barks at him, which isn't much of an intimidation tactic, considering it's more of a yip. Still, plenty of practice with the pups' silly seasons has Olruggio leaning back a bit, pretending to be put out by her fierce defense. He doesn't flinch when she nips, but he does loosen his grip on Tetia, content to reward Richeh's rescue attempt with a bit of mercy.
He chuffs some more and tugs Richeh close, but doesn't try to tickle her, because she hates that sort of thing. Instead he lets her bite at his knuckles with her dull little milk teeth, still a year or two off from falling out and yielding a proper set of fangs, and tentatively scents her whilst Tetia squirms free and runs off in Coco's general direction.
Richeh is not nearly as touchy as the other girls, still put off by adults at the best of times, but she's still a pup, and cannot resist relaxing a bit when he nuzzles her brow and taps her wrist gently with his own.
He's careful in a different way than he usually is with the other girls, mindful of the scars he knows lay beneath her sleeves. Damage left over from her previous atelier that nearly mangled her under developed wrist glands entirely.
Richeh squeaks at him in a grumpy manner but allows the scenting anyways, yawning a bit. He sympathizes deeply with the action. Though he must have slept a staggering three hours or so with Qifrey and the girls, he still feels the fatigue clinging to him from his trip.
Along with an itchy sort of discomfort that reminded him he still needs to get the hell out of these traveling clothes, and absolutely boil the road dust off his skin as soon as possible.
Richeh seems to share his opinion, judging from the way she wrinkles her nose up at him.
"You smell like you slept outside," She said bluntly.
Olruggio grunted and scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. His fingers caught on a tiny braid at his nape and he winced.
"Er, might… not've slept at all last night, actually."
She cocked her head.
"Why?"
He shrugged and looked askance.
"Well…'spose I was in a hurry teh get home."
"Why?
"Wasn't a good trip. Patrons can be a pain teh handle sometimes."
"Why?"
"Lots 'o reasons. This one jes' had a bad attitude. I'm glad teh be back, though."
Richeh blinked and settled her head in her hands.
"Why?"
Olruggio raised an eyebrow.
"Well…"
He scratched his chin, feeling himself flush a bit.
"Well, because I miss you lot when I'm gone."
"Why?"
"Well, why wouldn't I?" He huffed. "You're good girls, for the most part."
"Why?"
"Probably because of all the work Qifrey puts into teaching you wains some manners on top of all the magic."
"Why?"
"He wants yeh to have a good life."
Richeh hummed.
"…why?"
Olruggio smiled.
"Ach, 'cause he loves yeh."
"Why?"
He huffed, exasperated.
"He just does."
"Why?"
"Just- because!"
Richeh grinned, smug pouring into her scent as she bares her teeny milk fangs.
"That's not a reason!"
Olruggio groaned and rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, you win-oof!"
Satisfied with her victory, Richeh scrambled off his lap, kneeing him in the gut on her way out.
Olruggio groans and goes limp against a nearby cushion, arm braced around his stomach.
A quiet, raspy chuckle sings in his ears, prettier than any birdsong. He cranes his neck and meets a crystal blue eye crinkled up in amusement, far more alert than a man who's only just woken should be.
Olruggio huffed.
"Enjoying the show, Luv?"
"You seemed to have it handled."
Qifrey's voice, typically so smooth and clear, is ragged and a touch hoarse, roughened by sleep and overuse. Olruggio recalls vaguely that Coco had mentioned something about the girls strong arming their teacher into reading for an absurd length of time the night before. Seems they're both victims of the sprogs today. He'd be lying if he said that didn't soften the blow to his pride at least a little bit.
Olruggio rolled his eyes and rolled over onto his stomach, wincing at the twinge in his back as he did so. Stars, he was getting so old…
Once settled, he propped his chin on a hand and sighed, feeling all of his four and twenty years and mourning the days of his teenage hood when he could lay about in any position he liked and never worry about paying for it later.
As though he could read his thoughts, Qifrey gave him a sympathetic look and attempted to roll his shoulders only to be disrupted by a squeaky growl and tiny hands shooting out from the lump of blankets clumped around him to tighten around his waist.
Olruggio raised his brows.
So that's where Agott had been lurking this whole time?
He craned his neck to get a better look at the small lump nestled against Qifrey's side and his brows raised even further.
"Is she… still sleepin?" He whispered incredulously.
Qifrey stroked the small tuft of black curls peaking out and crooned fondly.
