In The Darkness, You Are The Light I Need

Of course it was impossible to miss the shift in the young woman's expression at the mention of her family and it pulled a more concerned expression onto Zuriel's face. She was glad to hear that Andromeda at least had been doing well and smiled at the mention of a new friend named Isa. Sometimes a friend was truly what one needed at the end of the day and it sounded like the purple-hued girl at least had that. She listened with her foreleg still around the girl's shoulders as Andromeda went on, speaking about her difficult father and his perception of his daughter's new friend. Her head tipped slightly at the thought, but she didn't interrupt, only nodding quietly as Andy insisted that she wasn't trying to replace her mother with this new figure in her life. She smiled softly when Andromeda looked up at her as if looking for answers and she gave the horned girl a gentle, if vague, squeeze around her shoulders.

"It sounds like your father loved your mother very much and that losing her has been particularly difficult on him," she said as she rubbed Andy's shoulder gently. "I know you're not trying to replace your mother and it's good that you've found a friend, but I can also understand your father's concerns–even if he isn't showing it in the best ways. He wants to cling to your mother for as long as he can and seeing you beginning to find joy on your own is hard. Give him some time, but don't feel as if you're in the wrong, okay?" She sighed softly with a wistful smile as she let her foreleg slip away from Andromeda's shoulders, glancing down at the ground as she added, "Love is messy and hard... I understand how difficult it is to move on and my first love ended on far from good terms."

Her gaze was distant for a moment as if she was lost in thought, her memories pulling her back to Elias and the escape she made when he was at his worst, but she quickly pulled herself back with a shake of her head. Refocusing her two-toned gaze on Andromeda's she gave the girl another warm smile. "Tell me more about Isa. It sounds like she means a lot to you already. How did you meet her?"

"Speech"