“Exactly” he growled unhappily. “She even attempted to love another, had children with him and all, and then he died when the volcano erupted. I wish I could bring her happiness, but I will not do so at the cost of Zee” he explained, and there it was, the heart of his pain with Deathbelle. He would have loved her for her sake, but now he had too much to lose.

“I would appreciate that” he said, when Io offered to bring the woman her friendship. The Titan leaned closer to the woman, a sad smile playing on his lips, followed by a sigh. “She believed we would always be together, and for most of her life wanted no other. I loved and respected her, as an authority first, and a boy second. Zee... “ he shook his head, and didn’t finish the thought. Zee he loved as a man, and fought to gain her as his wife. He did right by Zee, but sometimes it made him feel like a bastard to Deathbelle. After all, he had belonged to the Empress.

"Sometimes that's how the world works, " She said sadly. "It brings us heartache and pain. But, " Io sighed, "if it was meant to be, it would have been." A hard pill to swallow for some. Regret was a heavy thing. Thankfully, Iolaire did not regret. Every step in life brought her to where she was. To where she was meant to be.

"In time things will become easier. You'll have to let go for Zee's sake and for Deathbelle's. You deserve to be happy. Zee deserves to be happy." He was so worried for his former master... "I'll befriend her. Maybe she just needs to talk it out. Neither of you need to squash that love, you need only move past it and accept that it's a different kind of love." Look at her... relationship therapist extraordinaire.

He shook his head, blinking out of his revere, and offering her a smile. “I took you here to show you what will be Armada territory, yet here I am telling you my woes” he said. “Your right, it is life, and life will always have its complications” he said, shaking his head again and getting back to his feet. He looked in the direction Deathbelle had parted in. he would have given much to see her happy, but Zee was the one thing he could not give up. The look she had given him would always haunt the Tyrant, such was the way of those that wormed his way into his heart. It was hard to ignore it when they were hurting.

Io was right, clinging to the past wasn’t helping anyone. Still, he barely knew Io, and here he was unburdening everything to her. Professing his love for the Empress, his love for Zee. she didn’t want to get tangled in this complicated web. “Did you decide on a place you like for our future herb garden?” he asked.

He was sorry to have shared his woes with her? Silly. "I don't mind. It helps to talk things out." Part of healing was listening. Io liked to think that she was a good listener. She liked to think that she was good at everything though so maybe she wasn't the best judge.

Sirius changed the subject to the garden and the little wolf shrugged. "There wasn't much time and its hard to say if the spot will still be as good when the volcano is finished, but I have an idea." She would construct her garden by the widest tree in the vicinity. "I'll dig a den below the widest tree and use the roots to dry my herbs upon." It was a tactic that she'd used before and it worked out rather well. The subject reminded her just how much she had to do. The amount of work was daunting, but she would persevere.