Paternal Instinct

It wasn’t unusual for Seth to take a walk early in the evening, just as the sun was setting was one of his favorite times of day, along with the morning twilight. It reminded him of quiet days spent with his wife on a peaceful island paradise. Those days had been some of his favorites, and had remained so throughout the eons.

Tonight, he was taking his evening stroll down one of the streets he favored here in Hub when there was a sudden tug on his pant leg. Looking down, he saw a...child...who still held onto the fabric of his pants in her tiny hand. His immediate reaction was to look about them to find her parents; it was common that one of them accompanied a child of this age. And yet, he saw none.

“Up!”

The utterance was far more clear than he would have expected, but there was the child, looking at him expectantly, her arms raised slightly. With a chuckle, Seth bent to oblige the daring girl, straightening as he shifted her in his arms to cradle her, “Beauty and intellect, hm? Not to mention bravery. And…” he blinked, “A bit of the divine in you, too…. Either my wife has been busy and neglected to tell me again or you belong to another like me.” He looked the girl over, her features, her aura, “Not the little love goddess’ spawn I think.” He smiled as Sera reached out to grab hold of his hair, pulling his head down, and laughed gently when she attempted to put it in her mouth, gently untangling her fingers and freeing himself, “I’m afraid I’m not for eating, little one. Aren’t you missing your parents by now? They’re certain to be missing you…”

The god of death, darkness, storms and deserts stood to the side of the lane, holding a baby and speaking quietly to her, all while smiling gently, and he didn't seem to have a single care of anyone spied him like this.

@alex

It was remarkably distressing for Castiel to find out that Serafina could already fly- and was faster than he could fly as well. It meant he had spent a notable amount of time chasing her through the hub, trying to make sure that his daughter didn't get herself hurt.

It didn't help that she wasn't going in straight lines, and that just made her that much harder to follow. He nearly flew past the end of her trail- with how sudden it was. Dropping out of flight, he noticed his daughter almost immediately.

In the arms of the god of death. Yeah that seemed apropos based on Castiel's skill as a father.

Straightening his coat and tie, the angel walked over as though he hasn't just been chasing down a child that by all reasoning should not be able to hold her own head up yet, let alone fly.

"Serafina." He called quietly, stretching his hands out to his daughter.

She could already play him like a violin, which was concerning. All she had to do was tilt her head in a parody of his own look of confusion and he wanted to just let her do what she wanted.

He sighed slightly, moving to physically pull him back to her. By the time he had his hands to where he could hold her- she had a grip on the God's lower lip. Trying to take her hands away just resulted in her tugging harder. "Serafina, please let go of the nice Death God's face. You are much too young for the conversation about strangers, but just know that you scare me when you act like this."

Sera babbled slightly, flailing her little arms with reckless abandon. "Yes, of course." Cas replied as though he had any idea what she was saying. She babbled again. "Very much So, that's right. Will you please let go now?"

She didn't. She did take her other hand and grab Cas's finger and started biting at it with her very toothless gums.

Cas sighed. "I'm Sorry, I'm not a very experienced father." He added to the Death god. "I am Castiel, angel of the Lord. And this is my daughter Serafina."

@eve

It was amusing, how a child so young, so innocent, could be so fearless of someone like, well, him. He was a god, yes, and that on its own might not be frightening, but he was death god, a bringer of darkness, harbinger of twilight. And yet, here was this sweet baby girl, somehow divine in her own right, pulling his hair without any fear of repercussion. To say that Seth was rather taken with the little nephilim would be a gross understatement. She was adorable.

And she wasn’t his, which made her safe. Well, safer.

The moment the angel appeared, Seth was aware of him, though he didn’t so much as glance over in acknowledgement. An angel made sense, this little one was possessed of divine grace, which likely meant that the angel was…

”Serafina.”

Seth had to chuckle, “Well, it’s a bit on the nose, isn’t it?” He asked the baby in his arms, his smiling stretching into a grin, “Yes, but it’s pretty, and that fits you quite well.” His eyes finally drifted over to the angel, warm and sincerely happy and amused. Just now, Seth didn’t look much like a death god, his aura had dimmed down to accommodate the baby he held, he appeared to be a man fussing over a baby girl he was holding.

When Sera grabbed hold of Seth’s lower lip, the god chuckled, looking over to Castiel, “You know,” he spoke around the girl’s hand, “I believe she might just like me.” That the sentiment was returned in full was evident on his features, shining in his eyes. Sera didn’t let go, and Seth didn’t seem overly bothered by her grip. “Neither am I, really,” he laughed again, his eyes crinkling at the edges, “Though likely I have just a touch more experience than you do, Castiel.” He winked to the angel, “I figured what you are. I can sense it. And her. Your daughter is lovely.”

@alex

Castiel's worry was clear in the line of his shoulders, wings sweeping low, ready to separate the child from the god if it became relevant. Yet, the tension he held in his muscles slowly dissipated as he saw how this other man was around his child.

