Exton

Keon watches Star's eyes for a moment. He looks away. The tree line is not far away, and he feels himself a coward. Trooper plops himself down, trapping Keon's foot under his weight. He leans his head against the Dark Lord's thigh, giving a gentle reminder that he won't move until Keon speaks.

Keon looks at the couple then, his daughter. The words start, tentative, then take on a life of their own. "I have been doing some thinking. More than some. if Cassie were still alive, I would not be standing here, feeling like I am a puir example of who I try ta be. I am a Dark Lord, a Rider of Herne. What kind of Father could I be? I dare not take Mera to Faery. I have kin that would take her, but they would treat her as less than Sidhe."

Trooper shifts from Keon's foot and the Sidhe Lord begins to pace, hands clasped behind his back. He stills, looking out over the yard.

"I want my daughter to grow up loved. Cassie would have loved her with all her being. I want Mera to know that kind of love. I know I am not capable of giving that to her, no matter how hard I try." He turns and rests his gaze on Star. "You already love her like that. If you would be... amenable... I would like to have the two of you raise Mera. I am not talking adoption. I am asking that she be fostered in your care. That Mera know you as her guardians."