[ Previously ] ..... "We do not play with mortals," her commanding tone cracked, but the whip of her words fell short upon his deaf ears. He cocked his head, so much like his simian descent, and questioned childishly, "Why not?" ***** She felt her temper flair at his willful ignorance. From the day she had brought him home, set on giving him every opportunity lost to him when his lineage faded in a haze of madness and blood, he had pushed back at her with defiance. At first she assumed it was due to the trauma of his past and his inability to deal with his emotions. Then she chalked it up to his irrational rage, brought on by his basic animal nature--his hormones--his physical separation from others as he aged--and any other excuse she could find to lie to herself. Eventually, though, she had to accept that he was defiant because it was part of his nature. He could not fit in, could not settle...