It'd been wonderful to see Anthem's reaction to their parents arriving in Ludicael, Novella thought it was far more like his usual behaviour than the strange isolation he'd put himself in since Virgil and her family visited. Truth be told she wasn't sure if he had really wanted company or not after his operation, though she had longed to see his happy smiling face on the times she passed his den, dropping off food for him. She hoped today he'd be a little more bubbly, that the joy of seeing their parents again hasn't yet worn off. She hadn't caught him anything yet, her intention being to drag him out of the den today, whether he was moping around or not. Especially with more of the family back now, it was about time Anthem came back to them too. "Anthem" She called, voice as friendly as ever despite her determination, drawing to a stop outside his den, mismatched eyes peering through the entrance. "Come outside!"

It had been some time since Anthem had spoken to Novella. He had been depressed for so long, preferring to keep to himself and stay away from even his family -- but it seemed the sudden arrival of his parents had improved his mood considerably. More family was always good, and their presence helped him forget that Symphony had left him. He thought of her often; how could he not? She had cared for him so long, and he loved her and missed her with each passing day. The sound of his sister's voice would instantly bring a smile to his face. Slowly he drew himself onto all fours, his tail beginning to wave behind his frame. Though he had the body of a man, mentally he was anything but. Even his posture betrayed the childish state that his mind was stuck in, as he lowered his front end a bit to let his tail wave above his back, as though he would pounce at any moment. He didn't, though, instead merely slipping from his den to jump toward Novella, quickly licking the side of her face. "Sis," he greeted her happily, his smile growing wider.

To her bliss it seemed that it wouldn't take too much persuasion to get Anthem to emerge and better still the livelier manner in which he appeared and the large smile upon his face was simply wonderful to Novella. "Hello brother" She responded speaking the words affectionately as she returned his little lick with one of her own. This was her brother, Anthem certainly appeared to be back again and it only filled her with happiness to see his joyful, childlike nature had returned to him. She'd hated seeing him looking so miserable, it simply wasn't right. With most of her siblings she may have given a little more explanation as to why she was here, or at the very least made sure they had the time to spend with her but Anthem was content to simply follow the lead of any member of the family it seemed and didn't exactly have any responsibilities that might take priority within his life. "So, what do you want to do?" Novella questioned him, they could go exploring, play, go see anyone else in the family, she didn't really have any ambition beyond simply getting him outside and now the decision could be left up to him.

Though Anthem had been riddled with depression for many weeks now, he was a simple man and found it hard to dwell on much at all -- especially when distracted by his siblings. His smile was widen and anything but fake as he greeted her, tail whipping behind his lean frame happily. "Hi!" He spoke another greeting with glee, happy that someone had come to visit him. They always brought him food, and made sure he was well-fed and hydrated, but they did not always stay long -- and it had been some time since anyone had visited him for the sole reason of just spending time with him. He had even wondered briefly if they were mad at him, too, like the other wolves had been, but quickly he pushed those thoughts from his mind. He was always eager to follow his kin, and Novella was no exception. He bounded away from her with a playful gait, as though ready to go wherever she would lead him. But she gave him the final decision, and he cocked his head slightly to the side. "Hmmm," he started, musing aloud. "Can we go on adventure?" He didn't know where they might go, or what they would find, but anything would be exciting for Anthem so long as he was with his sister.

It'd been painful to see Anthem in his sorry state as of late, and though she'd played no part in the decision or the operation itself, Novella still couldn't help but feel a little guilty about the wave of depression that had somehow consumed her brother. Never had she seen him as sad or withdrawn as he had for that dark period of time, and it perhaps only made her feel worse that despite the treatment to Anthem that the arrival of the Olympus family had caused, she still wished to meet these mysterious new nieces and nephews. That urge had been kept under control though, and even easier task with the distraction of her parents arriving and of course now that Anthem was smiling again the thought could be pushed even further to the back of her mind. At her question, a thoughtful look crossed her brother's face as he considered his options. Likewise Novella had no care what they did, the reason she had given him the choice in the first place. She could have perhaps made some suggestions out loud for him to choose, though it seemed he had made up his mind without any prompting. He wanted an adventure. Her face broke into a smile as she gave a nod in response, whatever he wished. "Alright then Anthem. Shall we go this way or that way?" She would once more allow him to pick, though gesturing to the left and then to the right for her brother to decide which route they would take.

Anthem trusted his family fully, and would gladly follow the lead of any of them -- perhaps even his cousins and aunts and uncles that he might not know well, and even the younger children would easily influence the man. He was truly an open slate, easy to manipulate and to change, no different than a child; but this also kept him gentle and meek. He was easy to please, and quick to anger, though he was often sensitive and prone to growing upset. Even still, his company was simple, and even now he found his grin growing at the mere prospect of spending time with Novella, like it was the greatest thing he had ever experienced. He watched as she gestured to two different directions, giving him the option to chose whichever pleased him. He furrowed his brows, head cocking to the side as he weighed the options as though the decision truly mattered. To him, it was a highlight of this day, perhaps even his week or month -- and he didn't want to take it lightly. "This way," he told her surely, gesturing to the left with a flick of his head.