"Yes," he confirmed quietly.
He shot his mate a knowing glance.
"She's been studying too much again," he said a touch reproachfully. "I've been catching her slumped over her desk when I check on all the girls in the mornings. If she's sleeping at all, it's not more than a few hours."
Olruggio chewed on his lip. He always worried about the pups, but Agott in particular was a frequent point of concern. Her stubborn struggle for more independence than she was ready for leading her straight into one issue or another. This was not the first time Qifrey had shared grievances about her sleeping habits.
Olruggio had his opinions on how to address the problem, however…
"'Frey," He starts, in a particular tone that makes Qifrey stiffen.
"I'm still not doing that."
"If the girls cannae be trusted to-"
"I'm not forcing a curfew," Qifrey snapped, and Olruggio was taken aback to catch the sour note of anger, far sharper than he's ever faced when they get into this particular debate.
Qifrey's lips curled over his fangs in distaste. His eye fixed on the slow rise and fall of the Agott-shaped blanket lump.
"The girls deserve their autonomy-"
"-And I've always agreed with you on that," He cut in as gently as he could manage, tilting his head in a show of submission. "But we also agreed to reevaluate and enforce certain rules if the pups' health was being affected. Yeh wanna have another repeat of the vegetable incident with Richeh, huh?"
He bristled, a sharp hiss pushed out between his teeth.
"None of my pups-"
"Look at'er, Luv. Sun's nearly hit midday and she's passed ou' through Tetia shriekin 'er head off. I dunno how bad she is now, but the sprog was startin to resemble a raccoon 'fore I left. Have those shadows cleared up at all, or are they worse?"
His mate was silent, and Olruggio thought to himself with exasperation that Agott's stubbornness was almost certainly learned just as much as come by honestly.
"… I'll think about it."
Olruggio relaxed a fraction and nodded.
He wasn't unused to bickering with Qifrey, but rarely did they have a proper fight. He especially hated disagreeing over anything regarding the girls. Qifrey typically handled the four of them just fine, but even he had his blind spots, and Olruggio wasn't going to overlook the very real harm in letting Agott continue to run herself ragged.
They really didn't need another Vegetable Incident.
"I know you worry 'bout the sprog's independence," He said. "But it's more important teh keep 'em healthy, and pups don't typically care as much as they should about what's healthy. Boring stuff like that is our job for a reason, innit?"
Qifrey huffed reluctantly.
"That is true…"
He trailed off and Olruggio bared his neck a little more in appeasement. The ragged edge of his mating scar peaked out below the collar of his blouse. Most mating scars wouldn't show that far up, but the scar Qifrey had given him wasn't exactly typical.
Qifrey leaned over and showed his forgiveness for their argument with a soft peck to his cheek, one hand sliding possessively over his scar. The gland there was not as strong as the one on the other side of his neck, but Qifrey still preferred using this particular one to scent him.
When Qifrey had bitten him, he had dug his fangs in deep till he hit bone, and pulled. It had nearly taken out his scent gland entirely, and whenever the weather turned he felt a phantom ache in his neck and shoulder. As though Qifrey were still latched onto his neck, always with him in this tangible way even when work and travel kept them apart.
Olruggio sighed and crooned a bit as Qifrey's cool wrist slid over the nape of his neck until their scent glands aligned. Something in him unclenched like a knot finally pulling loose when the Omega's sent bloomed in the air, herbal and warm and…much sweeter than normal actually…
"Frey, are you-"
Qifrey's head snapped up, his pupils narrowed down to slits.
"Where are the girls?"
He startled. The Omega's tone had shifted again to something sharp and tense. The rapid switch in emotion was difficult to process. Especially with Qifrey's wrist still pressed to his nape.
"What?"
"Did you see where they went? I can't-Did they go outside? GIRLS!"
Blankets went flying as Qifrey wrenched away from Olruggio and scrambled to his feet.
He flailed and quickly rolled away from hasty limbs, narrowly avoiding being stepped on yet again in a single morning. (and really, that happened too often, now that he thought about it. That was a hazard of living with pups that no one tells you about. frequent trampling.)
"Girls! Girls!"
Qifrey rushed out of the sitting room with a stressed keen that was largely uncharacteristic of him.
Olruggio frowned and cupped a hand over his mating bite, then lifted it to his face to sniff.
He hadn't realized anything was off earlier because the pseudo nest was saturated with the girl's scents, and four pups bundled up into one small space was bound to smell powdery and cloying like a nursery den. But now that the girls had run off and he had a direct sample?
