I'm in hiding

To his surprise, Amalia was asked to stay and Vadim's tail gave a brief sway as she came back to his side; he tensed a little as she pressed against his injured side, though relaxed as he realized her touch was surprisingly gentle. He wasn't used to having so much comforting presence surrounding him. His father, his sister and now even Ama surrounded him and cuddled into his fur. He relaxed beneath their love and listened as his father began to talk to him again.

His father was.. apologizing? He'd never resented the man, he'd known his father had been busy. Vadim's ears drooped again as his lips contorted into a slight frown, shaking his skull lightly. "There's nothing to be sorry for. It's fine. We all knew that if we needed you, you'd be there. That's more than we can say for mother, not that I even hold that against her." Sure, at times there was an anger that festered in his heart when he thought of how alone he was, but he was growing and beginning to understand just how self-destructive it was to hold that sort of resentment against their parents. Ramsay had helped him come to that realization as he watched how the anger changed his once loving brother. Himself? He'd found an outlet for those ill feelings and used them to make a positive force: hunting. He was an amateur now, but already he'd discovered that working his body and enjoying a feast did wonders for clearing his head!

Still, it felt good to know that his father put thought into it.. and even felt some remorse over it, it helped the child know that he'd not been completely forgotten, but he wouldn't allow his father to hold regrets. With enough courage, he managed to flash a gentle smile up toward his father in an effort to show him that everything was really okay between them. When he asked about Ivalice, Vadim looked to Ash again and shook his head. "No, it's not Ivalice.. it's.. complicated." He liked the pack well enough. He didn't feel any real attachment toward it, but he had enjoyed the fighting lesson Avalon provided, no matter how brief, and the angel that comforted him when he'd eaten too many bugs wasn't bad either. It wasn't their fault he felt like such an outsider. He wasn't even sure why that was, but it was slightly amusing to think about at the moment.. he didn't feel it at all right now. He was peachy right here surrounded by his wise father, fun sister, and loving Amalia.

When his father changed his attention to Amalia, he took the time to answer Ash's whisper and gave her a nod, reassuring her that he would be okay. He gave her a smile as well before he felt Ama tense up and bury her face into his fur. His chest was still bruised and sore, but he ignored it and instead laid his fluffy neck down on top of her's gently in hopes to provide some sort of comfort. It was the last he could do, after all that she'd done for him!

He lifted his head from Amalia as he felt her begin to pull away and perked his left ear to listen to her pay attention to her words, his heart sinking as he realized that she'd lost her sister. He couldn't imagine, and his eyes drifted to Ash at the thought- it put it into perspective for him a little better. What if he lost her? What if she'd lost him, and he'd caused her the same grief that Amalia here carried? He pulled his stare away from her to look back to Amalia, who was already forcing a giggle and flashing a smile. He could feel her tension still, but her face remained pleasant despite how she felt on the inside. Something about that control over her emotions admired him, and he found himself smiling as well.

She changed the subject to Ash, asking his sister what she aspired to be and Vadim couldn't help but wag his tail. He was interested now, too! What did his sister want to be? "A fighter? An adventurer? A trader?" He honestly had no idea, but as he guessed he pictured fun scenarios of the two of them out on the road scrapping bandits and stealing their spoils. Aahh, but his sister was so pretty. Surely, she wouldn't be a fighter and risk messing that all up? "Perhaps, a healer? Like Ama?" Eagerly, both of his ears perked as he waited for his sister's words.