Rule #1

He sat down as Idalia's initial response seemed to be one of surprise. He couldn't blame her what with everything going on, he was sure. And to no surprise there was more going on then he thought. His brother wasn't the only one missing, though that seemed to be a common thing...hell, when he was a kid the alpha of Abaven had fucked off to look for his siblings but he never came back. He listened attentively to her complaints, nodding in understanding as she disclosed what bothered her. He had gone through that period, too. And it seemed many did. "I'm sorry things happened the way they did. And between you and me, it's not the first time my brother has...fucked off." It was an interesting albeit understanding choice of word that his niece had used. "When he was an alpha, he left. And he didn't just leave behind a pack, but he also left behind two young children. It's a shame he did it again...I had hoped he would stay this time but," He shrugged his shoulders, "Sometimes things don't go the way we hope."

He breathed in a sigh as he wondered if she'd understand that this was just the way the world was sometimes. "Sometimes things happen that are beyond our control, and the best thing to do is to move forward. If we always stay stuck and dwell on the things we can't change or have no control over, then it makes us stand still in a sense. Sure our uncles mate left, and I'm sure he's hurting over it just like you and me and your brother, and even your mom are hurting about Tyranis leaving. Everyone deals with things differently. I can't speak for your mom and brother about how they're handling it, but I can tell you the way I handle it. I get up, and I keep going. I hunt because it's what I'm good at. But I do admit after my mother died, I lost the drive to do it. It took me a while to find myself again because I loved my mother, but nothing I do is going to bring her back. My brother may not be dead, and as much as I wish I'd like to find him, it would be like going on a wild goose chase. I'm sure he misses you, too. And whatever took him away well...we don't know."

He didn't know if he was saying the right things or not. And honestly, this was perhaps the most he had spoken to anyone that wasn't his brother. When did he become this person? It wasn't a bad thing...though perhaps his experiences in life made him wiser to the facts. He would suggest to her to see how her mother and brother were handling it, but he'd let her figure that out herself. For now, the least he could do was help her focus on something else and channel her energy there. He was curious as to what he thought about what he'd said, but he wouldn't press her to answer if she didn't want to. "When you're ready, tell me what you'd like to focus on. What you'd like to learn." He figured the best approach to learning was letting them decide what they wanted to know.