Take Two

Artorias accepted his request for privacy graciously, leading him out from the castle hall and into the adjoining gardens. Azure spared a glance across the sights as they strode out onto the terrace, both assuring himself that no others were present, and appreciating the well-kept landscape as much as a wolf like himself could manage.

The Aegis' pleasant mask dropped as swiftly as he spun on him, and Azure bore the contemptuous stare with his chin high. "I don't wish to dance circles around it, I'm sure by now my mate's comment during your ceremony has gotten back to you in some form or another." He paused briefly, enough only to read the understanding upon the other man's face and acknowledge it with a brief nod. "I don't know you as well as I'd like, and surely you don't know me, though I'm sure you're aware I'm not the sort to grovel. I won't beg your understanding or approval, though I do feel it necessary to offer an explanation for my mate's less-than-dignified words. They were not meant for ears other than my own, nor to cause pain to my sister." Azure's gaze did not waver from the Aegis' own, a hint of steel hardening his tone and fire lighting in his eyes as he continued. "I assure you, had that been her intention I would have remedied it. I don't take kindly to those who mean to do harm to my family." A wolf who hardly knew him might assume he was offering platitudes and empty assurances, but there was a cold honesty rooted deep in his words. Not even his beloved Hana could escape his wrath should he have considered her words disrespectful, and it would not have been the first time he had shoved her muzzle into the dirt beneath his paw.

"Though against her intention, I see that her words have managed to accomplish harm. I'd like to apologize on her behalf to both you and your bride. I would require an apology from her as well, though it appears she might need a refresher on diplomacy and grace before I trust her with such a task again." Azure inclined his head with careful courtesy, the largest gesture of apology and respect he was capable of toward someone he hardly knew. "Hanako was born and bred a slave. For her formative seasons she lived under the assumption that she'd one day be purchased, mated, forced to conceive pups for some high lord. While she would never admit it - and likely does not even realize it - much of what she says and does is out of insecurity, desire for approval, for love. She is broken at her core, and perhaps much of the fault is my own. Belonging to me has not been easy on her, I'm not as easy to love as the majority of my family might be." A thin grimace spread briefly across Azure's maw, his gaze flickering off the other man's to mildly observe instead the greenery around them. He allowed the admittance to land and hang in the air for as long as he could manage, a touch of pain in his tone as he continued onward with his offered explanation.

"I think she's realized that I do not intend to give her the wedding she dreams of, perhaps felt some of my own lingering bitterness towards your own and assumed it was toward the spectacle itself. Whatever the cause, her words were meant to be a jab at me. She's perhaps the only wolf in the world who I would allow to push me, and yet she still hides her requests in a playful dance of humor, I can only assume to avoid the rejection should I shut her down." Returning his eyes to Artorias, Azure did his best to keep the composure he'd started the conversation with. Deep, personal conversations were not his forte. Discussing something so tender and close to home was painful at best and agonizing at worst, and already he could feel the familiar heat in his veins as his discomfort spiked his fight-or-flight instincts.

"I know you might want to defend your bride and believe me, I understand the inclination. However Briar has lived side by side with Hana since the day she was born. There is not a wolf in the Armada who does not know of Hana's pride, although they may not understand the root of her issues. It's difficult to excuse her - ahm - beauty comparison without waving a paw and saying 'that's just Hana', but it truly is. It's not out of malice, nor hate, nor cruelty. Putting it simply, she likes compliments, and I don't give her nearly enough unprompted. She's quite adept at encouraging them out of me, in her own twisted and insecure way. As she's come to terms with her freedom, Hana's need for validation and attention has only grown. The blame again is partially on me, for spoiling her as I do and encouraging her to reach for her station. I fear if I should stop, that her insecurity might drag her back down into the mindset of a slave." Memories of the Long Night flooded back to him and he swallowed, acutely aware of the darkness that swelled around them and his own lingering mental wounds. He would bear the consequences of his confrontation with the cloaked figure for the rest of his days, but even still, Hana had suffered more. "I hope you can take a step back from the perceived slight against you and yours, and open your eyes to try and understand not just a broken individual, but one who is as near to family to you, as you are to me."  With that, Azure's jaws fell gently shut, silently acknowledging the Aegis' turn to speak, and awaiting his judgment.

"Speech"