Sweetbread and herbal tea…thick and honey-like. Far sweeter than was typical of Qifrey's scent. In a way he recognized rapidly.
Oh boy.
"Mmmph."
Grouchy mumbles and rustling disturbed the sheets, and soft violet eyes popped out from under one of the cushions.
"Ma'sr Olly?" Agott mumbled blearily, little nose twitching in an effort to pick up his scent in the area.
"No," He retorted quickly, with just a hint of amusement.
She glared at him fiercely, which only heightened his amusement.
"Olly," She growled in a scolding tone.
"Tha's my name, don' wear it out!" He replied cheerily.
The pup glared at him harder.
Agott never did find anyone very funny within an hour of being awake. He could sympathize, but it hard to take pity when one of his the pups was looking at him like she honestly thought she was any scarier than a brushbuddy.
But Olruggio also knew Agott did not often tolerate teasing or baiting any better than Richeh tolerated tickling so he elected to divert her attention instead. Being a caretaker so often involved 'taking the high road' as he called it. (Qifrey however called it something along the lines of "For heaven's sake Olly stop teasing her or I won't say anything when she bites you!")
He yawned.
Agott yawned back, and he barely bit back a laugh. Or maybe a coo. But if Agott didn't tolerate teasing, she really didn't put up with being found cute. Not by anyone other than Qifrey anyways.
"So," He said. "What'd I miss, sprog?"
"Not much," She said.
She grunted and wriggled out of the blankets with some difficulty, hindered by her thick curls flying about. Static and general disarray had given her an impressive fluffy black halo that stuck to the corner of her mouth and flopped into her eyes.
Scuffling was heard in the direction of the entrance and the creak of the front door being swung open violently, along with Qifrey's frantic keening.
"That's only just started yesterday, so you haven't really missed anything," Agott said, then yawned again. She finally tugged herself free from the last blanket and pushed her hair ineffectually away from her face, revealing red crease marks on her face that made her look so little.
'Pup' He wanted to croon, and wondered to himself if Qifrey's preheat hormones were affecting him too. He wasn't the soft sort, after all.
He cleared his throat.
"An' the sleepover?"
"Oh."
Agott frowned.
"Something is wrong with Coco, apparently."
Olruggio stilled.
'-Didn't know I was already pack.'
She had said something strange when he'd arrived, now that he could recall. She was confused about her place in the pack? Or she wasn't sure she belonged here? Where had she gotten such an idea? Bright little sprog like her had to know Qifrey adored her, and he'd thought the girls were all quite fast friends at this point.
Oh crap. Was it his fault? Was it because he'd been too short with her when they met? Had he made her more nervous than she seemed? But that was a few months ago…had something changed since then? Or was it something else? Had there been another spot of trouble while he away on commission?Worry twisted up his stomach.
"What's 'appened with Coco?" He asked.
Agott shrugged, still fidgeting with her hair.
"I don't know. Master Qifrey spoke with her privately about it. But… she'd been crying, and master Qifrey is even more vigilant over us now than he usually is around this time."
As if to prove her point the front door bursts Open. There is a scuffle and the sound of whining pups and his mate's familiar fussing. A minute later Qifrey is in view of the sitting room holding onto three of their four pups by the ribbons of their robes. He looked every bit a fussing dam with babies secured by their leading strings.
Though the girls had only been out for maybe five minutes, Coco and Tetia were inexplicably scuffed and muddy around the knees and Richeh was unashamedly dangling under Qifrey's arm, nearly dozing through his scoldings.
"-safe to go out without me to watch you!"
Coco, Tetia, and Richeh all exchanged a series of loaded looks. It was the knowing exasperation he'd seen them all share more than once, when Qifrey got it in his head to be particularly fussy about one thing or another.
"We're sorry, Master Qifrey," Coco piped up after a moment. "We didn't mean to go outside at all, only-"
"I left my skip rope outside," Tetia interrupted. She lifted the length of rope in question up for everyone to see. It was covered in a layer of mud that implied it had been forgotten under some bush or cranny for a fair bit longer than a single evening.
Unsurprising. The pups were always forgetting their toys outside. Olruggio was no stranger to wandering around the fields surrounding the house to help the girls search for an errant ball or doll…Or shoe.
