With Lilith spending time with Romulus and Ezra spending time with Syanna, it really made him face the fact that his children weren't pups any more. He didn't know what their relationships would eventually grow to be if it was anything at all, but there was one thing that he knew he didn't want for them. He didn't want them to make the same mistakes he had. His mother hadn't really spoken to him about relationships or mating and he had more or less figured things out as he went along. He didn't know if it would have made a difference in his life, if he would have been more cautious with who he slept with or not, but with how many litters he had fathered, each with different mothers... It wasn't something he was proud of. He had already spoken to Ezra and he felt like Lillith was next in line. He wasn't exactly looking forward to this conversation with his innocent daughter - and there was a strong possibility that he might ask Eska to handle some finer details about the woman's side of things - but he felt a responsibility to say something too.

He had asked her to come talk to him, knowing that she would probably be spending time with Romulus otherwise and that was most certainly not a conversation he wanted to have in front of the Armada boy. Maybe he should talk to him one on one about this though as well... But he already felt awkward enough trying to talk to his children about it. He lingered around the castle grounds, tending to a few things around the alpaca's fence line and walking the perimeter by the castle walls to see if there was anything to be worked on. He was mostly just keeping himself busy and waiting for Lilith to come find him, all while trying to decide what he should say and how much he wanted to talk to her about.

Ulric Adravendi

Her father asked her to come find her later in the evening. She’d been out and about with Romulus most of the day but they hadn’t done anything too strenuous. She was tired from walking but she wasn’t exhausted like the day Roman brought her home on his back. He wanted to see just her, so she left Romulus to his own devices and sought out her father. Roman was quickly becoming her best friend, and she had definitely spent more time with him than without him since he arrived.

Delicate silver paws carried her over the green grasses of the castle grounds, easily following her father’s trail. Dark tipped ears perked forward curiously as she found him pacing. ”Daddy,” she greeted him softly, a little grin playing on her features as she approached him. Roman had done her a lot of good, one of them being to brighten her spirits. She trotted closer, ivory tail swinging at her hips as she graced her father with a kiss to his cheek.

Lillith Adravendi

Ulric's ears perked at the sound of his daughter's voice and he turned to face her, the grin on her features immediately making him smile. The way having that boy around had had brought her so much happiness hadn't gone unnoticed and it was the main reason he had continued to let him stay indefinitely. As long as he lifted Lilith's spirits like this then Ulric could tolerate him. She reached up to kiss his creek and he grinned, his tail wagging gently. It seemed like she was in a particularly good mood and her affection made him melt. She had him wrapped around her paw and he made no efforts to hide that fact. He would gladly do anything for his children, but especially for Lilith.

"There you are, my darling," he rumbled, dipping his head to give her cheek a light kiss in return. "Come on, I wanted to talk to you about something." He led her a little ways away from the castle just to ensure that they would have some privacy, taking her to a hilltop just outside of the castle gates that overlooked the shore below. He had practiced what he had wanted to say over and over before she arrived, but it still felt awkward as he settled on his haunches and waited for her to join him. He gave her a shy grin and then looked out at the ocean while he tried to find a way to broach the subject.

"So... you and Romulus are getting along pretty well, huh?" he asked, lowering his silver gaze to look at her again. He kept a little smile on his lips, trying to show that he was doing his best to accept the idea of her and his boy spending time together. His protective streak was a strong one, but he wasn't blind to how much good he seemed to be doing her.

Ulric Adravendi

Ulric knew better than anyone how rare her affection was, but she was in very good spirits. She loved her father, he was her rock and the reason she was even alive right now. Every once in a while she felt like she really needed to show him how much she loved him, and her kisses were worth so much more because of it. He returned her affection and greeted her with a smile. She followed him without question and they wandered away from the castle, out into the open and away from prying ears.

She sat close by, her ivory tail curled around her dainty paws and she looked up at her father. Her garnet gaze on his own steel eyes, head tilted slightly out of curiosity as he got started. He mentioned her friendship with Romulus to start. Lillith wore her heart on her sleeve and the mention of the boy pulled the corners of her lips into a little smile. ”Yes,” she started sweetly. Roman mentioned Ulric trying to kill him a couple of times already and it was no secret the man was prickly at best towards her young friend. Lilith knew her father didn’t hate him though. ”I think he’s my best friend.” She added a little hesitantly. She wanted to always be open and honest with her dad though. Even if she wasn’t sure how he would feel about what she said.

Lillith Adravendi

Every time he saw her smile around Romulus or whenever he was mentioned it helped soften his heart toward the boy. He wanted to protect her and keep her safe, but he wanted her to be happy too. The boy hadn't yet done anything to make him dislike him and he made her happy. That's all he really needed. He smiled a little wider and chuckled when she mentioned how Romulus was her best friend. "Good... I'm glad you have a friend." He did try to remind himself that their relationship really could be something as sweet and innocent as a friendship, but he also knew a man's mind and how quickly a connection could go from a friendship to something more. He didn't want to corrupt her idea of him, but he didn't want her to be caught off guard either.

