Thick skin and an elastic heart

He almost regretted having asked her, the woman obviously seemed like she was bothered by something. Had he asked the wrong questions? He watched her as she looked down, shrugging her shoulders just a bit. It wasn't often that he interacted with others, but when he did, he had the tendency to get invested in those that he saw potential in. How much would he invest in her, if at all? Sometimes these questions swam around in his head, but at the moment he couldn't quite say. He wasn't a leader anymore, so most of the time he just kind of went with the flow. She explained her predicament. And to him it seemed like she had a lot of self doubt. That was no good. Though he was guilty of doubting himself from time to time, he usually figured out some way to pull his head out of his ass and not worry too much about it. She seemed different though. Almost too sweet for her own good. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, not at all. But her self doubting was very much a problem. "I see..." He mused, mostly to himself. He would refrain from saying much else for the time being, deciding it was best to let her get things off her chest for the moment.

He remembered a time when he felt like her. He was young, barely just starting to get a feel for leading the pack he had called home after having left his birth pack. He of course, had self doubts back then. Fearing he wasn't good enough to lead, but with plenty of trial and error and earning the respect of those that followed (not once did he ever demand or expect it without working for it), he had grown to be a strong leader for a short time. He looked out over the water for a moment, practically side eyeing her now a little. Surely she had potential, though it was hard to tell at this moment...

He had listened to every word she said. Storing them away. Sometimes it didn't seem like it, but he remembered everything anyone had ever said to him. The little details were always what mattered, and whether or not he ever saw her again, he'd remember this night and the words exchanged. Especially her words. The words that suggested she was simply accepting that her life would revolve around her doubt. No, that wouldn't do at all. "I do have siblings...but there is only one I have connected with recently, and the others...I haven't seen since I left my birth pack many years ago." He returned his full attention to her, admiring the way the moon made her glow. It was still fascinating, he had to admit. "Elias is practically my counterpart. He's not perfect, far from it in fact. But the others...I can't say anymore. I haven't seen any of them for a long, long time. Whether they're alive or dead, whether they're the same as they were when we were together, or someone completely unrecognizable. Time after all, has a way of doing that. It changes us. We never truly remain the same, but we often like to think we do."

He shifted a little, the sand giving way just slightly beneath his heavy weight. He studied her. Almost as if he were trying to assess her. "And you? Do you think you've changed?"