Don't ask him how kids manage to lose whole entire shoes. He still doesn't know, despite having fetched far too many little shoes out of trees, streams, and on one occasion, a skunk den. Which Tetia never did explain, and even a year later he's still a little afraid to ask.
"And fetching your skip rope was a three person job?' Qifrey asks with a raised brow.
"It was tangled in a bush," Tetia said. "And Richeh is best at untying knots."
"And I was on the step watching." Coco said, fidgeting with her fingers. "But. um, the path chalks were still outside too. and it's been so rainy, so they should go back inside-"
Tetia giggled.
"And then you slipped!"
Coco laughed sheepishly and nodded.
'Yeah, I forgot to be careful on the path when the stones are wet and I fell in a puddle."
"-And Richeh was still untangling the rope so I went to help her up-"
"-Ah, but when she pulled me up, I accidentally pulled her down."
"-They splashed me," Richeh interjected crossly.
"Yeah but you still got the rope untangled. Thanks, Richeh!"
Richeh only sighed.
Olruggio carefully hid a wince at the splotches of mud specking the floor and noticed the way Qifrey's eye was starting to twitch.
"Okaaay!" He clapped his hands nervously. "Tha's more than enough excitement for the mornin. Girls, what do we say for runnin off without telling yer master first?"
"We're sorry, Master Qifrey," The pups said in unison.
Qifrey sighed and released their robes.
"It's…fine, girls."
It wasn't, but, glancing around the room, Olruggio's mind turned. Picking apart one big mess until it broke down into several little problems.
"Okay," He said again. "Ah, Agott?"
"Mn?"
"Help put away the blankets with yer-with Qifrey, yeah?"
She yawned and nodded.
"Fine."
"You three-" He pointed to the girls.
"Bath time. I need one too, so I'll help."
Richeh frowned.
"But baths are for after dinner."
"Not when yer drippin mud all over the hardwood, they're not. Now go and get some clothes, I'll get the towels and fill the tub."
Richeh made a skeptical noise.
Olruggio weighed his options.
"…I'll get the special soap you like?"
She perked up.
The 'special soap' was a pricey bottle of herbal soap Olruggio had brought home from a business trip in a crowded seaside city the previous summer. He preferred to save it for particular occasions when he needed a pick-me-up involving a fancy bath and a book and a nice bottle of wine.
He'd shared a bit of the soap with Richeh once when she was sick with the pox and needed a distraction from the itchy spots plaguing her skin. She'd loved the way it smelled and was always looking for reasons to weasel a bit more of it from him. Sharing bits and bobs and the occasional free gift from a patron with Qifrey and the girls was something he was used to, and he didn't mind the sacrifice much if it got three muddy little girls into the bath a bit faster.
"Okay."
Rather than simply ask to be put down, Richeh rag-dolled into a lump of dead weight and dropped out of Qifrey's hold. Much to his visible displeasure.
"Richeh accepts your negotiation."
Qifrey frowned but let her leave without comment. Coco leaned briefly against his arm and followed with Tetia at her heels.
Olruggio got up with a groan, knees popping. Agott snorted and he shot her a glare before she could make any sort of smart comment on the state of his joints. Generously, the sprog grabbed an armful of pillows and wandered off rather than attempt to deal the latest in the long string of blows to his ego that children are uniquely suited to doling out.
He rubbed at his lower back and sighed.
"Well, that should buy you a bit of time to yourself. Once Agott's done with the cushions just send her along to the bath and I'll get her sorted too."
Qifrey smiled.
"Thank you, dear."
Most alphas Olruggio has known dislike being shorter than an omega, but he can't help feeling a little curl of pleasure when he tilts his head back to kiss his mate.
Qifrey is pretty from every angle, but Olruggio feels particularly lucky to get to see the curves and angles of his face from this specific angle, because the light highlights the curve of his jaw and the developing laugh lines at the crease of his eye. It's not something he'd be lucky enough to see if he weren't nearly three inches shorter than his partner.
Qifrey hums in appreciation and follows up on the kiss with a peck to his cheek, and then his forehead.
"Right, I've got to get this mess cleaned up. You'll manage with the pups? They can be a handful when they're all in one room."
"S'fine, I can manage. Leave the hearth, if yeh finish 'fore I get the girls done in the bath."
He smirked.
"Yes, darling, I promise to leave your hearth alone."
"Oy, don' give me that. I'm not the one who gets impatient and chucks ten logs in at once and nearly burns the house down!"
"That was one time!"
"That was three times, 'Frey."