He may have been a child, though Novella would never dream on manipulating her poor brother into doing things, nor would she ever view him as a burden as some might suppose he was. No matter what he was like, Anthem was her brother and she certainly wasn't about to abandon him, ignore him or let him get himself into trouble, or rather get into any more trouble, just because he was a little bit different. In fact these days he was probably the brother she was closest to, not that she was left with much choice in giving away that title what with Howl and Legend being so distant and Story still not having shown himself in Alacritia. He would grow serious for a moment and Novella would simply watch him with a small smile as he glanced in different directions attempting to decipher which way they should go. It took a little time as he carefully considered his options though at last he pointed in one of the directions and announced they would go that way. "OK, let's go then." Novella agreed with a nod, her smile widening a little now as she brushed gently past her brother and moved off towards his chosen path. They could walk a little she decided before she'd let him pick another path if he wished. After walking a little way however the plan would change slightly as she caught sight of a stick further up the path. It was a fairly sturdy looking one, and one that was long enough that two wolves could comfortably hold onto. She'd scamper off ahead those few steps and pick up the stick, falling into a play bow, tail wavering in the air as she encouraged her brother to catch up. They could surely play some games on their little adventure as well.

made by nyx

So much had happened in the last few months -- yet he had not talked to anyone about it. Symphony had been his closest companion for so long, and he had not found it as easy to talk to other family members about things that confused and worried him. Symphony seemed to have a way of helping him understand, and even now he felt confused about everything. He couldn't help but let a bit of confusion ebb into his thoughts now, still feeling guilty for causing some kind of distress in his family, even though he didn't fully understand. Novella's presence was a welcome distraction from his somber thoughts, and he followed her gladly. She led the way, and he trailed close behind her, even leaning to nip lightly at the tip of her tail in a playful gesture. Things were easy with his family, and he was grateful for the fact that they never expected anything from him except for him to be himself. He watched with his gentle dandelion gaze as she loped forward to grab a stick, moving to grab the other side and tug on it with a bit of force. A playful growl left his lips, and his tail waved high above his back, encouraged by her invitation to play. But he released his grip a moment later, cocking his head as he suddenly was overcome with a thought. "'Ella," he began in a slightly strange tone. "You not mad at me? Right?"

Novella certainly wouldn't have expected anything else as Anthem moved forwards to accept her game, taking hold of the other end of the stick and quickly falling into play mode. Her tail continued to wag happily and a small playful growl left her as she gave a small tug back in response. To her surprise however Anthem would release the stick at that point, her initial thought, although he hadn't yelped, was perhaps she had hurt her brother somehow. Maybe the stick had cut his mouth or something as she had tugged and she would swiftly drop the stick, ready to examine whatever the problem was. To her surprise however Anthem would ask what she considered to be a rather ridiculous question, her expression would momentarily shift to one of shock as he spoke, hardly able to believe he was actually asking such a thing. Never could she be mad with Anthem, she wasn't often mad with her family but to hold such an emotion towards the most innocent of her siblings was completely impossible. Yes he had caused some trouble and she wished dearly that she could meet her nieces and nephews but never once would she be angry at him for it all, he didn't know what he was doing and she knew he certainly hadn't meant to cause any harm in that moment or in the long run. Stepping closer to close the distance she would nuzzle him comfortingly. "Of course I'm not mad at you." She confirmed for him. She wouldn't elaborate it wasn't needed, just a clear simple answer that she wasn't angry would be completely fine. Although she wondered why such a thought had entered his mind, she wouldn't ask, there was no use in diving into such things, it wouldn't change anything after all.

Even though his parents had returned, and most of his family was together again, he couldn't help but still feel strange. Anthem Destruction was still painfully aware he had made a mistake of some kind, and even though he didn't fully grasp the circumstances, he knew he had changed things somehow. Perhaps not with his family -- but somewhere, something was different now. Spending time with Novella was a welcome distraction from his confused thoughts, and he let a playful growl escape his throat. He missed playing, especially with his sister Symphony, who had always seemed to have time for his games. He missed her dearly, and wanted to meet her children. She would definitely let him play with them, right? He wanted to play with Song's children more too, but he hadn't built up the courage to ask yet. But playing seemed to slip from his mind as other thoughts overtook him. He often found it difficult to talk to his family about things that he felt, but this seemed important to him. Since the incident, no one had really talked to him about it -- he'd been so afraid and sorry that it seemed nobody needed to speak to him. Since then, he hadn't left Ludicael save for a few select times, and he had grown more withdrawn than usual, as though he knew he had done something wrong even without fully understanding. Anthem let loose a content sigh as she pulled close to him, returning the affection without hesitation. "I don't understand," he admitted softly. Part of him wanted to know more, to really get what he had done and why it had produced such drastic consequences. He was used to being okay with his confusion, but he had a nagging desire to really understand this. "That day, when everyone was here and the strangers were mad at me. What did I do?" His words were more fluid than normal, speaking slowly and deliberately. He didn't usually ask his siblings for help like this, though they always explained things when he needed him, but this just felt important to him.