What is real, what is fake

Artorias sat still and quiet while Briar tried to collect and sort through her thoughts and emotions enough to put them into a coherent sentence. She began to confide in him her feelings, or lack thereof, for her mother's sudden return from the dead. He pursed his lips while he tried to consider her position, though admittedly it was difficult for him. He'd been close to both of his mothers, and when Resin had died it felt like a part of him had been torn away too soon. From an outsider's perspective, Briar and Zee's relationship seemed weak at best and nonexistent any way else. He hadn't known what her home life was like, but now he felt like he was getting a glimpse behind the curtain to the Fatalis family dynamic. Zee and Briar had never really bonded or done things together as mother and daughter, it sounded like. Artorias' heart dropped for her; she never got that relationship a child should have with her parent. That was why she had been able to heal and move on from her mother's "death" readily. Her relationship with her father seemed miles stronger and he was clearly where her connection was.

As she leaned into him, Artorias lifted a paw to drape it around her shoulders, holding her close to him while very narrowly dodging an antler poke to the nose. He let her sit like that for as long as she needed, just resting her head on his shoulder while he listened to her spill her heart forth. Of how she had felt more sadness for her father's suffering than over her mother's death. Of how she didn't feel emotional or overcome with joy when she saw her mother was alive. But what broke Artorias' respectful silence was the moment Briar questioned if she'd done something wrong. "No," he said firmly yet compassionately. "No, you didn't do anything wrong, Briar. Your mother failed you by not taking the chances she had to be your mother when she could. That's never your fault. That's her doing, her choices, her consequences."

He squeezed Briar's shoulders gently with his foreleg, craning his neck to place tender kisses along her crown. This was the last thing Briar had needed. She was already coming back from a low point with her self-esteem, working through those confidence and self image issues, but now with her mother returning she was facing the doubts of why she and Zee didn't have any semblance of a real relationship. "I never knew what your family life was like, Briar. I hate to think you were neglected by your own mother. But none of it is your fault, and if she loves any of your siblings more, then she's a terrible parent." Artorias went quiet for another moment to let Briar digest his thoughts and process her own for a minute before asking, "What do you want to do? Do you want a second chance with your mother? Whatever you want, you know I'll back you up one hundred percent."

"Artorias Carpathius"