The communal bathroom on the ground floor was a lot bigger than the one attached to the master bedroom, not to speak of the half-bath attached to the workshop that had taken nearly three years of convincing for Qifrey to allow him to install, citing the concern that if he kept adding amenities to the tower, then one day he might never come out at all between projects.
The sink was large and the cabinet behind the mirror was well stocked, and he was pretty damn proud of the work he'd done on the tiling, ceramics as good as anything found in the great hall with his own personal touch of glow tiles placed around the loo and the sink to make it easier to navigate at night.
The best feature however was by far the in-ground bath tub. It was large enough to fit a small pack on just such occasions as this, with ledges for storing soaps and oils and two water spouts, which was another custom feature he'd gone out of his way to design.
Water features were miles away from his field of expertise, but he'd wanted something special, since he hated the thought of Qifrey struggling to bathe regularly due to the triggers it posed. The result was one thick spout for filling the bath and a second, much thinner overhead spout which shot out water hard enough to sting. It would be uncomfortable for most people, but it was so notably different from rainfall, especially when the water was steaming hot, that Qifrey had a much easier time with it than he'd ever done with the baths in the great hall.
Because he wanted the tub filled by the time the girls came down with their things, Olruggio turned both spouts on and left it to run while he ran up to the bedroom.
The second he was through the door he finally ripped off his dusty cloak and kicked his shoes off. On his way to the wardrobe, he nudged the offending items towards the laundry basket and pulled out the first things he could find, a skirt and a shawl.
And of course, the fancy soap, sitting in a bowl on the cluttered vanity he shared with Qifrey. He fished the small green bottle out of its nest of sample size lotions, cosmetics and the odd loose earring. When he raised his head, he caught a glimpse of himself in the vanity mirror and grimaced.
…better grab his shaving things, too.
Richeh tried to swipe the soap from him the second she entered the bathroom with a bundle of clothes and her favorite towel.
"Ah-Aht!" Ollruggio raised it out of her reach with a scolding tut.
"You said-"
"I know you, pup," He retorted. "I let you have this bottle, and the whole lot of it ends up in the tub in one go."
"Richeh likes the bubbles!"
"Yeh can have bubbles. With Your soap."
He pointed with what he hoped was a stern look to the much larger jar sitting in one of the bath ledges that had water repellent and durability spells etched into the sides. It contained a soft pink liquid soap meant for pups that was gentler on the skin than the lye bars he and Qifrey typically used, and did not sting so badly should it inevitably end up in a small child's eyes.
Richeh pouted up at him but he held strong (this time) and she huffed in silent acquiescence after a minute.
He got into the bath first, fumbling with the overhead fountain to turn it off now that the tub was mostly full. He left the lower spout on for a few more minutes so that Richeh could pour in the soap and gave it enough time to foam up. In that time, Tetia joined them, and Coco and Agott trailed in shortly after, all with their own bundles of clothing and towels that stacked up on the sink counter.
"Oooh! Bubbles!" Tetia squealed happily.
She made to step in but Olruggio clicked his tongue.
"Socks, wain."
"Oh! Thanks Olly!"
"No worries, Tet. Got your hair oil?"
"Yes, i remembered. Can you help me with it?"
Agott frowned as she stepped in.
"Can't you do it yourself? You usually manage fine on your own."
Tetia only hummed and smiled.
"Yeah, but I want Olly to do it."
He chuffed and shook his head but took the vial of oils held out to him.
"Yeah, a'right."
Tetia chirped happily.
"Thank you Olly!"
"Yeah yeah, dunk ya head?"
She giggled and plunged under the water, hard enough to plash Agott. She growled and waded away with a huffy expression.
"So immature."
Olruggio rolled his eyes but let her be. Sometimes it was better just to let the pup have her cranky bouts. She'd lighten up on her own eventually. Probably once she had some food in her.
Tetia emerged with a wide grin, her thick curls fanning out in the water and sticking to her face and neck.
"I look like a giant squid."
He cocked his head.
"Yeah sort of. Yer hair could be the tentacles."
"Mhm!"
She rose and tilted her head back so he could work the sweet smelling oils into her scalp, mindful not to pull at any of her fine pink locks.
"Olly?"
"Yeah, wain?"
"Do you think giant squids enjoy baths?"
"Er, well they live in the ocean, an' tha's just a giant bath for fish ain't it?"
"Oh yeah."