"I wanted to talk to you because... you're getting older now and... Well, if you might start wanting a relationship like I had with your mother and like I have now with Eska." He did his best to fight off his own awkwardness, giving her a little, shy smile. He had never thought about how this would be part of raising his children... Perhaps he had thought that their mother would be the one to have this conversation with his daughters, but that wasn't the plan that life had allowed him to follow through with. Now he needed to be both - even though he was sure Eska would have done it for him if he had asked. "I never want to discourage you from following your feelings and emotions, I just want you to be careful, okay? I'll be happy to be a grandfather, but not until you're really ready to be a mother... as long as that's something you want. I only want what you want, I just don't want you to rush into things like I have in the past."

Ulric Adravendi

Ulric grinned at her and only proved her suspicion from th beginning, he didn’t hate Romulus. In fact he said it was good she had a friend, which the girl completely agreed with. She liked to hang out and train with her brother or Artorias sometimes. That wasn’t all he wanted to say though, and mentioned her growing up now. Sometimes she felt like the little girl he guided through those difficult nights. She was glad to hear him admit she was reaching for adulthood, she would have stayed his little girl as long as she could though, especially to make up for the lost time from being sick. When she was ready to start a relationship that would lead to her having a family of her own.

Her ears burned red at the thought. Well she really wasn’t ready for anything right now, but she knew he wanted to warn her, to alert her of the mistakes that he had made in the past. He wanted what she wanted, but showed caution for rushing headlong into things. Lilith had a long way to recovery before she thought herself worthy of anything like her father talked about. This wasn’t actually the first time she had briefly thought of Romulus like that, but she hadn’t given it much more thought than passing glance. Now though. Her best friend more than just her best friend? Maybe.

”I’ll be careful, I promise.” She told him softly, still blushing a little but feeling better about their talk. ”I can barely get through a day taking care of myself, I don’t want to add babies for a long while.” Not until she was older and healthier.

Lillith Adravendi

Ulric smiled and gave her a pleased nod when she agreed to be careful. He didn't like that she felt like she had to be limited by her physical condition like this, but it was incredibly realistic of her and he was proud of her for acknowledging it. "Good," he agreed, leaning down to gently tap the top of her head with his nose. "You're going to make a great mother one day... but you have so much life ahead of you, there's no need to rush into it now." He knew there was still quite a while to go before she would even be fully grown and able to have her first heat, but... he'd rather be safe than sorry. Crazier things had happened and the last thing he wanted was her becoming a young mother before she was ready or putting her body through strain that it wouldn't be able to handle. She had grown by leaps and bounds over the last couple of seasons, but he still wasn't sure how well her recovering body would handle something as intense as a pregnancy.

His expression grew a little more serious as he added, "If Romulus ever makes you uncomfortable or pushing you into something you don't want, promise you'll tell me, okay? Its one thing if its something you really want, but let it be on your terms. You will always have my support and protection, no matter what." He gave her another smile as he looked down at her lovingly. He was beginning to accept that she was growing up and that she was nearly an adult in her own right, but in his heart she was still his little girl and he was convinced she always would be. "I'm really proud of you, Lil," he mentioned, his tail wagging gently and brushing through the grass. "You've been through so much and you're doing so well... It just makes me really happy to see you like this."

Ulric Adravendi

Lilith knew better than anyone how debilitating her illness had been and still was. She struggled through her life on her own, let alone with anyone else being reliant on her. Ulric assured her that one day she would make a great mother, not that she had a great role model to look up to. The bar was low, and almost anyone would make a better mom than Azariah. For now she wasn’t too worried, she wasn’t even a year and a half old yet. Her childhood was stolen from her and the girl remained sweet and innocent for now.

Ulric went on, reminding her of his unconditional love and support no matter what happened and especially if Romulus pressed her into something she didn’t want to do. She nodded and smiled up at him, silently promising that she would come to him. Lil knew her father would do anything in the world to make her life right. ”I promise.” She told him softly, hoping she’d never have to use this lifeline. Roman was her best friend; she couldn’t believe he would force her into anything she didn’t want.

Her father told her he was proud of her softly, he grinned and had that look in his eye. Lillith beamed up at him. She knew how much they had gone through to get her to this point. How many times did he wonder if she would even see the next day? He had ample reason to worry and fret over her, but someday she’d further prove she was a fighter, she’d beat her illness so he could stop worrying. ”I’m glad I make you happy, I’ll keep getting better.” She promised for him, for herself, and for her future children.

Lillith Adravendi