The angel did not care in the slightest that this other man was a god- his worry came from being unable to prepare for what this stranger may do to his child. So all he needed to relax was the obvious happiness his daughter had, tugging on this God's hair.

Castiel smiled easily, comforted to have his daughter holding on to his finger, even if she quickly changed tracks from chewing on it to trying to pull the Death god down to where she could get at his hair. "I assumed, as I know what you are as well. I simply thought introductions may be in order."

Then his smile grew sad, his hand twisting in the baby's grip to hold her hand properly. "She is. Very much like her mother." He replied, voice going even more guttural than usual with emotion. It hadn't been nearly long enough since Daphne had passed away, and the pain was fresh once again.

Swallowing hard, he focused on the deity holding his daughter. "She does seem to like you. Do you have any tips on how to stop her from flying away?" Cas asked, voice serious, as one of his wings extended to curl around his daughter's shoulder.

Seth all but ignored the angel’s posturing. It was evident that the man was a parent, and that he was concerned about his daughter, who had obviously gotten away from her father at least for a few moments. Of course, finding her in the arms of the god of death and darkness couldn’t do the poor man any favors, either, whether or not his primary concern was that Seth was a stranger or a god.

Instead, Seth’s attention was on the tiny nephilim in his arms. Even as she pulled his hair and grabbed ahold of his face, Seth’s body language, his expression, was that of bemusement, and of affection. Children who weren’t his, who weren’t gods, they were… Something. Sweet, innocent, they stirred something in Seth, a deep longing and a deeper sadness.

“Well, angel Castiel, I am Seth.” Serafina pulled for him to lower his head, and the god humored the baby. He could have pulled away or refused to bend his neck for the baby, but… She was cute. And there was no harm, no need to worry, about acting in such a way for Sera. She wasn’t his, she wasn’t a god. She was no threat to him. The sadness in Castiel’s voice was something that Seth understood. He looked over to the angel, offering him a small, sympathetic smile, “I see. Well, in some ways very much like her father as well.” he motioned lightly toward the child’s wings, small as they were.

Tips on how to stop a child from flying away… “Fly with her?” That had sometimes worked for him. He had run, swam, and flew with… Seth blinked, then gave a half shrug, “When she does it, don’t punish her, but instead speak to her calmly, letting her know that it worries you, that you don’t mind her flying, but to perhaps bring you with to explore with her?” It was… the best the god could do. It had been eons and eons since he’d really been able to be a father, a real father, and his experience then had been limited.

@alex

It was interesting that Castiel almost felt like he was intruding on this man's moment despite the child being Cas's. This seemed to be something that the God had needed, a child who could not threaten him. Cas didn't mind that, and if he came to know this God, he may even trust him to watch the beautiful demi-angel without supervision. In the mean time, he would watch warily, even if Sera seemed very pleased to be able to try and climb over the death God's face.

"It is an honour to meet you Seth." He offered quietly, watching his daughter struggle to pull the God's hair and lip at the same time before she finally gave up her grip on Cas's hand to make it possible.

With his attention on Sera's wings, Cas ducked his head in acknowledgement of the point, reaching forward to carefully pluck a molted feather from where it was stuck between two others. She wiggled at that sensation, though she didn't leave her quest to climb the Death god.

Cas listened carefully to the advice given. "Yes. Of course." He offered, though the advice had been what he was already doing. The intention behind it was what mattered anyways.

"Do you have many children?" He asked idly, as he stood there. He felt awkwardly like a third wheel, but he had no intention of leaving his daughter alone.

@eve

Once, a very, very long time ago, Seth had allowed another child to climb on him, to grab, pull, pinch and even bite as he had pleased. Today, he was much the same with Serafina, humoring the infant nephilim much as he had humored an infant godling, and doing so with a smile far more gentle than many would have thought him capable of.

“And it is my honor to meet you as well, Castiel.” He smiled to the baby, “And my deepest pleasure to meet you, little Serafina.” The god simply chuckled when Sera reached out to grab him with her other hand as well. “Your daughter is beautiful.” He didn’t mean physically, of course. No, she was charming the god quite capably, his hazel eyes warm, his tone and expression affectionate.

“The most difficult part is figuring out when to back away, to let them make their mistakes and fall down.” Seth’s voice was intended for Castiel, his tone still warm, but now thoughtful, introspective. “As they grow older, they resent it when you hover. They yearn for freedom.” Reaching with his free hand, he tickled her nose lightly with the tip of his index finger, the tickle more from his aura than his physical form, his voice soft, gentle, but with something of a promise in it, “Pity for the fool who tries to do you harm, Little One, for I will see to that soul personally.” He winked to her, his voice lightening, “But who could do wrong to such a brilliant soul?”

"There is a difference between having children and being a father," the god told the angel, his voice turning somber even as he focused his gaze on the baby trying to climb his face, “I have had many children, but I have been a father only to a few.” It was honest, but it was also a sad admission. “You will no doubt do better than I have done.” And while the words were sad, they were also confident. Seth knew he had been a terrible father. Absent with most, and perhaps those were some of the luckier ones… He had been the end of no few of his children, not because he wanted to be, or because he enjoyed it.