"Master Olly-"
"Richeh I'm not yer-"
"Olly, I want the fancy soap now."
"Did yeh finish with yer hair?"
"Yes."
"Even scrubbed yer scalp?"
"…"
"Scrub, Richeh. An' don't forget behind yer ears either."
Richeh growled but did as she was told.
He finished with Tetia's hair and swiped his wrist over her neck. The scenting wouldn't stick very well in the water, especially with all the soap, but the action itself was comfortable.
"All clear. Go'n sort yerself, Tet."
"Thank you, Olly!"
"Yer welcome, wain."
There was a ripple and Richeh emerged from beneath the foamy layer of bubbles coating the water with a challange in her eyes.
"Done."
He cupped her head and gave it a good look."
"An' yer ears?"
"Yes." She said mulishly.
"A'right."
She immediately tried to lunge over him to reach the bottle sitting on the ledge.
"Aht, aht!"
Olruggio threw an arm around her middle and pulled her back.
Richeh was furious.
"You said-"
"I'll give you the soap!"
"Then give!"
He raised a brow.
Richeh stilled.
"…Please?"
"Better," He praised. "Hold out yer hands."
Rather than give her free reign over the bottle, he poured a bit into her cupped hands. It was clear she wanted more than he gave her but even Richeh knew when she was fighting a losing battle. Stubborn little thing that she was.
Ah, but her displeased pout reminded him so much of Qifrey when they were both kids. She furrowed her brow in the same way he did when someone was stopping him from getting his way.
He stifled a chuckle over the thought and left her be, lest he invite anymore biting into his future today.
A lapse of peace settled over the bathroom as Olruggio and the girls all tended to themselves. Agott and Tetia both required extra work on their hair besides applying the necessary oils, though Agott typically took less time about it, being much shorter than Tetia's.
Richeh just liked being in the warm water, for the most part. For all she liked keeping her hair long and the nice smelling soaps, it was typical that she would find some annoyance in the actual maintenance hygiene required. Brushing teeth and scrubbing behind her ears or cleaning underneath her nails were all boring.
And Coco…
Had been very quiet this whole time, actually.
Coco had settled down in one of the corners near the tub steps. She had both her hands over her neck and she looked visibly uncomfortable in a way that set off alarms in Olruggio's head.
"Coco? Yeh a'right, wain?"
She nodded but it did little to reassure him.
"I'm okay. It's just, um…the soap just stings a little."
He furrowed his brow in concern.
"It stings? Yeh get some in yer eye?"
She looked askance and shook her head slowly.
"No…"
She lowered her hands and the sight of her neck made him hiss sharp between his teeth.
Red, aggrivated glands, covered in scabby nail marks.
Coco read the panicked worry rapidly spreading across his face and turning the faint smoke scent coming off him into something more ashen and waved her hands about frantically.
"It's fine, it's fine! It's only- I was stressed, and like I said last night, I was thinking silly things and-um, well I've been scratching a bit-"
"You're not supposed to scratch," Richeh said solemnly.
Coco slumped, ashamed.
"Yeah, Master Qifrey said that, too."
"He's right," Agott interjected, not as harsh or commanding as she usually was. Understanding was flickering in her eyes, a sympathy that resonated among all four of the pups that made Olruggio's chest squeeze.
He hated that every pup in his pack had any sort of experience with the kind of turmoil and trauma that led to the sort of injuries currently marring Coco's neck. He especially hated the helplessness in realizing the newest of his pack had been suffering for weeks, and it had completely escaped his notice.
He really wasn't much of an alpha, was he? Some strong caretaker he was, missing something like this.
Gently as he could manage, Olruggio cupped a hand over Coco's nape, not quite touching the inflamed glands. He could feel the heat coming off her poor irritated skin and he had to swallow down a pitying croon.
"We'll get ya sorted," He managed to say. "Next time you should try to keep the area dry, though. Qifrey can show yeh how to cover it up to keep it dry when you need to wash up, but otherwise, we can apply some medicine and let it breathe, yeah?"
Coco nodded.
"Okay, Olly."
"Righto! Now I think it's about time we all got out of here before we get so wrinkly Qifrey mistakes us for raisins and tries to put us in a batch of his oatmeal cookies, yeah?"
That broke the tension enough for Coco to relax and crack a tiny smile.
"Yeah, okay."
"Mmm, cookies," Richeh said dreamily as she clambered out of the bath.
"Don' even think about asking yer master for cookies," Olruggio warned. "Yeh haven't even had breakfast yet!"
