Lokir was dating a daughter of Angela? For some odd reason, Akira could only think of a small Angela hanging on the bear's arm, yet it could not be right. Akira shrugged the image away for now. Fortunately, the conversation stayed easy for now. "Pak pak like big lizard with large leathery wings. Akira believe it from Horae. No, Akira still mostly alone, but make many friends. Friends look out for Akira."

She listened intently as Lokir talked about spells and were-animals. He did not use a spell, it was inside of him. It made her wonder how he found out, and if she was one too. With her birth mother dead, it was difficult to ask anyone. The childish teen giggled along with him about sneaking away for honey. Then, he took a serious demeanor, and Akira knew he had something important to say.

At first, she was silent as she absorbed the information. Lokir, God of Strength and War. Were deities just picked? Did it happen often? Did it hurt? Akira smiled up at him, displaying a rather calm attitude. "I happy for you, Lokir. How did you become god? Why of strength and war? Oh! Akira learn something big since we met too!" Once more, there was that bounce in her step, making her seem far younger than she appeared. "Akira found Daddy! Can you guess? No? It's Xunatar! He no idea of Akira, that why Akira alone for so long!"

But she loved her life, and would not change it for the world. Even if she had the chance to keep her mother alive, Akira feared it would harm her chances for meeting Lewis. "Lokir?" She looked up at the deity with a shy, nervous expression. "How boys show they like girls? How Akira show favorite person that he my favorite?"

Lokir listened as Akira explained what a pak pak was, and where she thought they were from. ”Friends are good to have, you always know that they’ll have your back when things go wrong.” Lokir replied with a small smile. He explained more of being a werebear and that had had become a God since their last meeting. She asked some questions but sped past them to tell him that had found her father. Xunatar?! That wasn’t who Lokir had expected, obviously, but as well as Lokir knew Xunatar, which wasn’t a great deal, he didn’t think Xunatar would be a bad father, he seemed protective enough. But what would that mean for Akira’s adopted mothers? Perhaps that was a question for later.

”I’m happy you found your father, Akira.” Lokir smiled. ”As for your questions. I was chosen to be a God by a being called the Voice. I don’t much about the Voice, to be honest, but it chose me to represent the aspects of Strength and War. Before the insects tried to invade us I had Courage instead of War, but the Voice changed that near the end. I’m not enterally sure why the Voice did that. I believe it’s so that I can better defend the lands from such invasions and attacks in the future if the need arises.” Lokir explained as best he could.

However Akira moved the topic again, asking Lokir how to show a favorite person that he was her favorite. And how boys show that they like girls. Lokir raised a brow and stopped walking to look to Akira for a moment. ”Akira, why do you appear as old as you do when it hasn’t been that long since we last saw each other?” He asked bluntly, starting to think more on what was going on. This topic she brought up, rather suddenly, had caught him off guard. But the way she asked it and her new older appearance, combined to make him wonder if there was something else going on here.

Akira nodded solemnly. Somehow, his words created an image of a shadowy figure standing above the world. His words were whispered as he made important decisions about chosen deities. Promoting, demoting, moving and banishing them in the game of life that only he can see. It made her wonder what this voice had in store for her father.

Lokir unexpectantly stopped and was rather blunt with his question. She had not missed the fact that he skipped answering her own. That blush returned to her cheeks, deeper than before. Akira could not even bring herself to look at him. ”Akira borrowed potions… Made me this age. I chose to… I feared being… to…” Her words faltered and she sighed with frustration. For Lokir to understand properly, he needed the whole story. It was a story she had not shared with anyone before.

”Long time ago, Akira met boys in Hoja Mesto. Thieves guild. Made many friends. One day, leaders had… magical accident with someone. Oldest was turn girl. Other aged. Other is Lewis, my favorite. I didn’t want… to be seen as… sister.” Akira did not want to be out aged by him. Where he had no choice, she did. For her, it was important, a necessary sacrifice. ”Akira help so much better this way. Mommy Celeste and Larka frown, but try understand. Do you understand?” The way she gazed at Lokir now was begging he would understand her reasonings.

He listened with patience and didn’t interrupt as Akira started to explain what had happened to her since they last saw each other. Thieves guild? That could rarely bode well for anyone, let alone a little girl. But she said she had made friends, and, if that was true and Lokir had no reason to not believe Akira, then perhaps it had worked out.

When Akira finished Lokir was quiet for a few moments as he put things together in his own. In a calm voice he spoke, wanting to clarify and see if he understood what she had said. ”So, you made friends in the thieves guild out of Hoja Mesto, and had a favorite friend there named Lewis. But at the guild there was an accident involving magic and Lewis was magically aged to be older, right?” He paused to let her answer. ”Ok, so now he’s older than you, at least in body, and you didn’t want to be seen as his little sister. So you… borrowed, magical potions of your own to age yourself to be the same as him. Right?” He waited for her answer again before continuing, scratching at his chin as he did. ”I can see why your mommies would frown on that, more so since you make it wound like you went behind their backs to make yourself older.” He paused a moment. ”Tell me honestly, Akira, please. Do you like Lewis? I mean, like like him? Also, where did you borrow the aging potions from that you used?” He wanted those questions answered before he’s say what he truly thought on this. She was still a child, a little girl, in her mind set that much he could tell, despite her appearance as an early teenager. So this situation had to be handled carefully, and he was sure that her mothers were doing the same thing, and he didn’t want to step on their toes in this either.

The young adolescent nodded along as he repeated her story. "Yes, that right. And Xeik turned girl." Her hopes soared as he paused again, everything is completely accurate. "Yes! Exactly! He didn't like it, say it not same thing. But to me, it is." She gazed up at him with such pleading innocence, Akira desperately needed him to understand. Lokir was right in the assumption that it was all behind her mothers' backs, the way she ducked her head only confirming his statement.

Akira gazed at the ground, contemplating his words in full. Did she like like him? Did that mean the way Mommy Celeste likes Mommy Larka? Thinking about him sent butterflies fluttering in her tummy, a feeling she liked only too well. "From Mommy Celeste… She try make Mommy Larka stay younger. She not want live longer than Larka." Something about Celeste not wanting to suffer the pain of losing Larka due to longevity seemed romantic. "After Akira learn of magic accident… Akira… borrowed potions without ask."

Her head hung from the shame of what she had done. However, if given the choice, she would do it all over again. She would not want to miss out on any of the experiences she has had since then. "Do Akira like like Lewis?… Yes… I think I do…" Akira blushed a bit. "But Akira can't tell him! He so serious. He never mushy. So Akira gotta show him! Otherwise, it always about guild. Can Lokir help Akira?"