He hoped it could be the other way this time. Where he could be a parent to his children, even if he hadn’t been thus far. Where he could love them, and perhaps earn their love in return.

He could hope, at least.

“If you want her to want you…” The god’s eyes slid over toward the angel even as the words were in the angel’s mind, unobtrusively, simply a silent form of communication, ”Pretend to leave. Not angrily, but disinterestedly. That will sometimes get their attention. They like having ours, even if they don’t want to give us theirs*.”

@alex

*disclaimer: I am not a parent. This is likely a terrible idea… But he’s a god, and he doesn’t worry about the safety of his children too much because… gods….

Cas smiled at his daughter's gurgling and sputtering, reaching out to pat the top of her head, which a fruitless attempt by Sera to swing her wings at him. Most young ones were confused enough figuring out four limbs- Sera had an extra pair. She shrieked with glee as that action lifted her up high enough to get a really good grip on the death God's hair.

Castiel's smile lessened when he was not focused on his daughter, yet it remained. Turning to the Death god, he replied easily. "Thankfully, I know I must figure it out at some point along the way, as her older self came back to this time to tell me so." His daughter perked at the mention of the larger nephilim, looking his way for a small moment before trying to eat Seth again.

Cas couldn't help the bubble of happiness he felt at seeing his daughter so excited- and the humour that came when she missed the Brown hairs and rediscovered her hand instead.

His smile did weaken at the suggestion. He put his hand on Sera's cheek, who cooed and leaned on it. "I do not want her to think I will not be there when she wants me. I have not been her father for a full year, and yet there is nothing that would stop me from protecting her."

As if on cue, his daughter turned slightly and offered her small chubby arms to be picked up, calling out for him. "Cas-Tel." She demanded, even as he leaned forward to pick her up and correct her.

"Dad." He offered instead, laying her to rest on his shoulder, where she immediately started tugging at his wing feathers.

The father and daughter pair were sweet. Both of them were dear in their own way; the nephilim adorable, the angel so uncertain and concerned. Had Seth ever been so hesitant? He remembered his first children, those whom he had not been allowed to raise, but he'd had little attachment to them. His first son with Adhira, shared with a demon god, though... Those memories were bittersweet, sorrowful. He couldn't remember panic or uncertainty, he only recalled the love and joy he'd felt back then. The peace his son had brought him. And sometimes, the frustration.

Chuckling, Seth allowed Sera to tug his hair, bemused with the tiny girl's antics. But Sera alone didn't have his attention; Castiel words earned a glance from the god as he considered, "Love is a very helpful guide." Seth gave Castiel a smile, "And from what I see, you have plenty of that. Both of you."

Seeing Castiel's reaction to his suggestion, Seth reached out to place a gentle hand on the angel's free shoulder. "That is a good thing. So then, how to get her attention seems to be showing her love and tenderness." Seth smiled, "Which I think will be easy with this little one."

Dad. Seth shook himself slightly. He hadn't been "Dad" in ages. Eons. Long enough that he wasn't certain that he could easily recall how being "Dad" had made him feel. He didn't let the silent melancholy the simple exchange brought up within him show, instead giving the angel a nod, "Take care of that delightful child of yours, Castiel." He winked to the nephilim, "And should either of you require something that I can provide, please do ask."

Perhaps Cas was an outlier when it came to his daughter. Perhaps he was the only first time parent who panicked that they weren't doing anything right. He was inclined to believe otherwise. There was simply so much that could go wrong, babies were so fragile, that it was more than a little frightening. He loved his beautiful child so much already, the idea of being the reason something happened to her... He wouldn't forgive himself.

He smiled softly at Seth, as he put the emotions the Angel held to words. "Yes." Cas agreed. "I do love her wholeheartedly." He offered with another stroke of Sera's hair. It was hard to let someone else hold his child without having any contact with her at all- which is of course why he chose not to.

He bounced his daughter slightly at the God's words. Seth was once again correct that it would be easy for Cas to show Sera affection. When she was this sweet, it was hard not to.

Cas smiled easily at the offer. "Thank you. I will. If you ever wish to spend more time with her, I would be happy to bring her over-" Sera made a face that Cas was starting to recognize as hunger. "- but it seems I must be off to feed her. Because you get grumpy when you're hungry, don't you?" He crooked the last phrase directly to his daughter who was trying to eat his coat at that moment. "It was a pleasure meeting you Seth. Farewell."

@eve

Raani couldn't help but wonder about her father at that moment. He was so happy to hold this child that wasn't his own. He listened happily to her demands. He laughed and smiled. Seth allowed this baby to chew on his hair, claw at his face, shriek in his ears.

Seth seemed so very happy to be holding on to this little girl.

What was wrong with Raani that he couldn't love her as easily as he did this stranger child?

@eve