"Scones, then?"
"…Maybe," He relented.
He did like scones as much as any pup. Especially Qifrey's scones.
Because Olruggio was, more often than most people would think, a bit of an idiot, he'd left his towel further away from the tub than the girls had. Unwilling to flounder about in an attempt to reach it, he took the faster route and shook his head roughly.
The girls all shrieked as water splattered over the room, hitting them all without mercy.
"Olly!" Agott yelled, enraged. "You can't do that!"
"Got the job done, dinnit?" He said dismissively.
"It's grubby!" Tetia complained whilst she wiped her face dry roughly with her towel.
"Ah well, no shame in being a bit of a grub every once in a while."
"That's not what master Qifrey says," Coco pointed out, though she was clearling stifling a fit of giggles. And because she was a very good pup, she also passed him his towel, for the sake of peace in the small room.
Olruggio smirked.
"Ach, naw. Yer master likes me a lil bit grubby."
Coco and Tetia both giggled but Agott wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"Ollyyy, gross!" She complained.
Richeh raised her hand.
"I thought it was that he liked you a bit scruffy." She said matter-of-factly.
He paused, searching his memory.
"Oh yeah. Sorry girls."
"Oh Olly," Tetia sighed, shaking her head in a mock-mature sort of gesture, as though he were the errant child and she the long suffering minder.
"Cheeky sprogs," he muttered, toweling himself, pulling the drain open on the tub and toweling himself off briskley.
"At this point, Master Olly," Agott said wryly, "If we're cheeky, then it's largely your own fault."
Olruggio couldn't find an arguement for that, so all he could retort with was a weak; "I'm not yer master, brat."
Though they had no real reason to, all four of the girls continued to keep him company in the bathroom even after they had all dried off and bundled themselves up in warm knit clothes befitting the first blusters of autumn chill that was creeping up on the Naakiwan Downs.
Once he was done drying off and dressing himself, Olruggio had lifted Coco onto the sink counter and tended to her gland wounds. Thankfully, he was informed that Qifrey had already treated the area the night previous (not that he expected anything less of his mate, beyond upstanding dam that he was) so there was only a little work to be done. Merely disinfecting the area, and soothing the area with balm.
At some point Richeh climbed onto the countertop herself, and Tetia followed. Agott did not join them, but rather had opted to sit at his feet and lean against his legs, dozing off.
Once Coco had been taken care of, all he had left to do was wash his face and tame his scruff a bit. What the girls found so interesting about sitting around and watching him shave, he couldn't possibly guess.
While he trimmed the shag on his face into a slightly more respectable beard and took a straight-razor to the itchy stubble around his neck and jaw, the girls seemed strangely content to engage in a bit of quiet. Coco watched his routine with strange curiosity, and Richeh allowed Tetia to brush her hair and work it into a neat pair of pigtail braids.
Though he didn't entirely understand it, Olruggio found this rare sort of quiet incredibly comforting. The air in the bathroom was warm and steamy and smelled thickly of clean soap and mild herbs and the powdery comfort of content pups. It was a welcome lull to the chaos and noise that usually followed the children around. He could not help the rumbling purr that resonated in his chest, a sound which was echoed in smaller, higher pitched responses from the girls.
The peace lingered a while longer, whilst he rinsed his face and cleaned the spattering of hair trimmings out of the sink, and by then he could hear the familiar clanks and scrapings that accompanied activity in the kitchen, a reminder that there would be no peace at all in the atelier if the children were not fed soon.
"Okay, let's see what's for breakfast, shall we?"
"Yes, please, I'm literally starving," Agott moaned against his knee.
He snorted.
"Right. Like yer master lets anyone literally starve in this household."
The look she shot him was withering, but her only response was stomp towards the door and aggressively tug it open. An action that did not have the intimidating edge she seemed to think it did, being that she was padding about barefoot in a thick chunky knit sweater with too-long sleeves and damp curls frizzing up into a messy puff. Over all, she gave him the impression of a particularly cross lamb.
"Ach, dramatic wain," He muttered fondly.
He looked at Coco askance, pleased to see that she looked fairly happy, taking her time to wiggle off the counter and follow her roommate out into the hall.
"go'on then, lets get yeh sprogs fed before you figuratively literally starve. We can't be havin any o' that."
That got a peel of giggles out of the remaining girls as they all padded off towards the kitchen.
