A stitch away from making it

A little smirk pulled across her lips when she saw how absolutely stunned he was just from a kiss on the cheek. She didn't really understand why it broke him so much, but it was really adorable either way. It was a good distraction from her own thoughts and it was much easier to just let herself focus on him instead of everything that had happened. For just a few moments at least she could just think about how fiercely he had fought for her and how cute he was when he got all flustered instead of thinking about the healing bite wound on her neck or the graves that were still fresh back in the Armada. She reluctantly let him go when he mentioned how she must be tired, offering her a room and food. He always thought of everything. He was such a good friend. As that thought crossed through her mind he looked back toward her and gently pressed his nose to hers for a moment, drawing all of her attention to his warm amber eyes, her heart doing a weird flutter in her chest. A smile pulled across her features at his reassurances that she would be safe here, and she had no doubt that he was right. Being around Artorias always made her feel safe.

She got up and started following him into the castle, walking shoulder to shoulder with him as they went. She gave him another smile at his sympathies and the offer to help with anything they might need. "Thank you. I... I think we're all good on that stuff for now." The stuff her family needed couldn't be given. Just time and acceptance, she guessed. She looked up toward the big doors that led into the castle and was quiet for a moment as they walked, but eventually she added, "It doesn't really seem real... Them being gone, I mean." Her ears flicked, a little frown pulling at her features. "I guess what almost bothers me more is that I wasn't really even that close to my mom or brother... At least not as close to them as I am with my dad or some of my other siblings." In truth she really hadn't spent a ton of time with any of her siblings since they got the freedom to roam the pack and the surrounding areas on her own with the exception of Kotori and now more recently with Asla. "And now... now I don't get the chance to, you know? Now they're gone." She didn't feel that emotional as she spoke, at least not as much as she felt she had been when she first arrived. She tried to tell herself that it was just because she had cried it all out on Artorias' shoulder, but really she knew it was because it just hadn't hurt her as bad as her father biting her had.

"Briar" | "Marigold"