One of the few things our maternal welcome-wagon was good for was pointing out that the local wildlife's supposed to be dangerous. It doesn't take a whole lot to scare off some birds and squirrels.

[He lets the Axew grab the stick without further complaint, half watching it to see what it does, but also with a sidelong glance at Astrid to see if she'll pick up the part he didn't say — that presumably if their protectors get bigger, then the wildlife will, too.]