In the half hour or so since Olruggio had wrangled the girls into a bath, Qifrey had clearly been hard at work. All the clutter that had occupied the sitting room was gone, and the floors had been thoroughly cleaned of any mud, and then some.
Thankfully, the hearth was untouched as his mate had promised. He split away from the girls to tend to it and from the direction of the kitchen he could clearly hear Agott's agonized cry of "Master Qifrey I am literally starving!" and his mate's very amused, "Oh my, we'd better fix that-"
There was also the creak of a cupboard being pulled open followed by the loud shaking of a bag that caused an excited 'Pweee!' to chirp from underneath the couch just before a fuzzy bundle of white fur darted out and raced off nearly faster than Olruggio's eyes could catch.
"You'd think we never feed any of the small creatures living in this house," he muttered to himself with a shake of his head.
Fixing up the hearth was a familiar routine to Olruggio. Cleaning out the ashes, laying down the wood, stacking it just so, filling the kindling in the middle along with one of his own custom fire starters. Technically speaking, a spell could ignite a flame just fine, but doing this part manually, he believed, served better for a hotter, longer lasting fire that would keep the atelier exactly as warm as it needed to be without becoming stifling.
Fire spells were just too consistent across the board, he thought to himself idly as he used a poker to prod the logs into a more ideal spot around the rising embers. No fire spell could exactly replicate the effects of any specific type of wood. The natural elements and variables that caused unique combustion effects, from the hardness of the wood to how old a log was when cut, resin content- Things that he could observe and identify but could not copy exactly. Yet. But maybe with his next set of experiments he could try some individual sequences and start with a better imitation of the sound wood burning fires made, the crackle and pop that spell fires didn't replicate naturally…ah, but if he could figure it out what could he use it for-
"Olly?"
Olruggio jumped and twisted around so fast his neck popped. His vision held the red-yellow after-images from staring too long into the now steadily burning hearth fire.
Qifrey stood in the sitting room doorway with his arms crossed.
"Olly," He said in a tone so light and casual that Olruggio instinctively recognized it as anything but. "Breakfast is ready."
Olruggio cocked his head, not quite following.
"Yeah? I know, Luv. I already sent the girls along. Ain't they settled in already?"
Qifrey's smile widened and his eye flashed.
"The girls are settled, yes. They were quite hungry. Understandable, considering how late we are all starting today."
Though he was quite sure by now that he had made a critical misstep, Olruggio could not understand what it was for the life of him.
"Olly."
"Er, yeah, 'Frey?"
"The girls are all incredibly hungry, and I know with absolute certainty that they have eaten within the last twelve hours."
His smile widened, long, sharp fangs emerging from beneath curled lips.
"I cannot say with the say with any knowledge at all when you last ate, Olruggio."
full name.
Oh, shit.
Olruggio flustered and tugged at the ends of his shawl.
"Ah, well. Er, t-that's a bit complicated-"
"Olly."
His jaw snapped shut and his spine straightened automatically at the authoritative tone his mate took.
"Yes, Luv?"
"Get in the kitchen."
He stood at once, without an ounce of resistance.
"Yeah, right, on it-"
When he walked past Qifrey, a hand snapped up and closed possessively around the nape of his neck.
"Oh, and Olly?"
A thick plume of Qifrey's scent fell over him, overwhelming with preheat pheromones.
Olruggio swallowed thickly and nodded.
"I made scones," He said sweetly. "You will eat at least three of them."
Olruggio wasn't much of an alpha. He had terrible instincts and he wasn't very strong and he didn't have a single domineering bone in his body.
But if he knew anything, he knew how to respond when his mate took that particular tone with him.
"Yes, Omega."
"Good Alpha. Now go and sit down, before Richeh eats all the sausages."
Olruggio sat down with the girls and the moment he sat, Coco shuffled closer to lean against his side while she ate and Tetia chirped happily in greeting through a mouthful of food that he didn't have the heart to scold her for. Even Agott smiled at him, all his teasing evidently forgiven the moment she had a strip of bacon in her hands.
He accepted the plate placed in front of him loaded with scones and eggs and he even managed to secure a sausage from Richeh's greedy grasp before it was too late. Feeling for all his worries, perfectly at peace from the approving croon from Qifrey when he started to eat and from earning a quick, soft kiss against his temple.
Maybe to the world, he wasn't a good alpha, but if he was a good enough alpha for Qifrey, and his girls?
Well, that was more than enough, wasn't it?